The birth of celebrating February 14th began in Rome in, 270 AD, on account of a Catholic priest’s love for Christ. St. Valentine was imprisoned and beheaded for that love, and for healing the blindness of a guard’s daughter through prayer. Prior to his execution he penned a note to the little girl and signed it, “Your Valentine”.
However, another birth, in 5 – 4 BC ushered in the ultimate definition of love: A baby in a Manger. At Christmas we rejoice remembering our Savior who came to redeem us from our sins. But along side Mary and Joseph, the animals, the shepherds, and later the Wise Men, a tear fell from Heaven. The enormity of how God viewed sin, together with His sacrificial love, lay in that manger.
The depth of this love should humble us for how far He’d go to restore a relationship with us. The Manger is the kept promise our Lord made before Adam and Eve were banned from the perfect garden for their sin [and ours]. “And I will put enmity between you [the snake, who tricked Eve and Adam] and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed, He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel” (Genesis 3:15, NKJV).
In another place, the last book of the Old Testament, Malachi the prophet warns the people to cease their sinning and return back to God. But the valley of separation between the people and God grew. And like the garden, before God’s people experienced separation from Him for four hundred years, He promised: “But to you who fear My Name, The Sun of Righteousness shall arise with healing in His wings” (Malachi 4:2). Here is one more proof we can trust the scriptures that God will do what He say
Since St. Valentine wrote his name on a child’s card, we’ve spent millions trying to redefine love. But no one can duplicate what took place in that Manger.
If we are unhappy with how we look, or feel lonely, or unloved, may we remember the baby Jesus in that Manger was part of Genesis 1:26, “Then God said, ‘Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness.” All of God’s natural world could not fulfill His desire for fellowship and a relationship like a living, talking, feeling human being. In the beginning we were designed for love!
The Manger is where the definition of Love began its journey. No love on earth can compare to this. Friend, I pray you’ve given your heart to the One whose immeasurable love gave ‘all’ to you.