The Surprising Sign That Your Faith is Real: Loving The Brethren

Do you truly love the brethren?

If a church were a candy bar, what kind would it be? Some are like Kit Kats, easily breakable. Others are like Nerds—intellectual with no heart. Some are Pay Days, full of nuts, while others are more like Snickers—a sweet center with just a few nuts. The reality is that every community, especially a church family, is filled with a variety of personalities. Loving everyone, especially the people who are nothing like us, can be one of the most significant challenges of living in fellowship.

But what if this very challenge—the call to love difficult, different, and even "nutty" people—is not a fringe issue of Christian life? What if it's the central piece of evidence that our faith is genuine? This article explores three powerful truths from 1 John 3:14 that connects loving the brethren to the assurance of our salvation, revealing that how we treat our brothers and sisters in Christ is one of the most profound indicators of where we truly stand with God.

1. Love Isn't a Suggestion; It's the Primary Evidence.

According to the Apostle John, a genuine love for fellow believers is not just a "nice-to-have" Christian virtue but a powerful and direct indicator of salvation. When John writes, "We know that we have passed from death to life," he chooses his words with surgical precision. The Greek word he uses for "know" is oida, which signifies an intuitive, obvious knowledge—not ginóskó, which is knowledge gained through learning or experience. Furthermore, he uses it in the perfect tense (oidamen), meaning this is a knowledge we came to possess at the moment of salvation and still hold today. John isn’t asking us to learn a new fact; he’s pointing to an obvious truth that becomes part of our new nature.

This is obvious: Christianity and disliking Christians are incompatible. This isn't about having a warm feeling for every person you meet. It's about a fundamental orientation of the heart that proves a supernatural change has occurred. Consider the ultimate contrast: Last year, the Church of Satan erected a statue of a horned goat figure next to a Nativity scene at the NH state capitol. Their actions are not born from a desire to celebrate Christmas, but from a deep-seated hatred for Christ and his followers. They are abiding in death. When Christians harbor distaste, anger, or bitterness toward their brothers and sisters, we must ask the uncomfortable question: How different is that impulse from the one that drives the world’s hatred for the church?

We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love his brother abides in death.

This insight is impactful because it shifts the focus of assurance. Instead of relying on a purely internal feeling or an intellectual belief that can waver, it points to a tangible, relational reality. The evidence of a changed life is seen not just in what we believe, but in how we love.

2. This Love Is a Supernatural Choice, Not a Feeling.

The "love" being discussed here is the specific Greek concept of agapé. This is not a love based on shared interests or mutual affection; it is a divine and sacrificial love that originates from God Himself.

Crucially, agapé is not primarily an emotion but a choice. It is something one does, often in spite of one's feelings. It’s easy to feel affectionate toward some, but what about "Brother Big Mouth" or "Sister Annoys-me-a-lot"? There are moments when our natural inclination is to withdraw or avoid. Yet, it is in these very moments that the choice to practice agapé love becomes a supernatural act. The original Greek in 1 John 3:14 could be translated "because we are loving the brethren" (agapōmen), emphasizing a continuous, ongoing action. This isn’t about making a single choice but about adopting a lifestyle characteristic of our new nature.

"If someone says, ‘I love God,’ and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen?"

This reframes love not as a passive state we fall into, but as an active, Spirit-enabled decision that demonstrates a heart that has been genuinely transformed. When we choose to love even when we don’t feel like it, we are acting out the new nature given to us by God.

3. Salvation Is a Permanent Transfer That Makes Love Possible.

The Bible describes salvation as a "once-for-all migration" from the "Kingdom of Death" to the "Kingdom of Life." This is not a temporary visa but a permanent change of citizenship. Just as transferring a credit card balance means the old lender no longer owns the debt, the transfer of our sin debt to Christ is a completed transaction. A believer cannot migrate back to the realm of death; this finality is the basis for the assurance that salvation cannot be lost. Love for the brethren is the visible fruit of salvation. Believers love other believers because, having been transferred into the Kingdom of Life, we cannot help it. We have to do it.

This fundamental "alteration" of our spiritual citizenship is precisely what makes agapé love for other citizens of the Kingdom of Life possible. This love isn't something we muster up on our own to earn our place; rather, it is the natural fruit of a completed change. It is the byproduct of being in a right relationship with God and a shared identity with His people.

Love doesn’t earn salvation; rather, it serves as evidence of it... Love is the visible fruit of salvation. The reason believers love other believers is because we cannot help it. It is a byproduct of a right relationship with God.

Conclusion: Tending the Fire of Fellowship

Ultimately, genuine love for others is both the practice and the proof of a life transformed by God. It is the outworking of an inward reality.

A story is told of a small mountain village where a traveler nearly froze in the harsh winter. The villagers brought him into a cabin and built a large fire. But during the night, one by one, they each took a coal from the central fire to warm their own homes. The main fire slowly died, and by morning, the traveler had perished in the cold. The next winter, when another traveler arrived in the same condition, the villagers made a different choice. Instead of taking coals for themselves, they stayed together, adding logs and tending the flames. The fire grew, and everyone survived.

Christian love works the same way. When believers focus only on their own comfort, guarding their time and resources, the warmth of fellowship grows cold. But when they stay together, sacrificing for one another and bearing each other's burdens, the fire of Christlike love grows brighter and stronger, becoming a place of life and refuge in a cold world.

In a world that often feels cold and isolating, how are you tending the fire?

This is an excerpt from a sermon delivered by Pastor Tim Lewis on December 14, 2025. It has been edited using NotebookLM, and the complete sermon can be accessed at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xz0LUPlhkzU