Jehovah Is the God of Love

GOD'S GREAT ACT OF LOVE 

Although we are imperfect, we can 'follow Jehovah's way.' We can also have a close personal relationship with Jehovah because of his great act of love. He provided the ransom sacrifice of Jesus Christ, opening the way for obedient humans to be freed from sin and death inherited from Adam.  (Read Romans  5:12; 6:23) Jehovah had complete confidence in his only-begotten Son, who had been faithful to him in heaven for countless ages. As a loving Father, God was no doubt pained at the unrighteous treatment that Jesus received while on earth. However, Jesus faithfully upheld God's sovereignty and demonstrated integrity to Jehovah under the most trying of circumstances. 

Jesus maintained his integrity and upheld Jehovah's sovereignty under the severest tests, dying as a faithful servant of his Father. How grateful we should be that by his death, Jesus also paid the ransom price needed to redeem mankind and open the way to everlasting life in God's promised new world! The apostle Paul showed what a loving act that was on the part of both Jehovah and  Jesus by stating:  "Indeed, while we were weak, Christ died for ungodly men at the appointed time.  For hardly would anyone die for a righteous man;  though perhaps  for a good man; though for a good  man someone may dare to die.  But God recommends his own love to us in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:6-8)  The apostle John wrote:  "By this the love of God was revealed in our case, that God sent his only-begotten Son into the world so that we might gain life  through him.  The love is in this respect, not hat we have loved God, but the he love us and sent his son as a propitiatory sacrifice for our sins." -1 John 4:9, 10. 

Regarding God's love for humankind, Jesus said:  " God love the world  [of redeemable mankind] so  much that he gave his only-begotten Son, so that  everyone exercising faith in him might not be destroyed but have everlasting life." (John 3:16) God's love for humans is so great that he does not withhold good from them regardless of the cost to himself.  His love is everlasting.  We will always be able to count on it.  "I am convinced," wrote Paul, "that neither death nor life nor angels nor governments nor things now here nor things to come nor powers nor height nor dept nor any other creation will be able to separate us from God's love that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." -Romans 8:38, 39. 

Next time: Jehovah Is the God of Love - KINGDOM RULERSHIP NOW IN ACTION

From The Watchtower magazine