God's Love Language: The Bible as a Love Letter: An Unconventional Dissertation

By Dr. LaNissa Finney, MDiv DBS

If God is speaking to us, then what is He saying? That is what most people want to know. This book reveals God's love language from Genesis all the way into the New Testament when Jesus finally appears on the scene. It takes an in-depth look at God's communication with Israel but also the world outside of Israel. It explores the blunders and calamities that God's people get themselves into and reveals God's response as a love language. Each book of the Bible tells a unique story, and within that story, God is speaking a language of love as reconciliation. The goal is to see God's love even if that language is challenging at times. Within each disaster of the biblical narrative, God reveals Himself as faithful and loving. Even in God's judgement, there is a beautiful language of love being revealed, which is clearly seen in God's exchange with Pharaoh. This book will help answer difficult questions about the Old Testament while pointing out God's method of communication with the people of the Old and New Testament. The aim is to help you see the conversation between Creator and creation as both purposeful and affectionate.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Sep 29, 2022
• ISBN: 9798886851373

Book preview

cover.jpg

God's Love Language

The Bible as a Love Letter: An Unconventional Dissertation

Dr. LaNissa Finney, MDiv, DBS

ISBN 979-8-88685-136-6 (paperback)

ISBN 979-8-88685-137-3 (digital)

Copyright © 2022 by Dr. LaNissa Finney, MDiv, DBS

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods without the prior written permission of the publisher. For permission requests, solicit the publisher via the address below.

Christian Faith Publishing

832 Park Avenue

Meadville, PA 16335

www.christianfaithpublishing.com

Printed in the United States of America

Table of Contents

Dissertation Summary

Introduction: God's Love Language: The Bible as a Love Letter

Noah

Abram

Pharaoh: An Unlikely Communication

The Build-Up of Faith Through a Love Language

The Bible as Literature

The Flood: A Dialogue of Love

The Patriarchs: Abram

Isaac

Jacob

Moses

A Second Glance at Pharaoh

Meaning in the Dialogue

Israel and the Church

Israel's Reform

A Glance at the Book of Judges

The Prophets

God Speaks: Samuel and the Philistines

Israel: Emptying to Become Full

David: A Man After God's Own Heart

A Glimpse of the Prophets

The New Testament: God Speaks in Person A New Message

Redefining the Kingdom of God

Bibliography

About the Author

This book is in memory of my sister Kiya Nicole, that struggled with the hard parts of the Bible while she was on this earth (like we all do) and told me to go all the way in school. It is also for my husband and children that offered their love and support while I went through graduate school. This book is also for my inner circle of people: Sarah, Kim, Jaime, Eddie, and my mother for their encouragement to stay the course. Without these people, this book would not be a reality.

I would also like to thank two of my professors who taught me an incredible amount about theology and God's love: Dr. Jim Hunt and Dr. Richard Griffin. Without their guidance, dedication, and pushing, I would not have been able to see outside of the lines to write about God's love.

Dissertation Summary

If the church would look at the Bible as a love letter spoken through a love language to creation instead of a handbook of systematic theology, it would do several things. First, it would give a better insight into our Creator as a loving God, motivated by love. Second, it would help the audience (people in and outside the church) have a better understanding of the narrative that is being told and displayed on a timeline: past, present, and future. Thirdly, it would reassure the audience (people in the church as well as creation itself) that the goal of that timeline is restoration.

This approach takes away from the dogmatic views religion has clung to and re-shifts the focus on God's love for His creation beginning in Genesis 1, a theme running throughout the entire Bible, concluding in Revelation. There is a love a language Yahweh is speaking, beginning with Adam and Eve before and after the fall. Especially if we focus on the love language God is speaking to and through Abraham—foreshadowing what Yahweh would do through the nation of Israel, which was eventually fulfilled in the Messiah—our view of an angry God changes, and we begin to see a loving Creator God that has always desired to have a relationship with humanity even after the fall into sin and chaos ensued afterwards.

