Perfect Love

Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God remains in him, and he in God. We have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who remains in love remains in God, and God remains in him. By this, love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment; because as He is, we also are in this world. There is no fear in love, but perfect love drives out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love. We love, because He first loved us.
1 John 4:15-19

Notes

The first step into the grace of salvation is confession, recognizing our frailty and forsaking our past for a more hopeful future. We are then connected to God, and God in us with the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, which provides a gateway between us and our Creator. From this connection and sensing the love God has for us, we then are able to love others whom God loves also. In society, there is usually a give and take. I do something for you, and you do something for me. We’re good. What is profound about the gift of salvation is that we give nothing more than our sin-riddled souls destined for death. But God loves us, accepts us, and pursues his goodness into us. He gives all, and while we have given emptiness. Most social contracts would be considered void with these results, but instead of nullification, we experience magnification.

It is essential both to know and believe God if we are to be true believers. We must believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God, in order to receive salvation. But to know Him through fellowship, obedience, and compassion are the actions that portray our faith. It is both show and tell. Telling people you are a believer is good, but what does it matter if your actions do not show it? (Js 2:14-26) If you are doing good works but do not believe in the Most High God, what does it matter since you cannot save yourself from death? (Eph. 2:8-9) It is important to do both: to be confident in telling others that we are believers while also showing our faith through our actions.

I often think of the moment when I will stand before the judgment seat and have to reckon with the reality of my life. Is it the proper attitude to be humble and cower in reverence? No! Here, we are told to stand before God in boldness and confidence. If we have truly confessed our sins, then He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins (1Jh 1:9). Once we have accepted the love of God, he abides in us. The word abide does not simply mean to accept, but it also means to continue, to persist, and to live on. We become imitations of Him, and by his love, this relationship is perfected in us. We can boldly walk forward, having shed our former selves, knowing that nothing in this world can hold us back. Our confidence stays with us even until the day of judgment.

If we can walk boldly in our faith, carrying perfect love, we are called to love others and humble ourselves. Too many people think that to be a servant is to be subservient, debasing themselves before others. God is not calling us to be less than we were meant to be, nor are we to be considered inferior or beneath anyone. Instead, we are to act like servants, just as Jesus exemplified. A servant is devoted, a helpful follower, and a supporter who understands the true meaning of sacrifice. If we are to enjoy God’s love and have been forgiven of every wretched thing we have done or will do, our charge is to show compassion and mercy to others by being devoted and helpful, serving, praying, and even sacrificing.

The perfect love created in us can not live alongside fear. If we have been forgiven and claim salvation, then there is nothing to really fear. All things on this earth are temporal and cannot touch what is eternal. There are many, many verses that remind us that God is our refuge and our strength, and if he is for that, no one has a chance against us (Deut. 31:6, Ps. 27:1, Is. 41:13, Heb. 13:6). We are not alone because God remains in us and abides in us. Fear lessens as a believer growing in their faith recognizes there is no need to fear punishment. We can look forward to the future because we have been forgiven.

Ultimately, we could not understand love without the love of God. He is love, and love is Him. Not everyone around us is deserving of our love, yet we are called to extend love to everyone. How is this possible? We were equally unloveable and unworthy of forgiveness, but God loved us first and forgave our past, present, and future. How can we say we love God if we do not extend the same love toward other people? Our human nature leads down a road of destruction and darkness (Matt. 15:18-19), but we are not only physical beings but spiritual beings too. There is a yearning for harmonious connectivity with each other and with our Maker. Although we squabble, bicker, and fight in our physical form, spiritually, deep down, there is a longing to be made whole and to be renewed. This renewal does not come in isolation but in community with others and having a solid relationship with God.