“Why does God love man?”

Sunday, October 30, 2016

Why does God love man?

Allow me to start this article by pointing out that God’s love is universal. God loves the whole world, and Christ came for everyone (John 3:16). This is very important for us to understand. When we focus on the “all,” we are forced to think about the “kinds” of people that includes. Since God loves the world, that means He loves everyone, no matter who they are.

We all know that terrible crimes take place in this world. Nothing sickens me more than hearing about human trafficking. Children are abducted and forced into all sorts of immoral activities. Moreover, there are senseless killings daily. Sadly, the list goes on (Gal. 5:19-21).

If God knows about the terrible things that happen on the earthy, why does He still love everyone? Before we answer this, we should consider the issue from a few perspectives. How would you look at someone who brutally hurt a loved one of yours? Would it not be hard to look at this person without seeing only the evil? Yet our God loves each and every person in this world, no matter what they have done. So again, why does He love us all?

Wrong reasons God loves everyone

God does not see their sins. This is not true. We are told that God sent His Son for the ungodly (Rom. 5:6-8).  Sin is what separates us from our Father (Isa. 59:1-2). Our transgressions have immediate consequences (Rom. 6:23). Our Creator sees the sins of this world and has done so since the beginning (Gen. 5:5). This false concept causes people to misunderstand God’s love.

God does not see sin as being “that bad”.  It is ludicrous to think that God would minimize the severity of sin in order to love us. How many would send their sinless, only son to die for the ungodly (Heb. 9:28). Our Father did it because there was a high price to be paid for sin, and we could not do for ourselves.

God is a God of love and not wrath. Some people think that our Father cannot be a God of love and wrath at the same time. We are told He is love (I John 4:8). We should also consider Paul’s warning: “Because of these things the wrath of God is coming upon the sons of disobedience,” (Col. 3:6). God loves all of mankind, but we will also be held accountable for our sins.

Proper reasons God loves everyone

We are His creation. In the beginning God made everything, including man (Gen. 2:7, 21-22). When He created man, it was good (Gen. 1:31). Man was not born sin-stained – that happened when man decided to break God’s law (Rom. 5:12). We are fearfully and wonderfully made because God made us (Psa. 139:14).

We were created in His image.  Our bodies are amazingly complex, but it is even more impressive that we have souls. Our God is Spirit (John 4:24). Because we were created in His image (Gen. 1:26), we have the same spirit-like quality, meaning we each have a soul (Matt. 10:28). Our God knows the true value of souls. Jesus taught that a soul is worth more than all the wealth in the world (Matt. 16:26).

We all possess the ability to love Him in return. God expects us to love Him because He loved us first. This would not be a logical expectation if we were not capable of doing it (I John 4:19). Learning about our God and Creator will motivate us to love Him. Most people will not do this, but it does not mean they lack the ability.

Let us not ever be mistaken – God loves everyone. However, that love does not overlook transgression. Let’s love God and serve Him.

                                                                                               Chuck

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