A Sunday School Lesson On God’s Love

Here is a Sunday school lesson or Bible study about God’s love.

Agape Love

John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”

Is there any greater love that a life-giving love? I’d say not, especially considering that Christ died for enemies of God (Rom 5:10). The love in this verse is from the Greek word “agapaō” and is the greatest of all loves possible which is expressed in the fact that “while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly” (Rom 5:6) which includes all of us (Rom 3:10-12, 23) but only those who repent and trust in Jesus Christ will receive a pardon for their sins. The love of God is no better displayed than of the cross even though “the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God” (1st Cor 1:18).

What does Paul mean that Jesus came “at the right time?”

Does just believing in Jesus enough to be saved (James 2:19)?

Do you know about anyone who gave their life for another or other?

Godly Love

First Corinthians 13:1 “If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.”

The Apostle Paul gives an amazing description of love which is so many things but “Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things” (1st Cor 13:4-7) but by all means, “love never ends” (1st Cor 13:8). Godly love is a self-sacrificial love which does not depend upon the worthiness of the recipient or anything that they’ve done. God loved us first before we ever loved Him (1st John 4:19) so we should love others first before they ever love us!

How hard is it to try to love someone in word and deed when they are unthankful?

Does it make it hard to give to people who don’t deserve it?

Can we love others and not expect to be loved back?

Jesus’ Love

Mark 10:21 “Jesus looked at him and loved him. “One thing you lack,” he said. “Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

This touching verse is near the conclusion of an instance when a man came to Jesus and asked “what must I do to inherit eternal life” (Mark 10:178b)? Since the man associated eternal life with “what must I do,” Jesus ran him through the Ten Commandments (Mark 10:18-19) to which the man self-righteously said “all these I have kept since I was a boy” (Mark 10:2b). Really! Can you believe that? He probably hadn’t kept them past lunch! Tragically, the man went away sad because Jesus found out that his money was his god or idol and he just couldn’t part with it (Mark 10:22). The man went away sad and I think Jesus was sad too because “Jesus looked at him and loved him.” He loved him even though he walked away. That is the love of Jesus.

Why did Jesus still love him knowing the man wouldn’t follow Him?

What is a persona idol that you may have?

Is Jesus telling everyone to sell everything they have?

Love and Discipline

Hebrews 12:5-6 “My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor be weary when reproved by him. For the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives.”

The way God wants us to look at His discipline is that “God is treating you as sons. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline” (Heb 12:7)? When Jesus was addressing the lukewarm church at Laodicea He said “Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent” (Rev 3:19) so in love He reproves us, corrects us, disciplines us in order that we’ll repent and be zealous again. God would not truly love us if He did not discipline us for His discipline of us proves that He loves us.

Is it hard to face discipline?

What does it mean “do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord?”

Why was the church at Laodicea so lukewarm (Rev 3:14-8)?

Laying Down our Lives

John 15:13 “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.”

Jesus knew what He was talking about (as always) when He said that there is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for his friends but Jesus took it even further. He died for us while still His enemies (Rom 5:10) and rarely “one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die—but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Rom 5:7-8). It is through precious shed blood of Jesus by which “we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers” (1st John 3:16).

How can you lay down your life for your brothers and sisters?

Did they kill Jesus or did He lay down His life for us (John 10:18)?

Do you believe that the military and law enforcement lay down their lives for us?

Conclusion

I urge you in your study to look at all of the Bible verses and read them aloud in the class so that you can get the most out of these lessons and find out more about the love of God which was vividly displayed on the cross by Jesus Christ for all the world to see. Jesus leaves you and I with only do two choices; we can believe in Him and receive eternal life (John 3:36a) or we can reject Him and have the wrath of God abiding on us (John 3:36b). There are no other options. Unless a person repents and believes, they are not believing in the gospel that Jesus announced at the very beginning of His earthly ministry (Mark 1:15).

What did Jesus say was required (Mark 1:15)?

Isn’t “waiting to make a decision” okay (Heb 9:27)?

What was the most important thing about God’s love that you learned in this lesson?

Article by Jack Wellman

Jack Wellman is Pastor of the Mulvane Brethren Church in Mulvane Kansas. Jack is also the Senior Writer at What Christians Want To Know whose mission is to equip, encourage, and energize Christians and to address questions about the believer’s daily walk with God and the Bible. You can follow Jack on Google Plus or check out his book Teaching Children the Gospel available on Amazon.