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Add to FavoritesAs it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated. Rom. 9:13
Tonight as I was putting my son to bed, he looked at me and said: "Mom, I have a very strange question to ask you about God."
My son's questions border on strange and all are challenging. His mind works different from most of his. Where most of us start at A travel to B through C, D, E, and F to get to G, his mind travels from A to Z and through points R, O, L, maybe K and I to get to G. And he will undoubtedly come to some conclusion that never crossed our minds. One of the most interesting things about this is that two years down the road he will come to you and say: "Do you remember when I did thus and such and you yelled at me. You're right. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done thus and such."
He can be impulsive and instinctive in his queries - either requests for information or prayer. It got to the point for a while that I would sensor his prayer requests at church.
Anyway, he looks at me tonight and says: "Mom, does God have favorites."
I took a deep breath, said a silent prayer and said: "No. God doesn't have favorites. Favoritism is a bad thing. God loves everyone equally."
The entire time I'm speaking to him, I'm praying and trying to decided how to reckon the verse above - and several others verse. . . "Noah found favor in the sight of the Lord" and the part of the Bible where David is called a man after God's own heart.
How did I justify my response in light of these verses and passages.
I asked my son what his relationship with my mother was like. He said it was a good, close relationship. Then I asked him what his cousin's relationship with my mother was like. He acknowledged that his relationship was existing, but that was all. That my mother made the effort to have a relationship with them, but my nephew participates little in that relationship.
And I reminded him that God doesn't force us to have a relationship with Him. God pursues us and loving woos us. But we have to choose to serve Him. We have to choose a relationship with Him.
Throughout the scriptures, God makes it abundantly clear that there are people He has a closer relationship with than others. The list is lengthy but can be found in totality in the book of Hebrews. Abel, Abraham, Noah, Enoch to name just a few from that chapter. But there were also David and Job. The Bible makes it pretty clear that when we search for God He will be found by us.
So, today - this morning - the question then remains. Does God have favorites? I say that the answer is a resounding "NO!"
Learn more about this author, Janella Schnepp.
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Yes
God's Love: A Choice We Make
It may sound unreasonable to claim that God loves some more than others. Yet, I think it has been proven to be true. As the only creator, God chose to love people above every other creature He made. Way back in the beginning of time, when God made creation, He made man in His image. He gave man a soul, and also a partner. He gave man dominion over other life forms.
With a love that is beyond all telling, God chose to give man free will. This is something even angels don't receive. Ah, but they can get proud. Lucifer proved this without a doubt, as he challenged God, and paved the path to hell. God responded, and life has never been the same since.
Temptation became the way of life. People chose to sin and give up their friendship with God. His answer was to send His Son, Jesus for our salvation. Our response determines whether we will spend an eternity with God on our last day, or not.
To say that God loves Satan and his demons would be wrong. It is certain that He did once, until they severed the relationship. We can believe that God offered every means to help them turn from their evil ways. But God does not love evil, or the ones who perpetrate it. Once that final outcome has become reality, God does not reward the one responsible for it.
Yet, in His love for all mankind, God sent His only Son to pay for our sins with His body and blood. This is true love, to offer one's life for another! And Jesus didn't do it for the birds and beasts in the fields. He did it for us, good, bad, and indifferent. He offered His life to pay for the evil of our ways.
Many people trust in God's mercy, as well we should. We excuse all sorts of faults because God is merciful. Little faults often turn into bigger ones. Sometimes we get so carried away that we don't even realize how far we've gone. One day we may even come to discover that we just don't like God anymore. God in His mercy lets us go.
We are still pursued, always finding little ways to choose God as we make our way through life. Then one day, it's over. We either took advantage of the gifts we were offered, or turned away, opting to have no friendship with our creator. At that point, we are either loved by God forever, or cast out like wild dogs.
Yes, God loves some more than others. He loves those who choose to spend eternity with Him, even if they do so in their very last breath. He loves those who trust Him, and value His friendship, recognizing their dignity above other life forms. He loves those who He was born, lived, and died for, all mankind. Through His life, death, and resurrection, God's power is revealed. Many underestimate the power of God's love. He loves us enough to keep heaven free from all evil. He loves us enough to accept our choice, if we choose evil over Him in our final moment. At that point, our relationship with God is sealed forever.
Learn more about this author, M. J. Joachim.
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