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“Christ's Love” confronts us with one of the most breathtaking statements in all of Scripture. It describes not our love for God, but God’s love for us in our worst condition.
Let us look at what the Word of God says:
> “For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.”
> — Romans 5:6 (KJV)
> “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”
> — Romans 5:8 (KJV)
The song lyrics are essentially a paraphrase and meditation on these two verses. They present four great truths:
1. Our condition: “utterly helpless,” “sinners,” “without strength,” “ungodly.”
2. God’s timing: “at just the right time,” “in due time.”
3. Christ’s action: He “died for us.”
4. God’s motive: “His great love.”
Much confusion in the Christian life comes from not understanding what we were when Christ died for us and what God’s love is really like. Many believers live in guilt, insecurity, legalism, or spiritual bondage because they have not truly accepted this: God’s decisive act of love toward you took place when you were still His enemy.
This is not sentimental love. It is covenantal, sacrificial, purposeful love, revealed supremely in the cross.
Romans is Paul’s most systematic exposition of the gospel. In chapters 1–3, he demonstrates that all humanity—Jew and Gentile alike—is under sin, guilty before a holy God. In chapter 4, he shows that justification (being declared righteous) has always been by faith, using Abraham as the key example. Then in chapter 5, he begins to unfold the results of justification.
Romans 5:1–2:
> “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:
> By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.”
Paul is explaining: once we are justified by faith, what does that produce? Peace with God. Access to grace. Hope of glory. But someone might ask: “On what foundation does this peace rest? How can I be sure God really loves me, especially when I suffer, when I fail, when I feel condemned?”
So Paul directs us away from our changing feelings to one unchanging fact in history: the cross.
The context in Romans 5:3–5 speaks of tribulation, perseverance, character, hope—and then says:
> “And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost…” (v. 5)
Then he explains how we know this love is real and objective:
> “For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly…” (v. 6)
> “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” (v. 8)
He contrasts human love—rarely, perhaps for a very good person, someone might die—with divine love: God sent His Son to die for sinners, the ungodly, the helpless, His enemies (v. 10).
So, the situation is this:
The song places the believer into this reality: we were those helpless, sinful ones. Christ came then, not when we improved.
Two key words open the depth of this passage: “commendeth” (or “shows”) and “love.”
### 1) “Commendeth” – συνίστησιν (synistēsin)
Romans 5:8 (KJV):
> “But God commendeth his love toward us…”
The Greek verb is *synistēmi* (συνίστημι). It has several shades of meaning:
So we could translate: “God demonstrates,” “God proves,” “God establishes the validity of His love toward us by this one decisive act: Christ died for us while we were still sinners.”
This means God’s love is not left in the realm of vague feelings or religious theory. He has “put it on display,” “set it forth publicly,” “proved it beyond contradiction” by the cross.
Every time you doubt God’s love, you must come back to this verb: God has *already* demonstrated it. The cross is God’s courtroom evidence. It cannot be overturned.
### 2) “Love” – ἀγάπη (agapē)
The word for love here is *agapē* (ἀγάπη). This is not *philia* (friendship, affection) or *eros* (natural desire). *Agapē* is:
1 John 4:8 says, “God is love [agapē].” This is God’s essential nature. He does not merely have love; He is love. But Romans 5 shows how that love acts: by giving His Son for the unworthy.
Combine *synistēmi* and *agapē*: God has *publicly demonstrated* His *self-giving, undeserved, purposeful love* in this historical act: Christ died for us while we were still sinners.
The lyrics “God showed His great love” echo exactly this Greek idea: a demonstrated, proven love, not a theoretical one.
Let us now take the lyrics theme by theme and relate them to the larger witness of Scripture.
### Verse 1: Our Helpless Condition and Christ’s Perfect Timing
Lyrics:
“When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners.”
This is almost a direct paraphrase of Romans 5:6 (NLT):
> “When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners.”
Four key elements:
1. “Utterly helpless” – without strength
KJV says “when we were yet without strength.” The Greek is *asthenēs* (ἀσθενής), meaning weak, powerless, unable, sick. Spiritually, it means:
Ephesians 2:1 describes the same condition:
> “And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins.”
Dead people cannot help themselves. This is the biblical assessment of humanity without Christ.
