Amazing Love

Those three little words: I love you. Sometimes they’re tossed out casually as someone is rushing out the door. Sometimes they’re used as justification for abuse or maltreatment. Sometimes they’re empty, clearly not backed by actions. And sometimes… Sometimes they’re everything.

The Bible says God loves us. But are these words casually tossed out? Are they words used as an excuse for maltreatment? Are they words not backed by actions?

Or are they… everything?

After all, the Bible says it’s not only that God loves us, but God is love. God embodies love. God is the definition of love. Pure love. What does that mean for how He sees us and relates to us?

I had a lesson recently about God’s love. It started with another dream.

The night before Easter Sunday, I dreamt of water. I saw a montage of crashing waves, towering waterfalls, rushing rivers, and the sanctuary of my church flooding with water so high it was up to my chest. Given my experience with my house flooding a few years ago, it should’ve been frightening, but somehow, it wasn’t. There was an incredible sense of peace and love. 

When I was actually in church on Easter Sunday, the very next morning, something crazy happened. We were singing to a song whose lyrics were up on the screen. Behind the lyrics, was a background of waterfalls. One of the waterfalls looked exactly - and I mean exactly - like the one in my dream. Even though I knew the song, it was the first time I recalled singing that particular song in church, and I certainly didn't remember seeing that background before. Therefore, I assumed I was supposed to pay attention.

The song was "God so Loved" by We the Kingdom. It's about God's love for us. I thought, well, I know God loves me, so what am I supposed to learn here? And I felt this pushback. Do you? Do you really know that I love you?

I was reminded of something that happened many years ago. My dad and I had been on a road trip together, and we stopped to see a woman who had been a mentor and somewhat surrogate parent to him growing up. As a child, I had thought of her as my godmother, even though there was no official type of relationship there. She was a very godly, wise woman. We were casually chatting the three of us when all of a sudden, she reached out and grabbed my arm. She said, "What do you know about Rachel?" 

I blinked. "Um, I have a friend named Rachel."

"No," she shook her head, "That’s not it. Read the story of Rachel. God wants to tell you something."

I was surprised, but I agreed and later did as she asked.

The story of Rachel is found in the book of Genesis.  Jacob, second born son of Isaac, was looking for a wife. He saw Rachel and she was beautiful and gentle and everything he was looking for, and he fell in love with her. He asked her father, his kinsman, for her hand in marriage. It was decided Jacob would work seven years for her father in order to earn her hand in marriage.

When it came time, however, for him to marry the lovely Rachel, his father-in-law was sneaky and deceived Jacob into marrying Rachel's older sister, Leah, instead.

The way Leah is described is very similar to how we might say, she had a nice personality.  When Jacob realized what had happened, he was extremely angry. But it was too late by then, as they had spent the night together. (Sidenote: that Jacob was able to consummate the marriage with his new wife without noticing she was not the one he wanted really doesn’t speak well to his wedding night skills.) Isaac offers him Rachel as well in exchange for seven more years of service.

Jacob then had two wives. Leah turned out to be very prolific. She bore him six sons and a daughter. Rachel, on the other hand struggled with barrenness and it wasn’t until much later that she was able to also bear him a son, his most beloved son, father's favorite, Joseph. (Yes, that Joseph.) Later she bore Benjamin, as well. 

Interestingly, it wasn’t through the favorite wife or the favorite son that the line of ancestry of Jesus came from. It was through one of Leah's sons, Judah. Even though Leah was unwanted, unloved, and unnoticed, God used her. He used her bloodline to bring about the Savior of the world. 

When I read the story, close to 20 years ago now, I didn’t see myself in Rachel. I saw myself in Leah. I knew something about feeling unwanted, unloved, and unnoticed. And I thought what God was saying to me through my godmother was, you may be these things, but I will still use you. Just as He had used Leah. And that was comforting, especially as my walk with God had not been very good in the previous few years. It was comforting to know God still wanted to use me.

Fast forward to last week: Easter Sunday. As I was standing there, shrugging off, yeah, yeah, I know God loves me, I remembered those words, God wants to tell you something about the story of Rachel. She didn’t say God wanted to tell me something about Leah. She said Rachel. And it occurred to me for the first time that I had missed the message. 

Perhaps God was telling me: I was not unwanted, unloved, and unnoticed to Him. He wanted me, He loved me, He noticed me. He always had, and He always would. Regardless of where I was in my obedience to Him. Regardless of what anyone else said or thought or felt about me. He loved me.

I think I always thought of God's love as a blanket love. A love that covers everybody in equal measures.

But it’s different to think about how God loves me. Personally, intimately, deeply. Knowing the ins and outs of who I am and what I've done and what’s been done to me… God still loves me.

It’s different to think about how God loves you. Personally, intimately, deeply. Knowing the ins and outs of who you are and what you've done and what’s been done to you… God still loves you.

This is a love which is not in the least bit casual. It is a love that wants the best for us, not to harm us. It is a love that is backed up by actions.

He loved us so much that He reconciled us back to Him after we choose our own way instead. God didn't merely create the solution - He is the solution to bringing us back in relationship with Him. He sacrificed it all because of His great love for us.

Isn’t that amazing?

Amazing love, how can it be?

That you my king would die for me.

Amazing love, I know it’s true 

And it’s my joy to honor you

- "Amazing Love (How Can It Be)"