Oh, How He Loves You

//Kenneth E. Hagin

Many people have a difficult time comprehending God as a Father Who loves and cares for them.

They have the idea that God is like a judge who sits up in Heaven and looks for a chance to punish  them the moment they make a mistake.

But no, God is a loving Heavenly Father! The Bible says that He is love (1 John 4:8, 16).

In the Gospels Jesus always portrayed God as a loving Father.

JOHN 3:16 (NKJV)
16 “For GOD SO LOVED the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”

JOHN 16:27 (NKJV)
27 “For THE FATHER Himself LOVES YOU, because you have loved Me, and have believed that I came forth from God.”

Jesus presented the Fatherhood side of God. He presented the love nature of the Father, which is what Christianity is all about. Religion is harsh and cold, but Christianity is a relationship with a loving Father God—a Father Who always cares for the needs of His children. We see that again in these verses.

MATTHEW 6:8, 26 (NKJV)
8 “YOUR FATHER knows the things you have need of before you ask Him.”
26 “Look at the birds of the  air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet YOUR HEAVENLY FATHER feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?”

Notice the utter tenderness in this picture of the Father caring for His children.  Our Heavenly Father knows our needs, and He desires to meet them before we even ask Him for help! God is a God of love, and His very love nature compels Him to care for and provide for His children.

In Matthew chapter 6 Jesus says more about the Father’s care for His children.

MATTHEW 6:31–33 (NKJV)
31 “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’
32 . . . For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.
33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.”

Some people have been taught to read that last verse, “All these things shall be taken away from you.”

They think if they put God first, they won’t ever have anything. But that’s not what Jesus said. He said
the things we need will be added to us as we seek first the Kingdom of God. That promise proves our Father loves and cares for us. He doesn’t want His children to worry or fret about anything, because He loves us and wants to meet our every need.

We can be sure of this one fact: As we trust God with our lives, He will take a Father’s place and
perform a Father’s part in our lives. He is our Father, and Jeremiah 31:3 says He loves us and cares for us with an everlasting love.
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[Editor’s Note: This article was adapted from Kenneth E. Hagin’s book Classic Sermons.]

Salvation Prayer

God loves you and wants to take care of you. In fact, the Bible says God loved you so much that He sent His only Son, Jesus, to die for you and make a way for you to live forever with Him (Rom. 5:8; John 3:16). God wants you to become His child.

Would you like to know this loving God as your Heavenly Father?

It’s easy! Just pray the following prayer from your heart:

God,
I come to You in the Name of Jesus.
I admit that I am not right with You,
and I want to be right with You. I
want You to be my Heavenly Father. I
ask You to forgive me of all my sins.
The Bible says if I confess with my
mouth “Jesus is Lord” and believe
in my heart that You raised Him
from the dead, I will be saved
(Romans 10:9). I believe in my heart
that You did raise Jesus from the
dead, and I confess that He is my Savior
and Lord. Thank You for saving me
now and making me Your child. I
trust You with my life. Thank You,
Heavenly Father, for loving me.
Amen.

If you prayed this prayer for the first time, welcome to God’s family! Send us a message and let
us know about it. We’d love to send you some free materials to get you started in your new life as God’s child!