The Beautiful Love of Jesus
Writer Author Elizabeth Parker
Christian Article
:
Love
- Fiction No
I love Jesus! Jesus loves me! Jesus loves you!
When we think about the love of Jesus we are drawn to Him like iron to the magnet/like flies to honey. In these last days, there has never been a time when we so desperately need to spend significant daily time meditating on the love of Jesus, reading His Word, communing with Him in prayer and worship.
Right now I want us to focus on two small windows that show something of the magnitude of Jesus’ great love.
JOHN 18:3- Judas then, having received a band of men and officers from the chief priests and Pharisees, cometh thither with lanterns and torches and weapons. A mob came, led by Judas and the Chief priests and church officials. They came with lanterns and torches and weapons! What a contrast. Seeking the Light of the World with torches! How often attacks on the Truth are made by artificial lights and carnal weapons!
Imagine the angry crowd coming to the Good Shepherd with weapons
Little did they know of His willingness to be led as a lamb to the slaughter.
He had no plan but to drink the cup. He came to die. They were a quart
low when it came to true spiritual knowledge. Never think that that mob
captured Jesus. It was not the mob who apprehended Jesus but He Who
submitted to them. He offered Himself as a sacrifice. Leviticus 17:11
11For the life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar…”
18:4—Jesus say, "Who seek ye?" Notice Jesus was the first to speak. He did not wait to be attacked. He is in charge. And let me tell you honey, He’s still in charge! He’s still on the throne and has everything in His hands and under control!
"Who is it you want?" Jesus asked them again. Why did the mob not say: WE WANT YOU!? They may not have recognized Him. It takes more than mechanical lanterns and pine pitch torches to discover Jesus. If you are seeking Jesus you must start with surrender.
As soon as Jesus said I AM HE (Jesus was really saying I am the I AM)they drew backward and fell to the ground. You would have done so as well. The reason is that the angel Gabriel moved between Jesus and the mob. Jesus’ face shown with a holy glow, an intense bright light struck them down. (We read of another time the wicked will be slain by the light of His appearing in 2 Thessalonians 2:8.) The murderous throng could not stand for a moment. They staggered back. Priests, elders, possibly 500 Roman soldiers, even Judas, ALL fell as dead men to the ground. If the angel had not intervened they would have all died. You can not look into the face of the great I AM and live! Like we read about with Moses.. In Exodus 33:18, Moses asked the Lord to show His glory. God said, "You cannot see My face, for no one may see Me and live." Then God told Moses, "You may stand on a rock. When my glory passes by, I will put you in a cleft in the rock and cover you with My hand, until I pass by. Then I will remove My hand and you will see My back; but My face must not be seen." (Exodus 33:22-23) After a time the angel withdrew, and the light faded away. Jesus could have walked quietly away, as it would have been so easy to do. But He was still there.
So often we read this story and focus on
Judas' Kiss (Betraying Jesus)
Peter's Miss (Trying to kill Malchus with a sword)
And we miss a thrilling point about Jesus’ beautiful love.
Again Jesus asked a Question: WHO SEEK YE?
Why would He repeat this question twice? Do you catch what Jesus was doing here? He is skillfully arranging for the escape of His disciples. They might have all been hung that Friday. But Jesus was protecting His own. JOHN 18:8-"If you are looking for Me, then let these men go." Jesus got the proud leaders to verbally state and restate that it was Jesus of Nazareth that they wanted. We are told that Jesus loved His own unto the end. And how beautifully this is demonstrated here. As Jesus looked into the blood-shot eyes of the evil mob, Jesus is thinking about His sheep. The Shepherd is protecting His lambs. The very last thought of our Savior was for the safety of His flock.
Jesus says Here I am, but you will not mess with those that have chosen to follow Me. They are Mine, given to Me by My Father and no man can take them out of My hand. (John 10:29)He speaks as a King! They were about to tie His hands, but before doing so, He first tied their hands! Hallelujah! He is still tying hands today!
