This loving, pursuing God was clearly visible in the Old Testament, but for many who do only a cursory reading of the Old Testament, this can be difficult to see. In the New Testament, however, God’s love is fully manifest through the revelation of Jesus Christ. It’s no wonder that the message left Jerusalem and took hold of the Mediterranean world so rapidly. It said that God loves everyone—not merely a single nation, tribe, or a sect; it said that God desires to save every human being from the web of his or her own sin, and that He wants nothing in return but the joy of our fellowship. There had never before been such a message.

Unconditional love flies in the face of the most basic drives of human nature. We tend to love conditionally; we love only those we consider worthy. God’s love is nothing like that. Christians see the unconditional quality of God’s love displayed on the Cross. It is love for the utterly unworthy, a love that proceeds from a God who loves simply because He is love. Such a love could never be conceived by men. Only God would dare to love in such a way.

The Direction of God’s Love

On the face of it, this is an easy question: Who does God love? All of us, of course. But “all of us” includes several identifiable groups. Let’s explore these special recipients of God’s love and how the Scriptures describe His love for them.

God Loves His Son

The preeminent recipient of God’s love is His own Son, Jesus Christ. On two occasions—first at Jesus’ baptism and again at His transfiguration—God the Father declared, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (Matthew 3:17; 17:5).

In His final intimate conversation with His disciples, described earlier, Jesus acknowledged His Father’s love: “You loved Me before the foundation of the world” (John 17:24).

Earlier in that same Gospel we read, “For the Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself does” (John 5:20). We cannot fully appreciate the meaning of John 3:16 and the sacrifice that verse alludes to unless we realize the deep and abiding love of the Father for His only Son.

God Loves Israel

One of the central themes of the Old Testament is God’s love for His people Israel, whom He specially chose to bring His blessing to the world. Again and again almighty God expresses His enduring love for the Jewish people. For example, the prophet Jeremiah tells us that God will be faithful to Israel as long as the sun, moon, and stars shine, the waves roar, the heavens remain immeasurable, and the earth’s foundations remain undiscoverable (Jeremiah 31:35–37).

The prophet Isaiah spoke often about God’s special love for Israel:

Can a woman forget her nursing child,

And not have compassion on the son of her womb?

Surely they may forget,