Free Love

“I will love them freely.”

Hosea 14:4

This sentence is a body of divinity in miniature. He who understands its meaning is a theologian, and he who can dive into its fulness is a true master in Israel. It is a condensation of the glorious message of salvation which was delivered to us in Christ Jesus our Redeemer. The sense hinges upon the word “freely.” This is the glorious, the suitable, the divine way by which love streams from heaven to earth, a spontaneous love flowing forth to those who neither deserved it, purchased it, nor sought after it. It is, indeed, the only way in which God can love such as we are. The text is a death-blow to all sorts of fitness: “I will love them freely.” Now, if there were any fitness necessary in us, then he would not love us freely; at least, this would be a mitigation and a drawback to the freeness of it. But it stands, “I will love you freely.” We complain, “Lord, my heart is so hard.” “I will love you freely.” “But I do not feel my need of Christ as I could wish.” “I will not love you because you feel your need; I will love you freely.” “But I do not feel that softening of spirit which I could desire.” Remember, the softening of spirit is not a condition, for there are no conditions; the covenant of grace has no conditionality whatever; so that we without any fitness may venture upon the promise of God which was made to us in Christ Jesus, when he said, “He that believeth on him is not condemned.” It is blessed to know that the grace of God is free to us at all times, without preparation, without fitness, without money, and without price! “I will love them freely.” These words invite backsliders to return: indeed, the text was specially written for such—“I will heal their backsliding; I will love them freely.” Backslider! surely the generosity of the promise will at once break your heart, and you will return, and seek your injured Father’s face.

things to thank God for

1) Warmth ... millions of people around the world dont have it
2) Shelter ... millions of people around the world dont have it
3) Food & Water ... again, millions dont have either,
4) Love ... the love of Christ, which washes away all iniquity and filth of sin!

Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, "Cursed is everyone that hangeth on a tree." Gal 3:13

Spurgeon writes, "Sin is an accursed thing. God, from necessity of His holiness, must curse it; He must punish men for committing it; but the Lord's Christ, the glorious Son of the everlasting Father, became a Man, and suffered in His own proper person the curse which was due to the sons of men, that so, by a vicarious offering, God having been just in punishing sin, could extend His bounteous mercy towards those who believe in the Substitute. ... Christ in His person suffered what we ought to have suffered in our persons. The sins that were ours were made His; He stood as a sinner in God's sight; though not a sinner in Himself, He was punished as a sinner, and died as a sinner upon the tree of the curse."

He ends with this blunt, yet true benediction, "I tell the, if thou believest in Christ this morning, my hearer, though thou be the most damnable of wretches that ever polluted the earth, yet thou shalt not have a sin remaining on thee after believing. God will look at thee as pure, even Omniscience shall not detect a sin in thee, for thy sin shall be put on the scapegoat, even Christ, carried away in forgetfulness, so that if thy transgression be searched for, it shall not be found!"

Amen, and praise the Lord, the Almighty!

God.

I serve the Almighty. He is beyond words and my simpleton mind fails me to ponder all of God, who He is as described in the Bible.

He is described in Revelation as:

“Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come! ... Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created ... Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!”

Today I was made wonderfully aware - yet again - just how unpredictable and extraordinary He is. A friend of mine who I had not spoken with (at any substantial length) for some time now, and I sat down for lunch. It was wonderful. It began by us crossing paths Wed at the library on campus, and we decided to get lunch ... after he described the last 3 months as "the best in his life" ... so, I had to know.

The testimony of God's great love and grace he shared with me is remarkable. At early age - surprisingly - due to sitting "indian-style" too much, his shin bones were curved. The potential of curved shin bones later in life is knee problems, apparently severe. So, he was at a Christian conference in GA recently ... and all of a sudden he told me he was overcome with sin pent up in his heart, things he needed to confess and ask forgiveness for. He said he wept.

But as he sat there, alone weeping with God, during a break in the teaching at the conference, he felt hands beginning to massage his shins ... he described the warmth of the touch, the soothing rotation of the massage ... and I can't remember if he said it was later that night or the next morning ... but within a short time after this experience ... he reported - to the glory of God the Father - that God had straightened his bones.

YES, his bones in his shins, curved for some 22 years, were made straight!!! - THAT IS POWER!!!

Personally, this is not surprising. I have experienced the healing power of the Lord, and I praise Him for that, I have heard of how people around the globe are being healed, seeing visions of Christ at the foot of their bed, telling them to follow Him (a personal invitation for Christ, the resurrected Christ, to become a child of God) ... and so, I am not surprised by this. Faith calls for the firmest of beliefs that miracles do happen, daily all around - both big and small (though I argue no miracle is small!) ... rather than surprise, I am filled with joy for my friend, and with awe and glory to the Lord for just how caring, compassionate, and good He is.

So I cry out with John, “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come! ... Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created ... Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!