“And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God.” Ephesians 3:18-19It took me long time to learn this: God can’t love me any more than he already does. Think about that. He loves me (and you!) so much that it isn’t even possible to love me (and you!) more than he does right now. When I sin, I think that makes him sad, and probably angry, but it doesn’t make him love me less. This means it is not possible for me to mess up so bad that God finally says, “Enough! I loved her right up until then, but not any more.” Nope; that just won’t ever happen. He loved me even before he knit me together in my mother’s womb, and he’ll keep on loving me every day of my life and beyond.
This also means that I can’t be good enough to earn his love. If I can’t do anything to lose God’s love, then I also can’t do anything to win it. How freeing that is! God’s love is not conditional! I love this verse above. Try for a minute to fathom just how wide, long, high, deep God’s love is. As far as east is from west? His love is even wider. As long as the beginning of time until the end? His love is even longer. As high as the tallest mountains, or even up into space? His love is even higher. As deep as the depths of the ocean, or the very center of the earth? His love is even deeper. Big enough to love us when we turn away from him? Yes, that big, and bigger.
I know I’ll never fully be able to comprehend God’s vast love. Sometimes I read amazing, touching love stories, and I think, “Now THAT is a true example of great love.” But as great and inspirational as those stories are, they are a mere drop in the ocean compared to God’s love.
God loves you, and he’ll never stop loving you. When we understand and accept this joyous truth, then we “will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God.” Now that’s truly something to celebrate.
