Where is the Love? pt 3

I have three friends who suffer from schizophrenia. Because i spend four hours a day with them, i have come to adore their different personalities. Once you see past the mental illness, you see a man, just like any other, longing to love and be loved - searching.

First is Morgan* who paces a lot, talking to himself. He took to me right away and sat down with me to read the Bible. On good days, he would excitedly read and explain the scriptures to me (mostly accurate). On bad days, he would claim to be Jesus.

Geff* would not read with me, but he read the few verses i had taped to the wall. One day he came to me with a smile on his face, "I read those Christian writings you put up."

Tyrone* is the most unstable of the three. Whenever he had a moment of violent tears or outrage, we read Psalms together.

Slowly, i found myself mothering these three, and caring for them became painful. Some days they would greet me with open arms and kind words; other days they would yell at me and tell me to go away. Some days they seemed to understand the Gospel and other days they did not.

One night in prayer i found myself petitioning, pleading for their salvation. The Spirit must have been guiding my words but i stopped Him mid-sentence, "Lord, will you please shower these men with your grace and mercy. If it is possible, Father in place of their salvation take m...

Wait a minute! I would trade eternity with Christ? I don't think so! I care about these guys but really, i need my Jesus." I so dimly forgot that, "neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 8:38, 39)

So what was that prayer all about? Later i recalled that Paul had prayed that prayer. I had the hardest time finding that passage, then was humbled to be told that if i had just kept reading, i would have found it.
In Romans 9:3 Paul says "For I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, my kinsmen according to the flesh."

What the heck! He just said one cannot be cut off from Christ!
After applying my Bible Study Methods, i realized that i had skipped over the word "wish" or "be willing to" in the NLT. Paul knew there was nothing to separate him from Christ. However, he loved the Israelites so much, and wanted to express to them that if it were possible to be forever cursed—cut off from Christ—to save them, Paul would. Now that is love.

There are plenty of people that i would willingly die and leave this world for (but then i go to Christ so who really gets the better end of that deal?), but to offer up my salvation... Paul really understood the love of Christ. The God man that suffered far more than any one on earth could; so that, we would be at peace with God because He loved us.




* Names changed for privacy