Dear friend,
John says in 1 John 4:19:
“We love because He [that is God] first loved us.” (NIV)
Until we have experienced the love of God, we cannot release that same kind of love in our lives. I believe this has been proved true in psychological tests and sociological studies. A child cannot really express love until it has received love. Unfortunately, there are many, many parents who either really don’t love their children or don’t know how to express that love. And the result is that multitudes of people grow up unable to express or to release love because they’ve never experienced it.
Now that’s true merely in the natural order in the family. But it is equally and even more true in the relationship between God and the believer. Until we have experienced God’s love for ourselves, we cannot love others. We love because He first loves us. Earlier, I explained that the special New Testament word for this kind of love is agape – agape love. In 1 John 4, verses 7 and 8, John explains this. He says:
“Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. [Notice that it takes a decision. It comes from God, but it takes our decision to release it. It’s not entirely a matter of emotion.] Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.” (NIV)
Notice that statement, "Everyone who loves [with this kind of agape love] has been born of God and knows God." How can we be so sure about that? Because there is no other source of this agape love.
And then John says the negative side of the truth. "Whoever does not love [in this way] does not know God, because God is love."
As I was meditating on this tremendous importance of manifesting the love of God because we know God – responding to God’s love by our love – a phrase occurred to me which I just want to share with you as I close. Some people are saved by a stranger. They’re saved, they’ve been converted, they’ve turned away from open sin, but they don’t really know the One who has saved them. Let me take a little picture of a person that’s drowning in a river. A stranger comes along, jumps in, pulls him out, saves their life, and says, "There you are. Now get dried up; you’re safe," but walks away. So they’ve been saved, but they don’t know the one who saved them. I think a whole lot of Christians are like that. Jesus has pulled them out of the river of sin and destruction, but they’ve never got to know Him. What makes us say that they don’t know Him? The answer is they don’t love. And everyone that knows God loves God. I want to suggest to you, don’t let God remain a stranger if He’s saved you. Come to know Him. What will be the evidence of coming to know Him? You’ll be reproducing His love in your life.
For reflection and prayer
"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another." (John 13:34 NIV)
