God's Love

One of the most profound things about God, is His love for us. He created us in His image. Genesis 1:26-27 tells us: "Then God said, "Let us make human beings in our image, to be like us. . ." So God created human beings in his own image. In the image of God he created them; male and female he created them." God created us to share in love and fellowship with him. True love requires free will - that we have a choice whether to love. If we are not given a choice, it is not love. It is autocracy - a creation of robots for which one already knows the result as it is foregone within the creation. So humans were given the capacity to choose that relationship. Thereby, God's demonstrating great love for us.

As for any parent, we know the deep love we have for our children. It is all encompassing, overwhelming, and we can feel it in our core. We enjoy our children when they are happy, we love them through their sorrows, we are there during the good times and the bad. We want them to talk to us first when they are joyful and to be the first call when something is wrong. We want to hear from them during their days and to be able to tuck them in at night. Our love for our children is unconditional - it is given freely. 

This is no different than God's love for us. He chose us, individually and collectively, to be his children and to be in community and relationship with Him. He demonstrates His love for us through grace and compassion. He is there with us wherever we are and however we're feeling. He loves us when we laugh, when we cry, and even when we are angry. He gave us parenthood to help us better understand His love for us. (This considers that given our humanity, we are incapable of loving to the same degree that our Father does; nor could our own Earthly parents through their own foibles and failures. Some may not have experienced a healthy, loving relationship with their parents or were unable to love their own children in a healthy way. Our experiences of our upbringing should not be construed as equal with God's capacity and fulfillment of love.)

Love is not just what God does, it is what He is. 1 John 4:8 states "Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is Love". It is who he is at His core. Jeremiah 31:3 states "Long ago the Lord said to Israel: I have loved you, my people, with an everlasting love. With unfailing love I have drawn you to myself." It is with a love that is everlasting, longer and deeper and wider than we can fathom and a kindness that draws us to Him.

This is who we have as our spiritual parent - one who created us to enjoy each together and have relationship with. One who's love knows no bounds and is He Himself, Love.

What greater gift can we give and can be given us but Love?