The soldiers brought Jesus into the courtyard of the headquarters. They dressed him in a purple robe and fashioned a crown of thorns, placing it on his head.

They mocked him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” They struck him on the head with a staff, spat on him, and knelt before him in mockery. When they had finished their mockery, they led him away to be crucified.

It seems impossible to imagine Jesus looking into the eyes of his torturers and deciding to love them despite everything. But that’s what happened: “He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him” (John 1:11).

Jesus suffered not only from the nails of the cross but also from the lack of love, ingratitude, and contempt of the people. His wounds not only marked his hands and feet but also penetrated deep into his heart.

Nevertheless, he was determined to love as had never been seen before on earth, loving both the righteous and the unrighteous, the healthy and the sick, Jews and foreigners, the noble and the humble, his followers, and even his own killers.

So, there is nothing we can do to stop his love for us; we can never disappoint him to the point where he closes his heart to us.

Every effort to distance ourselves from him only makes him more determined to seek us out and love us.