True Love

Well, we just celebrated Valentine's Day, so love is in the air, right? And that got me thinking about love and how kids perceive love. So, before you read any further, stop for just a few seconds and think about how much you love your children. Meditate on the depth of your love for them. Remember the events and milestones in their lives that have built the elaborate construct of your memories. Allow yourself to be bathed in these thoughts just for a few seconds. This love is powerful. It's real. It's deep. And it is part of who you are, and who you have become as a parent.

I ask you to do this, because I found myself doing this very thing. This morning, I found myself diving into the depth of my love for my two boys. As I focused on my love for them, I began to realize how incredibly deep it is. In many ways, it is infinite and causes you to wonder how it could possibly have had a beginning and how it could ever end. There is absolutely nothing that could cause me to love me children any less or any more than I do at this very moment. And I am quite sure that if you joined me in this exercise, you would feel very much the same.

In John 3:12-21, Jesus is having a late night conversation with a man named Nicodemus; a Pharisee and member of the Sanhedrin. Nicodemus came to talk with Jesus under the cover of darkness because he didn't want others to know that he was one of His followers. He knew that Jesus had come from God, but had no idea how shallow his understanding was.

For the most part, Nicodemus was a good guy. He was one of Israel's teacher of teachers and an expert of the Law. He followed the teachings of the Law exactly, and encouraged others to follow his example of religious excellence. So, imagine his surprise when Jesus basically tells him that his wisdom, position and good works will not help him make it to Heaven. In this passage, we see Jesus revealing the essence of why He came to earth: love.

In John 3:16, Jesus tells Nicodemus,"For God so loved the world that he gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life." The Greek word used for "love" in this verse is agape. This is the highest form of love that is described in the Bible. When we look at this love in context of what Jesus is saying here, we get a glimpse of the incomprehensible love that God has for us. To imagine that God, the creator, sustainer and owner of this universe, giving up His Son for a sinful and rebellious people, it seems unimaginable.

As I said in the beginning, my love for my children seems to be infinite, and that causes me to think of something else that John said in one of his later letters. "God is love" Think about that. So much of what we know of true love is tied into God's very character. As God is infinite, the love that radiates from Him is infinite and encompasses all that He is.

Children need to know the depth of God's love. They need to see it lived out in an unconditional way, so that they have a healthy context of love. Many of them have heard John 3:16 many times, but do they truly understand how much God loves them? I think that the best way we can communicate this to our children, is by loving them. When they begin to realize how much Mom and Dad love them, they begin to get a glimpse at God infinite love in a practical way.