What a Difference a Revelation of God’s Love for YOU Makes!

1 John 4:16a (AMPC)
¹⁶ And we know (understand, recognize, are conscious of, by observation and by experience) and believe (adhere to and put faith in and rely on) the love God cherishes for us.

It is one thing to know that “God so loved the world…”, and quite another to believe that God loves you, in a personal way that involves experiencing all His Goodness.  In fact, the Bible acknowledges this when it states in 1 John 4:16 that we must “know and believe” the love God has for us. While knowing acknowledges something, believing takes ownership and enjoys the benefits of it.

The difference between “knowing” and “believing” can be seen in the actions of Peter on two separate occasions.  Luke 5: 4-8 relates the first one.  Jesus, after teaching from Peter’s boat, instructs him to launch out into the deep to catch some fish.  Peter’s response was tepid at best: (paraphrase) “We’ve already done that and it didn’t work, but because You said to do it we will.” The result was a net-breaking, boat-sinking haul. In fact, it took more than one boat to carry all the fish.  When the boats had returned to shore, Peter “fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, ‘Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord!’”  The Message version says, “I’m a sinner and can’t handle this holiness.” So, Peter recognized Jesus and knew that He loved Him as evidenced by the fish that had been caught, but he had not yet realized that Jesus’s Love for him was not dependent how good Peter was. In short, Peter was basing God’s ability to love him on his actions not Jesus’.

Fast forward to a post-resurrection situation found in John 21:1-8.  Peter decided to go fishing and a number of other disciples went with him.  They fished the entire night.  At dawn, Jesus appeared on the beach and called out to them, inquiring if they had caught anything. They said no; Jesus instructed them to cast their net on the right side of the boat. When they did, they caught so many fish they couldn’t haul in the net. Verse 7 (NLT) says John said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” This time Peter’s reaction was totally different.  Verse 7 continues… “he (Peter) put on his tunic (for he had stripped for work), jumped into the water, and headed to shore.”  The New King James version said Peter “plunged” into the water.

Two similar situations, two very different responses by Peter.  What accounts for the difference? In the first situation, Peter “knew” that Jesus was Lord and loved him. In the second situation – and remember this occurred after Peter had denied Jesus three times – Peter had had a revelation of Jesus’ love for him in a very personal, intimate way.  He went from “knowing to believing”.

That’s what receiving a revelation of God’s love for you will do.  It takes you from feeling unworthy and drawing back from God’s love to, being like Peter, “plunging” into that Love and letting it soak you head- to-toe.  It’s a place where what you receive is never based on your own goodness; it is always based on the Goodness of God and the sacrifice Jesus made for you.  As the Easy-to-Read Version says, it is a place of trust; a place where you trust that you will always experience the Goodness of God in your life because He loves YOU.  And, that, is a place from which you never want to leave. 

1 John 4:16 (ERV)
¹⁶ So we know the love that God has for us, and we trust that love.

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