Experiencing God’s Love

My Father is Good
My Father is very patient and kind
My Father is not envious, never boastful,
My Father is not arrogant,
My Father is  never rude, nor is He self-seeking,  
My Father is not quick to take offence,
My Father keeps no score of wrongs,
My Father does not gloat over my sins but is always glad when truth prevails.
My Father knows no limit to His endurance, no end to His trust.
My Father is always hopeful and patient
My Father is LOVE
God is LOVE 

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God Is Love

Substituting love with “My Father” is a concept I got from a book I read recently, titled the Search for Significance. Although I have read this book a couple of times, it’s my go-to book apart from the Scripture when I need to be reminded of my worth and how much God loves me. In page 113, the author replaces “love” as explained in 1 Corinthians chapter 13 — the book in scripture that describes God’s unconditional love and acceptance of us with “My Father”. 

Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away.

1 Corinthians 13:4‭-‬5‭, ‬7‭-‬8 (NKJV)

The truth we must embrace is “God is Love”. Therefore, if God is our Father, then we can say that “Our Father” is Love.

God’s love is different from human love. Human love is conditional, self-centred and often looks at what the other party can gain, but God’s love is pure, kind, patient, and hopeful, does not keep a record of offence or scores wrongs, and stands against injustice. 

We can’t fully explain the extent of God’s love for man except we look at the sacrifice of Jesus for mankind. This is the highest demonstration of the Father’s Love. Jesus’ substitutionary death wasn’t just an act of love, it defines love.

Apostle Paul puts it this way:

Nobody will agree to die on behalf of another person, even if that person has done what is right. Maybe someone might be brave enough to die on behalf of a very good person. But God has shown us how much he loves us. Even when we still did not obey God, Christ died on our behalf.

Romans 5:7‭-‬8 (EASY ENG V)

Jesus’ death didn’t come to put you in a redeemable position, but to redeem a people to Himself. Through his death, you are made alive to God in righteousness. You become a friend of God. You make peace with God and you are made a son and a joint-heir with Christ. 

Therefore, God’s highest expression of His love is in Christ Jesus – and rejecting Christ is to reject the love of God. 

The Fatherhood of God

To fully experience God’s love, you must see and understand God as your Father. Father means Source and Sustenance. Father is also defined by the Vine dictionary as the “originator of a family or company of persons animated by the same spirit as himself”.

Calling God “Father” is one of the truths Jesus introduced to us. When the disciples asked Jesus to teach them how to pray, He taught them using the words, “Our Father”. This was a strange thing at the time and because of this, the Jews were more determined to kill Him. 

But Jesus answered them, “My Father has been working until now, and I have been working.” Therefore the Jews sought all the more to kill Him because He not only broke the Sabbath but also said that God was His Father, making Himself equal with God.

John 5:17-18

Due to our various circumstances and backgrounds, we often project the failures of our earthly fathers on God. But if we know and understand His character, and how He is bound by His Word, we can fully rely on His Fatherhood with utmost faith that He loves us and everything He does is for our good. 

In Romans 8:31-38, the apostle Paul gives us an insight into the extent God can go for our sake. He asks “If God is for us, who can be against us?”, and “He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?”

Though God is our provider, our protector and our guide, He is more unlike our earthly fathers and father figures. He is heavenly, He is mighty and He is above every human limitation. Unlike our earthly fathers, He always has our best intentions at heart and He has the power to bring them to pass.

He lives in Light and there is no form of variation or shadow due to change in Him. He gives good and perfect gifts, and because of this, premised on His goodness, we can rest assured that we are safe in His hands.

Seeing God as our Father helps us understand His love better.

How can I experience the love of God?

1. You must be born again: It is sons that enjoy the fullness of a Father’s love. Although God causes rain to fall and the the sun to shine on every human, there are certain benefits that an outsider (i.e. living outside the confines of Christ) can enjoy. It’s only when you believe in Jesus through faith that you can become a child of God (John 1:12).
2. Accept that you are loved: Accepting all God has done for you through Christ is a step towards experiencing His love. Note that I said acceptance and not feeling loved. While human love is often attached to feelings, God’s love is based on knowledge and understanding. This leads to the next point.
3. Meditate on and confess the truth of His love for you.
4. Extend your love to your neighbour: Make it a duty to be an expression of His love to people around you. Owe no man nothing but love.

Friend, God’s love is based on knowledge and not primarily on feelings. Don’t get me wrong; we can feel loved by God, but on days you don’t have the emotional components of this love, does this mean you are not loved?

So, understanding God’s love is based on a deep conviction in your spirit and soul that GOD LOVES YOU!