From this perspective, each book of the Bible is a specific narrative revealing God's love language to a designated audience. In return, that specific audience is tasked with revealing Yahweh's love in an external and internal way, thus leading an example of how to worship through obedience, faithfulness, and loyalty. Oftentimes that audience (Israel) failed at this task, but even during their failure, we see Yahweh motivated by love for Israel, which holds true even today. From this viewpoint, God is revealed as a loving Father, a patient Creator, and a merciful God that desires to be reunited with fallen mankind. God uses a specific language designed to express His love through correction and blessing.

God created because He first loved, mankind fell. The problem is, most church doctrine paint an angry God that curses mankind because of their rebellion rather than viewing a loving Creator that offers provision while disciplining. The purpose of the study is to reveal a loving Creator throughout each chapter of the Bible that uses a specific love language to convey His feelings, desires, and communication. It is also to propose that most people are more receptive to a love language than dogmatic religious legalism produced by the church, created by taking scriptures out of historical and literary context.

The definition of love is an intense feeling of deep affection. We have unfortunately reduced love to emotion only and, in so doing, relegated God's love for us to strict piousness. In this sense, God was angry with mankind and sent His only begotten Son to take on the punishment of fallen humanity. Religion oftentimes paints God has a wrathful, indignant Creator that is looking for someone one to punish. In this view, we totally miss God's love language He is speaking throughout the ages, beginning with Israel and currently speaking through the church. To understand, we must look at the definition of language. Language is the method of communication one uses. It can also be a system of symbols and rules to communicate intention. When studying communication, we must also look at motivation and intention behind what is being conversed or connected. God's motivation has always been love, a deep affection for His creation. He is never motivated out of wrath, but wrath is a product of righteous judgment, again motivated or created out of deep love for His creation.

It is my goal to reveal God's unique love language passed down in a covenant to Israel while God discloses His love through correction, judgement, and blessing (ultimately through the Messiah, Jesus Christ).

Introduction: God's Love Language: The Bible as a Love Letter

If God exists, how does He reveal Himself? What is His method of communicating? Depending on who you ask, the answer will vary. Communication is the imparting or exchanging of information while language is a system that reveals that exchange. Language is defined as (1) the principal method of human communication, consisting of words used in a structured conventional way and conveyed by speech, writing, or gesture or a nonverbal method of expressing or communication; (2) a system of communication used by a particular community and/or country; and (3) style of a piece of writing or speech including the phraseology and vocabulary.¹ God has several methods of communicating with people in the Old Testament. God communicated through the covenant, the Law, and the prophets. In the New Testament, John the Baptist was the last of the Old Testament prophets, but mainly, what we notice is God communicating through Jesus, God the Son. In other words, in the New Testament, God came Himself to communicate. The church was commissioned to share the good news of salvation along with teaching the Bible. The Bible is often viewed as a handbook for systematic theology, and while it does contain that, its primary function is to work as one historical literary unit through a singular narrative that is revealing God's language as a love letter from the Creator to the creation. It is a rescue story that unveils a love language of the Creator God through various stories of struggle and triumph.

Some view God as all-accepting because John describes Him as love, thinking, He accepts any behavior as long as we are happy. Some view the church as various degrees of doctrine fueled by dogmatic legalism that reveal God to be a wrathful Creator biding His time to judge a fallen humanity, thus, hellfire awaits anyone that dare reject His offer of salvation. Neither view truly displays God's love in its entirety as a love language fully encompassing mercy, compassion, patience, and judgment. I grew up in the charismatic church, where nightmares of hell plagued most children on a weekly basis. Seldom did I hear of God's love for me but rather my obligation to live as a good Christian least I lose my salvation. The emphasis was good, as if my behavior could warrant my salvation. I think most people from the '70s and '80s grew up with the perspective of God as being a bully, unloving and uncaring, a real fear consuming us instead of the peace that should have been imparted to us. On the other hand, as a Bible history teacher at a local Christian high school, I know all too well that modern kids think they can use their autonomy to live any way they chose, believing God's love is a free card into any lifestyle of their choosing. At the same time, I have taught countless girls at trauma and rehab facilities that have never been shown God's love, instead mistaking rigid religious system of rejection for His compassion. In this I have found that the church as a whole devotes enormous amounts of time to the study of theology, especially systematic theology, with a focus on policies and procedures of behavior only. That is, most churches are excellent at telling people what not to do, but they fail to set people up for success in faith. There is a failure to empower people with the correct historical accuracy of the Biblical narrative, which clearly reveals a deep, intertwined love God has for humanity.

