warm-up

What’s your favorite love story from a movie or book? What do you like the most about it?

Is there an object that you like holding or having around because it makes you feel safe or at peace? Share about it.

Tell about a time you did something courageous out of love. What happened?

word

³¹If God is for us, who can be against us? ³²He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? Romans 8:31,32

These verses do not say that if we surrender our lives to God, we will no longer have enemies. Instead, they give us the assurance that no enemy can stand against us, because God Himself is fighting for us. God is for us. He expressed the fullness of His great love for us through Jesus, His Son, not sparing Him but sending Him to be a sacrifice for our salvation. Today, we will look at what Romans 8 says about this great love of God.

1
God’s love is relentless.

Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? Romans 8:35

At the time this letter was written, the believers faced many hardships because of their faith in Christ. But Paul assured them that in every hardship, God would always be there and would never stop loving them. The situation might be hard, but He would definitely be with them through every suffering, even until death. We too have the assurance that God’s love is constantly with us as we face trials and difficulties. No matter our response, His love will never change and He will never abandon us. He will continue to pursue and preserve us so we can experience everlasting joy and peace in His presence. How have you experienced God’s relentless love?

2
God’s love enables us to be victorious.

³⁷No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. ³⁸For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, ³⁹nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:37–39

Paul knew what it meant to face different kinds of trials and hard times (2 Corinthians 11:23–29). But every difficulty only convinced him further that nothing would ever separate him from God’s love. Because of God’s love, we can be victorious, meaning we can triumph even in the midst of hard times and difficulties. The God who loves us relentlessly is able to help us, give us the strength we need, carry us through, and enable us to be more than conquerors. What does Deuteronomy 20:4 say about the Israelites’ victory in God? How do you experience the same victory in your life?

application

Meditate on Romans 8:31–39 and write down what God reveals to you about His love. Pray that this will change the way you respond to challenging situations.

Share about God’s love to a friend or family member who has not yet surrendered his or her life to Jesus. Pray for them to truly experience and respond to His love.

Ask God for an opportunity to demonstrate His love to someone you know. Pray for specific things you can do and words you can say to encourage the person.

prayer

Thank God for His great love that enables you to be victorious over every trial and difficulty. Pray that you will continue to know more about God and His great love for you.

Pray for a family member or friend going through a challenging situation to have a greater understanding of the depth of God’s love. Pray for them to have courage and experience victory because of it.

Ask God for a person you can encourage this week. Pray for this person to experience the reality of God’s love.

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Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®)
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