Actions Speak Louder Than Words

I John 3:14-24

“Actions speak louder than words” is a saying that most people know, and would probably agree with.  That saying is not actually in the Bible, but in our passage from the Apostle John’s first letter we see that thought spelled out. One theme that John emphasizes in this letter is that of loving our Christian brothers and sisters. Let’s look at our passage here together.

When we get saved, we have passed from death into life (vs. 14). Unless the Lord comes, we will all die a physical death. The lost, however, will also die a spiritual death whereas believers will have eternal life in heaven.  We also turn from hate to love. If we have no love we are spiritually dead. An outward compliance to love others is not enough. Love must be from the heart, otherwise bitterness to others can begin to take root (Hebrews 12:15).  Left unchecked bitterness can turn to hate (vs. 15). Jesus stated that one who is angry with his brother without a cause has murdered them in their heart (Matthew 5:21-22). Allowing ourselves to hate someone is the same as murdering them.  One sign of an unsaved person is their lack of love, compassion, or caring for other people. They will show indifference to other Christian’s needs.

Real love is an action, not a feeling (vs. 16-18).  So many people are quick to say “I love you” to others, but then where are their actions to back up the words? We see this in families where one spouse will frequently say those words to the other, but their actions quickly show the lie.  The same with a parent to child. Saying “I love you” means nothing if there are no actions to back up those words. We also see this in our own Christian communities.  We shake hands and greet each other with hugs on Sunday mornings, but do we care about, or even bother to know about, the struggles someone may be going through in our church family?  It’s not enough to say the words. We must follow up with actions. James also speaks of this in his epistle (James 2:14-17). A genuine Christian will show his love in sacrificial giving to other Christian’s needs, helping others.  If not, is God’s love present?

There are three benefits of love for a true Christian.  One is that they will have assurance of salvation (vs. 19).   They will have answered prayer (vs. 22). Having love for the brethren shows that we are submitting to God.  There will also be the abiding presence of the Holy Spirit (vs. 23-24).

God knows our heart (vs. 20).  We cannot hide anything from Him. If we’ve been hiding our sins from God, the Holy Spirit will bring them to light.  We need to keep our conscience sensitive to His moving. No Christian is perfect or sinless, and we don’t always act in love towards our Christian brothers and sisters.  Sometimes, because of past sins and failures, our consciences will accuse and condemn us, even after we’ve repented and confessed. Satan loves to accuse a Christian, saying that they are no longer truly saved.  God knows those who are truly His. He knows everything about us, and is greater than our self-condemnation (vs. 20-21). God knows our motives as well as our actions. His assurance is stronger than an accusing conscience.  If we are in Christ, He won’t condemn us (Romans 8:1). We need, though, to keep our consciences clear when we pray (vs. 21-22).

As the Apostle John wraps up this passage he urges the readers to believe on the Name of Jesus (vs. 23-24).  “Believing on the Name” means to pattern our life after Jesus’s life, and to become more like Him by uniting ourselves with Him.  John urges us to believe in Christ, love the brethren, and to live morally upright lives. By following this pattern we can be sure that our actions will be just as vocal as our words are, and the two will line up with each other.