YOU ARE GREATLY LOVED BY GOD

See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. 1 John 3:1

Do you feel loved by God today? Some days I don't. Often times I measure His love for me by how well I perform and live the Christian life. Other times I measure it by whether or not I feel His love for me. this of course is conditioned by my emotional history, my circumstances, my mental and emotional health, and how I understand Him. How do you know if God loves you? The place that I constantly must return to is His word, especially 1 John 3:1.

George Matheson was a 19th century Scottish pastor. He was born with an eye defect that left him totally blind by age 18. Shortly after this, his fiancee left him, deciding she would not be content to be married to a blind preacher. Years later, at age 40, Matheson was alone on the night of his sister’s wedding. Something happened, perhaps the memory of being rejected by his own fiancee years before, that caused him severe mental suffering and duress. Suddenly, the words of a hymn came to him as if dictated by some inward voice. The whole thing was done in five minutes and he never had to edit or correct it. The first verse is: O love that will not let me go, I rest my weary soul in You. I give You back the life I owe that in Your ocean-depths its flow May richer, fuller be.”

The third verse reflects Matheson’s experience of God’s love through suffering: ‘O joy that seeks me through pain, I cannot close my heart to You; I trace the rainbow through the rain, and feel the promise is not vain that morning shall tearless be.” In his blindness and loneliness, perhaps feeling forsaken by the love of a woman, Matheson sought and found comfort in the unchanging love of God. Although human love is wonderful, it is incomparable to God’s love. It is the most life-changing force in entire universe.

This is what causes John to joyfully exclaim, “See what kind of love the Father has given to us” John, in his writings, thinks often of God’s love. As you look at the Gospel of John it would seem that John was overwhelmed with the thought that he was loved by God. In John 3:16 he records the words of the Lord Jesus, “God so loved the world” and reveals the measure of God’s love. As you look at the Epistle of 1 John it would seem that even in his old age he was still amazed by the fact that he was loved by God. His words show us that…

A. The Father’s love for you is meant to be seen! I want to draw your attention to one word: “See”. It may not immediately impact you but it should. It is rich, powerful, and life-changing. This is John’s passionate exclamation and command to all of us. “See” is often translated, “behold”. As an exclamation, “see” shows that the Fathers great love is meant to amaze us, but in order to be amazed by it, God’s love is meant to be seen. God desires it to consume our thoughts and control our behavior. He wants our seeing His love to motivate us to serve Him and to live holy lives. He wants the sight of His love to give us comfort in all our trials. He desires his love to fill us with the eager hope of being with Him in heaven.

John is so amazed, awestruck, humbled, joyful, and excited that he invites us to join him and “see what manner of love the Father has given to us”. Look at it, be staggered by it, feel the wonder of it, be amazed and astonished by it- the depth, the quality, the commitment of His heart to you and for you.

B. The Father’s love for you is meant to instruct you “See” is not only a passionate exclamation, it is also a command. “Stop everything else! Look at this! Think about it! Reflect upon this! Fill your minds with this truth! Ponder the significance of it!” John does not just speak of the fact that God loves you, but how God loves you! The word translated, “what kind” is the Greek word “potapen” that originally meant, “of what country, or race”. It is the same word spoken about Jesus in Matthew 8:27 after He calmed the storm out at sea and they said “what sort of man is this that even the wind and the seas obey Him?” What they saw the Lord do amazed them. When they saw the miracle, they thought, This man is out of this world. What we saw is strange and foreign. They had never seen anyone do what they saw Him do. John says that the kind of love that He has shown to us, when seen and reflected upon, leaves us speechless and amazed. It is the kind of love that leaves us saying “Wow”! It is as if John thinks about the Father’s great love and says, “Where does this come from? It must be from heaven, because there’s nothing like it in this world!” It is supernatural, divine, peculiar, unique, stands out, incomparable, exceedingly beautiful and compelling.

What kind of love is it? The heavenly, infinite, gracious, divine, supernatural love of the Father and He wants us to know it, understand it, see and savor it! Is it no wonder why Paul prays in Philippians 1:9? “And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight.” Or in Ephesians 3:17-19, “…I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge-- that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.”

A habit of devout, thankful meditation on God’s great love lies at the foundation of all vigorous, happy Christian living. This is why John makes this a command. It is the grace given, grace enabled, love caused, and wonderful duty of the believer to see and savor the love of God.

John Owen, the great Puritan, wrote that the revelation of God and His great love “deserves the severest of our thoughts, the best of our meditations, and our utmost diligence in them.” If you had a friend in New York, but you never thought about this friend and never communicated with him, that friendship would fade and not have much significance in your life. Friendship maintained and built always requires great effort. For the friendship to affect you, you must think often about this friend and what he means to you and spend time with him. That is why John Owen suggests that “Friendship with God is most maintained and kept up by visits”. Oh how we need regular visits with God to stoke the fires of our love!

C. The Father’s love for you is lavished to you as a gift! “See what kind of love the Father has given to us” (Verse 1c). John puts this in a very interesting way. Notice John does not just say says that this love been shown us, revealed to us, manifested to us, or spoken about to us; even though He has done all of that. John says God has gone even further- He has given His love to us! The word speaks many things.

First, it speaks of the measure of God’s love to us; it could more literally be translated lavished on us. Romans 5:4 tells us that, “the love of God is being constantly poured into us by the Holy Spirit”. Second, it speaks of the manner of God’s giving of love. Giving has the idea of a one-sided giving, instead of a return for something earned or deserved. God’s love is purely a gift that comes from His undeserved favor, or grace. We see Paul emphasizing that out of this world love in action in Romans 5. First he says in verse 6, “For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly.” Further, in verse 8, he adds, “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” Even then he does not exhaust this miracle. He goes on in verse 10, “while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son.” Add up the terms: we were helpless, ungodly, sinners, and enemies of God. His great love is demonstrated in that He sent His Son to die for us while we were in such an awful condition! That is why John cries, “What amazing love!” But John takes God’s love even deeper and farther…

“that we should be called children of God; and so we are” (verse 1b) The greatness of God’s love is magnified to the highest level because of what it not only shows but even more so for what it does! He called us and made us to be called children of God. This is why John is so amazed! Are you ?

John wants us to feel the wonder of it today. This means we are no longer to let the world define you. (John says that they don’t have a clue at the end of this verse). Don’t let people define you. Don’t let yourself define you. Let God define you! The truth will set you free to live in love and truth. You are to think this way brethren: I am loved and I am a Child of God!

There is no other word for God’s love than amazing. It is a love that leaves us standing in awe. It is a love like no other. It is a love that makes us a son of God. It is a love by which God calls us His son. Christians, to the degree that you behold the free grace of God, to the degree that you meditate on it and you let it become a holy fire in your heart, to the degree you experience and behold the love of God, to that degree you are going to agree with John and say and feel “How great is the love of God!”

Pastor Bill