“He Started It”

“Digging Deeper”
An opportunity for you to continue your study of God’s Word throughout the week

THURSDAY
“He Started It”

1 John 4:19
“We love because He first loved us.”

We have perhaps all heard a kid shout, “he started it” after being caught in a fight with another kid. The goal of saying this is usually to make an excuse for wrong actions. Even children can see the importance of who initiates something.

In our relationship with God, it is clear that He initiates the relationship by first loving us. Romans 5:8 says, “God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us”. This is the nature of our relationship with God. He started it and He sustains it.

It is important to emphasize again that John is not talking about just any kind of love. Agape is the highest kind of love, is from God alone, and is characterized by sacrifice. It is the power that motivates action that responds to someone else’s needs with no expectation of reward.

When God gave His Son for us, He did not gain anything. God does not need us for anything. He is the creator and sustainer of all things. God exists in and of Himself, independent of anything else. He is self-existent. When God gave His son on the cross, it was the purest expression of Agape love in that He gave first with nothing to gain. We should avoid thinking that God got a good deal when He got us.

APPLICATION: Thank God that He loves you… first!