Text: 2 Samuel 13:1-15
Key verse: 2 Samuel 13:15; Then Amnon hated her exceedingly; so that the hatred wherewith he hated her was greater than the love wherewith he had loved her. And Amnon said unto her, Arise be gone.
The scripture above tells us about a young man called Amnon who fell in love with his sister Tarma. Amnon was the half-brother of Tarma as they share the same father, David. He got attracted to his sister because of her beauty. He allowed his emotion to control him and he ended up having carnal knowledge of his sister.
Afterwards, Amnon was said to hate Tarma more than he ‘loved’ her. It was never really love but brazen lust.
Love is a feeling that should be defined, that is why God demonstrated his love by sending us his only son. Despite we all being sinners Christ came and died. God’s kind of love is unconditional. It is a kind of love in which our affection for one another is not based on a certain set of behaviour or characteristics. God does not love you because of your position in the church, career, beauty and so on. Love is the very essence of who God is. As children of God, he expects us to love ourselves unconditionally.
No matter your past or the wrong path you have been through, God still loves you and nothing can change that.
Qualities of God’s love
It never fails ( Ps 52:8)
It endures forever (Ps 106:1)
It is uncalculating (Prov 30:5)
Not motivated by personal interest or gain (1 John 3:16)
No matter how humanity hates you, God’s love is more than enough. You are already loved by God. The height and intensity of God’s love are seen in Genesis 3, Isaiah 49: 15-16. Despite the fall of man, God’s unconditional love brought SALVATION.
In conclusion, for man’s love, the condition comes first while God’s love comes first without condition. God’s love has no limit, it is complete, absolute and it’s not partial. God’s love has nothing to do with racism, tribalism or religion. It is unconditional!
May our desire be to love the God who loves us by renewing our minds with his word.
Prayer point: dear God a heart like yours is what I desire, a heart full of love and nothing wrong within. Please Lord give us a heart like yours.