PRECIOUS FOR A GOD OF LOVE
I think it is important to know that we are loved by God. Many suffer today and need to hear about a God who loves. When people get saved one of the basic teaching is to talk about a God who loves. God also wants to heal wounds people have pain from.
In Psalm 139 is written "You know my sitting down and my rising up." It shows in these verses and much in this Psalm how much God cares about us. He cares when we rise up and sit down and He is with us wherever we are. His love is following us through the day. He is with us every second because He cares. We can read in Psalm 139:13, "that it was He who made us in our mothers womb. You formed my inward parts. You covered me in my mothers womb."
Even in the beginning God as our heavenly Daddy was THERE. We are beautiful in His eyes, for the Word of God says in verse Psalm 139:14, "I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderful made." We did not just happen to come into the world. God made us because of His love.
In Luke 12:7 is written that He counts our hairs. If He counts our hairs it really shows how much God loves us that He do not miss one hair. When He even counts our hairs it shows our value before Him - that we are so precious for Him. If He counts our hairs it also tells us that He cares both about small and big things. He did not miss anything and we can pray about small and big things.
We are more precious for God than all silver and gold in the world and all beautiful things in nature. When Adam and Eve fell in sin, God's heart loved them so much that He wanted to do everything for them.
He sent the most precious gift He could give. He gave his Son for us as a sacrifice for our sins and for salvation for everyone who believes in Him. God's heart was crushed for us. We were so precious for Him that He was willing to show the deepest love.
In the world and also among Christians sometimes people are not treated like they have the same value, but for God all people have the same value. He loves all people.
In Psalm 23 we read "The Lord is my shepherd." Jesus says He is the Good Shepherd. A good shepherd cares for his sheep and wants to help them. In John 10:11 we see Jesus as the good shepherd who loves the sheep. He laid down His life for His sheep. It shows a very big love for the sheep. It shows that Jesus as the good shepherd was willing to do everything for the sheep. It cost His life as He it did. His heart is to do everything for the sheep. He really cares. In Isaiah 40:11 we know more of God's love.
He carries us as a lamb. He loves so much - we are as a very precious lamb in His arms. He loves the lamb so much, holding it safe in His arms. It is like anyone who loves a puppy or a kitten and holds it in his/hers arms.
In Isaiah 43:4 we see "Since you were precious in my sight, you have been honored and I have loved you." It talks about a God who loves His children.
Jesus loves all. In Matt 18:12-14 we see Jesus' love to anyone who does not know Him. He wants that person to get saved. If a shepherd has many sheep but one is lost he cares about the one which is lost and looks for it, to find it and rejoice when He has found it. He has a heart for anyone who does not know Him. That person is like the precious sheep He is looking for.
In the parable of the lost son we can see that the father loves his son. The son left his father but the father was longing for him to come home. When he finally came home the father was so glad when he saw him in the distance he ran to him and embraced him and gave him a party because he was so glad that he had returned. This parable shows the heart God has for people who do not know Him, that He loves them so much. It also shows the heart of God as a heavenly Daddy. He loves anyone who knows Him, too. His heart is a Daddy who cares, runs to you and embraces you.
He is not a hard God. His heart is love for a person, because He cares, like a parent for a child he/she cares about.
In Song of Solomon we can read about a love between a bride and a bridegroom, but we also can see Jesus' love for us as the bridegroom. In Song of Solomon it is written in verse 4:9 “You have ravished my heart, my sister, my spouse. You have ravished my heart with one look of your eyes, with one link of your necklace.” We can understand here that Jesus is deeply touched by His love for His bride.
In several Scriptures in Song of Solomon we read about Jesus' love to His bride. In verse 4:7 is written, “You are all fair My love and there is no spot in you.”
When we have received Jesus and His redemption His blood cleanses us from all sin and He sees no spot in us. Rom 8:1 says, ”There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus.” It is just in His blood that we are cleansed, by believing in Him.
In Isaiah 53 we can see in the text that Jesus did not open His mouth. He suffered by His own free will. He did not protest. He suffered because He choose to carry the terrible pain, because of His deep love for us. He also loved the soldiers who hated Him and also gave His life for them.
He hung on the cross because of love. He loved all people so much.
In Gethsemane Jesus had so much agony His sweat became like drops of blood. I think Jesus knew how much He would have to suffer. It was a terrible pain we do not understand. This is one reason He had so much agony. He knew how much He would have to suffer for us but He choose it ANYWAY because of His love for us.
I think as a child of God we need to feel secure in His love. In Romans 8:15 is written when get saved that “For you received not the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, "Abba,father.” In this Spirit of adoption it is not meant to have fear but that we feel loved by God. It does not means that God does not want us to grow and to be free from things. To a child you care about you say, "No, this is not good for you. I do not want you to do that or have with these things to do."
To have God as our Daddy I picture when a daddy carries a baby. The baby feels safe and feels well in the arms of the parent and does not feel afraid. They are just glad to be close to the daddy.
This is the relation He wants us to feel as children of God. He as a Daddy is waiting for the sons and daughters who do not know Him to come to Him as in the parable of the lost son.
God is Abba – a heavenly Daddy who loves and Jesus gave all in love for us. God is love 1 John 4:8.
Eva Haglund
Sweden
