THINK TOGETHER
Who is someone you love? Why do you love them?
READ TOGETHER
The book of Matthew tells us the story of when Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist. It's a story that shows us the love of the Father for the Son. Listen to how Matthew describes what happened when Jesus was baptized:
Matthew 3:16-17. 16 And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; 17 and behold, a voice from heaven said, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased."
When Jesus came out of the water God opened up the sky and spoke to everyone. Wow! And what did God say? He said that he loves Jesus and that Jesus pleases him. Has anyone ever told you that they love you, or that you make them happy? Have you ever told anyone that you love them, or that they make you happy?
If you have heard someone say "I love you," then you know how good it feels to be loved unconditionally. What does "unconditionally" mean? It means you are loved no matter what. It means you are loved simply because you are loved. It means you are loved without having to earn that love. It means you will be loved even if you mess up, or do something wrong. God loves us unconditionally. He loves us because he loves us. Not because of what we do to earn his love.
God the Father told Jesus that he loved him, and that he was happy with him BEFORE Jesus did anything important on earth. And God loves us the same way. God loves us before we do anything good. In fact, he loves us even when we are sinners. Before we ever did anything good, and before we ever loved God, he sent Jesus to die in our place on the cross. The cross is how we know God loves us first.
God doesn't love you because your good, or smart, or helpful, or tall, or short, or athletic, or talented. He loves you simply because he loves you. He loves you for you. He loves you even when your bad. He loves you no matter what.
Because of Jesus we can know that we are always loved by God no matter what.
With Jesus we can choose to love others no matter what.
DO SOMETHING TOGETHER
Let someone know that you love them no matter what (unconditionally). Maybe write a note to someone saying, "I love you just because."
PRAY TOGETHER
Jesus, I am loved by God just like you are. Help me to love others too. Amen.
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