GOD IS LOVE



Yesterday in church our sermon was about God's love for us. His love is beyond anything we can imagine. He loves us no matter who we are or what we have done. He loves us even if we do not love Him back. He loves us even though there will be many days that we will disappoint Him. It is a love that is taller than the tallest mountain and deeper that the deepest sea. As a sinner saved by Grace it is still hard for me to comprehend how much God cares for me even when I am living a life that is not always pleasing to Him.

Since the passing of our little Emma-Grace, God has impressed on my heart so many times how important it is to love those around us. You never know when you may never see someone again. It doesn’t matter how often we tell others we love them; what matters is how often we show them our love. Words are important, but actions are the proof of our words. This is what God did for us. He did not just say, “I love you.” He showed us His love by sending His Son so we might live through Him.

John 3:16
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

What has God’s love done for us?

1. It shows us what love is.
Love is sacrificing for others by giving up our own plans for them.
Love is action.

2. It has taken away God’s anger over our sins.
Jesus accepted our punishment.
Jesus took our sins upon himself.
Now God see Jesus’ righteousness when He looks at us instead of our sins.

3. God’s love has made a way for us to live.
Without Jesus, we are dead in our sins.
With Jesus, we are made alive if we live through Him.
Furthermore, the life we now live is real because it now includes a personal friendship with God.

1 John 4:7-12
Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. He that loveth not, knoweth not God; for God is love. In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him. Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another. No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us.


Jesus stood in for us. Other people all around us each day need someone to stand in for them. We can’t take their sin away, but we can go to them and love them in the same manner that God has loved us. So, why should we love one another? Because as I John 4:12 says “No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.”

I'm not sure about you, but many times I'm guilty of not spreading God’s love like I should. We know a wonderful and loving God and we see people who need that love and yet we don't share it with them. I don't think it's because we want to greedily keep God's love to ourselves. Many times we just get so busy with our "life" that we forget the things that are most important. Our priorities a lot of times are just not where they need to be. God say we should put other firsts. We often get caught up in pride and self. I read once that we should die to ourselves daily. What does that mean? To me that means others should see God's will and His love when they see me and not LaLisa. I can say with all honestly that I need to work on that one. I am a self-admitted control freak and have a problem handing it "all" over to God.

I try to remind myself that often the only God some people will see is the God in me. Many people will never enter the doors of the church. However those same people are exposed to so called "Christians" each day. Do they see Jesus in my actions? Am I portraying a loving God? A God who loves His children no matter what? A God who loves us no matter how much money we have in the bank, no matter what color of skin we have, no matter what kind of clothes we wear or what kind of car we drive. He loves us know matter what condition or hearts are in. Do we show the same love? I can honestly say that I don't always love like I should.

Pastor Rick Hamrick said over and over yesterday that God is LOVE. That is so true. He is the ultimate example of love. Praise God for His wonderful blessing of love for a sinner like me. I pray that I will make a daily effort to love those around in a way that they may see Jesus in me.

1 John 4:16-21 
"And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him. Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world. There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love. We love him, because he first loved us. If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen? And this commandment have we from him, That he who loveth God love his brother also."Thank you God for you all surpassing love. Thank you for loving a sinner like me. Thank you for being the example of LOVE I need to encompass and share each day.