1 John 4:10 10In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he has loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.
The key to love is its origin. Two noteworthy verb tenses illustrate the different origins. We have loved is a perfect tense and suggests the human search for love and how people seek after God. It is an incomplete search that ultimately ends in failure because we are not capable of love outside of God. Any love a person has is but a gift from God. If love springs from a human heart, although it may have many positive aspects and expressions, it will last only as long as that person chooses. This love may be conditioned by many factors, including emotions, physical or psychological well-being, hormones, and other situations. People “fall in love” and, unfortunately, “fall out of love” based on how another person looks or responds.
He has loved is an aorist tense, which points to the finale for love. This verse describes the highest source and origin of love. Any human love is possible only because God first loved us. Unlike conditional human love, God’s love is eternal. It was shown in history through the self-sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. This love does not grab hold of things to keep but gives away freely. It is not selfish but seeks the best for others.
God’s love penetrates to our deepest problem of sin and removes its stain and control. The word used for atoning sacrifice (hilasmon) is theologically significant. It is rare in the Bible in this form and occurs only here and 1 John 2:2 in the New Testament. Other forms of the root are found elsewhere. Its root can mean forgive or have pity on someone. It is used in the Septuagint translation of the Old Testament in the context of the sacrifice for the atonement of sin. God forgave Israel’s sins when they came with the right attitude of repentance, confession, and humility, demonstrated by offering prescribed sacrifices. These sacrifices were only temporary and symbolic. John builds on Old Testament imagery and points out that Jesus solved the problem of sin by sacrificing his own life. As we look to the cross, we see both suffering and victory—suffering in our behalf and victory for our ultimate good. God’s love on the cross is the fullest display of love.