God Lives in Us: 1 John 4:12-16
No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us. This is how we know that we live in him and he in us: He has given us of his Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. (NIV)
Throughout this letter, John speaks of God’s indwelling presence (2:27-28 and 3:6,9 and 24), and in this section, John elaborates on the phrase “God lives in us” from verse 12. And John starts off by answering this question: How can we be assured that we live in God and he lives in us? The answer John gives is the indwelling Holy Spirit, who animates the believer’s love both for the truth and for one another, as well as our happy obedience to Christ and his commands (2:3, 20 and 27, and 3:9). God’s past action of giving us his Spirit has ongoing effects in the present-namely, our knowledge and confidence in the present that we are indeed saved.
Today’s Bible Readings:
Amos 1-3, Revelation 2:1-17, Psalm 129:1-8 and Proverbs 29:19-20
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