Master Strange Love. Worship: October 4, 2026

“God loves you.” It is not like we have never heard that before. We may even have taken that fact for granted, thinking, “Well, of course He does! That’s His thing! 1 John 4:8 says that God is love.” Nevertheless, as our lives and circumstances unfold, through the uncertainties of sin and doubt and failure, many have come up short and been forced to wonder, “How can God love me now?” Love, after all, is always in direct proportion to our worthiness of it, to how lovable we are, right?

The highest love of God, agape, can commonly be defined as the love of intelligence and corresponding purpose. This definition may seem at first to drain the whole idea of the depth of emotion or the value of love. But we discover the power of God’s love even more as we are convinced of the greatness of our need—our own sin and unworthiness. That’s when the cross of Calvary and the sacrifice of Christ crucified shines forth as the highest, greatest, and almost unbelievable love of God for you—even you. Notice how many of today’s hymns examine the depth and, yes, “strangeness” of the fact that God loves you.