Common Grace Series on Matthew 5:44-45

Misinterpretations of God’s Love

Paul J. Bucknell

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The Rain | Explain Causality | Common Grace | Kinds of Grace | The Shock | Goodness & Doubt | Misinterpetations of Love | Effects of Grace | Examples of Grace | Call to Come
Video | Audio (mp3)

Purpose

Misinterpretations of God’s Love, an expository message from Matthew 5:44-45, shows how God is willing to reveal His great love to us despite the risk of misinterpretation of His kind deeds.

3 Misinterpretations of God’s Love

Through God’s constant show of kindness, people have misunderstood the Lord. Three possible misunderstandings are listed below (but there are more!).

• Because of God’s patience, judgment is put off forever.

The first misunderstanding of God’s love is that it can simply eliminate judgment. If God acts kind to the wicked, then we might conclude (though wrongly) that judgment will be put off.

• We conclude there is no thing as God or judgment.

Others will conclude that there is no judgment. If the wicked get away with sins and are treated with the same favor as the righteous, then they might conclude, as many do, that there is no God nor is there judgment (though there is of course).

• We put off repentance with hope His love overlooks our sin.

Still others might think that they can continue on in their sins. They have come to believe that they can get away with it. They ignorantly believe that God will overlook their sins as He has in the past.

God’s common grace encourages us to come to Him, not to use Him.

The Lord takes great risks to pass His common grace on to us. He knows we might misinterpret His constant shower of love, but He risks it so that we can be further touched by His wonderful ways. The gift of sexual intimacy, for example, is beautiful and pleasurable, but people use it selfishly, denying God’s gift and hurting others through it.

"To the pure, all things are pure; but to those who are defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure, but both their mind and their conscience are defiled." (Titus 1:15).

Next => The Effects of God's Grace

Biblical Foundations for Freedom ( BFF )

Rev. Paul J. Bucknell