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.     John 3:16 NKJV

You have probably heard it said at some point, “You can’t see the forest for the trees.” This refers to looking at the small details rather than the big picture. I am a big picture person. This isn’t always good because sometimes I miss the small details. I just want to know the bottom line or the end result.

This one simple verse sums it up. The forest or the big picture is God loves us so much He sent His only Son to earth to be ridiculed, falsely accused, falsely arrested, beaten and crucified. He sent Jesus to earth as fully man and fully God. Jesus felt the emotional pain of rejection and ridicule. He felt the physical pain of the thorns going in his head, the flogging and the nails driven into his hands and feet. He could have divinely intervened and not been crucified, but He endured the suffering to save sinners like you and me.

This is how God proved His great love for us (Romans 5:8). Even though we all sin and fall short of God’s glory (Romans 3:23), God loves us so much that He sent His son to pay for our sins.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying the details aren’t important. I believe we should study and understand the entire Bible. I believe it’s important to understand the creation. We should know how sin entered the world.

We should understand why God sent the catastrophe of the flood to destroy everyone and everything on earth that was not inside the ark. We should have a good understanding of why He confused the languages of Noah’s descendants working on the tower of Babel.

Many of us believe that Jesus didn’t get here until the New Testament, but this is not true. Jesus was present from the beginning. He was with God when He created the heavens and the earth. There are many details that are easy to get bogged down in. For example, the trinity can be confusing if you think about it. We serve the one true God who is a triune God or one God in three persons. God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit are all one.

It’s mind boggling to think that a virgin gave birth to a baby boy. It’s also mind boggling to think about this baby boy growing up to perform so many miracles even bringing the dead back to life.

There are two fundamental truths we get from the Bible. The first is our Scripture passage for today. God loved us so much that He sent His son to save us from our sins if we will only submit to Him and accept Christ as our Savior. The second is we must realize that Jesus is the only way. He is the way. He is the truth, and He is the life. No man comes to God the Father except through Jesus the Son.

I know it’s a lot to wrap your brain around, but if you believe in God’s word, you can focus on the forest. You can accept this great love God has for you and surrender your life to Him. It’s okay to want to study the details, but don’t let them get in the way of understanding the bottom line or the end result.

So enjoy your walk through the trees, but see the forest. Know that God’s got this and even though there may be many details you don’t understand He is there with you. He will guide you and protect you. Surrender to Him and accept Christ as your Savior and leave the details to Him.

Have a great day!