The apostle John confesses, "We love, because He first loved us" (1 John 4:19 NASB). The object "Him" (i.e., "we love Him because") is absent from other translations other than the King James and New King James Versions. The NET Bible footnote explains that the "obvious objects that could be supplied from the context are either God himself or other believers (the brethren). It may well be that the author has both in mind at this point" (link).
John instructs believers, "Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God" (1 John 4:7 NASB). The NET Bible footnote continues, "the statement is general enough to cover both alternatives, although the following verse puts more emphasis on love for the brethren" (link). Our Triune God truly does love us. The apostle Paul confesses that God "demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us" (Rom. 5:8). Whenever you are in doubt regarding God’s love for you, look to the Cross, where He demonstrated that love.
What is true is that I love my brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus because God first loved me (cf. 1 John 4:19). However, I also love the Lord because He first loved me. He loved me while I was stuck helplessly in sin. Even when I was God’s enemy, He reconciled me (and sinful humanity) to Himself through Christ Jesus (Rom. 5:10; 2 Cor. 5:19). God did not just tell me that He loved me; He demonstrated His love for me by sacrificing His one and only Son Jesus Christ in order that, by grace through faith in Him, I might be saved from the wrath of God to come (John 3:16, 26; 15:13; Rom. 5:6-8; Eph. 2:8; 1 John 3:16).
I also love the Lord because His love for me is unconditional. His love for me is not object-oriented. He does not love me because of anything I do in particular. If He did, then were I to cease doing that for which He loved me, He could cease loving me.
But His love for me is not conditioned upon anything that I may (or may not) do. In spite of my being fickle, hypocritical, sinful, spiteful, arrogant, ignorant, helpless, intentional, neglectful, apathetic, careless, inconsistent, unloving, unlovable, prayerless, thoughtless, stubborn, wrong -- among so many other unmentioned characteristics -- He loves me still. God hates my sin, but He loves me still in and through Christ.
What must also be admitted is that I love the Lord because of His grace at work in my heart through the indwelling Holy Spirit: God’s love [or my love for God] has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us (Rom. 5:5). The apostle means either that God’s love (i.e., His love, which includes love for us, which spills over into our love for others) has been poured into our hearts, or that a love for God has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit. Many people may claim to be Christian but have difficulty confessing that they love Jesus Christ. We call these people "nominal" Christians (meaning, Christians in name only). Do you love Jesus?
Jesus said: "If you love Me, you will keep My commandments" (John 14:15). Our obedience to Him demonstrates our love for Him. He said, "He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me; and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will disclose Myself to him" (John 14:21). Jesus then emphatically stated that the one who loves Him will keep His word, and His Father will love him, and both of Them will come to him and make Their abode with him (John 14:23, emphasis added).
Thus we understand that those who do not keep His commandments demonstrate that they do not love Him: "He who does not love Me," admitted Jesus, "does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine, but the Father's who sent Me" (John 14:24). The apostle also made a similar confession:
For those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace, because the mind set on the flesh is hostile to God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so, and those who are in the flesh cannot please God (Rom. 8:5-8 NASB).
We must be reminded and remind others to not let our thoughts be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ (2 Cor. 11:3). We must pay greater attention to what we have heard so that we do not drift away from it (Heb. 2:1). We must abide in the love of and our love for Jesus Christ: "Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you; abide in My love. If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love" (John 15:9-10).
But I can place my confidence in Jesus, in that, as I am "working out" my salvation "with fear and trembling," He is at work in me, enabling me "both to will and to work for his good pleasure" (Phil. 2:12-13). He is entirely trustworthy and I love Him for it. I love Him also for every single blessing that is in Him (Eph. 1:3). I love Him for the rod of discipline (Ps. 23:4; Heb. 12:8) as much as for the staff of comfort (Ps. 23:4). The Song of the Lamb, from the daily Collect of the Book of Common Prayer, partly quoted from the Revelation of Jesus Christ (Rev. 15:3-4), concludes:
O ruler of the universe, Lord God,
great deeds are they that you have done,
surpassing human understanding.
Your ways are ways of righteousness and truth,
O King of all the ages.
Who can fail to do you homage, Lord,
and sing the praises of your Name?
for you only are the Holy One.