I have no doubt but what the mob intended to torture and hang the apostles as well. A small window in MARK gives it away: MARK 14:50
Everybody that was there with Christ, deserted Him and fled. They all got away. One almost didn't though. There was a young man who had followed Jesus who was wearing a linen garment and they seized him. He was not one of the 12 but he too got away. He fled NAKED. Obviously the mob was intent on taking others besides Jesus. But the naked man disappeared into the darkness. We can read about this in Mark 14:51,52 A young man was following Him, wearing nothing but a linen [cloth]. They caught hold of him, but he left the linen [cloth] and ran off naked.
Only Jesus was to die. Jesus had other work for His disciples to do. As long as God has a work for you to do even the devil himself cannot seize you.
That day Jesus showed His disciples that He was fully competent to protect them even among the gravest danger. I know that many times Jesus has intervened in my behalf at a time when circumstances were about to close in on me like the time my sister in law and I with a car load of kids were coming home from church one Sunday. We were driving along singing praises basking in the 'after glow' of church when I, the driver came to a busy intersection. The light was red so I stopped. When the light turned green I started to go but my car would not move. I stomped the accelerator over and over again and still nothing, the car would not budge. About that time a vehicle came flying through the red light so fast I cannot truthfully tell you what kind it was. It was coming at such a speed if it had hit us, which it would have had I been allowed to enter into the intersection, it would have most likely killed me (it would have hit my side) and probably every one else. As soon as it passed through the light I was able to go. I know an angel held my car back, keeping me and my precious cargo safe. Oh the love of Jesus! Have you felt His loving touch in your life? That day, Jesus showed His disciples His rich beautiful caring love.
When I look at Jesus' love, I want to be more like Jesus. I want to be so much like Jesus that the world has a hard time telling us apart! I want to be Jesus in the flesh. The next time you see someone in need try to focus on their hurt or their crisis. Who knows it may help you to face your own trials. When you hear that someone is sick, offer to cook a nice healthy dish for them. Volunteer to sit with the sick to give their family a break. Offer transportation to those who can't get out. Visit the shut-in. Pray for those who are suffering. Let us all behold Jesus and become more and more like Him.
Now back to the Bible for a second small peek at Jesus' love.
If you were hanging on a cross, suffering extreme agony, bleeding from dozens of wounds, dying from real thirst, and dying with a lump in your throat and a broken heart because of rejection, what would you be thinking about?
Notice how an episode in Jesus’ last moments shows the depth of His beautiful sweet love.
The gospel descriptions of the crucifixion appear to be eyewitness accounts. But who were the witnesses? According to Matthew 26:56, all the disciples fled when Jesus was arrested, and most of them probably stayed away from the crucifixion out of fear of being arrested themselves. John 18:15-27 says that Peter's fear of arrest caused him to repeatedly deny that he even knew Jesus.
The crucifixion took place at a location called Golgotha, which was probably just outside the walls of Jerusalem. Most likely it was beside a road leading out from one of the city's gates. Thus the followers of Jesus would have been able to get there fairly easily. But who actually went there?
John 19:25 His mother 'stood' by the cross. Think about it. The Jews of course were present at the crucifixion to satisfy their fiendish craving for His extinction/execution. Roman Soldiers were required to be there. BUT, a small pitiful band of 4 women and one man stood close by the foot of the cross.
1- Mary, Jesus own Mother.
2- Mary Magdalene
3- Mary the wife of Cleophas Mt 28:1
4- Mother of John - Possibly also Mary. Mt 27:56
5- John the beloved disciple. (No wonder he is called the beloved)
All these Mary's were there. The name Mary means BITTERNESS. As they stood there they were filled with anguish. I know as they were watching Him die, they were dying inside…..But they were THERE!
At the risk of her own life Jesus’ mother stood there. His disciples deserted Him, His friends disappeared, the Jewish nation despised Him, but His mother is there. She was at His birth, at His death. She stood apparently in silence. The crowds were chanting, the thieves were blaming, Pharisees were mocking, the soldiers were dividing His clothing, the Savior was bleeding, Mary was crying. It was a bad time.
But we don't worship Mary as some might think. We worship Jesus. Mary the mother of Jesus was never supposed to be worshiped or prayed to or honored as Divine. She was a very good mother, but she was human. This is clearly demonstrated here. She needed the care and protection of another person. Jesus knew her needs. He gave her John.
