Where is another God like you who…delights in showing unfailing love? Micah 7:18
Have you ever doubted God’s love for you? Has the enemy whispered lies into your head such as, “God could never love you after what you have done,” or, “You do not deserve His love?” Maybe the deception is more subtle, thinking you must perform XYZ before you are fully worthy of God’s love. And sometimes we project onto God our difficulty with loving unconditionally, subconsciously assuming that God loves in our imperfect fashion. Whatever is at the root, Satan tirelessly seeks to undermine our confidence in God’s perfect acceptance and love.
I am reminded of the popular song from the ‘70’s, “Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree.” Inspired by a Civil War love story in the Reader’s Digest, a soldier is returning home to Pennsylvania from being a prisoner of war for three years. He had written his sweetheart a letter informing her of his release and asking her to tie a yellow ribbon around the oak tree at the edge of town if she still loved him. If there was no yellow ribbon, he would just stay on the stagecoach and keep going. To his unimagined joy, there were 100 yellow ribbons tied around the old oak tree!
Similarly, we sometimes present God with requests for something that we believe will prove His love for us, or we believe in error that His love will be proven by certain actions on our behalf. But when we fully know and understand God’s love, we realize that He did not tie a yellow ribbon around a tree to speak of His love; He died a ribbon of red on a tree to demonstrate His love. God eternally sealed His unfailing love for us in that one sacrificial act of Jesus dying on the cross for our sin and salvation and seal of Christlikeness. The scarlet ribbon of Jesus’ blood and the Father’s love is woven throughout all of Scripture and time to remind us that His fatherly love for us always has been, is now, and forever will be. Likewise, our security in His love can be unchanging as Jesus instructed His disciples in John 15:9, “Just as the Father has loved Me, I also have loved you; remain in My love.”
We never need to doubt. We simply need to choose to trust and believe and ask Him to give us eyes to see and hearts to understand. Search for the evidence of His red ribbon of love woven throughout Scripture. When you really “get it,” you will experience unimaginable joy that does not ebb and flow with changing and difficult circumstances.
Today, pray and ask God by His Holy Spirit to help you “come to know and believe the love which God has for you” (I John 4:16).