2. “Christ came at just the right time” – in due time
The phrase “in due time” (KJV) is *kata kairon* (κατὰ καιρόν), “according to the appointed season,” “at the right, opportune time.” God’s plan is never random or reactive. Galatians 4:4 says:
> “But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son…”
God waited until it was historically, spiritually, and prophetically the exact right moment. Prophecies were in place. The law had done its work of exposing sin. Human religion had failed. The Roman empire had prepared a global stage. Then Christ came.
3. “Died for us sinners”
The preposition “for” is *hyper* (ὑπέρ), meaning “on behalf of,” “in the place of,” “for the sake of.” This is substitution.
Isaiah 53:5:
> “But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities…”
2 Corinthians 5:21:
> “For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.”
He did not die for righteous people, but for “sinners”—those who fell short of the glory of God (Rom. 3:23). The song confronts us with this: Christ did not wait for us to become lovable. He died for us at our worst.
### Chorus: The Contrast Between Human Love and Divine Love
Lyrics (Chorus):
“Now, most people would not be willing to die for an upright person,
though someone might perhaps be willing to die for a person who is especially good.”
This echoes Romans 5:7:
> “For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die.”
Paul here reasons from human experience. Even the highest forms of human love are limited:
But God’s love is of a different kind. It is not drawn out by our goodness. It flows from His own character.
Jesus spoke similarly in John 15:13:
> “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.”
That is the maximum of human love—dying for friends. But Romans 5 goes beyond that: Christ died not for His friends, but for His enemies (v. 10). That is *agapē* at its highest.
This chorus teaches us not to measure God’s love by human standards. If we do, we will always doubt. Human love is selective, conditional, and often self-seeking. God’s love is sovereign, initiating, and sacrificial.
### Verse 2: God’s Great Love Demonstrated in the Cross
Lyrics:
“But God showed His great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.”
This is Romans 5:8 (NLT):
> “But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.”
Notice the contrast: “But God…” Human love at its best might reach a certain level. But God goes beyond that.
Three critical truths:
1. “Showed His great love” – demonstrated, proved
As noted, *synistēmi* means to demonstrate, to prove. God has given us an objective, historical, irreversible proof of His love.
Do you want to know if God loves you? Do not look inward to your feelings. Look outward and backward to the cross.
2. “By sending Christ to die for us”
John 3:16 says:
> “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son…”
1 John 4:10 adds:
> “Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation [atoning sacrifice] for our sins.”
The Father’s love is not passive. It acts: He *sends* His Son. He *gives* His Son. Jesus willingly lays down His life (John 10:17–18). The cross is the joint action of Father and Son, motivated by love.
3. “While we were still sinners”
This phrase destroys religious pride and legalism. God did not love us because we repented. He loved us to bring us to repentance (Rom. 2:4).
He did not send Christ because we were righteous; He sent Him because we were sinners. The initiative is entirely with God.
Ephesians 2:4–5:
> “But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,
> Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ…”
The lyrics “while we were still sinners” anchor us in this reality: God’s love preceded any change in us. We do not earn it. We respond to it.
### Outro: Repeating and Sealing the Revelation
Lyrics (Outro):
“God showed His great love, His great love.”
Repetition is not emotional padding; it is spiritual warfare. We are confronting the lies of Satan with the truth of Scripture.
The enemy whispers:
The Word says:
> “God showed His great love…”
Past tense, accomplished fact. The cross is the unanswerable argument. We overcome Satan “by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of [our] testimony” (Rev. 12:11). Our testimony must agree with the blood. The blood proclaims: “God has loved you at your worst, at the cost of His best.”
When you affirm, “God showed His great love,” you align your mind, emotions, and will with the finished work of Christ.
### Spiritual Realities Exposed
1. The condition of the human heart
Romans 5:6–10 uses four descriptions of us before Christ:
The heart is not neutral. It is opposed to God (Rom. 8:7). Only divine love, expressed through the cross, can change such a heart.
2. The nature of God
God is:
The cross is where justice and love meet. Justice demands death for sin (Ezek. 18:4; Rom. 6:23). Love provides a substitute. Romans 3:26 says that through the cross, God can be “just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.”
3. Spiritual warfare
One of Satan’s chief weapons is accusation. Revelation 12:10 calls him “the accuser of our brethren.” He accuses:
Romans 5:6–8 is an answer to all three accusations. God is for us, not against us, because He gave His Son for us (Rom. 8:31–32). Our guilt has been borne by Christ. There is now no condemnation to those in Christ Jesus (Rom. 8:1).
When we proclaim the truth of Christ’s death for us “while we were still sinners,” we silence the accuser.
