No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.
1 John 4:12 (NIV)
Complete
The map of Canada is never really complete. Over the years it has changed regularly. For example, on October 12, 1984, The International Court of Justice decided the maritime border with the United States in the Gulf of Maine. No land changed hands, and the scope of the case did not include the sovereignty of Machias Seal Island. On April 1, 1999, the territory of Nunavut was created from roughly the eastern half of the Northwest Territories. Finally, on December 6, 2001 the province of Newfoundland was renamed Newfoundland and Labrador.
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In this world, nothing is permanent. As someone wisely said, the only permanence in this world is change. As usual, the kingdom of God turns the principles of the kingdoms of this world upside down. Listen to what the apostle writes in 1 John 4:12: “No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.” God wants to make us complete. One day, when we reach the goal of our faith and enter eternally into His presence, we will be complete in every way. In the meantime, the Bible tells us here that God is working now to make His love complete in us. That happens as we love one another and God takes up residence in us. There is no place in the life of a follower of Jesus for hating anyone else, no matter who they are or how they have treated us. God will always give us the grace to love others as He loves them. He has taken up residence in us and because of His presence, we can love others completely.
These have been words from the heart.
Bob Beasley