Love

but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Romans 5:8 (ESV)

Cynics question how God loves us. They point out all the wars, famines, plagues and so on in the world and question how God can exist. It could well be questioned how atheists make sense of suffering, because without our Creator, life is meaningless, and therefore who cares about suffering?

Thankfully, God demonstrates His love for us in this: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. It's not like we can earn God's salvation. It's only by His grace that we can be saved.

The implication of this verse is that if we trust in Christ, we no longer become defined by our sinfulness. Instead, the perfect righteousness of Christ is credited to our bankrupt spiritual accounts. We can be blessed with every spiritual blessing in Christ.

The reformers used to describe us as simultaneously sinful and yet justified. Yet a day will come when we will be like Christ, for we will see Him as He is. Then all our sins will be a thing of the past.

'God, we're so grateful for Your love for us in Christ crucified on our behalf. Please help us to trust in Him and to forsake our sins. For His glory we pray, amen'

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