Love and Scripture

"Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love. In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him. Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another. No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us. And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us... God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him (I Jn. 4:7-12,16). I would like to say just a couple of things today about this great 'love' passage from the beloved apostle. First of all, amen. Next, probably almost everyone reading this is saying amen as well. But before we conclude that we're in agreement with this simplistic passage of scripture, let's understand a couple of details about the love of God. First of all, the love of God is NOT the love that almost everyone in this world and even many of God's people would call love. Jesus said something integral that goes to the point I'm making here: "But I say unto you which hear, Love your enemies, do good to them which hate you... For if ye love them which love you, what thank have ye? for sinners also love those that love them" (Lk. 6:27,32).

Someone who dwells in God's love just loves because that is what they are made of, not because of factors that consist of personal reasons. Not only so, but there are no excuses for having it otherwise. Another characteristic of God's love in a person is that they love all of the time, and they don't spend part of the time "mad" at someone, which is to say holding a grudge. Dwelling in the love of God is not a part time occupation, and if you try to make it one, then I assure you that you will not be paid for your works at the end of the day; at least not with the wages you're expecting (Rom. 6:23). So the point here is that the love of God is HOLY, and because it is holy it has "no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness," either in deed or by consent; "but rather [it] reproves them" (Eph. 5:11). And yet another noteworthy item is this: If one has not been baptized with the holy Ghost with the evidence of speaking with other tongues, they cannot know what the love of God even is; for we are told plainly by the scripture that "the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts BY the holy Ghost which is given unto us" (Rom. 5:5). And contrary to popular belief, there is no such thing as 'receiving' the holy Ghost apart from that experience. Not in the Bible, and not in reality. Now if we can agree with these stipulations of truth regarding the love of God, in mind, spirit, and deed; then we are qualified to say amen to the glorious truth set forth in our text passage. If not, the good news is that we still have opportunity to get there by God's mighty grace and power. Amen.