Abiding, Bible, Child Raising, Child Rearing, Disciplemaking, Encouragement, Inspirational, Invisible, Love, Mentoring, Modeling, Parenting, Promises, Relationships, Scripture, Testimony, Witnessing

IS GOD INVISIBLE?

1 JOHN 4:12

“No one has seen God at any time; if we love one another, God abides in us, and His love is perfected in us.”

When I first read this verse, it seemed like the first part had nothing to do with the second part. What has God not being seen to do with God abiding in us and His love? But then it hit me. Of course, we can’t see God, but we can see God when His love, which abides in us, is shown to others.

John talks about loving one another and God abiding in us a lot. So, he is not confused in this verse. All these thoughts in this verse go together. If we want people to see God, we have to love them. We have to show them how He abides in us and how His love is perfected in us.

APPLICATION

How do your kids know you love them? Do they read about it in some book? Do you just talk about it? No, they see how you love them by how you treat them, how you talk to them, how you express that love when they are the most unloveable. We teach our kids about our love for them by expressing that love.

I’m a hugger. I love to hug people. The hardest part about this covid-19 pandemic is not being able to do that. But you can hug your own kids. Express your love. Take every opportunity you have to do that. Kids need to be touched. They need to be cuddled. Do all that in Jesus’ name. Every time you hug them, ask them if they know who loves them more than mommy and daddy. Tell them just how much God loves them.

Who do you need to show God’s love to today? Maybe you have a neighbor who is struggling right now due to isolation in this pandemic. Find a way to express God’s love to them. Maybe a coworker is going through a hard time at work. Express God’s love to them. Remember, they can’t see God, but they can sure see God in you.

I may be the only Jesus someone sees today, Lord. Help me love them as You do. I want them to see You in me.

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Bible, Child Raising, Child Rearing, Encouragement, God's Will, Love, Mentoring, Modeling, Parenting, Scripture

OBLIGATIONS

1 JOHN 4:11

“Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.”

People feel obligated to other people. Others feel obligated to an employer. But what does that mean? What does it mean to be obligated? Well, the Greek word used here for “ought” means to be morally obligated or legally required to meet an obligation, to pay off a legitimate debt.

Now, put this in context of today’s verse. Our obligation to love one another is because God loved us. Let me ask you a question. Do you think God loves you? Of course, you do. So, if that is true, our “payback” is to love others as He does. We are obligated to love them. His love demands us.

APPLICATION

Teaching our kids to love others is so important. They learn that best by watching us. If we are reluctant to love others, they will be too. If we each out and express the love of God to others, they will learn to do the same. So, we must be the example for them to follow. We have to tell them why we are loving others. It’s because of His love for us.

Oh, and when we see them begin to do this on their own, we are overjoyed. Why? Because we see the joy they can bring others. We see the relationships they can build with others. We can see them loving as only Jesus can. We watch them love unconditionally. But you have to drive that by your example. No pressure!

Are you loving that way? God so loves you that He gives you the privilege to love others. He loves them through you. You are His vessel of love. How cool is that? God still uses people to accomplish His will in the lives of others. He wants to use you to love the unloveable. Are you willing?

Use me, Lord, to love others. Love through me. Show others the power of Your love through me.

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Appeasement, Bible, Child Raising, Child Rearing, Cleansing, Confession, Disciplemaking, Encouragement, Eternity, Faith, Following, Forgiveness, God's Will, Gospel, Holy Spirit, Love, Mentoring, Parenting, Promises, Salvation, Scripture, Sin

THE ULTIMATE APPEASEMENT

1 JOHN 4:10

“In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.”

Have you ever angered someone so badly that you had no clue how to make it right? I have. In the past, I have searched and searched how to seek forgiveness. Most of the time I have received that, but only after true remorse. I don’t want to ever intentionally harm someone. But it happens sometimes.

Aren’t you glad that God took the initiative to provide the means for forgiveness for us? We could have never satisfied His wrath. There is nothing we could do on our own. But…by the sacrifice of Himself, Jesus Christ provided the ultimate appeasement. He satisfied an angry God (His Father) for us. Wow!

APPLICATION

I bet your children know when you are angry at them. They can usually tell when dad or mom are about to blow. They may push it to the last straw, but most kids know when to stop pushing. But do they know how to make things right with you? What do you expect from them? Ask them that. Ask them if they know how to appease you. They will probably say Huh? Then explain.

