His Unchanging Love to Usward 

Text

Ephesians 5:1. J.N.D.

Christ loved us, and delivered [gave] Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God, for a sweet-smelling-savour.

 Revelation 5:1. J.N.D.

To Him who loves us, and has washed us from our sins in His blood.

Address

It must be observed that Christs’ sacrifice of “Himself” was first and foremost “to God;” and that His offering of Himself embraced and fulfilled the purposes of every offering and sacrifice ever made to God. And His sacrifice of Himself infinitely transcended all and every one of them as the perfect sacrifice of a sweet-smelling- savour. Nothing had ever, nor will ever prove to be a sweeter fragrance to Him.

But the purport of my feeble thoughts are concentrated upon Christ’s inexhaustible, unconditional and eternal love for His own. His love is stronger than death and even divine judgement, if I might so speak of it in reverential awe. 

“Many waters cannot quench [His] love, neither do the floods drown it,” we joy to cry with the Bride of old. S.of S. 8:7. 

I feel that the would direct our thoughts away from the various offerings and sacrifices of the old economy, even though they speak so eloquently of Christ; and indeed have been fulfilled, and are being fulfilled perfectly in Him. Therein lies their spiritual value and blessings for believers now.

I think that the Holy Spirit thus focuses our attention on the Saviour “Himself.” He would occupy our hearts with “Himself.”He would channel our thoughts and reflections toward “Himself.” He would thoroughly occupy our hearts with “Himself.” For here He is presented to us as both Offerer and Offering, Sacrifice and Victim.

To us it is the profoundest display of the unspeakably immeasurable magnitude of His love for us! He could not have loved us more! 

But for a moment in rapt contemplation of Him there nailed to Golgothas’ accursed tree we may perhaps hesitate; for the Word reads, “Christ hath loved us,” that is He has loved us once, the tense in the Greek being aorist, that is at a point in the expanse of time, whether past, present or future, especially in the past. So then He once so loved us, with a love beyond compare, comprehension, and expression! 

But of course that is not the import of the Word of the Spirit of God. It is rather His purpose to convey the wonder of His all-atoning finished work, wrought in unimaginable sacrificial, and suffering love! Ineffable love to usward, once. For that can never be repeated, and thus it is so perfectly and preciously disclosed here in the Word of God.

But He did verily “deliver Himself up, give Himself,” give His all, once for all, for ever!

But what of that love? Has it diminished since Calvary? Far be the thought! “To Him that loves us,” J.N.D. “loveth us,” R.V. Thus, He has never ceased to love us! He has loved us from all eternity! He 2loves us now, and He will never cease to love us. And He will love us throughout time and eternal ages! And best of all, He loves us in the same measure, and magnitude, and with the same ardency, and the same intensity as He did at Calvary. Indeed, He loves us there upon the Throne of God as He did on the Tree of Golgotha!

“And He has washed us from our sins in His blood,” once for all forever! And He has provided “the water” of His Word for our “feet-washing,” so as to cleanse us from all defilement that attaches to us during our earthly sojourn through this wilderness scene. Ephesians 5:26.

The substance of a "thought" that came upon my heart when "Breaking Bread" with the Lord "in the midst" of a little gathering of His own.