Teaching Notes

TRUE LOVE

 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. - John 3:16

This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. - 1 John 3:16

If you ask what love is, you will get several different answers. Some may tell you about the love that a parent has for a child. Others may tell you about the love of one friend towards another. Yet another, would tell you about the love of a husband toward a wife. These answers are correct, but none of these examples of love express the purest form, which comes from God.

This month of February is a month set aside for us to express our love for each other. While we are doing that, let's also remember to express our thanks for the great love that God gives to all mankind.

The first scripture states love started with God. God loves mankind so much that he offered His own son to pay the penalty for our sins that we could not pay. Our good deeds, trying to be nice, all fall short of satisfying the judgment that is on our lives because of sin. God did not desire for mankind to perish so he made a way for us to be able to be with him. What Jesus did was offer to God His life so that we did not have to pay the price of being separated eternally from God. Jesus makes a way for us to be forgiven of our sins because He gave His life for ours.

This love is offered to us not because we are lovable, or good, or smart, or right. This love is in fact offered to us while we are sinful, unlovable, wrong, and foolish. God offers us this love and when we accept it, God then fills our hearts with His love, which allows us to fulfill the next scripture.

1 John 3:16 has always been an interesting scripture to me. The reason is the similarity to the scripture address of John 3:16. I do not believe this was just an accident or something that just happened. I believe these addresses are so close because their purpose is so closely linked together.

They in a sense sum up the message of the Christian life. We are saved by the love of God through Christ so that we can go and love the world to God through Christ. That's the essence of true love. God loved us first, therefore we are now equipped to do and live out 1 John 3:16. We are to go and become living sacrifices for others by giving up our rights so that someone else has the right to meet Jesus through us.

While you are buying your candies, cards and flowers for Valentine's Day, give someone a sweet treat of the truth of God's love, write on the heart of someone the Lord's love song and deliver to someone a sweet arrangement of the salvation message. This February go and spread the message about true love, the love that originated with God.