Gentle and Lowly, Chapter 23 - “Buried in His Heart Forevermore”

“What’s the meaning of everything?”

Dane Ortlund really swings for the fences with that question. Throughout the book, we have looked at the love of God in the individual parts of the story of redemption to see Christ’s love displayed in all of those parts. To bring us to the conclusion of the book, Ortlund zooms back out to the biggest picture of all: the meaning of life, of why we are here, and what God’s love has to do with it.

We start with the typical, “churchy,” and correct answer that the purpose of life and of everything is to glorify God. That is indeed the reason we are here and the only reason that can truly make us who we were made to be. Ortlund also notes a most traditional answer for how we glorify God—by obeying Him. This is also a correct answer. The Creator created us to live as He called us to live. We absolutely should live in obedience to the word and way of God in order to glorify Him.

But then we see that, at the center of the command to glorify God, is that we glory in the love that Christ has for us. His love is “how God’s glory surges forth further and brighter than it ever could otherwise.” We exist so that Christ would love us. As Christ pours out His love on us, God is glorified by that love. As Christ pours out His love on us, we respond in love and obedience—and God is glorified by that love. And, as we look forward to eternity with Him, we know that all we will experience is that love, fully seen by us as it should be. The fullest vision of God awaits us forever and ever—all thanks to the overwhelming, never ending love of Christ. Let us rejoice in that love now and forever!