Beloved, let us love one other; for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. (8) He who does not love does not know God for God is love. (9) In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. (10) In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

1 John was written by the apostle John – he was the last of the apostles to die. In our verses John emphasized the imperative of love. He wanted to make sure we understand love is not an optional virtue for the believer and may be the distinguishing mark of the Christian church in this world. Basically he says that if we do not love others we do not know God. It is the inevitable result of being born again of God, not the automatic result and there is always room for growth. We are to exercise wise discernment – some minor doctrinal differences are not essential to gospel and we need to love those who differ from us in these matters. But some doctrine is important to live a Christian life. Some issues fall in the gray zone where salvation may not be at stake but to embrace a particular view will have enormous consequences. But there is doctrine where believing or rejecting makes the difference of heaven or hell. In these matters there is no compromise. To deny the substitutionary atonement of Christ by grace through faith in Christ apart from our works would be to deny the gospel.

We should love one another because God is love. The supreme illustration of love in the world is the Father sending His Son to die for our sins. The biblical definition of love shows itself in seeking the highest good of the one loved. This love, the nature of God, is in those who are born again – God’s love is perfected in us. He/she that loves not knows not God. Love is the very essence of our new nature and must be manifested toward all who are the objects of the love of God

John exhorts us to love an authentic love which is the issue of Christian love and obligation. Love is of God. Everyone who loves God has the source of that love in God. Sometimes we confuse human love with divine love as we are not reliable interpreters of the spiritual experience of others. This May (today in fact) is the month of my natural birth and this May is also the month of my sobriety date; 37 years sober. Since we are speaking of love I’m quoting the first 3 steps of Alcoholics Anonymous. Half measures availed us nothing. We stood at the turning point. We asked His protection and care with complete abandon.
1. We admitted we were powerless over alcohol – that our lives had become unmanageable.
2. Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.
3. Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understand Him.