but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Romans 5:8
The following is from a writer named Henry Durbanville who wrote a little book entitled “The best is yet to be”.
“To an invalid friend, who was a trembling, doubting believer, and who bemoaned the feebleness of his love to God, a wise minister of the Gospel once said: “When I leave you I shall go to my own residence, and when there, the first thing I expect to do is call for a baby who is in the house. I expect to place her on my knee, and look down into her sweet eyes, and listen to her charming prattle; and tired as I am, her presence will rest me; for I love that child with unutterable tenderness. But the fact is that she does not love me; or to say the most for her, she loves me but very little. If my heart were breaking under a burden of crushing sorrow it would not disturb her sleep. If my body were racked with pain it would not interrupt her play with her toys. If I were dead she would be amused watching my pale face and closed eyes. Besides this, she has never brought me in a penny, but has been a constant expense on my hands ever since she was born. Yet, although I am not rich in this world’s possessions, there is not money enough in this world to buy my baby. How is it? Does she love me or do I love her? Do I withhold my love until I know she loves me? Am I waiting for her to do something worthy of my love before extending it to her? ‘Oh I see it’ said the sick man, while the tears streamed down his cheeks; ‘I see it clearly. It is not my love to God, but His love to me that I ought to be thinking about, and I do love Him, blessed be His name.’ “Carefully note this my friends, that although John loved the Lord Jesus intensely, he never speaks of himself as ‘the disciple who loved Jesus’. But five times in his gospel is he spoken of as ‘the disciple whom Jesus loved.’ ( John 13:23; 19:26; 20:2; 21:7 21:20)”
It was the same Apostle John who wrote: “In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.” (1 John 4:10-11)