Love One Another

You have heard from the beginning love one another

Love is a foundational aspect of being a Christian. You cannot grow in your relationship with Christ without a love for other people.

9 The one who says he is in the Light and yet hates his brother is in the darkness until now. 10 The one who loves his brother abides in the Light and there is no cause for stumbling in him. 11 But the one who hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going because the darkness has blinded his eyes. -11

Hate is darkness to the soul. The one who hates his brother must ask the Lord, to shine His light into their soul, so they can love the hated brother.

To love someone means Agapao — to have a strong, non-sexual affection and love for a person and their good as understood by God’s moral character; especially characterized by a willing forfeiture of rights or privileges in another person’s behalf. We must be willing to set our differences aside and love one another.

Not as Cain who was of the evil one ()

Cain and Abel brought an offering to the Lord. The Lord recieved Abel’s but did not regard Cain’s. There are many speculation as to why the Lord accepted Abel’s and not Cain’s. The Bible does not specifically say. It is not important for this message. The fact that Cain was angry at God affected His relationship with his brother. Cain wanted God to accept his offering just like He did Abel’s. Since He didn’t Cain became jealous of Abel. God warned Cain to do right or sin was crouching at his door. What was his sin? Hatred. We see this in his action towards Abel. He lured him into a remote place and killed him.

Friend, if there is anyone in your life that you have a hate for, sin is crouching at your door. It will cause you to do things that are not becoming of a follower of Christ. This can be a family member, an ex-spouse, parent, an old friend, co-worker, neighbor, church member, pastor, deacon ect… Typically the people we can hate the most are the ones that are closest to us.

Don’t Be Surprised If the World Hates You

We have passed out of death into life.

This means that we have the ability to love the unlovable.

MacArthur Study Bible NASB Commentary

3:14 passed out of death into life, because we love. Becoming a Christian is a resurrection from death to life, and a turning of hate to love (cf. Gal 5:6, 22). A lack of love indicates that one is spiritually dead. Love is the sure test of whether someone has experienced the new birth or is still in the darkness of spiritual death (2:9, 11). abides in death. Someone who is characterized by hate has never experienced the new birth.

3:15 Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer. John presents the second of 3 characteristics of the devil’s children with respect to their lack of love. Hatred is spiritually the same as murder in the eyes of God, i.e., the attitude is equal to the act. Hate is the seed that leads to murder, as seen in the example of the hatred of Cain for Abel that resulted in murder (see notes on Mt 5:20–22; cf. Gal 5:19–21; Rev 22:15).

21 “You have heard that the ancients were told, ‘You shall not commit murder’ and ‘Whoever commits murder shall be liable to the court.’22 But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty before the court; and whoever says to his brother, ‘You good-for-nothing,’ shall be guilty before the supreme court; and whoever says, ‘You fool,’ shall be guilty enough to go into the fiery hell.

Hatred is an emotion that leads to destruction. It is progressive in nature and intensifies the longer it resides in the heart of a person. The longer it stays the bigger it grows. This is why Jesus instructs us to eradicate anger and reconcile quickly.

26 Be angry, and yet do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, 27 and do not give the devil an opportunity.

Laying Your Life Down For A Friend Is A Perfect Demonstration Of Love

Jesus laid his life down for the whole world. He loved the world so much that he was willing to give up his perfect life as a substitutionary sacrifice for our imperfect life. He did not deserve death and punishment because he had no sin. He forfeited his right of perfection and the reward that comes with it to take on himself the wrath of God that was due us. He truly demonstrated the self-sacrifice that we should as believers in Christ.

We may never be called to give our life for the sake of another, but that is not the point. The point is that we are to put others before ourselves. One of the ways we do this is by giving what we have to others.

New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update Chapter 3

But whoever has the world’s goods, and sees his brother in need and closes his heart against him, how does the love of God abide in him?

When we give our time and our resources to others before we give to ourselves, we are being self-sacrificing. This is easy to do when it comes to family, but how about others. Are you willing to help someone you don’t even know. Next Sunday you will have an opportunity to give a child a gift that you don’t know. Are you willing to give your time to someone you are not close with. They may need help going through something you have been through. Are you willing to make the time to care for them and share with them.

Let Us Love With Deed and Truth

It is one thing to say you love someone. It is quite another to show them. The way you show them is by deed and truth. Jesus explains how we do this in

5 For I was hungry, and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me something to drink; I was a stranger, and you invited Me in; 36 naked, and you clothed Me; I was sick, and you visited Me; I was in prison, and you came to Me.’ 37 Then the righteous will answer Him, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry, and feed You, or thirsty, and give You something to drink? 38 And when did we see You a stranger, and invite You in, or naked, and clothe You?39 When did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ 40 The King will answer and say to them, ‘Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me.’