Conditionally Unconditional

Is God's love unconditional?  I may very well surprise you with my answer.  But before I do, let me preface my answer with a comment.  I have said before and still believe that there is nothing that I can do to make God love me more and there is nothing I can do to make God love me less.  Sounds pretty unconditional but my answer to the question is that God's love is conditional.

I know it sounds like I am contradicting myself, but I am not.  God's love is not unconditional, He just chose to meet the conditions for me.  That is grace.  God's conditions for love and acceptance is perfection and I am far from perfect.  But God met that condition for me in Christ.

In order for me to attain perfection, I must not have any sin.  Therefore, Christ was not only the propitiation for my sin (He covered my sin with His blood, so that His wrath was borne by Jesus rather than me) but He is my expiation.  My sin has been carried away by Christ.  My sin has been cast as far as the east is from the west.  It has been carried away from God's presence so that He sees me without sin, because it went on Christ.

But that is only half of the story.  Without my sin, I am still not perfect.  In order to be perfect, I have to have a perfect righteousness.  I have to keep God's commandments, perfectly.  Obviously, I have not, but Jesus has.  Therefore, God takes Christ's righteousness and credits it to my account.  When God sees me, He sees His Son's righteousness and says to me well done.

It is no wonder that John Newton could write the words, "Amazing Grace how sweet the sound."  God has required so much to love me, but has met those requirements Himself through His only begotten Son.  I receive all that God has for me by grace through faith in Christ alone. Have you received what you desperately need from God.  Think about it.