Jesus said in John 3:16, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life.”
We are so loved. So means: in this way, as shown to such a degree and very. The Father loved us so much, so fully and completely that He gave Himself. Remember that the Father, Spirit and Son are One.
Jesus then said in John 17:3 “And this is eternal life, that they may know Thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom Thou hast sent.”
How? The same way you get to know someone, by spending time with them, you abide with them. Look at John 15:4:
Remain in Me, and I in you. Just as the branch cannot bear fruit of itself but must remain in the vine, so neither can you unless you remain in Me.
I looked up the word ‘in’. It means: expresses inclusion and presence. He wants to include you in His life. He wants you to know Him as He knows you. He wants to hang out with you! Philip, one of Jesus’ disciples, said in John 14:8 and 9:
“Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.” Jesus said to him, “Have I been so long with you and yet you have not come to know Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; how do you say, ‘Show us the Father’?”
And in John 12:45:
“And he who beholds Me beholds the One who sent Me.”
A lot of times we are just like Philip. We’ve met Jesus but never take the time to sit with Him and get to know Him, to know His voice and His likes and dislikes and get to know His love and just to hear His heart.
A lot of times, we can tend to put our natural father’s face over our holy Father’s face so we use our father as the standard for our Heavenly Father. I had a wonderful dad, but he was human. Some people have had absent fathers or abusive fathers.
In 1 John 4:10 we read, In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.
I looked up propitiation and it means that which appeases anger and brings reconciliation with someone who has reason to be angry with one.
The Father had every right to be angry, because people are well, people. We do yucky stuff. But I have only heard the Father speak in anger once in all of my years knowing Him. I was on Him all day about something. “Father, You need to…” “I wish You would…” All day long. I was seriously hagging on the Lord and was even wagging my head. I stepped into the shower that night and I heard a loud, booming voice, “Who do you think you are?” I looked up at the skylight, covered myself and said, “Nobody, and I’m naked!”
Paul tells us in Romans 5:8 that Jesus died for us when we were yet sinners. He reminds us in Romans 8:35 that nothing can separate us from the love of God, that we’re more than conquerors through Him who loved us. (Romans 8:37-39)
I looked up the word through and it means from end to end of and from side to side of. It reminds me of Psalm 103:12:
As far as the east is from the west, So far has He removed our transgressions from us.
He cleared the path so we can know Him as Love! Look what the disciple John wrote about himself in John 13:23:
There was reclining on Jesus’ breast one of the disciples, whom Jesus loved.
John knew Jesus’ love. He was confident in knowing he was fully known and fully loved. So loved. May we know this as John did.
You, beloved one, are fully known and fully loved by the One who made you and calls you His. He’s not mad at you and He’s not going to disown you when you mess up. I encourage you to see the Father through the lens of Jesus, not your natural father. Sit with Him and get to know His voice. If you’re not sure you’re hearing His voice, ask Him to help you hear Him and know in your knower that it is Him. He is the Most Wonderful!
Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself and God our Father, who has loved us and given us eternal comfort and good hope by grace, comfort and strengthen your hearts in every good work and word. And from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the first-born of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who loves us, and released us from our sins by His blood, and He has made us to be a kingdom , priests to His God and Father, to Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen. (2 Thessalonians 2:16-17 and Revelation 1:5-6)
