God's Unconditional Love for Us - Pastor Johnny Marten

Devotional

Day 1: The Greatest Gift: God’s Love in Christ

Christmas celebrates a real moment in history—God stepped into our world in Jesus to reconcile us to Himself. We give gifts, but none compares to the gift of new, eternal life offered freely in Christ. This love is not earned by good behavior and it is not withheld by failure; it is received by faith. Let your heart rest from trying to measure up and receive what has already been given. Celebrate the One who came near to free you from the yoke of sin and bring you home to the Father. This season, let your joy rise from His gift, not your performance. [12:08]

John 3:16 — God loved the world so deeply that He handed over His one and only Son, so that everyone who entrusts themselves to Him will not be ruined but will share everlasting life.

Reflection: Where are you still trying to earn God’s approval, and what is one simple way this week to practice receiving His love as a gift rather than a wage?

Day 2: He Came For The “Naughty List”

Many learn a version of Christmas with conditions—rewards for the nice, fear for the naughty. The gospel tells a different story: Jesus came seeking those who are lost, sick, and spent, offering mercy instead of merit. God’s love moved first, not because we had it all together, but because we didn’t. Let that truth quiet the shame that keeps you at a distance. Come as you are; grace meets you there and leads you home. [14:52]

1 John 4:10 — This is what love really is: not that we started by loving God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to take on the cost of our sins.

Reflection: What is one “naughty list” place in your life you tend to hide, and how could you bring it honestly to Jesus in prayer today?

Day 3: Lost And Found: The Father’s Welcome

God’s heart is seen in the shepherd who searches for one missing sheep and in the father who runs to embrace a returning child. He calls us by name, lifts us from the thorns, and carries us back; He clothes our shame with welcome and throws a feast of joy. Repentance is not a lecture but a homecoming. However far you’ve wandered, the way back is open, and heaven rejoices over every step toward Him. Hear His voice, rise, and return. [17:35]

Luke 15:20–24 — While the son was still far away, his father saw him, was moved with compassion, ran to him, hugged and kissed him. As the son began to confess, the father called for the best robe, a ring, and sandals, and ordered a celebration: “My son was as good as dead and is alive again; he was lost and now is found.”

Reflection: Who comes to mind as the “wandering one,” and what is one gentle, practical way you can reflect the Father’s welcome to them this week?

Day 4: Loved Children Grow Through Fatherly Discipline

Unconditional love does not mean absence of correction; real love protects, guides, and trains. Like wise parents who keep children from the highway, God sets boundaries for our good. His discipline can sting in the moment, but it forms holiness, steadiness, and peace. Being corrected by God is a sign you belong to Him. Trust His hand—not to shame you, but to shepherd you into life. [21:09]

Hebrews 12:6–11 — The Lord trains those He loves and corrects every child He receives. Endure hardship as His training; God is treating you as sons and daughters. Our parents disciplined as they thought best, but God does it for our good so we share His holiness. Discipline isn’t pleasant now, but later it yields a harvest of right living and peace for those shaped by it.

Reflection: Where do you sense God’s loving correction right now, and what is one small, concrete step of obedience you can take this week?

Day 5: Open Hearts Receive And Share Love

God’s love is often experienced through fellowship—believers loving one another as Jesus loved us. Wounds can harden the heart, but a sealed heart blocks love as well as pain. Be wise with your “pearls,” yet ask Jesus to soften and open your heart to Him and to trustworthy people. He is at the door, not forcing His way in but patiently knocking, ready to share life with you. Say yes, and let His presence bring the lasting gift of peace and new life. [23:44]

Revelation 3:20 — I am standing at the door and knocking; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in and share a meal together with them, and they with Me.

Reflection: If hurt has made you guarded, what is one safe, specific step you can take to reopen your heart—either inviting Jesus into a tender place in prayer or sharing one “pearl” with a trusted Christ-follower?

Sermon Summary

I’m grateful for each of you in this Advent season. We celebrate not a legend, but a real moment in history: God stepped into our world in Jesus to reconcile us to Himself. John 3:16 tells us the Father’s motive—love. That love does not sort people into “good” and “bad” lists. Our culture often swaps Jesus for Santa, turning Christmas into a reward-for-behavior story. But Jesus came for the ones on the “naughty” list—the lost, the sick, the ones who know they can’t fix themselves. God’s gift is not performance-based; it is grace-based, offered to all who believe.

Because love is a vast word, I drew from Luke 15, where Jesus shows what love looks like. A shepherd goes after one wandering sheep. A woman turns the house upside down for a lost coin. A father runs toward a ruined son, embraces him, clothes him, and throws a feast—not after he cleans up, but as he comes home. That’s the heart of the Father toward you. Nothing in all creation can separate us from His love. Yet God’s love is not indulgence; He disciplines those He loves. Like any wise parent who keeps a child out of the highway, the Lord’s correction is protection, shaping us into wholeness and peace.

How do we experience this love? Often through one another. Jesus commands us to love as He has loved us. Fellowship becomes a conduit of God’s affection, wisdom, and courage. But some of us have armored our hearts because of betrayal and pain. A hardened heart blocks pain—and love. The way back is a wise, guarded openness with trustworthy, Christ-honoring people, and most of all to Jesus Himself. He stands at the door and knocks. Open to Him, and the feast begins—new life, deep peace, and a love that will outlast every earthly gift.

