While We Were Yet Sinners, Christ Died For Us

One of the most powerful statements on the love of God is found in Romans 5:8

8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us

We learn four things about the Love of God just from this one verse.

God’s Love is:-

1. An intervening Love

2. A demonstrative love

3. A focussed love

4. An indiscriminate love

1) An Intervening Love

I love the term in the bible…."But God ..."

Eph 2:1-8

2 And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, 2 in which you once walked according to the [a]course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, 3 among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others.

4 But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6 and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,

When we were unable to save ourselves – the intervening love of God came to our rescue.

Divine Intervention in the depravity in nature and sin.

But God…..

We were unlovely but God loved us anyway

We were ungodly but God loved us anyway

We were unspiritual but God loved us anyway

But God is concerned for us even when we were unconcerned about Him.

2) A Demonstrative love

Love that does not demonstrates is not really love.

Love can only be known from the actions it prompts

One of the deepest needs of our hearts is to be loved by others. Not only do we want to be loved, but we want also for others to make that love known to us. We want to see a demonstration of their love. We want to hear others say something or do something that lets us know they love us. We need for others to be concerned about us, to act in our interest, and to surround us with understanding.

An even deeper need is to be loved by God and to see a demonstration of His love. People who believe in God usually will admit that they desire to experience His love. Even when people deny the existence of God, they need His love. They may not admit they have this need, but the need is still there. We must realize that even when others do not love us, God intensely loves us.

The cross shows this.

8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

John 3:16 shows God’s demonstrated love

16 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

How is God’s Love demonstrated toward us.

1) Through Creation –

Gen 1:26

Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”

God loved us so much that He not only created us, but He created us in His image, and with the purpose of ruling, having dominion, over all the earth.

We were created for a purpose, by a loving creator.

He created things like colour, music, taste, an ability to touch. This is something to consider. God could have made humanity not to have taste, or not to be able to see colour or not to be able to hear things like music. But we have all these things because God loves us and so His love is demonstrated in the richness of creation and our God give ability to enjoy that richness.

He created life so that we would enjoy it.

2) Salvation and heaven –

The fact that we are saved and we get to go to Heaven for eternity is a demonstration of God’s love.

John 14:1-4

1 “Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. 2 In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. 4 And where I go you know, and the way you know.”