You are seeking to train them how to seek forgiveness from the Father. Take them to today’s verse. Explain that word “propitiation.” They need to understand how important it is to our Christian faith. In fact, we would have no faith without it. Yet that word only appears twice in the Scripture. The other time is in 1 John 2.2. Christ died for them to satisfy the requirements of forgiveness God had established. Only Jesus could do it, and He did it for them.

Do you realize the depth of this? Christ died for you. He gave His life to satisfy the price of sin in your life. And all you have to do is claim that forgiveness. I pray you have, but if you haven’t, do it right now. Ask Jesus into your life to be your Savior and Lord. Confess your sins to Him. Acknowledge His death, burial and resurrection. Then welcome His Holy Spirit into your life. It’s that simple.

Lord, I praise You for sending Your Son to die for me to satisfy the price which I could never pay. I am eternally grateful.

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Bible, Child Raising, Child Rearing, Encouragement, Faith, God's Will, Gospel, Light, Love, Manifested, Mentoring, Parenting, Salvation, Satan, Scripture

ILLUMINATED

1 JOHN 4:9

“By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him.”

How many of you have a nativity scene you set up outside? We had one growing up that I loved. It was life size and was lit up with spotlights. We even had an angel hanging on wire above the manger. It was so cool. I always loved it.

But my aunt and uncle had one that was lit from the inside. It had this awesome glow. Don’t get me wrong. I loved ours more. But their nativity had this awesome look because it was glowing instead of being lit from the outside. Hmmm, that sounds familiar, doesn’t it?

APPLICATION

The word “manifested” means to illuminate, to make known, to make plain in open view. Try this with your kids. Get some candles and light them. Cover them with different things like a box, a flowerpot and a glass. Let them tell you which candle can be seen. Of course, the only one is through the glass. The others are covered up.

Talk about the verse. God’s love is illuminated through us when we accept His Son as our Savior. John even partially quotes John 3:16, which he wrote. John knew Jesus personally. He knew He had been sent by His Father to indwell us. Our kids need to understand that. Jesus was sent to save us from ourselves, from our sins, from the world, from Satan. And when He lives in us, His light will shine. Our job is to get out of the way and let it shine.

Are you shining for Him? Are you letting His light illuminate your life? He wants you to shine for Him by loving others. Why? Because He sent His Son for us. If Jesus lives in you, you have the light of the world in you. Isn’t that amazing? Why wouldn’t you let the light shine through your love for others?

Lord, I praise You for illuminating me. You have given me the ability to love others. Help me do that daily.

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Affection, Bible, Child Raising, Child Rearing, Disciplemaking, Inspirational, Love, Mentoring, Modeling, Parenting, Scripture, Testimony

NO LOVE/NO GOD

1 JOHN 4:8

“The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love.”

To love someone you really have to know them, right? Would you marry someone you didn’t know? It happens in some cultures. I have heard stories of fathers selling their daughters to some man to be their wife. These young ladies enter this relationship fearful and unprotected. I don’t understand this type of arrangement, but it happens often. Love is not present because there is no knowledge of the other person.

John tells us that if we do not love (one another), we really do not know God. This word “know” is in the Aorist tense which means it happened sometime in the past. What hit me as I read this, though, is we can change that. We can get to know God, thus releasing the love that He gives us to others.

APPLICATION

Why do we want our children to know God? Well, first of all we want them know Him for their eternal security. We want them to be saved. But secondly, we want them to know God to experience the love He has for them. So, how do we get our children to know God?

Listen parents, we model the love of God for our children. When they are young, before they can really read and have their own quiet times, we have to model it for them. As they get older, we disciple them and teach them dig in the Word for themselves. We teach them to disciple others. As they grow in their knowledge of God, the love of God just oozes out. It spreads to others. They can’t hold it back.

Are you oozing God’s love? You can’t claim to know God unless you are loving others. That’s as simple as John can say it in today’s verse. Don’t pretend to love either. God knows when you are doing that. That does not please Him. Don’t love to get anything in return. That also does not please Him. Love others as He does. Love freely and fervently.

O Father God, will You pour out Your love through me. I want to love others as You do. I can’t do that on my own. I know that.

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Affection, Bible, Child Raising, Child Rearing, Choices, Commands, Disciplemaking, Encouragement, Holy Spirit, Inspirational, Love, Mentoring, Modeling, Parenting, Scripture, Testimony, Witnessing

LOVE ONE ANOTHER

1 JOHN 4:7


“Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God.”