Key Takeaways

1. God loved first; we respond next. We don’t initiate the relationship—God does. Our obedience is not an audition for acceptance; it’s a response to already-given love. This keeps our souls from pride when we succeed and from despair when we fail. Love is the cause; faith and obedience are the effect. [46:49]
2. Grace reaches the so‑called “naughty.” Jesus comes not to congratulate the competent but to rescue the lost. If your story is messy, you are not disqualified; you are the reason He came. Receiving grace requires honesty about need, not a resume of virtue. [45:52]
3. The Father runs, not waits. God does not make prodigals crawl through penance before mercy; He moves toward returning hearts. Repentance is not paying God back—it’s coming home to be embraced and restored. The ring, robe, and feast declare identity before performance. [59:10]
4. Love disciplines toward true freedom. Unconditional love is not unconditional approval. God’s correction is not rejection; it is investment—training us away from danger and into holiness. The fruit is long-term righteousness and peace that shortcuts can never deliver. [65:01]
5. Open hearts receive and share love. Walls that block pain also block affection. Wise vulnerability—especially with faithful believers—becomes the doorway for God’s love to be felt and extended. Jesus knocks; openness to Him begins the feast our hearts are hungry for. [70:27]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[38:25] - Gratitude and Christmas greetings
[41:09] - John 3:16: the greatest gift
[42:31] - Between Advents: now and not yet
[44:18] - Santa story versus true grace
[46:49] - God loved us first
[50:58] - Luke 15 sets the stage
[53:02] - The shepherd pursues the one
[55:10] - Lost coin and prodigal begin
[59:10] - The father runs to embrace
[62:43] - Love that disciplines for our good
[65:42] - How we experience God’s love
[69:41] - When hurt hardens the heart
[71:50] - Open the door to Jesus
[75:16] - The eternal gift and prayer

Bible Study Guide

Bible reading
- LUKA 15

Observation questions

In Luke 15:1-2, who gathers around Jesus, and what do the Pharisees and teachers say about Him? Why does that detail matter for what follows? ([50:58])
In the shepherd story, what specific steps does the shepherd take once he notices one sheep is missing, and where does he leave the ninety-nine? ([53:02])
In the prodigal story, list the first four things the father does when he reaches his son. Which of these come before the son finishes his speech? ([59:10])
What shared response happens every time “the lost is found” in these stories, and who joins the celebration? ([54:31])

Interpretation questions

With “tax collectors and sinners” drawing near and the religious leaders muttering, what does this reveal about who recognizes their need for grace and who resists it? How does that set the stage for the parables? ([50:58])
What do the father’s actions—running, embracing, clothing, and feasting—communicate about repentance and identity? How does this show that identity is declared before performance? ([59:40])
How do unconditional love and real discipline fit together without contradiction? What is discipline aiming to produce, and how might that shape a person’s view of God’s heart? ([01:05:01])
If love is first received and then expressed, how does shared life with other believers become a main way God’s love is experienced? What makes that easier or harder in real life? ([01:06:20])

Application questions

Where might a “Santa-style” scoreboard still shape your relationship with God or others (earning, comparing, fear of the naughty list)? What would shifting to grace-based relating look like this week in one conversation or decision? ([45:27])
If you identify with the wandering sheep or the younger son, what would “coming to your senses” look like today? Name one concrete step toward home the Father is inviting you to take in the next 48 hours. ([57:45])
Picture the Father running toward you. What is hardest to receive—His embrace, the ring of belonging, the robe, or the feast? Why that one, and what Scripture truth will you hold onto when shame argues otherwise? ([59:10])
Where is the Lord putting up a “don’t play on the highway” sign for you right now? Identify the specific danger and one practical guardrail to welcome, rather than resist. ([01:01:45])
Has hurt or betrayal led you to harden your heart? What is one wise, guarded step toward openness you can take—with whom, and when? ([01:09:41])
“Love one another as I have loved you.” Write down one name and one simple action (visit, text, meal, prayer, confession, encouragement) you will take this week to let God’s love flow through you. ([01:06:20])
Jesus stands at the door and knocks. What would opening the door look like in a fresh way—repentance, prayer, inviting Him into a specific room (finances, family, habits)? What step will you take before the next group meeting? ([01:11:50])

Sermon Clips

And so this thief came in a form of even being very, you know, there was conditions. The gifts that he would give were based on how well you behaved and things like that. But not so with God's gift. With God's great gift to the world, to all those who would believe. It didn't come with those conditions, whether you were on the good list or on the bad list. This gift was for all. In fact, Jesus would later say that he came for those that were on the naughty list. He came for those that were lost, for the sick and the lost. He came for those very people. [00:45:11] (41 seconds) #GraceForEveryone

That's his plan, so he heads home, he heads back, and as he's getting close to the farm, and there's that long driveway, and the dad's at the house, and he sees from a distance that his son is coming down the driveway. He still remembers how his son walked. He knows that that's his son, and he doesn't sit there and wait for his son to get there and to tell him that, what do you want? Do you want some more money to squander away, or what do you want now? Or he gets up, and he starts running towards his son. [00:58:45] (29 seconds) #RunToEmbrace

Ask a question about this sermon

Chatbot

How does God’s love differ from Santa’s gifts?

What do the Luke 15 parables reveal about repentance?

How does divine discipline coexist with unconditional love?