We made a soundtrack on an iPod to play after the wedding ceremony was over, and the song was included since Kay and I had both known heartache and pain (as the song goes) and wanting to know what love is.
The more I listened closely to the lyrics, I thought, "Wow, this could be someone's prayer. Come to think of it, it was mine one night," thinking back to when I prayed to God that I needed Him in my life.
How would we explain what love is to the composer? What is it exactly?
Fortunately, we have an explanation in the Bible and author Jon Bloom nails it in his blog post, "Love To The Uttermost."
The greatest love you can know is when someone lays down his life for you (John 15:13). Especially when you were an enemy when he laid his life down for you (Romans 5:10).
And that’s when Jesus laid his life down for you (1 John 3:16),
- on a Roman cross of torture (Philippians 2:8),
- to bear the guilt of your sins (1 Corinthians 15:3),
- and pay your debt of infinite offense against a holy God (Colossians 2:14).
So while you were still a sinner (Romans 5:8),
- he who had never known sin became sin for you (2 Corinthians 5:21),
- so you could become the righteousness of God (2 Corinthians 5:21),
- and become God’s friend (John 15:14),
- and live with him forever (John 3:16)
- and see his glory (John 17:24),
- and experience full joy and eternal pleasures (Psalm 16:11).
There is no greater love for you than this. And God wants you to know this love that extends way beyond your capacity to comprehend (Ephesians 3:19).
Oh yes! He wants you to know his love. But it is not a love that you can gauge by how you feel today, or by the state of your health, or by the amount of your wealth, or by how well people speak of you, or how gifted you are, or whether your dreams of marriage or career or parenting are coming true, or whether your church is growing, or how many likes you get on Facebook, or any other achievement.
“By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us” (1 John 3:16). That’s where God shows his love for you (Romans 5:8). If you begin there and work backwards, realizing that this free gift of love has purchased for you everything you will ever need (Philippians 4:19), in fact, everything period (2 Corinthians 6:10), then whether you abound or experience want (Philippians 4:12) you will see it all working for your holiness (Hebrews 12:10) and your ultimate good (Romans 8:28) and revel in the truth that nothing can separate you from the love of God for us in Jesus (Romans 8:39).
To view Bloom's entire post, click this link http://www.desiringgod.org/blog/posts/god-wants-you-to-know-how-much-he-loves-you
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