All nations will draw near and fall down before you,
because your just and holy works have been revealed.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen.
Another great post!
ReplyDeleteCould we with ink the ocean fill,
And were the skies of parchment made,
Were every stalk on earth a quill,
And every man a scribe by trade;
To write the love of God above
Would drain the ocean dry;
Nor could the scroll contain the whole,
Though stretched from sky to sky.
I wrestled with a definition of divine love and arrived at this:
http://judahslion.blogspot.com/2008/09/god-is-love-g-od-is-love.html
Rick,
DeleteThat is one of my favorite hymns. I look forward to reading your definition.
How do you explain the nature of odium Dei (the hatred of God) in he Bible directed at human beings (e.g. Psa. 5:5)? I often see it as covenantal (separation from covenant). but what about you?
ReplyDeleteBPB,
DeletePerhaps I should follow this post with one called "The Hatred of God," hahaha. No, seriously, perhaps I should.
I believe it is unwise to use psalms for a pervasive doctrinal foundation since it is full of idiomatic language. The same can be said for New Testament narratives like “if your right eye offend you pluck it out”. The teaching epistles lend a more literal and direct address to doctrinal issues.
DeleteAdditionally, if those guidelines are not followed then we are presented with many contradictions. If God hates the workers of iniquity, and if He loves the world, and if we are commanded to be like God but are also commanded to love our enemies, the we now have a doctrinal quagmire. And many treat such a quagmire as a smorgasbord and elevate the verses according to their espoused doctrine while downplaying, and even manipulating, those which seem to conflict with their doctrinal premise.
Matt.5:43 Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy.
44 But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;
45 That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven
Ti.3:2 To speak evil of no man, to be no brawlers, but gentle, shewing all meekness unto all men.
3 For we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another.
Once we were hateful and hating one another. Now we are commanded to show meekness and love to “all” men. The words “hate and love” are often Hebrew idioms that are not what they seem in English. God loves all sinners, and since God is love, I believe he will always love those upon whom He executed eternal justice. Such is the mystery surrounding the exact proportional workings of all the attributes of the Godhead.
There is one caveat. If you do not believe the atonement was provided for all men than the argument that God only loves the elect is credible. But since that is untrue, the argument is vacuous.
Billy,
ReplyDeleteA sincere amen!!! to all of this post! Appreciate it very much!
Sjoerd de Boer
Sjoerd,
DeleteThank you, brother! That's encouraging!
WBB - I "love" this statement you made, "But His love for me is not conditioned upon anything that I may (or may not) do." So many in our modern, selfish society don't grasp that truth. There is NOTHING I can do to make God love me more and NOTHING I can do to make God love me less. If we ground our identity in the unchanging, immutable LOVE of God, then we will have a proper understanding of ourselves in relation to Him and His creation.
ReplyDeleteRick said what I was gonna say about one of my favorite hymns. This is supported in scripture in the last verse of the Gospel of John: "Jesus did many other things as well. If every one of them were written down, I suppose that even the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written."
" If we ground our identity in the unchanging, immutable LOVE of God, then we will have a proper understanding of ourselves in relation to Him and His creation."
DeleteSystematic theology in a sentence!
Dr. W.,
DeleteThank you! You're right: our culture has a works-based notion of "If I do A and B then God will do C and D," but they've missed it entirely. First, become one of His children by grace through faith in Christ. Second, your relationship with God will shift your paradigm, and you won't try to earn His love and favor, but will have it by your union with Christ Jesus. (Still, I even know believers who struggle with this. )
I am not sure that I am comfortable with an unqualified "God's unconditional love." Yes, God will accept any sinner that genuinely repents and trusts in Christ. But when we trust God, is that something we don't "do"? God's grace is conditioned upon faith, which also implies a lifestyle that demonstrates faithfulness. This is something that we do. The key for me is to see our faith and life of faith as something that does not merit God's salvation. Without faith, we cannot come to God, and so His salvation offer is conditioned on that. Otherwise, the wrath of God abides on the sinner. The patience of God with an erring believer demonstrates itself in correction. The warning passages in the Bible against believers are there to provoke faithfulness. One who absolutely ignores them, in my opinion, will eventually no longer experience the love of God. So, for the believer, there is also the condition of obedience that is implicit in "hearing [shema]" and "faith" which results from hearing.
