It all boils down to idolatry. Is there anything to which we turn before we turn to Jesus? Is there anything that we love more than being in right-standing with Him? Idols trigger an emotion in us; maybe we ought to investigate why. We may (will) not like what we find.

John has the solution and gives it before his last statement. Let’s read:

¹⁸ We know that anyone born of God does not continue to [in willful] sin; the One who was born of God [Jesus in us] keeps them safe, and the evil one cannot harm them. ¹⁹ We know that we are children of God [and our citizenship is in heaven], and that the whole world is under the control of the evil one [Satan]. ²⁰ We know also that the Son of God has come [to us] and has given us understanding, so that we may know him [experientially and intimately] who is true. And we are in him who is true by being in his Son Jesus Christ [and He in us]. He is the true God and eternal life.

²¹ Dear children, keep yourselves from idols.

The secret to getting rid of idols in our lives is simple, but not easy. It requires getting the right mindset every morning and renewing it throughout the day.

1. We get up in time to spend some time washing our brains with the Word. We orient our attitude of who we will please today to be HIM. It’s micro-repentance. It’s easier, safer, and much more pleasant to make minor course adjustments often than having to major course adjustments occasionally.
2. We adjust our schedule to include eating right and drinking enough water. Our brains work better when given the right fuel. Don’t give the devil a foothold.
3. Rehearse ahead of time how we will react/respond to certain situations according to Ephesians 4:2-3, “Be completely humble and gentle, be patient, bearing with one another in love. (3) Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.
4. Look for ways to share your story today. Even a part of it is useful by the Spirit in a person’s life. Share one aspect of what we have been learning in His Word or how the Spirit prompted in a certain circumstance. Let’s give the Spirit handles to work in other people’s lives.

Knowing that our citizenship is in heaven (Phil. 3:20) and that Satan has control of this world–for a little while longer, let’s live our lives in constant awareness of our present state. Don’t trust ANYTHING from Hollywood or New York or D.C. Instead, test everything according to the Spirit and the Word of God. Let’s be fanatics for Jesus!

Lord Jesus, I want YOU to be my main concern today. I want YOU to direct my paths. May I make you my ONLY hope and trust today; may I lean not on my own understanding and, instead, learn all I can about Your Word and from Your Word. Lead me, O Holy Spirit, that I may become a drink offering ready to be poured out for You: May I fight the good fight, keep the faith, and finish the race (based on 2 Tim. 4:6). Oh, how I long for Your appearing! In the meantime, keep transforming me into You so that others may see You when they see me. Amen.

Up to this point, John has been talking about our spiritual state, the position of our souls. Now, he moves to the relationship we have with our brothers and sisters in Christ, His Family.

Remember in Ephesians where Paul deals with the family of God, “To Him be glory in the church [His Family] and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen. Ephesians 3:21. He now turns our attention to helping our brothers and sisters.

¹⁶ If you see any brother or sister commit a sin that does not lead to death, you should pray and God will give them life. I refer to those whose sin does not lead to death. There is a sin that leads to death. I am not saying that you should pray about that. ¹⁷ All wrongdoing is sin, and there is sin that does not lead to death.

Our first order of business is to talk to God about them. We ask for His perspective on them. Knowing that He loves them and wants the best for them, we view them through that love. In what form will that LIFE come to them? Through us? We must be willing to be part of that life. God may or may not ask us to join Him in sharing life with them, but are we willing to be His hands and feet–and pocketbook– if He asks?

What is this sin that leads to death? It is often referred to as the unpardonable sin. There is at least one denomination that thinks suicide is it because the person has no time to ask forgiveness for the sin of suicide. What’s wrong with this thinking?

1. We are not judged by individual sins. We are either under the blood categorically and positionally, or not under the blood.
2. Yes, it is a sin, but it’s a sin like all others, and is forgiven at the cross.
3. Granted, suicide is unfixable on this side of eternity, but those who have been to the cross for forgiveness are instantly glorified when we step from this world to His world, regardless of the circumstances.

