Podcast Summary: Renewing Your Mind

Episode: The Lovingkindness of God

Host: Ligonier Ministries (Nathan W. Bingham introducing, Lecture by Dr. R.C. Sproul)
Date: February 11, 2026

Overview

This episode delves into the biblical concept of God's "lovingkindness," focusing on the Hebrew word chesed—often translated as mercy, kindness, steadfast love, or loyal love. Dr. R.C. Sproul unpacks how this love is demonstrated throughout Scripture, especially in the lives of Israel and in the redemptive work of Christ. Drawing from the stories of Hosea and the New Testament teachings, the episode encourages listeners to reflect on the enduring, loyal nature of God's covenant love, particularly meaningful as Valentine’s Day approaches.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Understanding "Chesed"—God's Loyal Love

• Dr. Sproul's Humble Confession About Hebrew Studies

  • Admitted his limited grasp of Hebrew, but stressed the immense importance of "chesed" in the Old Testament.
  • “But there is one word in Hebrew, few words that I know, one that is so central and so important to the whole concept of the love of God that we find in the Old Testament. It’s the word Chesed.” (01:50)

• Chesed’s Range of Meaning

  • Translated as mercy, kindness, covenant love, steadfast love, lovingkindness, or loyal love.
  • Central to God’s relationship with Israel: “By covenant oath, God commits his love to the nation that he has formed out of their slavery. The bond of that covenant is this idea of chesed, or steadfast love, or loving kindness.” (02:58)

• Micah’s Summary of Godly Living

  • Sproul references Micah 6:8—“To do justice, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.”
  • The word for “mercy” here is chesed, emphasizing that lovingkindness is at the core of what God desires from His people. (04:14)
  • Illustration:
    • A friend’s family motto: "We stick with the stuck," meaning steadfast loyalty amid difficulty—a modern echo of chesed. (06:20)

2. Hosea: The Drama of God’s Loyal Love

• Hosea as the Prophetic Drama of Chesed

  • The book of Hosea dramatizes Israel’s spiritual adultery and God’s faithful pursuit.

  • God, as a “prosecuting attorney,” accuses Israel of disloyalty: “Hear, O Israel, the Lord has a controversy.” (08:56)

  • Failures Highlighted:

    • “The Lord has this controversy because there’s no truth or mercy or knowledge of God in the land...The truth that God is talking about here is the truth of Himself.” (09:19)
    • The absence of chesed leads to societal collapse: “Killing and stealing and committing adultery. They break all restraint, godlessness, lawlessness, bloodshed upon bloodshot. Therefore the land mourns…” (10:50)
    • Profound lament: “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge...not for lack of military power, but for lack of knowledge of me.” (12:20)

• God’s Painful Judgment and Persistent Love

  • Symbolic Children:

    • Jezreel—Judgment is coming.
    • Lo Ruhamah—“No more mercy, for I will no longer have mercy on the house of Israel.” (14:13)
    • Lo Ami—“Not my people, for you are not my people, and I will not be your God.” (15:01)

  • Hope Restored:

    • Despite judgment, God promises future restoration:
      • “You are not my people, that there it shall be said to them, you are sons of the living God...Chesed is shown, is made manifest so that the last statement, the end of the story, is not lo ami, but of me. You will be my people, and I will continue my steadfast love, my loyal love to you.” (16:15)
    • Powerful image of God "remarrying" Israel: “But I will betroth you to me forever, yea, I will betroth you to me in righteousness and justice, in loving kindness and mercy.” (18:45)

• Redemptive Parable: Hosea Redeems Gomer

  • Hosea redeems his unfaithful wife as God redeems faithless Israel: “Notice that he has to go and purchase his bride out of slavery...The essence of chesed is found on the cross when Christ purchases us from slavery.” (21:15)

3. From the Old Testament to the Cross

• Connecting to Exodus & Redemption

  • The Old Testament laws about redeeming wives from slavery point forward to Christ, who “purchases his bride out of slavery to Satan. Christ pays the bride price.” (22:00)
  • Paul’s teaching: “You are not your own, but you have been bought with a price.” (22:20)

• Chesed on the Cross

  • “The love by which God exercises his steadfast mercy and loyalty…is so clearly demonstrated. The essence of chesed is found on the cross when Christ purchases us from slavery.” (23:39)

4. New Testament Culmination: The Inseparable Love of God

• Romans 8: God’s Unbreakable Love

  • “If God is for us, who can be against us?” (23:55)
  • “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Tribulation. Can that do it? Distress. Persecution. Famine. Nakedness. Peril. Sword...Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.” (24:30)
  • Ultimate assurance:
    • “Neither death, nor life...nor any other created thing…shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (24:18)

• Definition of Chesed

  • “The loyal love of God is not only eternal, it’s not only a holy love. It’s an immutable love. It’s a love that is inseparable so that we who have the Father’s love have it now and forever.” (24:35)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “We stick with the stuck.” (Family motto expressing loyalty; 06:20)
• “This is the basis of my relationship with you people, and I can't find it in Israel. There's no truth, no mercy, or knowledge of God in the land.” (09:19)
• “You are not my people, and I will not be your God… You will be my people, and I will continue my steadfast love, my loyal love to you.” (16:15)
• “But I will betroth you to me forever… in loving kindness and mercy. I will get engaged to you again. I’m going to remarry you in spite of your adultery.” (18:45)
• “The essence of chesed is found on the cross when Christ purchases us from slavery.” (23:39)
• “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? …Nothing. No one, no power. Because chesed.” (24:29)
• “The loyal love of God is...immutable...inseparable...we who have the Father’s love have it now and forever.” (24:35)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• (00:00–01:34): Introduction to chesed as steadfast love and covenant loyalty
• (04:14): Micah 6:8 and "love mercy" explained
• (06:20): The family motto: "We stick with the stuck"
• (08:56–10:50): Hosea’s lawsuit; God's charge against Israel’s unfaithfulness
• (14:13–16:15): Hosea’s symbolic children; the story of Israel’s impending judgment and hope of restoration
• (18:45): God’s promise to “betroth you to me forever” after unfaithfulness
• (21:15–22:20): The redemption of Gomer and the foreshadowing of Christ's purchase of the church
• (23:39–24:35): Romans 8: Inseparability of God’s love; definition of chesed in practice

Conclusion

Dr. Sproul’s message powerfully connects the ancient covenantal language of the Old Testament with the New Testament promise of God’s unbreakable, loyal love in Christ. The nature of chesed is most vividly seen in the faithfulness of God even when His people are faithless—the ultimate demonstration being the redemption found at the cross and the assurance that no power can ever separate believers from God’s love. As Valentine’s Day draws near, listeners are invited to ponder and live out steadfast lovingkindness—with God and with one another.