Love Is Always A Response To Love

In review of Ephesians 1:4-5 it says, “Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure.”

Bottom Line:

Before everything, God loved us and chose us within Christ to be set apart and faultless before him. God pre-determined this to take place through Jesus. This was his idea and it pleased him greatly.

What this means to me:

Before anything, God had loved me and chose me through Christ to be holy and faultless. This was his decision in advance to adopt me into his family through Jesus Christ. This is what God wanted and in doing so, he gained great pleasure.

Sometime I feel as if I’m not getting very far in my spiritual growth. What I’m learning is that this is not because I don’t love God enough, but rather I need to understand just how much God loves me.

Love is always a response to love. The Bible says, “We love because he first loved us” (1 John 4:19 NIV). If I say, “I don’t love God enough,” it’s because I’m not fully understanding just how much he really loves me.

God’s nature is love. Love is the essence of his nature. The only reason there is love in the universe is because of God. Insects do not love, but I was made in God’s image, so I can love.

The reason I’m alive is because God wanted to love me. The first purpose of my life is to be loved by God! My first purpose is to love him back.

“Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure” (Ephesians 1:4-5 NLT).

I should let this sink in: My first duty is not to do anything but just be loved by God.

It is amazing to think and realize that before anything was created God loved me. He took actions to make me blameless in his eyes by adopting me through Christ. This was his plan and it gave him great pleasure to do so. Today I thank you God for the reminder this morning that you love me greatly, even more that I could love you. You loved me enough to had predestined my relationship and ultimate eternity with you. I need to remember that my first duty is to be loved by You and I can love others in return because he first loved me.