Unfathomable Love
What great, unfathomable love this is! Do we catch that when we read this piece of Paul’s appeal to the church in Corinth? It’s well worth re-reading the text with that in mind:
First, the great, unfathomable love of God with us and for us: For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. In Jesus, God has accomplished what we could not: reconciling us to God so that we can be with and for God.
Second, the great love of Paul, grounded in the love of God, who will not stop at anything— including enduring hardships, embracing the fruits of the Spirit, and embodying the paradoxes of faith—to proclaim God’s good news in Christ Jesus. Reconciliation with God is available to grab ahold of and live from now: See now is the acceptable time; see now is the day of salvation!
In fact, Paul has laid out for us a step-by-step guide to faithful discipleship for the church:
1) Ground ourselves, each and every day, in the great, unfathomable love of God and what that love has, astoundingly, accomplished. God has done it! (a good, daily mantra)
2) Share this good news with others, no matter the cost.
3) Faithfully live together in the ways, small and large, that commend this good news to others, trying and trying again not to place any obstacles in their way to taking up and living God’s good news.
For the love of God and what God is up to for the sake of the beloved world, shall we use this Lenten season to (re-)commit to this discipleship guide? Besides challenges and much needed transformation, there is the promise of rest, peace, shared joy, healing along this Way—of finding life that is truly life.
The Way forward to You has been cleared by You. Help us to grab ahold of this Way, to live from it, and to share the good news of it with others. Amen
~ Janice Love