"Smile, God loves you."

Well, does He or doesn't He? We read that "God so loved the world," so He loves everyone equally, right?

Where did you get that idea?

Let's take a look at one of Jesus' parables. In Matthew 13:24-30, Jesus tells the parable of the wheat and the tares:

Another parable He put forth to them, saying: "The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field; but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went his way. But when the grain had sprouted and produced a crop, then the tares also appeared. So the servants of the owner came and said to him, "Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have tares?' He said to them, "An enemy has done this.' The servants said to him, "Do you want us then to go and gather them up?' But he said, "No, lest while you gather up the tares you also uproot the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest, and at the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, "First gather together the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn.""'

Later, in verses 36-43, He explains:

Then Jesus sent the multitude away and went into the house. And His disciples came to Him, saying, "Explain to us the parable of the tares of the field."

He answered and said to them: "He who sows the good seed is the Son of Man. The field is the world, the good seeds are the sons of the kingdom, but the tares are the sons of the wicked one. The enemy who sowed them is the devil, the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are the angels. Therefore as the tares are gathered and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of this age. The Son of Man will send out His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and those who practice lawlessness, and will cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears to hear, let him hear!

Have you ever grown a garden? Got some flowers at your house? You might say you love your garden. Do you love everything in it? Do you love the weeds as much as the roses? Of course not!

Does this parable give you the impression that God loves the tares as He loves the wheat? Does this give you the impression that He loves the tares at all?

I've been studying Genesis in my personal Bible study lately. Remember in chapter 3, God said, "I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel." Who are the seeds?

In Galatians 3, Paul explains, "Now to Abraham and his Seed were the promises made. He does not say, 'And to seeds,' as of many, but as of one, 'And to your Seed,' who is Christ." So, the "seed of the woman" is Christ.

So, who is the seed of the Devil? Does he have sons and daughters? Jesus told His enemies, "You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it." (John 8:44)

When Elymas the sorcerer opposed Paul and Barnabas, Paul said, "O full of all deceit and all fraud, you son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, will you not cease perverting the straight ways of the Lord?"

Some wonder whether Judas ever believed and was saved. I think Jesus cleared that up pretty well when He said, "Did I not choose you, the twelve, and one of you is a devil?" (John 6:70). John adds to this that Jesus spoke of Judas.

There is enmity between Christ and the seed of the devil. Believers are branches in the vine of Christ, so that enmity is between us and the seed of the devil as well. So, if God put that enmity between the elect and the non-elect, how can we say He loves everyone equally?

The high priest offered sacrifices on the day of atonement. For whom did he offer them? Wasn't the whole world guilty? Did he offer sacrifices for the whole world? He offered them only for the twelve tribes of Israel. So Christ also has made atonement for His people.

I used to be taught that sinners who reject Christ who died for them would be punished even more severely because they were rejecting His sacrifice. The majority of adults through time have rejected Christ. If Christ really died for all of them, what an amazing failure He has been. And if they are getting double or triple punishment for rejecting His sacrifice, it really would have been better if He had never died at all. What a horrible picture! What a dishonoring view of Christ!

Look instead at this Christ who knew exactly for whom He died. Look at His victorious sacrifice! He has not lost one for whom He died! Look at this infinite mercy! Look at how He through His sacrifice has brought them from incredible misery to incredible glory!

Amen!