Christmas Love
Scripture Reading: Psalm 140; Ezekiel 44-45; 1 John 4
In 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 4:10
Sinful man is adept at turning truth into arguments against truth. Take the word “love” as an example. “Love” has become the get out of jail free card for all kinds of sins. “Love is love” is their mantra. “But we love each other,” is the defense of many a couple who wish to fornicate or commit adultery. It is funny how in making these claims they are essentially equating love with a sexual act.
Others decry any attempt at upholding law and justice as being “unloving” and therefore “unchristian.”
The anthem of the age is akin to the Beetles singing, “All you need is love.”
Oddly enough, it is usually these very same people disparaging and condemning anyone who upholds traditional moral values and the rule of law. So much for love.
Love – biblical love – is grounded in truth. Dare I say, it is inseparably linked to doctrine. God’s love isn’t some nebulous free-for-all of no rules or boundaries and no truth.
Yes, God is love. But how do we know that and how is that demonstrated?
We are in the Christmas season now. Thanksgiving is in the rear view mirror. It is the season of love – more so than Valentine’s Day. The Bible constantly ties the Advent to love.
“God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son…”
And here in John 4: “He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins…”
Notice in both of these texts it is not just that God sent His Son that demonstrates His love. It is that His Son came with a specific mission from Heaven. He came to be the sacrifice for our sins. He came to be our substitutionary atonement.
That is truth. That is doctrine. And to fully understand and comprehend and appreciate love, you have to understand this truth. Without that Christmas love is just a sentimental foggy mist that will evaporate under the sun of life’s trials and troubles.
