The Love of God

God’s is a father’s perfect love—universal to all but individual to each.

As we abide in God’s love we rely less and less on the approval of others.

Some interpret the fact that that God’s love is universal to mean that His blessings are also universal. They are not.

There is a difference between forgiving sin—which Christ did repeatedly—and condoning sin—which Christ never did.

Ours is not a religion of rationalization nor a religion of perfectionism but rather a religion of redemption.

Love of God is the solution to our increasingly quarrelsome times.

Our Heavenly Father loves us profoundly and perfectly. In His love, He created a plan, a plan of redemption and happiness to open to us all the opportunities and joys we are willing to receive, up to and including all that He has and is. To achieve this, He was even willing to offer His Beloved Son, Jesus Christ, as our Redeemer. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” His is a Father’s pure love—universal to all yet personal to each.

Jesus Christ shares with the Father this same perfect love. When the Father first elaborated His great plan of happiness, He called for one to act as a Savior to redeem us—an essential part of that plan. Jesus volunteered, “Here am I, send me.” The Savior “doeth not anything save it be for the benefit of the world; for he loveth the world, even that he layeth down his own life that he may draw all men unto him. Wherefore, he commandeth none that they shall not partake of his salvation.”

This divine love should give us abundant comfort and confidence as we pray to the Father in the name of Christ. Not one of us is a stranger to Them. We need not hesitate to call upon God, even when we feel unworthy. We can rely on the mercy and merits of Jesus Christ to be heard. As we abide in God’s love, we depend less and less on the approval of others to guide us.

Each of us needs to come to where we feel the security of God’s unconditional love for us. If we truly feel in our hearts how perfectly He loves us regardless of our weaknesses our trust in Him and His plan will grow. Once we have that feeling of security we should be looking to emulate His love for us in the way we treat the rest of His children. Likewise, feeling secure in His love we should have the confidence to admit our faults before Him and seek to become better because of our love for Him.

Because God’s love is all-embracing, some speak of it as “unconditional,” and in their minds they may project that thought to mean that God’s blessings are “unconditional” and that salvation is “unconditional.” They are not. Some are wont to say, “The Savior loves me just as I am,” and that is certainly true. But He cannot take any of us into His kingdom just as we are, “for no unclean thing can dwell there, or dwell in his presence.” Our sins must first be resolved.

Elder Jeffrey R. Holland observed, “Jesus clearly understood what many in our modern culture seem to forget: that there is a crucial difference between the commandment to forgive sin (which He had an infinite capacity to do) and the warning against condoning it (which He never ever did even once).”

Despite our present imperfections, however, we can still hope to attain “a name and standing,” a place, in His Church and in the celestial world. After making it clear that He cannot excuse or wink at sin, the Lord assures us:

“Nevertheless, he that repents and does the commandments of the Lord shall be forgiven.”

“And as often as my people repent will I forgive them their trespasses against me.”

Loving and accepting people despite their state of sinfulness is not the same as ignoring or embracing their sin (as the world would often have us do).

We don’t have to attempt the impossible in trying to rationalize our sins away. And on the other hand, we don’t have to attempt the impossible in erasing the effects of sin by our own merit alone. Ours is not a religion of rationalization nor a religion of perfectionism but a religion of redemption—redemption through Jesus Christ. If we are among the penitent, with His Atonement our sins are nailed to His cross, and “with his stripes we are healed.”

I have long been impressed by, and have also felt, the yearning love of the prophets of God in their warnings against sin. They are not motivated by a desire to condemn. Their true desire mirrors the love of God; in fact, it is the love of God. They love those to whom they are sent, whoever they may be and whatever they may be like. Just as the Lord, His servants do not want anyone to suffer the pains of sin and poor choices

Any parent should be able to understand this.

The love of the Father and the Son is freely given but also includes hopes and expectations. Again, quoting President Nelson, “God’s laws are motivated entirely by His infinite love for us and His desire for us to become all we can become.”

Because They love you, They do not want to leave you “just as you are.” Because They love you, They want you to have joy and success. Because They love you, They want you to repent because that is the path to happiness. But it is your choice—They honor your agency. You must choose to love Them, to serve Them, to keep Their commandments. Then They can more abundantly bless you as well as love you.

Their principal expectation of us is that we also love.

Once again, understanding this perspective ought to come naturally to those who have been parents long enough.

In acknowledging that God loves us perfectly, we each might ask, “How well do I love God? Can He rely on my love as I rely on His?” Would it not be a worthy aspiration to live so that God can love us not just in spite of our failings but also because of what we are becoming? Oh, that He could say of you and me as He said of Hyrum Smith, for example, “I, the Lord, love him because of the integrity of his heart.” Let us remember John’s kind admonition: “For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.”

Here is the solution for our incessantly quarrelsome times—the love of God. In the golden age of Book of Mormon history following the Savior’s ministry, it is reported that “there was no contention in the land, because of the love of God which did dwell in the hearts of the people.” As we strive toward Zion, remember the promise in Revelation: “Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the [holy] city.”

Love of God should lead us to compassion for our fellow men. If we act out of compassion rather than judgement and anger we will have greater peace and Zion can begin to flourish among us.