The God Kind of Love

I listened to a sermon by Pastor Judah Smith today called “Wasted Love.” I found it really interesting to look at the way God loves us. Remember that God has foreknowledge, so He knows who is going to serve Him and who is not. He knows who is going to let him down. Yet in all cases, He healed everyone who was afflicted. He did not consider whether it was worth His time to heal them, He just did it. What a picture of true, unconditional, agape love. That is the God kind of love that we are supposed to have for each other. But do we love each other like that in reality? Or do we ask ourselves if the other person “deserves” it?

In the scriptures there is a recurring theme of Jesus including everyone. He challenged a culture that excluded women, sinners, adulterers. As I was listening to this sermon, I thought about just how amazing and unconditional God’s love is for us. It’s not based on our performance, our worthiness, our potential. Regardless of what we do, He…just…loves…us. As Christians, we are called to love others in the same way. God doesn’t inflict our past on us. He simply loves us today. Right now.  

A popular portion of scripture that encapsulates God’s love is 1 Corinthians 13. It is often quoted at weddings when it is so easy to love because the infatuation of a new relationship makes it easy. The real test comes after years of marriage. When we look at 1 Corinthians 13 and compare it to our relationships, it seems almost impossible to love like this: “Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud 5 or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. 6 It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. 7 Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance…three things will last forever—faith, hope, and love—and the greatest of these is love.”  

We live in a culture that loves those who deserve it. We love those who are good to us. When we are hurt deeply by those we trusted, we find ourselves unable to forgive. We hold onto the hurt and justify our anger. When someone mistreats us, we don’t give them another chance. They don’t deserve our love. Is this the extravagant, limitless love of God?  

I understand the extreme pain and deep hurt of betrayal. But I also understand the tremendous healing power of God’s love. The power of forgiveness is amazing. We cannot forgive on our own, but God gives us the ability to forgive when we have been deeply hurt. This is the only way to truly be healed and release the poison of the circumstance. We don’t know how to love until we understand God’s love. When you see people through the eyes of God, you can’t help but to love them no matter what. This is a deeper love than I have ever known. It never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance. There is tremendous power and strength in that.

Life is full of disappointment, betrayal, hurt, severed relationships. But God’s love still works. Once we understand the depth of love that God has for us, we are empowered to love others like that. This kind of love is amazing. It is unconquerable. Once you experience this type of love, you will never be the same. When you love someone with God’s love, it is never wasted. One of my favorite scriptures is 1 Peter 4:8: “Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins.”