The Greater Love

John 15:13 - Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends.

I listen to Christian music often, and I love listening to it when I'm mowing the lawn.  I become buried deep in the music that blares through the headphones as I'm whizzing around the yard.  Sometimes a prayer or two will come to mind for someone and often I'm singing at the top of my lungs.  And it was no different this past Sunday afternoon.  Hacking up the fall display of leaves and bypassing little grass snakes, dodging raindrops, I was listening to a song by Jody McBrayer, To Ever Live Without Me.  I've heard it time and again but I was suddenly struck by the chorus which speaks the truth of just why Christ came to earth for us:

It was all about a man.
It was all about a cross.
It was all about the blood that was shed
So I would not be lost.
It was all about a love.
That was bigger than a life.
It was all about a freedom that was given
Through Your sacrifice
'Cause You would rather die

than to ever live without me.

The last phrase was what spoke to my heart.  He came to die, to become the sacrifice for our sins so we would not be lost.  He shed His blood because "He would rather die than to ever live without me."  Can anything be more powerful than those words?  To ever live without me...

Personalize that, if you will.  He died for me and He died for you.  All He asks is that we acknowledge Him as the Savior of our soul and the giver of freedom and eternal life.  Don't ever forget that.  Let those words sink into your spirit.  

If you don't have a relationship with Him know this:  He gives.  He gives peace, forgiveness, love, freedom and most importantly eternal life. He gave...His life...for you.  I can't always say I knew these things. But I'm so thankful for the day that Christ reached down, took hold of my heart and has never let it go. His love for us is the greatest thing in the world. If only we could truly define it in our own words. It's only from the depth of our souls, a knowing if you will, that we experience it.  It is  a heart issue.  When you realize you cannot express His love in words, I think that's when you truly believe and know.  

Romans 5:8 tells us But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.  He's loves us just as we are.  If you know anything about Jesus, He hung out with sinners.  He was not ashamed to be among them.  He sought them out because He knew they would be the most receptive to receive His love.  He doesn't want us to try to get ourselves cleaned up before accepting Him into our lives.  He wants us in our sinful state so He can do the work of cleaning us up, better than we could, Himself.  My that's a wonderful thing a person can do for another.

He shows us His love for us through this process.  In time we begin to recognize what He's done for us and the ability to love Him even more comes forth.  Everyone needs to know they are loved and everyone needs to know the Savior's love.

Psalm 91:14 - Because he (the sinner) has set his love upon Me, therefore I will deliver him; I will set him on high, because he has known My name.