I had a great relationship with my Dad. He passed away couple of years ago. He loved me so much! He took me fishing and hunting. He provided me food, clothing, and shelter. He bought me nice gifts on my birthdays. He took me to church to learn about his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. But he also loved me so much, that he disciplined me.
One day I stole a cigarette out of a package that belonged to my mother's friend with whom she was having coffee. I went behind the barn and smoked it. As I came back into the house my mother smelled my breath.
When my dad got home, Mama told him what I did. Now let me ask you a question: Does my Dad’s extreme love for me lead him to encourage me to keep smoking? Does his love for me condone the smoking of that cigarette? Or did his love for me and my future health cause him to discipline me and point out the destructive nature of continuing to smoke? My Dad chose the discipline route, not the condoning route.
Someone said, “God loves you just the way you are, but he loves you so much he doesn't want to leave you that way.” Some have implied that because God is love, then he also loves our sinful habits and condones them. I believe that is a lie. A loving God does not want you to be destroyed by sin. So He sent Jesus Christ to die in your place so that you would not be destroyed by your sin if you put faith in Jesus’ death and resurrection.
It is true that the message of the gospel is “God loves you.” It is also the message of the gospel that “You must repent of sin.” Repentance is a hard message and a harsh message because it confronts our sin. Repentance requires us to unmask hypocrisy and deny superficiality. We cannot proclaim the gospel of love without also proclaiming the gospel of repentance.
How important is repentance? Someone confronted Jesus with the random injustices that happen in the world. Eighteen people had been killed because a tower under construction at Siloam had fallen on them. Did Jesus then give a detailed explanation of the evil and suffering in the world? No, he simply said, “…but unless you repent, you too will all perish” (Luke 13:5).