ReplyDeleteFred,
DeleteI disagree. God loved us before we had faith; that's why He sent His Son into the world, so that we might be saved (John 3:16). So, how can God's love be conditioned upon our faith in Christ when He loved us prior to us having faith in Christ?
The love of God offered to man is unconditional, that is offered to all and without merit on their part, but man must receive it. That is the condition for salvation. The message of this synergism is presented by Roger Olson at his blog located at this link:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.patheos.com/blogs/rogereolson/2010/08/what-is-an-arminian/
I'll pass on Olson, thanks. I agree with what you just wrote, but I'm still puzzled by your initial comment. What, exactly, did it have to do with the post? All non-Calvinists are agreed that man must accept or receive God's offer of salvation by grace through faith in Christ. But what does that have to do with God's love for mankind being unconditional?
DeleteWhat do we do with John 3:36, where it says that the "wrath of God abides on those that believe not?" Does an unqualified proclamation of God's unconditional love for sinners give the full picture of relationship between God and unsaved mankind?
DeleteCan we have a true synergistic model of salvation where there are no conditions?
DeleteWell, God is the one who saves (i.e., regenerates), and we do not contribute synergistically to it; we merely respond with faith in Christ and then God saves us. So, no, I would reject a synergistic model of salvation, since we cannot help God regenerate and save us.
DeleteIf I'm reading you correctly, however, in a rejection of irresistible grace, then I'm in agreement with you, of course.
Thanks William for all that you do here on your blog. Now getting back to the subject of God's unconditional love, if God loves us unconditionally, how do we understand that the wrath of God abides on those who do not believe? Also, do you know of any Protestant theologian who writes about the unconditional love of God? From my experience, I see the term of "God's unconditional love" bantered about more by popular theology than by academic theologians. In fact, the first time I heard it used was in the 90s by a Christian psychologist. It rather took me back as it sounded like universalism. Protestant theologians usually talk about unmerited grace or love, responsive love, universal atonement coupled with particular redemption, but not unconditional love. Correct me if I am wrong. I would like to see a citation from a major theologian in print. Thanks.
DeleteFred,
DeleteGod's wrath is against sin. He unconditionally loves sinful, fallen creatures created in His image; it's what motivated Him to send His only Son to be their Savior (John 3:16). He is able to love fallen sinners unconditionally -- stated explicitly at John 3:16, the most famous verse in all of Scripture -- and hold us accountable for our sin, and punish us for our sin if we reject sin's only remedy: faith in Jesus Christ.
I don't know of any orthodox Protestant theologian who does NOT write about the unconditional love of God. Typically, only heretics write about God's conditional love for mankind. In other words, such heretics think that you have to earn God's love in order to be saved, either by being good, or doing good. That's Roman Catholic heresy. God's love for sinners is unconditional. How else do you read John 3:16?
There are many, many Protestant theologians I could quote to state the orthodox case for God's unconditional love for sinful mankind. For example, Timothy George writes, "God's covenant love for his people echoes throughout the Psalms and the prophets. God's unconditional and never-failing love is illustrated in the example of the Prophet Hosea, who refused to forsake his wayward and adulterous wife Gomer but went after her, calling and wooing her back into the sacred marriage relationship. So it is with God's overcoming grace and love for his people" ("The Doctrine of God," in A Theology for the Church, ed. Daniel L. Akin, 227)
I'd like for you to now cite a major, orthodox Protestant theologian in print who holds to God's conditional love for sinful mankind.
God bless.
The first paragraph of your above reply contains a condition. God's love is offered, but if it is rejected, then in your words -- He will "hold us accountable for our sin, and punish us for our sin if we reject sin's only remedy: faith in Jesus Christ."
DeleteI believe brother Timothy George is a Calvinist, and in the citation you gave, it sounds like he is talking about irresistible grace, not unconditional love. Moreover, he is talking about God's covenant love for his people. This frames a discussion about the elect and does not really speak to the issue, in my opinion, for unconditional love seems to be talking about God's general love for all humanity. Please recall that I began in my first reply to your post, that it is my opinion that we not use this term in an "unqualified" manner.
