The apostle John wrote: “Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen” (1 John 4:20).

As we can see, loving other people in the church is clearly important.

But HOW do we love them?

Well, there are more ways than one to be loving. But as I was reading through John’s letter, something jumped out at me that I felt compelled to share because it is frequently neglected. Here it is: “This is how we know that we love the children of God: by loving God and carrying out his commands” (1 John 5:2).

How do we love our brothers and sisters in the church? By loving God and carrying out his commands. Yes. When we’re faithful to God and to his teachings that is one of the ways we love other people.

It can be tempting to distort or neglect some of God’s commands. They can seem “out of step” with a culture which so often prioritizes comfort, convenience, pleasure, permissiveness, and a me-first approach to life.

But since God is God, and since he is love (1 John 4:8), that means his commands are always good for us—and that they are always good for other believers too. So when we distort or neglect some of God’s commands, we are actually being UN-loving toward his people.

If we want to grow and become more like Jesus, we need to have a clear understanding of what we’re aiming for when it comes to the love we seek to share.

All people are made in God’s image. They are to be shown respect. We seek their good. At the same time we are to stay true to God’s commands. They bring goodness into other people’s lives. We may not always see how all the dots connect, but God does.

“This is how we know that we love the children of God: by loving God and carrying out his commands.”

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Notes:

–Bible quotes are from the NIV.