Dearly Beloved,
It may seem odd to you that I address you; the Reader, so intimately, though I may not know you personally but I have a perfectly valid reason for doing so, as you will come to realize.
If there is one core thing that people continually search for, no matter which part of the world they are in; whether they be American, Chinese, Middle Eastern, or any other race: it's to be loved and accepted.
I strongly believe that this lack of genuine love is the core reason for the aching void that is ever present within us; and we seek to fill that void using any means possible. We search for love in all the wrong places, somewhat hoping that if we found 'The Right One', we'll fill that hole. In this fruitless search, we go from relationship to relationship, from one bed to the next, only to be thrown back into despair at our failure to obtain love, or what we perceive to be love
The truth of the matter is this: we ARE LOVED!
By using the Bible as my point of reference, I see it as a story of God's Love towards us, His creation. As we look at it through His eyes of Love, we'll get a clearer picture as to the depths of His Love for us personally, as a father has love for his children!
In Genesis, we see Man's fall from grace as a result of disobedience. Judgement follows as a result of that fall. However, we still find the love of God even in the midst of Man's Fall. Read Genesis 3:21 with me,
Gen 3:21 (NKJV)
21 Also for Adam and his wife the LORD God made tunics of skin, and clothed them.
For God to make tunics of skin to clothe Man, the blood of animals had to be shed. In this, we see a shadow of what was to take place almost 4,000 years later at Calvary, where Jesus shed His own blood once and for all, that we too could put on clothes; robes of righteousness as was prophesied by the prophet Isaiah in Isaiah 61:10:
Isa 61:10 (NKJV)
10 I will greatly rejoice in the LORD, My soul shall be joyful in my God; For He has clothed me with the garments of salvation, He has covered me with the robe of righteousness, As a bridegroom decks himself with ornaments, And as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.
The word 'Righteousness' is a heavy word in theology, but I like to simply define it as 'right standing'. We have right standing with God because of what was paid for us 2,000 years ago on the Cross!
The Son of God came to die for all of us; as frail as we are; that we could be reconciled back to God. John 3:16 is the most familiar passage in the Bible:
John 3:16 (NKJV)
16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
I really like how the Amplified Translation renders John 3:16,
John 3:16 (AMP)
16 For God so greatly loved and dearly prized the world that He [even] gave up His only begotten ( unique) Son, so that whoever believes in (trusts in, clings to, relies on) Him shall not perish (come to destruction, be lost) but have eternal (everlasting) life.
You and I were (and still are) so greatly loved and dearly prized by God that He was MORE than willing to give up Jesus for us! A Divine Exchange took place: He (Jesus) took our sin and we received His right standing with God, where we are righteous because of Him, as the Apostle Paul write in 2 Corinthians 5:21
2 Cor 5:21 (NKJV)
21 For He (God) made Him (being Jesus) who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
What was the main motive behind all this? LOVE.
Read John 15:13 with me, where Jesus speaks to His disciples:
John 15:13 (NKJV)
13 Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends.
He, being Jesus; laid down His own life willingly in order that you and I could live, loved by God as His very own children. Paul expresses it passionately in Romans 5:8,
Rom 5:8 (NKJV)
8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, CHRIST DIED FOR US.
Because the New Testament was written in Greek, there are a number of meanings for the word 'demonstrates', where some of it means to show, prove, establish, exhibit.
I like that! It tells me just how much my God loved you and I, that He not only said He loved us and left it at that; He made a public display (exhibit) of it! He set it up on a firm and permanent basis (establish) that can't be denied! He PROVED His own Love for us by having His very own Son die for us!
So know this; that you and I ARE LOVED by God! We have a privilege to be called 'Dearly Beloved'; because that's how God see us: as His Beloved!
My prayer for you as we enter October in less than a week is as Paul prayed for the Church in Ephesians 3:18-19 (I'll use the Passion Translation for this one), that:
Eph 3:18-19
..you will be empowered to discover what every holy one experiences - the great magnitude of the astonishing love of Christ in all its dimensions. How deeply intimate and far-reaching is His love! How enduring and inclusive it is! Endless love beyond measurement, beyond academic knowledge - this extravagant love pours into you until you are filled to overflowing with all the fullness of God!
Know that you are deeply loved by God.
Love,
Ken
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