Romans 5:8
Man has had knowledge of God from the beginning of time. Paul said, “For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made…” (Romans 1:20). All one must do is look around and they will see the handiwork of God, knowing that He is real simply by the things that are made.
Though we know there is a God by the wonders of the universe, the beauty of nature and the rising of the sun, none of these marvels teach us about God’s love. Could God not have created all of these things for His own pleasure, us included, and have no love or concern for us whatsoever? Of course the possibility must exist that everything is what it is only for God’s joy, and He does nothing and has done nothing to intervene or interfere with mankind, because He just doesn’t care.
Before you cry “Blasphemy!”, can you find God’s love in the tide, or the moon, or the stars? The honest answer is “No”. No one can prove to another that God is love based upon creation, for creation is fallen, and thus it fades away. God needed a way to show man that he loved him unconditionally, and using the things of the natural would never work. God would need to do something supernatural to prove His love.
“But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). The word ‘commendeth’ is ‘sunestame’ in Greek and it means “to show or exhibit”. The cross of Christ was God showing off or exhibiting His love to sinful man. By living a perfect and spotless life, Jesus showed man what God looked like, but then gave up His life for sinful man, to show man what God loved like. Nothing else could prove with such power that God was passionate about man, but the sacrifice of His own Son would stand for time and eternity as the ultimate price being paid.
It would be one thing if Christ died for the godly and the moral; we might understand how He was trying to “help those that help themselves”. It is another thing altogether to think that Christ died for the ungodly and for sinners. Paul said, “To him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness” (Romans 4:5). God’s awesome love made righteousness available to the ungodly, not through them cleaning up their life, but simply by faith. This is a love that is beyond words, for it discounts man’s ability to attain or achieve it and it rewards him anyway.
If you ever doubt God’s love for you, just remind yourself how much God loved Jesus and realize that He killed Him so that you would not have to die spiritually. If that isn’t love, then there is no love at all.
Man has had knowledge of God from the beginning of time. Paul said, “For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made…” (Romans 1:20). All one must do is look around and they will see the handiwork of God, knowing that He is real simply by the things that are made.
Though we know there is a God by the wonders of the universe, the beauty of nature and the rising of the sun, none of these marvels teach us about God’s love. Could God not have created all of these things for His own pleasure, us included, and have no love or concern for us whatsoever? Of course the possibility must exist that everything is what it is only for God’s joy, and He does nothing and has done nothing to intervene or interfere with mankind, because He just doesn’t care.
Before you cry “Blasphemy!”, can you find God’s love in the tide, or the moon, or the stars? The honest answer is “No”. No one can prove to another that God is love based upon creation, for creation is fallen, and thus it fades away. God needed a way to show man that he loved him unconditionally, and using the things of the natural would never work. God would need to do something supernatural to prove His love.
“But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). The word ‘commendeth’ is ‘sunestame’ in Greek and it means “to show or exhibit”. The cross of Christ was God showing off or exhibiting His love to sinful man. By living a perfect and spotless life, Jesus showed man what God looked like, but then gave up His life for sinful man, to show man what God loved like. Nothing else could prove with such power that God was passionate about man, but the sacrifice of His own Son would stand for time and eternity as the ultimate price being paid.
It would be one thing if Christ died for the godly and the moral; we might understand how He was trying to “help those that help themselves”. It is another thing altogether to think that Christ died for the ungodly and for sinners. Paul said, “To him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness” (Romans 4:5). God’s awesome love made righteousness available to the ungodly, not through them cleaning up their life, but simply by faith. This is a love that is beyond words, for it discounts man’s ability to attain or achieve it and it rewards him anyway.
If you ever doubt God’s love for you, just remind yourself how much God loved Jesus and realize that He killed Him so that you would not have to die spiritually. If that isn’t love, then there is no love at all.