If I asked you what it meant to love one another, what would you say? Does it mean just saying it? How about doing something for them occasionally? To really understand what John is saying here, you have to dig deeper. This isn’t surface level stuff.

Loving one another is tied to the meaning of the Greek word “love” that is used here. This word is agape. This is God’s kind of love for us. Now, that changes everything. How do you love like God? You can’t. It’s not possible. It’s not in your DNA. But praise be to God, He can do it through you, if you are a believer.

APPLICATION

I have mentioned before in my devotionals that many kids are really good at loving. They are just drawn to people. They are giving and kind and… You get the picture. But that’s not biblical “loving one another” unless that child is born again, and the Spirit is motivating their actions.

We need to teach our kids that biblical love, God’s love, means always wanting what is best for the other person. That means there is no room for jealousy. There is no room for holding grudges. God’s love, agape love, means being willing to sacrifice for the other person. Wow, that changes things, doesn’t it?

Let me ask you something. Are you loving that way? I don’t mean just your own family. I mean the entire family of God. I mean everyone you meet. I have to admit that I struggle with that at times. But through the power of the Holy Spirit, I am able to love anyone anytime. How is that possible? Because it’s not me doing the loving. Let Him love through you today.

I confess that I do not love like You, Lord. Forgive me. Use Your Spirit in my life to love others. Help me die to myself daily and surrender to the Spirit’s power.

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Accountability, Bible, Child Raising, Child Rearing, Choices, Denial, Disciplemaking, Encouragement, Following, Listening, Mentoring, Parenting, Scripture, Witnessing

LISTEN UP

1 JOHN 4:6

“We are from God; he who knows God listens to us; he who is not from God does not listen to us. By this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error.”

Let me ask you a question to which I already know the answer. Have your children ever not listened to you? How many times, Carl? Yeah, I know. Isn’t that frustrating? You plainly tell them something, and it goes in one ear and out the other. They are so distracted with their computer or phone, they never hear you. Oh, they say they are listening, but they aren’t.

I love that John puts us in the speaking part. He doesn’t say that these people (the non-listeners) aren’t listening to God. No! They aren’t listening to us. What does that mean? That means we must be the ones declaring the truths of God. We are the ones God uses to share with them. But they don’t listen. Both times “listen” is used here it is in the Present tense. That means it is ongoing. They just don’t listen.

APPLICATION

Test out my question I asked you at the beginning. Ask your child to do something. Catch them at a time when they are absorbed with something they are doing. Get their attention and ask them to do something. But here’s the catch – ask them only once and leave the room. Give them a time to complete what you asked them to do. Then sit back and see if they do it.

Your children need to listen, of course. But they really need to really listen. They need to listen with the intent to obey. That’s the meaning of “listen” in today’s verse. Why is that so important? Because God is going to ask them to do things for Him. He won’t beg them to do it. He will ask and then let them choose. What will they do? We pray they will hear and then respond. Prepare them for that.

Are you listening? Better yet, are you telling others about Jesus? Our job is to tell. We can’t force the listening. That’s their choice. I wish sometimes I could force some people to listen. But I can’t. All I can do is be faithful to do what the Lord has told me to do. Will you join me?

Open my mouth to tell the good news of the gospel to anyone who will listen. Thank You, Lord, for the privilege to be Your mouthpiece.

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Advice, Affliction, Bible, Child Raising, Child Rearing, Courage, Encouragement, Enemies, Lies, Mentoring, Opponents, Parenting, Scripture, The World

WORLD TALK

1 JOHN 4:5

“They are from the world; therefore they speak as from the world, and the world listens to them.”

I have had the privilege to travel some. The strange thing about traveling to other countries – they all have different accents and often different language. Of course, I don’t think I have an accent at all, lol. I have dear friends in Uganda and Kenya. We’ve known each other for years now, but when I am there, I have to change the way I talk, or they can’t understand me. They hear me, but they can’t understand what I am saying.

John is saying that those who are of the world talk different. They sound different. They speak a whole different language than us. Do you know why? Because of their world view. When we see things differently, we talk differently. I honestly cannot understand some people. Oh, I understand their words, but I do not understand what they are saying. It just doesn’t make sense.

