Love Does Whatever it Takes
Jon: Bradon, what is the difference between love and LOVE?
Bradon: Oh, you mean the difference between romantic love and regular love.
Jon: Yes, I do, but there is nothing regular about the love we are going to talk about today, and it’s not the romantic kind of love.
Bradon: We will describe the big kind of love that will do whatever it takes!
Discussion Episode
1 John 4 7-21
About the Story
Jon: This is episode 158, and we are in Season 11.
Bradon: The last episode of season 11, and you guys did a great job finishing up the story on Nehemiah.
Jon: Today, we will look at a short snippet from a letter in the Bible Written by John. If you are interested in reading this for yourself, you can find it in 1 John 4:7-21.
Bradon: John wrote this letter but didn’t say specifically who he was addressing. It was likely a letter he intended to have circulated to many churches.
Jon: We know many churches consisted of primarily new people to the faith, and this letter was to help them.
Bradon: I think all of our episodes retold a story, but so much of the Bible, which consists of letters or poetry, is not written in story form. This episode will feel a little different because there is no story!
Application
Bradon: Ok, so we had four concepts that we shared today. Let’s restate them.
Jon: First, we learned that Love comes from God!
Bradon: Second, when we love, we have love living in us – God living in us.
Jon: Third, with God or love living in us, we do not need to fear God’s judgement.
Bradon: Fourth, hate is not of God.
Jon: Bradon, it’s important to note that this concept of love that John was writing about is at its best within the context of the church, between fellow believers – Christians.
Bradon: But it’s not limited to only inside a church community. God is love, so if we see evidence of love anywhere in our world, we can be sure that God is the source of that love.
Jon: Remember to not confuse the love of God with Romantic feelings, lust or just really liking something. This love goes way deeper. The Trinity, which describes our God as three but one God the father, God the Son, and the Holy Spirit, perfectly demonstrates this deeper love within the Trinity and with people.
Bradon: Absolutely. God is love, and love will do whatever it takes to connect people to each other and to God. You can see within the Trinity this perfect love like nowhere else!
