God is known by many names like Abba Father, Jesus, Lord, Almighty, Divine, Creator and more.
Bible shades God with a new name, Love.
Living our lives to experience our Creator as a God of love is to embrace in His presence and absorb our minds and spirit with His divinity.
Understanding “God Of love”
Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. (1 John 4:8)
Love as an emotion first came from God.
It was God’s love for us humanity that He made us in His image and likeness and made us to rule over all His creations.
God’s love is clearly demonstrated to us when God gave Jesus, His only begotten son as a sacrifice to us humanity in atonement for our sins so that we be saved.
Jesus death and sacrifice on the Cross for us exemplifies to us a God of love.
In the Bible we read of the many times when the human race had gone against the will of God and even believed in a false God, making God angry and He wanted to punish the humanity but each time God had mercy on us and forgive the human race to rebuild again the relationship between God and humanity.
We see in…
100 Bible Verses about God Will Destroy Earth By Fire
The above is a proof of God of love when in relation with humanity.
And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. 1 John 4:16
The above words speaks of the nature of God that is love.
God’s love can be glimpsed in the Old Testament in the Holy Bible through Covenants with figures like Abraham, Moses and David.
And the ultimate Covenant of God’s love at the Mount Calvary where God of love, Jesus was crucified and Himself chose to die in ransom for our sins.
We see the evolution of the understanding of divine love from the Old Testament to the New Testament.
Jesus truly a God Of love
Jesus, God in the Holy trinity, talks, feels, smells, heard and everything about Him is love truly a God of love.
The parables spoken of Jesus is of love and forgiveness.
Forgiveness can happen only if the root is love.
The parables…
The story of the prodigal son is a picture of God’s love for us as His children. God’s love for us does not depend on our faithfulness; it is unconditional. He loved us while we were still sinners. Though we are demanding and do not remain faithful, God is still our faithful and loving Father. When we come to repent of our sins, He is willing to forgive us and welcomes us with open arms.
The Parable of the lost sheep and the coin
The Lost Sheep — speaks of the love of God the SON, (the Good Shepherd)
Just as the good shepherd will risk His own life to save the sheep from the wolves, so did Jesus, God of love and His love for us was the reason He died on the Cross for us.
The Lost Coin — speaks of the love of GOD, the HOLY SPIRIT
Again when a sinner comes back to God as was lost and now found will be rejoiced in heaven as God love was unconditional towards him and his sinful deeds.
It also shows how much God seeks humans to be saved to be with him.
Jesus’ various healing of the blind, the evil possessed, the lame, the bringing back to life of Lazarus, the twelve year old Jairus’ daughter being raised from death and the twelve year constant bleeding woman suffering and being healed are testimonies of a God of love, Jesus.
Though a few were stories of their faith that healed them, but why is not the love of God seen in all the healing as it only shows God’s love for the humanity.
Jesus, left the heavenly comforts to come to earth, live, heal, sacrifice and save us.
All he did for His unconditional love for us.
Jesus healing is just not to show the glory of God but also it showcases His love and mercy for us sinners.
Jesus in the Bible, His ministry, healing and preaching is a sign of God’s love for us humans.His love is not just complete in display once He sacrifices Himself for us on the cross.
It continues forever when he resurrects for us, showing us our resurrection also will be there as He has resurrected.
Its Jesus love for us that He wants us to be with Him in eternity.
Truly a God of love.
God Of love And The Human Sufferings
One thing that has perplexed humanity to question from time innumerable is why a God permits so much suffering on earth?
Is it that after God had made us in His image and likeness, we chose to disobey God (Adam and Eve) making us break that spiritual umbilical cord that we had with God at the beginning.
We now chose our freewill and as living on earth, we had our lives mixed with the doings of the evil one.
But the disobedience of the first human beings is also why we have an earth.
Also in the Bible we encounter how the holy and pious also had to suffer.
The story of Job tells us of how he being closer to God still went through the worst but the only difference was in his response of trust and hope in a God of Love, he surely even in his hardships and trials trusted in God’s love.
Jesus the son of God lived to suffer and die and be resurrected.
Reading from the bible can be highly inspiring and answering to this quest is about the death of Lazarus and how he was raised back to life after four days by Jesus.
Martha and Mary, sisters of Lazarus were in suffering and despair when their brother was sick and had send a message to Jesus of his state and how Jesus arrives four days after his death.
We can relate from their suffering though they were close to the lord as Jesus had wept seeing them in pain and suffering.
But there is hope in the end when Lazarus is raised back to life by Jesus.
Inspiring and hopeful are the words of Jesus to Martha
“I am the resurrection and the life”
It’s like there is hope, a light at the end of the tunnel, this life and its sufferings.
Why the suffering? Will always remain, it’s now what should we do should be our living.
Trusting in the God of love is to know that his love is forever and He will help us swim this tide, should be our response.
We read of the journey of the Israelites in the wilderness, still to reach the Promised Land and how each day as they suffered there were a few who had lost hope in God and had also complained rather accused God for their state.
Still God provided them all that they needed and was merciful and forgiving towards their ungratefulness and had them reach the Promised Land.
Our life journey also is like them, we on earth are in wilderness and are suffering, we should not be complaining like the Israelites in their journey, but we should keep our hope in the mercy and love of God and know there is a Promised Land for us all awaiting with Jesus, a God Of love.
The Guidance of the Holy Spirit in Understanding God as a God of Love
To feel and experience the presence and comfort of God’s love requires spiritual enlightenment in our lives.
Jesus promised us a Helper in the Holy Spirit.
Holy Spirit the advocate, guides us to understand that God is love, in varied spiritual awakening ways,
- Revealing God’s Nature
The Holy Spirit reveals the nature of God as love itself.
1 John 4:8 says “God is love”. Love is just not an attribute of God but it is the very essence of His being.
Guidance from the Holy Spirit reveals to us the core of God’s deep love and care for us, bringing us closer to understanding God.
- Illuminating the Life and Teachings of Jesus.
Jesus Christ is the epitome of what it means as God’s love.
The entire life of Jesus, His teachings, miracles, sacrifice, and forgiveness demonstrates God’s love and mercy for us.
The Holy Spirit helps us understand the depth of this love and the significance of Christ’s sacrifice for our salvation.
Our salvation is a gift from Jesus that He ransomed by giving up His life for us just because He loved us.
- Interpreting Scripture
The Holy Spirit helps us interpret and understand the Bible which promises us of God’s love, mercy and grace.
As we read and study the Scriptures, the Holy Spirit opens our hearts and minds, helping us see the consistent theme, revealing a God of love throughout the biblical narrative, from creation to redemption to the promise of an eternal life.
- Assuring Us of God’s Presence
The Holy Spirit assures us of God’s constant presence and love in our lives.
We receive the grace of peace, comfort and protection by the aid of the Holy Spirit that assures us that God is with us always especially in times of difficulty and uncertainty.
- Transforming Ourselves And Cultivating An Intimate Relationship With God
The Holy Spirit brings in us a transformation, bringing in us a nature of God, a God of love.
The Holy Spirit facilitates a deeper intimate relationship with God, wherein we experience His love and we now perceive the world and our lives through the lens and nature of God, recognizing the beauty of His creation and treating all living beings as part and parcel of His own manifestation of love.
Holy Spirit blesses us with the grace of prayer, worship and spiritual practices wherein we can have a personal and intimate relationship with God and live to feel His love as more tangible and real in our daily lives.
Living a life closer to God will fill us with the understanding and wisdom to experience that our God is indeed a God of love.
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