I can still hear her giggly, sing-song voice across a whole span of years, “I love you, Mommie!”
“Show me,” I’d tease, “how much?”
Dancing on the tips of toddler’s toes, she’d throw wide those arms: “Thi–iss much!”
Little did I know at the time what a big lesson that really was—because, when it comes to love, we want more than lip-service, don’t we? We want to see it. We want it demonstrated. We want love to be visible.
I can’t possibly contain all the ways God has demonstrated His limitless love to us in this (or any) post. But I guess if I were to limit that list, I could best sum it up in One Word: Jesus.
While God loved before He was loved, and He has loved even without being loved, He does long for love to be reciprocal.
So, how can we demonstrate our love to Him? Three ways stated by God, as recorded in Deuteronomy 10:12, are these: to fear Him, walk in obedience to Him, and serve Him wholeheartedly. This is the visibility of our love. Our love for Him is also most evident in our worship ( which includes any activity that glorifies Him, like serving and giving).
And if obedience is the measure of love (and it very much is), how great the love of Jesus?!
God has made it clear, in both the Old and New Testaments alike: “If you love Me, you will obey Me.” Obedience is chief expression #1 as proof of our love. But obedience must be tempered with love.
Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved,
clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.
(Col 3:12)
Our love for Him is also visible when humbly demonstrated to others in patience, kindness, gentleness, compassion, and forgiveness. Isn’t this visibility merely a reflection of His love for us?
We know God is love. And Jesus is the exact representation of God in the flesh. So Jesus is Divine Love revealed . . . and demonstrated. His perfect love has been lavished upon us sacrificially and selflessly. That same love, poured out from the Cross, continues to be poured into us by the Holy Spirit.
Love is the insignia of every Christian—it is how we are identified. And it should be how we are known—because it is visible to both God and others.
It is also the compelling force of the Lord’s Church—when made visible and shared it is unparalleled…unstoppable…undeniable. With global visibility.
The indisputable fact that we are loved by God is a facet of our identity in Christ that must reach out beyond ourselves . . . and be seen. Then, that “show-me” question? It gets swallowed up in the muchness of our love.
