Reflections on TruthBeispiel

John wants us to know that the love of God and the life of love are inseparable. They are inextricably bound together, and we cannot have one without the other.

In this verse, John sums up all that he has been saying earlier in his letter. Words of love are important, but here he makes it clear that words alone are not enough. Words can be meaningless, so John is not asking us to merely say that we love one another but to ensure that our love shows itself in our actions as well. As William Robertson Nicoll puts it, we must love “not in empty air but amid tangible realities.”

And even when we are using both words and actions, John says there is more. That real love is when our words and our actions show the truth that is within us.

This is the real challenge in this verse – to move from being surface lovers to being people who allow our words and actions to originate from the deep truth we hold in our hearts. To be people whose expressions of love overflow from the truth that Jesus revealed when he laid down his life for us (1 John 3:16). Day after day after day, we are asked to show this truth, sometimes in big ways and always in the smaller ongoing interactions of life. We are called to live this truth out as followers of Jesus, and as the “children of God” John calls us.

What does it look like for you to live a truth-shaped life?

Is there something God is speaking to you about today?

Prayer:

Lord Jesus, help me to live in the truth that you have placed within me. Help me by your Spirit to show your love to the people around me and to a world in need. Amen