Jesus Loves Sinners
It's easy to say—“Jesus loves sinners.” Do we believe it? Not just for someone else, but do we believe it FOR US? Jesus doesn't just love sinners in some generic, abstract way. It’s not just about all those OTHER people. Jesus loves you. Jesus loves me. He loves the porn addict, in the midst of their sin. He loves the racist, in the midst of his sin. He loves the murderer, and the gossip, and the homosexual, and the liar. He loves all of us, right now—broken, sinful, lost, found. Period.
Do you believe that for yourself?
Maybe you don’t believe that. Maybe someone told you that your sin is too much—that Jesus can’t love you anymore, or that God doesn’t just hate your sin, but He hates YOU, too. The truth is, you can’t stop Jesus from loving you. Nothing you can do can stop God, so you’re powerless against the love of God in Jesus. Psalm 115:3 says, “Our God is in the heavens; He does all that he pleases.” Psalm 135: 5–6 says, “For I know that the Lord is great, and that our Lord is above all gods. Whatever the Lord pleases, he does, in heaven and on earth...” Jesus, the Lord, loves us. We can’t stop it. We’re simply not strong enough to block His love.
When Jesus was on Earth, He spent so much time eating with sinners that the religious leaders accused Him of being a sinner, but He wasn’t—Jesus lived a perfect, sinless life to take our place, pay for our sins, and give us eternal, abundant life. He didn’t encourage or condone the sin of the sinners seated around His dinner table. He wasn't ok with it, but He was ok with them. He loved them, taught them, encouraged them, and built relationships with them. He did the same thing for them then that He does for us now.
John 3:17 says, “God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.” Why would you believe your sins are in a separate category from the rest of the world? Jesus doesn't condemn you.
You can't out run God's Love
Maybe you’ve read or heard Bible stories and still thought God’s love is only for other people. Consider this—Noah was a drunk, Moses was a murderer, King David was an adulterer and murderer, the Apostle Paul hunted and killed Christians, yet God loved them all, and worked through them for His glory and their good. Jesus specifically loved and forgave the soldiers who tortured Him. They spit on Him; He loved them. They whipped Him; He loved them. They beat Him; He loved them. Eventually they killed Him, but He still loved them. Nothing they did to Him could stop His love for them.
1 John 4:8 says, “Whoever does not love does not know God because God is love.” Jesus knew God because He and the Father are one. Love isn’t just Jesus’ behavior, it’s His being. He loves because He is love, and He chooses to love you, and He simply asks you to receive it.