Devotion:
Read 1 John 4:7-11.
On the first day of our introductory Bible class in the course of study at Candler, the professor gave each of us a brand new box of Crayola coloring crayons. I remember thinking maybe this class was going to be easier than I had thought! He proceeded to tell us how to color-code our reading for the next assignment -- orange for repeated words, blue for insights about God, red for...and so on. My assignment was Philippians, and I colored the word “joy” orange something like 17 or 18 times. H’mm, this told me something! I thought of that assignment today as I read this passage, and I went back and counted the number of times “love” and “loved” are used in it -- eleven times!
These verses come as close as any passage to describing the real nature of God. John beautifully describes the essence of God as love, sacrificial love that sends God’s precious Son to save us. We know that God’s love is given freely as grace, so there is no paying it back. But there is one expectation -- that we love one another. Verse 8 makes it clear that our loving others is a test of whether we even know God! If we know and love God, then love permeates our lives, underlies our thoughts, and drives our actions. It is through our love that others will come to see God.
Personal Worship Option:
When we say, “I love you,” we like to hear the reply, “I love you too!” God has said to us, “I love you,” but apparently God wants us to respond, not simply by loving God, but by also loving others. Does any part of your life not reflect love of others? Pray today for the ability to fill even that part with love that God has given you.
No comments:
Post a Comment