In Romans 8:35 Paul asks, “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?” In verses 38 and 39 he declares, “I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” No one can separate us from God’s love. Once He loves us, He loves us forever with an eternal love. Nothing can separate us from Him. Because He loves us and because we are His beloved, sooner or later we all shall be sanctified, transformed, conformed, and glorified.
In Romans 8 Paul guides us into the love of God. Ultimately, our security is not only God’s righteousness, holiness, and glory but also His love. Love is the heart of God. God’s love issues out of His heart. Righteousness is the way of God, holiness is the nature of God, glory is the expression of God, and love is the heart of God. Therefore, after speaking in the book of Romans of God’s righteousness, holiness, and glory, Paul brings us into God’s heart of love.
Before God exercised His righteousness, holiness, and glory, He loved us. Love was the fountain, love was the root, and love was the source of it all. God loved us before He predestinated us, He loved us before He called us, He loved us before He justified us, and He loved us before He glorified us. Before everything and anything else, He loved us. Our salvation originated with the love of God. Love is the source of all that God does for us, and this love is His heart. Love was the source of God’s eternal salvation, which includes redemption, justification, reconciliation, sanctification, transformation, conformation, and glorification. Salvation began with God’s heart of love.
The love of God is not only the source of our salvation; it is also the security of our salvation. After God’s salvation has been fully accomplished, His love will remain our security. Eternal security, therefore, is the love of God. God is for us because from eternity His heart loved us. Thus, His love is our security.
Like Paul, we may be persuaded that nothing can separate us from the love of God, for this love does not derive from us nor depend on us. This love derives from God and depends on God. Furthermore, this love was not initiated by us; rather, it was initiated by God in eternity. This was the reason Paul was convinced that nothing can separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
The phrase “in Christ Jesus our Lord” in Romans 8:39 is very significant. Paul included this phrase because he knew that there would be a problem if the love of God had been shown apart from Christ Jesus. Apart from Christ Jesus, even a little sin such as losing our temper would separate us from the love of God. However, the love of God is not merely the love of God in itself but the love of God which is in Christ Jesus. Because the love of God is in Christ Jesus, everything is insured, and we are assured that nothing can separate us from it.
Romans 8:36 and 37 say, “As it is written, For Your sake we are being put to death all day long, we have been reckoned as sheep for slaughter. But in all these things we more than conquer through Him who loved us.” Instead of being defeated, we more than conquer because God loves us. We are being put to death and are reckoned as sheep for slaughter. Nevertheless, in all these things we more than conquer through Him who loved us. Our conquering is altogether a matter of God’s love. Through our loving One we not only conquer-we can be conquerors. We conquer all negative things, even death.
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