THE FAMILY RESEMBLANCE

PASTOR CHARLIE ARELLANO

• Love is a word that gets thrown around a lot.
• Conversely, many people never use the word love because they have never had love demonstrated to them; they have had negative experiences with the term, so the word is held back and seldom used, if ever.
• 1 John 4:7-12 (NLT) 7 Dear friends, let us continue to love one another, for love comes from God. Anyone who loves is a child of God and knows God. 8 But anyone who does not love does not know God, for God is love. 9 God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. 10 This is real love—not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins. 11 Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other. 12 No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us, and his love is brought to full expression in us.
• Reference: 1 Timothy 6:20, 2 Timothy 4:3

1 John 4:7-8 | JOHN TELLS US THAT TRUE CHRISTIAN LOVE IS NON-NEGOTIABLE.

In verse 7, John uses language that identifies his audience and who the message is directed to. “Dear friends” is used in the NLT, and ” Beloved” is used in other Bible translations. This is important because John is talking to the . This means that this message is for those of us who profess faith in Jesus Christ today.

In verses 7 and 8, we see these two truths regarding love, which is non-negotiable for a Christ follower.

• First, love originates from , so we, His people, should be by it.
  – Love is fundamental to God’s character, so we, as His children, must bear that family resemblance.
  – John wrote about this very thing in John 13:35.
  – We should not look like the rest of the unbelieving world, being divisive, argumentative, and downright unfriendly. This is not the behavior of a Christ follower. That type of behavior is totally contradictory to the person of Christ (John 3:16).

• Second, Love is evidenced by being “ of God” and “knowing God.”
  – Verse 8 tells us this: “But anyone who does not love does not know God, for God is love”.
  – God is loving in all that He does.
  – The love that He shows to men and us as believers is a revelation of His own inner being.

1 John 4:9-10 | JOHN REMINDS US THAT THE SUPREME EXAMPLE OF LOVE IS FOUND IN THE CROSS.

The “sending” of the Son envisions the full of Christ – the incarnation, life, death, burial, resurrection, and ascension. This was the culmination of God’s great love.

• This is why his work demonstrates love – and it came at the greatest . God’s most prized possession on the cross.
• The two components are self-sacrifice and an action done for the benefit of others.
• There is no way we can be the example of true Christ-like love without the cross and Christ living in us.

1 John 4:11-12 | JOHN GIVES US INSTRUCTION ON HOW WE CAN PRACTICE LOVE AND SEE ITS RESULT.

John once again reminds us of who he is addressing, and it serves as a reminder to the believer. He reminds us that God’s great love is on the cross. Then he reminds us that if we are truly recipients of Jesus’ persevering, sacrificial love, how can we not do anything other than demonstrate this to one another and a watching world?

• John doesn’t mince words. If we can’t love our brothers and sisters in Christ, we do not know God. Our adoration of God must lead to .
• While it is true that we cannot see God, we must believe that he lives in us. And it is because of this that we as Christians must show Him to a watching world by loving each other.
• When we love each other
  • It demonstrates that God abides in us and the world can see Him through us.
  • God’s love is being brought to completion in us because His love is our salvation.
  • God dwells in the midst of others as we live among them.

“As we draw near to God through Christ, we come to know Him and to love as He loves – and that love is a testimony to the watching world around us.” – Chuck Swindoll

Contemplate and meditate on how much God demonstrated His love for all of us. Then, we can evaluate our behavior and make the changes necessary to better represent Jesus to a world that needs to see Him, now more than ever.

• He loved us first. He did not wait for us to make the first move. Our love should be an initiating love.
• He loved those who hated Him. We cannot excuse ourselves from love because people are difficult. If the sinless God can love sinful people, then sinful people can surely love other sinful people.
• We are commanded to love all people even when they are different than we are. Our love must not be limited to those who are like us.
• His love continued when it was not convenient.
• His love perseveres even though we sin and offend Him.
• His love came at an extreme cost.

“God, I know that I am a sinner. I know that I deserve the consequences of my sin. However, I am trusting in Jesus Christ as my Savior. I believe that His death and resurrection provided for my forgiveness. I trust in Jesus and Jesus alone as my personal Lord and Savior. Thank you, Lord, for saving me and forgiving me! Amen!”

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