Friends in Christ Weekly Message
May 13, 2006

There is no room in love for fear. Well-formed love banishes fear. Since fear is crippling, a fearful life - fear of death, fear of judgment - is one not yet fully formed in love.
     We, though, are going to love - love and be loved. First we were loved, now we love. He loved us first.
     If anyone boasts, “I love God,” and goes right on hating his brother or sister, thinking nothing of it, he is a liar. If he won't love the person he can see, how can he love the God he can't see? The command we have from Christ is blunt: Loving God includes loving people. You've got to love both.
1 John 4:18-21 (Message*)

Love is certainly one of the major themes of the Bible. Here John states some truths about love, and sets forth some challenges to us who claim to love God - some things which reveal whether or not our love is genuine and full.

The first challenge comes in the assertion that love banishes fear. The love between God and us means we no longer live in fear. Has God's love banished fear from your life?

The second challenge is on loving people. John very bluntly asserts that if we don't love people, we are liars if we say we love God. Do you love your brothers and sisters, every person with whom you come into contact, in a way that demonstrates your love for God?

Bill Samuel

* The Message version ©2002 by Eugene H. Peterson.

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