Reasons may vary but some could be that the topic is confusing or is a very touchy subject. When you are preparing, nerves that rarely surface start ringing in the back of your head like alarms clocks. Today sermon was like that for me. No, it wasn't a topic that people rarely mention because of its complexity or being sensitive issue. Strange enough it was about one of the "simplest" topics possible...
Salvation.
So why in the world did I find this topic so difficult you might ask?
Because this is the foundation that everything else is based on!
Because you have to put into words the incredible love of Jesus!
Because as basic as it may be to the Christian faith, it's one of the most incomprehensible ideas that the human brain has ever tried to understand!
I don't like it when I can't explain something to someone or can't understand what someone is saying. Being here in Brasil has inspired me a million time over to take a year off school and study abroad to learn another language. I find that with this language barrier, I struggle to communicate with the people around me such as my church members and it can be extremely frustrating. When Glaucio, my translator, is by my side, it's possible to talk with those who don't speak English but the second someone begins to talk to him and have a separate conversation, all communication abilities ceases and the connection is cut short.
Tonight while riding back to the hotel, I sat in the back seat with two other young women yet because neither of us spoke each other's language, we sat in silence. Smiles are nice but they do nothing when it comes to building a relationship. I kept thinking about how if we knew each other's language, we would probably be talking non-stop. No matter how much I wanted to make myself clear to them, my handful of Portuguese words failed miserably.
That's how I felt when it came to expressing the love of God and His gift of salvation.
In truth, I may have grown up in the Adventist church but it's really been within the past few months that I have really began to marvel at the love of Jesus for His children. When you've sung "Jesus Loves Me" a million times in Sabbath School and had John 3:16 memorized since almost before you could talk, as scary as it sounds, Jesus' love becomes so mundane that it seems to begin to lose its power.
Yet, when one actually sits down and tries to understand and then explain the love of God, nothing makes sense!
How God can love us in our sin pushes human understanding. I can't help but think of a song I've sung many times:
How deep the Father's love for us
How vast beyond all measure
That He should give His only Son,
To make a wretch His treasure...
Ashamed I hear my mocking voice,
Call out among the scoffers
It was my sin that left Him there,
Until it was accomplished
His dying breath has brought me life...
Why should I gain from His reward?...
But this I know with all my heart
His wounds have paid my ransom.
No matter how difficult it is to understand, the truth is He loved us to death.
Never mind how impossible to comprehend, He loved and died for us when we were at our weakest, most wretched point.
No matter the number of times we promised ourselves we'd do better and then slipped right back into our old ways, His love kept reaching out to us past our sins and shortcomings to draw us back to God.
A little over a month ago, something happened in my life that God used to directly show me His unconditional love in a an extremely real way. I can't give details, but hopefully it will makes enough sense to say that God allowed me to experience this unexplainable love towards a dear friend. Yet even having so recently felt this love, I still can't put it into words.
And maybe that's right where God wants us to be. At a point where we know He loves us in such a powerful way yet simply can't wrap our minds around it. When we don't understand something we seek to understand it better, be it a foreign language or difficult concept.
Seeking to understand God's love should be our driving force in life. The more we try to comprehend it, the more we will want to talk to others about this love. Our own love for Jesus and those around us will grow as we realize that God's love is deeper and wider than we as humans can fathom.
So if you were looking for a deep and thoughtful post explaining how we can understand the love of God, sorry but I don't have much of an answer. I can try my best to explain it yet I've realized that the love of God can only be understood from experience.
Considering my minuscule audience maybe it's a little strange to say this, but if you've never accepted Jesus or simply fallen away from Him, I just want to ask (no, beg) you to allow yourself to experience His love. Give Him your pain and tears and find yourself surrounded by this crazy love.
I'm telling you, once you experience it you'll find yourself seeking to understand this love all the more.
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