God's Radical Love
by Alex GeeFor God so loved the world. . . John 3:16 is one of the most loved and memorized verses of the entire Bible. As Christians, we often quote this scripture to the lost and unsaved. How wonderful it would be if we really believed this verse for ourselves! It’s amazing to think that we preach how God is willing to save the mass murderers, child molesters, false prophets, drug dealers and death row inmates, yet, it’s hard for us to believe that our heavenly Father has any mercy for His redeemed children who find themselves struggling with their faith, understanding of scripture or secret sin.
The Lord knows our frame and remembers that we are dust. (Psalm 103:14) God is very aware of our humanity and sinful nature. Yet He loves us. . . very deeply. It has nothing to do with our flawlessness, merit or human righteousness. It is because we have been created by Him and for Him—this is unconditional love.
Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you a prophet to the nations (Jeremiah 1:5-7). The Hebrew word for “knew” in this verse is yada. It means to perceive, understand, and to know by reflection and revelation. Jeremiah tried to convince God that he was too young and inexperienced to fulfill what God was calling him to. God told Jeremiah He wasn’t calling him based on credentials—or lack thereof. God said He knew (yada) everything about Jeremiah—good and bad; He had a revelation of him—strengths and weaknesses. Yet God still wanted to use Jeremiah.
What this means to us today is that God is not surprised by our weaknesses, questions and struggles. Yada also means to discern or be aware of circumstances that impact a subject. This means that God has already discerned how you and your environment are to interface. The Father was quite aware of Jeremiah’s age and experience; the Father was aware of the spiritual state of Israel; He was aware of the political climate; and also of Jeremiah’s temperament, zeal and flaws. The Father’s discernment is so keen that He was able to weave all of these threads together for His glory. The Father has discerned you and your situation—He will weave together your flaws, your gifts, your opportunities, your environment and your calling to prepare and present you for His cause. So, the big question is not whether God still loves us, but rather, will we love Him enough to believe these truths and give our sins and struggles over to Him?
On the last night of Urbana 96 I told the audience about my daughter Lexi, who was born three months prematurely and spent the first sixteen weeks of her life in the hospital. Since Lexi was too small to be fed orally, my wife Jackie had to pump and store breast milk so that the doctors could feed it to Lexi through a tube. An interesting thing happened as Jackie began to pump milk. . . she had temporary lapses of memory. A nurse explained how a hormone is released in moms when they are pumping or breast feeding that causes the mother to shut out the world around her (hence the temporary memory loss) so as to focus only on the baby that is in need of her undivided attention. When Jackie had difficulty with her milk supply she was encouraged to focus on a photo of Lexi (Lexi was still in the incubator and we could only hold her once a week for twenty minutes). The photo of Lexi stimulated Jackie’s brain and she was able to increase her milk supply almost instantly. God is awesome!
Isaiah 49:15 says, "Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you!" God does not compare Himself to a proud Father but rather a nursing mother. He says even IF a mother could forget her child (which is highly unlikely), He will NEVER forget His children or their needs. Your praise, your presence, your life, are all snapshots that stimulate the Father’s supply of “milk” or daily bread for your life. Don’t run from the Father when you stumble. Run to Him. Your sincere prayer and adoration causes His memory of your sin to be erased and you will have His undivided attention.
I will praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made: your works are wonderful. . . My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. . . How precious concerning me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them. (Psalm 139: 14a-17) This Psalm is very similar to Jeremiah 1:5. The writer talks about the Father’s knowledge of us prior to being formed in our mother’s womb. The Father has been patiently awaiting your arrival, your life and ministry. If the Father gets this much joy out of merely thinking about you, can you imagine His ecstasy the day you were born? I would even venture to say that the Father rejoices over you each morning when you awake.
Please allow these scriptures to speak to your heart. We can become better witnesses if we are in a position to invite people to a relationship with a living and loving Father who loves and forgives the lost and the found. Let nothing separate you from this kind of love; let nothing separate you from this kind of Father.
- Consider the ways in which your "lack of belief" has kept you from receiving God's radical love.
- As you meditate on these scriptures, pray a prayer of accepting and receiving (again, or perhaps for the first time) the Father's incredible love for you.
Unless otherwise noted, all materials on the urbana.org web site are Copyright InterVarsity Christian Fellowship / USA. All rights reserved.
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