God's Why

I've been thinking about WHY God came in Jesus to save us. It's overwhelming, really, in the best kind of way. Want to join me? Read on, friend, and pause to ponder, even if you already know all about it. Let it hit you anew.

WHY would God do what He did for us?

LOVE.

When's the last time you thought about what COMMENDS means? 

It's like, "HERE, look, this is FOR YOU--and it's REALLY, REALLY GOOD!"


And now this:

"But God commends His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners,

Christ died for us." Romans 5:8 (WEB)

This next one may be familiar, yes, but always fresh, and it's FOR ANYONE. Don't let anybody tell you it's not for some! Read it again, s l o w l y, like it's the first time.

"For God so loved the world, that He gave his only begotten Son,

that WHOEVER believes in Him should not perish,

but have eternal life." John 3:16 *

And, by the way, Jesus said eternal life is knowing Him--John 17:3.

Ok, I absolutely love the word LAVISH!

"See how great a love the Father has bestowed [lavished NIV] on us,

that we should be called children of God;

and such WE ARE." I John 3:1

Don't worry that you're not worthy of being His child; Jesus fixed our mess. 

If YOU will believe, HE will make you family. He put it in writing, in John 1.

And we didn't have to be lovable first. NOPE!

" ...For God is love. By this the love of God was manifested in us,

that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him.

In this is love, not that we loved God,

but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins."

I John 4:8-10.

I KNOW, I KNOW, propitiation.... not a word we use everyday, but it means Jesus sacrificing His life for us did ALL we need for God to forgive us--and not punish us--for our sin wrecking our relationship with Him. He literally CANCELLED/OBLITERATED the record of our wrongs for forever. (Thinking there of Colossians 2:13-14.) You've maybe heard the phrase, "He takes away our sin"? (Like in John 1:29.) Well, that's it, exactly! And, yeah, IT IS HUGE.

KINDNESS.

HE REALLY IS THAT GOOD.

"But when the KINDNESS of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared,

He saved us,

NOT on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness,

BUT according to His mercy,

by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit,

whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior,

that being justified by His grace we might be made heirs

according to the hope of eternal life." Titus 3:4-7

Seriously, heirs!

COMPASSION.


IF YOU EVER WONDERED IF HE CARES, WONDER NO MORE. Consider Matthew 9:36:

"And seeing the multitudes,

He felt compassion for them

because they were distressed and downcast like sheep without a shepherd."

TENDER MERCY.

"TENDER MERCY." Just let the meaning of "tender" envelop you for a moment.


And now, Luke 1:78:

" ...because of the tender mercy of our God,

with which the Sunrise [that's Jesus] from on high shall visits us,

to shine upon those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death,

to guide our feet into the way of peace."

Ah, yes, peace. The hope is indeed real.

If you're feeling lost, harassed, helpless, distressed, or downcast, or just in need of some tender compassion, the LOVE of God made a way to give you a beyond imagining relationship with Himself as the best Father ever. When Jesus willingly died at the hands of His enemies and rose to live again, He put everything in place to reconcile you with God, for you to be forgiven for everything you've ever done wrong and to be accepted by Him.  He'll give you a reason to live and His power to lead, love, and protect you forever.

It's all yours for the asking, yours simply for the believing.  What are you waiting for?