So, what IS the unpardonable sin, the one that leads to death? Let’s read it:

“And so I tell you, every kind of sin and slander can be forgiven, but blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven.” Matthew 12:31

“And everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven.” Luke 12:10

What is blasphemy? It is, “the crime of assuming to oneself the rights or qualities of God.” It’s basically when a person resists the urging of the Spirit for salvation by deciding that he doesn’t need or want Jesus. Since the Spirit is the One who saves us and seals us, to resist Him is to resist Salvation itself. The one who resists the Spirit chooses to stay in their sinful condition. THIS is the unpardonable sin.

In John’s case, there were people who were going around to the churches spreading false Gospels:

1. Jesus didn’t really come in human form; He just appeared as a human. This lie refutes the humanity of Jesus which was needed in order for Him to be our propitiation, our sin sacrifice, which satisfied the price of sin and put us back into a right relationship with the Father.
2. We must keep the Levitical Law. This lie refutes the NEW COVENANT that Jesus established. We go back to the original covenant with Abraham where God took the mantle of fulfilling both sides of the covenant (see Genesis 15, particularly verse 17). We are saved by grace; the work was finished on the cross by Christ.
3. You can fall from grace and be lost again. This lie refutes the permanence of the sacrifice of Jesus. All we need to do to expose this one is to look at the verses where it says that Jesus died ONCE FOR ALL. John makes it clear in 2:19 that anyone who walks away from the faith was never a full believer in the Gospel to begin with.

With this last one, we are back to the sin that leads to death, or, unpardonable sin. Can a person be led astray to the point of losing their salvation? Scripturally, I don’t think so. The real proof is in whether or not the LORD disciplines them “because the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and he chastens everyone he accepts as his son.” Proverbs 3:12 and quoted in Hebrews 12:6. We pray for them that it is so, and that they would respond to His urging to come back into fellowship with Himself.

True born-again believers, who have trusted in the LORD for the forgiveness of their sins and received the Holy Spirit into their hearts and lives, do not continue in a life of willful sin. Instead, we work to break the habits of sinful behavior and to renew our minds through a consistent conversation with the Spirit. Through this steady walk with Jesus, we prove that we are His. Let’s walk with Him today and trust Him to lead us “higher up and further in.”

Abba, Your Spirit within me testifies with my spirit that I am Your child (Romans 8:16). Thank You that I don’t have to fight with doubt any longer! May I work tenaciously to emulate You and may I lift up my brothers and sisters in You in prayer that they might be strong in their faith. According to Ephesians 3, may You strengthen them with power in their inner being so that You may be President in their hearts; may they be rooted and established in Your love and dive deep into Your love for them. Fill them up to overflowing, Lord Jesus. Me, too! Amen.

Knowing what to pray is the secret to successful praying. Adrian Rogers did an excellent job of teaching on this subject several years ago in a sermon called, “How to Pray For Friends and Influence People.” If you would like to listen to it, here is the link:

Adrian Rogers: How to Pray for Friends and Influence People

In it, he revealed how to pray successfully. John knew how. Read what he said:

¹⁴ This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. ¹⁵ And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him.

In order to know what His will is, we need to read Ephesians 3:14-21.

¹⁴ For this reason I kneel before the Father, ¹⁵ from whom every family^[a]in heaven and on earth derives its name. ¹⁶ I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, ¹⁷ so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, ¹⁸ may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, ¹⁹ and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

²⁰ Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, ²¹ to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.

¹⁴ For this reason I kneel before the Father, What reason? It’s back in verse 8, “to preach to the Gentiles the boundless riches Christ.” These riches are wrapped up in our relationship with Christ, who has made them our inheritance. Not only for later, but He dips into them as we need them, “And my God will supply all your needs according to [out of the abundance of] the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:19. “What riches?” you might ask.

