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Then said the Jews, Behold how he loved him John 11:36.

Jesus wept at the grave of Lazarus, and there was something about the tears He shed that made the Jews conclude that Jesus loved Lazarus. Jesus actually was taking a big risk by even showing up in that town. But when His people need Him, Jesus will show up.

Jesus grieved right along with that family. He came to where they were and listened to their concerns. He understood their pain; their doubts and fears. He felt their despair just like they did. For we have not a high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities...Hebrews 4:15. In all of our afflictions, Jesus is afflicted with us.

I know that Jesus loves me; not because He cried, but because He died. He freely shed His blood for us. But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us Romans 5:7. That’s why I am even more amazed than the Jews at the love of Jesus.

If Satan can get you to doubt ever so slightly that God loves you, then there is no way that you can have faith in Him. God becomes a problem instead of a solution. But God is not our problem, Satan is. And when we listen to His lies, we will never advance. There is nothing the devil can tell me about the love of God; I know that He loves me.

No matter who calls you a miserable failure, Jesus loves you. He loves you just the way you are. No matter who says that you will never amount to anything, Jesus loves you. He cannot love you any more (or less) than He does right now. He is love. So what do you think? With God on our side like this, how can we lose? If God didn’t hesitate to put everything on the line for us, embracing our condition and exposing himself to the worst by sending his own Son, is there anything else he wouldn’t gladly and freely do for us? Romans 8: 31, 32 Message.

Christ started loving us long before we got here. From eternities past, He saw our weakness and frailty. He knew that if He didn’t do something, we wouldn’t make it. So He left the glories of heaven and robed Himself in human flesh. He left the angelic host to become Mary’s baby and our Savior. He left His throne to be born in stable. And all because He loved us.

The sacrifice that Christ made was so tremendous, the angels of heaven were dumbfounded. They didn’t know what to make of it all. But it was love that made Him leave the honor to bear sin’s curse for us. For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him 2 Corinthians 5:21.

We must never forget that when Christ bore our sins, He bore the full punishment of them. In order to fulfill the requirements of justice, Christ had to suffer like no other. Who his own self bore our sins in his body on the tree 1 Peter 2:24. He did it all alone; there was no one that could help him. "...It pleased the Lord to bruise him: he hath put him to grief Isaiah 53:10. I don’t ever want to be bruised by God or forsaken by Him. The very thought of being forsaken by God is too painful for me. To be forsaken means that we are not wanted or not cared for. Jesus would never do that to us. Yet, when it came to paying the price for our sin, Jesus was willing to bear the pain of being forsaken by God. He that spared not His Own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him freely give us all things Romans 8:32.

If you belong to Jesus Christ, His heart is overflowing with love for you. When it came to the price for our salvation, He paid that debt to the uttermost farthing. It’s paid.

I sometimes think back before I gave my life to Jesus. I knew in my heart that I should give my life to God. But I refused. Then the moment I got in trouble, I cried out to Him in prayer. When things got better, I was right back out there in sin. The more love He showed me, it seemed like the worse I got. If a rich man invited us to dinner and we made light of it, we may not get another invitation. But Christ called us again and again. He kept on calling until we could hold out no longer. According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain to life and godliness...Whereby is given unto us exceeding great and precious promises, that by these we might be made partakers of the divine nature 2 Peter 1: 3,4.

Since the moment I gave my life to Christ, His love hasn’t changed. There have been times when I was stubborn and disobedient, but Jesus loved me through it all. He has given us so many wonderful things to enjoy, and when we felt like giving up, He strengthened us.

He loves us so much, and He proves it. We ought to love Him in return. Love is a two way street. If we love Him, then we should make whatever sacrifice to serve Him. I may not see much return on my labor right now, but I love Jesus. So I must keep on going. Whether big matters or small, I want to be faithful.

By: Edmund Brown