John 1: Unfailing Love
Today’s Reading: John 1, Psalms 1
Who: Who wrote this book? Who did they write it to? What was their reason for writing?
What: What does this passage say about God, me, and my relationship with Him?
1. God’s love for me is unfailing, and he is faithful.
So the Word became human and made his home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the Father’s one and only Son. John 1:14 (NLT emphasis my own)
From his abundance we have all received one gracious blessing after another. For the law was given through Moses, but God’s unfailing love and faithfulness came through Jesus Christ. John 1: 16-17 (NLT emphasis my own)
2. Jesus is the stairway between heaven and earth.
Jesus asked him, “Do you believe this just because I told you I had seen you under the fig tree? You will see greater things than this.” Then he said, “I tell you the truth, you will all see heaven open and the angels of God going up and down on the Son of Man, the one who is the stairway between heaven and earth.” John 1:50-51 (NLT emphasis my own)
Why: Why is this truth important?
1. God’s love for me is unfailing, and he is faithful.
This truth is important because I have often been in desperate need of a God with unfailing love, a God who would never fail me.
This truth is the truth that revolutionized my faith walk. When I was struggling to believe God’s love was for me because I was lost and clouded by grief and failure, I read through the scriptures with fresh eyes, seeking words of hope. The words unfailing love and faithfulness caught me again and again. It was the truth I’d read a hundred times before but failed to see because I hadn’t needed it yet.
God’s love will never fail us. He is faithful. His love is not dependant on our actions. His love is not like the any other love. He never fails.
2. Jesus is the stairway between heaven and earth.
This truth is important because we need a means to be close to God, and Jesus, God the Son, came to be exactly that.
I am so glad that God is not some unreachable force far off in the universe. He made himself available to us through Jesus, his son. God walked among us. He made a way through his son for us to have access to the father at all times.
How: How would my life/character/perspective be different if I truly believed this truth?
When I embraced the truth of God’s unfailing love and faithfulness, my understanding of who I was in God changed forever. I no longer saw God as a cold, distant observer. I understood myself to be a recipient of a grace that does not waiver. I found peace where there had been grief and doubt.
Embracing the truth of Jesus changes everything; it takes us into the very presence of God.
Knowing that Jesus is the stairway between heaven and earth is a beautiful reminder of the access I have to a God beyond my comprehension. Although I don’t deserve it, I can be in the presence of God. I am not separated through sin, law, or custom. Through Jesus, I have the power and the presence of the Holy Spirit in my life.
Prayer:
God, thank you for your unfailing love and faithfulness. I am so grateful that I can trust you are with me regardless of everything else going on in my world. Thank you for making a way for me to be close to you. Help me to live my life with a constant awareness of your presence.