Jesus wept at the tomb of His
friend Lazarus. The Jewish people who saw Him
responded to one another, "Behold, how He loved him"
(John 11:35-36).
C. H. Spurgeon said to his
congregation in London, "Most of us here, I trust,
are not mere onlookers, but we have a share in the
special love of Jesus. We see evidences of that
love, not in the tears, but in the precious blood
that He so freely shed for us. . . . Behold how He
loves us!"
Have you ever asked yourself
where or when He first loved you? With fullness of
heart we can say, "See, how He loves me!" Is the
beginning of that great love when we first believed?
Could it have begun when He died for us? As we
reflect back on our lives and His love for us there
is no time when He did not love us.
When we ponder the beginning of
His love for us, it takes us beyond our creation
into past eternity.
In eternity past Jesus so
identified Himself with us and covenanted to redeem
us.
From past eternity Jesus looked
down the distant future in His divine perspective
and saw the disastrous ruin of sin in our lives and
chose to do something about it. In past eternity
Jesus Christ took up our cause and pledged to be the
guarantee of God's eternal covenant. Jesus knew that
sinful man could never fulfill the demands of the
covenant with the LORD God. Therefore, Jesus pledged
to fulfill man's part of the covenant. He did so on
our behalf long before we were able to have any part
of it.
Jesus pledged to die for us by
giving His life as a ransom for our sins. It was a
unilateral covenant through His own blood for it is
sealed "through the blood of the eternal covenant"
(Heb. 13:20).
It was not bilateral because He
did it in past eternity by Himself without our
asking. It is eternal, and because it is by His
grace it is undeserved. Jesus knew that we could
never remedy our sin problem so He stepped in, and
out of His love and mercy did it for us.
In that great act of love He
united Himself with us so that His life became our
life, His death became our death, His burial became
our burial and His resurrection became our
resurrection. What love!
Where did Jesus do that? When
He first loved us. Behold, what manner of love He
has for you and me! Even before we were born, even
before creation, even before the Fall, even before
we sinned, His great love was settled for us.
Behold, how He loves us!
"When the fullness of time
came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born
under the Law, in order that He might redeem those
who were under the Law, that we might receive the
adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has
sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts,
crying, 'Abba, Father'" (Gal. 4:4-6).
Again, we can only exclaim,
"See what manner of love He has for us!" We can
never lose that adoption. It is guaranteed in
eternity, purchased by the blood of the Son of God
at Calvary, and sealed by the Holy Spirit the moment
we believed on Christ as our Redeemer.
What our Redeemer planned in
eternity past before the foundation of the world, He
accomplished in time, and it is guaranteed by His
resurrection for all eternity. Cf. Romans 8:37-39;
John 15:13; 3:16; Galatians 4:4-6.
Although our salvation was
planned in eternity, and Christ fulfilled that
eternal covenant in His own blood at Calvary, it is
not automatic.
Jesus calls us personally and
persistently until we respond to "the sweet
compulsion of His grace."
Have you responded in sweet
surrender to His abounding love and grace? Do you
have eyes only for Jesus? Or is the Holy Spirit
still pursuing you and pleading with you to put your
faith in Jesus Christ?
"Behold how He loves us," but
as Spurgeon asked, has anyone ever said to you,
"Behold how he or she loves Jesus"? Can your friends
say of you and me, "See what manner of love he or
she has for Jesus"? "Behold how they love Jesus."
Has anyone ever said to you, "Why do you love Him
so?" Why do you love and serve Jesus Christ?
And when they do ask you, what
will you say to them?
"Behold, what manner of love .
. . ."
Selah!
Message by Wil Pounds (c) 2006
Anyone is free to use this material and distribute it, but it may not be sold under any circumstances whatsoever without the author's written consent.
Unless otherwise noted "Scripture quotations taken from the NASB."
"Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE" © Copyright 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation Used by permission." (www.Lockman.org)Scripture quoted by permission. Quotations designated (NET) are from the NET Bible copyright ©1996-2006 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. http://www.bible.org/. All rights reserved.
Wil is a graduate of William Carey University, B. A.; New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary, Th. M.; and Azusa Pacific University, M. A. He has pastored in Panama, Ecuador and the U. S, and served for over 20 years as missionary in Ecuador and Honduras. He had a daily expository Bible teaching ministry head in over 100 countries from 1972-2005. He continues to seek opportunities to be personally involved in world missions. Wil and his wife Ann have three grown daughters. He currently serves as a Baptist pastor and teaches seminary extension courses in Ecuador.
Bible word studies for sermon preparation, messages, devotions and personal Bible studies with abiding principles and practical applications.
Reports on what God is doing through Bible believing evangelical Christians in Honduras, Nicaragua, Peru, India and Ecuador. Jesus said, "If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it shall be done for you" (John 15:7).
Study the master theme of the Bible with these prophecies and types in the Old Testament of the coming of the Messiah, Jesus Christ.
Free Sermons and Bible studies indexed by Scripture reference and doctrinal studies .
