From the time I was a child I heard about the love of God. I was shown in Scripture that He is a God of love and that His love was personal and directed to me… little ol’ me. I have to be real with you and say that I was pretty well blown away. The thought that the creator loved me was absolutely overwhelming to me as a shy, introverted little boy. I was amazed that anyone other than my family could love me, especially God!
But I must be real with this a well, it wasn’t merely the thought of God’s love that arrested me and drew me to Him. Contrary to modern evangelism techniques which often relegate God’s attributes and character into a loving God alone who is patiently and somewhat helplessly waiting for you to realize His love for you and accept His Son into your life, I was astounded at His holiness. I clearly understood that I was a sinner by nature and that I deserved God’s wrath for my sin. I had been consistently shown in Scripture that God abhors sin and that I was a sinner… NOT a good combination! So it was those two true thoughts, God is holy and hates sin and I was a sinner, as well as He somehow loved me at the same time, that boggled my young mind and set my affections upon Him!
That being said, evangelism indeed seems to be one-sided in our day, declaring “God loves you” without any acknowledgment of His hatred for sin, much less that we are sinners by nature! This is not good, for it produces a false sense of security and fills our churches with unregenerate people, which manifests itself in squabbling, backbiting, and downright mean churches.
There are others that explain this concept much better than I do, hence the video that I have attached by David Platt. Please listen and contemplate what he says without allowing presuppositions to dictate your thinking.
Treasuring Christ 