The Greatness of Sacrificial Love.

This is part 3 of the series “God’s love is the Greatest Love.” For the previous post, click here.

 

 

We mortals make much ado about our sacrifices in the name of love. I’ve heard countless people say they would take a bullet for Jesus or their family. On the other hand, they don’t want to give up Sunday sports to go to worship or put down  their iPhone to have a meaningful conversation with their kids or spend a little less on themselves to help a brother in need.They say they would give up their life, but they are unwilling to make even small sacrifices for others. They would die for others, but not necessarily live for others. Real love does both.

Jesus’ time on earth personified the sacrificial nature of God’s love for us.

Jesus left heaven to come to earth.

There are many places I dearly love on this earth, but none of them will ever compare to the beauty of heaven. As much as I love the beach, it still manages to get trashed by careless visitors, can still be invaded in wartime, or be eroded by inclement weather. Nothing can ruin heaven. It is a perfect place.

Jesus left all of that behind to come to this broken world so we could have a peace with God.

Love demonstrated is far more powerful than love spoken.

Jesus lived as a human.

Jesus did not get an advantageous start in this life. He was born a helpless infant to impoverished parents in less than ideal circumstances. Even as a baby, someone tried to kill Him. As a child, a young man, and an adult, He suffered in many of the ways we suffer and yet we never hear Him complain. He lived an itinerant lifestyle. The Pharisees antagonized Him. People demanded help from Him. The disciples rarely  understood Him. His hometown rejected Him.

In all of this, we do not see Jesus give up. He pressed on through every hardship to show us how to endure.

Love demonstrated is far more powerful than love spoken.

Jesus died in agony to give us life abundantly.

He was pierced for our transgressions;
he was crushed for our iniquities;
upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,
and with his wounds we are healed.

~ Isaiah 53:5, ESV

The Passion of the Christ by Mel Gibson is difficult to watch, but it vividly illustrates the intense brutality of Christ’s death.

Betrayed by one of His own.

Abandoned by His followers.

Rejected by His people.

Jesus still walked willingly towards a cruel death, uttering no objections.

Beaten.

Mocked.

Tortured.

Jesus continued on the road to Golgotha, bruised and bleeding. At creation, He knew this hill would be the very spot where He would suffer and die. He could have stopped at anytime, calling down legions of angels to crush His captors. His love for us—so perfect and dutiful— compelled Him to see the thing through.

Because He endured to the end, we have access to life. “With His wounds, we are healed.”

Love demonstrated is far more powerful than love spoken.

God Gave His Son for Us.

For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

~ ‭‭Romans‬ ‭5:7-8‬ ‭ESV‬‬

Jesus is God’s Son and also part of God. I have focused primarily on the love of Jesus, the Son. Now let’s take a moment and consider the love God the Father has given to us.

As a parent, I find no pleasure in watching my children suffer. I have allowed them to feel the pain of their own  mistakes many times. When they were very small, I would not rush to their side whenever they fell to the ground. My whole body tensed as I held myself back, allowing them the chance to get up and brush it off. It’s never easy to watch your child hurt. We want so badly to make it better.

God sent Jesus, His son, to carry out all the things we just covered above. He watched His Son suffer physically, mentally, and emotionally. God was intimately aware every single sting Jesus endured. I can’t even wrap my brain around how or why. If I had to watch my son or daughter be killed as a soldier in war, I am not sure if my heart could bear it. God endured this heartache… for us.

God does not merely speak love, He has shown His love.

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

~ John 3:16, ESV

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Can you grasp the magnitude of God’s love?

Could we with ink the ocean fill
And were the skies of parchment made
Were every stalk on earth a quill
And every man a scribe by trade

To write the love of God above
Would drain the ocean dry 
Nor could the scroll contain the whole
Though stretched from sky to sky

~ The Love of God  by Rev. Benton Vespew Ellis

I know there are many people cringing with secret pains today because they are alone on Valentine’s Day. I remember well the pain of loneliness.

Be assured, my friend:

No love on earth will ever match the love of God.

We can relate to it, think on it, try to imitate it, but God’s love will always surpass our understanding. You are loved with this matchless love. Instead of thinking about how lonely you are today, think on how loved you are. God loves you with an unfailing, demonstrated love. Set your heart on Him.