The Power of Perfect Love

“There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love.” (1 John 4:18)

My wife is an animal rescuer. She will take-in any pitiful pup or stray cat that wanders our way. Her most recent labor of love is a doggy, which my mother said looked like a “Toby” the first time she saw him. The name stuck. Much better than what he had been called - “Taco.”

My wife scours the local animal adoption Facebook pages. That’s where she found Toby. When Toby first entered our three-ring-circus, you could tell he had a terrible past. We suspect he was abused and neglected, because Toby exhibited all the traits of a damaged doggy – timid, cowering, nervous, no appetite and looking for a chance to run away.

But over the past several days, we have noticed a transformation take place. He’s not the same dog. He’s coming out of his shell. He loves to play with the kids. He greets everyone with an excited wag and a whimper. He begs to be cuddled and surrenders his paw for a handshake. He wants to be wanted.

What made the difference? The only thing I can figure is the transforming power of love. Perhaps, for the first time in his life Toby has a family. When you are truly loved you don’t have to be afraid. There’s security in love. And that security fosters growth and change. In the security of love, Toby is learning to trust and that he doesn’t have to be afraid anymore.

This is a faint example of what John talked about when He said, “perfect love casts out all fear.” If love can transform a scared doggy, then imagine what the perfect love of God can do in fearful, broken people! In Christ, we are objects of the Father’s infinite love. Because Christ satisfied the wrath of God by absorbing our punishment on the cross, then we don’t have to fear God’s judgment – whether that pertains to the future penalty of hell or the Tribulation period (Rom. 5:9; 1 Thess. 1:10, 5:9).

But that’s only the beginning. If you were to chart this on a graph you would see an inverse proportion – as our understanding of God’s love increases, our level of fear and anxiety decreases. God’s love protects us from the fear of danger (Ps. 56:3), the fear of defeat (2 Tim. 1:7), the fear of death (Heb. 2:14-15) and the fear of disownment (Rom. 8:35-39). We don’t have to be afraid of our past disqualifying us from God’s love, nor do we have to be afraid of the future, because God’s love doesn’t expire.

Because we know that God is watching over us as a loving Father, then His plans will not be undermined and His purposes for us are good. When we fall into sin, His love for us doesn’t change based on our performance. God doesn’t cast us aside. We can truly rest in His love because He will never drag up our past or condemn us (Rom. 8:1). So let go of all the shame and fear and let the love of God set you free.

“Oh love that will not let me go / I rest my weary soul in thee / I give thee back the life I owe / That in thine ocean depths its flow / May richer, fuller be”