Loving in Advance

1 John 4:7-11

"Beloved, let us love on another…"

Why is it that Christians are supposed to be known by their love? Why do we carry that burden? Why are believer's held to a higher accountability when it comes to love?

"Love is of God."

That is the answer. God is the one who showed us what real love looks like by sending His Son to pay the bill for a debt that wasn't asked to be paid. He paid the bill when we didn't even know there was a debt. He paid the bill when he was the farthest thing from our mind.

Have you ever liked someone you knew didn't like you back? I have. I would imagine building up the strength to tell her how I felt, her saying the feelings were mutual, and me taking her on a lovely date…probably somewhere cheap (since I was poor). But I never ended up spending a dime on her. Why? Because the feelings were NOT mutual. Or at least I never found out that they were.

Jesus puts me to shame. He made the reservations at the fanciest restaurant, rented a limo with Michael Caine as the driver and bought backstage tickets to a Switchfoot concert. He did all of this before I even knew who He was. He did this while I despised Him. He did this knowing I was the last person on earth who deserved it. He did it in advance.

THAT is what love is.

And when the spirit of God is in you, that same love will pour from you.

"Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another."

This doesn't mean, "You know, you should probably be nice to that guy, because…well…Jesus is watching."

It means no matter what a believer says or does to you, no matter how much they irk you, you ought to love them with the same love that Jesus showed you - massive, unconditional love.

How could that not be the automatic response of an individual shown such love?

Christians are not known by their love for their friends or spouses or children. Many God-hating parents love their children. Rather, believers ought to be known by their unconditional love for the least deserving, because that kind of love points not the the self, but to Christ.