fierce love
If you were asked the question, what is God like? What comes to mind? There are so many things that come to mind. God is kind. God is patient. God is merciful. God is ever-present. But the one that rings the loudest is God is love. Love is God’s very essence. He doesn’t choose to love based on His mood or what you’ve done. 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 describes what love is:
“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.”
We are loved by a God who loves beyond our wildest imagination, beyond anything we could ever earn or deserve. It’s amazing. We live in a world often defined by fleeting affections and conditional love, it can be easy to misunderstand the nature of love itself. Yet, as followers of Christ, we are called to dive deeper into the heart of God, to uncover the profound truth that His love for us is not just an action He chooses to display but rather the very essence of His being.
Throughout scripture, we that His actions show just that– they echo the sentiments of a love that surpasses all understanding.
"Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love."
1 John 4:8
That is so powerful! Love is not just something that God does; it’s who He is at His core. His love is not contingent upon our actions or deservingness but flows like a river from His endless grace and mercy.
Understanding God's fierce love requires us to understand the depth of His commitment to us. Throughout the pages of the bible, we witness His unwavering devotion to His people, even in the face of our shortcomings and failures. The Old Testament shows God's relentless pursuit of the Israelites, continually drawing them back to Himself despite their disobedience. The New Testament, we witness the ultimate expression of His love through the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ on the cross, where God's fierce love triumphed over sin and death once and for all. Talk about the ultimate act of love!!
God's love is not passive or timid; it’s fierce and unyielding. It’s a love that pursues you and I relentlessly. His love refuses to let us go even in our darkest moments. Romans 8:38-39 illustrates that nothing in all creation can separate us from the love of God. His love transcends every barrier and overcomes every obstacle. His love reaches into the depths of our souls to heal, restore, and transform us.
“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself. There is no commandment greater than these.”
Mark 12:30-31
God calls us to first, love him with our whole heart, soul, mind, and strength. Only then, are we able to understand how to love others.
As followers of Christ, we are called to reflect God's fierce love in our own lives. We are called to love others not out of obligation or duty but out of the overflow of the love that God has lavished upon us. In doing so, we become vessels of His love, shining His light into a world desperately in need of hope and redemption. Will you become a vessel for His love?
