Christ Gave All

 •  1 min. read  •  grade level: 7
 
The Greek heiress who recently inherited the principal share of her father's estimated one billion dollar fortune has announced that half of it will be given to help the poor.
Such large-scale philanthropy is praiseworthy indeed; but how limited even so great a gift appears when compared with God's unspeakable gift! "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." John 3:16.
Again, the grace and love expressed by a gift is qualified by what the giver reserves for himself. The measure here is not what he gives, but what he keeps. Jesus, the Son of God, in His infinite love toward God and man, "gave all that He had"— not merely the half.
Again: "For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that ye through His poverty might be rich." 2 Cor. 8:9.
He held the highest place above,
Adored by all the sons of flame;
But such His self-denying love
He laid aside His crown and came
To seek the lost; and at the cost
Of heavenly rank and earthly fame
He saved me!
Blessed be His Name!
But the Apostle Paul goes further still to express the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ in all its divine fullness. In Galatians 2:20 He writes by the Holy Spirit:
"The Son of God who loved me and gave Himself for me."
What human mind can fathom or measure the gift of HIMSELF... of Jesus the Son of God?
"That Thou shouldst love me as Thou dost
And be the God Thou art,
Is darkness to my intellect
But sunshine to my heart."