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Journal,
John chapter 13 through 17 is a stand alone portion of the gospels. There are no crowds. No blind men. No lame men. No woman at the well. No John the Baptist. No debates with Pharisees and Sadducees. There are only a handful of Hebrew men chosen to be the apostles of the Lamb. It is now time for the Lord to pour His heart into these men. His journey to the cross is near at hand.
It is in these chapters that we hear the heart of the new covenant. Thus when we read John 13:1, we hear, “Now before the Feast of the Passover, Jesus knowing that His hour had come that He would depart out of this world to the Father, having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end.”
Did you catch it? “He loved them to the end.” Did you know that this statement applies to every believer. The apostle said that nothing would ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is found in Jesus Christ. Let’s talk about it.
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What began as a fledgling movement…
… in a tiny country in the eastern Mediterranean Sea mushroomed into the largest in-gathering of people this planet has ever known. Even in all its diversity, there is one thing that makes Christianity unique in the world. The love of God is the secret to the phenomena of Christianity. To discover Jesus Christ is to discover God’s love.
Most believers can quote John 3:16, which says,
For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.”
But John 3:17 is equally important. It says,
For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him.”
But can we leave it there? John 3:18 continues with,
He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.”
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The apostles were given a message.
So the apostles were given a message to carry into all the world. The message was a message of love. This is why the subject of ‘love’ is found so much in their writings. Paul says it best when he wrote,
“For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Rom8:38,39)
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So the great mystery of the Christian faith is really the mystery of God’s love.
He loved us before we ever knew Him. He never stops loving us. This is why our faith can rest firmly on John 13:1, which says, “He loved them to the end.” God’s love is an eternal love.
We catch a tiny reflection of God’s love when we think of our love for our children. Stop and consider. Did you love your baby the first time you saw him or her? Why? The love was in your heart. This baby belonged to you. Did you love your baby before it was actually born? Sure you did. And how about when you and your spouse were talking about having a baby? Did you love the very thought of having a baby? The answer to all these questions is ‘yes.’
These thoughts are miniature reflections on God’s love for us. The Bible says that God is love. The apostle said that we were not saved because we loved God, but because He loved us. All of this belongs to the mystery of God’s love.
When Paul said that nothing can separate us from the love of God, he may have been reflecting off of something the prophet said. The prophet Isaiah gives us a glimpse into the very heart of God. The Lord said,
Can a woman forget her nursing child and have no compassion on the son of her womb? Even these may forget, but I will never forget you.” (Isa49:15)
Notice that the Lord said His love far exceeds the love that a mother has for her nursing child. There is no greater picture of love than that of a mother for her child. In fact it is so strong a picture that it eventually evolved into a form of worship among many. (Mariolatry)
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Such knowledge is too wonderful for me.
The more you study the gospels the more your understanding will be opened to the love of God and to the wonders of redemption. Not only were we chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world, but our entire life was set before God at that time. And not only that, but our times on earth – where we would be born, what our nationality would be, and many many more factors – were determined beforehand. And behind all this stands the love of God.
The Lord gave David insight into this awesome area of spiritual realities. What is said by David is to be said by every child of God. David said,
Even before there is a word on my tongue, behold, O Lord, You know it all. You have enclosed me behind and before, and laid Your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is too high, I cannot attain to it.” (Psa139:4-6)
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A love that is incomprehensible.
Paul concurs in saying that God’s love for us is incomprehensible. Incomprehensible simply means that the mind cannot grasp it. Believers soon come to realize that there are things we can perceive with our hearts, that cannot be fully expressed to others. Why? They are things of the heart, incomprehensible things. Paul said,
“Who knows the thoughts of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so the thoughts of God no one knows except the Spirit of God.”
Things of the heart are things that God opens our hearts to perceive. They are instilled within us by the Holy Spirit.
But what is it about God’s love that is so incomprehensible? We know the answer to that only so well. We have all found that God’s love is not static. His love surrounds us. God’s love reaches into our pits and draws us out. How often have we been ashamed of a misdeed, wondering how God could ever love us still, and yet, in our turning to Him, we found Him ever there.
I have never met a Christian who could not look back on their childhood, and say, “Lord, You were there even then.” Not even the prophets understood this. And even when they were issuing stern pronouncements, in a moment of time a love song would burst forth. This song was about God and His children.
A good example is with the prophet Micah. After dealing with issues of judgments, the prophet writes,
“Who is a God like You, who pardons iniquity and passes over the rebellious act of the remnant of His possession? He does not retain His anger forever, because He delights in unchanging love … You will give truth to Jacob and unchanging love to Abraham…” (Micah 7:18-20)
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God’s unchanging love in Christ Jesus.
Unchanging love to Abraham is the catch phrase. All true believers have been made children of Abraham through our faith in Jesus Christ. Paul says that we are the children of promise.
Then we have this from Jeremiah, which again speaks of God’s love for His people;
The Lord appeared to him from afar, saying, ‘I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore I have drawn you with lovingkindness.'” (Jer31:3)
Again we hear a call of eternity. Jesus expresses this eternal call in saying,
Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you, abide in My love.” (John 15:9)
Did you know that the single greatest testimony that God is your very own Father is the testimony of your love for Jesus Christ? Jesus said to certain of the Jews,
If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and have come from God, for I have not even come on My own initiative, but He sent Me.” (John 8:42)
Now couple this with how the apostle Peter described the heart of a true believer;
And though you have not seen Him, you love Him, and though you do not see Him now, but believe in Him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory.” (1Pet1:8)
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The greatest love story ever told.
And so the gospel is actually the greatest love story ever told. This is why Christians sing love songs to Jesus. We sing love songs to the Father. We sing of His love to us. We sing, “Jesus loves the little children, all the children of the world.” We sing, “Love lifted me. Love lifted me.” We sing, “Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so.”
But why? Why do we Christians have such passion over the love of God. After all, you don’t hear Muslims singing, ‘Mohammed, lover of my soul.’ It can be summed up in the cry of the human heart. This cry can only be met in an encounter with Jesus. Paul describes it as the ‘Abba! Father!’ cry. We have found our Father.
Abba, Father, is an expression of true sonship. It speaks of intimacy. It is a cry of recognition. It is a cry that goes far beyond religion. It is the cry of a child’s whose heart has been filled with ‘Father consciousness.’ But it is a cry that goes both ways. We say, “My Father.” God says, “My beloved child.”
Did you know that more and more Jews are discovering the Father’s love in Jesus. I must not leave this journal entry without a song from the heart of the Hebrew believer, Jonathan Settel. Listen as he sings, ‘Amen.’ It carries the heart of the gospel in Hebrew. (Subtitled in English.)
So we ask, ‘How much to you love us, Jesus.’ He stretches out His arms, and says, ‘This much.’ So, does He love us to the end?
I believe that with all my heart. What say you?
Blessings,
Buddy
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