1 John 4:7-12

By Ben Jeffery 2 min read
1 John 4:7-12
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.

1 John 4:7-12

I love surfing. I love burgers. I love my children. However, I do not love them all the same way. We use the word 'love' as a catch all word to express strong positive emotions. However, in Greek (the language of the Bible) there are many different words for love.

  • Eros (romantic, passionate or hungry love)
  • Philia (affectionate or brotherly love)
  • Storge (familiar love)
  • Mania (obsessive and out of control love)
  • Ludus (playful and childish love)
  • Pragma (enduring love)
  • Philautia (self love)
  • and Agape (selfless, relentless love)

The love that the Bible is describing here is agape. I love sunsets but I do not love them relentlessly. I love shopping but I would not lay down my life for a trip to The Trafford Centre.

This kind of love is brought into focus through the cross, the ultimate act of selfless love for people who didn't deserve it. This is how we are told to love each other. Not finding people we click with but relentlessly loving people who are hard to love. This is the kind of love that points to God and that comes from him.

Reflect

  • Why do we find it so hard to love people who do not deserve it?
  • Who could you love today in a practical way?

Respond

Pause and pray. Thank you Lord for your love for us. Thank you that you gave up your life so that we could know life. Thank you that you atoned for our sins, even though they were not yours to carry. Help us to love others like you love us. Amen.

Devotional
Ben Jeffery

Pastor of SOULCITY CHURCH and head of unity for the Evangelical Alliance.