God is Love

   You were born to love and be loved. Did you know that?

   Your purpose in life goes far beyond earning a living, taking care of your family, or just making it from day to day. You were created by God to have a fulfilling, one-on-one relationship with Him and to share this love with others. In a complex world, filled with emotional pain and complicated social problems, this purpose statement may sound simplistic, but it is not.

   …A lawyer and Jesus Christ once had a very important conversation: “’Teacher,’ [the lawyer asked], ‘which is the great commandment in the Law?’

“And He said to him, “’ You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the great and foremost commandment. And a second is like it, “you shall love your neighbor as yourself.” On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets”’ (Matthew 22:36-40).

   …From the moment of your conception, and even before that, God loved you. (Ephesians 1:3-6, Psalm 139:15-16).

   …God’s goal for your life is that you come to know him as the one, true God. Through knowing God, you come to worship and serve Him, praising and honoring the Lover of your soul with your words and with your life. God did not have to make you; He does not ‘need’ you in the way that you need food or water or companionship. God is complete and lacks nothing, but He chose to create You. He chose to bring you into being as a person to receive His divine affection and to give affection back to Him. To God, this fellowship means everything.

   …Agape love is the perfect, consuming, unfathomable, unconditional love of God. It is completely unselfish, forgiving, and dedicated to your complete welfare. On your own, you cannot generate or experience agape love; it only can come from God. If you try to think of the most generous or benevolent act a human being could perform, even that does not compare with the magnitude of God’s eternal, unshakable love for you. Jeremiah 31:3

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. (Hebrews 13:8). His love is therefore unalterable.

The Spiritual Foundations Series, The Love of God by Dr. Charles Stanley