LESSON 1

OUR LOVING GOD

“Love the Lord your God with all your heart with all your soul and wit hall your mind; This is the first and
greatest commandment”. -Matthew 22:37-38

Objectives

 Know that God is a loving God.

 Reflect on what it means to love God
 Be able to express gratefulness to God for His faithfulness.
 Be challenged to love God wholeheartedly.

Investigate

1. How is God described in Psalm 145:13? What is God’s attitude toward all He has made?
 Psalm 145:13 The Lord is faithful to all His promises and loving toward all He has made.
2. What is unique about the love of God?
 Psalm 100:5 For the Lord is good and His love endures forever, His faithfulness continues all
generation.
3. How do we show God that we love Him?
 John 14:15 “Ïf you love Me, you will obey what I command”.
4. What are we instructed to do with God’s commandment?
What are expected from us if we carefully keep the commandment of God?
 Joshua 22:5 But be very careful to keep the commandment and the law that Moses the
servant of the Lord gave you, to love the Lord your God, to walk in all his ways, to obey His
commands, to hold fast to Him and to serve Him with all your heart and all your soul.”

Instructions from the Word

A LOVING GOD

Because God wants everyone to love Him, He first demonstrated what love is all about. In a world
where love is often misunderstood, God perfectly showed everyone what it is all about.

1. He loves us eternity

“ I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with loving-kindness.”- Jeremiah 31:3

Even before everything was created, God already had His eyes on you. God loved you before you
were even born and His love for you remains throughout eternity. Imagine how important you must have
been?

2. He accepts us just as we are

For you created my inmost being. You knot me together in my mothers womb. I praise you
because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful. I know that full well. My
frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in
the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were
written in your book before one of them came to be. – Psalm 139:13-16

God’s love is unconditional. His mercy is upon you daily, consistently and constantly. His love reaches out to
everyone regardless of appearance, ability or status.

Interaction: (Do you feel rejected or unwanted? How do you feel now that you know that God
accepts you just as you are?)
 3. He loves us and gives His Son to die on our behalf
But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: while we were still sinners. Christ died for us.
Romans.5:8

God showed how much he loves you when He offered His very Son, Jesus Christ, to die on your
behalf—undeserving as we are. Here God demonstrated that love’s true measure of sacrifice. And he
sacrificed His own so that our sins can be forgiven.

Interaction ( “you can give without loving, but you cannot love without giving.”)

4. He loves us and He wants us to be in His family

Jesus’ death brought you to a new standing with God. He purposed that with His son’s death, life will
flow back to you--- meaning you would be restored to a right relationship with Him. Since sin separated
you from God, Jesus Bridged the gap and reconciled you back to the loving Father. Now, we enjoy the
right to be called His children and are adopted into God’s heavenly family.

INSIGHTS FOR LIFE

What does it mean to love God?

1. Loving God means worshipping Him alone.

Ascribe to Him all your worship means that your praises, your thanksgiving, your very adoration
your being are devoted to Him alone. Believing that He alone is God and bow in reverence
before Him, you are demonstrating the love He expects from us.

2. Loving God means obeying Him.

Love is not just an spontaneous outburst of emotions. It goes beyond what you say and can only
proved by your actions. Anyone who claims to love God must demonstrate this by his willful
obedience to the commands of God-to the laws he has written in His Word, the BIBLE.

3. Loving God means giving ourselves completely to Him.

Read: Philippians 3:7:8
But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more I consider
everything a loss compared to the greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I
have lost all things, I consider them rubbish (worthless) that I may gain Christ.

Interactions:
What makes it difficult for us to love God completely? How can we overcome these difficulties?

PRACTICAL APPLICATION:
Thank Him. Be grateful for the love you received from Him.
Think of Him. Make Him your greatest desire and pleasing Him as your outmost aim. Honor Him
with your thoughts, words and deeds.
Trust Him. Give your life completely to Him. He has wonderful plans for you. Allow Him to be in
control of your life, He will show you exactly how to live and live abundantly. All it takes is your
utmost surrender to Him and deep recognition that you cannot go through your life without Him.