How Should One Best Understand Divine Love?
The conditions were perfect; sun setting, waves lazily lapping against the shoreline, her head gently resting on his shoulder. He looked down and softly whispered those three little words, “I love you.” The next day Josh was at a basketball game. His reply to a friend’s offer of cheesy nachos was, “yeah man, I love nachos!” Later that evening he was pulled over for speeding on the way home. After getting off with a warning he remarked, “God must love me.” How can Josh qualify three such different concepts with the same word? Surely Josh doesn’t feel the same way about his girlfriend as he does cheesy nachos, nor would he qualify God’s love as the same when he gets out of a ticket as when he comes to the realization of the cross. No wonder love can be such a confusing topic! There are several ways to understand love, and several ways to understand Diving love particularly. There are three basic ways to understand divine love 1.) God’s love is so beyond us that we cannot understand it, 2.) God’s love is able to be understood but never imitated, or 3.) God’s love can be understood and incorporated in the lives of his creatures.
The concept that God’s love is too far beyond us in an understandable, yet unstable premise. There are many parts of God’s love that are difficult to understand. How can a loving God send people to hell? Simple explanation: we don’t understand God’s love. A verse from the Bible often referenced in this situation is Isaiah 55:8 "‘For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,’ declares the LORD” (Bible). This little verse is used many times in situations that we don’t understand. Yet the verse before it speaks of God giving grace to the wicked if they come to him. In context God is explaining that it is difficult to understand His benevolent grace, not why he would send someone to hell. Supposing God’s love can be understood, now what?
This leads to a second premise; God’s love can be understood but not
The concept that God’s love is too far beyond us in an understandable, yet unstable premise. There are many parts of God’s love that are difficult to understand. How can a loving God send people to hell? Simple explanation: we don’t understand God’s love. A verse from the Bible often referenced in this situation is Isaiah 55:8 "‘For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,’ declares the LORD” (Bible). This little verse is used many times in situations that we don’t understand. Yet the verse before it speaks of God giving grace to the wicked if they come to him. In context God is explaining that it is difficult to understand His benevolent grace, not why he would send someone to hell. Supposing God’s love can be understood, now what?
This leads to a second premise; God’s love can be understood but not
Cited: “Agape.” The New World Encyclopedia. March. < http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/ entry/Agape> Winkleman, Tom E. Bible Study Manuals. “Love.”