God is Love

To many, that title is a meaningless cliché, but it is a truth the meaning of which is beyond our comprehension. For example, picture an omniscient (all-knowing), omnipresent (present everywhere), omnipotent (all powerful) god who has completely obliterated any free-will you ever had, leaving you completely under his dominion

That is precisely the god that some may think I have pictured for you the past two weeks. If that were true, and it were the “end of story,” God would be a frightening, untenable, deadly god. Frankly, that god is exactly what our current civil government is determined to be, itself, right here in the U.S,. right now! Modern technology is making those characteristics of our government a reality more and more every day.

However, thankfully, those attacks on our established, constitutional, civil government are ever-so-slowly awakening the slumbering church. They are nothing more than the desperate, death throes of a dying regime as it fights to survive and to be, “like God, knowing good and evil” on its own, according to its own definition of “good and evil.”

But the phrase, “God is love” is THE TrUTH; it is a reality right now, and as the eyes of the church are being opened, it is seeing that truth more and more clearly.

I want to take a look at the definition of this unique love that only originates from God Himself—AGAPE (Gk). The word is defined beautifully for us by Paul in 1 Corinthians 13, and I want to quote a portion of that from the Wuest Expanded Translation. This Is not a readable paraphrase of what the translator believes himself and is cumbersome for casual reading, but excellent for studying the full meaning of the Greek manuscript.

Keep in mind as you read this, that it is the very definition of what God is like, not what you have been told He is like. “God IS love.” Also, God promises that we reflect this same love when the Holy Spirit is expressing Himself through us. As we joyfully embrace our constant failure at loving, God promises us that naturally, spontaneously and unconsciously, that agape love will come pouring out of us! “Who, me?” Yes, you!

Jesus Christ is the perfect human model of this love. As you carefully read this passage, let the truth of this description permeate your mind and your heart.

“Love meekly and patiently bears ill treatment from others. Love is kind, gentle, benign, pervading and penetrating the whole nature, mellowing all which would have been harsh and austere; is not envious.

“Love does not brag, nor does it show itself off, is not ostentatious, does not have an inflated ego, does not act unbecomingly, does not seek after the things which are its own,

“(Love) is not irritated, provoked, exasperated, aroused to anger, does not take into account the evil, does not rejoice at the iniquity but rejoices with the truth,

“(Love) endures all things, believes all things, hopes all things, bears up under all things, not losing heart nor courage. Love never fails.” (1 Corinthians 134-8).

These verses, and really the next five to the end of the chapter as well, beautifully describe the full relationship with mankind since the cross. As Paul says in Romans 5:18: ”Therefore, as through one man’s offense judgment came to all men, resulting in condemnation, even so through one Man’s righteous act the free gift came to all men, resulting in justification of life.“ This love came into our hearts with that justification.

Do you see it? God can no longer be a “God of judgment.” At the cross, all of God’s righteous judgment on the sins of the whole world was poured out on Jesus Christ. When He shouted, “It is finished!” as He died, what He came to do—save the world—had been accomplished, past tense: “For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved” (John 3:17). GOD IS NOW ONLY A GOD OF LOVE, a la 1 Corinthians 13!

What has happened to that all-knowing, all-powerful God who is everywhere, and who has obliterated our free-will and made us into His puppets? Next week we will look at what I believe is the glorious, incredible, summary answer to the question, “What is God like?