1 John 3:1 – Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.
When John Newton penned the words to “Amazing Grace,” he wrote from experience. Newton knew how wretched we are before God. We must be taught to fear God realize by God’s grace that our fears may be relieved by Christ. Newton, the old minister and former slave ship captain, marvelled at the manner of love the Father has bestowed upon us and rightly so.
The love of God is so staggering that we can (and indeed should) spend hours contemplating it. It is amazing and mysterious. Not only are believers saved from their sins forever, they are adopted and made coheirs to the Kingdom of God with Christ. How can this be? I do not know, but I rejoice in the thought.
Despite my failures, despite my sins, God loves me beyond my understanding. He may chastise me from time to time, but it is all due to the manner of love He has toward me. He desires the best for me and you, and it is His pleasure to give us no less than a kingdom.