Daily Devotions
Loving Joyfully With God's Love
Title: Loving Joyfully With God's Love
Reading for December 22: 1-3 John
Weekly reading for December 16-22: 1 John 1-5
But if anyone has the world's goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God's love abide in him? Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.
1 John 3:17-18
Jesus said, "It is more blessed to give than to receive." (Acts 20:35)
Why is that so? This is something that, by experience, we all know to be true. Though it may seem to be a natural instinct to be selfish, when we are selfless and give of our time, energy, or resources to others, it feels really good. The question is why.
I think 1 John 3 provides the answer. John argues (negatively) that God's love does not abide in the one who shuts up his heart toward a needy brother. So, turning that argument around, when we open up our heart and give, God's love must necessarily abide in us (see 1 John 4:12). That would explain why it feels so good to be generous. We are made in his image. When we do good we are fulfilling our purpose for being. When we give to others we are living in harmony with the image God stamped on us when he made us.
Conversely, that means to be stingy and selfish is to go against our nature. Though there are short term benefits in being self-centered, there is no ultimate fulfillment with that disposition because we are resisting what we were made to be and to do.
Joy can only be found in living according to our design. It's more blessed to give than to receive because it is only when we give that we live out the imprint on our hearts of our gracious Creator.
Father, help us to learn the secret to true joy.
