Promise of God’s Love

We all long for a love that will never be threatened or broken—a love that holds firm no matter what comes. In a world where so much is uncertain and where relationships can falter, the Bible offers astonishing assurance: nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus. This unbreakable promise is meant to anchor our hearts and give us hope in every circumstance.

Key Scripture

“For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
— Romans 8:38-39 (NIV)

Understanding the Promise of Love for Believers

Paul ends Romans 8 with a triumphant proclamation of God’s secure love for His people. The list he gives—death, life, angels, demons, present, future, powers, height, depth—covers every conceivable challenge or threat. None of them, nor “anything else in all creation,” can break or weaken God’s love for His children.

This promise is anchored “in Christ Jesus”—it’s secured by Jesus’ finished work, not by our performance. No force seen or unseen, no circumstance or struggle, can pry us from God’s embrace.

Jesus reassures His followers: “I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father… is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand.”
— John 10:28-29

Paul prays that believers would truly know this love: “…that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith…that you…may have power…to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge.”
— Ephesians 3:17-19

The Difficult Doctrine of God’s Love

The doctrine of the love of God, as articulated by D.A. Carson, is considered difficult because it involves reconciling various biblical depictions and aspects of God’s love that can appear complex or even contradictory.

Some reasons for its difficulty include:

1. Multiplicity of God’s Love: Carson emphasizes that God’s love is not a singular, one-dimensional concept. Instead, it is multifaceted, including God’s love within the Trinity, His providential love over creation, His redemptive love for the elect, His general love for all humanity, and His conditional love tied to obedience within the covenant. Understanding and balancing these different aspects is challenging.

2. Cultural Misunderstandings of Love: Modern views of love often center on sentimentality, individualism, or unconditional affirmation, which can skew our understanding of God’s biblical love. God’s love is holy and closely tied to His justice, which is at odds with many contemporary cultural assumptions.

3. God’s Wrath and Love Coexisting: Scripture reveals God as both loving and just, with wrath towards sin. For many, it is difficult to grasp how God’s intense love and His righteous anger can coexist without contradiction. Yet God’s love is a holy love; God is perfectly holy, and He cannot act contrary to His holy nature.

4. The Exclusivity of God’s Redemptive Love: God’s special, saving love for the elect can feel uncomfortable or unsettling, particularly in light of widespread assumptions about universalism or inclusion. However, God does not owe His mercy to anyone. For mercy to be truly merciful, God bestows it upon whoever He chooses. (Romans 9:15-16)

5. The Cross as the Ultimate Display of Love: The sacrificial nature of Christ’s atonement, where divine justice and love meet, challenges human understanding of love’s costliness, holiness, and purpose.

6. Conditional and Unconditional Aspects: God’s love is both unconditional (He loves because He is love) and conditional in certain relational contexts (e.g., tied to obedience and covenantal faithfulness), creating tension for us.

Together, these elements make grasping and fully embracing the doctrine of God’s love both intellectually and emotionally demanding.

Quotes from Christian Leaders

The Difficult Doctrine of the Love of God

• A.W. Tozer:
  “The love of God is one of the great realities of the universe, a pillar upon which the hope of the world rests.”
  
• Charles Spurgeon:
  “Nothing binds me to my Lord like a strong belief in His changeless love.”
  
• Timothy Keller:
  “To be loved but not known is comforting but superficial. To be known and not loved is our greatest fear. But to be fully known and truly loved is… what we need more than anything.”
  

Application: Living in the Promise of God’s Love

1. Rest in God’s Unchanging Love

Start your day by reminding yourself: “God loves me, fully and forever, in Christ.” Let this truth quiet your fears.

Those people who claim to have had an NDE (Near-Death-Experience) in heaven universally report on the indescribable love of God they felt. Here are few examples:

“The love I felt from God was beyond anything I could put into words—pure, all-encompassing, and infinite.”

“It was like I was immersed in an ocean of love, so unconditional, so powerful, it erased all fear and pain.”

“God’s love surrounded me completely, and it felt like I had always been known and cherished for who I truly am.”

2. Reject Lies of Separation

When failures, hardships, or doubts arise, counter them with the promise of Romans 8:38-39. There is no circumstance that can sever any genuine believer in Christ from God’s love.

Therefore, the Bible calls us to examine ourselves to be sure we are in the faith. It urges us to weigh our faith, to test if our lives align with the truth we profess. Are we bearing the fruits of the Spirit, walking in obedience, and reflecting His love? Do our hearts show a genuine transformation, or are we clinging to empty rituals and words without substance? Scripture warns us not to deceive ourselves, for faith without works is dead, and mere outward appearances will not stand in the day of judgment. (2 Corinthians 13:5; Galatians 5:22-23; Matthew 7:16-20; James 2:17; Matthew 7:21-23)

3. Grow in Love for Others

Let the assurance of God’s love free you to love others generously, as He has loved you.

The nature of a believer’s love should reflect God’s love but may vary in expression depending on the relationship. Here’s how it might differ:

• Family: A believer’s love for family should be characterized by deep commitment, sacrifice, and nurturing. It involves providing spiritual guidance, support, and patience, mirroring the unconditional and selfless love God shows His children.
• Believers (the Church): Love among fellow believers should demonstrate unity, encouragement, accountability, and mutual edification. This love emphasizes serving one another, forgiving as Christ forgave, and bearing one another’s burdens, fostering a Christ-centered community.
• Non-believers: Love for non-believers should reflect grace, compassion, and a welcoming spirit. It includes showing kindness without judgment, sharing the truth of the Gospel in love, and being an example of God’s transformative love through one’s actions.
• Neighbors: Loving neighbors means extending hospitality, care, and concern for their well-being, regardless of their relationship to you. It involves practical acts of service, fairness, and generosity, embodying the command to “love your neighbor as yourself.”
• Enemies: Loving enemies is a distinctive calling for believers, demonstrated through forgiving wrongs, praying for those who hurt you, and refraining from revenge. This love is countercultural and seeks their ultimate good, reflecting God’s mercy and grace even toward those who oppose Him.

In all these relationships, a believer’s love should be rooted in humility, selflessness, and a desire to reflect God’s character, adapting appropriately to meet the unique needs of each connection.

4. Seek to Understand God’s Love More Deeply

Spend time meditating on passages about God’s love (e.g., Ephesians 3:17-19, 1 John 4:9-10) and ask the Spirit to help you grasp its depth.

Further Study

1. “The God Who Loves: He Will Do Whatever It Takes to Draw Us to Him” by John MacArthur
2. “The Difficult Doctrine of the Love of God” by D.A. Carson
3. “The Furious Longing of God” by Brennan Manning

Prayer

Father, thank You that nothing can separate me from Your love in Christ Jesus. Let your love anchor my soul, drive out fear, and overflow into every part of my life. Help me grasp more deeply how much You care for me. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

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Remember: No matter what happens today, nothing in all creation can separate you from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.