But God proves his love for us in that while we still were sinners Christ died for us. (Rom. 5:8)
Three weeks after my son John was born we had to rush him to the hospital. He had a virus and his whole system was shutting down.
Every night I stayed with him—touching his little body through the tent and praying. My praying got pretty dire: “Father, give me his virus. Father, if someone is going to die, let it be me. Father, I will do anything for John to live.”
On Friday that week John was well enough to return home. I then rushed to church to preach at the Good Friday services. I couldn’t tell you what I preached about—I was obviously spent and distracted. What I do remember is that sometime during the service I had some deeply personal insights into what Good Friday is all about.
God the Father wanted to take the virus of our sin upon Himself, which He did through Jesus. If someone needed to die—and someone did since the wages of sin leads to death—Jesus said He would die in our stead. God the Father was willing to do anything for His children to live, even if that meant that His Son had to go to the cross.
Where’s the encouragement in these reflections? Listen again to what Paul says, “But God proves his love for us in that while we still were sinners Christ died for us.”
The encouragement in this scripture is that we’re totally loved by God the Father and by Jesus the Son. If we need proof for how much we’re loved, we only need to look at what Jesus did when we didn’t deserve it. That’s a love we can’t fully comprehend. I did, though, get a glimpse of the depth of this love when I was willing to give my life for my baby boy.
John is now 26. Every year on Good Friday I remember the week he spent in the hospital. And every year on Good Friday I give thanks for what I learned about God’s incredible love during that harrowing week. When we remember how deeply God loves us, how can we not be encouraged?
Reflection Questions:
- If you always remembered how much you are loved by God, how would your life change?
- Do you know and trust that you are loved before you do anything at all? Do you know and trust that no matter what you do you are still loved? How do you respond?
- God wants us to respond to His love by returning our love to Him and by sharing love with others. Is there anything you could do to deepen your love for God and to increase your love for His children? Are you willing to do it?
Please click this link to watch this lyric video –> “Trust in You” by Lauren Daigle