Loved By God

Scripture is the remarkable product of earthen vessels filled with a divinely given treasure that spills over into our imaginations while it leads us to the feet of the Master. It is the malleable souls of the called inspired to write what their hearts were filled with assured that their words were escorted by the Holy Spirit. It is wisdom from above amalgamated with the frailty of a fallen world so that by contrast we might clearly see and turn to the only true light. It is rock. It is fire. It is the Word that was from the beginning that was with God and is God. So when we hold this library of 66 volumes in our hands we should not only long to hear its gentle whisper or resolute commands… we should be still and know that He is God! Such contemplative understanding of Holy Writ does not lead us to make the ancient words idol, tyrant, legal dictate or mysterious coded puzzle discerned only by the elite. It should simply yet unfathomably be seen as a love letter from God!
Paul tells the church at Rome that they are “loved by God (Romans 1:7).” What we sometimes call the little gospel tells us that “God so loved the world (John 3:16).” John in his first epistle reduces it to its most simple and clear affirmation: “God is love (1 John 4:8).” The Decalogue begins with asserting that God is a jealous God and we are to have no other gods before Him. That is, this love that we often relegate to abstract theology or Christian rhetoric is not a distant, better told than experienced affair but rather the passionate pursuit of the God of all creation who loves us like a groom loves his bride (Ephesians 5:31,32). So, when we affirm that we are loved by God it is not only witness to the grace we have received in Jesus but a proclamation of “How GREAT is the love the Father has lavished on us that we should be called children of God (1 John 3:1)!”
At the time of this writing my wife is in Sacramento while I’m in Newport/Lincoln City… different states but yet the same state of missing each other. Our love bridges the distance but we long to be with each other. I dare say that when Paul alludes to the groaning of all creation (Romans 8:22) over its desire to be freed from a decaying world and transformed into a form suited for eternity, that it’s the same empty feeling when you are separated from loved ones. You long to be in their company. Paul goes on to say the Spirit intercedes in our prayers to bridge the gap. Prayer connects us with God and for a moment we are in fellowship and feel His love. But we will never be fully satisfied until that day we are face to face in the presence of the divine.
When Pam calls I get to talk to our granddaughter Lauryn. She always tells me that she loves me. That fills my heart! My heavenly Father always tells me that He loves me. That fills my heart! And it’s the good news that we all can share! -DAN
P.S. The pic is of the two people who first made the love of God real for me!