Hello dear friends,
Grace and peace be yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.
Last week I wrote to you about our need to love one another. We looked at 1 John 4:7-16a, and we learned that love comes from God. We can’t manufacture true love on our own—only a quasi-worldly love that doesn’t satisfy. This love that He has given us is a result of our being born of God. John said, “If we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.” 1 John 12b. Loving each other is a very important Christian thing that we do and it is made possible by His Spirit in us. But now, John moves from loving each other to loving God. He begins by making an earth-shaking declaration in verse 16b-18…
“16b God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. 17 This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. 18 There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love,” 1 John 4:16b-18 (NIV2011)
GOD IS LOVE… think about that. Never forget that! This is the essence of who God is, and He doesn’t change. God never stops loving because it is impossible. That would require Him to stop being who He is. Sometimes by our limited perspective we are tempted to think otherwise. Reject that idea, and grasp by faith the truth of God’s love for you. This is the express truth of God’s word to us.
The corollary goes with it. “Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them.” This reminds me of Jesus’ words in the “Upper Room” when He said, “Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them,” John 14:21. We as Christians have been saved and set free so that we can love others and love God. It begins when we are born from above, and it is to continue to grow until the day of Christ Jesus.
Verse 17 tells us what will happen when we “live in God.” Our love will be made complete by living in God resulting in confidence on the day of Judgement. The Bible tells us that one day everyone will stand before God. He will bring judgement for all that has happened here on earth. The Bible says the majesty of that moment will be so great that the earth and heavens will flee from His presence. See Rev. 20:11ff. It will be a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God. But those who have been redeemed by the blood of the Lamb will need not fear of this judgement. Why? Because all of our sins were judged already at the cross. The Father cannot judge our sins again without judging His Son, and He has atoned for all our sins once and for all. In this world we are to be like Jesus—indeed God is conforming us to His image even now.
With this said, we now realize that there is no fear in love. Why? Because of the reality that in Christ our sins have been washed away. So, our future before God need not fear any judgment by Him. Romans 8:1 says that there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. Instead, there is only love and acceptance in Him. The more we live in love and in God, the more His perfect love will drive out this fear of judgment. The reason is that fear has to do with punishment. It makes sense then that the one who is still fearing judgment ahead has not yet been made perfect in God’s love. This otherworldly love doesn’t come from us and it can’t be counterfeit. John points this out…
“19 We love because he first loved us. 20 Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. 21 And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister. Vs. 19-21.
The only way we can love this way is because God loved us first. He is love and is building a kingdom of love and light. Because of Him, we get to participate. When we love as God has loved us it will result in our loving our brothers and sisters. This is a natural result of God’s love in us. And if we don’t love like God, while claiming that we love God; we are simply liars. God’s fundamental love within us will cause us to love. This is the most appropriate place to see this kind of love in action. John points out that if we cannot love those that we can see and touch in the flesh—then it certainly stands to reason that we could possibly love God at all. His love is either in us or it isn’t. And if it is, God’s love will manifest itself towards others.
Now just in case we “Have God’s love in us,” but we are not “manifesting it toward others,” we should realize that this is not an option in the Christian life. Why? Because God has given us this command to love one another. So, let’s not be disobedient to God’s love in us. This is not an option. John says that anyone who loves God MUST also love their brother or sister. Love is the badge of true Christianity. Now don’t count this short thinking, “I only have to love my brothers and sisters in Christ.” That would be akin to the lawyer wanting to justify himself by asking Jesus, “Who is my neighbor?” To which Jesus tells the story of the Good Samaritan. See Luke 10:25-37. God’s love is God’s love and it is meant to be shared with anyone and everyone. Hence, we are to live in His love, vs. 16.
Benediction:
“Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen. Ephesians 3:20-21 (NIV2011)
Pastor Russ Hilsinger,
Grace Baptist Church of Dallas, Oregon
P.S. Sunday we’ll return to our study of the life of Christ in the book of Luke. Come and join in on the Journey with us.