WEEK 14
This week we will look at the third, fourth, and fifth motives to love--the witness of the Spirit, Christ is coming for us, and God loves us. Up to now, we have learned two motives to love:
We have learned that on our own we have none of the love of God in us. And that only the presence of the Holy Spirit in us can cause us to love in a way that is akin to the love God shows to us and to others. We have also learned that because of this peculiar love, the world sees us as "different." And, indeed, we are different. We become children of the most high God, instead of the offspring of the father of lies. We therefore take on the characteristics of our Father in Heaven. This sets us apart from the world.
We have also learned that because Christ died for us, while we were still in the world and still the children of the father of lies, we are the recipients of the love of God and His salvation. Only through Christ is this possible. When we begin to see the sacrifice of Christ as the ultimate act of love toward us, we are convicted in the heart and drawn to His cross. We never even gave Him a second thought, yet He died for us anyway. He did not die for us because we are so wonderful. He died as an act of unconditional love toward us.
Seeing that God is invisible, His abiding in us can be shown only by His essential characteristic being exhibited in us and that is by our showing similar self-sacrificing love. This love is not something we "work up." It is the work of the Spirit within. God's love flows from us as we yield to the Spirit.
The Christian's consciousness of the fact of God dwelling in him is due to the Spirit of God whom God has given. When we were saved we received the Spirit of God and His Spirit influences our souls by producing the nine-fold fruit of the Spirit, which is one of the clearest evidences that we can have that we are the children of God.
John and the Apostles were eye-witnesses to the Incarnate Son. They had intimate, personal knowledge of the Son and were in close fellowship with Him. In fact, because of their close relationship, they still were "seeing" the Son. They could see Him in Spirit. They could feel His influence in their lives still. They were still confessing Jesus as the Son of God. John is saying that anyone who confesses that Jesus is the Son of God is in fellowship with God. This implies that Jesus was Deity when He was born, (very God indeed) a statement the Gnostics denied. This confession of the Deity of Jesus implies surrender and obedience also, not mere lip service.
Believers are the sphere in which the love of God operates. One who is abiding in love is abiding in God and that shows that God is abiding in him. As we abide in His love, we have no problem loving other Christians.
The nature of God is love. Not just that He loves us. And not just that we love Him. But He is love. So, "our love" refers to the love which God is in His nature, produced in our hearts by the Holy Spirit; it does not refer to God's love for us or our love for Him. It now exists in it perfect, complete form. It exists in its finished results. This represents a past act in a saint's life and a present reality. He who has true love to God will have nothing to fear in the day of judgment. We have the same traits of character which the Savior had, and resembling Him, we need not be alarmed at the prospect of meeting Him. Jesus is in the world unseen, and our office is to make Him visible. He is in heaven representing us before the Father, and we are on earth representing Him before sinful men. We are to Him what He was to the Father in the days of His flesh.
In the love which we have for a parent, child or a friend, there is no fear. If a man has perfect (complete) love with Him, he would have no fear. It is guilt that makes man fear what is to come and if one has perfect love, he would have his sins confessed, thus having no guilt, therefore no fear. A slave's portion is that of punishment and their spirit one of fear; but the portion of sons is chastisement, and their spirit is one of boldness. God never intended for men to be afraid. There was no fear on earth until Satan and sin entered the scene. The person who experiences continual fear has not been made perfect in love. In other words, that person has not been saved.
The dread of punishment may cause men not to do certain sins, but it cannot lead them to righteousness. For that one needs to recognize that God loves them.
Christians do not fear, but love. Our love is in response to His love for us. The thought is that the amazing love of God in Christ is the inspiration of all the love that stirs in our hearts.
No man, whatever may be his professions and pretensions, can have any true love to God, unless he loves his brethren. To say that one is saved and then turn right around and hate the brethren makes a person a liar. This speaks of a false profession and does not necessarily mean that he intentionally lies but just reveals his blinded and deceived heart. If a professed Christian does not love one who bears the Divine image, whom he sees and knows, how can he love God whom he has not seen and whose image he bears (does if saved)? He can't.
Keep in mind that Christian love does not mean we must agree with everything a brother thinks or does. We may not like some of his personal characteristics, but because he is a brother in Christ, we are commanded to love him for Jesus' sake. Jesus stated that we are even to love our enemies.