Reading:  1 John 4: 8-11

8  He who does not love does not know God; for 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 loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the expiation for our sins.

11  Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.

COMMENTARY

We sometimes tend to think of God as One who is far off and unreachable.  Perhaps we are tempted to think of Him as One who cannot possibly be interested in us and our small daily needs.

There are times when we really do know that the One who holds the universe in His hands, loves us and cares for us. We go to God in prayer day by day, and we tell Him of our needs and thank Him for our blessings.  We ask Him for help to face the day which lies ahead of us, and we are refreshed by the thought of His love for us.  What a wonderful thing this is for each of us.

Our text goes further than this for it tells us that not only does God love us but that HE IS LOVE.  His whole being is love.  He is love personified, and what a tremendous thought this is.  It tells us that every act of God must be love.  How this thought will help us during times of trouble and difficulty which we cannot understand.

Like World Vision, many dedicated workers devote themselves in emergency relief work or community projects. They serve the needy people with God's love.

Let us then take comfort to our souls, remembering that 'God is love’.  He is always willing to work in us and to put His strength at our disposal if we will allow Him to do so.

NEWS

PRAYER (say together)

Our Heavenly Father, we love you because you first loved us, Help us to rely on you entirely and love you more deeply day by day.