The Immensity of the Love of God: A Study of 1 John 4:7-11

Today we had the sword-tag group at and we had one new person visit, the friend of my oldest son. We had a great time although I am now truly starting to feel my advanced age and am quickly defeated by everyone. Still, not only do I get a good work-out, I also enjoy time spent with a bunch of rambunctious teen boys! AND I get to teach! ;-)

Here is the lesson for today:

Read 1 John 4:7-11

Here we see the concern with which John writes...he says to the beloved, to the elect, that we are to love one another. Why are we to do so? Because love comes from God (see Galatians 5:22)! We are not speaking here of what is commonly referred to as love, the infatuation of men towards women and vice versa. No, the love referred to here is that perfect love of God (see 1 Corinthians 13).

Note how verse 7 goes on to say that everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. Then in vese 8 we read that if somebody does not love then they don't truly know who God is because God IS love. Here we see why this does not speak of a merely emotional type of love, for everyone alive can claim that and the Bible is very clear that not all people know God nor will all people know God. What we are to understand here is that if there is one among us who does not have love for the saints, then He does not truly know God. God loves His elect! How can one claim to love God and then hate His people? You would be hating yourself!

But look again at verse 8....God IS love.

Not God loves, but God IS love. What does this mean? Well it means that His very nature is love. He is not merely loving, He is love itself. All that He gives to us, His very special people, is out of a manifestation of His very character.

Many people take this verse and say, "see there can be no hell for God is love". The problem with this is that they take this attribute of God and make it all that He is. But God is not some Greek deity like Aphrodite the goddess of love. He is the God of Israel. We are told by John that God is also light (1 John 1:5) and that He is Spirit (John 4:24). He is also holy. Let us never forget that God cannot be boxed into one thing we read in some random verse we can then use as a proof text for whatever thing we want to teach. No. Taken all together, and in context, we see that the love of God is manifest in His love for His people. The holiness of God demands that sin be punished, but His love and His mercy permit us to receive forgiveness!

We see this so clearly in verse 9, where we read that the love of God, the outflow of His character, is manifested towards us. Towards His chosen people. So the focus of His love is clearly defined here. Remember this is the same John who wrote John 3:16! So we can see so much more clearly what he is writing when we read this verse...the love of God, the mercy of God, has an intended target, and it is us! God, being love, made known this love by sending Jesus into the world, that we might live through Him. Jesus came into the world for His lost sheep. In dying on the cross He attained their salvation by atoning for the sins of His people. Truly He was abe to say on the cross that He had accomplished His work, declaring "It is finished!" (John 19:30) Do you see this? The Father sent the Son for a purpose! This purpose is explained here by John. But we also read in Luke 19:10 that Jesus Himself said that He came to "seek and save that which was lost"!

What, then, is the clearest expression of the love of God? The death of Christ on the cross! Such a horrible event, the second Person of the Trinity suffering and dying for a sinful people. What a travesty! And yet, it was the eternal decree of God that this should happen. It was necessary for the Shepherd to die in order for the sheep to be redeemed. This is love, not just that He died for us, but that such a Perfect Being died for such filthy creatures as us. The Creator of the universe died for that which He created! This is love!

And to understand even better what an amazing thing this is, we read in verse 10 that the picture of love is NOT that we loved God...but that He loved us enough to send His Son to pay the penalty for us! This is exactly what Paul teaches in Romans 5:8 where he says that "God demonstrates His love own love towards us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us."

You see, in our fallen state, we do not love God. And even though the Lord could see the evil of our hearts, He chose to die for us. He loved us even though we were in rebellion against Him...He loved us even though we were unworthy of Him. Can you imagine that? Our natural inclination is to turn away from those who dislike us, let alone those who hate us! But God died for those who hated Him. Truly John will later declare that "we love Him because He first loved us"! (1 John 4:19)

Ask: What do you think of this kind of love? (discuss)

This is a type of love so immense that it can only come from God. And do you know what? There is a reason why John tells us these things...we read it in verse 11 where John now concludes this passage with the following: "Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another."

Wow.

Can we live up to this? If God loves us so much that since eternity past He decreed the death of Jesus on the cross, how can we measure up? Is it possible? Well it must be because we are commanded to love one another in the same manner!

How can this type of love be manifested by the saints towards one another? (discuss)

Think about this: God's love was not prompted by anything praiseworthy in us.

In fact, read the following:
-Deuteronomy 7:6-7
-2 Timothy 1:8-9

Nothing in us deserved the love of God. He gave it for His own reasons, because it pleased Him to shower us with it. It is undeserved.

With this in mind, I ask again, how can we manifest this type of love towards one another?

We are to love the people of God even when they are unloveable. We are to forgive the people of God when they offend us, even if they don't ask us for that forgiveness. We are to bless His people even when they sinfully curse us. And, yes, we are to die for them if need be.

I dare not say that any of this is easy, but it is commanded of us. The best way to cultivate this love is to seek Him first. To be so focused on Him and His love that this world means nothing by comparison. When we are in constant awareness of His love for us, of the immensity of the love of God, then exhibiting such a love towards others will come more naturally. I pray we all desire this.

Close in prayer.