God So Loved The World

GOD SO LOVED THE WORLD THAT HE GAVE HIS ONE AND ONLY SON, THAT WHOEVER BELIEVES IN HIM SHALL NOT PERISH BUT HAVE ETERNAL LIFE. John 3.16.

The golden thread that is woven through and through the Bible is ‘THE ETERNAL LOVE OF GOD FOR YOU AND ME!’ The broken chord in the Bible is ‘OUR NEVER-ENDING SELFISHNESS AND SIN!’

I was going to write that the Bible begins with man’s sin and it continues with God’s response in love to save us through Jesus Christ His Son. But that would have been like putting the cart before the horse. For the Bible begins with God’s love: “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth” for man as his domain (Gen 1.1).

This is how God Almighty first revealed Himself to Moses, “He passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, "The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin” (Ex 34.6,7).

Nehemiah prayed to God, “You are a forgiving God, gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love” (Neh 9.17)

King David praised God by saying, “You are forgiving and good, O Lord, abounding in love to all who call to you. ..But you, O Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness” (Psa 86.5,15).

In that wonderful psalm, David describes God thus, “The LORD is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor his anger forever; he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. As a father has compassion on his children, so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him” (Psa 103.8-13).

The climax of God’s love is expressed in those beautiful words from the mouth of our dear Saviour and Lord Jesus Christ, “God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life”.

The more you and I are confronted with the problem of our sin and selfishness, we should dwell on the delivering power of the love of God through Jesus Christ. It should be the constant theme of our meditation day by day here on earth and our continuous refrain in heaven.

Pray and practise with me: Dear Lord, forever, I will thank You for Your great love that made You send Your Only Son Jesus Christ to die on the cross for my sin and grant me life eternal. Amen.