Advent 4: Love

The human race knows very little of love, yet we long for it so deeply.  Most often we see true love displayed in sacrifice.  The father who, for the love of his family, works hard each day to provide and care for them.  The mother who sacrifices countless nights of sleep in caring for young children.  The friend who sets aside their own agenda to come alongside us and help us in our moment of need.  Yet the greatest sacrifice ever made was by Jesus Christ.  The Hymn Love was When gives us these words:

Love was when God became a Man,
Locked in time and space, without rank or place;
Love was God born of Jewish kin;
Just a carpenter with some fishermen.

For Jesus Christ to law aside His rights as God and take on human flesh was the ultimate act of love.  That act, however, was only a beginning.  The same hymn continues in the third verse:

Love was when God became a Man,
Down where I could see Love that reached to me;
Love was God dying for my sin
And so trapped was I my whole world caved in.

This is the love of God for the lost and perishing world.  It is concrete and demonstrated within time.  There is no question that Christ’s love is meant to be at the very center of understanding the character and plan of God.  May we all know that we are infinitely loved this Christmas season.