7 Bible Verses about God’s Love

Posted on March 14, 2025 by Wayne Davies

Last week’s post focused on God’s wrath, because “our God is a consuming fire” (Hebrews 12:29).

You can read it here:
Would A Loving God Send Anyone to Hell?

 

This week, let’s take a closer look at His love, because “God is love” (1 John 3:8).

First, a couple of questions:

How do you know that God loves you? What is the evidence of His love for you?

Christians are eager to tell the world, “God loves you.” Well, how do we explain to people (including ourselves) the proof of God’s love?

We open God’s Word and read what God says.

What never ceases to amaze me is the frequency with which Scripture teaches how Jesus loves us. Come with me now and feast on these verses:

VERSE #1: Romans 5:8
“God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

VERSE #2: Galatians 2:20
“The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”

VERSE #3: Ephesians 5:2
“Live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.”

VERSE #4: Ephesians 5:25
“Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her.”

VERSE #5: 1 John 3:16
“This is how we know what love is: Christ laid down his life for us.”

VERSE #6: 1 John 4:10
“This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent His Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.”

What is the evidence of God’s love? Scripture answers this question plainly and beautifully: The love of God for us is expressed most clearly through the death of Christ.

What does the Bible mean when it says, “God loves you”? It means that “Christ died for you.”

Ray Comfort summarizes these verses well: “The cross is the focal point of God’s love for the world” (The School of Biblical Evangelism).

And what is our response? In a word – worship. May our hearts be filled with praise, thanksgiving, adoration, and celebration of the One who loved us by dying for us, so we could have freedom from the penalty, power, and presence of sin.

VERSE #7: Revelation 1:5-6
“To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood, and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father – to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen.”

Do any of these verses resonate in your heart today? If so, leave a comment below. I welcome your feedback.

Perhaps you feel the need to spend time this week engaged in the following practice:

Commit part of each day this week to reflect on God’s love for you. Find a quiet place to read, meditate on, and memorize the Scriptures above that remind you of His love. Be sure to include a time of worship – express your praise and thanksgiving to God for the way he has loved you through the death of his Son.

Posted in Attributes of God, Thoughts About God | Leave a comment

Would A Loving God Send Anyone to Hell?

Posted on March 5, 2025 by Wayne Davies

Have you ever heard someone say this?

“A loving God would never send anyone to hell.”

This is a common yet incorrect assumption:

Since “God is love” (1 John 4:16), He will not and cannot do something so cruel to people He loves.

This is an unfortunate, misleading, and unbiblical presentation of the character of God. Yes, “God is love.” And yes, God is also holy, righteous, and just, and therefore He must punish all non-believers and their unforgiven sins.

Jesus said so:
“Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.”
John 3:18

“And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.”
Matthew 10: 28

The apostle John said so:
“Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.”
John 3:36

The apostle Paul said so:
“But because of your hard and impenitent heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed.”
Romans 2:5

The apostle Peter said so:
4 For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to chains of gloomy darkness to be kept until the judgment; 5 if he did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a herald of righteousness, with seven others, when he brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly; 6 if by turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to ashes he condemned them to extinction, making them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly; 7 and if he rescued righteous Lot, greatly distressed by the sensual conduct of the wicked 8 (for as that righteous man lived among them day after day, he was tormenting his righteous soul over their lawless deeds that he saw and heard); 9 then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment until the day of judgment, 10 and especially those who indulge in the lust of defiling passion and despise authority.
2 Peter 2:4-10

Many other passages speak to this issue of God’s eternal wrath against unrepentant sinners, such as Matthew 25:31-46, John 5:25-29, 1 Corinthians 6:9-10, 2 Thessalonians 1:5-10, Revelation 20:11-15, and Revelation 21:5-8.

Yes, “God is love.” And our God is also “a consuming fire” (Hebrews 12:29).

If we are true believers in Christ, because of God’s grace and Christ’s death on our behalf, we will be saved from God’s holy wrath on Judgment Day, when we will hear Jesus say, “Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world” (Matthew 25:34). We will spend forever in the presence of God.

And if we are not true believers, we won’t be saved. On Judgment Day, we will hear Jesus say, “Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels” (Matthew 25:41). We will spend forever drowning in the lake of fire.

It’s important to teach “the whole counsel of God” (Acts 20:27). We don’t get to pick and choose which parts of the Bible we like and which parts we don’t like and can therefore ignore.

