While we were in Uganda, I had the opportunity to preach. As I prepared for my sermon, I was overwhelmed with what the LORD wanted me to share with the boys: the message of His love and redemption. It has been said that the Bible is–in its entirity–the story of Jesus. You cannot study any piece of the Bible without it ultimately coming back to Christ. I realized, as I read Joshua 2–the story of my favorite unlikely heroine, Rahab– for the 500th time in two days, that there was a metaphor there. There was a parallel.
Once upon a time, the story goes, there was a girl named Rahab, who was living in sin. She was a prostitute, living a life that she desperately wanted to leave. She heard about a god who was changing things up in her world. He was more powerful than she'd ever imagined. His people had favor that was completely unmatched. And she didn't know His name or what He was about, but she knew that He could offer her the new life she craved. So she took a chance that He would love someone as broken as she, and asked for His grace.
And Jesus answered her. He met her in her mess. He took care of her. He saved her life.
On one early morning in the beginning of April, I woke up in the middle of a really big mess. A mess so big I thought I'd never get out of it. And Jesus showed up. He held out His hands and said, "Come back to me, little one. Come home."
So I told the boys at Makobore Rahab's story. Then I told them mine. And then I told them that their stories were not, could not be, so much different from mine. I told them Jesus would show up in the middle of their mess, hold out His hands and say, "Come back to me, son. Come home." All they had to do was ask. All they had to do was say yes to a God who loved them so much that He would come near them regardless of the circumstances. That His love for us is so much greater than His hatred of our sin. He is love. He will come close in the middle of all kinds of evil and every sort of apathy to be with us.
Because it isn't a requirement that we love God in order for Him to also love us. On the contrary, we can love Him because He first loved us. He loves us because it is His unfailing character to love. He is love. He can do nothing but love us at our cores, even though He hates our sin.
And I realized, somewhere betweeen Kampala and Jinja today, what an enormous blessing it was to tell these boys that. But I have done a horrible job of telling this same truth to you, my readers. I love these boys with everything I am, don't get me wrong. But I love you just as much. I need to tell you that this is the essence of the gospel:
That Jesus meets you in the middle of your mess because He loves you more than you could ever imagine. He wants to be in relationship with you. He doesn't care if it has been 50 years since you walked into a church, or if it's been five minutes. He's not interested in your religion or your sacrafices. He doesn't want you to live devoid of His joy or His love or His peace.
–John 10:10
He came to close the gap that seperates you (because of sin) from Him and His presence.
-Isaiah 53:4-5
-Romans 5:8
-Ephesians 5:25
Because He loves you.
Let that sink in.
He. Loves. You.
Amen.
