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There’s a lot of reasons why we should not love one another. People do all kinds of crazy things. They abandon us. They exclude us. They attack us. They disrespect us. Now, I’m just talking about the church here. We haven’t even begun to talk about the world!
Into the rough and tumble world of human relationships, John tells us repeatedly that we are “to love one another.” This is the command that they had all heard from the beginning. John, however, was not unaware of the challenges of human relationships inside and outside the church. In spite of that awareness, inspired by the Savior, he still believed in love and wanted to encourage the church to continue in love.
As a result, John presented a variety of reasons to encourage, energize, and empower them to love one another. We will consider this passage looking at 10 reasons to love one another.
1. We should love each other because God’s children love like God. We are born of God. God is the source of love. “Love is from God.” When we become God’s children, we get a heart like God’s. We have His image restored to us. “Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God” (1 John 4:7). If we are the children of God, then we should love like God, because that is our character. God has given us a renewed nature that enables us to love, and we should show that this is who we are for our own encouragement, for the blessing of others, and for the glory of God.
2. We should love each other because God is love. Many people claim to know God. However, John gives us an acid test to determine if we really know God and have fellowship with Him. “Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love” (1 John 4:8). If we love, then we know God. A person may be able to explain with great eloquence the details of theology, but the most eloquent expression is love. Without love, all of our knowledge will not profit us. Why? Because God is love. The Triune God shared a fellowship of love from all eternity within the Godhead between Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. He created the world out of love and so that the world could participate in that love. When we love, we show we really know and have fellowship with God. Continue reading “Joyful Fellowship with God and Man, Part 8: 10 Reasons to Love One Another”