We also don’t get to pick and choose which attributes of God’s character we like and which attributes we don’t like and can therefore ignore.

Thanks for reading this post. I pray you’ll take these words to heart.

For more biblical teaching on heaven and hell, check out these two short books, both of which are free in Kindle format:

Why Bad People Go To Heaven and Good People Go To Hell (Part 1):
An Explanation of Luke 18:9-14
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CLLJPS3X

Why Bad People Go To Heaven and Good People Go To Hell (Part 2):
An Explanation of Luke 7:36-50
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CW1K34XN

 

Posted in Evangelism, Heaven and Hell, Holiness | Leave a comment

The Whole Bible in Four Words

Posted on February 26, 2025 by Wayne Davies

Does reading and studying the Bible really matter?

Does spending time in the Word make a tangible difference in your life?

Here’s a 15-minute article from Precept that provides three compelling reasons to answer those questions with a resounding “Yes!”

3 Practical Reasons Why Knowing God through His Word Matters
https://www.precept.org/2025/02/3-practical-reasons-why-knowing-god-through-his-word-matters

And as a bonus, you’ll also get a panoramic summary of the whole Bible – in four words.

Let me know what you think by leaving a comment below. Which of these three reasons do you find most beneficial, and why?

Posted in Bible reading, Bible study | Leave a comment

How to Spend Your Busy Days with Jesus

Posted on February 22, 2025 by Wayne Davies

Do you ever have days when life gets so busy, you forget to give Jesus your undivided attention?

For many reasons, we all have those “crazy busy” days. We are consumed with what we think is most urgent and neglect what is most important – spending time with our Creator in His Word and prayer.

Here’s a way to overcome the dilemma of being “too busy” to listen to the Ultimate Communicator – a 10-day Bible Study entitled Colossians: The Supremacy of Christ (Bible Studies for Busy Days).

Written by Heather Erdmann, each lesson is a short Bible study for time-crunched days. From the author’s introduction, each lesson will show you that . . .

“No matter what this world brings our way, Jesus is enough. In just 5-7 minutes a day for ten days, we will discover who Jesus is and why He is sufficient for all of our needs, both in this life and the next.

“Each day’s Scripture reading and the accompanying questions should only take you about 5-7 minutes to complete. . . They allow you to have the nourishment of God’s Word and your “daily bread” no matter how time-crunched you may be.

“They are not meant to replace your regular deeper study of the Bible but instead are small “snacks” to use as a supplement on days when you might otherwise go without opening His Word at all. Plus, you can access them on your phone or mobile device anywhere and anytime you find a few spare moments.

“PLEASE NOTE that my intention for writing Bible Studies for Busy Days is not to encourage you to spend LESS time in God’s Word. We cannot live on snacks alone or we would grow weak and malnourished. My hope is that these would encourage you to spend MORE time with Him on those days when you may have had very little or none.”

Here’s the link:
https://www.etsy.com/listing/1857055812/10-day-colossians-bible-study-5-7-minute

Posted in Bible reading, Bible study | Leave a comment

A Prayer for Life

Posted on February 14, 2025 by Wayne Davies

Psalm 119 never ceases to amaze me. What a fountain of truth for the thirsty soul.

Some day I hope to meet the man who wrote it. Charles Spurgeon makes a compelling case for King David as the author. I’m inclined to agree that “This is David’s spoil” (The Treasury of David).

There are many wonderful prayers in the Bible’s longest chapter. I especially like the short ones – literally two or three words.

Here’s one of my favorites:

“Give me life.”

Note how often the psalmist prays this prayer – at least seven times:

My soul clings to the dust;
give me life according to your word!
Psalm 119:25

Turn my eyes from looking at worthless things;
and give me life in your ways.
Psalm 119:37

Behold, I long for your precepts;
in your righteousness give me life!
Psalm 119:40

In your steadfast love give me life,
that I may keep the testimonies of your mouth.
Psalm 119:88

I am severely afflicted;
give me life, O Lord, according to your word!
Psalm 119:107

Plead my cause and redeem me;
give me life according to your promise!
Psalm 119:154

Great is your mercy, O Lord;
give me life according to your rules.
Psalm 119:156

Here are a few questions for your reflection:

  1. The psalmist made this request repeatedly. What kind(s) of life do you think he was praying for? Spiritual, eternal, physical, temporal? Note how the rest of each verse can shed light on this question.
  2. In light of the phrase “according to,” how did the author view the relationship between God’s life and God’s Word? (See verses 25, 107, 154, 156.)
  3. The psalmist also tells us that God answered this prayer: “I will never forget your precepts, for by them you have given me life” (v. 93). “This is my comfort in my affliction, that your promise gives me life” (v. 50). Why, then, does he keep praying this prayer?
  4. Do you ever need to pray this 3-word prayer? Why or why not?
  5. What other questions or insights do you have about these verses?

