Are You Convinced that He Loves You?

Are You Convinced that He Loves You?

(Rom 8:35 NLT) Can anything ever separate us from Christ's love? Does it mean He no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death?

So far we have discussed Shammah, David, Paul and the three Hebrew Boys. We have learned a great deal from each and I have been careful to highlight characteristics they possessed that we should emulate. What has been noticeably absent as we have studied their lives is the practice of questioning and complaining. At no point did we see Shammah throw up his hands and say, “God why have you allowed these Philistines to attack us?” Or David say, “Wait a minute God, you anointed me to be the next king of Israel, so why have I been on the run for years?” Or Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego say, “God, why did you allow those accusations to be filed against us? We were living just fine before that happened.”

And then we have Paul. If anyone ever had what some would consider a “right” to complain you could definitely make the argument that it was Paul. Paul was subjected to the practice of 39 lashes with a cat of 9 tails (what Jesus endured) on five different occasions, three times he was beaten with rods, three times he was shipwrecked, one time he spent and entire night and day adrift in the open sea, and once he was even stoned. Not to mention the fact that he spent a good portion of his time in prison.

So what did he do while he was enduring all of this? Did he whine and complain? Did he point the finger at God? Did he blame God for all that he faced? No, he traveled, worked, preached, taught, mentored, ministered, and in the process somehow found the time to write half the New Testament. And if you read his writings you would be amazed to see that he said some of the most positive things while enduring some of the most negative circumstances.

Did Paul have a Warrior Spirit? Absolutely! And I believe it was because he was convinced of God’s unfailing love towards him. Make no mistake, the fact that you are facing a challenge does not mean that God does not love you anymore or that He has abandoned you. In our text Paul asks a question; he says, “Can anything ever separate us from Christ's love?” Think about that for a moment. He then goes on to ask, “Does it mean He no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death?”
When Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego where threatened with death did it mean that God no longer loved them? Did it mean that they had done something wrong and were somehow being punished for it? Did it mean that God had turned His back on them and forsaken them? Of course not! Paul considers all of this and goes on to say: “No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us. And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God's love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God's love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.” We will talk more about this tomorrow.

So what does this mean to you ? It means that God loves you and you would do well in settling the issue of His love in your heart. Over the last few days I have talked to people who were facing illness, injury, false accusations, and marital challenges. When faced with challenges many question God and say, “Father, where are you in all of this?” But if the enemy can get you to question God’s love, he can get you to doubt. You need a Warrior Spirit that says, “I am convinced that God loves me and that He will see me through this!”

Father, You are amazing and I love You with all my heart. Especially because You love me, even in spite of me. You looked past my faults, flaws, and failures and You still love me. Thank You for attempting to make a holy garment from me, flawed material. I am convinced You love me and I will not allow challenging circumstances to cause me to question Your love. You will never leave nor forsake me – I am convinced of that – and since You are with me, I know You will see me through any challenge! Let’s face today together Father. In Jesus’ name. Amen.