The Persistent Love of Jesus.
Learning to make your home in the perfect love of Jesus.
If we sit quietly for a moment and reflect on the birth of Jesus, one truth rises above the rest: the deepest part of God’s heart toward us is love. Advent reminds us of this reality and invites us to experience Jesus’ perfect and persistent love.
Unfortunately, when it comes to God’s love for us, you and I are prone to two problems:
1. We struggle to believe God truly loves us.
Sure we might understand it intellectually, but deep down inside, we don’t feel His love. There is a tragic mixture of spiritual, emotional, and relational factors that cause us to be very skeptical that God could truly love us. The consequence of which is that we’re prone to keep Him at a distance and forfeit the attachment and healing He longs to bring to our lives.
2. We struggle to embody Jesus’ love toward ourselves and others.
Because we’re unconvinced God loves us, we’re prone to be impatient and unkind. We’re jealous and proud. We’re dishonoring and often self-seeking. We’re easily angered and keep a mental list of every hurt that justifies the resentment we often feel.
Despite all this, there is good news. Jesus came to show us that His love is far greater and more reliable than our doubts and fears. As Jesus Himself declared in John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son.” Advent invites us to not only believe in Jesus’ love but to rest in it and embody it.
Advent: An Invitation to Experience Jesus’ Love
In John 15:9-10, Jesus offers us three truths about His love that can transform the way we live. Let’s take a closer look.
1. Jesus Has Fixed His Perfect Love Upon You
Jesus begins by assuring us that His love is as perfect and complete as the Father’s love for Him:
“As the Father has loved me, I have also loved you. Remain in my love.”
(John 15:9)
The love Jesus describes here is not fleeting or conditional. The Greek verb He uses emphasizes a completed state, meaning His love for us is permanent and unchanging.
This means you never have to wake up wondering if God loves you.
Consider thinking about God’s love like the predictability of the sun. My guess is you’re pretty confident the sun is going to both rise and set every day like it has every day in history. I would bet you’ve never had a morning where you woke up and anxiously thought, “I wonder if the sun will come up today.” You know why? Because that’s what it does every day. In fact, in Hosea 6:3 and Lamentations 3:22-23, both compare God’s faithfulness to that of the sun.
So here’s what this means:
The past, present, and future state of Jesus’ heart for you is love.
The problem is, we’re prone to believe that we have the power to influence God’s love for us. So when we cross all our t’s and dot all our i’s, we feel that God loves us. But when we fall on our face, we believe God turns away, is irritated, or doesn’t love us anymore.
But that isn’t what Jesus declares in John 15. Jesus says His love does not ebb and flow. God doesn’t love us more when we’re good and less when we’re not. In his book, “The Ragamuffin Gospel,” the late Brennan Manning reminds us that
“[God] is not moody or capricious; He knows no season of change. He has a single relentless stance toward us: He loves us.”
Here’s one way you might consider combatting the false thought that God doesn’t love you. Take a few moments each day to reflect on and write down the ways you see God’s love in your life—whether it’s the warmth of the sun, a kind word from a friend, or the strength to face a hard day. Over time, you’ll build a mountain of reminders that His love is fixed upon you.
2. Jesus Invites You to Make Your Home in His Love
Jesus goes on to say,
“Remain in my love.”
(John 15:9)
The word “remain” comes from the Greek word meno, which means to stay, abide, or make your home. Eugene Peterson translates this as, “Make yourselves at home in my love.”
Sometimes I wonder if we’re inclined to interact with God’s love more like we would a hotel than a home.
A hotel is temporary. You crash for a short amount of time and then you leave. You’re not putting up your own art, buying your own furniture, and raising your family in it. Unless you’re a sociopath, you’re not even unpacking your suitcase and putting your clothes in the unnecessary drawers in every hotel room (I’m kidding. You might actually do that😬).
All jokes aside, I believe one significant reason we struggle to truly believe in God’s love is that we often approach Jesus’ love in this superficial manner.
We attend church services a few times a month, sing a few songs, listen to a sermon that may remind us of God’s love, and occasionally listen to worship music while driving to work. We might also read a Christian book or the Scriptures occasionally.
While I don’t intend to diminish the positive aspects of these activities, I can’t help but wonder if Jesus had a deeper intention in mind. Jesus invites us not just to visit His love occasionally but to remain, to abide, and to make our home there.
So what might it look like for you to make Jesus’ love your home? What spiritual practices might better position you to make your home in Jesus’ love? Think of these spiritual practices as pathways to that. Practices like prayer, reading Scripture, or simply sitting quietly in God’s presence are not tasks to check off but opportunities to abide in His love. As you look ahead, consider which spiritual habits might help you create a sense of “home” in His love.
3. Trusting Obedience Secures Your Experience of His Love
Finally, Jesus provides this direction:
“If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love.”
(John 15:10)
Now, let’s be clear about something.
Jesus is not saying that when you fail to obey, the faucet of His love shuts off.
He is not saying that He stops loving you.
He is not saying that His feelings toward you are conditional.
Jesus is referring to our experience, not His heart toward us. Conforming our lives to the way of Jesus helps to safeguard our experience of His love. Despite this, sometimes we still bristle at the idea of “obedience.” This can be especially true if you grew up in a legalistic or religiously restrictive environment. Furthermore, most of us have so many examples of corrupt authority that we are understandably, and sometimes justifiably, suspicious.
But think about a lighthouse. A lighthouse exists to serve as a navigational aid. The purpose of a lighthouse is to guide ships safely through dangerous waters. As a result, they signal the presence of obstacles such as rocky coastlines, reefs, or shallow waters. So a lighthouse stands as a necessary warning. It signals to approaching ships, “If you come too close this way, you will in fact crash. It’s going to go really bad for you.” So if you’re the sailor, it’s in your best interest to obey that warning, agreed? The same thing is true of Jesus’ commands.
The commands of Jesus are meant for our care.
Jesus isn’t trying to suppress our enjoyment of life with a long list of dos and don’ts. He’s trying to help us build flourishing lives.
So ask yourself: Where might Jesus be asking me to trust Him? Whether it’s forgiving someone, stepping out in faith, or letting go of control, obedience is a way of leaning into His love and care.
Perfect and Persistent Love
Advent reminds us that Jesus’ love is neither fleeting nor conditional—it is perfect and persistent. It doesn’t waver when we doubt, struggle, or fall short.
So take a moment to reflect:
Where do you need to embrace Jesus’ love today? Is there an area of your life where you need to believe, for the first time or the thousandth, that His love is fixed on you?
How can you make His love your home? What rhythms or practices might help you rest in His love more consistently?
Where is Jesus inviting you to trust Him? Is there an area where obedience could help you experience His love more fully?
Advent is a season of anticipation, a reminder that Jesus’ birth wasn’t just a moment in history—it was an invitation to live in His love every day. You don’t have to earn it or prove yourself worthy of it. All He asks is that you receive it, rest in it, and trust Him enough to surrender to His care.
Let’s live in the truth of Jesus’ perfect and persistent love today.