7 Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God.
1 John 4:7-12, ESV
8 Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.
9 In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him.
10 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.
11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.
12 No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.
When we hear the word “love,” most people will imagine romantic love. Romantic love is powerful, right? All we need is love? Many would say that the world needs more love and things would be better. In his devotion earlier this week, Pastor Bruce shared the worldly phrase, “Love is God.” It is powerful, life-changing, and supreme. If we elevate the emotion of love to God, it becomes something we worship and depend on for life.
Consider this popular lyric from the song Halo, sung by Beyonce. Hit me like a ray of sun Burnin' through my darkest night You're the only one that I want Think I'm addicted to your light
Reading these lyrics made me pause, especially after our study through the first chapter of 1 John, where we read in verse five that God is light. This is a perfect example of how we’ve elevated love to a god-like status.
Instead of Love is God, we see in today’s passage from 1 John that GOD is Love!
Here’s what we know about REAL love from 1 John.
- Love is from God
- Showing REAL love indicates a person has been born of God (is God’s child) and knows God
- God is love
Go back to 1 John 3:16-17 to define REAL LOVE:
- REAL love benefits others, not yourself.
- REAL love lifts others, not yourself.
- REAL love is sacrificial, not selfish.
God sending His Son to the world is the tangible and practical expression of God’s love.
Did God do this simply to express His love? No.
The bible says we are DEAD in our sin and the ONLY way to have LIFE is THROUGH Jesus.
Re-read verse 9. Our life as children of God is lived THROUGH Jesus!
So this is the truth about love. God is love. This is REAL love, not the elevated feeling we often attach to romance. We do not worship love. We worship God!