“The past few weeks as we have journeyed through Advent, we have caught glimpses of God’s chosen one, His Son. We have heard Isaiah speak about how He will be a King like David, and yet His kingship will be like that of a Father lovingly ruling and protecting His children. We have listened intently as Micah gave us the location where this special one is to be born, and like His ancestor David, it will be Bethlehem. We remember as Jeremiah spoke about how this King would bring a new covenant, a new holy agreement between God and His people where He would write His laws not on tablets of stone but on our hearts so that we would know Him as intimately as He knows each of us.

And here in these two texts, we have an answer to the question of why would God even do any of this. Why would He continually remember His people, showing patience and kindness when they do not deserve it? Why does He still even today seek to draw men to Himself? Simply put, the answer is love. The Apostle John writes three words that are straightforward yet world-changing, “God is Love”. Although we often think of love as being a “soft” word, God’s love is more powerful than we can possibly imagine. For any of us who have had children we a close understanding. We love our children through their highs and lows, their ups and downs, and we rejoice with them when they are happy, and our hearts break when they suffer. We have a primal instinct to protect them from harm that drives us to lay down our lives unflinching. It is that love magnified that shows us God’s love for all of us. It is His love that refuses to surrender to evil. It is His love that changes us from seeking our own wants to now seeking to serve the needs of others.

God’s love is not simply words. When we look at the nativity, and especially when we look at the cross and empty tomb, we see God’s love. It is easy to love someone who is wonderful to us but much harder to love the unkind and those who we think do not deserve it. Yet this is what God has done and continues to do for us: love us when we are unloveable.

Prayer: Loving and merciful Father, thank you for a love that never quits, a love that gives us strength from day to day, a love that You did not just convey with words but with a Person, Your Son, Jesus Christ. We pray that just as You have loved us that we would show your love to others. Give us the strength not just to love with words but with actions. In Jesus Name, AMEN