Commendation

Romans 5:8
But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

Do you know what the word “commendeth” means? Commendeth is the third person singular simple present indicative form of the word commend. In simple terms, it means “God Himself, right now, is giving us His love” (as it applies to this verse). That’s pretty powerful. But of course there is more. The word “commend” has three definitions. These definitions are as follows:

1-to present, mention, or praise as worthy of confidence
2-to entrust, give in charge, give in confidence
3-to name with approval with special praise

I’m not sure if you’re excited yet, but I know that I am. Let’s just get into each one of these and see how they fit into this verse. One: to mention or praise as worthy of confidence. God talks with confidence about His love toward us. He’s not ashamed to be associated with us. He’s proud to say that He loves us. He boasts among the stars and heavens about how much He loves us.

Two: to entrust, charge, and give in confidence. God gives us His love with confidence. He’s confident that, because of His love for us, we will return to Him praise and glory and honor. He’s confident that His love for us will sustain us through times of trouble and times of rest. He’s confident that we’ll use His love to encourage the poor in spirit and lead the lost to righteousness. He’s confident that we’ll use His love to bring the focus of hearts and minds to Jesus Christ.

Three: to name with approval with special praise. I’ve got to be honest with you, this is my favorite. God names us as worthy of confidence and entrusts us, with confidence, with His love so that He can name us approved with special praise! (If you’re not smiling right now, you need to slap your mouth for not obeying your heart!) Do you know what that means? God has not only approved of you, He’s given you special praise. His view of you is through the blood of Jesus Christ. When He looks at you, He loves you as His son (daughter) because He sees you as His Son, PERFECT! Christian, when God looks at you, He sees only good. He sees only perfection. He does not see sin, flaws, bad thoughts, or nasty habits; He sees only good, and He loves you!

But there is still more!

The second half of this verse states, “...while we were yet sinners...”. The first half is in present tense, but the second half is past tense. This is just a tag to what’s already been explained about how God sees you presently. God no longer sees you as a sinner. He sees you as righteous because of the blood of Christ. Notice that the verse doesn’t say, “...while we are still sinners, Christ died for us.” If that were the translation, it would most certainly be true, but that isn’t what the Bible says. The Bible clearly points out that God views us as “has-beens” when in comes to sin. We were sinners, we are loved, past and present tense.

The point of all of this is understanding that whatever sin you may commit, have committed, or will be committing, God will not see it. Because of the atonement sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross God, in all His perfect glory, has no choice but to see you, the believer, as righteous. He continually imparts, commends, gives, shows, demonstrates, or whatever word your Bible translation uses, His love to you, for you, for Him. His love for you, through Christ, has named you approved and worthy in His eyes.