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Today’s Scripture: 1 John 3:11-17 (S.O.A.P 1 John 3:16-17)
11 This is the message you have heard from the beginning: We should love one another. 12 We must not be like Cain, who belonged to the evil one and killed his brother. And why did he kill him? Because Cain had been doing what was evil, and his brother had been doing what was righteous. 13 So don’t be surprised, dear brothers and sisters,[c] if the world hates you.
14 If we love our brothers and sisters who are believers,[d] it proves that we have passed from death to life. But a person who has no love is still dead. 15 Anyone who hates another brother or sister[e] is really a murderer at heart. And you know that murderers don’t have eternal life within them.
16 We know what real love is because Jesus gave up his life for us. So we also ought to give up our lives for our brothers and sisters. 17 If someone has enough money to live well and sees a brother or sister[f] in need but shows no compassion—how can God’s love be in that person?
My take away from 1 John 3:16-17 is that we are without excuse and must obey the command to love. Why? Because we know what real love is. When Jesus gave us the “new commandment” in John 13:34 He said to “love each other”, but He didn’t stop there. He went on to say: “Just as I have loved you, you should love each other”, and here in ! John 3:16 John tells us exactly how Jesus loved us – [He] gave up His life for us.” Jesus lived and loved sacrificially and this is how we are also called to live.As my pastor preached recently, it is often the act of giving up our “rights” for the sake of another – he used the example of Christ taking on the form of a servant (Philip 2:2-8). In other words loving others – with that true, deep, abiding love of Jesus may not always “feel” good or be easy but it is the very definition of love and it is right. Even as I type this I am reminded of the verse in James 4:17 says – and for the one who knows the right thing to do and doesn’t do it for him it is sin … Father, thank you for loving me/us so deeply that you gave Your only begotten Son that I might live – and Christ, thank you for loving me/us so deep and wide that You surrendered to the will of the Father and took my place on the cross. Help me to love as You have loved – surrendered to the will and pleasure of the Father. In Your name I pray –
True love comes from God. Love to a fallen man is distorted – directed towards oneself. With the love of God our love is directed towards others. When we are born again we possess a new different kind of love. We must give up our own self interests so that we can meet the needs of others. We can have an amazing impact on the world if we just let ourselves love as God loved and help those in need instead of passing them by. A selfish heart will find no comfort, but a Christlike love will bring great joy.