God is love, so says the Scripture, in a myriad of ways it tells us that this is so, but these statements are not theological propositions, doctrines arrived at by the reasoning powers and logical thought of human beings.  They have the quality of revelation and confession, John the apostle who alone uses those three words “God is love” (1 John 4v8) is not giving us a definition, everything he had come to know of God led to this knowledge, it was his testimony, joined to his understanding of the totality of history, both his own and that of all the world; everything combined to convince him that God is indeed love.

My first invitation to Finland was in 1974.  An old Bible College friend was a pastor there and wanted to set up an itinerary of engagements for me in various churches and towns.  The trip lasted six weeks and was eventful and memorable in a number of ways.  Youth With A Mission had a school in Helsinki in those days and it was arranged that my first responsibility was to speak several times to the young people attending the discipleship course.  When this was finished the itinerary took me on to Pentecostal, Lutheran and Free Churches in various parts.  In some of these churches I got to know some of the pastors and the usual questions were asked about where I had been

Mankind is not notorious for his humility.  Limitations, though part of life, are not easily accepted.  The pride of man emerges in many forms and lying at back of all is the pursuit of knowledge; God named the forbidden tree “the knowledge of good and evil.’  Right at the heart of things there is an insatiable desire for that fruit.  Yet God created man to know, His beloved man was to be led to that knowledge in a timely way and by Himself as the Divine teacher.