I know we’ve all heard people profess to really love pizza. Perhaps someone else absolutely loves to watch football. And then there are always those who really, absolutely love to eat pizza while watching football. Others love to read or do quilting or go fishing. But is love the right word to express what they’re feeling? Perhaps “enjoy” or “take pleasure in” are actually better choices.
Valentine’s Day will be here before we know it and it’s traditionally a day to declare our true feelings to the ones we love. If you’re really serious about loving them (even more than you “love” football or fishing), you might choose a card with an appropriate sentiment, maybe give a bouquet of flowers or a box of candy, or perhaps make those reservations for a special dinner. Find a way to step outside the box. Let the one you love know how you feel about them.
God chose the word love to describe His feelings toward us and He went way outside the box. Of all the words He could have chosen, He had no better one to use. “Enjoy” or “take pleasure in” wouldn’t work. He wanted us to know His heart.
Love always involves action, an outward display of what is in your heart. And that’s the way it was with God. John 3:16 is perhaps the quintessential verse expressing God’s love for us—“For God so loved the world that He gave His only Begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life”. He loved and He expressed His love by giving.
It’s a good thing when we like the person we love, but it doesn’t always happen that way. You may have family members who absolutely drive you up the wall, but you love them dearly anyway. Perhaps you’d even die for them. Perhaps.
That describes God’s feelings towards us, but without the waffling. He loves each of us even though He doesn’t like the choices we’ve made that separate us from Him. In spite of or more accurately because of this broken relationship, He gave the best of what He had, His only Son. He gave Him to die for us. It’s easy to say “I love you”, but actions speak louder than words.
And why did God send His Son to declare His love? It was His mercy and great love that provided a way for us to have eternal life with Him (Ephesians 2:4). He sent Jesus to pay the price of sin in our lives. He had mercy on us, meaning we’re not getting something we deserve—death and eternal separation from the One who loves us.
Because of God’s mercy we also receive His grace, a gift we don’t deserve. Ephesians 2:5 explains that it is by grace we are saved from perishing. We are made alive because of Christ, the Father’s gift of love. We’re reminded in 1 John 3:1 to “see how great a love the Father has bestowed upon us, that we should be called children of God; and such we are.”
Many people view God as the unforgiving judge ready to punish any and all who displease Him. In reality, God’s great gifts of mercy and grace provide a way to escape judgment and receive His love.
So how do you know if someone loves you? Watch them. Pay attention to what they do. If they truly love you they’ll show it. “And God demonstrated His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8).