So, here are a few citations of major theologians who use the word "condition" in the context of salvation. Millard Erickson in his Christian Theology, p. 355 says: "One might say therefore that in the Arminian view this aspect of God's plan is conditional upon human decision; in the Calvinistic view, on the other hand, God's plan is unconditional."
Robert Picirilli in Grace, Faith, Free will, has an entire chapter titled "Arminianism and Conditional Perseverance," pp. 197-208. On p. 203, he gives a summary statement: "All this means simply, from the Arminian perspective, that one's possession of salvation is, at any time conditioned on faith."
Roger Olson in his Arminian Theology writes on p. 19: "they [Arminians] embrace conditional predestination based on God's foreknowledge of who will freely respond positively to God's gracious offer of salvation..."
In Calvinism, we know that God saves only those who are sovereignly chosen. This is what Calvinists call unconditional election, referenced by Erickson above in the notion that foreseen faith is not a condition for the choosing of the elect. Yet in this notion of unconditional election we by no means arrive at unconditional love, as all are not elected.
Going through the indices of these theologians, as well as others, such as Strong, Buswell, Calvin, Berkhof, A.A. Hodge and the Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, I found no entries for either conditional or unconditional love. Both terms are in my opinion imprecise when it comes to theological language. The notion of condition comes up only when one is speaking of a condition for salvation or perseverance or immortality or election.
Fred,
DeleteAre we talking about two entirely different subjects at the same time? I'm not connecting God's unconditional love for sinners to salvation. Are you? If you are, then you are completely off the topic of this post.
All the quotes you gave relate to God's activity in salvation. That was not AT ALL what I was suggesting in this post. If we're not on the right track, then this entire dialogue was for nothing.
BTW, your first paragraph leads me to believe that you're a Universalist. Are you?
Timothy George was speaking of God's love as an attribute -- His unconditional love for mankind -- not connected merely with salvation.
P.S. Not one of your quotes stated that God's love for sinners was conditional. I'm still waiting for a quote. Could you please show us at least one example of an orthodox Protestant who writes that God's love for sinners is conditional?
DeleteYou are an aggressive poster, but I mean you no harm William. As I have stated, there is no mention in any of my theologies of God's conditional or unconditional love. The term "unconditional love" is a pop slogan, non-specific. If Timothy George wants to use the term, he is as a Calvinist the first to do so. I checked Berkhof and Charnock on their treatments of God's attribute, there is no mention of unconditional love.
DeleteWhat in my replies indicates to you that I am a universalist? The only comment I made in that direction is that if unconditional love is not qualified it can sound like universalism. No guilt felt at this end.
Fred,
DeleteTimothy George is only one among many, many theologians who use the biblical truth of God's unconditional love for sinners. I only gave you one example. The truth of God's unconditional love is not a pop slogan but is used in theology text books.
But if God's basic love for sinners is conditioned upon anything in us for God then you can just throw out all that the Bible teaches on the love of God.
The Universalistic charge came from your first paragraph: The first paragraph of your above reply contains a condition. God's love is offered, but if it is rejected, then in your words -- He will "hold us accountable for our sin, and punish us for our sin if we reject sin's only remedy: faith in Jesus Christ." Would you consider the rejection of God's unconditional love to have no effect, as would Universalists -- that they would be saved just the same?
I don't mean to be "aggressive," necessarily, but I think your view is not merely unbiblical but is against Scripture, is anti-scriptural.
God bless.
Fred,
DeleteAnd I would also hope and pray that you do not take these replies personally, because I certainly hold nothing against you personally. God bless.
William, you apparently took my statement the wrong way. I was merely pointing out that you placed a condition for the reception of God's love while at the same time you were also claiming that His love was unconditional. You cannot have it both ways. You have also tried to separate the notion of God's love from its manifestation in salvation. As I try to point out below, salvation for sinners is part of God's love.
DeleteI made no such condition. God loves sinners unconditionally whether or not they actually receive that love -- whether His love is expressed in the salvation of the soul through faith in Christ or in a very general sense. I don't have anything both ways.
DeleteI'm not trying to separate the notion of God's love from its manifestation in salvation. But salvation was not the topic of this post; God's love as an attribute is the topic. You are the one who moved the entire post and conversation in this vein, and it was wrong to do so.
