The Difficult Doctrine of the Love of God

by D. A. Carson

Publisher:

Crossway

, 2000

Overview

A noted evangelical scholar presents a serious treatment of the doctrine of the love of God and an honest, biblically sound handling of its difficulties and problematic passages. He critiques sentimental ideas such as "God hates the sin, but loves the sinner" and provides interesting perspective on how God loves us. This discussion is blended with consideration of God's sovereignty and His wrath, both of which are important elements of His love, and does away with trivialities and cliches to get to the heart of the matter.

At first thought, understanding the doctrine of the love of God seems simple compared to trying to fathom other doctrines like that of the Trinity or predestination. Especially since the overwhelming majority of those who believe in God view Him as a loving being. That is precisely what makes this doctrine so difficult. The only aspect of God's character the world still believes in is His love. His holiness, His sovereignty, His wrath are often rejected as being incompatible with a "loving" God. Because pop culture has so distorted and secularized God's love, many Christians have lost a biblical understanding of it and, in turn, lost a vital means to knowing who God is.

The Difficult Doctrine of the Love of God seeks to restore what we have lost. In this treatment of many of the Bible's passages regarding divine love, noted evangelical scholar D. A. Carson not only critiques sentimental ideas such as "God hates the sin but loves the sinner," but provides a compelling perspective on the nature of God and why He loves as He does. Carson blends his discourse with discussion of how God's sovereignty and holiness complete the biblical picture of who He is and how He loves.

Key Features

• Grounded in the Biblical text
• Emphasizes God's holiness and sovereignty
• Examines how the love of God is prevalent throughout Scripture
• Teaches about this important doctrine without loosing a personal emphasis

Contents

• On Distorting the Love of God
• God Is Love
• God's Love and god's Sovereignty
• God's Love and God's Wrath

Top Highlights

“(3) God’s salvific stance toward his fallen world.” (Page 17)

“4) God’s particular, effective, selecting love toward his elect.” (Page 18)

“2) God’s providential love over all that he has made.” (Page 16)

“1) The peculiar love of the Father for the Son, and of the Son for the Father.” (Page 16)

“Nevertheless the cliché (God hates the sin but loves the sinner) is false on the face of it and should be abandoned. Fourteen times in the first fifty psalms alone, we are told that God hates the sinner, his wrath is on the liar, and so forth. In the Bible, the wrath of God rests both on the sin (Rom. 1:18ff.) and on the sinner (John 3:36).” (Page 69)

Product Details

• Title: The Difficult Doctrine of the Love of God
• Author: D. A. Carson
• Publisher: Crossway
• Print Publication Date: 2000
• Logos Release Date: 2005
• Pages: 96
• Language: English
• Resources: 1
• Format: Digital › Logos Research Edition
• Subject: God › Love
• ISBNs: 9781581341263, 1581341261
• Resource ID: LLS:DIFDCTRLVGD
• Resource Type: Monograph
• Metadata Last Updated: 2022-09-29T23:18:27Z

About D. A. Carson

D.A. Carson (b. 1946) is one of the most respected New Testament scholars in the world. A respected teacher, author, and speaker, he is currently research professor of New Testament at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, and the president of The Gospel Coalition. He has served as pastor of Richmond Baptist Church and as the first dean of the seminary of Northwest Baptist Theological College, now known as Northwest Baptist Seminary. Logos has collected his sermons—including audio—in the D.A. Carson Sermon Archive.

Carson lectures in academic and church settings around the world, and is the author of more than 50 books, including Exegetical Fallacies, Pillar New Testament Commentary: The Gospel According to John, The Gagging of God, Showing the Spirit: A Theological Exposition of 1 Corinthians 12–14 and the Intolerance of Tolerance. He is the editor of the Pillar New Testament Commentary series, and coedited of the Commentary on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament with G.K. Beale, and the Studies in New Testament Greek series with Stanley Porter. You can find more of Carson’s work in the Baker D.A. Carson Collection (15 vols.).