You ask your average person to think about how God views them, and you’ll likely get three answers. First, people may answer, “Well, sorry to say it, but I think God is pretty disappointed in me.” Another may say that God is an inspector, always checking him out to see if he’s towing the line. And a third responds by saying that God is always distant. They say, “When I wake up in the morning God looks right past me. I doubt he even notices me.”
Jesus once told a young inquirer that the greatest commandment is to “love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.” It’s still true, by the way!
So I have a question. Can you love a God who is constantly disappointed in you? That’s pretty difficult, frankly. Well, how about loving a God who always is inspecting you? Would you like a God like that? If you ask me, that God would be hard to embrace, too. And clearly, a God that always is distant would not be a God of which you’d be very fond. How would you love a God who was always looking beyond you?
Friends, the Lord died for you. You don’t died for someone you are disappointed in. Are you willing to receive the worth and value Jesus declared when he died for you? You are God’s beloved. Just imagine: The Lord received deep pleasure in creating you. It’s true. He’s neither disappointed in you, always inspecting you nor constantly distant from you. He’s your Lord, your brother and your friend.
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