A message from a local pastor. Used with permission.
Jeremiah 31:3. Yes, I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore, with loving kindness, I have drawn you.
We may think sometimes that we must do certain things to merit the love of God. But what we need to remember is that the love of God is consistent, and it is persistent. God says, "Yes, I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore, with loving kindness, I have drawn you" (Jeremiah 31:3).
What a contrast when we compare the love of God to the so-called love in our culture. Our culture loves you when you are young and beautiful, but God loves you when you are old and not so physically attractive. our world loves you when you are celebrity, but God loves you when you are unknown and a complete nobody to other people. Our world loves the rich and powerful, but God loves the poor and the weak. Our world loves the extraordinary, but God loves the ordinary - people like you and me.
And God has demonstrated this love for us in a tangible way. Jesus said, "Greater love has no one that this, than to lay down one's life for his friends." (John 15:13). Jesus, showing His love, died for us. We read in Revelation 1:4-5, Grace to you and peace from Him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne, and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth. To Him to loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood."
Notice the use of the past tense, which means that it is done. If you have put your faith in Christ, then God has forgiven you through Christ for all of the wrong you have done. God loves you. He has loved you. and He will always love you. http://ArleneJWarner.com
