Love That Came Down
Your Nightly Prayer
By Lynette Kittle
TONIGHT'S SCRIPTURE
“For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life” - John 3:16
SOMETHING TO PONDER
Growing up, John 3:16 was my absolute favorite Bible verse. It’s the memory Bible verse learned as a child that has stuck with me through the years from my earliest Scripture memorization.
Even as a child, it spoke to my heart and resonated with me. I seemed to grasp and understand in my childlike faith how God loved the world so much that He sent His only-begotten and beloved Son, Jesus, down to earth, so that we could live eternally.
John 3:16 says it all, the entire Gospel message and Good News presented in a nutshell, gloriously told, found, and summed up in this one verse. Who wouldn’t love it? A verse that tells God’s beautiful, perfect story that leads us to Himself.
Without God giving us Jesus, we would be lost forever, unable to save ourselves or anyone around us. But God’s immeasurable love led Him to move heaven and earth for us, to give us Salvation through His precious Son.
As Jesus describes and says it in John 15:13, “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”
Throughout history, we read, hear, and watch stories of men and women who fought to protect their lands and the lives of their people, losing their own lives at the hands of the enemy, so that their families and countrymen and women might be free to live.
Jesus’ story of coming is the greatest of all, of how He came down to earth in order to free all mankind from sin and death. In God giving us Jesus, He gave us a Savior who would defeat the enemy in a spiritual battle for our souls, setting us free and giving us eternal, everlasting life with Him.
Unlike losing his life at the hands of the enemy, in John 10:18, Jesus tells us that no one took His life, because He willingly laid down His life so that we might have life.
“No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of My own accord. I have the authority to lay it down and the authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father.”
YOUR NIGHTLY PRAYER
Dear Father, our hearts are moved by Your great love, a love that came down from Heaven to save us and give us eternal life. A love so moved by the brokenness of our fallen lives that You did what seemed impossible, to redeem us from sin and make us brand new, freeing us from sin and the penalty of it. Thank You for giving us eternal life, not because we earned it or deserve it, but because You are a God who loves and gives. Remind us tonight, Lord, and every night, of Your love that moved Heaven and earth to save us. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
THREE THINGS TO MEDITATE UPON
1. Think of the first time you read or heard John 3:16. Where were you? Did you understand what it was saying? Did it touch your heart and move your emotions?
2. In reading about God’s love, how does it make you feel? Do you believe that He is a loving and giving God? Does this verse convince you?
3. When you think of God, how do you describe Him? What are the first three words that come to your mind? Has God’s love touched your life? Have you received the life He gives?
Reflect on tonight’s prayer and share how God met you there. Join the Your Nightly Prayer discussion on the Crosswalk Forum.
Photo Credit: ©GettyImages/Romolo Tavani
Lynette Kittle is married with four daughters. She enjoys writing about faith, marriage, parenting, relationships, and life. Her writing has been published by Focus on the Family, Decision, Today’s Christian Woman, kirkcameron.com, Ungrind.org, StartMarriageRight.com, and more. She has a M.A. in Communication from Regent University and serves as associate producer for Soul Check TV.
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