Do you ever have those mornings when you wake up feeling out of sorts and just need to hear Your Precious Lord say that He loves you? I sure do! Just this morning, in my heart I found myself asking, "God, what do you think of me?" And I just felt the presence of the Spirit reminding me He is right here with me, delighting in me and loving me, no matter what. And that was all I needed, everything was okay again.
He loves us more than anyone else ever would or could!
I read something about that very truth recently. It was about the verses in the New Testament where Jesus asks Peter, "Do you love Me more than these?" In the comment I read, Charles Spurgeon turns that question around and lets us see how much Jesus truly loves us! Here is the quote, from a sermon of Spurgeon's called "The Gladness of the Man of Sorrows:"
Jesus speaks today to us, "I have loved thee more than these;
...thy mother loved thee; strong were her pangs when thou wast born, and anxious her cares when she nursed thee at her bosom; but I have loved thee more than these,
..and thy brethren loved thee, and thy sisters; born of the same parents they watched over thee with delight, and they have been ready to help thee in thy time of need, but I have loved thee more than these:
..and thy husband loved thee, loved thee as his own soul, he has cherished thee, and has been ready to lay down his life to give thee back health when thou hast been sick; but I have loved thee more than these:
..thy children, too, have loved thee; they have climbed thy knee and smiled upon thee for all thy kindness to them, and they have strengthened thine old age, and thou hast leaned upon them, as upon a staff, when thou hast been tottering with weakness; but I have loved thee more than these:
..and thou hast had a joyous companion, a dear friend who has been with thee from thy youth up, and has never lifted his heel against thee; and thou hast had thine intimates and thy familars who went up to the house of God with thee, and talked cheerfully by the way, but I have loved thee more than these,"
I think I hear him say to me—"There are some in this congregation who would pluck out their own eyes to give them to thee; they love thee, for thou art their spiritual father, but I have loved thee more than theses." And he points to all the good men that have ever tried to teach you, to all the comforters who have given you joy, to all the helpers that have aided you on the road to immortality; and he says, "I have loved you more than these."
Charles Spurgeon
He says to us that no matter how much anyone else has ever loved us or could ever love us, He loves us MORE than these!
No matter how much we imagine His love is, it is always MORE! He loves us MORE!
No matter what we're like in our walk and talk, He loves us MORE than we could imagine...purely, totally, freely, completely, unconditionally, unreservedly, permanently, unchangably, unstoppably, faithfully, surely, amazingly, infinitely, boundlessly, unswervingly, and any more "-lys" you can think of!
As Brennan Manning says, no matter how great we think His love is, it's always MORE.
Thank You, Jesus, that You love us more than these on earth. Thank You that Your love is more than we could ponder or comprehend. Thank You that Your love is more powerful than any sin, trouble, worry, doubt, circumstance or problem. No matter what the situation, You and Your love are always MORE!
Thank You that Your MORE kind of love holds us now and forever!