Introduction: Grace be to you and peace, from God our Father, and from our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ. Our text for this evening is the Epistle Lesson just read, from 1 John 4. We begin with prayer.
Dear fellow disciples of our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ:
- It is our privilege this evening to contemplate and dwell on the fact that “GOD IS LOVE.” John states this plainly in the words of our text. John is often referred to as “the disciple of love.” He describes himself in his Gospel as “the one whom Jesus loved.” John learned love – God’s love and the importance of human love – from Jesus.
- Through the words of our text, John would have us learn the same things, to be blessed in the same way that he was. So as we gather here this evening and celebrate the birth of Jesus, the coming of our Savior, let us consider deeply this most central aspect of God’s character, that “GOD IS LOVE.”
- We see in our text that:
I. The Purpose Of Jesus’ Coming Is The Manifestation Or Revealing Of God’s Love
Text: “In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent His only Son into the world, so that we might live through Him.”
A. He Is The Blood Atonement For Our Sins
Text: “In this is love, not that we have loved God but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the blood atonement for our sins.”
B. God Did This, So That We Might Have Life
Text: “God sent His only Son into the world, so that we might live through Him.”
Statement: This is why Christmas is such a blessed occasion! As we go through life in this world we have all kinds of wishes and desires as to “how” God should act. When we experience the sin and evil of others we often desire God’s vengeance upon others and our own vindication. When our thoughts are being dictated by our own sinful nature, we may wish that God would “love” us by giving us greater riches, more leisure, more luxuries, more prestige and power. We get distracted! God’s love for us is manifested preeminently in the birth of Jesus, God sending His only Son into the world to manifest His love: to be the atoning sacrifice that takes away our sin and the sin of the whole world, so that we might live “through Him.”
Application: At times we are distracted by the things that are of immediate concern – Christmas gatherings, food preparation, presents. However, the occasion for all of these things is of far greater importance to us, and a much greater blessing! It is the ultimate blessing – salvation from our sin and guilt and eternal life with God. So let us allow this “manifestation” of God’s love to fill our hearts and minds with eternal peace and joy.
Transition: And this is critically important to our lives in this world, for:
II. God’s Love Is The Source Of All True Love
1 John 4:19 “We love because He first loved us.”
A. In Order To Love, Human Beings Must Be Reborn By His Love
Text: “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.”
B. As We Abide In His Love For Us He Abides In Us And Gives Us His Holy Spirit
Text: “Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and His love is brought to completion in us. By this we know that we abide in Him and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit.”
C. So We Continue To Know, Believe, And Confess His Great Love For Us
Text: “Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.”
D. So It Is That We Also Come To Love One Another
1. We especially love those who have been born of God, those who belong to His church
1 John 4:21; 5:1 “And this commandment we have from Him: whoever loves God must also love his brother. . . . Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father loves whoever has been born of Him.”
2. But our love also extends to all people
Matt 5:44 “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.”
Rom. 13:8,9 “Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. For the commandments, ‘You shall not commit adultery, You shall not murder, You shall not steal, You shall not covet,’ and any other commandment, are summed up in this word: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’”
Statement: This greatly clarifies and simplifies our thinking and our priorities. We do not have to consider making sure that everything is fully just and that others get what they deserve! We have only to love – whether our family, our friends, or our enemies! Of course it is easier to love those who love us. But there should be no confusion in our minds as to the correct course of action: we are to love just as He has loved us!
Application: Of special importance is the fact that “everyone who loves the Father loves whoever has been born of Him.” So within the church every fellow Christian should be loved with the greatest love, for we know how much God loves them! And if we have difficulty with this – regardless of who that “brother” might be who is hard to love – we should return to deep repentance and to God’s gracious, merciful, and forgiving love. Only in this way can we remain “born again” to love one another!
Conclusion: Hopefully, the source of your presents to others and your service to others this Christmas season flows purely from genuine love – and not some ulterior reason. The only thing that has lasting and eternal value is love – God’s love for us manifested in the gift of His Son, our Savior, and God’s love coming to completion in us – as we love one another.
God is eternal. God is love. Therefore if we love, we abide in God and have eternal life. In the end “faith, hope, and love abide; but the greatest of these is love.” [1 Cor. 13:13] This is true because “GOD IS LOVE.” Amen.
Votum: And the peace of God, which surpasses all human understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds in the true faith, which is in Christ Jesus, even unto life everlasting, Amen.