“I went home dejected because I believed with all my heart that God loves everyone, but I couldn’t prove it.”
Thoughts from daily Bible reading for today – September 7, 2025
by Jill Turner
Behold what manner of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God. And that is what we are! 1 John 3:1
When I was a new Christian, I told an atheist friend – who was getting his PhD in philosophy – that God loved him. He asked me to prove it. If he’d made any kind of claim, he would’ve been able to prove it. He’d been practicing. I felt like I owed him the same courtesy.
But, not having had any training in rhetoric or debate, and clearly not knowing enough about my new faith, I didn’t know what to say. Of course, this was before the days of AI or even Google. I couldn’t search for all the verses that say God loves us. I went home dejected because I believed with all my heart that God loves everyone, but I couldn’t prove it.
I began wondering if maybe I should have doubts of my own about God’s love. (Yes, this can happen to a new believer.)
And then I heard a sermon about the book of John. I don’t remember who was preaching the day I was stopped in my tracks by John 17. I’d read the chapter before and totally missed it. John 17 is a prayer, one of Jesus’ last. He begins to pray for Himself, but then the conversation shifts.
I’ll explain the way it dawned on me:
Look at John 17:6. Who is He talking about? Now read 17:20. You already know who he’s been praying for, but you learn that he’s praying for another group of people. Who are they? In my Bible it says it’s all people who believe because of the message of the apostles.
That’s you … and me! Jesus is praying for you, right here! He asks the Father that we may be one and join in the unity Jesus has with the Father – so that the whole world would believe in Christ. And what else?
Verse 23 says, “May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them, even as you have loved me.” What?! Read it again.
God has loved us, since before we even existed. And how does He love us? “Even as” He loved Jesus.
I don’t even know how to convey the dumbfoundedness I feel when I think about this. The One who is love and life itself loves me as much as He loves His only Son? There isn’t more love in the world than the love God has for Jesus! And the Holy King of the Universe loves us this much!
Am I taking this too far? Depending on your translation, your Bible might say “just as” or “as much as” or “in the same way ….” In Greek, it’s just one word: kathos. But the whole world is hanging from this one little word. Kathos, as much as. As much as He loves Jesus. God loves me … that … much. And He loves you that much, too.
Prayer
Father, lover of my soul, keeper of my life in Christ, help it to sink in. Help me to accept that this is not a mistake in the text, that this is really how you feel about me. And then let it be that my acceptance of your love sets me running on a path toward you, taking with me as many people as I can.
Application
Write this down. Carry it with you all week, in your wallet or your pocket. Read it at least three times a day: Because I have made Jesus the Lord of my life, God loves me as much as He loves Jesus. John 17:23
Related Reading
John 17:20-23, Ephesians 2:1-8, 1 John 3, 1 John 4
Worship Resource
The Worship Initiative: How Deep the Father’s Love for Us
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