Is there such a thing as unconditional love?
No. There is no such thing as unconditional love. I admit there are types of love that come close. A mother’s love for her child, and sometimes a child’s love for his mother. And of course, God’s love for us all. You might be thinking (or saying out loud) “a-ha Tony! That’s where you missed the mark! God’s love is unconditional.” But I say it isn’t. Let’s look at this a little more deeply…
The first question I’d like to ask you is this. Consider this…are all the people in hell there as a result of God’s love? Before you answer, I’m not talking about His love for those who love Him. I’m talking about the people in hell…those there now…and those who will be. Are they there or going there because God loves them so much? No. God is willing to love every person. He is “not willing that any should perish“. But He knows most will choose not to love Him, and He’s made a place for them to exist forever apart from Him. It’s a place of great torment. And torment does have its roots in love.
Take a good look at one of the most famous verses in the Bible, John 3:16. It starts out by saying, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son“…the greatest example of sacrificial love the world has ever known. God made that love and that sacrifice available to anyone who wanted it. But the next part of that same verse includes a condition. It says, “that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life“. Yes, that’s a condition. It requires something on your part…belief.
If you believe in Him, Jesus, you will not perish but have everlasting life. When you see the word “if” or anytime it’s implied in the context of a sentence, you discover a condition. There are no sins you cannot be forgiven of except one…not believing that Jesus is your savior. That’s the one condition for everlasting life. In fact, when you read just a bit further past John 3:16, you’ll see the other side of the everlasting life equation. John 3:16 says believing in God’s son brings everlasting life. John 3:18 says if you don’t, you’re condemned already.
While you’re still breathing, you can change your mind. You can go from condemnation to justification to sanctification to glorification. Look up those words, and their definitions should give you hope and encouragement. The key is…your choice has to be made while you’re still breathing. Once you die, your choice is set in place forever. And don’t fool yourself into thinking you’re not choosing. Not choosing IS choosing. I can tell you with total confidence…it’s choosing wrong.
Just as you don’t want to be responsible for providing unconditional love, please don’t hold God to that silly notion either. Be willing to love Him as much as you can. Be willing to love your fellow human being as much as you can. But please don’t be a doormat for others to wipe their feet on as you love them “no matter what”. Ask God for the wisdom and discernment to know when to love and when to hate. Yes hate. Let your love AND your hate be modeled after God. You can’t go wrong when you do.
Will you look into it today? If you disagree with me, at least don’t let it be in total anger. Instead show me some unconditional love.
Stay tuned,
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