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.
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.
1 John 4:10-12, 15-16 NIV
God loved us first by allowing us to live and be. He wants to live in the hearts He created; but He wants us to love just like He loves: freely and without condition. Accepting the great sacrifice God gave through His Son, Jesus, is the first step in acknowledging the love we receive from God. We then become able to emulate God's love for us as His Spirit directs our steps from inside out. As we stumble through this world, loving one another ensures God's love is working within us. This is the love upon which we can rely no matter what the other guy is doing. If we must, let's love one another for our own sakes.
Categories: Beginning Again
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