For God So Loved

We've all heard it, at least what seems like a billion times. It is one of the most, if not the most, widely known verse in the entirety of the Bible. For many of us who have grown up in the church most of our lives it could very possibly have been the very first verse we ever memorized. And yet, for all the times we have heard it or said it or remembered it, it seems as if in all the repetition it often becomes dull, old, mundane, another one of those "oh yeah, been there heard that let's move on to something new and exciting!!" And we completely miss the fact that this most basic foundation of our faith is the most impossibly incredible and utterly astounding concept that we could ever hope to possibly discover.

"For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whosoever believes in him will not perish but have everlasting life." ~John 3:16

Love.

God's Love.

The most incomprehensible aspect of existence and reality that anyone could come across in this world or the next. It is limitless, as no one could ever hope to discover the measure of His love. It is undying, the passion He holds for us unable to be quenched until we run and throw ourselves into his arms with reckless abandon. And even then it cannot be stopped. There is no immovable object that could even have a whisper of a hope to stand against this unstoppable force. Not death, not life, not dark, not light, not demons, angels, depths, heights, past, present, future, not even ourselves, absolutely nothing that has ever been or is or ever will be can possibly stand before the sheer power of the love of our God. And our God IS love. Astounding...

And yet this word love...how often do we hear it? How often do we use it? Just thrown around like another word, another expression, another method to our unending madness? The most incredible force to ever be has been reduced to what? A cliche? I find that ridiculous. If not infuriating.

"This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us." ~1 John 3:16

God, the Master and Creator of the universe, the One who has absolutely unlimited power and influence, turns out to be a hopeless romantic. Even in the midst of the most epic battle of all time, for all time, He...loves...us. Us.

"The battle is not the point. Evil is not the point. The point is the love story. We live in a love story that is set in the midst of war." ~John Eldredge

Us. Those who never fail to be foolish, to be utterly idiotic, to destroy that which we care about most, to turn our backs on the most incredible of everything life has to offer, to fill ourselves with pointless desire. We never fail to fail. And despite knowing all this, despite knowing that He would be killed in the most of gruesome of manners mankind has ever conceived, that we would beat him, cut him, spit in his face and laugh all the while, relishing in our miserable and depraved state, He still came. We ran and He chased. We cursed Him and He shouted out ballads of his passion. And then the love of His life crushed that life from Him, and yet He didn't let even that stop him, it didn't even slow Him down in the slightest! And He just loved all the more. And He has not stopped. No matter how many times we kill Him, He will not stop. Period. End of story. That is the power of the love of God.

And what astounds me even more? We can have this love. We can show this love. The process is long, even too long for this one lifetime, but I guess what makes that so great is that we have a chance to have more than just this one lifetime. To learn. To love. To learn to love. The complexities and depth of love are innumerable. That much I have become certain of. But still, we are a stubborn race. When have we ever let anything that has seemed totally impossible get in our way? And there is lesson one: nothing can possibly get in our way. Not where love is concerned. An unstoppable force.

But how do we grasp this? How do we abandon every preconceived notion and triviality we have contrived about love and discover it's true inconceivable and impossible nature? Love runs through anything and everything, it is inescapable. It is the very foundational reason for anything and everything good. Period. And what is evil but an adverse reaction to that good?

And now we start back at the beginning.

"For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whosoever believes in him will not perish but have everlasting life." ~John 3:16

He came. He died. God Himself. Loves us. Wants to be with us. For eternity. God loves us so much that He came to die so we can be together. Love is Sacrifice. And God is love. And God cannot not do something that is what He is. God cannot not love. Period. And this is the start of reconciling our minds with the incomprehensible love of God. We start with sacrifice.

And another thought...if His love is so incredible that He would be so willing to do this for us then how much more would he take care of the smallest of our pains that we endure in this life? What can we honestly ask for that He will not meet?

Since He cannot not do something that which He is in His absolute perfection, He cannot lie, and He cannot not love. And so why would He not keep the promises He has given? Simple. He wouldn't. Talk about hope...

And to think...this is only the most basic of the most limited of introductions into the unchartable vastness of the idea and reality of love. I haven't even yet scratched the surface...I can't imagine what could come of completely stripping away the misconceptions and irrational and foolish images we associate with the word "love", of wholly discovering the myriad of facets the most priceless of treasures contains. Of diving deep.

"Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails...And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love."
~1 Corinthians 13:4-8, 13

Originally Posted 9/1/08