Ephesians 2:4–8 – But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God.
THEME OF THE DAY. THE FORCE OF GOD’S LOVE. I want us to do something which reveals the theme of the day; the force of God’s love. Perhaps we don’t normally equate “love” as a force or power. We tend to default to love being an emotion. It is true that love contains emotion but if it rests purely on emotion, it will not last and endure. And in our morally bankrupt society, the true definition of love, even the force of love, is fading quickly and totally misunderstood. Our culture seems to make love conditional with a subtle “what’s in it for me?” type of attitude. Perhaps like the story of a young couple who professed to be madly in love with each other. Vows and promises were made of an inseparable union; a love that was forever. In the course of this “indestructible” love affair, the woman gave her “beloved” a framed picture of herself with an inscription on the back. It read, “My dear sweetheart, I love you with all my heart. You are my soulmate forever with a love that is endless.” After her signature, she added a short P.S., “In case we break up, I want my picture back.” So much for “endless love” and “unbreakable vows and promises.” Not so with God’s love. It is a force; even an irresistible force. And to prove my point of this force or power of God’s love, let’s do that something I alluded to in the opening sentence. I want us to read John 3:16 in two ways. First as it appears in our Bibles, then with the omission of just one word.
John 3:16 as it reads in our Bibles – “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.” Now, let’s read it by taking just one word out of it . . . . “For God loved the world, that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.” Notice the difference? Notice the force or power in the first reading and the lack of force or power in the second? All because of one word; one two letter word “so”. Friends, don’t lose sight of God’s love for us. He doesn’t just love us. He so loves us with an intensity and steadfastness that will not let us go or ever cease. And the Apostle Paul would also affirm the force of this love of God in today’s scripture with one word. Let’s do the same thing in the opening of today’s verse as we did with John 3:16.
First, Ephesians 2:4 as it appears in our Bibles – “But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which He loved us”. Now without the word “great” . . . “But God, being rich in mercy, because of the love with which He loved us.” Again, do we feel the “lack of punch” in the second reading? Oh, the power behind two simple words – so and great. And when it comes to living the Christian life with zeal, purpose, and daily resolve, it won’t be the power of our love for God. That ebbs and flows and never measures up to what He deserves. No, the power to consistently die to self and be about a life of God-pleasing obedience is His “so” and “great” love to us. It is the life under control of Christ’s love which will make a daily difference in our spheres of influence. May the Lord help us seek to know more of His love for us. It is a force that is unconquerable and irresistible to those who are experiencing it.
PRAYER: “Father, I so long for eternity and the endless ages of being able to bask in Your love forever.”
QUOTE: “Pursue Christ’s love. It is the only source of soul-contentment this side of heaven”