我兒子沙維爾現已長大成人。記得他在上幼稚園的時候，有一天，他張開雙臂對我說：「我愛妳這麼多。」我便張開自己較長的雙臂說：「我愛你這麼多。」他不服氣地插著腰說：「是我先愛妳的。」我搖搖頭說：「當上帝最初將你放在我肚子裡的時候，我就愛你了。」沙維爾睜大眼睛，說：「妳贏了。」我說：「我們倆都贏了，因為耶穌先愛我們。」

當沙維爾正準備迎接他第一個孩子的誕生時，我祈求上帝，讓他們在留下各種甜蜜回憶的同時，沙維爾會樂於嘗試去愛他的兒子，勝過兒子對他的愛。然而，在我準備當祖母時，我驚訝地發現，從我知道兒媳懷了寶寶的那一刻開始，我就已經很愛我的孫子了。

使徒約翰宣稱耶穌對我們的愛，使你我有能力愛上帝和他人（約翰一書4章19節）。知道上帝愛我們，會給我們安全感，也會使我們與祂有更親密的關係（15-17節）。認識到祂對我們的愛有多深（19節），我們對祂的愛也會與日俱增，並能以愛來維繫人際關係（20節）。耶穌不但賦予你我愛的能力，還命令我們去愛。「愛上帝的，也當愛弟兄，這是我們從上帝所受的命令」（21節）。當談到「愛」，上帝總是贏家。無論我們多麼努力，都無法超越上帝對你我的愛！

When my now-grown son, Xavier, was in kindergarten, he stretched his arms wide and said, “I love you this much.”  I stretched my longer arms wide and said, “I love you this much.” Planting his fists on his hips, he said, “I loved you first.” I shook my head. “I loved you when God first put you in my womb.” Xavier’s eyes widened. “You win.” “We both win,” I said, “because Jesus loved both of us first.”

As Xavier prepares for the birth of his first child, I’m praying he’ll enjoy trying to out-love his son as they make sweet memories. But as I prepare to be a grandmother, I’m amazed at how much I loved my grandson from the moment Xavier and his wife told us they were expecting a baby.

The apostle John affirmed that Jesus’ love for us gives us the ability to love Him and others (1 John 4:19). Knowing He loves us gives us a sense of security that deepens our personal relationship with Him (vv. 15-17). As we realize the depth of His love for us (v. 19), we can grow in our love for Him and express love in other relationships (v. 20). Not only does Jesus empower us to love, but He also commands us to love: “And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister” (v. 21). When it comes to loving well, God always wins. No matter how hard we try, we can’t out-love God!