Those who truly love unconditionally base their actions and responses on their own virtue and not on the tit-for-tat school-yard reactions of the world. We are entirely in control of what we think, say, and do in all situations. How will that change the way we live today?
1 Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves the father loves his child as well. 2 This is how we know that we love the children of God: by loving God and carrying out his commands. 3 In fact, this is love for God: to keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome, 4 for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. 5 Who is it that overcomes the world? Only the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.
1John 5:1-5
John echoes his gospel account today, almost quoting John 1:12 for us in his letter. Everyone who believes Jesus is Messiah is born of God. That birth, John teaches us, is not of our own wills – it is a spiritual rebirth granted by the Father. He makes us his children when we have trusting faith in his Son.
And if we love the Father, it follows that we will love his children – this is a repetitive theme for John, who challenges his readers with loving others as evidence of their faith. The command to love God and other people is not burdensome in John’s mind. And here’s why. John understands the secret sauce of loving other people.
Watch what he says in verse 4: ‘everyone born of God overcomes the world.’ That’s it. This is the stuff of world domination. We saw it in Jesus, and we see it in the people we admire most in life. The world overcomers are able to love other people and express that love regardless of the pressure and hatred of the world around them.
Their actions and their responses are based on their own virtues and are not based on the tit-for-tat school-yard reactions of the world. We are entirely in control of what we think, say, and do in all situations. Overcoming the world is not burdensome. It’s liberating.
We simply need to commit to loving other people instead of succumbing to the influence of the hating world around us.
Amen.
Marc Kinna
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