This revelation is not merely to be admired; it is to be applied. How do we walk in the reality of Christ’s love?
### First, We Must Acknowledge Our True Condition Without Christ
Many never truly receive God’s love because they never accept what they were. Scripture says we were:
We must agree with God’s diagnosis. This destroys pride. We stop bringing our own righteousness to God as a bargaining chip. We come empty-handed.
Luke 18:13 describes the right posture:
> “God be merciful to me a sinner.”
This is the starting point. If you begin as a “decent person needing a little help from God,” you will never understand the cross.
Practical step:
Say to God, honestly: “Lord, I confess that in myself I am helpless, ungodly, a sinner, Your enemy. I have nothing to offer. I depend entirely on what Jesus did for me.”
### Second, We Must Fix Our Faith on the Historical Fact of the Cross
Faith is not a feeling. It is a decision to trust what God has said and done. Romans 5:6 and 5:8 are historical statements:
Hebrews 12:2 says we must look “unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross…”
You may not always *feel* loved, forgiven, or accepted. But the cross does not depend on your feelings. It is an accomplished fact.
Practical step:
Regularly declare: “Jesus died for me while I was still a sinner. God has proved His love for me in the cross. I choose to believe this, whatever my feelings say.”
### Third, We Must Renounce Condemnation and Accusation
Once you have received Christ, you are justified by His blood (Rom. 5:9). The legal basis for Satan’s accusations has been removed. Yet many believers still live under a cloud of guilt and self-reproach.
Romans 8:33–34:
> “Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God’s elect? It is God that justifieth.
> Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died…”
Notice again: the answer to condemnation is “It is Christ that died.” The same truth as Romans 5:8, applied to your legal standing before God.
Practical step:
When accusations rise in your mind, answer them aloud with Scripture: “Who is he that condemns? It is Christ that died. God has proved His love for me in the death of His Son. I refuse this condemnation.”
### Fourth, We Must Allow the Holy Spirit to Pour God’s Love into Our Hearts
Romans 5:5:
> “The love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.”
The cross is the objective proof of God’s love. The Holy Spirit is the subjective witness of that love inside us. Both are necessary.
The Spirit does not give us a vague sense of being loved; He anchors us in the knowledge of Christ crucified for us. He takes the historical fact and makes it a present reality.
Practical step:
Pray: “Holy Spirit, make the love of God in the cross real to my heart. Pour out this love in me, drive out fear, shame, and rejection, and establish me in the certainty of Christ’s sacrifice for me.”
As you do this, you will find that:
### Proclamation of Faith
Speak this out loud, thoughtfully and deliberately:
“I thank You, Lord, that Your Word is true.
When I was utterly helpless, when I was without strength,
Christ died for the ungodly, and that includes me.
Most people would not be willing to die for an upright person,
though someone might perhaps dare to die for a very good person.
But You, O God, have demonstrated and proved Your love toward me
in that while I was still a sinner, Christ died for me.
You did not wait for me to become good.
You did not demand that I improve myself.
While I was still a sinner, while I was Your enemy,
You gave Your Son to die in my place.
I affirm today:
God has shown His great love for me in the cross of Jesus Christ.
No accusation, no condemnation, no feeling, and no circumstance
can ever cancel or diminish this love.
I overcome Satan by the blood of the Lamb
and by the word of my testimony,
that Jesus died for me, personally,
at exactly the right time,
when I was helpless and lost.
Thank You, Lord, for Your great love.
Amen.”
### Prayer
“Father, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, I come to You on the basis of Your Word.
I acknowledge that in myself I was helpless, ungodly, a sinner, and Your enemy. I had no strength to save myself. Yet You loved me. You proved Your love by giving Your Son to die for me while I was still a sinner.
I ask now that You seal this truth in my heart. Holy Spirit, shed abroad the love of God within me. Drive out every lie of Satan that says I am rejected, unloved, or beyond hope. Break the power of condemnation, shame, and fear. Establish me in the unshakable fact that Christ died for me.
Let this revelation not remain in my mind only, but transform my life. Teach me to rest, not in my performance, but in the finished work of the cross. And as I receive this *agapē* love, enable me to show it to others—especially to those who seem least deserving—just as I was when You first loved me.
I thank You, Father, for Your great love, revealed once for all in Jesus Christ my Lord. I receive it, I believe it, and I will walk in it, in Jesus’ name. Amen.”
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