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...
With zeal not arising from
the sound knowledge of
Jesus Christ ...
Before believing in Jesus,
Saul thought that opposing the name of Jesus of
Nazareth
was something worth pursuing vigorously.
He even went to Jerusalem to personally engage
in this endeavor.
He received authority from the chief priests
to imprison many saints and consented to their
execution.
Furthermore, he went from synagogue to
synagogue,
punishing them and compelling them to blaspheme
Jesus.
Moreover, consumed with rage against them,
Saul pursued believers even to foreign cities,
causing them trouble
(Acts 26:9-11).
At that time, Saul thought,
"They will do such things because they have
not known the Father or me"
(John 16:2).
Saul's zeal for God was not based on the sound
knowledge
(Romans 10:2).
Similarly, there may be more Christians like
Saul in the future,
whose zeal does not come from a correct
understanding of Jesus Christ,
persecuting and even killing those who hope for
the return of Jesus.
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