Romans 5:8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
The barrage of vengeful pronouncements that are voiced when someone has been betrayed in love, or the fidelity of a relationship has been compromised, will leave people declaring oaths of “Never again will I….!” Loud promises of “I will never love again, I will never give my heart to anyone again, I will never trust anyone again, and I will never put myself in a position to be betrayed again, are the statements that scream for justice and retribution. There is risk in loving others. If we were to ask God how many times our infidelity and duplicity of heart have betrayed Him, we would be truly embarrassed. If not for the grace of God, the list of our betrayals would be endless. Rom. 3:10 As it is written: “There is no one righteous, not even one; 11 there is none understanding; there is none seeking after God. In all of this, God chooses to love us.
Before age sneaks up on us and extracts our youth, leaving us with wrinkles and liver spots, we need to have walked well in the realm of love and friendships. By this time in our lives, we should have risked growing in love as the Lord did for us. When giving our love to those whom God asks us to give His love to, is there an opportunity for being hurt, betrayed, or rejected by those we lavish our love upon? Absolutely, there is risk, and there is a real possibility of ending up in a broken relationship. The Psalmist knew the pain and the weight of being treated with contempt after giving his friendship to another. Psalm 55:12 If an enemy were insulting me, I could endure it; if a foe were rising against me, I could hide. 13 But it is you, a man like myself, my companion, my close friend, 14 with whom I once enjoyed sweet fellowship at the house of God, as we walked about among the worshipers. In all of these betrayals that can happen to us, God still wants us to extend love.
Any time we offer ourselves by opening our hearts, there is a risk of being rejected. The Lord risked it all and chose to love every person He ever created. Rom. 5:8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Why would the Lord do that? Because Love destroys the insidious work of the enemy and can cover with forgiveness the scars of sin. This is the power that draws man to God. It is the goodness and love of God that persuades us to repent. The Lord’s capacity to love us through our mess, plus raise us upon our feet, helps us become lovers of our Heavenly Father. God risked it all when He sent His Son to die for our sins and iniquities. He risked it all by allowing Jesus to be tortured on the cross of shame. Isa. 52:14 Just as many were appalled at Him—His appearance was disfigured beyond that of any man, and His form was marred beyond human likeness. God risked everything to demonstrate His Love for us.
God gives us a description of the attributes of love and how love works when we obey and follow its teachings for our lives, 1Cor. 13:4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonour others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love always trusts, hopes, and perseveres. Love is always moving towards God’s will and continuously at work for the good of mankind. Within love is the act of forgiveness towards others who have harmed us. Love has the capacity to accept a person where they are at and inspire us to pray for them in sincerity.
The enemy of our souls is at work to destroy our faith in the Author of love. Whether we realize it or not, we need to believe in love by faith because God is love. The scriptures say that we have known and believed the love God has for us. It stands to reason that Satan will try and get us to disbelieve God’s love in the same way he deceived Eve into mistrusting the integrity of God. 1John 4:16 And we have come to know and have come to believe the love that God has as to us. God is love, and the one abiding in love abides in God, and God abides in him. Everything the devil has done through history and is still doing to deceive and distract us from God’s love is because love conquers all. It was the love that Jesus had for us and His sacrifice that defeated Satan through the finished work of the cross. 1John 3:1a Behold what manner of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God. And that is what we are!
Perhaps the next time we are beaten up because we took a chance on love and we were ready to start screaming the angry declarations of “I will never love again,” it might be wise to do as the Lord does. God doubles down on love and keeps loving anyway. You might be thinking, “This is a great theory, but our human nature will find it hard to execute God’s kind of love, because the aching feelings we are experiencing when we are hurt will distort our reactions.” True, this might be our reaction; however, through Christ, we do have the Holy Spirit within our hearts, guiding us through the difficult action of extending love one more time. The Apostle Paul says it clearly. 1Cor. 13:2 If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I want to be someone of holy value and a blessing in this life, then I will have to risk loving those whom God has put in my life. May we all love with the grace that was lavished upon us through God the Son.
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