The Inseparable Love of God (1) [ Romans 8:38-39 ] Why can nothing separate us from the love of God? 1. Because God’s love is eternal. Romans 8:29a says: “For those whom He foreknew…” The word “foreknew” refers to before eternity began —before the creation of heaven and earth . The phrase “those whom He foreknew” does not simply mean knowing about someone intellectually, but rather loving them. In other words, it refers to “those whom God loved from eternity past.” Amos 3:2a says: “You only have I known of all the families of the earth.” If “known” merely meant intellectual knowledge, that would imply that God only knew Israel and did not know the other nations—which cannot be true, because the all-knowing God lacks knowledge of nothing. Therefore, “I have known you only” means “I have loved you only.” God loved Israel among all the nations of the earth. Hosea 13:5 says: “I knew you in the wilderness , in the land of great drought.” The “wilderness” was where the Israelite...
The wilderness is never
a "terrible place."
For the grumbling Israelites,
the wilderness was a "terrible place"
(Num. 20:5).
The reason was that in the wilderness,
there was no seed to sow, no figs, no vines, no
pomegranates,
and no water to drink as they desired (v. 5).
Their hearts considered the manna provided by
God from heaven
as "this miserable food" and they also
despised "this miserable food" (21:5).
However, for us grateful Christians,
the wilderness is a very good place and a necessary
place.
The reason is that just as Jesus prayed to God
the Father in a desolate place (Mk. 1:35),
we turn the lonely wilderness into a solitary
garden (Henry Nouwen)
where we can have intimate fellowship with the
Lord.
The reason is that our hearts love Jesus,
who is the true bread from heaven (Jn. 6:32)
and the one who gives life to the world (v. 33),
the bread of life (v. 35).
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