In The Word
Read: 1 John 4:7-5:3
God Is Love
7 Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. 8 The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love. 9 By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him. 10 In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. 11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 12 No one has seen God at any time; if we love one another, God abides in us, and His love is perfected in us. 13 By this we know that we abide in Him and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit. 14 We have seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son to be the Savior of the world.
15 Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. 16 We have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. 17 By this, love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment; because as He is, so also are we in this world. 18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love. 19 We love, because He first loved us. 20 If someone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for the one who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen. 21 And this commandment we have from Him, that the one who loves God should love his brother also.
Overcoming the World
5 Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and whoever loves the Father loves the child born of Him. 2 By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and observe His commandments. 3 For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments; and His commandments are not burdensome.
New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation
Walking In The Word
Love, love, love. Over and over again this word is used. John spoke of the Agape type of love. This is a perfect love, for love is God and God is perfect. This is a love that is unconditional, not earned but given. It’s a love that acts toward someone before they act toward them. This is the love every child of God has received from Him. It becomes the motivation for everything we do, it drives every decision we make, and it fuels our lives when emotion has run out. It makes us a perfect spouse, parent, child, friend, church member, employee, employer, and evangelist to this lost world. It drives out fear and makes following God completely easy.
People will struggle to serve God until they come to know and believe the love which He has for us…that He loved us before we loved Him and gave His only Son for us. Because Christ gave His life willingly for us, no greater love exists.
If you are looking for love, make sure you are looking in the right place. The kind of love that does not disappoint comes only from God. Quit struggling and put your faith in Christ and know the love of your Father. If you have received that love, then serving God and people is not hard. We are called to love our spouse, our parents, our children, our friends, ourselves, and even our enemies as we love God. Freely have we received this love so freely we should give it. Love, love, love over and over again!