What Does It Mean to Be Loved by Jesus — John Piper

God's Love Revealed Through Knowing and Enjoying Him

Measure God's love for you by how much of himself he shows you. Measure the love of God for you by how much of himself he gives you to know and enjoy through it all, and then to everlasting glory in due time.

You've tasted it, haven't you? You know what I mean? Before we go and watch Jesus walk now to Bethany and then work this out with Mary and Martha and the grave, let's just confirm this because this is huge.

I hope you can feel how huge this is. This is huge, so I want you to get this really deep down so you feel loved in the way God means for you to feel loved. So let me confirm it with two other passages in John.

God's Love and the Promise of Everlasting Life

Surely someone will say to me, rightly, well, when I think about the love of God for me, I think about John 3 16. I don't think about 11 5. For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son that whoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life.

And to that I say, yes, yes, yes, me too. All my life long, me too. Now let me ask you this, what's eternal life? What's this gift that cost him his son's life? Let Jesus define it. You know where he defines it in this gospel?

Eternal Life as Knowing God and Jesus

Crystal clear definition. Chapter 17 verse 3, here's what he says, this is eternal life that they know you, the true God and Jesus whom you have sent, period. That's eternal life. To know him, to know him forever, to know him with increasing knowledge and increasing admiration and increasing wonder and increasing joy, that's eternal life.

If you say it's eternal golf, I'm always picking on golf, sorry. Sorry, David. Whatever. No, it's eternal him. More and more and more like a great alpine range and you crawl up over the first range after 10 ,000 years and there's another one to climb.

And you crawl up over that range of glory after 10 ,000 years, there's another one to climb and you're never, never bored. It's all him. Eternal life is God revealed in his glory, satisfying this cavernous longing that's in your heart that you're trying to fill up with television or internet or whatever.

It's God. You are amazing creatures made, the only ones on the planet made to do this. Know him. That's the first confirmation. Confirmation number two, chapter 14, verse 21, Jesus says, whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me.

Obedience and the Manifestation of Jesus' Presence

And he who loves me will be loved by my father and I will love him and manifest myself to him. I love that phrase. I will love them and manifest myself to them. That's what love is. I just want you to feel loved by Jesus when he does that for you.

Christian Love Means Receiving More of Christ

You have to have a different view of love than the world. I admit that, but we are born again. Our citizenship is in heaven. We're new creatures. We don't think like the world. To be loved for the Christian is to get more of him.

Go ahead, Jesus. Manifest yourself to me and I will feel loved.