Real Love

1 John 4:9-10 (New Living Translation)
9God showed how much he loved us by sending his only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. 10This is real love. It is not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.*

That is real love. Romans 5:8 put's it this way, "God demonstrated His love". That's what I love about God. He demonstrates it. He acts on it. He doesn't just say He loves us - He is motivated by it. He is moved to action by His love for us. When we talk of love usually were talking about some warm fuzzy feeling we get when we are around a person who's personality or physical beauty is appealing to us. We say it like this, 'I love that guy'. What do we mean? We mean we think he is funny or makes us feel better when we are around him. This is not the love God was speaking of. He was speaking of a love that is not concerned about what it does for self but looked for ways to do for others. When push comes to shove, even with people we 'love', when we have to make a choice between our good or theirs most of us will come down on the side of our own good. Or our own comfort. Or our own convenience. Fill in the blank. Real love is love that moves to action. Real love is love that is demonstrated.


*New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright © 1996 by Tyndale Charitable Trust. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers.