We love him, because he first loved us.
“We Love Him Because He First Loved Us” (1 John 4:19)
1 John 4:19 is a short verse with a big idea: our love for God and for others is a response. God loved first, and human love grows out of having been loved.
7Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. 8He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love. 9In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him. 10Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. 11Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another. 12No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us.
But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
12This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you. 13Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.
4But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, 5Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)
The context in 1 John 4
John has just written that God is love and that perfect love casts out fear. Verse 19 sums up the chapter: love does not begin with us. It starts with God, who showed His love by sending His Son.
What it means for you today
Because love is first received, it does not have to be earned. The passage also turns outward right away — anyone who says they love God should also love their brother and sister.
Common questions
Where is “we love because he first loved us” in the Bible?
It is 1 John 4:19. The King James Version reads “We love him, because he first loved us.”
What does 1 John 4:19 mean?
Human love for God and others is a response to God's love, which came first and was shown most fully in Jesus.
Who wrote 1 John?
The letter is traditionally attributed to the apostle John.
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Scripture from King James Version. King James Version, public domain.