The Privilege to Love

"And what tomorrow is to me is that I finally get to love You back." - Jamie Grace

After our years of rebellion, we are finally given the opportunity, the privilege, to love the God who loved us so long before. Our hearts of stone become hearts of flesh. It's such an amazing truth, and it's difficult to put into words. The freedom found in the choice of love is boundless.

Before we were washed in Jesus's blood, we couldn't love. Not like we were supposed to. We had no way to love the way a true love should love. Our love was a copy, yet something less than the original. It was missing something. We were always told to love our neighbor as ourself, and when we chose to do that, it may have made us feel good. But love isn't a feeling, and if it was, it'd most likely feel painful. 

"Look, honestly if it don't hurt than you ain't lovin' hard." - Trip Lee

Trip Lee hit the nail right on the head, and drove it deep. Speaking of nails, that is EXACTLY what I did to Love as He died on the cross. God loved us so much that He would send His Son to die, and Jesus loved us so much that He would go willingly. His love caused His death. God felt an emotional pain; the separation from His Son as Jesus became sin was so great God turned away from His Son when Jesus needed His Daddy most. Jesus felt the separation, as well as the physical pain from His countless wounds.

What I've come to realize is that love is a death. Love is a selfless sacrifice of your own desires and a selfless pursuit of another's desires. You need to first die to your desire to see one movie and then pursue the other's desire to see a different movie. Although a simple example, it shows a death of self. And while this example may not be necessarily painful, others can be.

Why do you think extremist Islamic sects, such as ISIS (or ISIL), are so willing to beat, maim, and brutally murder others that refuse to conform to their beliefs? It's because of their love for Allah, which can both be painful and destructive to others, as well as themselves. Now, this is NOT the same love God offers us (in fact, Allah can't offer us love because he isn't real). Allah's is a fearful love. People will sacrifice their desires and pursue another's desires out of fear.

What Jesus offers us is a gracious love. One that we often fear (ironically) because it's too 'nice'. One of the biggest turn-offs about Christianity for people seeking a religion is that they need to do nothing for their salvation; they are completely forgiven. Sound backwards? I can almost guarantee you've heard someone say something similar: "I'm going to hell because God can't forgive me. I've done too much wrong."

We KNOW we deserve punishment, so we as humans assume that we will RECEIVE that punishment. But God loved us so much to give that punishment to an intercessor, His Son, so that we might live! And those who embrace this gracious love understand that grace is a far greater motivator to abandon one's desires to follow God's than fear is. 

If someone has done "too much wrong", then God has done too little good. When you say that you have no more hope for grace, you strip God of His omnipotence. And, in fact, you are focused on your own chains. When we gaze upon the cross, we come to realize that our chains are imagined... in fact, they lie broken and useless where Jesus bore them in our stead.

Tomorrow. It's always the day after this one. That fact never changes as time plows on. Jamie Grace says that "...tomorrow I get to love You back." Don't be mistaken. She isn't procrastinating. She is saying that loving God is a daily choice; today is yesterday's tomorrow. And tomorrow is another day when today will be yesterday. Confused? Don't be; 'tomorrow' implies a string of consecutive days that run until infinity. Not one day is skipped from being called a tomorrow.

And, in fact, while Jamie Grace is loving God today, she is overjoyed with the thought of loving Him again tomorrow! This is a whimsical, wonderful, audacious love! Not just that loving Jesus now is a pleasure, but that returning to love Him tomorrow is anticipated and anxiously awaited for! Love so overwhelming, so consuming, that all that matters is the presence of Jesus Christ. Everything else, no matter how bright, seems to dim when compared to the Light of our world.

"I'd like to sail to lands afar,
out on a boat that's built for two.
Beneath the canopy of stars,
it'd be just like a dream come true,
just to be with You!" - Mark Harris

This song, popularized by the Christian film "Courageous", is one of my favorites. I would be overjoyed to be able to spend just one day with Jesus. Whether it be boating across oceans, or exploring a castle on a hill in the middle of nowhere, the important thing is Jesus's presence. I want to hold His hand, see His face, and be wrapped in His embrace. If you knew me for any period of time, I talk about Jesus-hugs a fair bit. I still can't get over how awesome it must be to have the Creator wrap you in His embrace.

Love is a sacrifice of ourself, and a pursuit of another. It's selfless, gracious, and not fearful. Instead, it is bold to spread and share and grow among those it touches. Love is a presence; one cannot love without being there. Be it through handwriting, social media, or face-to-face time, love is demonstrated with presence. The more powerful the presence, the more powerful the love. Remember not to get caught up with being removed from love, but rather, dwell in Love similarly to the way He dwells in you. And, as always, as we seek to #LiveItLikeJesus, we can make use of the love God has freely given us.