What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?
(Romans 8:31-32 NKJV)
Easter is the beginning of God handing out His love to you.
When the grandchildren visit their grandparents during Christmas, Granddad would be waiting on the chair with arms open wide with love. Sometimes he would take money out of His pocket and hand it out to the grandchildren. Would the grandchildren say: "No, I don’t want what you are giving me"? Of course not. When Granddad reaches out in his pocket, the grandkids start taking their hands out. They know that something good is coming their way. We call what these kids are getting a "hand-out".
When a person takes a "hand-out", they are receiving freely something that someone else is giving to them. God is giving us His love as a free "hand-out". God wants us, no He desires that we take His love freely.
When God says in this verse that He did not spare His own Son, He means that He did not stop giving His Son to us. Another verse in the Bible says the same thing like this:
For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
(John 3:16 NKJV)
The Bible says here that God gave His only begotten Son. In Romans 8:32, God did not stop from giving His Son. It says: but delivered Him up for us all.
God did not spare His Son because it was the only way God could spare us.
God did not prevent His Son from going to the cross. God handed His Son over as God’s judgment for sin. God did not prevent from giving His love. God showed that He loves by handing His Son over for the judgment you and I deserve. God demonstrated His love by giving us something good - freedom from sin. God demonstrated His love by giving us eternal life. But this one-time act of God’s love is not the end of God’s love for you. God still loves you, and still wants to hand out His love to you.
In essence, God keeps giving and giving and giving. God God keeps giving His hand out to you to help you in your time of need.
God handed Jesus over to die as a way to hand out His love to us. God will keep handing out His love to us. God wants to continue to give us His love.
This is what God means when the Bible says in Romans 8:32: how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?
What does the Bible mean when it says all things?
The argument of this verse is from the greatest to the least. The greatest act of God’s love was to let His Son die on the cross for us. There is no other act of love that is greater. I mean, can you imagine a father letting His son die for other people? Yet, God let His Son die for me and you. Why? So that God could spend His love on us.
If letting His Son die was the hardest thing for God to do, then anything by comparison is simple. God said: "OK, I don’t like it, but I have to let My Son pay for the sin that separates Me from my children." This sounds like an impossible thing for God to do. Murder His Son? Allow His own Son to die on the cross? How could God do that? It seems so impossible.
God allowed His Son to go through spitting, and beating, and a crown of thorns, and insults, and then horrible cruel march down the streets of Jerusalem to a public humiliating death. God allowed Jesus to marched to His death on a cross.
God watched as His own Son’s clothes were used for the gambling pleasure of a couple of grumbling Roman soldiers.
God watched as His own Son’s best friends left Him alone to be beaten and tried.
God watched as His own Son was nailed to the cross.
God watched as His own Son was breathing and losing His breath every second.
God watched as His own Son died.
But God didn’t let His Son stay there. God lifted Jesus Christ up out of the grave to display His love to the world.
After the resurrection, God said: "Now that that act of love is done, I can spend my love on my children. I can hand-out to them whatever they need."
God spared His Son no pain that He might spare His saints no pleasure.
God shows us His commitment to us by not sparing His Son. When God let Jesus fulfill the requirement that we ourselves should have done, God is saying in essence: "I am making a pledge and a promise to you. Here is the proof of that commitment. Look at Jesus, My Son. Believe on Him, and I promise to be with you and help you." God knows that I have needs as His child. As my father, He is willing and able to provide for those needs when they come up.
Whatever I need. This is what the Bible means when it says all things. It does not mean that I get what I always think is best for me. What I think is best to meet my needs is not necessarily the way that God would like to meet my needs. But God’s way is always better.
Easter is just the beginning of God’s love for you. God loves you so much that He will keep making pledges and promises to you. He will keep handing out good things to you. He will not stop loving you.
Of course, you may be thinking: What do I need to do? You need to get your hands out of your pockets, and ask God to begin handing out His love to you.
Perhaps you know Christ, and you follow Him. You may be thinking today, I haven’t seen God give me anything lately. Then perhaps you have forgotten your relationship to God. God is still there. He is willing to hand-out His love to you in many ways. Perhaps some of these ways are different than you would think. But God is still waiting for you to hand out His love to you.
If you are a Christian and you think that God has not handed out His love to you lately, perhaps it is because you stopped asking your Heavenly Father. Many times as children of God, we go somewhere else to ask for a hand-out. It is the same when a child goes to another grandfather and asks for a hand-out. Of course that doesn’t work. The child is not related. So as Christians, it is not smart to try to ask someone else for help. God is our Father. God is the One we should be asking for help. God is still standing there waiting for you to ask Him.
If you don’t know God, perhaps it is time to begin asking Him. Let God show you His power, His strength, His abilities, and His love. He wants to show you best through His Son.
So, if you are ready, get your hands out, and look forward to receiving from God everything you need, and more than you ever wanted.
Easter can be a new beginning of God handing out His love to you.
