God Loves Because He Loves

John 3:16 is a famous verse because it showcases the love of God for all people by sending His only begotten Son Jesus as Saviour.  "For God so loved the world..." it begins, showing the far-reaching range of the atonement provided:  all sinners included without exception.  It was not because God loved His Son, the Jews or those who kept His commandments, but because He loved every person in the world He gave His only Son.  Those who receive the gift of salvation by grace through faith are the beneficiaries of this incredible love.

From the beginning God's love has been on display, and this is especially seen in His dealings with the children of Israel.  Recently I read a passage I love very much, for it is a wondrous reminder of God's love is all of grace and not due to our worthiness.  Moses wrote in Deuteronomy 7:7-8, "The LORD did not set His love on you nor choose you because you were more in number than any other people, for you were the least of all peoples; ⁸ but because the LORD loves you, and because He would keep the oath which He swore to your fathers, the LORD has brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you from the house of bondage, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt."  Simply put, the LORD set His love on the children of Israel because the LORD loves them.  It was not because they were many or mighty.  God would keep the promise He made to bring the children of Israel out of bondage in Egypt.

Verses like John 3:16 show us God's love was not reserved only for the children of Israel, but for the ungodly--including Romans and all Gentiles too.  Paul explained this revelation of God's divine love for all in Romans 5:6-8:  "For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. ⁷ For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die. ⁸ But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us."  How wonderful it is to know God loves us because He loves us!  God has kept His promise to send the Messiah to save people from their sins and give eternal life to all who trust in Him.  Jesus has redeemed us from the curse of sin and provided the sure hope of heaven and eternal life through the Gospel because He loves us.

Because we could not deserve or earn such divine love, it does not depend on how we feel or what happens in the world.  Everything could seem against us, yet because God is He loves us.  Like other gifts God gives, we receive God's gift of love by faith in Him.  While God has offered His love freely, for many people it is like a gift that remains wrapped and not received.  We can be like little children quite taken with playing with bows and ribbons that we neglect to open and receive His gift of love adorned by grace.  Christmas is a great opportunity to remember and proclaim the goodness of Jesus Christ who loves us, the greatest gift ever given or that we could possibly receive.  God loves the world and loves us because He loves, simple as that.

The Source of Sin Within

"So the LORD plagued the people because of what they did with the calf which Aaron made."

Exodus 32:35

While Moses was on Mount Sinai receiving the commandments of God written on tablets of stone, the people left behind in the camp quickly corrupted themselves.  They came to Aaron and demanded he make gods to go before them because they did not know what had happened to Moses.  Likely feeling pressure to placate the people, Aaron set about collecting gold from the people and molded a graven image.  Like doting parents who are led about by the whims of their children or a carer who shoves a dummy in the mouth of a fussy baby, Aaron gave them what they wanted and committed a great sin.  He facilitated the worship of idol and gave a golden image the credit for delivering them from slavery in Egypt.

It should be noted the children of Israel had been steeped in religious idolatry in Egypt.  As a infant grows accustomed to having a dummy in their mouth for comfort, the people had long worshipped gods of Egypt--even idols of their own making.  After their exodus from Egypt God revealed through the prophet Amos in Amos 5:25-26, "Did you offer Me sacrifices and offerings in the wilderness forty years, O house of Israel? ²⁶ You also carried Sikkuth your king and Chiun, your idols, the star of your gods, which you made for yourselves."  Instead of Aaron saying, "God forbid!  Having been saved by the living God who revealed Himself to us, we will serve Him alone!" he caved to the demands of the people and gave them what they were accustomed to:  idols made by the hands of men to worship and sacrifice to.

It is insightful God did not plague the people because Aaron made a golden calf:  He plagued them because of how they sinned with the calf Aaron made.  What Aaron did was wrong, but they were not punished for his sin.  They faced God's judgment because they bowed down and offered sacrifices to an idol in worship, having forsaken the almighty God who revealed Himself to them in power and glory on the mount.  Scarcely had the Law been given before it was completely broken by high priest and people alike.  God judging people for their own sin is in keeping with the principle seen in Deuteronomy 24:16:  "Fathers shall not be put to death for their children, nor shall the children be put to death for their fathers; a person shall be put to death for his own sin."  Rather than blaming Aaron or the calf as the source of the sin problem, God justly dealt with each sinner individually.

Understanding this principle helps us to shift away from a tendency to legalism that imagines sinfulness comes from outside of us rather than originating within our own sinful hearts.  Many good things God gives can lead to sin by excess, addiction and obsession.  Paul exhorted believers, rather than being swayed by the doctrines of men that focus on not touching, tasting or handling, that we are to seek Jesus Christ and set our hearts on things above.  We are to mortify or put to death in our minds and bodies what God declares as sinful, putting off the old man, and then putting on the new man which is renewed in the image of Christ who made us new creations:  loving one another, giving mercy, being patient, forgiving one another, allowing the peace of God to rule in our hearts, to be thankful and let God's word to dwell in us richly by the power of the Holy Spirit.

If the children of Israel lamented under the weight of conviction and God's judgment, "I wish Aaron had never made that calf!" or "I shouldn't have given away those earrings!" they would have missed the point.  Their sin was not due to the calf being fashioned but because they worshipped it as god.  The molten calf was simply a means that exposed the idolatrous condition of their hearts.  If the judgment from God was rightly understood and received, they would have tossed Sikkuth and Chiun away as rubbish and worshipped God alone.  We, like the children of Israel, do not see how deep our sinfulness and idolatry goes unless God reveals it to us.  And even when He does, we can be like babies crying for our dummy because it is the only comfort we have known until now.  How good, gracious and kind God is to grind our idols into powder!  Instead of making us drink the metallic water like Moses did, God's grace fills our hearts and mouths with praise that honours and glorifies Him.

Living the Good Life

The first miracle recorded by Jesus was when he attended a wedding in Cana of Galilee.  It could be an entire year of preparation went into planning a wedding, an occasion that could last a week or more.  At this wedding the unthinkable happened:  they ran out of wine.  Mary told Jesus about the predicament, as He asked her what her concern had to do with Him.  But as always, Jesus knew exactly what He would do.

There were six large waterpots used to hold water for Jewish purification rites before and after meals.  John 2:7-10 reads, "Jesus said to them, "Fill the waterpots with water." And they filled them up to the brim. ⁸ And He said to them, "Draw some out now, and take it to the master of the feast." And they took it. ⁹ When the master of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom. ¹⁰ And he said to him, "Every man at the beginning sets out the good wine, and when the guests have well drunk, then the inferior. You have kept the good wine until now!"  The obedience of the servants to the command of Jesus resulted in abundance of good wine.  It was so good, in fact, that the master of the feast called the bridegroom to commend him for it.

I believe the bridegroom was no different from other hosts who put out the best wine first.  The problem was, there simply wasn't enough of it for the duration of the wedding.  He was probably appraised of the lack of wine, and he must have been amazed and relieved to have his need so abundantly supplied with good wine.  John 2:11 says, "This beginning of signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory; and His disciples believed in Him."  Though Jesus was not publicly credited by the bridegroom in the passage, Jesus did this sign to affirm He was the Christ, the promised Messiah God would send as Saviour.  Mary's directive to the servants was, "Whatever He says to you, do it!" and the result of obedience to Jesus brought good out of it:  from a lack of wine came the abundance of good wine.

This passage and others like it show Jesus is worthy of trust and obedience.  We can have complete confidence He will guide us step by step and will supply all our needs.  Like the bridegroom, our best efforts fall short to prepare us for future needs that will arise.  Even if we can store up food and money to sustain our lives on earth, we cannot secure eternal lives for ourselves in heaven.  By God's grace through faith in Jesus, He makes a way for us to experience an abundant life now and a glorious future in heaven.  People might think they are "living the good life" now, but nothing compares to the life Jesus provides where the best is yet to come.

The LORD Roared From Zion

"The sun and moon will grow dark, and the stars will diminish their brightness. ¹⁶ The LORD also will roar from Zion, and utter His voice from Jerusalem; the heavens and earth will shake; but the LORD will be a shelter for His people, and the strength of the children of Israel."

Joel 3:15-16

The prophet wrote of the day of the LORD, a future judgment of the nations by the almighty God of Israel.  When I read this description there are striking similarities to when Jesus died on the cross.  For three hours darkness shrouded the globe and the sun and moon did not shine.  Before He lay down His life Jesus cried out from the cross, "It is finished!" and there was an earthquake.  The Lion of the tribe of Judah roared from Calvary to signal His ultimate, everlasting victory.  For followers of Jesus Christ at the time it was a troubling, tragic turn, for the One they believed was the promised Messiah was slain.

What they did not realise in that moment was Jesus had taken upon Himself the sins of the world and thus faced judgment deserved by sinners.  His great purpose for coming was fulfilled in revealing the Gospel, the New Covenant, the love of God, gained victory over sin and death, crushed Satan underfoot, and put to death the Law of Moses that could only condemn.  One of the soldiers who looked on mused out loud:  "This surely was a righteous Man!"  By faith in Jesus sinners are deemed righteous by the righteous Judge of all the earth who provided atonement with His own blood.  The hope of forgiveness and eternal life was assured by all Jesus accomplished in His life, death and resurrection.  His future return to earth was affirmed when He was conveyed alive into heaven before many witnesses.  

Coinciding with Christ's return, judgment will certainly come upon the world for sin.  The prophet declared, "...The LORD will be a shelter for His people, and the strength of the children of Israel."  God will shake the heavens and earth, yet in light of future troubling events God's people need not be shaken in mind or resolve.  God IS our refuge, shelter and strength.  The stability of a building begins with a solid foundation, and those who hear Jesus' words and do them He likens to a man who built his house upon the rock.  Though exposed to powerful and raging elements that would make houses built on sand an utter ruin, all who trust and obey Jesus are girded with strength and enabled to endure.

When a flood, fire or tornado passes through a community there can be one or two houses standing and we wonder how that is possible--that destruction could be so widespread yet one house stands resolute.  There is no need to wonder when the Christian endures trials and troubles:  it is Jesus who enables us to stand in the power of the Holy Spirit.  It is not our willpower, effort or commitment but Jesus Christ.  We are works in progress, but concerning salvation, righteousness and strength we have heard from the mouth of Jesus Himself:  "It is finished!"  Let us praise the LORD for His goodness and for His wonderful works to the children of men!