1 John 4:11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.
Context: 1 John 4:9-10 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. 10In 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. 1 John 4:12 No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.
From the lexicon: Love=unconditional love Ought=are morally obligated.
Pulling it together: Simply put, 1 John 4:11 instructs us as believers to love one another. However, it gives God’s love for us as the measure of how we ought to love others. Verse 9, in echoing John 3:16, gives the example how God expressed His love by sending His Son into the world to bring us to life in Him. Verse 10 is even more explicit for it states that Jesus became the propitiation or payment-in-full for our sins. In light of this love, therefore, our text says we ought or better, we have a moral obligation to love one another.
But what can we say about this Godly love? First, it is unconditional. Romans 5:8–but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. God made the first move. His love is there whether we receive it or not.
Second, God’s love is selfless. He expressed His love at great cost—His only Son on a Cross. Godly love is providing for others rather than oneself.
Third, God’s love never ends. He loves us for eternity. Godly love keeps on giving.
1 John 4:12 completes the thought. No one has seen God, but they can see God in us as we love with His kind of love.
Lord, I pray for grace to love You more and let Your love flow through me.