Christ Is Coming #24

As we said yesterday, the Apostle John greatly emphasized the blessing of Love that came with Christ. We see that in his first letter, chapter 4:

7 Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9 In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. 10 In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. 11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.  

God so loved us. How do we know that? He sent His Son. The separation itself was enough of a sacrifice, but God went far beyond that when He made Him our payment price for sins.  That is so overwhelming, John says, how could we not respond to it? But how? We cannot do that in return.  What we can, and should, and must do, he says, is love fellow believers with the same sacrificial and sincere love.  Will we give God the gift He asks for this Christmas?