SERIES: The Letters of John
TEXT: 1 John 4:7-21
MESSAGE: “Assured in God’s Love”
Q: What does John have to say about love?
1. Love Starts with God (v.7-10)
A. God’s definition of love (v.7-8)
“7 Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.” — 1 John 4:7-8
“Human love, however noble and however highly motivated, falls short if it refuses to include the Father and Son as the supreme objects of its affections.” — I. Howard Marshall
“Love is from God the way heat is from fire, or the way light is from the sun. Love belongs to God’s nature. It’s woven into what he is. It’s part of what it means to be God. The sun gives light because it is light. And fire gives heat because it is heat. So John’s point is that in the new birth, this aspect of the divine nature becomes part of who you are. The new birth is the imparting to you of divine life, and an indispensable part of that life is love. God’s nature is love, and in the new birth that nature becomes part of who you are…. When you are born again, God himself is imparted to you. He dwells in you and sheds abroad in your heart his love.” — John Piper
B. God’s greatest expression of love (v.9-10)
“9 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. 10 In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.”— 1 John 4:9-10
“And you were dead in the trespasses and sin” — Ephesians 2:1
“For the essence of sin is man substituting himself for God, while the essence of salvation is God substituting himself for man. Man asserts himself against God and puts himself where only God deserves to be; God sacrifices himself for man and puts himself where only man deserves to be.” — John Stott
2. Love is Maintained by God (v.11-16)
“11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 12 No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us. 13 By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. 14 And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. 15 Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. 16 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.” — 1 John 4:11-16
“By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” — John 13:35
“The unseen God, who was once revealed to His Son, is now revealed in His people…when they love one another.” — John Stott
“The more we love God, the more we understand the love of God. And the more we understand His love, the easier it is to trust Him. After all, when you know someone intimately and love him sincerely, you have no problem putting your confidence in him.” — Warren Wiersbe
“God gave us His Spirit, and He will never take Him from us. He is ours now and forever. For all of eternity there will be this mutual indwelling between us and the Holy Spirit. What a blessing! What a gift!” — Daniel Akin
3. Love is Perfected by God (v.17-19)
“17 By this is love perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is so also are we in this world. 18 There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love. 19 We love because he first loved us.” — 1 John 4:17-19
“God doesn’t accept two payments for the same debt.” — Timothy Keller
TAKEAWAYS:
1. Rely on God’s love for you
“21 When my soul was embittered, when I was pricked in heart, 22 I was brutish and ignorant; I was like a beast toward you. 23 Nevertheless, I am continually with you; you hold my right hand. 24 You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will receive me to glory. 25 Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you. 26 My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.” — Psalm 73:21-26
2. Reflect God’s love for you by following His commandment
“20 If anyone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. 21 And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother.” — 1 John 4:20-21