Jesus Loves Me, This I Know

The love that Christ shows to us is at once simple and profound. It is simple in that it can be summed up in the words of the children’s song: “Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so.” It is profound in that one can never quite get to the bottom of it. The love of God, like His peace, surpasses all understanding. We know that God is love, and so it is natural that He loves. Yet when we look at the object of His love, we can be left perplexed. Why does He love sinful people? Why does He chase after those who constantly turn away from Him? Why does He love me, when I have sinned, fallen short of His standards, and tried to keep Him away?

Nevertheless, for the sake of His Son Jesus Christ, He does love you. He loves you enough to call you to His altar, where He distributes to you the gifts of Christ’s true body and true blood. He loves you enough to make you co-heirs in His Kingdom, adopting you in the waters of Baptism and giving you a new life. He loves you enough to call you away from sin, which is never very satisfying anyway, that you may be forgiven and inherit eternal life. All this the Lord does out of pure love for you, a free gift to His beloved.

We are about to enter the season of Lent, the time of solemn preparation for the joyous feast of Easter. We remember that God not only shows His love by words, but by action. The Son of God hid the glory that rightfully belonged to Him and took on the form of a servant, becoming like you so that you might become like Him and receive eternal life. The Hymn “O Love, How Deep” (LSB 544) beautifully shows us the mystery of the Incarnation of Christ: “O love, how deep, how broad, how high, Beyond all thought and fantasy, That God, the Son of God should take, Our mortal form for mortals’ sake!” In that mortal form, Christ suffered hunger, thirst, and pain. He was tempted by the devil, cursed by those He came to save, and suffered a painful death. Yet He did it all for you. In His great love, the Son of God came to die in your place and atone for your sin. He suffered the consequence of sin in your stead, that your sin would no longer keep you away from Him. During this season of Lent let us keep this truth ever before our minds, that we would be reminded of the great love that our Creator has for us.

-Pastor Pope