I’d love to hear your thoughts on these questions, so go ahead and leave a comment below.

Posted in Bible study, Free Books & Other Resources, Prayer, Psalm 119, Thoughts on the Psalms | Leave a comment

How to “Pray the Bible”

Posted on February 9, 2025 by Wayne Davies

Several biblical practices are indispensable to a mature, joy-filled Christian life, such as:

Bible intake, prayer, worship, fellowship with believers, evangelism, and doing good works.

You can probably think of others.

I’ve been following Christ for about 20 years, and I can tell you that of those practices, Bible intake is my favorite. It’s what I enjoy most and what I spend most of my time doing, compared to the rest.

And prayer is what I’ve found to be the hardest, and what I’ve spent the least time doing.

I read a short book recently that has had a profound impact on my desire to pray. And by following the simple teachings of this book, I have seen an increase in how much time I pray and how much joy I have while praying.

The book is entitled Praying the Bible, by Donald Whitney.

You can get a copy here:
https://www.amazon.com/Praying-Bible-Donald-S-Whitney-ebook/dp/B00XWDR2JO

I could tell you a lot about how Don Whitney has helped my prayer life. I would call it a spiritual breakthrough. Many others have had the same experience.

“This little book is explosive and powerful. Read it ready to experience a great step forward in your walk with Christ and in your commitment to prayer.”
R. Albert Mohler

“It’s so simple it will shock you and, at the same time, invigorate a renewed prayer life with your God.”
Bryan Chappell

“If you are looking for a book to teach you not only to pray but also to invigorate your intimacy with God through prayer, this is the one.”
Miguel Núñez

“This is a particularly helpful tool for those of us who often struggle to know what and how to pray or whose minds tend to wander during private prayer.”
Nancy Leigh DeMoss

What these four people have written above is precisely what has happened to me.  When I read these reviews on Amazon today, I thought, “Ditto. Yep, me too. I could have written that.”

Take that last one, by Nancy Leigh DeMoss. My biggest obstacle to prayer is my own wandering mind. Here I am, talking to the Creator of the universe, who wants me to pour out my heart to Him, anytime, anywhere, day or night. And the next thing I know, I’m thinking about some trivial thing on my to-do list.

What’s up with that?

Why do I have the attention span of a gnat?

Because of what I learned in this book, when I follow the simple teachings presented here, that problem disappears. And God gets the credit for providing yet another gifted Bible teacher to shower me with His grace.

And yes, I have been “shocked” by this change. I just assumed for years that, well, “I guess that’s just the way I am; oh well . . .” Now I realize that it doesn’t have to be that way – and I am overwhelmed by God’s grace.

Obviously, I’m giving this book two thumbs up. All 85 pages.

Here’s a series of short YouTube videos in which Don Whitney explains the main points of Praying the Bible (see THIS WEEK’S FREEBIES below for details):
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLx9rWL0agBR0fIt8PfcPCcH6RaBUowZKg

After you’ve read the book (and/or watched the videos) and put this method into practice (or if you already have), let me know how it helped you by leaving a comment below.

Posted in Book Reviews, Prayer | Tagged , | Leave a comment

How to Find Jesus in Genesis 1:1

Posted on January 28, 2025 by Wayne Davies

Jesus made some incredible statements about Himself.

For example, in John 8:58, He said, “Before Abraham was, I am.”

Christ was identifying Himself as Yahweh, the eternally self-existent God of the Old Testament.

The Jews understand exactly what he was saying, and therefore “they picked up stones to throw at him” (John 8:59).

 

Furthermore, Jesus said that the Old Testament was about Him. He told the Jewish religious leaders, “You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me” (John 5:39).

