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16 We know love by this, that he laid down his life for us—and we ought to lay down our lives for one another. 17 How does God's love abide in anyone who has the world's goods and sees a brother or sister in need and yet refuses help? 18 Little children, let us love, not in word or speech, but in truth and action. 19 And by this we will know that we are from the truth and will reassure our hearts before him 20 whenever our hearts condemn us; for God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything. 21 Beloved, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have boldness before God; 22 and we receive from him whatever we ask, because we obey his commandments and do what pleases him. 23 And this is his commandment, that we should believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he has commanded us. 24 All who obey his commandments abide in him, and he abides in them. And by this we know that he abides in us, by the Spirit that he has given us. (1 John 3:16-24 NRSV Bible)
Happy Tuesday, Friend! May the love of the Lord become more real to you than ever before so that your heart will be filled and flows out to many.
How did you come to know love? When did you know that you were truly and fully loved by someone, like your mother, father, sibling? If you are married, how did you know you were loved by your future spouse? Nellie and I came to fall in love with each other over the phone. You've heard my sob story of being shot down every time I asked her out, because she was on an important committee of the church grading me on my ministerial internship, but nonetheless we spoke every day for over an hour and on weekends we sometimes spoke through the night. We came to know each other and in that way we fell in love. By the time we finally had a real, in-person date, we knew and on Christmas Eve when I left Mission for Houston as we kissed goodbye she cried. No one had ever cried for me before! That sealed the deal for me.
"We know love by this, that He laid down His life for us - and we ought to lay down our lives for one another." The writer has set a high bar based on what he knows about Jesus' willingness to die for us and if we love others in the same way, we, too, should be willing to lay down our lives for each other. He then goes from peaching to meddlin'! He says rightly so, that if we say we love each other and we have God's love in us, but we see a brother or sister in need and we refuse to help; that's not love, says John. Ouch and double ouch. But hs is right.
The writer continues by speaking his mind: Our love should be, "in truth and action," not just talking about or giving examples in speech. This will prove that we are truly people of God's love. Love is not passive; it compels us to action. It moves us to extend a helping hand, offer words of encouragement, and share our resources with those in need.
Furthermore, John reassures us that when our hearts are aligned with God's commandments, we can approach Him with boldness in prayer. Our obedience to His commandments, particularly the commandment to love one another, demonstrates our love for God and confirms His presence within us through His Spirit.
As followers of Christ, our lives should be marked by a genuine, active love that reflects the love of our Savior. It is through our love for one another that the world will see the transformative power of the gospel at work in our lives.
PRAYER: Loving Father, thank You for the awesome demonstration of love by Your Son, Jesus. Help us to love one another not only in words, but in deeds and truth. Grant us the courage to sacrificially serve all in need. Let us obey Your commandments wholeheartedly and may Your Spirit continually guide and empower us to live lives that glorify You; in Christ Jesus we pray, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord! HERE'S YOUR CALL TO ACTION: Take necessary steps to meet the needs of those around you.
I love you and thank God for you!
Pastor Eradio Valverde, Jr.
