35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or distress or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 As it is written:
“For Your sake we face death all day long;
we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor principalities, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
REFLECTIONS
Written by Keith Hengpoonthana
We have all experienced love of one sort or another in our life, whether from family members, friends, or even strangers who you have only just met. If you ask people at random to define what love is, you will probably get many different answers. Some will define it as a feeling, while others see it as about your actions. Either way, worldly love is temporary and unstable. We fall in and out of love, we sometimes fail even those we love most, and eventually we will be separated from those we love in this world.
What if someone was to love you for who you are, despite all of your flaws and external features? What if that love was forever and nothing could separate you from it? What if that love also builds you up, protects and nurtures you, overcomes all hardship and troubles, and even brings you back to life from death?
The love of God that is in Jesus Christ our Lord is that love. When you are feeling lonely and unloved, when you are experiencing grief and distress, and when you feel like something is missing in your life, take the time to reflect on this passage. This is real and true love, something only God can give, because “God is love” (1 John 4:8). This love can only come from the creator God, and you simply cannot get it from things or people in this world.
Also remember that whenever you feel like your sin is too big to be forgiven and you feel distant from God, then as long as you have put your trust in Christ, nothing can ever separate you from His love for you, all because of the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. When you are going through hard times and struggling in life, maybe you feel like God is not with you. Nothing could be further from the truth! God is always with you, and it is impossible for anything to separate you from his love.
It’s a good thing to know that someone loves you. What Paul shows us is that, however much anyone in this world loves you, their love is only a tiny speck compared to how wide and long and high and deep is the love of God in Christ for you (Ephesians 3:14-19). Keep these verses in your heart, a love letter like no other.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Keith is a member of our Bossley Park morning congregation.