Teaching the world a method for studying God's Word
to learn and comprehend the meaning of Scripture
DWJD Ministries = doing what Jesus did
4 that even though we were dead because of our sins, He gave us life when He raised Christ from the dead.
- Ephesians 2:5
fig. 2
Step Four
Step Four is believing that God truly loves you! And not only that, but the Creator of the universe loves you a lot more than you can imagine. The awesome news is that He loves you as you are right now, sin and all. Despite being a sinner, living a life that contains sin, God is still in love with you. Even in your fallen state, God the Father remains committed to you. The word love is defined as 'strong affection for another arising out of kinship or personal ties.' The Bible also describes God as being so rich in mercy (See fig. 1). The word used for mercy in the Greek language is eleos [EL-lay-ous] and means 'kindness or good will towards the miserable and the afflicted, joined with a desire to help them.' As God's creation, He has tremendous ties to each of us. But love is not just an emotion; it also has an action component to it. I like to define love using a mathematical equation:
Love = Demonstrated Commitment
Time
Simply stated, Love can be defined as making or exhibiting a commitment over some time period. The word demonstrated means 'to prove or make clear by reasoning or evidence.' If someone says they love you, do they demonstrate it? If so, how do they go about it? If a person tells you they love you, but fail to every make any attempt to prove it, how do you know they really love you? Usually, we say they made a commitment. The word commitment means 'the greater thing done by someone for us.' God the Father sacrificed His Son, Jesus for us. And, He did it while we were yet sinners (See fig. 2). I really cannot think of a greater demonstrated commitment than that. The Time part of the equation is for the whole of eternity. Wow! What a powerful way for God to tell us He loves us. But, that's not the end of the details.
The Bible tells us that God loves every single person in the world (See fig. 3). And, since you are part of this world—that includes you! The word for world is kosmon [KOS-mon] and means 'the whole of humanity.' The word we use today is cosmos, which means 'the entire universe.' The word for who-so-ever is pas [pas] and means 'everyone, but individually.' This word, while very short, is complex. It incorporates the idea of our free will. Every person is invited; no one is excluded from God's invitation. But, they still have to make their own decision to come. He is not forcing anyone. You have to admit that God’s love is strong and deep enough to care for you. No matter what you’ve done, or how you’ve lived, God still loves you with the deepst of affection. He has demonstrated it by sacrificing His Son. He is offering us eternal life. There is no greater love.
16 For God so loved the world, that He surrendered His only Son, that who-so-ever puts their trust in Him, will never perish, but instead will be given eternal life.
- Romans 3:16
fig. 3
Our Passion:
How to be Saved (Step Four)
4 But God, who is so rich in mercy, and He loves us so much,
- Ephesians 2:4
fig. 1