The origin of love is in the nature of God, the manifestation of love is in the coming of Christ.

We are to love one another because we see the essence of that love manifest in Jesus Christ.

Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends

Jesus gives us the classic the perfect the glorious illustration of what

loving one another means when he gave his life that's how we're to love we're to love

by sacrifice. Thanks for joining us here on Grace to You.

In just a moment, John MacArthur will... Thanks for joining us here on Grace to You.

In just a moment, John MacArthur will open the scriptures to help you see

how a God who allows trials and tragedies is nevertheless at same time, a God of love.

The Love of God, that's the title of John's current study.

First, a quick reminder that we want to hear how studies like the love of God

are helping you grow in your grasp of God's word.

Long or short, your letters mean a lot to us.

You can email us at letters at gty.org and I'll give all of our contact information

after the lesson. But right now here's John with a look at God's amazing love for his son and his love for you.

Let's turn to 1st John chapter 4 and this is the text the Lord really laid on my heart.

1st John chapter 4 and here we are given a tremendous call to

perfect love. If we are to be perfect as our Father in heaven is perfect then we have to

manifest love for love is that perfection of God. You will see here six reasons why the believer manifests self-sacrificing love that is like his father's love to him.

Reason number one, because love is the essence of God. Because love is the essence of God.

In other words, if we are going to say we are the children of God, as Ephesians 5 puts it then we better walk in love because

that's the character of God. Secondly we are to have perfect love for one another because love was manifest by Christ.

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