“Does God love everyone?”
This seems simple, as if every Christian should answer as the question is still in the mouth of the asker, saying “yes!” but it may not be that easy.
This question has become pressing and difficult because of the views of reformed Calvinistic theology. If one holds to the beliefs of irresistible grace and limited atonement, the question then becomes, “how does God love everyone if He only reveals Himself to some, and only saves some? Does God love those who never acknowledge Him?”
The first thing to establish when asking a vital question as this is, what do you mean by love?
This question is presuppositional in that it poses the only way for God to love mankind is by saving them from sin. While it makes sense that this would be love, it minimizes the acts of God’s love to a specific and salvific act. The appropriate posture to embody when asking this question is first, “what is man, that You would be mindful of him?” (Ps. 8:4). With a right understanding of mankind’s standing before a holy God, it is then appropriate to attempt to define God’s love for us.
It is clear that men are lost, hated by each other and hating one another (Ti. 3:3), children of wrath (Eph. 2:2), deceitful in every way (Jer. 17:9), and unable to save themselves (Acts 4:12). With this understanding of the state of man, it becomes evident that salvation is love from God. In a deeper sense of understanding the punishment deserved for sin, however, one comes to the conclusion that more of God’s doing is out of love. Sin against an eternal God is deserving of eternal death (Rom. 6:23) and spiritual destruction (Ps. 145:20). The Psalmist notes that “even from birth, the wicked go astray” (Ps. 58:3). If this is true, no one should live a second longer than they sin. The perspective of God’s showing love to people is more than just salvation.
Love, then, is God merely being mindful of humanity. No one should love anyone who wants to replace Him with trivialities. No one should sustain someone who uses their breath and being to mock His image in them. But this is the Gospel, that God so loved the world, He gave His son so whoever believes should have eternal life (Jn. 3:16).
I have taken too long to get to the simple answer: yes. God loves everyone.
How can I confidently say this? Because the Bible says so, many times.
John writes and commends the Saints to love people. He says that they should do this because “God is love” (1 Jn. 4:8). Paul writes to the Galatians telling them that his life is the work of God who, “loved me and gave Himself up for me” (2:20). Embedded in Paul’s testimony is the sign of love: that Christ gave Himself up for him.
Romans 6:10 says, “For the death He died, He died to sin, once for all.” The most quoted verse in the Bible says that “God so loved the world” (Jn. 3:16). John continues in his epistles writing, “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” (1 Jn. 4:10). “He is the propitiation for our sins,” John says, “and not only ours, but the sins of the whole world” (1 Jn. 2:2).
The line that I am trying to draw here is that yes, because of Jesus Christ’s sacrifice that is Scripturally for the sins of the entire world, we know that God loves everyone.
There will be numerous questions that arise after reading this, but the conclusion to cling to is that God does indeed love everyone. He loves us by being mindful of us, by dying for us, and by giving those who believe in His death and resurrection eternal life.
As far as I am concerned, God is love (1 Jn. 4:7) and He is constrained by no one to exercise His love in certain ways. That He loves us in any way, salvific or generally, is grace. For those who care to give Him praise, give Him praise for His love that indeed reaches everyone.
For those that choose to linger on the thought that God could or might love people to different degrees or in different, seemingly unfair ways, I urge you to ask yourself this: “what is my view of God?” Dig deep. In being agitated by or doubtful of God because of the way He loves and freely gives breath and life to everyone (Acts 17:25), are you conveying belief that He might do something wrong? If so, let me remind you that God is good (Ps. 145:9), infinitely wise (Prov. 3:19), and powerful (Ps. 147:5). If what we know of God is true, if what He told us Himself is true, we have every cause to trust Him. We have no reason to doubt, though it may be the most common inclination. So when that doubt comes, friend, remind yourself of the reasons you can trust Him. Trust that God indeed loves everyone.
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