1 John 3:13-16
Do not be surprised, my brothers, if the world hates you. We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love our brothers. Anyone who does not love remains in death. Anyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life in him. 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.
If you feel like you are lacking love, then you must come before the cross and think about what Jesus has accomplished for you and me. Our hearts will then be touched, because it is the momentum and source of love in our life of faith. Often when we watch how Jesus was put to death, we didn't feel that it has much to do with us, because it was a group of people with hardened hearts that rejected Jesus and nailed Him to the cross. But if we really think about it, who was it that actually nailed Jesus to the cross? A hymn describes how a person was furious about the death of Jesus and wanted to find who, at the time of Jesus, nailed our sinless savior to the cross. He wanted to let justice prevail, but it turned out that he found himself holding a hammer. Yes, Jesus was nailed to the cross because of the sin of you and me.
Whenever I think about how Jesus said to the crowd on the cross: "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they have done," I also accepted the forgiveness of the Lord in my heart. Yes, the Lord has sacrificed His life for me so that I would know what love is. Brothers and sisters, the Lord also gave his life for you, so you should know what love is. Sometimes it seems easier for us to accept the Lord's sacrificial love than to accept the commandment for us to sacrifice ourselves and love one another. The word of the Lord, however, taught us here that to sacrifice means to give up our own right in our life to love brothers and sisters.
It is great to have someone around you who are willing to sacrifice their own right. We often hope others will do it, but we are not willing to do the same. Actually, loving one another is a lesson in faith, because you would never know what would happen after you take this step forward. To those who believe in the Lord, however, our God is watching us in the dark and He will always reward us for what we have done. His grace is always sufficient for you, and his love can flow out from you.
Pray with Pastor Tong
Lord, we want to thank you, for we love because you have first loved us. You have sacrificed for us on the cross so that we may receive new life. I ask that you pour down you love into our life so that we would be willing to sacrifice our right in order for our brothers and sisters to be edified. Please give us wisdom and strength to do it. I thank you and I pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen!
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