Beloved, let’s love one another; for love is from God, and everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. The one who does not love does not know God, because God is love.
1 John 4:7-8 NASB2020
To know God is to know love, because God is love. To abide in Christ is to abide in love. Walking in the Spirit is to walk in love, because God is Spirit and God is love. Make sense?
God is love. The Spirit is love. Christ is love. The Father loves the Son. The Son loves everyone. Everyone who has the Spirit has the Father and the Son. Love is for everyone, but some refuse to love and be loved. Beloved, let it not be so mentioned among us who call ourselves Christians that we are unloving.
Love is the foremost fruit of the Spirit. If the Spirit is in you, it will move you to compassion. God is love. God is inside you. He is progressively changing us into His image and likeness. He is changing us into being His love here on Earth. Pretty simple, right?
The Body of Christ is the body of believers who love each other. The Church is Christ’s Body. The Church is not a building. The Church is not a business. The Church is the Beloved.
They will know we are Christians by our love. They will know we are disciples by our love for one another. This is the most important and most basic principle in Christianity.
Love God and love people. Do that and you are being a Christian. If you’re not doing that, you’re not a practicing Christian. Something to meditate on.
How am I doing at loving my fellow believers? How am I doing at loving the lost and the poor? How am I doing at loving my enemies? We were born to love, if we are born of God. How are we doing? Are we loving or are we a clanging cymbal?
You know it’s the end times when the love of many has grown cold. You know it’s the end times when lawlessness increases. We’re seeing prophecy being fulfilled in our lifetime. What should we do? Love one another. Pray for one another. Share the Good News. It’s now or never.
What can you do if you realize that your love has grown cold? You can confess your sin to God and someone you trust to handle your confession with love and grace.
God wants to restore us. That’s God’s will. He wants us to become just like Him, in regards to love. He won’t say no if we pray and ask Him to fill us until we overflow with His love.
Let’s give it a shot. What do you say? Are you ready to pray? Go ahead, make my day!
Father in Heaven, forgive me for not loving others the way that You do. I want to obey Your commandment to love my brothers and sisters in the Lord like Jesus does. I want to obey Your commandment to love and pray for those who persecute me. Lord, I ask for You to fill me with Your love, Your grace, Your mercy, Your kindness, Your goodness, Your faithfulness, Your gentleness and Your patience. Fill me with Your joy and peace. Let me be a lighthouse in this cold and dark world. Let me be a beacon of hope to all that know me. Let the praise of God never be far from my lips. Let my life be an example of God’s love in action. Let me love fearlessly because I know that Your love never fails. Thank You, Father, for answering my prayer right now. Amen.
Beloved, let us [unselfishly] love and seek the best for one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves [others] is born of God and knows God [through personal experience]. The one who does not love has not become acquainted with God [does not and never did know Him], for God is love. [He is the originator of love, and it is an enduring attribute of His nature.]
1 John 4:7-8 AMP