“Don’t say God loves the sinner,” say some Calvinists, “He only loves his predestined elect, and until you see evidence of conviction of sin you should preach the law, only preaching grace to those whom God has revealed their need of his forgiveness.”
This is a classic example of when we deduce something from a systematic theology and use it to deny the clear meaning of the Bible.
Anyone who thinks God only loves those who follow him haven’t read what God’s word has to say about His love for the Rich Young Ruler who rejected Christ:
And Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, “You lack one thing: go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.”
— Mark 10:21
Jesus loved the rich young ruler even though he knew he was going to turn away and not follow him.
Thus we must love even our political enemies!
But the Bible tells us elsewhere that he loves everyone, even the worst sinner clearly in other places:
But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (Rom. 5:8, NIV)
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16,NIV)
God does hate our sin, but he has made a way to forgive us, cleanse us and love us whilst remaining righteous. Spurgeon explains:
“God, the infinitely loving One, because of the very infinity of his love, cannot look upon sin without displeasure, seeing it is man’s worst enemy. He must punish the sinner when he dares to break the perfect law. The sacrifice is, therefore, needed, to show the Lord’s hatred of evil, and his resolve to be just. Jesus did not die to make God merciful, as some falsely say that we teach; but because God was merciful Jesus died, that there might be a clear passage for divine mercy, without the violation of divine justice. Jesus did not die to make God love sinners, for he always did love them; but that his love might be exercised in consistency with holiness it was needful that the law should be vindicated, and the threatening against sin should not become a dead letter.”
Spurgeon, C.H. (1889) “Our Lord’s Entrance within the Veil,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons. London: Passmore & Alabaster, pp. 149–150.
The great evangelist Moody admitted that he previously preached that God hates sinners, but a young preacher convicted him he was wrong to do so:
“When I got home—I remember it was on a Saturday morning—I said to my wife: “Did that young man preach at the meetings?” “Yes.” “How did they like him?” “They liked him very much,” she replied; “he preaches a little different from you; he preaches that God loves sinners.” I had been preaching that God hated sinners; that He had been standing behind the sinners with a double-edged sword, ready to cut off the heads of the sinners. So I concluded if he preached different from me I would not like him.
My prejudice was up. Well, I went down to the meeting that night, and saw them coming in with their Bibles with them. I thought it was curious. It was something strange to see the people coming in with Bibles, and listen to the flutter of the leaves. The young man gave out his text, saying: “Let us turn to the third chapter of John, and sixteenth verse, ‘For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.’ ” He didn’t divide up the text at all. He went from Genesis to Revelations, giving proof that God loved the sinner, and before he got through two or three of my sermons were spoiled. I have never preached them since.
The following day (Sunday) there was an immense crowd flocking into the hall; and he said: “Let us turn to the third chapter of John, sixteenth verse, ‘For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life;’ ” and he preached the fourth sermon from this verse. He just seemed to take the whole text and throw it at them, to prove that God loved the sinner, and that for six thousand years He had been trying to convince the world of this. I think I thought I had never heard a better sermon in my life. It seemed to be a new revelation to all. Ah, I notice there are some of you here who remember those times, remember those nights. I got a new idea of the blessed Bible.
On that Monday night I went down and the young man said, “Turn to the third chapter of John, sixteenth verse,” and he seemed to preach better than ever. Proof after proof was quoted from Scripture to show how God loved us. I thought sure he had exhausted that text, but on Tuesday he took his Bible in his hand and said: “Turn to the third chapter of John, sixteenth verse;” and he preached the sixth sermon from that text. He just seemed to climb over his subject, while he proved that there was nothing on earth like the love of Christ, and he said, “If I can but convince men of this love, if I can but bring them to believe in the text, the whole world will be saved.” On the Thursday he selected the old text, John 3:16, and at the conclusion of the sermon he said, “I have been trying to tell you for seven nights how much God loves you, but I can not do it. If I could borrow Jacob’s ladder and climb up to Heaven, and could see Gabriel there and ask him to tell me how much God loves me, he would only say, ‘God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.’ ”
My friends, I hope none here will go down to hell who has heard this text of Scripture. If he does, he will have trampled it under his feet—he will have flung away God’s goodness. His hell will be two hells if he remembers that “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” How a man can go out of this Tabernacle after hearing this text, saying, “God does not love me,” is a mystery to me.
I want to turn your attention to Romans 5:8: “But God commendeth His love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us.” Men have an idea that He did not come to rid men of their sins. That is not true. He didn’t come to call the righteous, to call the just to His kingdom, but sinners. It there had been no sin in the world He needn’t have come here. It was the fact of sin being in the world that brought Him from the bosom of His Father—it was that that brought Him to Calvary—Christ’s love for a perishing world. He wants to cover us with His love. Look at that beautiful passage in the song of Solomon: “His left hand is under my head, and His right hand doth embrace me,” and “His banner over me is love.” Yes, His banner is love . . .
May the God of grace break your hearts, and may no man go out of this building saying, “God does not love me.” It was the love of God that broke my heart years ago, and if I put it to the vote of the Christians in this assemblage to testify what brought them to Christ, they would turn to this text: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” Will you take His love to-night? Bear in mind that He stands at the door of your heart with His locks wet with the dew of night. And what does He do? He knocks; just listen! Can you hear this loving Saviour calling you to Him? Can you hear a gentle knock? That is Christ knocking at the door of your heart. “Behold I stand at the door and knock, and if any man”—mark the language of the Scripture—“any man,” he may be a drunkard, a thief, a gambler—“open the door I will come in and sup with him and he with Me.”
Moody, D.L. (1877) New Sermons, Addresses, and Prayers. Cincinnati, OH: Henry S. Goodspeed & Co., pp. 177–179.
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Servant Leadership in Politics and the Church: Pastoral Care
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