APPLICATION

Our children are going to face this issue. Hopefully, you are teaching them to have a biblical world view. That is going to clash with others. It is just a matter of time. Adults and kids alike will challenge them. They may even face persecution in school because of their world view. That’s okay. Support them. If need be, defend them.

We have to teach our children to hold fast. The world speaks a different language. The world will not agree with your child’s language about the world and God. If our children can learn to defend their faith at an early age, they will be prepared for a lifetime.

Are you being challenged by your speech because of your world view? If you aren’t, maybe you aren’t making your view known. Why not? Are you afraid of persecution? Are you afraid for your job? Don’t you think the God of the universe is big enough to take care of you. God is the one who fights our battles. Trust Him. Will you do that?

Lord God, I confess sometimes I avoid speaking up for fear of ridicule or being shamed. Forgive me for not being more bold in Your name.

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Antichrist, Battles, Child Raising, Child Rearing, Courage, Disciplemaking, Encouragement, Following, Holy Spirit, Inspirational, Mentoring, Parenting, Prayer, Salvation, Scripture, Surrender

GREATER IS HE

1 JOHN 4:4

“You are from God, little children, and have overcome them; because greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world.” 

I grew up with cereal commercials. You may can remember the old Lucky Charm and Cocoa Krispies commercials. But my favorite was Frosted Flakes. Why? Because of Tony the Tiger. I just loved every time he would say, “They’re Greaaaaaaat!” I didn’t get to eat Frosted Flakes a lot, but I sure loved the commercial.

When I read this verse, I think of that. I won’t to scream out like Tony the tiger and say, “He’s Greaaaat!” Silly, I know. Look what John is telling us. That old antichrist may think he has power. He may think he is great, but he has nothing on Jesus. That’s who is in us. Through His Holy Spirit He dwells within us. He is greater than any other power. We literally have an indescribable power in us.

APPLICATION

Ask your children what they would do if they had unlimited power. They may say they would fly to the moon. Maybe they would say they would heal all the sick children in the world. Whatever they say, I bet they have an idea what they would do with that power.

Now, ask them what power a Christian has. This may puzzle them for a second. They may say the power to pray or believe. Read them today’s verse. Explain to them that we have the very power of God within them as believers. We can do amazing things if we will only yield to Him and allow His Spirit to work through us. We are only limited by our faith.

Do you believe that? Do you believe you have the very power of God within you? That’s what the Scripture says. I truly believe we are only as powerful as our faith. God can and wants to do amazing things through us. Will you allow Him to have complete control over you today? If you do, hold on. He may just put you in a place to be used as never before.

Lord, use me. Take my life and use it however You desire today. And I will give You all the glory.

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Advice, Antichrist, Child Raising, Child Rearing, Confession, Deceit, Demons, Enemies, Following, Holy Spirit, Inspirational, Mentoring, Parenting

NOT FROM GOD

1 JOHN 4:3

“and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God; this is the spirit of the antichrist, of which you have heard that it is coming, and now it is already in the world.” 

Have you ever received a message that was anonymous? That’s getting rarer and rarer in this day of emails, tweets and texts. We usually know exactly who is sending the message. But there are ways for people to disguise their name and send messages. Usually if that is done, there’s a reason they want to hide their identity.

The spirit of the antichrist, which John is talking about in today’s verse, is not going to come right out and say Hey, it’s me, the antichrist! He is going to disguise the message. He may use someone you know who is not surrendered to the Spirit of God to “give you a message.” Listen, brother and sister, always test the spirit. Does it agree with what John says? Does it confess Jesus is from God? If it doesn’t, run!

APPLICATION

Wow! This is a hard one for kids. We must be so diligent to teach our kids to hear from the Lord. They must be able to distinguish His voice. Just like they know your voice so well, we want them to know when it is Jesus talking to them.

How do they learn that? By teaching them to spend time in His Word. By teaching them to spend time in prayer, not just talking to Him, but also listening. That’s the hard part. We want to talk a lot in prayer. Some of the best prayer times have few words spoken. Just teach them to listen.

Are you listening? Do you hear His voice? Well Carl, I haven’t heard Him lately. Let me ask you this. Do you want to hear Him? Do you want to hear what He has to say? Or are you content with listening to any voice? That’s dangerous and you know it. Get alone with the Lord today and listen. Just ask Him to speak to you as you read His Word. Then do what He says.

Oh Father, I know Your voice. I know when other voices try to influence me in ways that do not honor You. Thank You for the discernment You give me as I yield to Your Spirit.

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