This is the real - and very infuriating tragedy - behind the idea that receiving God’s love depends on our performance (or how “good enough” we are).
The Bible clearly states that God loves us unconditionally - and has done since before He even created the world.

It states this truth within multiple verses.
For example, Romans 5:8 (NLT) says, “But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.”
We don’t have time to dig into details of Jesus dying on the cross, in our place, for our sins in this episode.

I’ve covered this more in-depth in other episodes. There’s also my Journey with Jesus mini course, if you want a more structured and personal option.

But the point Romans 5:8 is making here is that God didn’t wait until our performance record reached a certain level before sending Jesus to restore our broken relationship with Him.
In other words, God didn’t sit back, cross His arms, and eye us doubtfully while waiting for us to somehow become “good enough.”
That’s not the character of our God. Which leads me to my second point of proof regarding God’s genuine character. …

The entire Bible - all 66 books - is one overarching story wherein God consistently reveals His constant, unconditional love for us despite our failures (starting with the Garden of Eden).

I’ve heard it said that the Bible proves - within its own pages - that it was inspired by the Holy Spirit. Because if man had written the Bible, it would read very differently.
If you look closely, you’ll notice one common theme: any Biblical character who accomplished something great was usually:

(a) Not the first person you’d pick for that assignment from a human perspective.

For example, think about King David. What human would logically pick a young shepherd boy - without any notoriety or special skills - as the next king?
But guess who eventually comes from David’s lineage? Jesus.

(b) Accomplished what they did solely because of God who empowered them, protected them, provided for them, helped them grow into a potential they didn’t even know they had - and continued to love them unconditionally when they sinned or made a mistake.

This didn’t mean that God ignored instituting loving discipline when needed - like any good father.
But He’s never turned away from His people.
He could’ve done that as early as the Garden of Eden when Adam and Eve decided to turn away from God in order to be more like gods themselves, deciding that what they had wasn’t enough.
And He could’ve done it countless more times moving forward. The entire Bible is chocked full of stories of individuals - and God’s people as a whole - turning away from Him and sinning over, and over, and over again.
Yet. God never turned away from them.

If performance - or being “good enough” - was a requirement for being loved by God, then, looking at the Bible, we would’ve been doomed from the start.

This is why verses such as Romans 5:8 are so powerful - especially in opening your eyes to biblical truth.
Or verses such as John 3:16-17 (NLT), “For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him.”
Because if God needed us to be sinless, or perfect, or consistently complete a certain list of tasks without fail, or hit a certain level of performance based on His holy requirements before loving us, the Bible as we know it wouldn’t exist.
God wouldn’t have continued to pursue the people we read about within its pages.

Even as we’re confused, or lacking biblical clarity, or turning away from Him due to sin or fear.
God continues to pursue us not because of who we are and what we’ve done (or not done) - but because of who He is.
That’s why the Bible reads as it does.
Because integrated with God’s character - which never changes, by the way - is loving us unconditionally.

This means, friend, that you can finally let go of this idea that you need to earn God’s love.

It simply isn’t true!
Nowhere in the Bible does God tell us that we need to earn His love in any way, shape, or form.
In fact, everything points to the opposite!
And having personally walked with God for over 20 years, I can also attest to this from personal experience.
You might assume that since I’m the host of this podcast and the owner of Relate Escape that I’ve lived this perfect walk with God.
Well, you might be surprised to learn that that is not the case. I’m still a sinner - as we all are - and I’ve made some pretty big mistakes.
Yet, God has never stopped loving me. He’s never turned His back on me. And He’s never made me feel guilty or shameful.
He’s only ever course-corrected me - lovingly - so that I could step back onto the path that’s closely aligned with Him.
And that’s what God wants for you today, friend. He’s not interested in making you feel silly, or stupid, or shameful.
His only interest is giving you the clarity and direction you need in order to jump off the path you’ve been on - the one full of struggle and heartache - and onto the one that will take you closer to Him.