gOD'S LOVE REVEALED ON A DUSTY ROAD

(An Incredible Revelation of God's Love)

(By: Norm Rasmussen)

To view this full-length testimony on video, please click here: 

“LOVE ON A DUSTY ROAD” - A POWERFUL EXPERIENCE OF LEARNING ABOUT GOD’S UNCONDITIONAL LOVE  

Have you ever heard someone say: "God is love"? I never used to know what that really meant, until something happened one day that opened my understanding of God's unconditional love for each of us - for me personally - and I want to share with you how that happened.

Before I do that, however, I'm going to share a Truth with you that every one of us need to get hold of, if we want the very best possible relationship with God that we can have. God loves you and I not for what we do ... but for who He IS, and for what He has already DONE.  Once you get hold of this mind-blowing truth, your relationship with God will soar unlike ever before!

Now the testimony:

By 1984, I had been a born again Christian for four years. God had done so much in my life over those four years, but God knew I needed a revelation of His unconditional love (God accepting us with all our character flaws, among other things) before I could grow in my relationship with Him.

I couldn't get my mind off God - which is how it all started. I found myself unable to concentrate at my job. I was physically at work, but mentally constantly thinking about God. At home with my wife, I didn't want to be distracted by having to fulfill my obligations as a spouse. I just wanted to be alone and be with God. It was not like me, I assure you, to be like this.

Yet - supernaturally, something was happening. Something inside me was growing in intensity, and I was so caught up in it at the time that I didn't fully realize what was happening. All I knew was that I had an incredibly powerful desire to commune with God and never quit communing.

After three days of being this way, I told my wife, Kathleen, that I was going to take the day off and just go spend it with God. I told her I had to. Her blessings were upon my request. She seemed to understand.

I DROVE MY CAR TO THE NEAREST DESERTED ROAD

I drove my car to a deserted road for privacy and parked. I couldn't wait to put all distractions aside so I could concentrate 100% of my attention and affections on God. It was the burning desire of my whole being.

I spent maybe an hour - possibly more - in my car just communing with God, telling Him I loved Him. Thanking Him for all He had done for me. Thanking Him and verbally expressing to Him all of my appreciation for all He had done for me . . . when I had never deserved it.

Oh yes - that's right. You see, for over 20 years, I wasn't convinced there was a God! How could there be? All the suffering and pain and heartache in this world? Evil and greedy people getting their way, while good and unselfish people getting very little? No way- there couldn't be a God . . . at least a loving God. On top of that, I had prayed many times through my life, and my prayers never seemed to get answered the way I wanted them to. No - there was no God, which I was quite certain of.

But one fateful Saturday morning, after crying out to God all night, my life changed forever. I met God on His terms - the Holy Bible's terms - not mine. Overnight, my skepticism was gone. God had suddenly become as real as the sky is blue. 

Years later - this was partly why I now had to be alone with God. I had been one of the world's greatest skeptics, and God had grabbed me by the shoelaces and pulled me out of the pit of blindness and despair that I had dug for myself.

No doubt it was a work of the Holy Spirit - I realized later. A burning desire to praise God had begun to build up in me several days prior to the ultimate climax. As each day had passed, all I wanted to do was sing praises to Him. At work, it became such a distraction that I decided to take a few spontaneous vacation days off, just so I could put my total focus on praising the Lord.  

Never had I experienced such a thing. This was not a voluntary act on my part - something I had just decided to do. Something inside me to praise my Creator burned deeply - day and night, and it kept intensifying. Trying to sleep ... I was unable to do that, because it was like a broken record of praise kept going over and over in my mind and spirit. I had to get alone with God and praise Him forever.  Nothing could stand in the way of that.

I drove my car to an old deserted two-track rode where I felt I would not be bothered by anyone.  

My muscles were sore so I stepped out of my car. I started walking slowly down the dirt road to loosen out the kinks, but soon found that even walking distracted me. So I just stood there in the dusty road, with arms raised, loving on God; that is, telling Him over and over how much I loved and appreciated Him and praising and thanking Him every way I could think of.

Silly to some I'm sure - I was getting somewhat frustrated for not having a better way to tell God just how much love I felt for Him at the moment. With my hands still in the air, I began to praise Him more loudly. That was so wonderful. A new avenue to express my heart of love toward Him that felt like my heart was going to burst from it!

 CONTINUAL PRAISE AND WORSHIP

I must have stood there praising and worshiping Him for over half an hour, engulfed and enraptured by a closeness of what I had grown to know as intimacy with the Holy Spirit, when all of a sudden a distinct calm swept over me. Then God spoke something to me in my spirit that made me drop to my knees in the dust with tears streaming down my face. This is the "meat" of what He said:

"My child, I love you so much. Do you know that I love you as much as any great person you could ever imagine? As much as I loved the Apostle Paul. As much as I love the Pope or Billy Graham. As much as I love anyone else that you might think I would love more than you. I love you equally as much as I love them.

"But do you know what? I love the worst of sinners as much as I love you. No matter who you might think is the worst of sinners, I love that person as much as I love you, or Billy Graham, or anyone else you can think of. That's the nature of my love.  It is not partial, nor is it conditional.  

