1 John 4:7-12 (NLT): “Dear friends, let us continue to love one another, for love comes from God. Anyone who loves is a child of God and knows God. But anyone who does not love does not know God, for God is love.
God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. This is real love – not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.
Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other. No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us, and his love is brought to full expression in us.”
I really like the above verses – especially these words - ‘that God loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins’. Tomorrow, we celebrate the arrival of His Son – and, this celebration centres on the pivotal event of our history – Jesus’ sacrifice, which took away our sins.
Selwyn writes in today’s study: “John states categorically that we know God not through the efforts of the mind but through opening our hearts to His love. Paul underlines this very same point when writing to the Corinthians: ‘We know that we all possess knowledge. Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up. The man who thinks he knows something does not yet know as he ought to know. But the man who loves God is known by God’ (1 Corinthians 8:1-2).”
God first loves us and we respond with love. As we live our lives, in the light of God’s love, He allows us to see a clearer picture of His nature. It’s through love that we get to know God.
‘Love builds up’
1 John 4:7-12 (NLT): “Dear friends, let us continue to love one another, for love comes from God. Anyone who loves is a child of God and knows God. But anyone who does not love does not know God, for God is love.
God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. This is real love – not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.
Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other. No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us, and his love is brought to full expression in us.”
I really like the above verses – especially these words - ‘that God loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins’. Tomorrow, we celebrate the arrival of His Son – and, this celebration centres on the pivotal event of our history – Jesus’ sacrifice, which took away our sins.
Selwyn writes in today’s study: “John states categorically that we know God not through the efforts of the mind but through opening our hearts to His love. Paul underlines this very same point when writing to the Corinthians: ‘We know that we all possess knowledge. Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up. The man who thinks he knows something does not yet know as he ought to know. But the man who loves God is known by God’ (1 Corinthians 8:1-2).”
God first loves us and we respond with love. As we live our lives, in the light of God’s love, He allows us to see a clearer picture of His nature. It’s through love that we get to know God.