I think God has an *ongoing desire to make His love known.
I think, often, when we look at the cross, we’re (a) horrified and then (b) flabbergasted.
And then… somehow… we dare to believe that the Lord suffered the cross for our sake. That He really did love us enough to lay down His life.
And THEN we’re overcome by this sense of gratitude. We feel this responsibility to show the Lord how much we love Him. We feel like He has done His part on the cross, and now the rest of our life song should sing of our love for Him. And to ask Him for another sign of His love, would be like asking Mother Teresa to have done more. For He has done more than enough already.
BUT – in so doing, I think we almost remove Him from our relationship, as we strive to love him back.
Love is not a one-time commitment. It is not just something we prove once in some extravagant demonstration. And we know this. Because, in truth, that doesn’t match our human experience of love.
A man does not make an elaborate demonstration of his love as he proposes to his beloved – and expect that to be followed by a lifetime of his wife ‘repaying’ that love.
A mother doesn’t tell her daughter once when she is 6 years old that she loves her, and is willing to sacrifice her career to raise her – and then expect her daughter to love her back for the rest of their relationship with no further extension of love on the mother’s behalf.
Not only would that be a violation of love, it just doesn’t match our natural inclinations.
WHEN I LOVE SOMEONE I WANT THEM TO KNOW IT.
I want to express my love repeatedly.
I FEEL COMPELLED TO LAVISH THEM WITH MY LOVE.
With words of encouragement.
With hugs and physical affection.
With my time.
With my efforts.
With that which I have that I can offer them.
I long for them to know that I love them. And not just once.
I long to show them my love over and over and over again.
Is that not the very character of love?
Once we feel it, when we choose it – we are spilling over with a desire to have it known. To make it manifest.
Sure, we feel it more at some times and less at others, but that’s our humanness.
IMAGINE THE LOVE OF GOD THE FATHER.
He loves us SO perfectly.
And yes – what He did on that cross is enough.
It IS all we need.
It is the greatest gift any of us could ever dare to ask for.
And yet, it wasn’t meant to be a one time expression of love.
Jesus didn’t die on that cross that we would seek to repay that love for the rest of our lives.
No – He continues to desire to lavish His love upon us on a daily basis. He doesn’t want to hide that love and He doesn’t ask us to prove our love.
Even after emptying Himself fully on the cross, He –still- desires to romance us. To give even more of Himself for us – His beloved. For me – His princess. For you – His prince.
And just as a lover devises creative ways of expressing himself to the one whom he loves, so the Lord does for us. He blesses us with His abundant love. And in so doing – He invites us to fall in love with Him.
Yes – it is when we allow our hearts to be truly captured by His love that His name begins to bring a smile to our lips. It is when we are being pursued by the Lord that there is joy in our step.
He who created our hearts is ready to fight for them. He WANTS to fight for them.
... that we might have eyes to recognize the way in which our Saviour woos us.
