Intro: We have come now to the most famous verse in the Bible, John 3:16, which says that “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son.” This seems to be a good place to study the love of God, and to answer the question, “Does God love Everyone Unconditionally?”

“Unconditional love” is a popular 20th century phrase which seems to have originated in the Christian psychology movement. It is not found in the Bible, and it has not been taught or mentioned in the standard theology books until now. Of course the Bible tells us that God is love, and that he is kind and merciful. We read there that His love is everlasting, and gracious, but this phrase “unconditional love” is something new.

People already have deeply ingrained opinions and ideas about the meaning of “unconditional love.” Some of these ideas seem to be biblical, and some obviously aren’t . Dr. James Dobson writes in his book Solid Answers:

I believe in the validity of unconditional love. Confrontation may be an act of love... Unconditional love may demand that you create a crisis. Unconditional love is not synonymous with permissiveness, passivity, weakness and appeasement. Sometimes it requires toughness, discipline and accountability.

All these things are true. And if this is the meaning of unconditional love, that sounds good to me. Actually what Dobson is saying is that God’s love is gracious and everlasting, and therefore it is demanding, rather than unconditional.

But here is what a particular Seventh Day Adventist pastor wrote about his church:

We envision a body of Christ in which straight, gay lesbian, bi-sexual and trans-gendered members truly exemplify the love of God in their relations which each other -- loving unconditionally...for God loved us unconditionally...We are not qualified to judge what is sin in another person’s life.

This pastor’s view of unconditional love is exactly opposite of Dobson’s explanation. Probably the silliest definition of unconditional love is one I found written by a person all wrapped up in “spirit guides” and angels. He wrote:

Unconditional love is the love that never-ever says, “if you” or “when you.” It’s the love that says only “I love you.” It’s just the sweet, gentle, kind sense of total fulfillment -- genderless thought -- warm’n fuzzy love -- the ever-present overwhelming “I want to hug you to pieces” kinda love.”

The phrase “unconditional love” is used by so many people to mean so many different kinds of things, that it becomes very confusing. So, I suggest we refrain from using the terminology, and simply find out what the Bible teaches us about the love of God. And then let’s try to express ourselves in Biblical terms. What does the Bible say about the love of God, and the love He expects His children to exhibit in their lives?

I. That God in some sense loves everyone in the world (John 3:16), but that He does not love all men and women equally.

A. The Bible teaches that God hates sin, and that He also hates unrepentant sinners. For example, see Proverbs 11:20, which says that the person with a perverse heart is an abomination to the Lord. Proverbs 6:16-19 is a famous passage which tells us that God hates liars and 6 other kinds of people. Here in John 3, Jesus tells us that He did not come into the world to condemn the world, because it was already condemned by God (John 3:18-19 and John 3:36). God’s wrath “abides” or “remains” on sinners who reject Jesus.

B. At the same time Jesus taught that God nevertheless has a certain kind of love even for hardened sinners (Matthew 5:43-48). God loves even these to the extent that He gives them life, the normal benefits and enjoyments of life, the rights and privileges of being a human being in the image of God, and the postponement of judgment until judgment day. This is extremely generous and gracious love, considering that they reject Him and His Son. But at the same time he is showing this love, they are still detested, and under His sentence of wrath.

C. Likewise, God wants His people to love as He loves. Jesus commanded that we treat even our non-Christian neighbors with kindness and respect, as God does. He said we should love our neighbors as we love ourselves. He is not here commanding a feeling of affection, but He is commanding that we act toward our neighbors with kindness and justice, in accord with God’s law, for love is the fulfilling of the Law (Romans 13:8-10). Even as God loves and hates the wicked simultaneously, even so He wants us to love and hate the wicked simultaneously. In 2 Chronicles 19:1-2, the prophet Jehu scolded the king of Judah for loving those who hated God, and proclaimed God’s wrath on him for doing so. King David on the other hand proclaimed his hatred for the wicked (Psalm 119:113 and 139:19-22). Scripture tells us to avoid friendships with sinful people (Prov. 24:1-2; I Corinthians 15:33). God expects Christians to have an even deeper love toward other believers (I John 4:20-21). Jesus told Peter to forgive his apologizing brother 70x7.

II. That God especially loves His chosen people with electing and saving love.

A. It is important to remember that all men and women are not the children of God in a spiritual sense, and that He does not treat all mankind equally. God has chosen His elect from before the foundation of the world, and He graciously regenerates them, and gives them repentance and faith, and saves them to the uttermost. They alone are His children. (See Deut. 7:6; Isaiah 65:22; Matthew 24:31; Luke 18:7; John 15:19; Romans 8:33; I Co. 1:26-28; Ephesians 1:4; 2 Thess. 2:13; 2 Timothy 2:10; I Peter 1:2; I Peter 2:9.)

B. John 3:16 tells of God’s love for believers, the elect, throughout the entire world, not of His love for every single individual human being. Another point from Greek: the word “so” does not mean the degree of God’s love, as in “so very, very much,” but the manner of God’s love. He loved the world “in this particular way, and not in some other way.” The same word is used in I Corinthians 7:7 where it is fully translated: “in this manner.” Mankind as a whole had already been condemned by God, and in their unbelief remain condemned, and under God’s wrath. He loved the world in this manner, that He provided salvation for all believers, all His elect.

C. Look how great the love of God is for His chosen people: (Deut. 23:5, changes curses into blessings; I Kings 10:9, He loves Israel forever; 2 Chron. 9:8, He loves us to establish us forever; Jeremiah 31:3, Loved us with an everlasting love; John 13:1 He loves His own unto the end; Gal. 2:20, He loved us, and gave Himself for us; Rev. 1:5 He washed us from our sins in His own blood, out of love for us.

Conclusion: Summarize: God loves even the wicked to the extent that He gives them life, allows them to enjoy the blessings of life for a season, and postpones judgment of their sins. But to say that God loves the wicked unconditionally is to ignore that fact that God has already condemned them, and they are abiding under His wrath. On the other hand, God loves His people, believers, with a very deep everlasting love. His purpose is to show His grace to us for all eternity (Ephesians 2:7). God demands that His children love one another with a deep abiding love. Toward the unrepentant sinner God commands His children to love with kindness and justice, as He does. We love them by keeping the ten commandments in our relations with them (Romans 13:8-10). At the same time we are to recognize that they are God’s enemies, and we are to avoid friendship with those who hate God. To say that God loves everyone (elect and non-elect) with “unconditional love,” or that we should love everyone (believer or hardened sinner) with “unconditional love,” is to bring confusion. As Christians we need to search the Scriptures, find out what they teach, and believe and live by the Word of God, not by the slogans of twentieth century American culture, which may sound better than they really are.