Bible Verse
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・Verse Context
・Key Words
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・Main Message
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Something has shifted in our hearts, and we need to talk about it. When someone we disagree with dies—especially a public figure—how do we respond? If we’re honest, some of us have felt relief, even satisfaction. Some have laughed, made jokes, or said they “got what they deserved.” This devotional challenges us to look at our reactions and ask a hard question: What does our response to an enemy’s death reveal about whether we truly know the God who is love? We’re going to pray about the hatred hiding in our hearts and ask God to show us if our faith is real or just a label we wear.
Short Devotional
We read these piercing words: “Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Anyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.” John doesn’t give us wiggle room here. He’s saying that if love isn’t flowing from our lives, we don’t actually know God—we just know about Him. And here’s what makes this so uncomfortable: love isn’t just for people who are easy to love. Jesus said to love our enemies and pray for those who hurt us. That means when someone we opposed dies, our first response should be grief—not because we agreed with them, but because a human made in God’s image has been killed.
When we celebrate death, mock tragedy, or feel satisfaction that someone “got what was coming to them,” we’re proving that we’ve never truly met the God of the cross. Jesus died for people who spat on Him, beat Him, and nailed Him to the cross. If we can’t muster basic empathy for someone on the opposite side of our political or ideological divide, what does that say about our hearts? It means somewhere along the way, we’ve replaced the transforming power of the gospel with tribal loyalty. We’ve made our political identity more important than the command to love. And we need to bring this before God in prayer, asking Him to expose the hardness in our hearts and soften us again.
Let's Pray
Heavenly Father,
I come before You knowing that my heart has grown hard in ways I didn’t even notice. I confess that there have been times when I heard about someone’s death—someone I disagreed with or even hated—and I felt nothing. Maybe I even felt glad. Maybe I laughed or said they deserved it. Father, that’s not love. That’s not You.
Your Word says that love comes from You, that anyone who loves has been born of You and knows You, but whoever does not love does not know You because You are love.
God, I’m scared by what that means for me. If I can’t love my enemies, if I can’t grieve over any human death, then do I really know You? Or have I just been playing church while my heart stays cold?
Please forgive me for the hatred I’ve been carrying. Forgive me for dehumanizing people who think differently than me. Forgive me for choosing my political tribe over Your command to love. I don’t want to be someone who knows about You but doesn’t actually know You. Change my heart, Father.
Give me Your eyes to see every person as made in Your image, even the ones I can’t stand. Help me grieve violence even when it happens to my enemies. Teach me what it really means to love the way Jesus loved—to love people who don’t deserve it, who won’t love me back, who actively oppose everything I believe.
I can’t do this on my own. I need Your Spirit to break through the walls I’ve built. Make me more like Jesus.
In Your name I pray,
Amen.
Journaling Prompts
If Jesus were physically sitting across from you right now, and you told Him about a political leader or public figure you can’t stand, how do you think He would respond? What would He say about how you’ve been treating that person in your thoughts and words?
Read Matthew 5:43-48 where Jesus commands us to love our enemies. Be honest—who are the people you’ve completely written off as unworthy of love, empathy, or basic human dignity? Write their names or descriptions down. Can you pray for them?
John says, “whoever does not love does not know God.” That’s terrifying. If someone watched your social media, listened to your conversations, and saw how you talk about people you disagree with, would they conclude that you know God? Why or why not?
This isn’t easy to hear, and it’s even harder to live. But God doesn’t leave us stuck in our hatred and hardness. He offers us a way out through confession, repentance, and transformation. The same God who loved those who beat him can teach us to love ours. As you go through this week, pay attention to your heart when you encounter people you disagree with. Let God reveal what’s really there, and trust Him to change you from the inside out.
Until next time,
May the Lord bless you and keep you;
May He make His face shine upon you;
And be gracious to you and give you peace.
God Bless!
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