To
live in the light is to love.
There
are a lot of definitions of love in this world and some of what people call
love isn’t very healthy. But this passage is clear about it.
It means to love the way Jesus did. Jesus demonstrated His love for others in a
lot of ways. He took time to talk to people that others shunned, like the woman
caught in adultery and the Samaritan woman at the well. He healed desperate
people like blind men and the woman with the issue of blood. He raised a boy
from the dead so he could care for his mother. He cried over the death of his
friend Lazarus. In fact, He cried over the entire city of Jerusalem and the
people of Israel.
Of
course, the most critical way He showed love for everyone, was to die for us.
His love was sacrificial. So to live in
the light is to love sacrificially.
I
can actually measure whether I am living in the light.
Has
someone hurt me badly? Am I unwilling to forgive them? I’m walking in darkness.
Is
there someone at church that annoys me? Someone I gossip about? I’m walking in
darkness.
Am
I jealous of the attention someone else at church gets? Do I mutter and grumble
instead of recognizing their service to our Lord? I’m walking in darkness.
Do
I ignore the needs of one of my brothers or sisters because they seem to be
always asking for something? Am I too busy to make that phone call? Am I
unwilling to give up something I don’t need so I can buy something that someone
else needs? I’m walking in darkness.
On
the other hand, if I love my brothers and sisters, I’m living in the light.
Jesus
is the light of the world. When He saved me, He brought me into His light and
showed me the way I should walk. I need to ask Him to shine that light on my
relationships with other Christians and dispel any darkness that lingers from
my lack of love.
I
want to love my brothers and sisters like Jesus did - sacrificially.
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