This last week, I have been focused on love, which is certainly appropriate considering the season we are in. Love was God's motivation in Jesus' coming to earth (John 3:16) and God is love (1 John 4:8) thus we are celebrating the incarnation of Love because of Love as we celebrate Christmas! So much Love, it is certainly worth celebrating and reflecting upon it.
In continuation of this theme, today I am reflecting on the verses from 1 John 4:7-12 NIV:
[7] Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. [8] Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. [9] This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. [10] This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. [11] Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. [12] No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us."
One thing is clear in reading the verses above, love originated with God, and flows from Him. He is first and foremost a God of love! As we become like Him our lives should be filled with and overflow with love. That seems to be the logical conclusion that John is making here. If we say we follow God, and He is love, than we should love as well!
Clearly this is more than just emotional love, it is love that requires action! Just as love was the motivation for Jesus coming to earth, so it should be our motivating action in what we do! We are called to love, invited to love, and shown how to love! We are encouraged to embody love, and when we do that we are in-dwelled by God! He actually comes and "lives in us, and His love is made complete in us". One could probably add that His is Love is made complete through us!
That is just amazing to me - God's motivation is love in everything He does. He is love. Love exudes from Him. His love is made complete in us, and flows out of us! The Greek word John uses which is translated 'complete' (in verse 12) is the word 'teleioo' and it is defined as follows:
1) to make perfect, complete
a) to carry through completely, to accomplish, finish, bring to an end
2) to complete (perfect)add what is yet wanting in order to render a thing full
a) to be found perfect
3) to bring to the end (goal) proposed
4) to accomplish
a) bring to a close or fulfilment by event
1) of the prophecies of the scriptures
In reviewing the definition, we see the reality of what John wrote, and it seems to make perfect sense to me. In and through us, God's love is fulfilling it final purpose. We are participants in the fulfilling of His promise, and the prophecies that speak to those promises. He means to fill the earth with His Glory (Is 6:3) and our love is part of that glorious filling, for certainly it adds to His love, and increases the level of love on the earth!
Finally, although we have not seen God, John alludes to the fact that we experience Him when we love and encounter love in one another (verse 12 above). What an awesome reality, when we love one another we are presenting God to ourselves and to others!
Oh that we would all exude love to all we meet, to those around us, to our families and friends. Talk about a real climate change! I am encouraged today to love, to pour forth love freely, to be about filling the world around me with love. I want to increase the level of God's love in my life and in the lives of those I encounter. I want my love to be real, action filled love, not mere words (1 John 3:18). I want to change the climate around me to one of love!
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