“Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister.” (1 John 4:20-21)

We’ll start today’s nugget with the big command given: “Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister.” John also provides the consequence of not following this command in the previous verse, “Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar.” A liar, because it is impossible to love the potter and hate the pottery. If we love and cherish God for all He is, then we must also love Him for all He has done. And as God is the author of all life, loving God means loving His creation. If all creation reflects God, then hating a person is the same as hating God. With the opposite also being true, loving the reflection of God in others is in fact loving God too. John is saying that our love for God and love for others is inseparable. You can’t love one (God) and hate the other (a person). Consequentially, John calls those who love God but hate a brother or sister in Christ a liar. Now we all know that loving people can be difficult, especially when sin is involved. Nonetheless, the Apostle John made a point of including these verses in his letter, so we still need to act on them. Today, if you are in a quarrel – take the high road and make amends. If you see sin in a person’s life – hate the sin and love the sinner. And if you harbor true discord for someone, because they are just that difficult – remember that Jesus still ate dinner with the very teachers who wanted Him dead. John provided the command, Jesus has given us the example, the rest is up to us.