“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.” JOHN 3:16
A Love Letter
If you ask people to name the greatest love story ever written they may say, ‘Romeo and Juliet’ or even ‘Titanic’. However, the most beautiful and romantic love story of all time can be read in the Bible. John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world he gave his only begotten son that whoever believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.” It may not have the melodramatic or cheesy phrases that we hear in the movies but it is a love story that truly captures our hearts because through it we feel the most intimate, powerful and passionate love that Christ has for his people. In fact Jesus wrote his love letter for each one of us personally.
Looking for the Love of Our Life
We are in a world where we are surrounded by stereotypes, where if we are not in a relationship or have never been in a relationship we might be thought of as “strange” In fact, some may use the phrase “you have not lived.” As teenagers, we are at that age where we are keen to get ourselves involved in relationships. Once we think that we have found the “love of our life” we instantly grab the opportunity to let the whole world know by changing our Facebook status from “single” to “in a relationship.” Soon we make it breaking news on instagram by uploading pictures of the person we are “madly in love with” and with the help of Google we copy and paste sentimental love quotes. All of a sudden, we find ourselves in a situation where we say we are passionately in love with this person and this can develop over time and lead to marriage. When a man and a woman fall in love and marry, they grow into a deep, intimate, and passionate relationship. That’s the kind of relationship we can have with Jesus.
We have been Rescued
A common story line in romantic movies that wins the heart of young people is when a man risks his own life for his girlfriend or saves his beloved from the villain. We should not forget that a man did save us from the evil one two thousand years ago on the cross. He went to the extent of bearing the most excruciating pain for each one of us – his beloved. The world cannot teach us about love and what it means. Our heavenly father teaches us that nothing can separate us from the love of Christ. Romans 5:8 says “God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Let us never be ashamed to say we are in a relationship with Christ. Our hearts should always beat for Jesus.
The Gem of Christ
In the 19th century in the Catholic Church there was a saint called St. Gemma Galgani. She was known as the “Daughter of Passion” or the “Gem of Christ”. She had an amazing love for Christ from a very young age. At times her entire bed shook powerfully due to the throbbing of Gemma’s heart. On occasions when her temperature was taken, the mercury shot up to the top of the thermometer, because of the intense burning within her for Christ.
St. Gemma’s heart was set on fire because of the extraordinary love she had for Christ. Her heart was always burning with the love of Christ. When St. Gemma was in spiritual ecstasy she said, “I shall love you always. When day breaks, when evening turns into night, at every moment; I shall love you always, always, always!” Is this the kind of love that we have for Jesus? Our heart should be big enough to be filled with his love. His love is unconditional and will make us new people in Christ. Let us ask the Lord to fill our hearts with his love beyond measure.
“Fire! Fire in my heart! This morning it is burning. Dear Jesus, I love you so much! I shall endeavour always to love you; I shall live to love you; I shall die to love you! Give me wings Jesus, so that I can fly to your throne!” St.Gemma Galgani.
Written by Judy Jose