God is Infinite in All His Characteristics
God’s passionate love for each of us is a message I would like every believer to know deep in their hearts. The Bible is full of verses about God’s love, but most Christians miss it. He is not casually in love with, or warm-hearted about you; God loves you with an unfailing love.
He is all-powerful, He is all-knowing, and He is always present. Whatever He is, He is to the fullness. Therefore to say God is love means He is love-defined in all that He does.
We are the ones who limit God due to our preconceived ideas about what God should be like. We feel it somewhat beneath Him to be infatuated with us. I think we feel it makes Him appear weak and vulnerable, but Bible verses don’t try to hide God’s love for us. In fact, God is very extravagant in His love.
Marriage is to Reveal God’s Love for Us
People have had a hard time trying to make sense of Song of Solomon. Some claim it is just a story of marital love. Others try to say its an allegory about God’s love for us. If it’s the later, then that is the only example we need of God’s passionate love for us. If you tend to believe the interpretation of Song of Solomon lies in the former, then let me remind you of Paul’s words: “‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.’ This is a profound mystery—but I am talking about Christ and the church” (Ephesians 5:31-32).
The intimacy that we get to enjoy in marriage is a replica of the intimacy God is offering to us. We love because God first loved us (1 John 4:19). We only know how to love because God poured out His love on us. When we see love in action, we see God at work (1 John 4:12). To remove God’s passion from His love for us, is to say a passionate love is sinful (somehow leading us away from God).
Our Father’s Passionate Love for His Children
I understand it may be hard to think of God like one would think of their spouse. There is an equality in the relationship that some people will have a hard time ever believing. If God wasn’t the One initiating this type of relationship, it would be impossible for us to even hope for it. However, let’s try to think of Him as our Father.
We may have not had the best growing up experience, but we can at least comprehend of a father being intimately involved with his children. He can understand how he would want to spend time with them, play with them, and constantly desiring good things for them. If we know how to be a good father, how much more will our Heavenly Father be like this towards us (Matthew 7:11)?
Explore more on this topic of God's passionate love for you. Here are two books for you: Crazy Love by Francis Chan and His Passionate Pursuit by Victoria Boyson
Bible Verses on God’s Passionate Love for Us
Now I know we often read the Bible with the lens of what we believe about God, ourselves and the world. That is why I just spent some time laying the framework for belief in God’s passionate love. With that in mind read these Bible verses about God’s love for us. May they encourage you and draw you into the extravagance of the love of your God. Let me know in the comments which bible verse about god’s love stood out to you.
- (1 John 3:1a) See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!
- (1 John 4:10-12) This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.
- (1 John 4:19-21) We love because he first loved us. If anyone says, “I love God,” yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen. And he has given us this command: Whoever loves God must also love his brother.
- (Romans 5:8) But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
- (Romans 8:38-39) For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
- (Ephesians 3:17-19) And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge-that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.
- (Psalm 48:9) Within your temple, O God, we meditate on your unfailing love.
- (Psalm 86:5) You, Lord, are forgiving and good, abounding in love to all who call to you.
- (Psalm 117:2) For great is his love toward us, and the faithfulness of the LORD endures forever.
- (Psalm 145:8-9) The LORD is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love. The LORD is good to all; he has compassion on all he has made.
- (Hosea 14:4) I will heal their waywardness and love them freely, for my anger has turned away from them.
- (Jeremiah 31:3) The LORD appeared to us in the past, saying: “I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with loving-kindness.”
- (John 14:21b) He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him.
- (John 15:9) As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love.
- (Zephaniah 3:17) He is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing.
- (Isaiah 62:5b) As a bridegroom rejoices over his bride, so will your God rejoice over you.
- (Isaiah 40:11) He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart; he gently leads those that have young.
- (Isaiah 43:4a) Since you are precious and honored in my sight, and because I love you.
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As the deer pants for the water so my soul longs to see the face of my Father, like a man 100 feet under water almost out if breath so I want to be in the physical presence of my Savior more than I want that breath
I think of this verse as our passionate pursuit of God. However, since you mentioned it, we only have a love for God that He gives us first. Thanks for sharing it!
Kevin
Kevin, thanks for this writing on God’s love. I forwarded you to my daughter who’s living as a Prodigal. Please pray for her return to the faith.
Thank you for posting this short article about God’s passionate love for His people!! The collection of verses really helped to “drive the point home” for me! God spoke to me particularly through Isaiah 40:11–“He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart; …” OH, THE INTIMACY GOD WANTS TO HAVE WITH EACH OF US ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !