“The Father has an intense love for me because I freely give my own life—to raise it up again.” John 10:17 (TPT)
How much does Jesus love you?
His words and actions speak loud and clear. In fact, John 10:17-18 is a very revealing piece of Scripture because Jesus says something with love written all over it: “I freely give my own life.” That means He had a choice not to. After all, if someone coerces, manipulates or forces you to do something, you can’t say you’re doing it freely, can you?
God could have told Jesus, “You don’t have a choice. I’m commanding You to go die for the human race.” But He didn’t do things that way. Why?
It was so that you and I could understand God’s love for Jesus and see Jesus’ love for us too. You see, true love must always involve free choice. God showed how much He loved Jesus by giving Him options. He didn’t force Christ to suffer and die for the world.
I can imagine God saying to Jesus, “I’m requesting You do this. But in asking this of You, I’m also giving You the freedom at any time to say You won’t. You can sacrifice Your life and take it back up again, or You can change your mind and not do it at all.”
What we know for sure is that Jesus stepped in and voluntarily paid the price for the punishment we deserve so that we wouldn’t have to—not out of obligation or duty, but out of love. He had the choice to spare Himself, but instead He selflessly bought our freedom and made a way for us to be right with Him.
What an incredible picture of true love!