O give thanks to the LORD, for he is good;
for his steadfast love endures forever.
Let the redeemed of the LORD say so,
those he redeemed from trouble
and gathered in from the lands,
from the east and from the west,
from the north and from the south. Psalm 107:1-3
Some people want to put limits on God’s love. We want to declare who’s in and who’s out. What behaviors are forgivable what behaviors are unforgivable. Some will exclude others for what they perceive as sin, even if it is not. One recent religious leader was removed from his post because he wanted to exclude people who voted for a certain political party that he disagreed with. We like to put limits on God’s love.
Fortunately, our declared limits do not stop God’s radical love as the author of our psalm writes, “O give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever.” God’s love is unending; there is no physical limit to it! It covers all. As we read in John 3:16-17, “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.” Jesus came to redeem the world!
The Psalmist emphasizes this when he writes, “those he redeemed from trouble,” which is all of us. And in case we want to put borders around God’s love, the Psalmist continues “…and gathered in from the lands, from the east and from the west, from the north and from the south.” East, west, north and south; that pretty much covers all of creation. This is great news! No thing and no place can separate us from God’s love. Knowing this we are free to go out today and risk for the LORD, because no matter what, God loves us!
Pastor Tim
