You are God's precious creation,
designed to live fully connected to his love!
You were remarkably, wondrously made by God and are very much loved by him. And you were designed to live within the circle of that love. The only way to live your best life – the fulfilled and meaningful life God planned for you, even before you were born - is to live fully connected to God and his love.
Apart from God’s perfect love and guidance, we humans end up living according to our own wisdom, doing what is right in our own eyes. But human wisdom is limited and flawed. So, we end up making life choices that go against our design and cause us great harm, though the damage to our lives may not be easy to see. The Bible puts it this way,
Before every person
there lies a wide and pleasant road that seems right
but in the end it leads to death.
People think they are doing what’s right.
But what they are doing will really [destroy] them.
Proverbs 14:12
Living apart from God's love
causes great damage to your life.
Now, any loving parent would do everything possible to rescue a child who is harming himself or herself. But God’s love for us is far greater than that of any parent. Because he is our Maker, it grieves him deeply when we, the work of his hands, are damaged in any way. So, when we live disconnected from his love and guidance, and we hurt ourselves by living against our design, we're hurting God’s heart as well. That's why he's gone to tremendous lengths to rescue us from the terrible damage we do to our lives when we live apart from him. Because of his great love for us, he willingly laid down the life of his precious Son, Jesus, to make a way for us to enter and live within the protective circle of his love.
God sent his Son, Jesus, to make a way
for YOU to enter and live within his love.
God showed how much he loves us by sending Jesus Christ, his only Son, into the world to give us life through him.
God loves us so much that he gave up his one and only Son, so that everyone who trusts in him and relies on him will not be destroyed, but will have life [with God] forever.
God did not send Jesus into the world to condemn us [for our wrongdoing*], but to save us. He sent him to be the means by which our wrongdoings are forgiven and taken away.
This is what real love is: it is not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son to sacrifice his life for us.
*Wrongdoings: things we do that harm us because they go against the way God has designed us.
Based on I John 4:9-10, John 3:16-17
Jesus Christ sacrificed his life
to remove the barrier between you and God.
There is no greater love than this: that a person would lay down his life for the sake of his friends.
This is how Christ showed his great love for us: he offered himself as a sacrifice in order to forgive our wrongdoings and take away our sins.*
Christ suffered for our sins. He was an innocent person. He never sinned. But he suffered for all us guilty people so that he could bring us to God.
Finding someone who would die for a godly person is rare. Although maybe someone would have the courage to die for a good person. But Christ died for us while we were still ungodly! Just at the right time, while we were still weak and helpless, living against God and utterly powerless to provide for our salvation, Christ came and died for us. How great is his love for us!
*Sins: our wrongdoings - "wrong" because they violate our design and cause us harm. Whenever we go against the way God has designed us, we do great damage to our lives.
Based on Ephesians 5:2, 1 Peter 3:18, John 15:13, Romans 5:6-8
ACCEPTING GOD'S LOVE
God will not force his gift of love upon you.
If you want to enjoy his love, you need to ask for it!
Giving is a two-way street. To enjoy the benefit of a gift, you must first accept that gift from the giver. God has done his part in sending Jesus to make a way for you to access his love. Jesus has also done his part by laying down his life in order to destroy the barrier between you and God. Now, it's up to you to do your part - accept God's gift! Let God love you!
God will not force his gift of love upon you. If you want to live your best life and enjoy God's love, then open up your heart to him! Ask Jesus Christ to come into your life, and allow God's love to come pouring in! Here is Christ's invitation to you. Will you to accept it?
I love you just as God, my Father, loves me.
Come live within my love.
Come to me... Let me teach you...
Learn to follow my ways.
When you are following my ways,
when you are obeying my commands,
you are living within my love.
Keep living within my love.
Stay connected to me
and let my teachings become part of you.
Continue living your life
in the way that I show you.
I am telling you these things
so that you will be filled with my joy
and then your joy will be complete.
Yes, your cup of joy will be made full
until it overflows!
Based on John 15:9-11; Matthew 11:28-29
SHARE THE LOVE
Jesus wants to pour his love into you,
and then through you to all those around you!
Jesus wants to fill your heart so full of love that it overflows to all those around you. He wants to transform this world with his love, and he wants to do it through you! Listen to what he says:
You are truly my friends and follower if you continue obeying my commands. This is the first and greatest command: Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul and all your mind. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. Yes, love each other in the same way that I love you!
People say, ‘Love your friends and hate your enemies.’ But I tell you: Love everyone –even your enemies! Seek the highest good for all people, including those who hate you! Pray for those who hurt you. Do what is beautiful to those who mistreat you. And bless those who curse you.
If you love only those who love you, you haven’t done anything out of the ordinary. And if you show kindness only to your friends, you are no better than people who don’t know God. But if you unselfishly seek the best for your enemies, you will be acting as true children of God.
He makes his sun to shine on evil and good people alike. And he gives his rain to both those who do wrong and those who do right. In the same way, be complete in your goodness, just as God is. Let [the light of your love] so shine before others, that they will see the good things you do and give honor to God, your Father in heaven.
Based on John 15:14, 8:31; Matthew 22:37-39, 5:43-48
This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters.
Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.
May the Lord make our love
for one another and for all people
increase and overflow.
And may Christ
make his home in our hearts
as we trust in him,
so that our roots will grow down deep
into God's love and keep us strong.
I John 3:16, 4:7-8, 1 Thessalonians 3:12, Ephesians 3:17
