John 17:26 “I have made you known to them, and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be in them.”

This High Priestly Prayer of Jesus, just before His horrible time of suffering, should absolutely blow us out of the water. It calls for meditation, humility, gratitude, and commitment. That the Son of God, the One through whom we were created, would care this much and in this way about us is absolutely incredible. I believe the Holy Spirit gave John perfect recall in recording this, and indeed, the whole Upper Room Discourse, because it needed to be preserved for believers down through the centuries, and human imagination would never have come up with it. There is a song that some would consider “cheesy,” but it touches on a profound truth: “The love of God is greater far than tongue or pen of men can tell.” We are not currently capable of grasping that love in totality, but that doesn’t mean we can’t experience it, enjoy it, and share it. After all, Jesus prayed that love would be in us, and He Himself in us! The question becomes the degree to which we open ourselves to that love, to allow that love to cleanse and shape and empower us. That love isn’t weak or in any way impure, so it is never an excuse for unrighteousness. It is, oddly enough, the basis for God’s judgment of the world, which doesn’t fit in with our usual understanding of love at all. It is perfectly holy and perfectly self-sacrificial, as Jesus demonstrated in the hours after He prayed this prayer. We need to ask and allow the Holy Spirit to work it into and through us, not just for our benefit but so that it will accomplish all that God intends, for His glory.

I knew when I was drawing up this Scripture reading list that I was operating under the anointing of the Spirit, and using it day by day has certainly confirmed that. I couldn’t say how many times I’ve read these words, but they are burning in me with a fresh intensity, and I am deeply grateful. I seek to be a channel of God’s love, and my failures in this area bother me deeply. I am very aware that our definitions and categories of love are inadequate, even using New Testament Greek. There is currently friction between me and a brother whom I care about deeply, and I don’t know how to heal the current wound. The Lord just gave me a surprising illustration on this very point. I was distracted from my thought patterns by how dirty my keyboard was, so I unplugged it from the computer and whacked it, upside down, against my hand. I got an amazing amount of junk out of it! Sometimes God’s love involves unplugging us, turning us upside down, and whacking us! That doesn’t fit any of our conventional ideas of love, but it is “maintenance” and correction we certainly need. I fear being “unplugged” from God, and I certainly don’t relish being “turned upside down and whacked,” but I know I can trust God to do to me, and for me, what I need, so I’m not to be anxious about anything. His love is big enough to handle anything!

Father, thank You for yesterday and all it held. Thank You for Your protection during that incredible cloudburst while I was driving home. Thank You for Your anointing in the fellowship we had. Thank You for Your plans for today. I pray that we would flow with Your Spirit on Your schedule each moment, so that Your purposes may be accomplished for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!