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Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone
who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does
not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed His love among
us: He sent His one and only Son into the world that we might live through Him.
This is love: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as an
atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we
also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love
one another, God lives in us and His love is made complete in us.
We know that we live in Him and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit.
And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent His Son to be the Savior
of the world. If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God
lives in him and he in God. And so we know and rely on the love God has
for us.
God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. In this
way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day
of judgment, because in this world we are like Him. There is no fear in
love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment.
The one who fears is not made perfect in love.
We love because He first loved us. If anyone says, "I love God," yet hates
his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has
seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen. And He has given us this
command: Whoever loves God must also love his brother. 1 John 4:7-21
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Imagine yourself in the desert! The sand is
blowing and temperature is 120. There are no trees or house or towns for miles
around and you are lost. Your gas tank is about empty and your water supply is
about gone. Just when you think you are doomed, you spy an oasis just ahead.
What is an oasis?
According to Mr. Webster, an oasis is a
fertile place in the desert because there is a source of water. It can also be
described as anything or place that brings relief from difficulty or dullness.
Think about your own oasis. Somewhere that
you enjoy going to get away from the hustle and bustle of life. Maybe it is
down by the river, with a fishing pole in your hand, or maybe it is out on the
lake in a boat, or maybe it is a mountain stream or an ocean beach. Even in my
own backyard, where I have placed plants that look like palm trees. I can find an
oasis because of the running waterfall of my little fish pond.
There is just something about water that helps
us relax!
The deserts of life come in many
descriptions! You could be in a financial desert and just don’t know how you
are going to handle all those bills that are piling up. You could be in a
physical desert and are wondering if you will ever feel good again. It may be an
emotional or social desert where you feel all alone and there is no one to
care. Perhaps your desert is a spiritual desert where you just can’t get that
prayer answered or are just not sure about the next step.
When Jesus spoke to the Samaritan woman, in
John 4: 5, He told her He had living water to offer and if she were to drink of
it, she would never thirst again. She had found an oasis of love.
In our scripture reading for today, verse 13
says "We know that we live in Him and He in us, because He has given us of His
Spirit." When we come to Jesus and ask, He gives us that Living Water, His
Spirit. Because He gives to us, we can give this Living Water to others who are
in the desert. We can be an oasis of love to others.
Let's go back and describe an oasis again. A
fertile field because of water that is there. Now let's look at our own
lives! How do others see us?
I am sure we have all
looked the other way when we see people who have a tendency to complain about
everything and everybody or want to tell us about all their problems. We
also tend to avoid those who have negative attitudes or want to tell us all the
latest gossip.
Although these are not oasis people, it makes
you wonder if they are going through the desert and just have not found the
Living Water.
How can we be an oasis of love to others? I
think first we must make sure we have Living Water to give. The only way to
make sure that we have this Water is to go to the source. Go to God's Word and
fill our tanks on a daily basis.
"We love because He first loved us. If anyone
says, 'I love God' yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not
love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen. And He
gives us this command: whoever loves God must also love his brother."
With our hearts full of
Living Water, and our
Spirit renewed with the fruits of the Spirit - love, joy peace, patience,
gentleness, kindness, goodness, meekness and self control - we can be an oasis of
love for those who are lost in the desert.
