The bible tells us that love should be defined by the agape love that God showed us when he sent Jesus Christ to earth to die on the cross for our sins (1 John 4:10). I often think of His supernatural love for us when I hear stories of people sacrificing for each other. That was the case when I read the story of Jean-Pierre and Bernadette Adams’ remarkable commitment to their marriage vows. 

When Jean-Pierre and Bernadette Adams were married in the late 1960s they had no idea how strongly their love for each other would be tested. The couple was living in southern France when Jean-Pierre suffered a knee injury at a soccer training event. He went to a hospital and was advised to get surgery to fix the injury to one of his tendons. During the surgery, a complication arose that put him in a coma that lasted thirty-nine years.

By the grace of God his body was able to survive for all those years, and it was also the grace of God that allowed his wife to care for him during that time. 

The first fifteen months of the coma were spent in the hospital. Bernadette made sure to watch over him there, even though she was also caring for their two young children. She was advised to place her husband in a nursing home, but she loved him so much that she said, “I don’t think they knew how to look after him, so I said to myself: ‘He will come home’ and I’ve looked after him ever since.”

They moved to their home and Bernadette began round-the-clock care for her husband. From the start of the day until Jean-Pierre fell asleep she would care for all his needs. Even after he was asleep, she would need to turn him in the middle of the night. In one interview she said, “Sometimes when the night goes badly, I’m up for the whole thing.” 

Jean-Pierre had played professional soccer for several teams in France, including the national team, with 22 appearances. When this tragic event occurred, many of those in the soccer community rallied to help him. They helped pay for his home to be customized with amenities that would make life easier for him. Through it all his wife was constantly there for him, ready to keep her marriage vows to him. 

There have been times when she has been asked about euthanasia. In one interview she responded this way, “It’s unthinkable! He cannot speak. And it’s not for me to decide for him. What do you want me to do—deprive him of food? Let him die little by little? No, no, no.” Her commitment to loving him continued until September 6 of this year, when Jean-Pierre passed away.

As I have reflected on this story I have been amazed by the picture of love that it represents. Bernadette’s love was sacrificial, selfless, faithful, kind, and compassionate. Her desire to care for him was grounded in the commitment she made when they were married fifty-two years ago. 

The picture of faithful love that is contained in marriage is so powerful because it comes from God. He is the one who gave the institution of marriage to humanity at the creation of the world. The idea that two people would sacrificially love each other for their entire married life is just a small glimpse of God’s love for us. Paul’s letter to the church in Ephesus gives us the ultimate definition of love in marriage. Paul wrote, “Husbands love your wives as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her.” 1 John 4:10 says, “In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” 

The agape love that God has for the lost was perfectly illustrated when Jesus was willing to die on the cross for our sins. We are amazed at Bernadette’s sacrificial love for her husband, but that love is just a shadow of the love that Christ has for us. I am amazed by her story of faithful love because it reminds me of Christ’s love for us. May we never stop being amazed by how he proved his love for us on the cross. May we never take his love for granted, and may we be motivated to love others with the same love that he showed us. 

Interviews mentioned in the article were taken from the following sources: https://edition.cnn.com/2016/01/04/football/football-jean-pierre-adams-coma/index.html; https://gentlereformation.com/2021/09/18/for-better-for-worse/.