11. Jesus Christ accepted our sins upon Himself; that is, it states this in 1 Corinthians 5:21a that He received the wrath of God upon the Cross alone. Romans 5:9 says that we are saved from the wrath to come through Jesus Christ and His eternal sacrifice. 1 Thess. 1:10 says that we are rescued from the wrath to come. John 5:24 says that through the gift of faith and repentance we can receive the free gift of forgiveness. Forgiveness is received through contrite confession of sin to God through His dear Son. There is no way for anyone (not even ministers of the Gospel) to take away our faith that is in Christ Jesus our Lord and Savior.
12. We ought to understand that wrath is removed from us because of the Cross alone. The Cross is the personification of God's ultimate love for His sinful people. The love of God is available through the person and work of our Lord and Deliverer Jesus Christ. The love of God moved Him to send Jesus, live a perfect life and die a perfect death. 1 John 4:10 says that God's love is the propitiation for our sins. God reconciles us to Himself through His dear Son. Sin is removed forever through the Cross and God now sees us through His eternal Son. God required divine and full satisfaction for our sins because He is satisfied with His love toward us.
13. All of us want to see God's love in us and through us. It is sometimes hard to see the love of God in nature because of earthquakes and things like that. It is also hard to see the love of God in wars and abortions. It is also hard to see the love of God in churches when their is self-esteem and backsliding. We ought to know if God loves us or not. We want to see the love of God. We ought to look no further than the very Cross of our Lord and Savior. Romans 5:8 says God demonstrated His love toward us in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us. Ephesians 2:4 and 1 John 4:19 speaks of the love of God in the cross though He died for sinners. He came to rescue sinners from the world, the flesh and the devil.
14. We stand before God and we seek proof of God's divine love. The proof of God's love is the Cross of Jesus Christ. God offered up His Son as a sacrifice for sin. There is no other demonstration of God;s love than the Cross of Jesus Christ. There is no depth to the love of God in the Cross. There is no refusal at the Cross but there is full acceptance through Jesus Christ. Augustine referred to the Cross whereas Christ preached the love of God from the Cross as a "pulpit." In the Cross is all the riches of redemption and freedom from sin. It is in the Cross of Jesus Christ where God sets us free from sin. We are forgiven of all our sins at the Cross and it is God's bridge for sinful humanity to directly come to Him by the simple obedience of faith and repentance toward God through His dear Son.
15. God's love does not exist outside of the Cross. There is no OT or NT verse or passage that speaks of God's love outside the Cross of Christ. Jesus gave Himself so we might believe in Him and everyone who believes will never perish but have eternal life. Gal. 2:20, 1 John 4:10 and Revelation 1:5 speaks of the centrality of the Cross and its power and effectiveness in pardoning sin. God loves fallen sinners but He never compromises His holiness. In the Cross is where the holiness of God is revealed. God sent His Son to die on the Cross for the sin of the elect alone so that He might demonstrate His absolute holiness.
16. Can we trust God's ultimate love at the Cross of Jesus Christ? There is no doubt that we have been hurt by people who claimed to love us. We have been scared by them and tormented. But is there hope in the Cross of Jesus Christ? If we give our hearts to God for love, how do I know He will not let me down? There are many people promise to love and do not love. There are many vows made for marriage but few kept. However, if we feel that God will not continue to love us, if we have made a true profession, it could be possible that we have made a god after our own image. Scripture defines His character. I submit to you that we can trust God's ultimate love at the Cross of Jesus Christ. In the Cross is security, endurance and preservation for God's people to live as a forgiven people.
17. We must understand that God's love is a "giving" kind of love and it is also free. The love of God is giving. True love gives. God sent His Son and He gave us Jesus Christ. He gave us the greatest gift of all. The greatest gift is His dear Son Jesus Christ. God gives us Himself and this is the greatest gift. 2 Corinthians 5:19 says that God was reconciling the world to Himself. God gave us Himself and by doing this the Triune Lord gave us Himself. I submit there is no higher or deeper gift than God Himself. God is the center and essence of all goodness. There is no greater gift then Himself. The most loving thing God could do is give us Himself to love. There no greater love than Himself and He could not give us anything greater. He would not be ultimately and supremely loving if He did not give us Himself.
18. God's giving is practical. That is, we experience it in our daily lives. God's love is compassionate. That is, He gives us mercy. God's love is unsurpassed. That is, there is no equal to God's love. God's love is sacrificial. That is, He came to give Himself up to save lost and dark sinners. God did not spare His own Son but delivered Him up for us all and He gives us all things because He gave us His Son (Romans 8:32). The supreme gift was Jesus because He is God Incarnate. He gave us our greatest need and He provides for all our degrees of needs. There is nothing that the Cross cannot deal with. The Cross is where love is. The Cross is where we see God giving humanity a second chance. People sin often but God gives us His Son at Calvary and He forgives everything wrong we have done.
19. We love because His Spirit and His Word. God is truly happy with us when we love Him. We cannot love Him by our sinful flesh but we must love Him by His Spirit. He is happy when we are happy in His love. To be happy in Jesus is to trust and obey; however, if we have sinned the Cross is there where Jesus our Advocate stands ready to forgive. We matter to God. There is all resources at God's disposal. God gives us His Son; God gives us His love. We may not feel happy but God is happy with us. We may feel rejected and abused but God still loves us. We are to be happy in Jesus for His sake and our sake. There is no greater love then the Cross of Jesus Christ.
20. The Bible says that God's love is infinite. There is no limit to God's love (Ephesians 3:18). God's love is infinite and it is more eternal than eternal sin. We ought to come to a higher understanding of His love. God's love cannot be fathomed. It is too great for our human minds; however, we can never stop growing in His ultimate love of the Cross for His people. It was God the Father's joy to see His Son take on the sin of His people. It is our joy to have holiness imparted to us from the Cross in His forgiveness, cleansing and compassion. Nothing can reach the heights of God's love. Nothing can reach the depth of God's love. The love of God is infinite. His love is without limit. His love is without measure. We cannot express or comprehend the love of God but we can grow in understanding it. There is no great sin that we can commit to take us out of God's love at the Cross of Jesus Christ. God never ceases to love His people in Christ. God never exhausts His love for us, but He always has enough of it for His people, because the Cross is infinite love for His children. God loves us as much as God loves Christ. That means His love is deeper than the sea, greater than the measurement of space and higher than the sky. Amen.
This blog web site is for the in-depth, sound and basic exegetical study of the Bible in Reformed apologetics; that is, I shall expound upon the inerrant and infallible Word of God, the Holy Scriptures. There shall be biblical studies in world religions and non-Christian cults. I also quote and research reformed writers and I am happy to study from them. May the Lord bless everyone who reads this blog with spiritual riches in Christ which is His imputed merit by faith alone.