If we are looking for just words of love within the Bible, we will miss God speaking affirmations of love through phrases and nonverbal expressions through the lives of ordinary people. Theology being the study of the nature of God should be inclusive of the language God speaks. His love language does not cancel out His holy nature; rather, it reveals it through His loving, righteousness, and faithful persona. It is my proposal that God's method of communicating has been through language, both spoken and written language in words, expression in nonverbal and manifestations, along with communication through various stories told within a continuous narrative, all motivated and enforced by God's love to reveal His rescue plan. It is a language of truth. It is a language spoken in love as the Creator attempts to communicating with fallen humanity. It is not defined by systematic theology nor limited to tradition. God's communication is about a love language He is expressing to reveal Himself as He makes every attempt to rescue a lost people, a rebellious people intent to do what they want, thus, in essence, a strong-willed, hardheaded population of human beings.

If we would look at the Bible as a love letter to creation rather than only a handbook of religious truths of dos and don'ts, it would help in revealing several things. First, it would give a better insight into the motivation of God as, first and foremost, love. He is always motivated by a deep affection for His creation. Second, it would help the audience reading the Bible both in and outside the church to have a better understanding of the narrative being spoken, as it is displayed on a time line of past, present, and future. Most people are unaware that the Bible is a story, a narrative being told by multiple authors beginning in Genesis and concluding in Revelation. This story is not in chronological order but thematic. It is a narrative that has a continuous theme, driven by a strong love the Creator God has for fallen creation. What makes God's love remarkable is that world has rejected Him, but He continuous to love through rejection and rebellion in hopes of restoring lost people. This is unlike any pagan god, for most pagan gods want nothing to do with their subjects but prefer to live far out of reach from them. This makes Yahweh unique among all the gods (although I concede there are no living gods but Yahweh) because it is Him that pursues a relationship with His subjects, while in the pagan culture, it is the subjects that chase after their gods. Thirdly, it would assure the audience that the goal of the Bible is restoration; restoration is the product of God's love through salvation. The believer is transformed and restored to be the image bearer of God through a transformation instigated by God's saving grace.² Through this view, salvation becomes more than just fleeing a corrupted earth. It is seen as love and restoration in the present age.

In this approach, it takes the focus from the dogmatic views of religion and re-shifts the attention on God's love for His creation, where the final goal is a new earth and heaven as God takes His place in the center of it all as described in Revelation 21. When we focus on the love language the Creator is speaking, our view of an angry God changes as we begin to understand God calls to an assortment of flawed people in pursuit of a relationship. We begin to perceive He is an affectionate God that has always desired to have a connection with His creation even when humanity fell into sin and chaos ensued afterward, distorting His beautiful plans.

From this perspective, each book of the Bible is a specific narrative revealing a detailed love language to a particular audience. In return, that specific audience is tasked with revealing Yahweh's love and leading an example of how to respond through worship, obedience, and faithfulness. Examples: Genesis recants the history of creation while revealing the fall of mankind. Genesis also tells the main portion of the lives of the patriarchs, regular people that God calls into a covenant agreement, people that happened to respond to God's voice. Exodus describes the birth of the nation of Israel, along with their blunders of faith that lead to idolatry through the wilderness all while revealing God's faithfulness. Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy give more insights of Israel's days in the wilderness, wandering as they rebelled against God in a chronic fashion. These books also give God's Law, the standard He expected Israel to live by. Judges reveals multiple stories of different heroes God raised up to rescue a rebellious Israel, and so the books of the Bible go, painting a continuous narrative of God's love through different stories and various types of literature all while people reject Him. The constant theme throughout the Biblical narrative is God's love for people.

