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How great is God’s love for all who worship him? Greater than the distance between heaven and earth! Psalm 103:11 CEV
“I love you.”
“You don’t even know me, and if you did, you wouldn’t love me.”
“I do know you, and I love you.”
“No one could love me if they really knew me. I’m not the person you think you see.”
“I can see to your very soul. I know you better than you think. I know you better than you know yourself! I know about your feelings of lust last week.”
“You can’t! No one knows that but me. I buried it deep inside…what else do you know?”
“The feelings of suicide last week?”
“NO! STOP IT! Who are you…never mind that…you knew that and you still love me?”
“I do. I have for a long time, I love you now and nothing will ever keep me from loving you in the future.”
Sound like some sort of weird plot from a low-budget movie? A weird sort of love story? It’s not. It’s what the Heavenly Father says to you every day. Still, the extent of God’s love isn’t as amazing as the fact that he loves us at all.
The need to be loved is the driving force in all of us. It’s part of our humanity, part of our genetic make-up. It’s why we seek out relationships. But God doesn’t ‘need’ to love us. He ‘wants’ to love us. This may come as a bit of shock but there is nothing really of any value in us for God to love. His love isn’t based on who we are or what we do, it’s based on who he is and what he does.
How much does he love you? Step outside on a star-filled night and look up. See that faintest of all stars? How far do you suppose that star is? A couple thousand light-years perhaps? Were we to be able to measure God’s love for you, it would surpass that little glimmer of light you can barely see.
Big enough to rule the universe, powerful enough to control nature, wise enough to create life itself, intimate enough that even though he knows your deepest struggles, your darkest secrets and your biggest failures, he loves you.
You can avoid him, but he’ll continue to seek you out. You can rebel against him, but he’ll continue to watch for your return. You can tell him to leave, but he’ll stand in the shadows to watch over you. You can deny his love, but he’ll never deny you.
PRAYER: Lord, I’m so unworthy of your love for me. I’m stubborn, rebellious and selfish. I demand my own way and push you aside when it benefits me. Still, you keep on loving me. I’m amazed. I’m humbled. Forgive me for my waywardness. Empower me to live with your love for me in view when the voices of despair tempt me to think otherwise. Amen.
By faith we have been made acceptable to God. And now, because of our Lord Jesus Christ, we live at peace with God. Romans 5:1 (CEV)
Have you ever been in a lake on a windy day? When you are on the surface your body is jostled about be the waves. But dive down deep and the world becomes still. Almost eerily still. Sometimes you don’t need to go very deep to experience the calmness below the surface, but the deeper you go, the more unaffected by the surface you become.
That’s peace. The inner peace we all seek for our souls. Within the heart of every human being there is a desire to be at peace with the heart, the seat of emotions. When that peace is gone we seek earnestly to fill the void it left behind. The thing is we are all born with that void. That deep longing to belong, to be loved, to be accepted, to be…at peace.
So from a very young age we begin the journey. At first the peace we seek is elementary. We want our diaper changed, our nap and our bottle. Then, repeat.
As we get older our demands become more pronounced. We want toys, we want friends, we want ice cream for breakfast. We want, in essence our own way. The desire for our own way is the foundation for our search for peace. The Bible has a word for that demand for our own way: pride. Sounds like harsh word, but in our most honest moments we have to admit it’s the driving force for our search for peace. We’ve been duped into believing that peace comes when we are satisfied and we are satisfied when we get what we want.
Satan’s initial revolt against Jehovah God was summed up in two words, “I will”. We’ve been saying the same thing ever since in more subtle ways.
“I will be treated like a king/queen by my spouse.”
“I will be treated rightly at my job.”
“I will be allowed this spot in the parking lot.”
“I will be promoted before the guy that started last week.”
“I will have the latest toys and gadgets.”
The problem is, as long as we look to ourselves and those around us for the peace of our heart we will never enjoy the peace we seek. We’ll be like the boat on the surface of that lake, being tossed by the waves.
Peace of the heart, the inner peace buried deep within the soul can only come when we have peace with our God. That kind of peace only comes when we have come to the Father, confessed our sin (regardless of how small WE think it is), and repented (changed out attitude). Then, as we grow deeper, as we go deeper into a relationship with Christ, we gain more of the peace that so often evades us. Just like the swim at the lake, the deeper we go into Jesus, the less the wind of change will affect our peace.
PRAYER: Lord Jesus. I confess to you that although I’ve known about you, I’ve still struggled to find peace. My guilt, my demands for my own way, the mistakes of my past continue to haunt me. Forgive me for trying to find peace on my own. Let me go deeper in you and find the peace that only comes through you. Amen.
Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne. Hebrews 12:1-2 (NLT)
Why did Jesus die? Theologians will tell you that he needed to die as a perfect sacrifice of our sins, and that’s true. We all were lost, subject to our evil sin nature, and destined to eternity separated from God.
The only way to bridge that gap was to have some person who was sinless die on behalf of the world, and that person was, by his choice Jesus Christ. He died so we might live.
But tucked away in Hebrews we find another reason that Jesus died. This reason was, perhaps the motivation for why he died. Jesus died because he knew the pain he would endure on earth would be well worth the joy he’d receive when all things were accomplished.
Joy? You may say? What joy? Was the joy he was looking forward to the joy of living in heaven for eternity? I think not. After all, heaven was his home and the universe was his playground.
Was the joy he was looking forward to the joy of living with his father? Again, I think not. Why would he leave his father on his own will and suffer hardship so he could look forward to being with his father? Doesn’t make sense to me.
Jesus Christ left heaven, endured the shame, ridicule, loneliness, rejection, hate and anger because he was looking forward to the joy of living with you. Yep, you are his joy, his crown, the one he longs to spend time with.
Any of us can endure a little hardship and pain if we know that the end result is better than the present circumstances. Take exercise for example, there may be a few who really enjoy exercise, but for most of us we struggle to get ourselves onto the running path or into the gym. It’s much easier to say, “I’ll start tomorrow.”
But if we want to enjoy good health we exercise. Exercise is good for the heart, prevents or at least puts off some diseases, and can even deter the aging process. The end result is worth the present pain and discomfort.
Jesus knew before he left heaven the first time what life would be like for him on earth. He knew the pain he’d endure for you. Jesus knew, before he left heaven every single mistake you’d make. Every cross or profane word. Every affair. Every visit to the porn sight. Every time you’d mock him. Still, he looked forward to the day he could spend eternity with you. The joy far outweighed the pain.
PRAYER: Lord Jesus, thank you for loving me so much. Things here on earth get very painful. I don’t understand why I do what I do or have to go through what I am going through. Help me to endure all of this with the expectation I have of spending eternity with you. In your name, Amen.
Mike Fisk & Built with Grace 