Why would God give the most precious thing He possesses to people who rebel against Him? The answer leads to the cross—and to a love whose depth even eternity cannot fully fathom. By Ellen White

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How can God’s love even be put into words—that love which led Him to give His only begotten Son to die for sinners? Our minds are not sufficient for this. Even people of extraordinary intellectual gift cannot grasp this love through thought and knowledge alone. Those who do not know God personally cannot truly understand even the deepest divine truths or convey them to others.

They do not see in nature the Creator who stands behind it, and therefore do not recognize how His love is revealed in the flowers of the field, which adorn our world with their beauty and, as it were, speak of His goodness. They have scarcely any inkling of the length and breadth, the height and depth of God’s love, which is shown in the fact that He gave His Son to this world. Even in nature, they perceive the traces of His love only with dull, dormant senses. The God who once said, “Let there be light,” and thus caused light to burst forth from the darkness, has not yet caused the light to dawn in their hearts that would have shown them His beauty and love—that light which shines from the face of Jesus Christ.

God Himself has revealed His love, and Jesus Christ is the most perfect expression of that love. “In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent His only Son into the world, so that we might live through Him. This is what love is: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.” (1 John 4:9–10)

What love! A love that surpasses all measure! Even while we were still sinners, the Father had compassion on us and loved us. And yet, it is precisely when trials and difficulties beset us that we see how weak our faith often is.

Those who keep themselves apart from God live without true communion with heaven, even though the Holy Spirit is promised to all who ask for Him. Jesus explained this truth to us in a way that everyone can understand: “If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” (Luke 11:13)

God’s love is so deep and so all-encompassing that it could only be expressed by His giving up His beloved Son for us—and subjecting Him to poverty, shame, humiliation, mockery, and finally death. No more precious sacrifice could have been given to the world. In the Anointed One, heaven gave us itself.

“He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?” (Romans 8:32)
Through the Messiah, the way between God and humankind was reopened. God’s justice and glory remain intact; at the same time, each of His divine attributes stands out all the more clearly. And it becomes evident to every person that salvation and righteousness are possible.

Herein lies the mystery of redemption: it was permitted that the innocent, pure, and holy Son of the infinite God bear the punishment of an ungrateful, rebellious race that had risen up against God’s rule. Through this incomparable love, even these rebels were to gain trust in God, love Him again, and be able to approach Him in repentance and forgiveness—free from guilt, as if they had never sinned.

Even the angels in heaven marveled that God’s wrath was to be poured out upon His beloved Son. A life of infinite value, precious in the heavenly courts, was given in exchange for the wretched life of a humanity disfigured by sin.

The Heir of God came into our world and took on human form. He did not live as a ruler, but in the humble circumstances of a man of lowly birth and as one who served others.

As the hour drew near when He was to lay down His life on the cross, His love was revealed in these words: “Now Jesus, knowing all that was to happen to Him, went out.” (John 18:4)

He knew not only that He would die. He also knew the shame and humiliation that lay ahead of Him, and He knew how cruelly He would be treated. No one forced him to take upon himself this shameful death on the cross. Yet he gave himself as a sacrifice for sin.

God’s will to save the world was also the will of the Anointed One. His love was one with the Father’s love. And this love drove him on.

Here God’s love is revealed—a love that is inexpressible, immeasurable, and ultimately beyond human comprehension. We cannot grasp its full extent. But we should strive with all our might to pass this saving love on to others.

Infinite eternity will reveal this love to us ever more deeply. And then we will come to understand what we cannot yet comprehend here.

From: Bible Echo, November 25, 1895