MANIFESTATIONS OF GOD'S LOVE

 

2. Manifestations of God's Love:

God's love is manifested by providing for the physical, mental, moral and spiritual needs of His people (Isa_48:14, Isa_48:20, Isa_48:21; Isa_62:9-12; Isa_63:3, Isa_63:12). In these Scriptures God is seen manifesting His power in behalf His people in the time of their wilderness journeying and their captivity. He led them, fed and clothed them, guided them and protected them from all their enemies. His love was again shown in feeling with His people, their sorrows and afflictions (Isa_63:9); He suffered in their affliction, their interests were His; He was not their adversary but their friend, even though it might have seemed to them as if He either had brought on them their suffering or did not care about it. Nor did He ever forget them for a moment during all their trials. They thought He did; they said, “God hath forgotten us,” “He hath forgotten to be gracious”; but no; a mother might forget her child that she should not have compassion on it, but God would never forget His people. How could He? Had He not graven them upon the palms of His hands (Isa_49:15 f)? Rather than His love being absent in the chastisement of His people, the chastisement itself was often a proof of the presence of the Divine love, “for whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth” (Heb_12:6-11). Loving reproof and chastisement are necessary oftentimes for growth in holiness and righteousness. Our redemption from sin is to be attributed to God's wondrous love; “Thou hast in love to my soul delivered it from the pit of corruption; for thou hast cast all my sins behind thy back” (Isa_38:17; compare Psa_50:21; Psa_90:8). Eph_2:4 f sets forth in a wonderful way how our entire salvation springs forth from the mercy and love of God; “But God, being rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, even when we were dead through our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ,” etc. It is because of the love of the Father that we are granted a place in the heavenly kingdom (Eph_2:6-8). But the supreme manifestation of the love of God, as set forth in the Scripture, is that expressed in the gift of His only-begotten Son to die for the sins of the world (Joh_3:16; Rom_5:6-8; 1Jn_4:9 f), and through whom the sinful and sinning but repentant sons of men are taken into the family of God, and receive the adoption of sons (1Jn_3:1 f; Gal_4:4-6). From this wonderful love of God in Christ Jesus nothing in heaven or earth or hell, created or uncreated or to be created, shall be able to separate us (Rom_8:37 f).