God Is…
We so often talk about the love of God or His joy, mercy or peace as if it is something God has, but the truth is, these are attributes or descriptions of who He is. God reveals Himself to us through His Word and Works. Even creation speaks of who He is. His essence is immutable, yet knowable. When someone has something, that something can also be lost or destroyed. When we talk about who someone is, we are referring to his nature, which cannot be altered or lost.
I have love, but God is love. My love has limits, but God’s love has no limits. My love can grow cold and even end, but God’s love is always intense and passionate. God is not an angry God. He is merciful. God can get angry at sin and injustice, but He is far more willing to forgive than to punish. His mercy endures forever. He is love. He is merciful. He is compassionate. Unfortunately many people think of God as an angry God, and thus are afraid to approach Him. God is not standing over us with a stick waiting for us to make a mistake so He can beat us. No, this is not who He is. He is good….all the time. He is love….all the time. He is merciful…all the time. “He is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance,” (II Peter 3:9b).
Even though I am not God, I can receive God into my life. Even though my love is conditional and limited, I can receive Love that is unconditional and that never ends. It is hard to describe the love or mercy of God in human terms. Charles Spurgeon tried to explain it by saying it this way: “God’s mercy is so great that you may sooner drain the sea of its water or deprive the sun of its light or make space too narrow, than diminish the great mercy of God.” My love is like water in a bathtub, but God’s love is like the water in the ocean.
On the last day of the Feast of Tabernacles, Jesus cried out: “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’” (John 7:37). The immenseness of God has now come to dwell in man.
And now from man this unending source can flow. His mercy, that has no end, can be expressed through man. Unconditional love is now ours to give to others. No one can ever do us so much wrong that we do not have the love or mercy to forgive. Because we have this endless river of God flowing from our heart, we can bless those who curse us, do good to those who do evil to us and forgive all those who offend us.
God never stops loving us, because He is love. We can walk away from His will, but never away from His reach. God hates sin, because sin destroys those He loves. He loves the sinner and desires to forgive and restore each one. Isn’t God Great? Wouldn’t you like to get to know Him?
Scriptures to meditate on:
I John 4:7-8; Rom. 14:17; Psalms 145:8-9; John 7:37; 3:16