This is why, on resurrection Sunday, when Jesus encountered two disciples walking from Jerusalem to Emmaus, He explained why it was necessary “that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory” (Luke 24:26).

How did He do that? Luke tells us plainly: “And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself” (Luke 24:27).

So, when reading the Old Testament, starting with the books written by Moses (the first five books of the Bible: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy), we should not be surprised to find passages about our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

And there are many of them, starting with the very first verse of the Bible.

“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth” (Genesis 1:1).

We usually think of God the Father as the subject of this sentence. And that is certainly true; many passages teach that, such as Revelation 4:11:

“Worthy are you, our Lord and God,
to receive glory and honor and power,
for you created all things,
and by your will they existed and were created.”

And we know that God the Spirit was also present at creation: “And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters” (Genesis 1:2).

But the New Testament also includes God the Son in Genesis 1:1 –

“He (Jesus) was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him (Jesus), and without him (Jesus) was not any thing made that was made” (John 1:2-3).

“For by him (Jesus) all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities – all things were created through him and for him” (Colossians 1:16-17).

These are breathtaking statements: Jesus created everything!

All things were made by Him and through Him and for Him.

This is one more wonderful reason to worship Jesus. Amen?

Take a look outside today. Jesus made it all. Then take a look at your hands and feet. Spend time thinking about the mind-boggling complexity of your own human body. Jesus made you and He made me. He is our Creator and therefore we are accountable to Him and owe our entire existence to Him.

Then give thanks to Jesus our Maker for the gift of life, “for in him we live and move and have our being” (Acts 17:28). He is worthy of our praise!

Posted in Jesus Christ, Thoughts About God | Leave a comment

The Most Amazing Chapter in the Bible?

Posted on January 23, 2025 by Wayne Davies


I just finished reading the book of Genesis.

I’d like to read the Old Testament in 2025 and the New Testament in 2026. (For details on my 2-Year Bible Reading Plan, check out this blog post:
https://godwrotethebook.com/2-year-bible-reading-plan/

I’m actually a little ahead of schedule. To accomplish the goal of reading the entire OT this year, I need to read about three chapters a day, six days a week. But when I got to Genesis 37 and the story of Joseph, I picked up the pace, simply because the account of Joseph and his brothers is so captivating, I couldn’t put it down. So I ended up reading chapters 37-50 in three days.

As compelling as the final chapters of Genesis are, I’m even more overwhelmed by Genesis 1. In my opinion, this is one of most amazing chapters in the Bible.

I love to read the Bible because I want to learn about God. Lately, my desire to know God has increased significantly. I have a desire to know God better and more intimately than ever before.

And Genesis 1 is a great place to meet God in all his glory, for here he is revealed as the all-powerful, all-wise Creator of the universe.

I believe that God created everything from nothing, and he did it in six 24-hour days. In my opinion, that is the plain meaning of this text.

Six times we read the same words:
“And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.”
“And there was evening and there was morning, the second day.”
“And there was evening and there was morning, the third day.”
“And there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day.”
“And there was evening and there was morning, the fifth day.”
“And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.”

He could have made the universe in a second or a minute. But he wasn’t in a hurry, so he took his time and spent six days making everything.

And he did it by simply speaking it all into existence. All those galaxies and stars and planets – he merely spoke, “and it was so.” Whoa! This is incredible. Who does that? Only God does that.

The best commentary on the Bible is the Bible:

6 By the word of the Lord the heavens were made,
and by the breath of his mouth all their host.
7 He gathers the waters of the sea as a heap;
he puts the deeps in storehouses.
8 Let all the earth fear the Lord;
let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him!
9 For he spoke, and it came to be;
he commanded, and it stood firm.
Psalm 33:6-9

God’s breathtaking power is on display here. This is reason to be filled with awe!

“Since He has at His command all the power in the universe, the Lord God omnipotent can do anything as easily as anything else. All His acts are done without effort. He expends no energy that must be replenished. His self-sufficiency makes it unnecessary for Him to look outside of Himself for a renewal of strength. All the power required to do all that He wills to do lies in undiminished fullness in His own infinite being.” (A.W. Tozer, The Knowledge of the Holy)

To create everything required work, yet paradoxically, God made the universe effortlessly. “And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done” (Genesis 2:2).

After six days of creating, did God need to rest because he was tired? Of course not. “He does not faint or grow weary” (Isaiah 40:28). To quote Tozer again, “He expends no energy that must be replenished.” I love that about God.

