Should we tell the unsaved, "God loves you!" without any qualification?
Many well-intentioned Christians do this, thinking that it is the easiest and least offensive way to evangelize. Here are twenty Scriptural reasons why this is wrong to do:
It Replaces the Biblical Gospel Call – The apostles never began evangelism with “God loves you.” Instead, they proclaimed sin, judgment, repentance, and faith.
“Peter said to them, ‘Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins’” (Acts 2:38).
“Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent, because He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed” (Acts 17:30–31).
It Creates False Assurance – Lost sinners may wrongly think they are safe in sin.
“They have healed the wound of my people lightly, saying, ‘Peace, peace,’ when there is no peace” (Jeremiah 6:14).
It Ignores God’s Wrath Against Sin – Scripture declares the lost are under wrath, not basking in God's unconditional love.
“He who believes in the Son has eternal life; but he who does not obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him” (John 3:36).
“For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men” (Romans 1:18).
It Contradicts the Doctrine of Election – God’s saving love is particular to His elect.
“He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself” (Ephesians 1:4–5).
“Just as it is written, ‘Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated’” (Romans 9:13).
It Denies the Enmity Between God and Sinners – Apart from Christ, men are God’s enemies.
“For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life” (Romans 5:10).
“And although you were formerly alienated and hostile in mind, engaged in evil deeds” (Colossians 1:21).
It Blunts the Offense of the Cross – The biblical warning is urgent, not sentimental.
“You brood of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?” (Matthew 3:7).
It Undermines God’s Holiness – God’s holiness demands justice against sin.
“Your eyes are too pure to approve evil, and You cannot look on wickedness with favor” (Habakkuk 1:13).
“Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord Almighty, the whole earth is full of His glory… Woe is me, for I am ruined! Because I am a man of unclean lips” (Isaiah 6:3, 5).
It Distorts the Character of God – His love cannot be separated from His justice and wrath.
“God is a righteous judge, and God is angry at the wicked every day” (Psalm 7:11).
“A jealous and avenging God is the Lord; the Lord is avenging and wrathful… The Lord will by no means leave the guilty unpunished” (Nahum 1:2–3).
It Empties the Cross of Its Urgency – If God already “loves” sinners unconditionally, why is the cross necessary?
“For if righteousness comes through the Law, then Christ died needlessly” (Galatians 2:21).
It Ignores Hell – Christ repeatedly warned about eternal judgment.
“Do not fear those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul; but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in Hell” (Matthew 10:28).
“If your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life crippled, than having your two hands, to go into Hell, into the unquenchable fire” (Mark 9:43).
It Confuses Common Grace with Saving Love – God’s kindness to all is not the same as His redeeming love.
“For He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous” (Matthew 5:45).
“I am the Good Shepherd; the Good Shepherd lays down His life for the sheep… But you do not believe because you are not of My sheep” (John 10:11, 26).
It Misrepresents John 3:16 – The verse teaches the manner of God’s love in Christ, not blanket approval.
“For God loved the world in this way: He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life” (John 3:16).
It Ignores the “Hatred” Passages – Scripture explicitly says God hates the wicked.
“The boastful shall not stand before Your eyes; You hate all who do iniquity” (Psalm 5:5).
“The Lord tests the righteous and the wicked, and the one who loves violence His soul hates” (Psalm 11:5).
“I have loved Jacob; but I have hated Esau” (Malachi 1:2–3; cited in Romans 9:13).
It Encourages Worldly Definitions of Love – Hearers interpret “love” as tolerance, not saving grace.
“For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires” (2 Timothy 4:3).
It Risks Turning Evangelism into Flattery – Flattery avoids truth and destroys souls.
“For such men are slaves, not of our Lord Christ but of their own appetites; and by their smooth and flattering speech they deceive the hearts of the unsuspecting” (Romans 16:18).
It Ignores the Biblical Order of Salvation – God’s love is known in Christ by those who repent and believe.
“He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me; and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father” (John 14:21).
“If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our abode with him” (John 14:23).
It Gives a Half-Gospel – Half-truths are deadly.
“For I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole purpose of God” (Acts 20:27).
It Mimics False Teachers – False prophets comfort sinners instead of confronting them.
“They keep saying to those who despise Me, ‘The Lord has said, “You will have peace”’; and as for everyone who walks in the stubbornness of his own heart, they say, ‘Calamity will not come upon you’” (Jeremiah 23:17).
It Fails to Distinguish Between God’s Attributes – His patience with the unsaved, is not the same as His redeeming love to His redeemed people.
“The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9).
It Produces Shallow Conversions – A soft gospel leads to false converts.
“The one on whom seed was sown on the rocky places, this is the man who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; yet he has no firm root in himself, but is only temporary, and when affliction or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he falls away” (Matthew 13:20–21).
✅ Summary
The Bible never tells us to assure unrepentant sinners that God loves them.
Instead:
The lost are under God’s wrath (John 3:36).
They must repent (Luke 13:3).
They must believe in Christ crucified and risen (Acts 16:31).
Only then do they come to know God’s saving love (Romans 5:8; 1 John 4:9–10).
There are not any "Smile! God loves you!" signs in Hell.
(The above article was AI generated.)