That’s Amore!

Love…now
there’s a four-letter word for you!  But
this word can mean so many things in our language.  It’s almost shameful how we use the word
“love” to describe so many things.

“I
love my car.”

“I
love my dog.”

“I
love Mexican food.”

“I
love cold weather.”

“I
love my children.”

“I
love my wife.”

“I
love Jesus.”

“Jesus
loves me.”

In
every case, there’s a different kind of love yet one word.  Seems little wonder how we can miss the love
presented to us in the manger.  Yet, it
was the love of God causing the prophecy of Micah 5:2:

But
you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah,

are
only a small village among all the people of Judah.

Yet
a ruler of Israel will come from you,

one
whose origins are from the distant past.

Micah 5:2
(NLT)

A
ruler was needed.  But it wasn’t just a
ruler we needed; we needed a Savior. 
That’s where something is “lost in translation” between Hebrew and
English.  Our ruler is also our
protector.  There isn’t a self-serving
greed occurring here; this is the love of God proven in action.

The
love of God the Father is love proven in action.  It was His love sending Jesus to Earth to
that stable in Bethlehem.  It was the
love of God sending Jesus to the cross to redeem us.  It was His love raising Jesus from the
dead.  It is the love of God sending the
Holy Spirit to seal, guard, and guide us. 
Eventually, the love of God sends the Son back to take us home
and judge the world.  The love of God is
a love proven in action!

This
is what the incarnation—that miracle in which the Son of God was enrobed in
flesh—shows us: love.  This is deep love
beyond anything we can imagine.  God
loved us so much, He gave the ultimate Christmas gift: His Son, Jesus (John
3:16). 

In
this final week of Advent (REALLY short since tomorrow is Christmas Eve), show God the love He deserves and bask in His love
for you because He shows His love for “us in this:
while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8).  You didn’t love Him first; He loved you
first…and He loves you best.

Enjoy
this week of love in Him.

Here
are some suggestions for reading and meditation through the week: