Human sinfulness inhibits our abilities to enjoy the things that are designed to make deeply relational creatures, like us, genuinely happy. The genuine happiness that I have in mind involves a feeling of deep satisfaction that evokes awe in response to the beauty of a relationship that is inspired by love. For example, our tendency to be greedy inhibits our ability to enjoy the act of giving that is motivated by love. Extramarital affairs inhibit a person’s ability to enjoy the depth of a loving relationship with his or her spouse. Pride inhibits our ability to enjoy a loving relationship with other people. The act of lying inhibits our ability to enjoy the beauty of a relationship that is based on honesty. Worldly pleasures inhibit our ability to enjoy the beauty of a life that is lived in peace and tranquility. The loving God designed humans for genuine happiness. However, human sinfulness inhibits our progress to genuine happiness. So, a loving God ought to be deeply bothered by human sinfulness.
Since Valentine’s Day is right around the corner, let me briefly reflect about love. What is the nature of God’s love for humanity? What is the nature of that love that has God as its object or the kind of love (directed to God) that the Bible demands from humans? God’s love and the love that is demanded from us are both intense and radical. God’s love for humanity is both intense and radical. Based on the theological narrative that developed through the spiritual insights of the early followers of Jesus (like Peter, John, and Paul), Jesus is the ultimate expression of God’s love for humanity. What does it mean? According to their theological narrative, Jesus is the only begotten Son of God. God sent his only begotten Son to serve as the sacrifice for the sins of the world. The religious frameworks of the ancient world, of course, shaped the formation of this narrative. In the ancient world, human actions that offend the deities require sacrifices that sufficiently appease the offended...
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