So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.
1 John 4: 16
As we approach the weekend, consider this quote:
Augustine
“Love God and do whatever you please: for the soul trained in love to God will do nothing to offend the One who is Beloved.”
What does it mean to abide in love? The theme of “love God, love others” is found throughout all of Scripture and in his first letter John makes a practical application in the verses that follow:
“We love because he first loved us. If anyone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother” (1 John 4: 19-21).
Notice that we’re not grounded in a set of rules, but in the love of Christ. As Augustine said, it is our love of God that directs our actions toward others.
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