God’s Love

“Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness.”

—Lamentations 3:22–23

Don’t you love consistency?  Consistency means something or someone is the always the same . . . constant . . . and, they never fail.  Consistency is . . . a cup of coffee from your favorite baristas that always tastes the same . . . your haircut looks like you didn’t get one . . . knowing that when you put your key in the ignition, your car will start.  That’s consistency . . . having the confidence that things will always be the same and will never fail.

Sadly, our lives are full of change and inconsistency.  We usually spend more time in the valley than on the mountaintop.  Our dreams are often replaced with nightmares.  And, our fairy tales lives don’t end up living happily ever after.

God knows that each day has it’s own supply of evil. (Matt 6:34)   Yet, He gives us hope, grace and a love that never fails. (Lam 3:23).  His passion for us is evidenced in His presence with us.   The prophet Zephaniah writes, “The LORD your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness; He will quiet you by his love; He will exult over you with loud singing.” (Zeph 3:17)

His Love Is Experienced.  This is a simple truth that we often set aside.  One of the most familiar verses in scripture tells of God expressing His love and of our experiencing His love.  The Message records, “This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, His one and only Son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in Him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life. God didn’t go to all the trouble of sending his Son merely to point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was. He came to help, to put the world right again. Anyone who trusts in Him is acquitted”. (John 3:16-18)  This is how much God loves us.

His Love Is Encouraging.  God’s love lifts us up when we have fallen.  His love assures us when we are unsure.  His love gives us a glimmer of light in gripping darkness.  Jerry Bridges writes, “God’s unfailing love for us is an objective fact affirmed over and over in the Scriptures. It is true whether we believe it or not. Our doubts do not destroy God’s love, nor does our faith create it. It originates in the very nature of God, who is love, and it flows to us through our union with His beloved Son.”  Jesus promises to never leave and to never give up.  (Heb 13:5)

His Love Is Eternal.  Sarah Young writes, “Ponder the awesome mystery of a Love that encompasses you from before birth to beyond the grave.”  The prophet Jeremiah writes, “The Lord appeared to us in the past, saying: ‘I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with lovingkindness.'”  (Jer 31:3). The depths of God’s love flows out of the depths of eternity.  He knew us before we were born.  Paul reminds us that nothing can “drive a wedge” or separated us from God’s love, “For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Rom 8:38-39)

Experience His love today . . . be encouraged by His caring compassion . . . and, rest in His everlasting arms.

“Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time He may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on Him, because He LOVES [cares] for you.” (1 Peter 5:6-7)