WEEK 3
Monday
Read – 1 John 4:12–19
SOAP – 1 John 4:16
And we have come to know and to believe the love that God has in us. God is love, and the one who resides in love resides in God, and God resides in him.
God is love. It is not something He learned or a quality He only sometimes expresses. Love is who He is. The reason we have faith and are able to love God is because He loved us first. Faith and love are fruits of God having saved us. It is why we can love our enemies and pray for those who do wrong to us. It is a picture of how God loved us while we were sinners. It shows that we are being conformed into the image of God.
If God is love, He must deal justly with sin. He can’t ignore wrongdoing, that would not be loving or right. This is one of the amazing things about Jesus coming to earth to take on the punishment that belonged to us. By sacrificing His Son, God showed His love and His justice at the same time.
Lord, Your love is amazing and incomprehensible. Help me to recognize how much you love me, and help me to love You with my whole heart, mind, and soul. Amen.