Give Voice To Your Love
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.
13 We know that we live in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. 14 And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. 15 If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in him and he in God. 16 And so we know and rely on the love God has for us.
God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. 17 In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in this world we are like him. 18 There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.
19 We love because he first loved us.
Tommy's Thoughts:
"There is no room in love for fear. Well-formed love banishes fear" – 1 John 4:17 (The Message)
The pain and heartache we undergone in our past may sometimes make us afraid and difficult to love and be loved by others. It may be the fear that we will be rejected or that we will hurt others again. We may also fear to commit ourselves to others, fearing we might not live up to our promises. Or, we may be trying hard to safeguard our heart from being hurt again and finding ourselves hard to trust again in others.
From today passage, God shows to us that we don’t need to be afraid of the love commandment by holding tightly to our own self-made security and control over our situation. Instead, He wanted us to trust in Him to provide us with the strength and courage to do what He asks; to love faithfully the people He has given us to love. When He knows we are ready to love others without fear, He will bring them to us at His time.
Dear Heavenly Father, thank You for Your answering my prayers so instantly! Things unfolded in front of me as what I’ve prayed for. Thank You for teaching me to trust You more in all areas of my life. Help me always to focus unto You, to free myself from the distractions and fear that has kept me from truly experiencing Your love and peace for my life. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.
Bee's Thoughts:
In part he said, “If I do not return, my dear Sarah, never forget how much I loved you, nor that when my last breath escapes me on the battlefield, it will whisper your name.”Reading those words in tonight's "Daily Bread" touched me so much... I felt like crying. It makes me ponder...
"Who will say this to me?"
"Who will I say this to?"
"Who will appreciate it?"
I like the title of tonight's devotion, "Give Voice To Your Love". Yes, when I breathe my last breath someone's name will be my last whisper too.
God's love is complete when we love one another (v12). That means God's intention in creating us is not just for love to exist only between Him and us. He desires that we also "love one another".
"One another" is a "reciprocal pronoun", meaning between two persons or two-way. Therefore the love that John mentioned above is a mutual love, not a one-way love. When mutual love exists between two belivers in Christ, God's love is made "complete" and it's a testimony to others who can't see God (v12).
John emphasized that such love has no fear (v18). This confirms that the love he talked about is a mutual love between two believers in Christ that completes God's love.
Dear Lord,
Thank You for Your love. Not only You have loved us, but You desire that we also love one another so that others may know You through such love. I pray that all born-again Christians will experience loving one another. Teach us to give voice to our love.
In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
