1 John,  2014 Bible Reading

1 John 3

November 10, 2014

love

Bible Passage: 1 John 3

Love is simple word yet we find it so difficult sometimes to love. God’s commandment is for us to love one another. It is of course easy to love our loved ones, but God wants us to take one more step forward, to love our enemies as well.

That’s a tall order. Sometimes I find there’s hardly enough love in me to love people I dislike. It is difficult even, to stop disliking these people, let alone love them. Somehow the working world has hardened my heart that i find very little love in me left.

Typing this I suddenly remember what a brother once said. God’s commandment will never be impossible to attain. Sure it is a tall order, but if we have a willing heart, willing to let go of our pride and grudge, allow the Holy Spirit to motivate and move us, we will be able to love even our worst enemies.

God will never force us to obey His commandments. Hence, if we are not willing to love others, He will not compel us to love them. But we ask ourselves, as TJC members, how do we set ourselves apart from others? There are certainly plenty of non-Christians or Christians from other denominations out there whose acts of love and compassion towards others are far more superior than us. Our actions of love have to be even greater than theirs.

Jesus was very clear in Matthew 5 where He taught his disciples to love their enemies. (Matthew 5:43-48)

 For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? 47 And if you greet your brethren[i] only, what do you do more than others? Do not even the tax collectors[j] do so? 48 Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.

This verse will be a reminder to me. If my heart has very little love left, I need to squeeze out more. Love myself less – meaning shelf my pride – so that I can love others and even love my enemies. I need to set myself apart from the rest of the world, surely God will be pleased.

You May Also Like

1 John 5
1 John 5
November 12, 2014
God is always first in everything. He takes the initiative. The only reason you can love God or anybody else is because God first loved you. And he showed that love by sending Jesus Christ to Earth to die for you. He showed that love by creating you. He showed that love by giving you everything you have in life. We love because God first loved us. If you want to learn how to love other people, you’ve got to first understand and feel how much God loves you. When you feel that unconditional love, you’re going to start cutting people a lot of slack. You’re not going to be as angry as you’ve been in the past. You’re going to be more patient. You’re going to be more forgiving. You’re going to be more merciful. You’re going to show other people grace. The reason why you see people who are judgmental, sarcastic, angry, self righteous, and always putting other people down is because they’re putting themselves down. They don’t feel good about themselves. They don’t feel loved. They don’t feel forgiven. They don’t feel grace. They feel guilty. They feel bad about themselves. And if they feel bad about themselves, they certainly don’t want you feeling good about you. Maybe you’re one of those people. Maybe you’ve been hurt by parents or peers or partners. Maybe you’ve been abused or misused or rejected or abandoned or betrayed. You’ve got some scars on your heart. You cannot give to others what you have not received yourself. Unlovely people are unloved people. Hurt people hurt people. If you’re filled with anger and impatience and you don’t feel loved, guess what? You’re not going to be able to love anybody else. You have to learn how much God loves you and let it heal your heart so his love can flow through you. It is impossible to love others until you really feel loved yourself. The Bible says, “We know and rely on the love God has for us” (1 John 4:16a). Do you know the love of God? Do you rely on the love of God for you? You will have a hard time loving other people until you have God’s love coming through you. Talk It Over Would you say that you love others with the love of God? How do you show that love to others? Why would understanding God’s love help you show grace to others? What hurt from your past is keeping you from accepting God’s love and showing it to others?
1 John 4
November 11, 2014

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *