Do you believe God forces us to love Him? I believe that,
1) until we are saved we do not love God:
Rom 1:21 For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened.
2) We do NOT have the love of God in us:
Joh 5:42 But I know that you do not have the love of God within you.
3) It is in this state that God reveals Himself to us and makes us alive:
Eph 2:1 And you were dead in the trespasses and sins Eph 2:2 in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience—
Eph 2:3 among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.
Eph 2:4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us,
Eph 2:5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—
4) It is when we have been made alive by the power of God that we love Christ and see the glory of God, the richness of heaven, the depths of our sin.
Joh_8:42 Jesus said to them, "If God were your Father, you would love me, for I came from God and I am here. I came not of my own accord, but he sent me.
5) So, yes, God "forces" us to love Him and walk in His statues and obey his ordinances.
1Jn 3:1 See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him. 1Jn 4:7 Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God.
1Jn 4:19 We love because he first loved us.
If it wasn't for God forcing me to love Him, I would never know Him. One could argue that God doesn't "force" us to love Him, rather that He makes Himself known and instills us with His love for His Son. But I think that is splitting hairs.
And, I praise God that He has forced me to love the Son to His glory and mercy.
"And, I praise God that
He has forced me to love the Son to His glory and mercy." Oh my, how have you read so much Scripture and missed the Character of God so smoothly? How have you developed such a twisted definition for Love? Let me illustrate why this is error:
For God so 'designed' the World that He 'forced some to Love His Son; the rest He condemns for not loving His Son'
Doesn't sound right, does it? ... Apparently that sounds just fine to some ears. But it is not what The Bible teaches us about God, His Character, or His plan for His Creation.
A Gift is not a gift if forced upon someone. Love is not Love if you force your love upon someone or demand they love you for you forcing yourself upon them. I am shaking the dust from my proverbial sandals at the door of this error.