True Love

With Valentine’s Day just around the corner, we find that love is all around. As they say, “Love is in the air!” On television, nearly all the ads seem to zero in on love. Storefronts are either decorated with red and pink hearts, or their displays seem to say, “Come on in! Here you will find just what you need in order to show your love for someone.” Look around and listen. It seems as though everyone is talking about love. But what is true love?

The Apostle John wrote, “In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins” (1 John 4:10). “Propitiation” is a big word. In the Greek (the original language of the New Testament) it refers to the action of atonement. It has to do with the removal of guilt. Here, it refers to the removal of guilt by God’s own gracious act. By God’s own action, by His loving grace, the guilt of our sin is purged. That is true love.

God loves us so much that He sent “His only begotten Son” into the world to die on the cross to pay the penalty for our sin and bring us forgiveness, restoring us to our rightful place of fellowship with Him. When you accept God’s love and receive His Son into your life, you will not perish “but have everlasting life” (paraphrase of John 3:16). In this way you can experience the true love of God.

1 John 3:16 makes this quite clear: “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.” Jesus laid down His life for us! That is true love.

We experience that love by faith in Christ. We show that faith by how we love the brethren. Are you prepared to give all for your brothers and sisters in Christ? This may or may not involve laying down your life for them, but it can. When we experience the true love of God, we will do all we can for one another.

1 John 4:9 says, “In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him.” That is the key here. When you receive Christ by faith, He fills you with His Spirit and you begin to live through Him. He guides you and gives you His wisdom. He watches over you and sees you through hard times. He begins to change you and make you more like Himself. In every way, follow Him daily by faith and live your life through Christ.

Do this and you will give all you have for your brothers and sisters in Christ. When this begins to take place, people will be drawn to Christ through your life. What they see in you is true love. Trust Christ and begin to experience His true love. Through Christ, love one another, and your life will never be the same again. Amen.