Will you commit to doing an experiment with me this morning?

If you are like me, then you own (or are paying on) a ‘smart’ phone, a device we carry with us every place we go—yes, seriously, EVERY PLACE.  As I began to read about the ‘love,’ this experiment became important, so I encourage you to join me today in taking an active part in doing this activity.

1. Pick up your ‘smart’ phone (you know, that’s right next to you).
2. Open up your photos because taking photos is one of the reasons we keep & carry a phone.
3. As you open your photo icon, one of two things will occur.  Either you will find carefully labeled albums of your saved photos OR you will find a scroll by date of all your recent photos.  Either way, notice, really see your photos.
4. If you are like me (and have saved photo albums on your phone), then find one of the albums that reflects the images of LOVE.  If you are unlike me (and have a dated scroll of recent photos), then begin to scroll to see the images of LOVE.
5. My family, smiling as we pose for a photo on the beach in The Netherlands; two precious children:  Clementine & Jay; my sweet Sydney walking toward the photographer, her husband; Sydney & her best friend on Hadiah’s wedding day; my girls sharing lunch with me at an outdoor café; Darrell smiling at me; a pause in a jeep ride for a photograph of Marieke and me, smiling; my family posed together on Sydney’s graduation day; Julie and me, need I say more; my family of 5 enjoying a meal together one night; Sydney & Darrell together and smiling on my birthday; a photo of my siblings and mom posed at church in front of the Christmas tree; a photo of my phone screensaver, one of Sydney smiling; Skylar measuring her height next to mine this past Christmas; my home on a warm, summer day; my nephew who was lost to us way too early; Carley giving grandma Hall a kiss on her cheek; mom sitting on the edge of grandma Hall’s bed, on a day so close to grandma’s going home day; Clementine as a tiny tike, learning to walk; Clementine’s bath day, posed with Aunt CarCar—Images on my ‘smart’ phone saved under the album titled “#1—LOVED.”
6. Take time to look at your LOVE images.  Do not scroll too quickly but savor the memories.
7. As you complete this activity, pause to pray, thanking God for His amazing gift of LOVE & for all the people in the images of LOVE you have saved.

The beloved apostle John wrote:  “We know love by this, . . .”.  If we stop reading right there, then we see only the images of LOVE we just scrolled past; however, if we read on, continuing with the verse to see how we can know love, then we read—“We know love by this, that He laid down His life for us; . . .”

In grammar lessons, we learn that a semi-colon works just like ‘end’ punctuation, ending a thought the writer wants us to receive.  Think about the ULTIMATE ‘image’ of LOVE the apostle John wants us to see.  “He laid down His life for us; . . .”

In that same grammar lessons, we also learn that a semi-colon works just like ‘end’ punctuation, one that also connects two independent TRUTHS, continuing the writer’s thought he wants us to receive.  Think about the ULTIMATE ‘image’ of LOVE the apostle John wants us to see. “He laid down His life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.”

Since He did lay down His life for each one of us—“we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.”

May we not run away from our part, our task, our command.

To better understand this verse found in God’s Holy Word, I find myself focusing on the underlined portion:  “we ought to lay down our lives” & pondering just exactly what that might look like in our life.

1. First, we might be asked to go & do what we did not have planned for today.
2. Secondly, we might be asked to open our wallets, to give money we did not plan to give today.
3. Third, we might be asked to change our carefully planned schedule in order “to lay down our lives for our brethren.”

Each of these tasks may be a struggle for us today, but we are commanded to do this anyway because “We know love by this, that He laid down His life for us; . . .”.

Therefore, in carefully pondering this solitary verse found in the apostle John’s first letter that we read in God’s Love Letter given to humanity—the Bible—we focus upon the key word that birds this entire together.

“He”

The only “He” the apostle John could ever mean is the Savior, the Messiah, the Redeemer, the Son of God—Jesus Christ!

“We know love by this, that He laid down His life . . .” by dying on Calvary’s cross for each man, woman, boy, and girl.

“We know love by this, . . .”

The Image of LOVE is really so simple!