We Have Known and Believed the Love of God • Deshen Daily

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 (1 John 4:16, KJV)

What purpose does love serve if it is not received? This question unveils a pivotal aspect of love, applicable to divine and human affection: love must be received to influence our lives positively. John unveils the key to embracing God’s love: knowing and believing in His love for us.

At the moment of salvation, we first accept God’s love and continue to receive that love daily as His children. To continually embrace His love, we must do two things: understand and trust in it. Our comprehension of God’s love can deepen, and, more importantly, so can our confidence in that love.

Consider the profound implication of a simple truth: God loves us, yet sometimes we remain unaware or disbelieving of His love. Without accepting His love, we miss out on its transformative impact on our lives. Imagine love holding a bouquet and a box of gifts, poised to enrich us. Yet, only hands extended in knowledge and faith can receive these gifts. When unrecognized or doubted, love becomes love neglected, despised, or rejected.

Let’s explore how this principle pertains to us. The most evident manifestation is seen in sinners eternally astray yet profoundly loved by God—to the extent that He sacrificed His Son, Jesus, for us, even while we were entrenched in sin. God’s love offers salvation, redemption, freedom, and eternal life, yet sinners often flee from its embrace.

However, this reality presents a deeper challenge for us, God’s children: believers can struggle to embrace His love, particularly during trying times. Have you, too, found yourself doubting God’s love during challenging chapters of your life?

Paul addresses this challenge for believers by stating,

“He who did not spare His own Son, but gave Him up for us all, how will He not also, along with Him, graciously give us all things?” (Romans 8:32, KJV)

In essence, Paul reassures us that if God demonstrated His love through Jesus’s sacrifice, offering us salvation and eternal life, He will undoubtedly provide for our material needs.

Have you noticed how we often struggle to receive God’s love in the affairs of life after salvation? Many of us know He loves us so much and has forgiven our sins, but many doubt if He loves us so much as to care about our daily troubles or wants us to be happy even for one minute. Our “Christian religion” has blackmailed or misrepresented God in the minds of many Christians. We have been indoctrinated to profess the love of God but disconnect it from practical realities. Jesus has an answer to this dilemma for us,

“If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?” (Matthew 7:11, KJV)

None of us would envision an earthly father offering a scorpion when his child asks for bread. Yet, our ingrained beliefs often portray God as reluctant to see us joyful or prosperous. We often need to recover from the darkness about God that religion(” Christian religion”) has kept us in. Discard any doctrine or teaching that prevents us from fully embracing God’s love.

Meditate

Is it possible to acknowledge God’s love without truly believing in it? Have you experienced a personal revelation of Christ’s love?

Apply the Word

Here is my assignment for you today: take a few minutes as you read this or during the day to sit in a quiet place and think of how much Jesus loves you. Allow His love to sink deep into your mind and receive all of it.