To Infinity and Beyond

One of my IPhone apps is a little miffed at me right now. I thought I was being so Susie Spiritual by getting this Bible app and doing a daily devotional with it. But now I’m stuck on one of the daily lessons and have been for three days. I feel that I should explore what God is telling me but my phone keeps reminding me that I’m behind. Today it even offered me some “catch up” options.

Now those who know me know that I can’t be involved with organized Bible studies because I’m a slow learner. It took me about a year to get through one 16 week study. One of my dear godly sister-friends said after a week that I could move on past verse 1. It took me over two months to do the 30 days of praise study with the choir. My music pastor Josh patiently waited.  So now even my phone wants me to get it and go on.

I guess I’m not so Susie Spiritual as I thought. I’m stuck with a wonderment and comprehension issue I encountered in Ephesians 3:17-19.

“So that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith: and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to the fullness of God.”

After reading this I felt that all the saints had left me in the dust. I felt like saying, Hey, wait for me!” as they went on comprehending how wide, long, high, and deep is Christ’s love.

I read several commentaries by learned theologians about this passage.

One commentary said that the love of Christ did not begin at the cross, or at His birth, or even when the original man sinned. But that the love of Jesus was there for man before the earth was even created, or before the beginning, He loved.

One theologian said that when we first believe in Christ we have no clue of how much Christ loves us. We just believe He does. But as we grow in spiritual knowledge we get closer to really understanding the breadth, length, height, and depth of God’s love for mankind.

One learned man said that it is one of the mysteries of the faith – to comprehend the love of Christ that surpasses comprehension.

But it was actually my sister that put it into a picture I can understand. She said imagine the cross as it stretches vertically to infinity in both directions and horizontally to infinity in both directions. That is how much Jesus loves us.

Now with this picture I can run with the saints. I can move on to the next lesson on my IPhone. (I wonder if it will thank me.) I can comprehend a little better how wide and long (eternal infinity) and how high and deep (eternal infinity) is the love that Jesus Christ has for us. Jesus LOVES little ole me and little ole you.

I can add this to the cartoon astronaut action figure’s saying:

Yes, Jesus loves me.

Yes, Jesus loves me.

Yes, Jesus loves me,

(to infinity and beyond!)