15 December | EVERYONE
"We love Him because He first loved us. If someone says, ‘I love God,’ and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen?" 1 John 4: 19,20
John is the disciple of love. Jesus loved him when no one loved him. He was received by the Master and bathed in the purifying spring of divine love. That is why he speaks, teaches, preaches, and writes about the love of the Redeemer. And in today's verse, his reasoning is logical. If we are not able to love the brother whom we can see, how can we love God whom we have never seen?
John's teachings on love are not limited to the vertical level between God and man but are projected onto the horizontal level of love for our fellow human beings. It is not a duty, but the fruit of God's love in you. If you are a tree watered daily by the love of God, it makes sense that you produce the fruits of love. If you have accepted to be a child of God, it makes sense that you will experience your Father's love as expressed in your relationships with your spouse, your children, your parents, your employer, your employee, your neighbors, and your coworkers or students.
Once upon a time, you did not know Jesus, you lived in the secluded corners of spiritual ignorance, hidden in the shadows of estrangement from God, and in the wastelands of despair, trying to be happy in your own way by wandering along stormy paths that led you to death. Then, when night came, maybe you could not sleep because the guilt generated in you a fear of loneliness, or maybe you felt a strange pain inside your chest that you did not know how to define. At that time, you were a stranger because your inconsistencies were not easy to understand, and you lived controlled by the enemy’s mind. But then God loved you, sought you, found you, and transformed you. From that moment on, you were enabled to love your fellow men.
Take Action
In today's text, John continues to insist that it only makes sense for you to say you love God if you love your neighbor. Otherwise, even if you do not realize it, you are an impostor. And remember that God Himself loved you when you did not love Him yet. Sing "God is Love" (if possible, with your family).