Recently I was reading the area of scripture in Matthew 21:15-17 where Jesus said to Peter, Peter, do you love me? He asked him this question three times. Each time Peter told the Lord that he did love Him. I thought that Jesus just wanted to hear Peter say, “Lord, I love you.” Then I learned the Lord never just wants this or that one thing. There is always more.
Each time he was asked this, Peter said Lord you know that I love you. So, this made me wonder if I had ever heard the Lord say to me, “Allen, I love you.” Then it came to me that I know that the Lord loves me. So why then would I need to hear Him say it when I know Him to be it?
Here is what I learned. The Lord was asking Peter for more than to hear Him say I love you. And likewise, He was telling me there are better ways to know He loves me. Yes, hearing Him speak those words to us would be great, but being Lord to us is a greater demonstration of the fact that He loves us.
In Jeremiah 31:3 the Lord is speaking to Jeremiah about His love for the people of God at that time. He is telling him that He will not leave them alone. He wanted the people to know that He loved them. But they had been in captivity for a long time and probably wondered if they were loved by anyone.
Jeremiah 31:3 says, “The Lord of old has appeared to me saying: Yes, I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore, with kindness I have drawn you.” If you need to hear the Lord, say He loves you, hear what He is saying here.
He is not speaking to Jeremiah, just about Jeremiah. He is asking Jeremiah to speak to the people what God says to the people. God loves us with an everlasting love. That means His love for us will never cease. In this He says to you He loves you. You should hear that before you see that.
It is in His kindness towards us that He says to us I love you. His kindness says I love you and His I love you speaks through His kindness. You should hear that.
It is in His grace towards us that He says to us I love you. His grace says I love you and His I love you speaks through His grace towards you. You should hear that.
It is in Him forgiveness towards us that He says to us I love you. His forgiveness says I love you and His I love you speaks through His forgiveness towards you. You should hear that.
It is in His gift of salvation for us that He says I love you. His salvation says I love you and His I love you speaks through His salvation for us. You should hear that. For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son.
The gift of the Lord speaks of His love for you and His love for us is captured in His gift of His Son.
He loves you. Can you hear those words in your life today? Look around at all your life. The “I love you” words are everywhere because He is an everlasting God who loves us with everlasting Love who is Everlasting Love towards us all.
If you have ever experienced anything of God, you have heard Him say I love you. He loves you. Now hear that always.
Live a Delivered Life. Love you.
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