Year of the Bible: Part Twelve of TwelveSample

Love is a Family Trait

In today’s reading, John wrote to churches trying to discern between truth and false teaching. His tone is much more grandfatherly, warm, and loving than Paul’s; he wanted to ensure that believers were not swayed into believing a false gospel. John wrote to encourage believers and remind them of their significant hope in the person of Jesus and what He did for us. Jesus lived the example of love while He was here on earth.

It has been said that you cannot love if you are the only person around. God’s very essence reveals a loving relationship between God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. The love relationship in the Godhead sets an example for how we are to love one another. Jesus modeled it for us, and John reminded the believers that the message from the beginning was to love each other.

When God sent Jesus, He desired to welcome people into His family through Jesus—this desire has not changed. How can we tell if someone is in God’s family? Just as a child or grandchild may resemble older family members, our spiritual, moral, social, and theological beliefs will reflect God’s family if we walk with Him. We may not be perfect reflections of God, but we will look like Him in many ways.

Clichés exist because they have been proven true in most cases, with few exceptions. In a family, love is paramount. The cliché, “Blood is thicker than water,” indicates that familial bonds are stronger than other relationships. God desires loyalty and a resemblance of Him for His family as well.

Jesus said that the world would know us by our love for one another, yet we often fight about who has the correct view of God or who knows more about Him. Divisions in God’s family lend to less recognition of His family members.

Question: Do people look at your life, beliefs, and actions and recognize that you are part of God’s family?

Prayer: Ask God to show you areas where you could look more like Him. You may also want to ask a trusted mentor or friend to see if there are blind spots that need to be brought into a more loving perspective. Take one action this week to be more loving toward brothers and sisters that may annoy you.