As we began looking at the Disposition of Love in last week’s blog, we noted that agape love is revealed in the most well-known verse in the Bible,

“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16).

God’s love for humankind moved Him to not only send His Son to planet Earth, but to also die on the cross to redeem us from the penalty and power of sin as,

“God demonstrated His love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8).

In addition to being a vital characteristic of God’s nature, Love is the greatest of all Christian virtues, as Paul tells us,    

“And now abide faith, hope, and love, but the greatest of these is love” (1 Corinthians 13:13).

This is a vital “Disposition of the Heart” for every follower of Christ, as we are to demonstrate the same love that God has for us to a lost and hurting world. Jesus’ command was made clear throughout the Gospel of John, that we should   

“Love one another as I have loved you. By this will all people know that you are my disciples, if you have love one for another” (John 13:34-35; 15:12, 17)

The rest of the apostles took Jesus’ command to heart, and now let’s take a closer look at the documents that have been preserved for us in letters written in the first century expressing our need to “love one another.” In today’s blog, we will only look at what the Apostle John had to say about loving one another, and next week, we will look at what both Paul and Peter had to say.

The Apostle John, the one who sat next to Jesus in the Upper Room, and the one who is often referred to as “The Apostle of Love,” had a great deal to say in his first letter,

“For this is the message that you have heard from the beginning: We should love one another” (1 John 3:11)

Yes, from the very beginning of Jesus’ ministry, He challenged His followers to “love one another.” But John had a lot more to say in this letter,

“And this is His command: to believe in the name of His Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as He commanded us” (1 John 3:23).

Yes, Jesus commanded His followers to believe in His name and to love one another. But there is much more that John had to say,

“Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God (1 John 4:7).

Yes, our love for others comes from God through the Holy Spirit living in us, and that love for others is a demonstration that we have been “born of God” as well as “know God.” Indeed, the “proof” that a person really “knows God” is found in our love for others, as John wrote,  

Since God so love 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. . . And so we know and rely on the love that God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them” (1 John 4:11-12, 16).

The proof that God dwells within us is found in the demonstration of our love for others. And, of course, the flip side of this is also true, as John said,

“Whoever does not love, does not know God, because God is love (1 John 4:8).

But, as I noted above, John wasn’t the only apostle to focus on extending love toward others, as both Paul and Peter had much to say about this important disposition as well. Next week, we will dig into these additional documents written by Paul and Peter to the churches in Europe and Asia.

I hope you will join me.

Sincerely, Jim Price