In the quiet moments of introspection, have you ever found yourself pondering, the elusive essence of love? It’s like engaging in a profound, heart-to-heart conversation with your soul, questioning the very nature of this enigmatic force. In those vulnerable moments, you might have whispered to the universe, “Love, where are you?” As a soul, battered by the storms of life, you navigate the complexities of your existence—a mosaic of virtues and flaws. Inside this intricate woven being, I have also looked for the reassurance that love is not just a distant dream but an intimate reality, accessible even to the most fractured and imperfect version of ourselves.
These moments of introspection have brought me to the moment where I have questioned why Jesus loves me. What makes me so special that the Son of God would die for me? Is it because of my good deeds(the little there are), my faith, my “charismatic” personality, or my potential? The answer is none of the above. Jesus loves me not because I am lovable, but because He is love.
The Bible tells us that God is love (1 John 4:8). This means that love is not just something that God does, but something that God is. Love is His very nature and essence. He does not love us because we meet some criteria or condition, but because He chooses to love us out of His own free will. He loves us with an everlasting love that is unconditional, unchanging, and unfailing.
Jesus loves me not because I am lovable, but because He is love.
~ Anchored In Hope
This does not mean that God loves us as we are and leaves us that way. On the contrary, God loves us so much that He wants us to become more like Him. He wants us to be transformed by His grace and truth, to be conformed to the image of His Son, and to be filled with His Spirit. He wants us to love Him with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, and to love our neighbor as ourselves. He wants us to experience the fullness of His joy and peace in this life and the next.
How do we know that God loves us this way? Because He demonstrated His love for us in the most amazing and sacrificial way possible. He sent His only Son, Jesus Christ, to die on the cross for our sins, to pay the penalty that we deserved, and to give us the gift of eternal life. He did this while we were still sinners, enemies, and rebels against Him (Romans 5:8). He did this not because we loved Him, but because He loved us first (1 John 4:19).
Jesus is the perfect expression and example of God’s love. He is the Word of God made flesh, the radiance of God’s glory, and the exact representation of His being (John 1:14; Hebrews 1:3). He is the way, the truth, and the life, and no one comes to the Father except through Him (John 14:6). He is the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last, and the King of kings and Lord of lords (Revelation 22:13; 19:16). He is the Savior of the world, the Lamb of God, and the Lion of Judah (John 4:42; 1:29; Revelation 5:5). He is the Bridegroom of the church, the Head of the body, and the Chief Shepherd of the flock (Ephesians 5:25-27; Colossians 1:18; 1 Peter 5:4). He is the Wonderful Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, and the Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6). He is the name above every name, the name at which every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that He is Lord, to the glory of God the Father (Philippians 2:9-11).
Jesus loves us because He is love. He loves us with a love that is greater than any human love, a love that surpasses knowledge, a love that never fails. He loves us with a love that is patient, kind, not envious, not boastful, not proud, not rude, not self-seeking, not easily angered, not keeping record of wrongs, not delighting in evil, but rejoicing in the truth. He loves us with a love that always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres (1 Corinthians 13:4-7).
Jesus loves us because He is love. And He invites us to love Him back, to abide in His love, and to share His love with others. He commands us to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, and to love our neighbor as ourselves. He says that this is the greatest and most important commandment and that all the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commands (Matthew 22:37-40). He also says that this is how we show that we are His disciples, by loving one another as He has loved us (John 13:34-35).
Jesus loves us because He is love. And He calls us to respond to His love with faith, obedience, gratitude, worship, and service. He says that if we love Him, we will keep His commands, and He and the Father will come and make their home with us (John 14:15, 23). He says that if we love Him, we will remain in His love, and He will give us His joy and peace (John 15:9-11). He says that if we love Him, we will follow Him, and He will give us eternal life and a place in His Father’s house (John 10:27-28; 14:2-3).
I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.”
Revelation 22:13
Jesus loves us because He is love. And He promises to never leave us nor forsake us, to be with us always, even to the end of the age (Hebrews 13:5; Matthew 28:20). He promises to come back for us, to take us to be with Him, and to wipe away every tear from our eyes. He promises to make all things new, to create a new heaven and a new earth, and to reign forever and ever (John 14:3; Revelation 21:4-5; 22:5).
Jesus loves us because He is love. And He asks us to love Him back, to love Him with all that we are and all that we have, to love Him more than anything or anyone else, to love Him with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength.
Do you love Him? Do you know His love? Do you live in His love? If not, join me in living a life dedicated to the Great I AM. He is waiting for you. He is knocking at the door of your heart. He is calling you by name. He is offering you His love.
Opening the door of your life to Jesus is not about instant repair or magic moments, it’s about embracing a journey of faith. It’s about making a conscious decision to follow Jesus and allowing Him to guide you through the ups and downs of life. It’s about finding hope, peace, and joy amid life’s challenges and discovering your true purpose and identity in Christ.
As Rick Warren says, “Every door is a decision. In the Bible, doors are metaphors for the choices we make every day. We discover early on in life that we can walk through some doors and not others. But we need to make a decision each time we see a door. My destiny will be shaped by which doors I walk past and which doors I walk through”. So, opening the door of your life to Jesus is not a one-time event, but a lifelong journey of faith, growth, and transformation.
