I am one of those fortunate fathers who were present at the birth of my children. At that moment, a bond that is beyond description is formed and I would freely recommend this to any prospective father. In an instant, you become ferociously protective, unrelentingly giving, and unconditionally loving. I believe that when any parent holds their baby in their arms for the first time, they realize that they would die for that child. They move beyond themselves and subjugate their personal desires to the welfare of a defenseless, helpless and dependent being.
When one of my children is facing a crisis, it literally dominates my very existence. I become focussed, dedicated, relentless, restless, and driven to solving their problem. I must admit that my calm does not remain intact as it would when facing a professional issue, quite the opposite. I become apprehensive, pushy and a lot of things that I am not too proud of. It is a “luxury” I award myself in the rationale that my children mean everything to me.
Then there are the moments when my children face life-choices or life-altering decisions. I have discovered that my approach to this is very different. I will discuss the various options with them, show towards most probable advantages and disadvantages of each choice, and then I step away. I have enough respect for my children’s privacy and their right to live their own lives too much to interfere.
Every now and then, one of my children experiences an event that they perceive as, traumatic. In these times the conversation is minimal, physical proximity high and the dad must hug and listen. In most of these situations, child to parent trust drives the interaction, and I do everything I can think of to ensure that there is enough relationship equity built up for these moments.
During this past week, I was struggling to address an issue that one of my children had while he is sitting on the other side of the country. As to be expected I did reach a stage where I thought I would not be able to resolve the problem in time. I looked skyward and begged like a little child for help – not for me but for him. And then the solution came…
While I was thanking God, I wondered how He feels when we are in trouble. I suppose that we get in trouble in all the ways mentioned before and more than I cannot think of now, just like my children do.
I taught my children that my love for them is separate from my reaction to the things they do. My love for them is unwavering irrespective of the situation because being proud does not make me love them more and being disappointed does make me love them less. When I started exploring God’s love for us, I did not realize just how important this “base love” concept was…
To try and understand God’s love for us we must evaluate several different aspects. Secondly, we need to acknowledge that God Almighty, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit are separate but one, we should accept that any form of love exhibited by one, is shared by the other.
As Creator – we are His creations
Psalm 139:13-14 (NIV) - For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.
Acts 17:24-28 (NIV) - “The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by human hands. And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything. Rather, he himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else. From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands. God did this so that they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from any one of us. ‘For in him we live and move and have our being.’ As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring.’
I’m sorry but I cannot look past - I am fearfully and wonderfully made – no matter how many times I read it. The deliberateness of your creation (conception and birth) is sometimes lost on us. We seldom realize how many choices God had, before he chose you and me, and a source of overwhelming gratitude. The second thought is that God, through His divine Will, allows every heartbeat, every breath, every second that I exist. There is a degree of separation in that I don’t think He pumps your heart actively when it beats, but I think His permission is required to allow it to continue.
As a Parent – we are his children
Isaiah 49:15-16 (NIV) - “Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you! See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands; your walls are ever before me.
Romans 4:16 (NIV) - Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may be by grace and may be guaranteed to all Abraham’s offspring—not only to those who are of the law but also to those who have the faith of Abraham. He is the father of us all.
1 John 3:1 (NIV) - See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him.
Before the earth was formed, literally millions of years ago, God Almighty knew you and me. He knew who we would be, how and what we would become, and He elected a time and place to put us into His creation. He carefully chose each of us and considering the options available to Him, our mere existence is a miracle for which our gratitude will never be enough. Everything that allows us to claim decadency (making Him our Father) He has provided. Our contribution to this relationship is almost negatable.
As Saviour – for each and every person
John 3:16 (NIV) - For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
1 Timothy 1:15-16 (NIV) - Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst. But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his immense patience as an example for those who would believe in him and receive eternal life.
Contrary to what most people think, God loves everybody. The terrible sinners, the people that are truly evil, thieves, murderers, drunkards, fornicators – literally everybody, including me and you – so much that He did what he could not allow Abraham to do. He sacrificed His Son for us, in a horrific and brutal way, to stand as evidence of His commitment to us. This gesture changed the world in one very important sense – God’s children were inclusive of a selection criterion and after the death of Jesus all people, without exception are invited into His house as children.
As Mediator – Jesus intercedes for us
Hebrews 7:25 (NIV) - Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.
Even though this is a very small verse, the impact of this is incredible. In normal English, it means that Jesus uses His influence to persuade God Almighty to forgive us (you and me) and to save us from the punishment we deserve. This is incredibly powerful once you think about it, understand and accept it. This not a once off chat They have in heaven at the instant of your death, it is a non-stop, unrelenting and unending process that is occurring at this very moment.
Conclusion
Hopefully, this post helps you to understand the incomprehensible vastness and scope of the love that God has for you. I hope this post was able to guide your thoughts into all the variations and nuances of His love for us.
Now – without any comment – please read the following to try and see the depth of that love.
Jeremiah 29:11-13 (NIV) - For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.
Romans 8:38-39 (NIV) - For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
May the God of all mercy and Grace, His beloved son Jesus Christ, our Saviour, and the loving-kindness of the Holy Spirit be with you, today, tomorrow and forever.
Originally posted - https://discoveringgod491609808.wordpress.com/2019/03/09/how-much-does-g...
Anton van den Berg is a normal person. I have no specialized theological training but I have led a life of hard and tough lessons. Like silver, I had to be taken to the furnace to get rid of a lot of impurities. In that process, I have learned to let certain things go, and to attach to other values. These posts represent some of the pivotal growth-moments in that journey. I hope that it would assist you on your journey in some way. May God Almighty, His Son Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit be with you.