The Evidence of Love

"If anyone boasts, 'I love God,' and goes right on hating his brother or sister, thinking nothing of it, he is a liar. If he won't love the person he can see, how can he love the God he can't see?"

1 John 4:20 - MSG

I call them “The Big Two.” Love God and love others. Those are the two commandments that Jesus said sum up all the law and the prophets. I even looked it up in the Greek. “All” still means “all”. So, all of us should be walking in love. All of us should be loving God and loving others. All of us should. We should.

Unfortunately, in today’s world, hatred has become strangely acceptable. People speak harshly without hesitation, divide quickly, and dismiss one another as if human worth were optional. We see it in our communities, online, in families, and even among Believers. And yet—into this climate—1 John 4:20 speaks with a clarity that cannot be softened:

“If anyone boasts, ‘I love God,’ and goes right on hating his brother or sister… he is a liar.”

There isn’t much room for excuses in today’s verse. John leaves us with a sobering truth: a heart that clings to hatred cannot honestly claim to be walking in God's love.

So here is the question Scripture forces us to face today: Why have contempt, resentment, and hostility become so acceptable among people who claim to love God? How did we arrive at a place where anger feels justified, division feels normal, and contempt feels deserved?

John's logic is painfully simple: If we cannot love the people we can see—flawed, imperfect, and sometimes difficult—our claim to love the God we cannot see rings hollow. God's love is never merely spoken; it is demonstrated. The visible evidence that Jesus reigns in our hearts is the way we love others.

Let me try to soften this just a bit. Choosing love does not mean approving of sin or abandoning truth. Jesus was full of both grace and truth, and He calls us to speak the truth with a heart that still loves. While the climate around us may celebrate harshness, the Kingdom of God never will. The world may reward retaliation, but the Spirit of God never will. And while society may normalize contempt, Scripture calls it what it is: a lie. But the good news is that as Believers who have made Jesus Lord of our lives, the Holy Spirit lives within us, producing His love in us. We can love. We can choose to love.

But the reality is this; today’s devotional asks you to pause and examine your heart with honesty. Has irritation become hostility in your life? Has disappointment become resentment? Has frustration become quiet hatred? And more importantly—what does that reveal about the condition of your love for God? Or mine? Perhaps today’s verse is a mirror held before us. Perhaps it asks a question every one of us needs to answer:

"If someone examined my words, my attitudes, and the way I treat difficult people, would they see the evidence that I truly love God?"

Let’s remember that true love for God always shows up in visible ways. It is patient. It is kind. It forgives. It seeks peace. It refuses to let hatred take root. It is the unmistakable evidence that God’s love has truly transformed us. The more deeply we understand how completely God has loved and forgiven us, the more naturally His love begins to overflow toward others. So, let’s all look in the mirror today. Let’s see if there is genuine evidence of love in our lives.

Prayer

Lord, we confess that it is easier to claim love for You than it is to show love to those who frustrate us, hurt us, or disagree with us. But Your Word is clear: love for You is proven in love for others. So reshape our attitudes, redirect our reactions, and renew our hearts until Your love becomes visible in our words, our choices, and our relationships. Help us walk in truth, not in the lie of hatred. Help us reflect Your heart, not the climate of the world around us. And help us love in such a way that no one doubts who we belong to.

In Jesus’ Name, Amen…

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