See what great love the Father has lavished on us that we should be called children of God.

1 John 3, verse 1.

Welcome to today's encouragement from Our Daily Bread.

Our Father's love was written by Alison Kita and read by Rochelle Trob.

1 John chapter 3 verses 1 through 3 and 16 through 24. See what great love the

Father has lavished on us that we should be called children of God and that is what we are.

The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him dear friends now we are children of God and what we will be has not yet been made known

but we know that when Christ appears we shall be like him, for we shall see Him as He is.

All who have this hope in Him purify themselves just as He is pure.

Now picking up at verse 16.

This is how we know what love is. Jesus Christ lay down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters.

If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need, but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person?

Dear children, let us not love with words or speech, but with actions and in truth.

This is how we know that we belong to the truth and how we set our hearts at rest in His presence.

If our hearts condemn us, we know that God is greater than our hearts, and He knows everything.

Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God and receive

from Him anything we ask, because we keep His commands and do what

pleases Him.

And this is His command to believe in the name of His Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another

as He commanded us.

The one who keeps God's commands lives in Him and He in Them.

And this is how we know that He lives in us.

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