Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. (1John 4:7-12)

Love is a powerful word, and it permeates this section of John’s letter. In the next 17 verses some form of the word “love” occurs 35 times out of the 43 times in the entire letter. Obviously, John thought love was important, especially in his focus here. By encouraging us to love one another (fellow Christians), he is not discouraging or discounting love for others, i.e. people in general, enemies, or those who may abuse us. My grandma said, “Love begins at home,” and that is what I believe John is saying. It’s always easier to love our enemies from a distance than to love our family members who irritate, infuriate and sometimes exasperate us. Family is so close that they invariable rub us the wrong way. Again, I remind us that love is an action word and requires expression in tangible ways to validate its existence in our lives.

God is love. Love is an attribute of God’s character which is displayed in his mercy and grace. Because God is the source of love, the person who has a vital connection and real relationship with God cannot remain unaffected by love or refuse to share love. Love is a result of this relationship, not the cause of it. If we don’t show that we have been affected by God’s love, we cannot support the claim of knowing him. Now, if anyone were to ask me to describe this love, I would simply point to a place where it has been so adequately and thoroughly described that it has become synonymous with love, 1 Corinthians 13.

John puts love in perspective in this passage. He points back to the greatest expression of God’s love ever presented, the gift of his Son. This is the God who “so loved the world that he gave his only begotten (one and only) Son.” You want to know what real love looks like, look at Jesus and his expression of love. You want to know what love means, look at the result: we have eternal life through him. “That whoever believes in him should not perish, but have everlasting live” is the greatest possible gift we could receive. It’s easy to love when love is presented to us first. When someone reaches out, it’s easy to return the favor. But we didn’t reach out to God, he reached out to us. He loved first, and our love is only a response to the love he has offered and has enabled us to offer.