TAKING A LOOK AT 1 JOHN

“If someone says, ‘I love God,’ but hates a Christian brother or sister, that person is a liar; for if we don’t love people we can see, how can we love God, whom we cannot see? And he has given us this command: Those who love God must also love their Christian brothers and sisters.”-1 John 4:20-21 New Living Translation

            The church John was writing to was having problems loving others in the congregation. Sound familiar? We all have different personalities, quirks and idiosyncrasies, some which drive others nuts. God has commanded us to love one another within the family of God.  There is no stipulation that says if they are annoying or irritating you don’t have to love them. We all annoy someone in one way or another, but we mustn’t focus on that which irritates us, we must learn to overlook that which annoys us in favor of showing God’s patience, mercy and love. That can be a challenge for a lot of us. Let’s face it; we’re all just a little bit selfish. We don’t want to walk into an uncomfortable situation. The one thing that those on the outside of the main group want and need more than anything else is acceptance. I’m as guilty as the next person. I judge and even turn away from those less fortunate than me within the body of Christ. I’ve been praying about it and have noticed improvement on my part, but I must watch my tongue. Perhaps you can relate to that?

            Now John uses a harsh word to describe ones feelings toward a Christian brother or sister … hate. It’s meaning is having“strong feelings of dislike or hostility”towards another person. Now I may be naïve, but I feel that the problem of ‘hating’ a brother or sister in Christ may not be all that prevalent. We must focus on people’s positive attributes and act as if the undesirable traits didn’t exist. 

            Having sight can be a detriment to living a Christian life. We can’t notsee things, especially if these things are either in front of us or all around us. We have to train ourselves, with the help of the Holy Spirit, to start to see things with the eyes of God. In other words, see others the way God does. It’s not easy to love the brethren at times, but if we allow the character of God to permeate our soul, we could overcome many obstacles in our life. Until next time, walk with the King and be a blessing! rlkeller

Resources: The Life Application Study Bible; The American Heritage Dictionary.