I Will Love You Freely

The Human Economy of Love

We grow up in an entirely different economy of love than God’s love.  Simple behavior modification methods train us from infant on up that certain behaviors are acceptable and others are not.  If we behave well, the consequence is reward.  If we behave badly, the consequence is punishment.  Please do not misunderstand, it is necessary to do this. Even God provided the law as a means of disciplining and guiding his people to maturity, both in relation with each other (socially) as well as in relation to Himself.

Many moons ago, I taught in a Christian school.  In our preschool class, we had a young boy whose parents did not believe in disciplining their children until they reached the “age of accountability” which is to say, the age where the child knows the difference between right and wrong.  His parents were fine people, just a little misguided because how can a child learn the difference between right and wrong if they are never taught?  This young man was bright, intelligent and very high spirited.  But his lack of discipline wreaked havoc in class and alienated him from his classmates.  He would get up whenever he wanted and walk around, talk out of turn, disrespect the teachers by yelling (sometimes profanities), hitting, kicking, etc.  He would help himself to the other children’s belongings which included food and drink.  He had not learned guidelines, boundaries or consequences.  This caused his little peers to avoid him and his teachers to sometimes dread dealing with him. He was, by the ripe young age of 5, shall we say, “dismissed” from two preschools (yes, one of them was ours), before his parents decided they might need to offer their son a little bit of guidance before the age of accountability, and only by doing so, did he reach an appropriate level of social and spiritual maturity. 

Rules, guidelines, boundaries and consequences, for both good and bad behavior, are necessary tools to bring us to a place of relational maturity.

The Love Bank

The problem begins when, at some point, we begin equating behavior with love rather than seeing it as the means of growth and measure of maturity.  If we behave well and do the right thing, our parents love us. While parental love is much like God’s love in that it is unconditional, human love does tend to reinforce an accepted but wrong standard that good/bad behavior equates with different levels of love rather than the ultimate goal of maturity.

By the time we reach the age of accountability it is already deeply ingrained that good equals more love and bad equals less love.  We unwittingly open up a mental bank account for love; a veritable savings account where we keep record of our good deeds and kindnesses to draw upon when we need to redeem them for favor, approval or love.  Our concept of love manifests in this way: if I do well in life, if I am a successful, good and decent person I will be loved and receive good things.  If I am not successful and behave badly, I will not be loved or, for certain, I will be loved less.  So, we learn to manipulate our own and others’ behavior in order to get the level of love we need or want.  We do this without even being aware of it, missing the whole point that we do not have to repeatedly earn love, so much as learn the value of maturing in the love we have already established.

Unfortunately, when it comes time to develop our relationship with God at whatever point in life that is (and it’s different for everyone), we view Him in this capacity as well.  We believe that, if we behave well, follow all His rules, etc. God will love us and bless us.  If we  break one of the commandments, miss the mark, or outright fail, etc., then God will withhold His love and blessings from us.  We bank our goodness to cash in as a note when we need favors or blessing from Him; we shy away from Him when we know we have done something wrong; or we avoid Him altogether. 

God’s Economy of Love

But that is not the economy of God’s love. First of all, God is love.  God’s love existed long before mankind existed, and therefore His love bank always has resources available. He never runs out, runs low, requires a bailout, charges interest, or requires an 8 page historical application from you to prove your worthiness to make a withdrawal from his supply of love.  He does not discriminate or dole out measures of love based on your current or past performance.

God does not love because there is excellence.

Therefore, he does not refuse to love because there is sin.

This is where GRACE comes in and conveys us beyond the human understanding of contractual love (if you do this, then I will love you) into the realm of covenant love (I will love you regardless of what you do).

So, just how does God love us?  God says, “I will love them freely.” (Hosea 14:4).

As Phillip Yancey so succinctly states in his book What’s So Amazing About Grace:

There is nothing we can do to make God love us more.

There is nothing we can do to make God love us less.

Grace is an attribute of the very character and nature of God.  The reason this is important to understand is because God is incapable of acting contrary to his character.  He cannot.  He is love. He is truth. He is grace. Therefore, God's love is not dependent on our performance. He is always love.  He is always truth. He is always grace.

But Thou art a God of forgiveness, gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness; And Thou didst not forsake them” (Nehemiah 9:17).

Upon further inquiry, we learn that all of God’s grace attributes were  wrapped up in the person of Jesus who condescended from heaven to earth, camped out among broken humanity to be the living, breathing, walking example and dispenser of God’s grace, ultimately sacrificing his life to break down any barriers (specifically God’s character attribute of justice) that would prevent God from giving His grace to us or our ability to receive it. 

The gracious character of God was fully manifested in the person of our Lord Jesus Christ, who is the revealer of the Father (John 1:18)


And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace. For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. (John 1:16-17)

God does not love you because Jesus died –  

Jesus died because God loves you! 

Therefore, you cannot acquire grace through any effort of your own.  It is free.  It is a gift.  Grace is the unearned and unmerited love and favor of God.  Grace is a gift that costs everything for the Giver, and nothing for the recipient.  God paid the price in Jesus which means grace is His to do with what He will and there is nothing we can do to control His distribution of it! 

I will make all My goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim the name of the LORD before you.  I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. (Exodus 33:19)

I'm not a rocket scientist, but I'm pretty sure that takes it completely out of our hands!

“I will love them freely”  God will not love you meritoriously. God will love you freely.  He cannot love you any other way.

“I will love them freely.”  You cannot earn God’s love. God loves you without price or money.  You cannot barter or manipulate God’s love. God loves you without incentive or bribe.  There is nothing good in us to compel God to love us.  Our very best faith is shadowed with doubt; our finest acts are stained by sin; our purest devotions are not even close to what God deserves.

"I will love them freely."  God loves you because of who He is, not because of who you are.  Free grace, free and perfect love toward us from God without any basis in who we are or how we behave.  Scandalous! Yet, that is grace – the gift of God's love with all its benefits, even though we do not deserve it.

The Exclusion List

   

Sin (tiny) vs. Grace (big) - it's like that!

Are there any exclusions to grace?  None.  All may receive it.  There is grace enough for all manner of sin.  I dare say, many men and women have tried to “outdo” God’s grace and while it is not recommended to follow that deliberate course, God’s grace cannot be outdone. If you want to get in a contest to see which is greater – your ability to sin or God’s grace - God will match your sin with grace and win every time. Abundant sin is no barrier to the superabundant grace of God. 

• You haven’t experienced salvation yet?  Not sure about all that Jesus/salvation business?  Seems kind of hypocritical? No worries.  Unbelief does not exclude you from God’s grace.  God loved you  long before He sent Jesus. But for a little nudge by grace, you don't even know you have a need for it!

"I will love them freely."

• Have you never sought it for fear you could not maintain it?  No worries.  Your best efforts could never maintain it. 

"I will love them freely."

• What is your sin or failure? Hardness of heart? Immorality? Murder? Hate? Abuse? Addiction? Anger? Do you think your sin or failure is more than a match for God?  No, on the contrary, they are the acts of a finite creature, but God's grace is the act of infinite goodness.

From your lips to God’s ears, what is it that you need this moment?  Saving grace?  Sustaining grace? Common grace? Securing grace? Purifying/cleansing grace?  Healing? Comfort? Love? Assurance? Provision? Protection? The contractual obligation has been fulfilled in Jesus.  Through no effort of your own, you have been conveyed into a covenant relationship with God through Christ, one filled with grace and love.  Simply ask.

Now, the only act required on your part is to await grace with confidence and acknowledge it with gratitude.

   From God’s lips to your ears...   I will love you freely.