1 John 4:7-10
Chapter 4
7
God Is Love
Beloved, let us love one another because love comes from God. Everyone who loves is born of God and knows God.8
Those who do not love have not known God, for God is love.
9
How has the love of God appeared among us? God sent his only Son into the world so that we might have life through him.
10
This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us first and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.
Commentaries
God Is Love.
The statement “God is love” (8.16) is not meant to be an abstract definition of the divine essence but rather a revelation of how God has made himself known throughout history. This has been through works and words filled with love, which now, in the fullness of time, reach their peak in Jesus. The presence of love in the believer is a sign that he “has been born of God and is a child of God.” God remains present and active within him. It can be said that he is truly begotten in God, for through this love he “has known God” (7f). John teaches that love has a divine origin and that humans cannot achieve it on their own. True love always comes from God. We must stay in a state of receiving God’s love. In John’s words, this is called faith. Those who do not welcome love cannot give love. We must accept being loved.