Unstoppable Love

·         For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. -Romans 8:38-39

At my ordination service (a time when fellow Pastors gather to examine you and determine whether you seem to be called to pastoral ministry) one of the best questions I was asked was this one: “Do you have a Pastor’s heart?” My answer to the question was honest.  I said, “I hope so.”  A Pastor’s heart is to be that of a Shepherd who cares for the sheep and is willing to sacrifice himself to care for and protect those sheep. There is perhaps a no better picture of Jesus’ heart than this text in Romans 8:38-39. There is no possible way to overstate the vastness of God’s love for us. What we see in this passage is a picture Jesus’ love for all of us. We don’t have words to describe it, minds capable of grasping it, or any experience comparable to it. God’s love cannot be out-hated, out-sinned, or out-evil. The love of God is so utterly unstoppable that after death, hell, and Satan himself through the worst they had at it, Love rose victorious on the other side. You cannot escape it, ignore it, or thwart it. God does not love us abstractly, as a group. He loves you, personally, where you sit, in this very moment. He knew you and hand-selected you before the bones of the world were spoken into existence (Ephesians 1:4), he knit you together before you were born (Psalms 139), and he has engraved you on the palms of His hands (Isiah 49:16). What a place of confidence, peace, and power! This is our place in the world, we are beloved by God.

The answer to the question “What shall separate us from the love of Christ?” is NOTHING.  Nothing can separate us. Nothing can pray us from His love.  NOTHING, NOTHING, NOTHING! That is the heart of a Shepherd, the heart of Jesus. Our failures and sin may rob us of joy. My rebellion may make me miserable because I know I am running from the Almighty, but please understand, these sins and failures will never deter His love for us or derail His commitment to bringing us to eternal life. There is nothing you can do, as a child of God to make God love you more than He does now.  There is also nothing you can do that will make Him love you any less than He does now.  God’s love for His children is constant, consistent, and enduring.  When we are His child, we are as secure as we can possibly be. May God bless you and keep you always.

Pastor Dimas