Fear His Love
6 min read
40 But the other criminal rebuked him. “Don’t you fear God,” he said, “since you are under the same sentence? 41 We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong.”
42 Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”
43 Jesus answered him, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.”
— Luke 23:40-43
How deep the Father’s love for us
How vast beyond all measure
That He should give His only Son
To make a wretch His treasure
How great the pain of searing loss
The Father turns His face away
As wounds which mar the Chosen One
Bring many sons to glory
Thursday is the day that everything starts to unfold. Jesus eats His last Passover meal with His disciples and washes their feet. Judas betrays Him to the Jewish authorities. Jesus goes with His disciples to the Garden of Gethsemane where He is arrested early the next morning—that is, Friday. He is tried, convicted, then crucified.
Of all the final statements of Jesus, the one that is most perplexing to me is “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they are doing” (verse 34). It’s not clear who Jesus is referring to, but I’ve come to the conviction that Jesus is referring to all humanity.
On the cross, Jesus died for all, so all are forgiven on the cross. However, that doesn’t mean that everyone gets saved. That offer of forgiveness has been extended to everyone, but that transaction is only completed when a person receives the forgiveness of God through faith.
There were two criminals hanging on their own crosses next to Jesus. One received that forgiveness; the other did not. Both criminals were suffering the same physical punishment that Jesus was suffering. But the one who received God’s forgiveness realized that there was a greater punishment still awaiting him.
“Don’t you fear God?”
No one likes to think about the wrath of God. And we often try to soften the idea of the “fear of God.” Oh, the fear of God is about awe and reverence and not about the fear of punishment. Oh, our good Father would never want to motivate us with the fear of punishment. Only abusive fathers do that!
Why do we feel so entitled to be in the hands of such a gentle father who is not the Father of Scripture? And besides, what kind of loving father would not warn his children about the punishment that is in store for wayward children?
The truth is, God’s wrath—God’s ultimate punishment—has already been unleased on this world. The death that we all face is a sign of that wrath, and the fullness of God’s wrath awaits everyone on the other side of death—if not for the sacrifice of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Jesus took that wrath—He took that punishment—on our behalf so that none of us would have to. But we have to believe and be “found in Him” in order to receive His substitution for us.
And when we do, the fear of God’s wrath vanishes, and all that remains is the fear of His love.
Love the Lord your God with all you got
Then you may learn to fear your God
Fear your God
Love the Lord your God with your heart, soul, strength, and mind
Fear the Lord your God
Fear His love for you
Father, Thank You for loving me. Thank You for saving me. Thank You for the cross, and thank You for forgiving me. May my life be guided by the fear of Your love. May the fear of Your love transform me into the holiness of Christ. In Jesus’s name. Amen.