energetic.
redeemed.
spontaneous.
adventurous.
music loving
Jesus following
photographer
in love with life.
the world is huge. explore it.
joie de vivre. ♥
In reading my devotional, Jesus Calling, I came across this sentence: “When I died for you on the cross, I held back nothing; I poured my life out.” WHOAH. Now, obviously this is from the perspective of Jesus, but it paints such an amazing picture of his love for us and what our love should look like to others.
Jesus died for us holding nothing back—the ultimate example of a perfect and unconditional love. Therefore, Christ gave all of himself and poured out in order to love. If then, we are called to love like Christ, shouldn’t we do the same? Shouldn’t we love others without restraint, breaking down all our barriers and hindrances? Building walls never led anywhere. Just think, if Jesus had built walls from fear of rejection or inconvenience, we would not be able to experience the lavish riches of his mercy, grace, and love-abounding relationship he offers. Of course he was rejected by many; he was mocked and spit on, persecuted and hated, but he sacrificed that for the sake of the few that choose to follow him in order that they may live.. This is the gospel—that Christ loved us when we were unlovable, when we rejected him, and when we lived in sin. He desires the undesirable. He loves the unlovable. He restores the sick and broken.
This is how we must love others. This is how we are set apart as Jesus’ disciples. “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another” (John 13:34-35).
We must abandon our pride, expectations, fear, selfishness, “inconvenience”, and the thought consumption of what others think, in order to love like Christ loved us. Are you willing to sacrifice for the sake of the gospel?
“The unfolding of your words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple.” Psalm 119:130
