would have been well served if we had perished forever in that condition. But for that very reason, our new birth—our being made alive—is a magnificent display of the greatness of the love of God. We owe our spiritual life, and all its impulses, to the greatness and the freedom of the love of God. Now this is the bridge to 1 John 3:1–2, namely, the great love of God for those who are not yet in his family. See what kind of love the Father has given to us [there’s the link with the greatness of the love