Thought for the Day – Monday 11th May
This morning’s reading is a bit of a tongue twister – lots of love in
there - so read it slowly!
Our reading is 1 John 4 v 7-21:
‘Dear friends, let us love one
another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and
knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This
is how God showed his love among us: he sent his one and only Son into the
world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but
that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear
friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has
ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made
complete in us.
This is how we know that we live
in him and he in us: he has given us of his Spirit. And we have seen and
testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Saviour of the world. If
anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in
God. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever
lives in love lives in God, and God in them. This is how love is made complete
among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: in this world
we are like Jesus. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear,
because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect
in love. We love because he first loved us. Whoever claims to love God yet
hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother
and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. And
he has given us this command: anyone who loves God must also love their brother
and sister.’
I am sure for many of us certain passages of scripture hold special
meaning. This may be because they were part of our wedding ceremony, a family
baptism, our admission to the church, our ordination, read at the funeral of a
loved one, were a memory verse from childhood Sunday School days or perhaps
just because we like to read the flow of the words or appreciate the sentiment
within the words.
I have always liked this particular passage because it speaks of love
so wonderfully and of how and why we should love as God loves. However, I have
to say it took on extra special meaning for me way back in 2008 just a few
months before my own Ordination and Induction to our linked Parishes when I was
asked by my elder son Richard to read it on his wedding day as it was a
meaningful passage to both him and his now wife Katherine. Hence, I know it can
be a tongue-twister – I certainly practised it a lot before the wedding day!
I suppose you could say this reading takes us right back to yesterday’s
reading where we were being encouraged to ‘Know Jesus, know God; Trust Jesus,
trust God; Live Jesus, live God!’
However, taking it right back to basics, it tells us if we don’t know
love then we cannot possibly ever
begin that cycle of knowing, trusting and living, for God himself is love! Our
God is someone who loved us so much that he sent his Son to be our Saviour and
when we understand the depth of that love then we should be stirred within to
love others as deeply as he has loved us. We have not seen God, but we have his
Spirit within us and when we have faith and trust in God and rely on his love
then we can reach out in love to all others and then they can see God’s
love in action through our loving actions and as the passage says love is made
complete. It is as if we are adding to our little cyclical phrase ‘Love Jesus,
love God.’
So let’s ‘Love Jesus, love God; Know Jesus, know God; Trust Jesus,
trust God; Live Jesus, live God’ and then begin the cycle all over again!
Prayer
Today I offer a prayer about the love of Jesus from John van de Laar
inspired by this passage:
How deeply you have loved us, Jesus;
how willingly you stepped into our experience,
how completely you empathised with all that we endure.
Teach us to love as you have
loved us.
How sacrificially you have loved us, Jesus;
how completely you gave yourself for us,
how courageously you suffered for our sakes.
Teach us to love as you have
loved us.
How restoratively you have loved us, Jesus;
how generously you share your life,
how extravagantly you make yourself available to us.
Teach us to love as you have
loved us.
We praise you for your love
which is given so freely and so unconditionally.
And we thank you for believing
that we could learn to offer such love to each other.
Amen.
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