"Listen carefully however:  No - I do not love sin. I hate sin. But I love the sinner".  

"Yes - the favor of my peace rests more and more on those who put away sin in their life, and they will be rewarded for doing so in eternity, but do not confuse my love with my favor.

"You are trying to earn my love, son. There is nothing you can do to earn my love, so stop trying. There is nothing anyone can do to earn my love - from the worst of sinners to the most obedient Christians - so quit trying to earn my love. It's a free gift ... just as Salvation is a free gift.  

"It's important, my child, that you know WHY I love impartially like this. The reason is because of WHO I AM. It is my nature and the essence of My being. I AM love. I AM unconditional love. I AM impartial love.

"I proved my love at The Cross. At the cross, my Son, Jesus Christ, died for the sins of everyone ever born on earth, or whoever will be born. I sent Him to earth for this primary purpose.  

"There is no greater act of love than someone dying on behalf of another ... especially when the one giving their life is totally innocent - totally undeserving - taking full punishment upon themselves that rightly should be administered to the one who is guilty.  

"My Son ... fully one with Me in the Godhead ...  died on behalf of others; He died on behalf of sinners. He took their punishment. He took their condemnation, so they might receive life eternal. He became their pardon from eternal death. If you had been the only sinner on earth, He would have died just for you. He died for every person who has lived on planet Earth, or ever shall live.

"That's how much I love you. That's how much He loves them. That's how much we love every person ever created."

[Note: Some additional dialogue that transpired on that day can be accessed on the following link:  Understanding God's Unconditional Love]

As the weeks and months went by following that fateful day on the dusty road, I began to see the great significance of what God had spoken to me. I had been giving money for the furtherance of the gospel to earn God's love, and didn't even realize my motive behind it. I had been sharing the Good News of the gospel every way I felt led of the Holy Spirit to do so to earn God's love. I prayed, fasted, studied my Bible, went to church -- everything I was doing that pertained to the things of God -- I was "doing" to try to earn His love, and didn't even realize my unconscious motive behind it.

Since then, things have changed. Now I give money for the furtherance of the Kingdom of God to be built in the lives of people because of love, not because of fear that He won't love me if I don't. I share what God has done in my life every way I know how as I believe the Holy Spirit is leading me to do so for love, not for fear that He won't love me if I don't. Now I'm finally able to understand that when everything I do for God is done out of the motive of love . . . giving with no expectation of getting back . . . Christianity is so much more rewarding, for truly indeed as the scripture says: 

Perfect love does cast out fear. (I John 4:18)

God gave His life for you and me. It was a sacrifice of love. In appreciation, we give ourselves fully to God as the natural expression of our sacrifice of love back to Him. It's not always easy ... but it should be our highest daily priority.  

It is only wise to share another revelation the Holy Spirit imparted to me shortly after the above happened on the dusty road. God's unconditional love for each of us, from the worst of sinners to the most godliest of saints, will not keep a person from going to hell in and of itself. God has declared in His Word that every person has God's wrath upon them until they turn their lives over to Jesus Christ. Once they do that, and mean business, God's wrath is instantly removed, for all time and eternity, if that person continues to walk in intimate relationship with Jesus Christ until their time is done here on earth. That doesn't mean a Christian won't stumble and fall. Sometimes we fail to realize Christians are not perfect on this side of eternity, and thank God ... there is always forgiveness. Yet it does mean that we are to emulate what David did when He sinned against God: He eventually repented. Repentance is what keeps the grace of God overshadowing us, when we sin.

"He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him." (John 3:36)

But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him. (Romans 5:8-9)

IMPORTANT NOTE: In the video series (see at top) I did on this subject, I spoke briefly of God's unconditional love toward Hitler, and Jeffery Dalhmers, as examples. Please don't anyone assume, if you watched this video series, that I implying in any way that Hitler and/or Jeffrey Dalmers are not in hell, if they didn't ask for God's forgiveness and accept Jesus Christ prior to their dying. God's unconditional love in and of itself does NOT exempt anyone from ending up in hell. What keeps a person from hell is their love for Truth, and their obedience to it. Please read the following writing for greater understanding on the topic:  Why Would A Loving God Send Someone To Hell?  

Here is another writing that I recommend everyone read to gain greater insight into the love of God. Brother John Piper has revelation of God's love that can be fully trusted in my opinion, and in fact he has been given revelation of from the Holy Spirit that the entire Body of Christ needs to be made aware of, if they have yet to receive it fully. Here is John's precious writing:  

For WHOM Did Jesus Taste Death?

PLEASE HELP US HELP YOU SHARE THE BEST NEWS GOD HAS FOR EVERY PERSON BECAUSE...

JESUS DID IT! 

Remember:  All that we do in this life comes back to our God-given purpose which is to serve and glorify God. The money and assets we accumulate, the fame and power we've attained or seek to attain - all of the things of this nature will one day pass away, but those lives of others we impact for Jesus Christ will last for eternity, and we will be rewarded for the part we helped play by impacting those lives ... for eternity. (Matthew 6:19-20 is our assurance)