What role does love for fellow believers play in our spiritual assurance? Love as Evidence of Spiritual Life 1 John 3:14: “We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love our brothers. Whoever does not love remains in death.” • John’s wording—“we know”—speaks of settled confidence, not wishful thinking. • “Passed from death to life” echoes Jesus’ own promise in John 5:24; it describes a completed, irreversible transfer accomplished at the moment of saving faith. • The proof John points to is not a dramatic experience or mystical feeling but the observable, ongoing practice of loving fellow believers. Love and Assurance Intertwined • Love flows from the new nature God supplies at conversion (2 Corinthians 5:17). New life naturally produces new loves. • Romans 5:5 reminds us that “the love of God has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit.” The Spirit’s indwelling is the wellspring of our love and, therefore, of our assurance. • When that Spirit-given love shows up in daily relationships, it reassures the heart that the Spirit is truly present (1 John 4:13). Contrasting Life and Death • John sets up a stark either/or: loving = life, refusing to love = death. • 1 John 2:9-11 makes the same point with the imagery of light and darkness. Persisting in hatred places a person “in the darkness.” • Love is not one virtue among many; it is the decisive marker that separates regenerate from unregenerate. Practical Outworking of Brotherly Love Love moves beyond sentiment: – Initiating fellowship and hospitality (Hebrews 13:1-2) – Meeting material needs (1 John 3:17-18; James 2:15-16) – Bearing with weaknesses and forgiving quickly (Colossians 3:12-14) – Encouraging one another daily so that no one is hardened by sin (Hebrews 3:13) When these actions characterize a believer, they strengthen inward certainty that God’s life is truly at work. Cultivating Assurance through Love • Assurance deepens as love is exercised. Obedience reinforces confidence (1 John 3:19). • Prayer for a larger heart aligns us with God’s will and draws on the Spirit’s power (Philippians 1:9). • Intentional involvement in a local church gives concrete opportunities to love, converting doctrine into lived reality (Acts 2:42-47). A believer who consistently loves brothers and sisters can read 1 John 3:14 and say with humble joy, “I know I have passed from death to life.” |
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