ARE YOU DOUBTING GOD'S LOVE?

TEXT: Malachi 1:1-2 | 1 John 4

With encouragement from the prophets Haggai and Zechariah, the first group of Hebrew exiles returned to Israel to rebuild the Temple in about  516 BC. As the 2^nd and 3^rd waves of exiles returned in 457 and 445, Ezra and Nehemiah led the nation in a Spiritual Revival.

In about 432, Nehemiah returned to Babylon for a short time. When he returned to Jerusalem he found the Revival had deteriorated (Nehemiah 13).

It is believed that Malachi ministered during this time. We know very little about the prophet Malachi. We know...

·       He ministered to the Hebrew nation 400 years before Christ.

·       His message is given to both the Priest and the People.

·       As he delivered God's message, the people responded by arguing with the Lord's concerns.

It's a dangerous thing when people argue with God and try to defend their sinful ways. As you study the book of Malachi you will notice they were...

1. Doubting His Love (1:3-5)
2. Denying His Sovereignty (1:6-8)
3. Despising His Worship (1:11-14)
4. Resisting His Moral Standards (2:17-3:6)
5. Robbing God's Storehouse (3:8-11)
6. Sitting On The Sidelines (3:13-18)

Malachi 1:1-5 The burden of the word of the Lord to Israel by Malachi. ² I have loved you, saith the Lord. Yet ye say, Wherein hast thou loved us? Was not Esau Jacob's brother? saith the Lord: yet I loved Jacob, ³ And I hated Esau,...

Explanation of v 1-2: Jacob vs Esau (Gen 25:23).

The Bible says in numerous places that God Loves Us! 

Jeremiah 31:3 The LORD hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with loving kindness have I drawn thee.

Ephesians 2:4 But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;).

Let there be no doubt, God Loves Us! (John 3:16 / 1 John 3:1-2)

There are many today who talk about the Love of God, who are strangers to the God of Love.

My concern is how little real Love there is for God Today! The better acquainted we are with His Love – the more our hearts will be drawn to love Him.

1 John 4 is one of those sections of scripture that summarizes the principal facts on this important subject.

Let’s examine the subject of “Does God Really Love Me?”

1.    GOD IS THE AUTHOR OF LOVE. Love is of God (1 John 4:7).

·       The Phrase is of is a primary preposition denoting origin.

·       What we know of true love comes from God (1 Corinthians 13).

·       Because we were created in the image of God, all men desire to know and experience true love.

·       To experience True Love, you must be Born Again (John 3:3-7, 15-17).

2.    GOD’S LOVE IS ESSENTIAL TO HIS NATURE. God is love (1 John 4:8, 16).

On the throne of the universe is a God of Perfect Love. Every act of God, even His judgments, are a result of His love for mankind.
  

Romans 8:31-39 If God be for us, who can be against us? ³² He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? ³³ Who shall lay anything to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth. ³⁴ Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us. ³⁵ Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?...

36 As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. ³⁷ Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. ³⁸ For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, ³⁹ Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

3.    THE PURPOSE OF GOD’S LOVE. Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world (1 John 4:17).

Why? …because as he is, so are we in this world. Christ could face the cross because of His confidence in God’s love (John 15:9).

4.    THE BENEFIT OF GOD’S LOVE. There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love (1 John 4:18).

The Love of God Delivers From Fear! Fear of Hell and Death, Fear of falling, Fear of failing.

5.    THE GIFT OF GOD’S LOVE. We love Him, because He first love us (1 John 4:19).

How do we know He first loved us?

In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him.  Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his
Son to be the propitiation for our sins (v 9-10).

Isaiah 53:4-6 Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.

6.    THE MISSION OF GOD’S LOVE. Love one another (1 John 4:7, 11, 20).

John 15:12 This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you. [13:35] By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.

The main reason so many Christians do not get along with one another is because they choose to not practice the Love of God.

7.    GOD’S LOVE IS EVIDENCE OF SALVATION. He that loveth not knoweth not God (1 John 4:8).

The natural thing to do, for a person who knows God, is to express and practice love.

The loveless person is a godless person. What a sad condition!

CONCLUSION: THE LOVE OF GOD IS….

·       Undeserved: God commendeth his love toward us,… Romans 5:8

·       Universal (John 3:16).

·       Unfailing: He loved them unto the end. John 13:1

·       Unsearchable (Ephesians 3:11-19).

·       Unequaled: Beloved… 1 John 3:2

·       Unselfish: Greater love hath no man than this,… John 15:13

Are you still DOUBTING GOD’S LOVE?