Here is an example of a major contemporary historical theologian that does a nice job in talking about God’s love ― Richard Muller in his Dictionary of Latin and Greek Theological Terms, Drawn Principally from Protestant Scholastic Theology, pp. 31-32. In summary, he talks about God’s love as a communication of His goodness to His creatures. This is expressed both intrinsically and extrinsically, that is the willing of the good and then the kindness demonstrated. He further breaks down God’s love as amor Dei universalis which is shown in the governance and preservation of the world. The amor communis is directed at both the elect and the reprobate and is manifest in the blessings of God. Then there is the amor Dei specialis directed only toward the elect or believers in the gift of salvation.
ReplyDeleteI am not clear as to how one can see the notion of unconditional love fitting into the above statement. Following Muller’s definition, it appears to me that it is also not so easy to separate salvation from the expression of God’s love. I see that he allows both Arminians and Calvinists to fit in, as Arminius identified the elect as those who believe.
If we turn to Muller’s definition of God’s wrath or ira on p. 160, he differentiates it as a function of God’s righteousness from its manifestation in the death of Christ that fully satisfies God’s justice. In his definition, he talks not only about its relation to human sin, but also that “it is ultimately expressed in the damnation of those who do not have faith in Christ.” Like you, William, I can see God’s atonement for sinners as being universal, but those who reject it do not see punishment for their sin only but for themselves as willing creatures (John 3:36).
Again, I am at a loss at to what this has to do with God's unconditional love for sinners. You're moving way off track here.
DeleteDo you believe God loves all sinners? If so, why? If not, why? If there is a condition to God loving sinners, then what is that condition?
Let's just stick to these very simple questions and answers in order to advance to some semblance of clarity.
I cannot see where I am going off track. You cited one theologian, Timothy George, to support your notion of unconditional love. Then you stated that he was talking about the attribute of God's love. I cited Muller's work as someone who in my opinion uses precision in theological language, and who does not use the term "unconditional love" when he talks about the attribute of God's love. This was true for the other citations I gave, such as Olson and Picirilli. I then searched my library, but found no examples from Berkhof, A.A. Hodges, and Charnock for the usage of unconditional love.
DeleteIn my very second reply, I stated that God's offer of salvation is to all. Here is what I said: "The love of God offered to man is unconditional, that is offered to all and without merit on their part, but man must receive it." That is usually called a universal offer, not unconditional love. If you wish to use the term "unconditional love" for the universal offer or for the teaching of universal atonment, that is your choice. You are free to do so, and I will not as I have not charged you with any Scriptural heresy. But from where I sit, it is imprecise and requires further qualification in order to come up to the level of classic Protestant theology.
Fred,
DeleteAs I mentioned previously, the quotations you used were not speaking of God's unconditional love for sinners but were speaking of God's acts in salvation. Therefore your quotes were useless and not properly contextual.
I don't know what to say about Muller because I haven't read all of his works or theology on God's love as an attribute, nor do I have any context for the quote you offered. But the other quotes you referred to were not addressing God's love as an attribute but about God's offer and work of salvation.
In my very second reply, I stated that God's offer of salvation is to all.
Fred, I am not talking about salvation or God's offer of salvation. This post is about God's love as an attribute, and that His love for sinners is unconditional in nature. This is where you are completely off topic. If you cannot remain on topic, then you need to stop commenting. Stick to the subject. The subject is God's love as an attribute, not to whom God offers salvation.
Here's a further demonstration of how you got off track: The love of God offered to man is unconditional, that is offered to all and without merit on their part, but man must receive it." That is usually called a universal offer, not unconditional love. If you wish to use the term "unconditional love" for the universal offer or for the teaching of universal atonement, that is your choice.
In this post above, I am not talking about an offer. I am not in any way whatsoever talking about an offer. That is something you conjured up in your own mind while reading my post. But, again, I am not talking about God's offer of love or His offer of salvation. I am merely stating that love is an attribute of God, and that He, very, very simply stated, loves sinners unconditionally. How you have created all this confusion is, truly, beyond me.
I think you need to stop. You're only confusing the situation and frustrating the conversation.
God bless.