1 For humans, Christ’s essence is love; for those who follow Him, it is boundless love. If He had no love or mercy, then people would not still be following Him. In the work God does for humanity while incarnate, His most obvious and prominent essence is love; it is infinite tolerance. If it were not love and instead were as you imagine—when God intends to strike someone down, He does so; when He hates someone, He punishes, curses, judges, and chastises that person—how strict He would then be! If He is angry at people, they will tremble in fear and not be able to stand before Him…. This is just one way in which God’s disposition is expressed. Ultimately, His goal is still to bring salvation, and His love runs through all revelations of His disposition.

2 While working in the flesh, what God reveals the most to people is love. Patience is having mercy that stems from the love within, and its purpose is still to save people. God is able to have mercy on people only because He has love. If God had only hate and fury, and simply passed judgment and chastisement without any love, then calamity would befall you people. Would He be providing you with the truth? If people were cursed after having been chastised and judged, then how would the humanity of today still exist? God’s hatred, wrath, and righteousness are all expressed from a foundation of wanting to bring salvation to this group of people. This disposition also contains love and mercy, as well as a vast patience. This hate carries a sense of having no other choice, and includes boundless concern and anticipation for mankind!

3 God’s hatred is aimed at mankind’s corruption; it is aimed at people’s rebelliousness and sins, it is unilateral, and is established upon a foundation of love. Only when there is love can there be hate. God’s hatred toward humans is different from His hatred toward Satan, because God saves people, but He does not save Satan. God’s righteous disposition has always been there; He has had wrath, righteousness, and judgment from the very beginning. They did not simply spring into existence the moment He directed them at mankind. In fact, whether God is righteous, majestic, or wrathful, all of the work He does for the salvation of humanity results from love. He does not just carry a few kernels of love for people; one hundred percent of what He carries is love. Any less, and humans would not be saved. God dedicates all of His love to people.

Adapted from The Word, Vol. 3. The Discourses of Christ of the Last Days. Christ’s Essence Is Love