So that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled to all the fullness of God.– Ephesians 3:17-19 (NASB)
We love, because He first loved us. – 1 John 4:19 (NASB)
As I was writing about God’s love this week, I remembered that the first sermon I gave was in 1984 in the church where I grew up. I titled the sermon, simply, “God’s Love”. I know this because I still have the bulletin from my confirmation Sunday when I preached it. I wish I had a copy of the sermon itself. I do still have a letter from our pastor at the time who told me that she hadn’t heard God’s love shared so simply and beautifully before and that she believed I had a call to continue to share God’s love with others in this way. I wonder how my 14 year-old self shared it? At the age of 55, I find God’s love to be so immeasurable and wonder how we can even describe it, especially in a short devotion.
God’s love isn’t something we can master or fully understand in one page, one prayer, or even one lifetime. Paul’s prayer in Ephesians 3 makes that clear: we need divine help to even begin to grasp the vastness of God’s love. Paul describes it in dimensions – width and length and height and depth – as if it stretches beyond our mental capacity.
But…did you notice what Paul prays for first? That we would be rooted and established in love. Like a tree, our understanding of God’s love must be planted in the soil of truth, nurtured by relationship, and strengthened over time. Roots grow deeper slowly and persistently. In the same way, our comprehension of God’s love should continually deepen, transforming us from the inside out.
A few years ago, my friend, Sue, gifted me with a lilac bush for our front yard. It was small and fragile and clearly needed help to survive the hot summer. I watered it every day, but I noticed something strange. The water seemed to run off the topsoil, without really soaking in. One day I stuck my finger into the dirt and realized it was dry just beneath the surface. The roots hadn’t grown deep enough to receive the life-giving water that was being poured out. I had to change how I watered – slower, more intentionally, and with breaks in between – so the water could really seep down over time. The bush is growing a little stronger now. (But friends, I am not a very good gardener, so, if you drive by and have ideas for help with that bush, I’m open to suggestions.) It did have a few small flowers on it this year.
Anyway…God’s love is like that water… it’s always available, always being poured out, but sometimes our hearts aren’t rooted deep enough to receive it. We may know about God’s love but haven’t truly let it soak down into who we are.
When we begin to truly grasp that we are deeply loved by the Creator of the universe, it changes everything!
It redefines our identity. We are not our past, our mistakes, or even our successes. We are beloved sons and daughters.
It shapes our relationships. If God loves us with such grace, how can we withhold that grace from others?
It grounds us in hard times. (Praise God, I have come to know this one well.) When blessings fade or trials come, we are not shaken because our roots are deep.
We love – not to earn love, not to be noticed, not out of obligation, but because He first loved us. God’s love empowers ours. God’s love is the source.