It’s the Day of Love they say. Sad that many people mistake love with lust. And if love is discussed with God in the equation, still, the definition is inaccurate. We have a picture of love–and of God’s love in particular–that is shallow and sloppy. We assume that God is nothing but love, and we assume that love is nothing but niceness. We’d like to think God won’t condemn anything that makes us happy, and we’d also like to think God would never deliberately send any problems and pains into our lives that would make us unhappy. But according to the Bible, God does condemn many things that we might enjoy, and God does allow sorrow and suffering. So either God is not very loving, or else His love isn’t the way we often picture it.

…God’s love is unconditional in the sense that it’s not based on what we do to earn it….

Sometimes God’s love is said to be unconditional. In one sense that’s true, but it can also be misunderstood. God’s love is unconditional in the sense that it’s not based on what we do to earn it. When we come to Jesus for salvation, the Lord will forgive any sin, even the worst, and receive us as we are, for the sake of Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross. But sometimes we talk about “unconditional love” not as a love which can forgive our evil, but a love which doesn’t care about our evil, not as a love that receives us as we are but a love that leaves us as we are.

That’s not how God’s love works. God’s love has a goal. God may love you in spite of your evil, but He will not approve of your evil or allow it to go unchallenged or unchanged. When God gets hold of you, He changes you. The Lord receives you as you are, but He loves you so much that He will not leave you as you are! If Jesus loved you enough to die for you, then He loves you enough to work on you and move you toward His goal for you. The Bible says, “Our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ … gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good” (Titus 2:14Titus 2:14
English: King James Version (1611) - KJV
14 Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.  

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Love’s goal is that we be pure and eager to do good. And love will do whatever it takes to achieve that goal. Jesus left the perfect happiness of heaven and endured the most horrible suffering to bring us back to Him. So don’t be shocked if the Lord allows you to be unhappy at times, if He command some things you don’t enjoy or puts you through experiences that hurt. The love of Jesus is not a sloppy sentiment that says, “I just want for you whatever makes you happy, sweetie pie.” No. Jesus’ love is gentle yet strong.

In the long run, God does intend to make His people happy–but He intends to make us happy in being holy. So until we are as pure as God wants us to be, until we delight in the things that delight God, God doesn’t necessarily want us to be happy. Holiness comes before happiness on God’s agenda for you and me. This is the holy love of God for His chosen ones. A love springing from the depths of eternity, a love displayed in the death of Jesus Christ, a love which has paid the ultimate price to have us. A love which will do whatever it takes, to transform and purify us so that we are, in the words of Paul in Ephesians 5:27Ephesians 5:27
English: King James Version (1611) - KJV
27 That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.  

WP-Bible plugin, “radiant… without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless.”