The Full GospelSample

He First Loved Us // The Gospel According to John

The gospel is good news because it’s not some prize we have to achieve. It’s a gift we receive when we believe in Jesus. This is what John tells us in chapter four of his letter to the early church:

If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. 1 John 4:15-16 NIV

We receive God’s love when we believe in Jesus. And what’s even crazier to imagine is that when we commit our lives to God, He starts to live within us. The infinite and all powerful Creator of everything didn’t just come to earth, but He takes up residence in our hearts.

The Apostle Paul described this new reality in Ephesians three when he wrote this prayer:

I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. Ephesians 3:16-19 NIV

This is what Jesus has offered to us—life with God, life for God, and life in God. And to make things even more wild, John goes on to tell us in verse 17 that living in God makes the love of God even more complete in us. He writes:

… Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. 1 John 4:16-17 NIV

When we live in the love of God, our love is “made complete.” Our love grows more perfect. Think of it like a muscle being trained. The more you train the muscle, the more it can do; the greater its capacity. Living in God grows our capacity to love others so we are more capable of receiving love from God and responding with love to God. And this is really good news because it means the overwhelming love of God we were shown at first was just the beginning of what God has in store for us.

So, if living in God is what makes our love complete, the question we ought to be asking is: How do we live in God? The answer is found right at the end of verse 17. In this world, we act and love like Jesus. We do the things Jesus did. We go to the places Jesus went. We trust the things Jesus said. And we sacrifice ourselves to serve others just like Jesus sacrificed Himself to save us.

As we live like Jesus, our ability to love like Jesus, and be loved by the Father, grows.

It also gives us “confidence on the day of judgment.” As we read yesterday, a day is coming when Jesus will return to finish what He started, where He will make all things new, and He will judge the living and the dead.

So how can we know for sure that we are right with God when that day comes? John tells us that our confidence for the end is built in this world by “being like Jesus”.

Becoming like Jesus is a lifelong process where your sanctification is the evidence of your salvation.

There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. 1 John 4:18 NIV

When we live like Jesus, our love is made complete. When our love is made complete, fear no longer has any place to hide. When we confidently believe in the goodness and kindness of our heavenly Father, we don’t have to worry that we will be found wanting. Instead, deep in our bones, we know that we are wanted.

So, when we inevitably stumble, we don’t run from God to avoid punishment. We run to God to receive grace. When we do, we experience His love in a fresh way. And as love breaks in, fear is pushed out.

If you’re wondering about all the “fearing the Lord” language from the Old Testament, know that this doesn’t contradict God’s character. Fearing God is about respecting God’s power and authority as a righteous King and Judge. Respect is a necessary ingredient in love. If we don’t respect Him as our Ruler, we will never love Him as our Father. So fear can be a good place to start, but that doesn’t make it a good place to stop.

John isn’t saying that “fearing the Lord” is bad. He’s saying the more we understand Him as our Father, the more we will do what pleases Him. And just in case we’re not getting the message, John reminds us in verse 19…

We love because he first loved us. 1 John 4:19 NIV

Why do we love God? Because He first loved us. And that is really good news.