I Love You

Three little words that can mean so much, yet in today's world they mean absolutely nothing at all!

But Jesus' love for us is very real, it's genuine love, it's tangible, we feel it in our hearts, and it remains as active today as it did when he walked this earth. It's a living transformative force that has remained constant across the centuries, touching the hearts of countless people, inspiring them to live lives full of grace, sacrifice, and compassion. It's essence is a love that transcends all human understanding, for it's a love that seeks the lost, heals the sick, and redeems lives, even in the face of absolute brokenness and rejection!

In his own words, Jesus defined the essence of his love for us when he said,

“Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends” John 15:13

This statement wasn't some motivational teaching, rather it's the very pattern of his life. For he willingly embraced suffering and death, not as some abstract gesture, but as an act of deep identification with humanity’s pain and separation from the Almighty. Because of his love for us, he endured death on the cross, and on the third day, as he rose from the dead, he bridged the divide between humanity and the Almighty, to offer us a way of reconciliation and hope.

His love is also deeply personal and inclusive. For he reaches out to those that society casts aside, the sick, the outcasts, sinners, and offers dignity, restoration and forgiveness. When Jesus was criticized for associating with these folk, he answered his critics,

“It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance” Luke 5:31–32

Jesus didn't come for the perfect, he came for the people, and in these words, we see a love that doesn't wait for worthiness, but actively pursues the lost and the broken. Jesus's love isn't earned; it's given!

The greatest love story ever told was written with nails!

Perhaps one of the most piercing expressions of his love came when he hung on the cross itself, where, in the midst of unimaginable agony, he pleaded,

“Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing” Luke 23:34

On the cross Jesus' love and forgiveness merge into a divine offering, that's extended to everyone of us who inflicted our sins and suffering upon him!

We see also that Jesus's teachings continually placed love as the greatest commandment:

“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbour as yourself” Matthew 22:37–39

In the parable of the Good Samaritan, Jesus widened the definition of “neighbour” to include strangers and even our enemies. By this we are challenged to love those beyond our inherent boundaries and prejudices. (we've all got them)

Jesus's love isn't passive; it calls each of us to action! For he invites us to reflect on how we apportion our love when we mete it out to others. It calls us to repent when we set boundaries that are too restricted in our response of love toward God and others. Jesus's love comforts the sorrowful, strengthens the weak, and whispers hope in moments of despair. It remains, as he promised, a love that

“never fails” 1st Corinthians 13:8

enduring beyond time and circumstance. On the cross Jesus defined what Love means, not just wth words, but with wounds!

His command to us remains unchanged and it's simple, yet all-encompassing:

'love each other as I have loved you' John 15:12

Have a great week, God bless, and love like you've been loved,

Trev.

PS, Have a wee listen, this is a super song!