"God Is Love"

1 John 4:7; 7. Love is of God] "Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights." (James 1:17.) Conversely, hate is of the devil, from whom every evil thing flows.

1 John 4:7; Every one that loveth is born of God] Gospel love consists of and is manifest through obedience to the laws and ordinances of the gospel (John 14:15; 1 John 5:3), in consequence of which, those who truly love their brethren in full measure are persons who have already been born again; and conversely, as John here states the proposition, those who love their brethren in the full gospel sense thereby show they have been born again.

1 John 4:7; Every one that loveth . . . knoweth God] As the presence of true gospel love is proof positive that the recipient has been born again, so also, on the same basis, it establishes that he knows God, whom to know is eternal life. (John 17:3.) This knowledge comes only by revelation from the Holy Ghost; and, of course, "He that loveth not knoweth not God." (Verse 8.)
8. God is love] "Our God is a consuming fire." (Hebrews 12:29.) "God is light." (1 John 1:5.) Similarly, God is also faith, hope, charity, righteousness, truth, virtue, temperance, patience, humility, and so forth. That is, God is the embodiment and personification of every good grace and godly attribute—all of which dwell in his person in perfection and in fulness. See Commentary I, pp. 229-230, 725-727, 746-749; Commentary II, p. 297.

1 John 4:9-10; 9-10. These verses are John's commentary upon Jesus' words: "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." (John 3:16.) See Commentary I, pp. 143-145.

1 John 4:10; 10. The propitiation for our sins] See 1 John 1:8-10; 1 John 2:1-2.

1 John 4:11; 11. God and Christ are the great Prototypes of all saved beings. They are our Patterns, our Exemplars. To be saved is to be like them. If they manifest perfect and infinite love, such is the goal toward which we must strive.

I. V. 12. No man hath seen God at any time, except them who believe] Who has, and does, and shall see God? Prophets in great number have seen the Lord of Heaven, often receiving such plain and open manifestations that it has been as though they communed with their friends. One of these was John himself who (like Joseph Smith) was able to describe the clothing he wore, the appearance of his hair, eyes, and feet, and the sound of his voice. (Revelation 2:13-15; D&C 110:1-3.)

Of one of the appearances of the Lord to Moses the record says: "The Lord talked with Moses . . . . And the Lord spake unto Moses face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend." (Exodus 33:9-11.) And Abraham recorded his similar experience with the same God in these words: "I, Abraham, talked with the Lord, face to face, as one man talketh with another, . . . and his hand was stretched out." (Abraham 3:11-12.)

"I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train [his skirts] filled the temple," Isaiah said, and the Brother of Jared saw the spirit body of the Lord Jesus in such detail that it appeared even as his mortal and resurrected body would appear. (Ether 3:15-17.) But the most glorious theophany of which we have record is the vision vouchsafed to Joseph Smith when he saw "two Personages"—the Father and the Son—standing above him in glory and brightness which defied all description. (Joseph Smith History 2:16-17.) See James 1:1-7.

And as with the prophets and seers of ancient and modern times, so with all the saints who will obey the same laws, all shall see the Lord, for God is no respecter of persons. "Verily, thus saith the Lord," he decrees: "It shall come to pass that every soul who forsaketh his sins and cometh unto me, and calleth on my name, and obeyeth my voice, and keepeth my commandments, shall see my face and know that I am." (D&C 93:1.) And again: "Sanctify yourselves that your minds become single to God, and the days will come that you shall see him; for he will unveil his face unto you, and it shall be in his own time, and in his own way, and according to his own will." (D&C 88:68.) See 2 Peter 1:1-19.

1 John 4:12; K. J. 12. God dwelleth in us] 16. He that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him] God dwells in the hearts of the righteous! Not literally, but by the power of his Spirit! What beautiful imagery this is! How well it teaches the perfect unity that should prevail among all the saints and between God and his people! "Jesus Christ is in you," Paul says of the saints. (2 Corinthians 13:5.) How can this be? His answer is simple: "We have the mind of Christ." (1 Corinthians 2:16.)

1 John 4:12; God dwells in the hearts of those who are as he is. "If you wish to go where God is, you must be like God, or possess the principles which God possesses," the Prophet said. (Teachings, p. 216.) To "possess the principles which God possesses" is to dwell in God! That is, if we possess love, charity, faith, and every godly attribute as he possesses them, then he dwells in us because we have received those attributes which come from him, and we dwell in him because we have become as he is.

1 John 4:12; Be one!] See Commentary I, pp. 765-767. Unity] See Commentary II, pp. 320-322.

1 John 4:12; 12. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us] As only those who love their fellowmen are born again and know God (Verse 7), so also, they alone are the ones in whom God dwells. And again the governing principle is that the love involved can be developed only as a result of keeping the commandments.

1 John 4:13; 13. The extent to which the saints receive the companionship and guidance of the Holy Spirit is the extent to which they dwell in God.

1 John 4:15; 15. Those who have testimonies of the gospel and are in fact converted to its eternal truths are the ones in whom God dwells and who also dwell in him.

1 John 4:17; 17. As he is, so are we] We become like God as we acquire the attributes he possesses.

1 John 4:18; 18. Our Lord's message is one of love and joy and the hope of eternal life. Fear plays no part in it. There is no dread or disquiet in the souls of the saints; they are free from apprehension and anxiety with reference to the course of events in this world and their eternal destiny in the world to come. To them their Lord's voice is: "Fear not, little children, for you are mine, and I have overcome the world, and you are of them that my Father hath given me; And none of them that my Father hath given me shall be lost." (D&C 50:41-42.)

1 John 4:20-21; 20-21. How well do we love our fellowmen? Such is the true test and measure of our love of Him who said: "Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me." (Matthew 25:40.)