32 years later, this is the thing
that still astounds me the most.
Jesus loves me.
I don’t deserve it.*
I haven’t been faithful, true,
honest, pure, or even always loving Him back…
but He loves me.
I know it. I shake my head in awe
because of it. I even question it some days.
Still, He loves me.*
I think about all my sins being
splattered like tar on His hanging body and imagine His pure, sinless*
innocence taking on* my filth, depravity and shame, and it makes me sick. How would that have felt to Him? In my head it
would be like taking an innocent, newborn baby and throwing my poop, blood, mud
and rotting meat all over it. Disgusting to think about… but that’s what I imagine our sin would have
felt like to His sinlessness…
but He did it out of love for us.
Innocent, He died a criminal’s
death for us.
Because He loves us.
Every one of us.
So how can we treat any other God
created person as unworthy of love* when He proved His love for us, beyond a
doubt, by allowing His reputation, His earthly future, His purity and His body
to be crucified for us?
Jesus loves me
Jesus loves you!
Does He not deserve our love in
return?*
Applicable Scriptures
*Due to our sin we don’t deserve
love, though He gives it.
Is. 64:6 But we are all as the unclean thing, and all
our righteousnesses are as a menstruation cloth.
Ec. 7:20 For there is
not a just man on earth who does good and does not sin.
1Jn. 1:8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive
ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
Jm. 1:15b And sin, when it is
fully formed, brings forth death.
Ps. 103:10 He has not dealt with us according to our
sins, nor rewarded us according to our iniquities.
Ps. 103:11,12 For as the heavens are high above the earth,
so is His mercy toward those who fear Him. As far as the east is from the west,
so far has He removed our transgressions from us.
*God/ Jesus loves us.
Rm. 8:38,39 For I am persuaded that neither death, nor
life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor
things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to
separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Rm. 5:8 But God commends His love toward us in that
while we were yet sinners Christ died for us.
*Jesus is sinless.
2Cr. 5:21 For He has
made Him who knew no sin, to be sin for us, that we might become the
righteousness of God in Him.
1Jn. 3:5 And you know that He was revealed that He
might take away our sins, and in Him is no sin.
1Pt. 1:18,19 knowing that you were not redeemed with
corruptible things, silver or gold, from your vain manner of life handed down
from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without
blemish and without spot;
*He bore our sins.
1Pt. 2:24 He Himself bore our sins in His own body on
the tree, that dying to sins, we might live to righteousness; by whose stripes
you were healed.
Is. 53:4-6 Surely He has borne our griefs, and carried
our sorrows; yet we esteemed Him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But
He was wounded for our transgressions; He was bruised for our iniquities; the
chastisement of our peace was on Him; and with His stripes we ourselves are
healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned, each one to his own
way; and Jehovah has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.
*We ought to love…
1Jn. 4:7,8 Beloved, let us love one another, for love is
of God, and everyone who loves has been born of God, and knows God. The one who
does not love has not known God. For God is love.
1Jn. 4:11 Beloved, if
God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.
*Dt. 6:5 And you shall love Jehovah your God with all
your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might.
Lk. 10:27 And
answering, he said, You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and
with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind, and
your neighbor as yourself.