Nothing can separate us from God’s love, except if we reject it
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The Most Elusive Need
In a previous blog, we defined “love” as a basic need. That means it is necessary for our very survival. It is not an option. Yet, love is also the most elusive of all our needs. We generally know how to find food, and air is plentiful, but love is not. The truth is, LOVE cannot be controlled nor possessed, despite all our beliefs and desires to the contrary. Love is something that is given, not earned. And because of that simple reality, many people have been hurt pursuing love. Wars have been fought over issues involving love. Fortunes have been lost by the deceptiveness of love. Yet, our need for it persists. And, when left wanting, there is no greater heartache, no greater emptiness. no greater drive to find it. No amount of money can buy love, and no amount of effort can coerce someone into loving you. Love develops at its own pace, and the most valuable of all loves is true love. True love does not disappoint, it does not waver, it does not depend on the actions of the one who is loved (See 1 Corinthians 13 for more detail). True love is the most valuable, yet elusive, need we have as humans.
A Dependable Source
Some of you reading this blog have been blessed with finding true love. Many of you have not. And, if not, your search continues. The Bible is a book full of promises, but many are conditional. IF we do “X”, THEN we receive “Y.” Few verses declare promises with “absolute certainty.” Yet, there is one that involves the promise of LOVE From God To us that is absolute! In my blog on John 3:16, I pointed out something God did out of love for all of us – He sacrificed His one and only Son. In our verse for today, Romans 8:38-39, the Apostle Paul confirms that God’s love is unstoppable. It states, “For I am convinced [and continue to be convinced—beyond any doubt]…” (AMP) that “nothing will ever be able to separate us from the love of God..” (TLB) This is a personal, absolute statement about God’s commitment to love us. The most elusive, yet desired need of our heart is right there in front of us, offered by the very God of the universe! But Paul doesn’t stop there. He knew that there would be doubters. People who would claim that God had passed over them for some reason. But Paul doesn’t allow us that privilege. He goes on to make sure we have no excuse for missing out on God’s love. Paul presents eight contrasting forces and two catchalls – none of which has the power to separate us from God’s love for us. It is an impressive list!
- Neither death nor life. That is: nothing in this life, nor even the obstacle of death, can keep us from God’s love. If you remember Lazarus, he was dead in the grave four days before Jesus came to get him – demonstrating beyond any doubt that God’s love (in this case, Jesus’ love) does not stop at death, nor is it limited by death.
- Neither angels nor demons. Angels won’t, and demons can’t. And, whether we know it or not, both exist. Demons are hell-bent on keeping us away from God, but they do not have the power to stop God from loving us.
- Not our fears for today nor our worries for tomorrow. Even though we can reject God’s love, He will always be there for us in our darkest hour. All we have to do is call for Him and believe He hears us and will answer us. Worry and doubt are our greatest enemies, attempting to keep us from God’s love.
- No power from above nor power from below. God will protect us on all sides against any power that would attack us – powers far more powerful than we can imagine.
- Nothing in all creation. Certainly, nothing in creation can change God’s mind from loving us because He created it all!
- No power from any source. If there is any power beside God, even they will not prevail in keeping us from His love for us – God is the supreme power!
This is one determined God! The actual verses reads:
38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (NIV)
[Note: Any deviation from the bullet points above is due to my pulling from other translations. I did this just to clarify my points].
Paul concludes that the love of God for us is exhibited in Christ Jesus, who demonstrated that love by dying on the cross to save us all from death (which was a result of our sins). Jesus did not view our sins as a reason not to love us. In fact, he identified with our struggles with sin and felt love and compassion for us – to the point of voluntarily offering Himself as a sacrifice to wash away all our sins and our guilt. True love sees past the surface of what we appear to be and sees directly to the heart of who we truly are. God knows that and, as a result, nothing will deter Him from loving us. Read Psalms 136 if you doubt me. The Psalmist writes 26 verses listing the things God has done because “His love endures forever!” In love, God gave us His only son, and in love, that son gave Himself for us.
As I contemplate the promise of God’s love, I’m reminded that we are the only ones in the whole universe who seem to have the power to reject God’s love for us. After all, the only way “hell” can exist is that it must be occupied with people who, through their selfish determination and sheer force of will, manage to reject God and His love. I pray that you are not one of those who have rejected God. But herein is the power of this verse – even if you have rejected God, He has not rejected you, nor has He stopped loving you. Turn back to Him and receive His love.
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