Who Do We Love?

Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves Him who begot also loves him who is begotten of Him.  

I John 5:1 

Who do we love? As John writes, he waxes eloquently on the relationship between faith in Christ and love. He speaks of having a relationship with God which among other things, translates into some particular hallmarks of our relationship with other people, especially other believers. This begins in the second chapter of John’s epistle where he says, ‘He who says he is in the light, and hates his brother, is in darkness until now. He who loves his brother abides in the light, and there is no cause for stumbling in him.’ The outstanding example of genuine love is the life and death of Christ. If we have caught the spirit of that then we imitate Christ. John argues, ‘By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us. And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.’ This love may manifest itself in various ways. It may be a matter of meeting physical needs. It will surely involve sacrifices of time and effort because not all the needs of those we encounter are physical. Some need a listening ear, an understanding of what they are facing, and a validation of how they feel. It will undoubtedly involve both sympathy and empathy. We encounter people every day, to whom we can do good. We show them love by our dealings with them. We give of ourselves as Christ gave in the imitation of Him. We love who He loves.  

Our Kind and Loving God, 
we rejoice that You have loved us extravagantly. 
We praise You that we have the opportunity to learn to love others, 
as You have loved us.  

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning