For God so Loved the World

The Fourth Candle of Advent: Love

All Scriptures KJV (King James Version of the Bible).

As we light the Fourth Candle of Advent, called the Candle of Love, our hearts are drawn to the very center of Christmas, the love of God revealed in Jesus Christ. This candle reminds us that Advent is not only about waiting, but about preparing our hearts to receive and reflect His divine love. The Word of God declares, “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. Here is the foundation of Christmas. God’s love moved Him to give.

The birth of Jesus is the clearest expression of that love. In a humble manger lay Heaven’s greatest gift, a Savior sent not because we deserved Him, but because we needed Him. Jesus-Yeshua arrived as an innocent, helpless baby. Yet, He came into this world knowing He would grow up to experience hunger and weariness, sorrow and suffering, and every burden we humans endure. Scripture tells us, “In 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,” 1 John 4:9. God’s love is intentional and redemptive. Christ came so that we might live through Him. Even more, we are reminded, “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us,” Romans 5:8. From the cradle to the cross, God’s love was on full display.

When we receive the love of God through Christ, it changes us. We sometimes feel lost and forgotten in this world. Still, a relationship with Jesus teaches us that we were never forgotten and God’s intentions toward us have always been for us to experience the best and to become His Children. A relationship with Jesus gently reminds us that we were never overlooked, never misplaced, and never beyond love. It shows us that we were created on purpose, for relationship, and for a life marked by hope and belonging. His love brings forgiveness, peace, and new life. The apostle John writes, “Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins,” 1 John 4:10. Our love for God is always a response to His love for us, for “we love him, because he first loved us,” 1 John 4:19. The Fourth Candle reminds us that Advent love is not something we create, it is something we receive, and then reflect.

God never intended His love to stop with us. As we come to recognize that we are loved beyond anything we can truly understand, love no longer remains something we receive only for ourselves. The natural response is to let that love flow through us to those around us, to people in need, and to a world longing for hope. In this way, the love God has poured into our hearts becomes the very love others see through our lives. Those who have been loved by Christ are called to love others in the same way. Scripture challenges us, “Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another,” 1 John 4:11. Jesus Himself said, “A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another,” John 13:34. He went on to say, “By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another,” John 13:35. Our love for fellowman is meant to be a living testimony that Christ dwells within us.

This kind of love is not merely spoken. It is lived out. God’s Word exhorts us, “My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth,” 1 John 3:18. Biblical love shows itself in patience, kindness, forgiveness, generosity, and compassion, especially during a season when many are hurting or lonely. We are reminded, “And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins,” 1 Peter 4:8. To love others in this way is to reflect the heart of Christ.

As the Advent candles grow brighter, we are reminded that Christ is the Light who came into our darkness, and He now calls us to shine His love in the world. “For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light,” Ephesians 5:8. When we walk in His love, we carry His light into places that desperately need hope.

This Fourth Candle of Love points us directly to the manger and beyond it to the cross. It declares that God’s love is real, costly, and life-giving, and it calls us to live differently because of that love. Scripture tells us, “And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity,” 1 Corinthians 13:13. As Christmas draws near, may our hearts be filled with gratitude for God’s great love, and may our lives become vessels through which that love is shared.

As we close, let this prayer from God’s Word be our own: “Now the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God, and into the patient waiting for Christ,” 2 Thessalonians 3:5.

Heavenly Father, thank You for loving us and sending Your Son. Teach us to walk in that love and to share it freely with others. As we celebrate the birth of our Savior, may our hearts and lives reflect Jesus Christ. In Jesus’s precious name we pray. Amen.