1 John 4:7 Beloved, let us love one another, because love is from God, and everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.
Ἀγαπητοί, ἀγαπῶμεν ἀλλήλους, ὅτι ἡ ἀγάπη ἐκ τοῦ θεοῦ ἐστιν, καὶ πᾶς ὁ ἀγαπῶν ἐκ τοῦ θεοῦ γεγέννηται καὶ γινώσκει τὸν θεόν.
The essential quality of followers of Christ is love. This love is far beyond an emotional response to good feelings experienced in relationship with other people. That is the best love the world can offer. The love believers experience is far deeper because it comes from the very nature of God. God is the author of love. God can take human love and sanctify it with his love, transforming our conditional experiences in unconditional commitments to the welfare of others. The evidence of a child of God is openness to be a channel of God’s love. Love the central quality that confirms that we have been obedient to the Holy Spirt and that sin does not hinder our relationship with God or others.
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