And I love knowing that the Creator of everything lives inside me and provides the strength I need to love him, serve him, and worship him every day.

I love knowing that the God who made everything from nothing in the physical realm is the One who is conforming me “to the image of his Son” in the spiritual realm (Romans 8:29).

I love knowing that the One who will one day make all things new is the One who is transforming me, “from one degree of glory to another . . .  into the same image” (2 Corinthians 3:18).

Who does all that? Only God.

And if you know him, he is doing this powerful, life-changing work of creation in you, too!

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come” (2 Corinthians 5:17).

Posted in Bible reading, Thoughts About God | Leave a comment

What Is A Man? What Is A Woman?

Posted on January 17, 2025 by Wayne Davies

I’ve been reading the book of Genesis this month.

You don’t have to read very far until you come to this verse:

“So God created man in his own image,
in the image of God he created him;
male and female he created them.”
Genesis 1:27

 

 

To me, this is a straightforward statement, without ambiguity. You are either a man or a woman, a male or a female. Today, however, many would disagree with me.

I have been looking for a resource that can give me a better understanding of the ongoing debate about sexual identity — from a biblical perspective. Recently I came across an article that benefitted me greatly, and I’m writing to tell you about it. It’s entitled “What Is a Man? What Is a Woman?”

Here’s an excerpt:

“Though pockets of our culture are confused about fundamental human nature, there’s no excuse for Christians to be confused. Our Maker confirms through special revelation—Scripture—what we already know from observational common sense: God made humans male and female. Full stop.

“Here is the biblical record of God’s sexual design for humanity: ‘God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them’ (Gen. 1:27).

“When God fashioned the human race, he created two sexes and only two sexes. Jesus confirms this design when, in Matthew 19:4, he cites God’s created order described in Genesis: ‘Have you not read that He who created them from the beginning made them male and female?’ According to both Jesus and Genesis, our Maker made only males and females. Scripture never hints at the possibility of any other variation. That’s why God’s people have spoken with one voice on this for thousands of years.”

Then the author explains why “Scientific research also verifies the fact that human sexuality is binary, either male or female.” He delves into topics such as genetics and chromosomes, and he does it well. Even I could understand it, and I’m no scientist.

It’s written by Alan Shlemon of “Stand to Reason” (str.org). You can read the entire article for free here:

https://www.str.org/w/what-is-a-man-what-is-a-woman

Let me know what you think about this article by leaving a comment below.

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Does God Expect You to Read the Whole Bible?

Posted on January 8, 2025 by Wayne Davies

It’s already January 8, and I’m wondering if you’ve set a goal for reading the Bible this year?

I have.

Lord willing and by His grace, I plan to read the Old Testament in 2025 and the New Testament in 2026. I’ve done this before and it’s my favorite way to read the whole Bible – over two years.

Many Christians prefer to read the Bible in one year – and to that, I say, “Amen.” There are plenty of good 1-year Bible reading plans available for free online.  Here’s a list of 20 different plans, with links to downloadable free PDFs of each plan:
https://www.ligonier.org/posts/bible-reading-plans

If you’d like to learn more about my 2-year plan, check out this article:
https://godwrotethebook.com/2-year-bible-reading-plan/

Included in the above article are links to free downloadable PDFs. I first did this plan in 2016, so the specific dates correspond to that year. You can easily adjust the dates for 2025, should you want to follow my plan this year.

Let’s get back to my original question: Does God expect you and me to read the whole Bible?

Short answer: Absolutely.

A longer answer: Of course He does. He gave us a book. Why would He do that, and not expect us to read all of it?

An even longer answer: The benefits of reading the whole Bible are many. If you’re looking for motivation to read God’s Word, please check out Top 10 Reasons for Reading the Bible Today — it’s free in Kindle format here:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B010VU9APE

Another longer answer, with Biblical support: “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16 ESV). I emphasize the word “all” for obvious reasons. Every verse is for our benefit. Every word of sacred Scripture was ultimately written by God because He loves us and desires the best for us. He wants to teach us, rebuke us, correct us, and train us to live a righteous life – and He has chosen to do that through a written document we call the Bible.

May you grow in the knowledge of God this year through quality time in the Word of God.

Posted in Bible reading, Bible study, Free Books & Other Resources | Leave a comment