“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: while we were still sinners,
Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8

Have you ever had someone tell you they loved you, but their actions communicated differently? Maybe those words sounded like an empty Hallmark greeting card—platitudes and sentiments, but no fire and fury. Or maybe the person who spoke those words was manipulative or abusive—they didn’t love you, they loved to use you for the advantage or interest you provided them. Or maybe that person wasn’t threatening; they just didn’t pay that much attention to you. They had more important things to do. Investing in you was more like making a payment or writing a check. It was a responsibility but not a passion.

If the insufficient love of people has triggered you to doubt the depth of the love of God, the cross should settle those doubts once and for all time. God didn’t just say that he loves you; he walked through hell to prove it. He didn’t just erase your sins like a teacher erases a blackboard; he paid a personal price to show it.

God has taken the pain of injustice and the scourge of sin into his own heart and into his own family. He offered his son Jesus to show your belovedness. Jesus entered the filthy business of our suffering. The shepherd has become the lamb. The judge has become the abused. He walked through our tragedy, carried our grief, and stepped into the ultimate torment so we wouldn’t have to.

Don’t let doubt steal your joy today. Don’t let anyone accuse God of being disinterested or uninvolved. You are beloved! At the height of your unworthiness, You. Are. Loved! In the depth of your depravity, God pursued you. That is an uncontestable fact of history, pounded into the timbers of time. God proved your worth to him on that terrible cross. The Savior’s arms are open wide, just as the Father is inviting you into his affectionate embrace.

Tags: love, cross, atonement, sacrifice, suffering, passion, shame, sins, brokenness, payment, unworthy