What Is "Sticky Love" and Why Does It Matter?
How would you describe how much God loves you? | Random Thoughts | Jesus Christ | Christianity
If you’re a not-yet follower of Jesus Christ, come on this journey with us. You are welcome here.
And, I invite you to read my series on the book “What Does God Want?”.
How Would You Describe God’s Love for You?
Hello, dear readers!
This is a quick post (“she always says that, Lol; don’t believe her”) due to a busy week.
Summer’s heat is fading into beautiful, early-autumn temperatures. We can finally sit out on our patio. I love to sit in the rear of our yard and watch the wild critters on the hillside: Lizards, humming birds, Gambel’s quail, roadrunners, cottontail bunnies, falcons, kestrels, and ravens. When I sit out there, I feel very close to my Abba, my Daddy, the Holy One of Israel, the Ancient of Days.
Mornings are quiet in our neighborhood, and I take advantage of that time to be still and listen to my Abba. The past couple of days, I’ve sat outside with the critters and thought about a verse that God brought my way: Jeremiah 9:24.
Here’s some backstory, first.
God’s Love for Us Means We Can Brag about Knowing Him
Over the decades, I’ve had people scoff at me when I happen to mention to them that I know God through Jesus Christ.
“You know God? Pshaw, that’s ridiculous. The audacity of you to say you know God. You must be crazy.”
Yup. I’ve had those words, and similar, slung at me. But, the glorious truth is that we Jesus followers can say that we know Him, and God Himself encourages us to brag about that, to boast with confidence that we know Him. He says so in His word:
Jeremiah 9:23-24 (BSB)
23 This is what the LORD says:“Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom,
nor the strong man in his strength,
nor the wealthy man in his riches.
24 But let him who boasts boast in this,
that he understands and knows Me,
that I am the LORD,
who exercises loving devotion
justice and righteousness on the earth—
for I delight in these things,”
declares the LORD.
Loving devotion.
God’s loving devotion.
The phrase “loving devotion” in ancient Hebrew is חֶ֫סֶד, or hesed, and that one word can mean all of these words: Kindness, love, goodness, faithfulness, and mercy; as well as loyalty to a covenant. Some translate hesed as “loyal love” or “steadfast love”, while others say it’s a “sticky” love.
God’s “sticky” love.
God’s hesed makes a firm commitment, a heartfelt promise with us.
Jesus fulfilled that promise through His death and resurrection.
And you can boast in this; you can brag about it with God’s permission.
God’s Promise-Keeping Love
I love this very short video on the word hesed from “Hebrew Bible Insights” on YouTube:
Select this link to watch this YouTube short. (Transcript is below the screen shot.)
Transcript: “The Hebrew word hesed is a special word. It means something like ‘covenant loyalty’ or ‘love that goes above and beyond the call of duty’. Because of God’s hesed, He saves His people from Egypt, forgives them when they betray Him, and He stays faithful to the covenant in spite of their spiritual infidelity. It is this hesed that pursues us in Psalm 23:6, and it is this love that God calls us to live by in Proverbs 3:3.
Your Turn
Think about God’s loving devotion toward you: His mercy, kindness, goodness, faithfulness toward you; His loyal, “sticky” love for you. Have you been living out the truth of God’s hesed for you?
Or, have you been listening to the evil one, the deceiver who messes with your head, with your thoughts? Has our enemy messed with how you think about God’s love for you, His beloved child?
If yes, put on God’s armor, beloved (Ephesians 6:10-20), especially the helmet of Jesus’ salvation. Meditate on God’s loving devotion, and then boast loudly to the spiritual realm that you know and love Almighty God.
Because He first loved you with His “sticky”, covenant-making, and promise-keeping love!
Let us pray…
Almighty God, my Abba, my Daddy, I come before You in Jesus’ name. Your loving devotion amazes me. You have saved me from my captivity to sin and death. You forgive me even when I fail you and I’m unfaithful. Thank You so much for your hesed toward me, for keeping Your promise by sending Your Son Jesus to be my righteousness. Thank You that if I confess my sins You are faithful and just to forgive me my sins and to cleanse me from all unrighteousness. Because of Your mercy, kindness, and faithfulness I will boast in this, that I understand and know You, that You are the LORD, who exercises loving devotion, justice, and righteousness on the earth. And, in my life! ~Amen
Maranatha, come Lord Jesus.
Soli Deo Gloria!
Conversation & Community
What do you think about God’s loving devotion, His hesed? Let’s chat about your journey together in the Comments!
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GOD bless you, Jenise, and yours. May the LORD overwhelm you and everyone with the blessing of His Loving presence.
"GOD’s love has been poured into our hearts."
Romans 5:1-5 ESV “Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because "God’s love has been poured into our hearts" through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.”
Poured into: filled with, given abundantly, bestowed upon, to convey as a gift, to give something that is precious, priceless."
Pursue: run after, seek, follow, continue to chase, engage, care for, hold on to, not let go, never leave, stay with.
Loyalty: faithful, constant, devoted, steadfast, dependable, trustworthy, unchanging, enduring, reliable.
“I Love you.”
Isaiah 43:1-28 NLT 4. “Others were given in exchange for you. I traded their lives for yours because you are precious to me. You are honored, and “I love you.”
And so, we pray.
Oh, LORD, yes, You alone are GOD. You are the only One, and there is no other.
Who are we that You would Love us so, who are we that You would pursue us even when we didn’t know You or desire You.
Oh, GOD, we know Your Love is loyal. Yes, Your Love is beyond amazing. It surpasses our understanding. And it is true, it is, You have poured Your Love into our hearts, overwhelming us with its everlasting greatness, so now we can only say with all that we are, LORD, "We love You too."
We Love You, LORD! We love You! Forever will we Love You!
Now, we ask You, our Loving GOD, to help us surrender our lives to You more and more, moment to moment, day by day, so You can use us to tell others about Your Love for them so they will also come to know You and be overwhelmed with Your dear Love.
We ask that Your unimaginable great Love will touch the hearts of all those souls You have placed in our lives, those beloved people who have yet to be changed by Your "precious, priceless everlasting Love."
Yes, this is our prayer.
In the mighty Name of Jesus Christ, our LORD and Savior, we pray. Amen
Thank You, LORD, for Loving us all.
"When you go through deep waters, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown. When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you." Isaiah 43:2 NLT
GOD bless you all!
"Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life, and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God.” John 6:68-69 ESV
Isaiah 43 Pt. 1 - I Love You || Bible in Song || Project of Love
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sUg78bHsBcA
This was perfectly timed--I've been meditating on חסד as found in Ruth. Even though Ruth is a Moabite, and technically outside the covenant, Naomi says God will show her this covenant love. It's so powerful to think on.