I'm a Christian and I believe in sovereign grace and in the total depravity of man (you could say that I'm kind of Reformed), but how can I say to people, when witnessing, that God loves them, when in fact God only has true love for His elect? If someone says that God's love towards all people is manifested by the fact that God gave them life, and food, and air, and family... well, that would mean that God loves non-elect in the same way He loves ants, and grass and my dog... that is not true "love", is it? This question has been bugging me for some time now and I would really appreciate some help. Thank you.
I never tell people "God loves you" or that "God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life." I follow this patter:
Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you,
Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin.
We have many ideas about what a person has to do to get to heaven. Some believe we must follow the Golden Rule, and do good deeds which will eventually outweigh the bad we have done, tipping the scales in our favour
.after all, we are all basically good people
right?
If we assume we are good people we are also assuming a standard for what we consider good. Since we assume there is an absolute standard for what is good there must be an absolute standard giver. The Bible repeatedly states that God has given mankind a holy, universal Law, that is written on our hearts and our conscience bears witness to this Law. This Law is revealed and summarized in the Ten Commandments. When we look at Gods Law, we must understand that we have all sinned in some way or another; remember, you dont have to break all Ten to be guilty of breaking the Law. The Bible warns,
For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become accountable for all of it.
it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment Hebrews 9:27
Lets look at a few of the Commandments and see how we fare:
You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain. Have you ever taken Gods name in vain? If you have, you are a blasphemer and can not enter the Kingdom of God.
Honour your father and mother. Have you always honoured your parents in a respectful manner? In a way that God would consider honouring?
You shall not steal. Have you ever taken something that didnt belong to you (irrespective of its value)? What do you call someone who takes something that doesnt belong to them? A thief You cannot enter Gods Kingdom.
You shall not bear false witness. Have you ever told a lie? Just one? What do you call someone who told a lie? A liar. The Bible warns that all liars will have their part in the Lake of Fire.
You and I are guilty of sinning against God by breaking His Law, and because we have a conscience, we have sinned
with knowledge. Isnt it true that when you steal, lie, etc. you know that its wrong? Does the fact that you have sinned against God bother you? The punishment for breaking Gods Law is Hell. Eternal Death.
Almost every natural man that hears of hell, flatters himself that he shall escape it; he depends upon himself for his own security; he flatters himself in what he has done, in what he is now doing, or what he intends to do. Every one lays out matters in his own mind how he shall avoid damnation, and flatters himself that he contrives well for himself, and that his schemes will not fail.[1]
WHAT MUST YOU DO TO BE SAVED FROM THE PENALTY OF BREAKING GODS LAW?
There is good news, there is a
GOSPEL. God the Father has given us a mediator in Jesus Christ who is the incarnation of God. Jesus took upon Himself mans nature, becoming subject to the Law of God, and perfectly obeying the Law in thought and deed for His entire lifetime on earth. While on earth Christ took the sins of His people upon Himself, and suffering the punishment due to all their sins paid the penalty by dying on the Cross,
for the wages of sin is death.
By dying in place of His people Jesus Christ became the mediator between God and man and revived in His people the righteousness, holiness and true knowledge lost as a consequence of sin.
As we find ourselves before a holy God we are convicted for breaking His righteous Law. The Holy Spirit moves in the soul to bring us to acknowledge our guilt and brokenness before God and His righteousness. We come to hate sin and find Jesus Christ precious. The Holy Spirit convinces the broken sinner of the shamefulness of sin and then brings the offender to a place where they can,
repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord.
If you feel the weight of sin on your heart and have come to see the blackness of your soul in the light of Gods Law
if you have been brought to a place where you dread the judgement of the trice holy God, BELIEVE THE GOSPEL! If you believe that Jesus Christ paid the penalty for your sins the Bible assures us that,
whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved.
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[1] quote taken from a sermon by Jonathan Edwards titled, Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God.