Jesus was fully involved in the greatest task ever performed, not only on this earth, but in the entire universe: RESCUE OF A DOOMED PLANET! No other creature could sustain the burden Jesus bore. Jesus was the object of satan's fiercest hatred. Yet at that terrible time, Notice how Jesus' beautiful caring love shines through. As He is just about to leave this world, He provides a home for His homeless, crying, poor, suffering, lonely widowed Mother.
Jesus, in the full awful agony of the cross, when the salvation of the entire planet Earth hung in the balance, thought of the needs of His mother. He had a world full of troubles of His own, but He took some of His last energy to care for someone else. To the very end, Jesus thought more of the sorrows of others than of His own.
WOMAN BEHOLD THY SON! In a way Jesus was no longer her son. His death on the cross brought to an end His natural ties (II Corinthians 5:16) From now on He would be her Savior, her God.
Jesus' act magnifies the 5th commandment. What an example for children to honor their parents...to the end! Honor your parents and not just while you’re a child.
The perfect example of Christ's love shines forth with bright luster. Even in His last agony, as He was dying as a ransom for the doomed race, He provided for His sorrowing needful mother. What love Jesus has!
JOHN 19:27 From that hour John took her unto his own home. John would care for her. Jesus was modeled in the heart of John. (May He also be modeled in our own hearts.) At once John took her into his home. I would like to believe that John took her away then so that she wouldn’t have to watch her son die but I don’t know that. I would like to think that Jesus shielded her from the worst. But I believe that care extends all the way to today, 2011. Jesus, as God, was the head of the family and He was making arrangements for His younger children. For You and for me. When He was on the cross you were on His mind!
WE ARE JESUS' MOTHER! Matthew 12:50-- "Whoever does the will of My father in heaven is My...Mother!" That loving act was a pledge, of Jesus loving care, for ALL He left behind here on this old world. Jesus provided for us at the cross. So don't worry honey, Jesus will take care of you now! Now how awesome is that!
Friends, is your love a little bit like Jesus' great love? Do you tenderly show concern for the needs of others? Christians should be the most loving and caring of all people. In the Evening of life we shall be judged on the love that we show to God and the love that we show to others. Jesus said they will know you are My disciples by the love you have one for the other.
Only one time in the Bible does Jesus ever allude to a person going to hell. Hell was not created for man! It was created for satan and all his minions! And that was when a man who had the ability to help, refused to CARE or be bothered with the needs of a truly hungry beggar and that’s in the parable of Lazarus and the rich man. Luke 16:14-31
The very essence of Christianity is to love the unlovable, to feed the hungry, to forgive the hateful, to provide for those who have not, to reach out and touch someone with the same love that Jesus has shown to us. Jesus in the flesh!
Matthew 25:36 -
I was naked and you clothed Me,
Sick and you visited Me,
Out of money and you gave to Me,
Jobless, and you helped Me find employment,
Sad, and you sent Me a card,
Lonely and you called Me,
Hungry and you baked bread,
I was dying and you earnestly prayed for Me,
I was hurt and you showed true kindness to Me.
Jesus said, “What you’ve done unto the least of these, you’ve done unto Me!”
LOVE ALWAYS FINDS A WAY TO BE PRACTICAL!
The greatness of a man can nearly always be measured by his willingness to be kind and loving. Jesus demonstrated awesome love and thoughtfulness. Jesus is an awesome God. God is love! The Word of God says if you say you love God but hate your brother…the truth is not in you. You are a liar! (1 John 4:20)
Let us pray: Thank you Father for Jesus and His great love. Help us to experience the true depth of Jesus' beautiful love. Give us a sample of the love of Jesus in our marriages, in our church, our families, in our community. Help us to sense that love is a SOFTENING of the HEARTERIES. Dear Jesus, Come into our hearts right now and fill us with that Jesus kinda’ love. Let us be Jesus in the flesh to all we meet! In Jesus name I pray…and all God’s people said..AMEN!
In His love,
Elizabeth
"Faith is holding on when there's nothing to hold on to."
Editor's Comment:
About the Writer Author
State:
Texas
Country:
USA
Email:
ef_parker@yahoo.com
Website:
www.rockinchairgospel2.blogspot.com
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