His Indelible Love

I walked into a room in our house where the t.v. had been left on and playing on that channel was one of those shows about tattoo artists and I got sucked into watching it pretty fast. Not my usual thing, but it was interesting.

A man came into the tattoo parlor with some pictures and a story behind the tattoo he wanted inked over his heart. It seems when he was very young, he and his dad were flying in a small plane and as a strong wind kicked up, the plane’s tail went up and the nose went down, threatening both of their lives.

His dad’s instinct was to save his son. He used his own body as a shield between the life of his child and the ground they screamed toward below. His dad made the ultimate sacrifice with his very life.

The man had brought in a newspaper clipping with a picture of the plane crash and a picture of his dad holding him when he was a baby. His request was to have a collage of sorts with the picture of the two of them and the date that his dad saved his life permanently memorialized over his heart as a reminder of his dad and the gift of life he had given to him that day.

More than once the man remarked that he was indeed special to have received that kind of gift. Only a precious few have faced death and have been loved enough by someone that they willingly gave their life for their loved one’s. The joy on his face at being loved that much by his father was palpable.

How could the analogy have been made any more plain?

Jesus Christ came to give His own life to act as a shield between our souls and hell. He placed Himself in harm’s way, giving His very life to pay for our sins so that we wouldn’t have to face punishment for them ourselves.

If we’ve put our faith in Jesus Christ, not only have we been given a second chance in this life, but we’ve been given the gift of eternal life.

How incredibly special is that?

Just think of the magnitude of God’s love for you - that He sent His only Son to die for you. And what’s more, God kept loving you until you were brought to the place of repentance and faith in Him and you became His child.

If we daily remember how privileged we are to be loved so much that Jesus Christ willingly gave His very life for us, then we, too, will beam with joy at the very precious gift we’ve been given.

Now I’m not saying we should have that sentiment indelibly inked onto our bodies, but we can have the joyful remembrance that His love will always be written on our hearts.

“No one has greater love than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” John 15:13