That's the theme of I John Chapter 4. Starting in verse 7, John tells us to love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. His next statement should give us all pause as he says, Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.
Now, many will say they love. They love their spouse. They love their children. They love their parents, their friends, their siblings. They would say they know God because they love others.
But do they love everyone they are supposed to love?
If you know God, you love your brother.
Let us jump forward to I John 4:20. If anyone says, "I love God," yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen.
So who is my brother?
Simply put, our brothers (and sisters) are fellow Christians. If you have accepted Jesus Christ as your Savior, then everyone else who has accepted Jesus is your brother and sister.
Every. Single. One.
If you know God, you have to love them all.
That guy at church who did that thing that you find disgusting and horrendous before he came to Christ? You have to love him. That woman, the one who spread lies about you behind your back? You have to love her. Your ex. Your abusive dad who later came to Christ. The repentant pedophile.
You have to love them.
If you hate them, and you say that you love God, you are a liar. That's what the Bible says. You can not hate a fellow Christian. If you do, you're lying about loving God.
That's how I read it.
You have to forgive.
Hate is all about holding on to the past. We hate people because of what they've done. But here's the thing--if they are a Christian, they've been forgiven. It doesn't matter what they did, Jesus died for that just as He died for your sins. God loves you despite what you've done, and you know what that is. He loves you because you are forgiven. He forgave you.
Now it's your turn. We love because He first loved us. That's I John 4:19. That's not about loving God, it's about loving our brothers and sisters in Christ. We love others because God first loved us. God is love. If you are a Christian, God lives within you. If God lives within you, love lives within you. If love lives within you, you cannot hate.
You have to let go. Forgive, so that you may be forgiven. Love your enemies. Going back to I John 4, verse 21, And He has given us this command: Whoever loves God must also love his brother.
A command. Not an option, not a suggestion, not a good thing to do. A directive. A requirement. A stipulation. If you love God, you must love your brother. No exceptions.
God is love.
That makes us feel all warm and fuzzy. We like that. It makes us feel good. Until we read on.
God is love. If God lives in us, then we, also, are love. If we are love, we cannot hate.
It's not easy, but God gave His only Son because He loved the world. Is loving your brother any harder than that?
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