It is through relationship Yahweh seeks to connect to people as He speaks a continuous dialogue of love. For God does speak—now one way, now another though no one perceives it (Job 33:14). Although oftentimes the recipients of the message reject God, instead turning to idols. Despite people's failure, Yahweh remains motivated by love to rescue a fallen mankind. From this viewpoint, God is revealed as a loving Father, a patient Creator, and merciful God that desires to be reunited with a fallen, dehumanized creation that has been reduced to a distorted version of God's love.³ We first see God's love through His language, which is at the very beginning of the Bible. In Genesis 1:1 it states, God created. Created is used both as an adjective and a verb in this context. It describes the nature of God, while at the same time, it reveals the action in which God worked through. In this sense, God shaped or formed while He invented or fashioned the world. While it would seem easy to ponder that an all-powerful God created the universe, the question remains, why? What was the motivate? Unlike the pagan gods, Yahweh created not because He needed or required but, in the simplest of terms, because He loved. God created to share and reveal Himself in and through His creation. Unlike the pagan gods of the ancient world, Yahweh did not choose to be separate from His creation. Rather, He desired to be part of their daily life. In fact, Genesis 1 is an explosion of description as God's work is being recounted, with the highlight being in Genesis 1:26–28, which answers the question, why did God create in the first place?

So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. God blessed them and said to them, Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground. (Genesis 1:26–28)

From the beginning of the Biblical narrative, we are met by a loving Creator that is happy with the creation of humanity. In this joy, God gives mankind two specific purposes: (1) to reveal His glory and (2) to have dominion over the earth with the intention of cultivating it. Man's rule over the earth was designed with the purpose of God's glory being reflecting in everything done. The vocation of mankind is revealed in Genesis 1:26–27, vocation as in calling and ability. It is not separated from occupation or career because man's original vocation encompassed the proficiency to reveal God's glory in all he/she did; thus, in essence, glorying God was the profession of mankind which varied from the other creation. In this mankind was elevated above all other earthly creation, crowned with God's glory, because God desired a creation to reflect His attributes on earth.

There is a profound sense of true theology in Genesis 1:26. We have already established that God created because He first loved. True theology reveals the nature of God, and the Apostle John tells us, simply put, that God is love. There is a deep love language interwoven within the fabric of the story unfolding as humanity is introduced into God's creation. We now understand that God was creating a perfect habitat for people, the only creation that is able to claim being made in the image of the Creator. Image is the persona of someone's character that is presented to others. In this we understand that God created human beings out of genuine love to represent Him on earth. In this view, humans were created with a specific identity which then reveals our purpose. This was not an accident. We did not evolve, and we did not fall from the sky, but we were carefully constructed through and by a loving Creator with the purpose of revealing His nature on earth. We were fashioned by love to reveal love. In this we glorify Yahweh.

This is very a different concept than what most people outside the church believe regarding humanity's purpose. Many have come to believe people are here to create our own path on a journey of exploration, and through that expedition, we will find authentic ourself. There are all kinds of self-help books regarding the subject of authenticity. However, in that view, we have been left as orphans or abandoned, which many identify with because they speculate that if God is real, where is He, and why is suffering real? In this concept, it is difficult to believe in a God that would orphan His creation, abandoning us to fend for ourselves, because to abandoned means there is no real love. Abandonment means we were discarded as unwanted children. This is part of the distortion that circulates regarding God as the enemy attempts to conceal God's love language. For many, it is easy to believe we evolved or that God deserted us because we quickly fell into sin. While mankind did willfully sin as opening the door for chaos and dysfunction to enter the world, consuming God's good creation, God still pursued mankind.

Richard Elliott Friedman says, The essence of this God remains hidden.⁴ If this were true of God's essence remaining hidden, it would imply that God's love remains hidden, which cannot be true. The Biblical narrative very clearly portrays God's love in action. The fundamental element of God's essence is love, which means the methods He uses to express Himself is out of a deep affection for His creation.

You, Lord, are forgiving and good, abounding in love to all who call to you. Hear my prayer, Lord; listen to my cry for mercy. When I am in distress, I call to you, because you answer me. Among the gods there is none like you, Lord; no deeds can compare with yours. (Psalm 86:5–8)

King David understood God's love to be operating with effect power in his day. Yet it is this type of mentality that God hides Himself for various reasons that gives way to the rigid dogma that God does not want to be found among