¹⁵ from whom every family^[a]in heaven and on earth derives its name. We derive our identity from His identity, from His name. Our last name is different; it’s now “GodSon,” heirs with Christ Jesus Himself (Romans 8:17). We should take great comfort in that name.

¹⁶ I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, ¹⁷ so that Christ may dwell [abide, rule] in your hearts through faith. Our inner being is who we are on the inside. It’s who makes the decisions for our lives. Through the presence of the Holy Spirit within us, we are strengthened with His power to live as He would live were He us. In other words, we become “little Christs,” which is exactly what the term, “Christian,” means. An attainable goal? I should say so, since HE is the ONE who is doing it!

Christ dwelling in our hearts makes the difference. The term, “dwell,” means constant and consistent habitation. Christ lives in our hearts and never leaves the premises! He also rules our hearts. “He’s not just resident, He’s President!” Thankfully, long-suffering is one of His attributes.

And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, ¹⁸ may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, ¹⁹ and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. We are loved by God–did you get that? He wants us to learn through knowledge and through experience the vastness of His love for us. Just look at what He did for us: He left heaven and came to earth, was born a human, lived 33 years, died on a cross, went to a tomb, rose from the dead, and ascended back to His throne JUST SO WE WOULD KNOW HOW MUCH HE LOVES US.

—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. Here’s the prayer part. We can confidently pray these things:

1. That we may be strengthened by His power as the Holy Spirit works in us;
2. That Christ would rule in our hearts as LORD;
3. That His Spirit would empower us to begin to grasp His never-ending love for us;
4. And that we would be filled to the brim with all the fullness of God. May He spill over onto others because we are so full of Him!

²⁰ Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, When we call on Him, we get ALL of Him. When we ask these things, we are SURE He will grant them. Why? For His glory!

²¹ to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen. “In the church” is us. We bring Him glory when we pray these things for ourselves and for others, when we expect Him to do above and beyond what we could ever ask or imagine, and when we allow Him to work through us.

Now we know what John means when he says, And if we know that he hears us, we know that we have what we asked of him.” I’m excited to start praying these things for you! Please pray them for me, as well.

Abba, according to Your Word, I can have confidence that You will answer my prayers as I come boldly before Your throne of grace. May you strengthen my brothers and sisters in Christ–and me–to grasp Your love for them as well as your church; may we treat each member as Your beloved child, and may we be Christ to them as You fill us to overflowing. Don’t give me what I ask–give me far and above what I can even imagine! I love You, Abba. May I be filled with You today so that people can know You through me.

When comparing John’s Gospel to this letter, we find several similarities, particularly the one where he tells us the reason for writing the letter. It comes at the end of the greatest part of the Gospel where Jesus, after rising from the dead, appeared to His disciples. John says,

“But these things are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.” John 20:31

In John’s letter, he writes:

¹³ I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life. 

The question we ask in order to know is this, “Do you walk with Jesus daily?” Another way to ask it is, “Do you commune with the Holy Spirit constantly?” If the answer is yes, then we KNOW that we are saved and are enjoying the fruit of that relationship, which is His love, His joy, His peace, along with patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.

If the answer is no, then we must first look at our salvation experience and make sure that we belong to Him:

1. Did He come to you and ask you to let Him be LORD of your life? Or, did you think it was a good idea, do it because others were doing it, or do it because it was the expected thing to do?
2. Did you understand that it was a lifetime commitment? Or, were you simply afraid of going to hell (that’s called, “fire insurance”)?
3. Do you check with Him before every decision? Or, do you still run your life?
4. Do you grow daily by reading His Word and communing with Him? Or, is your time your own to do with as you please?

John wrote that we may KNOW that we have eternal life. Do you have the Son? If He is your LORD, then you have life. If He is NOT your LORD, then get Him today! He is asking right now for you to let Him into your life and allow Him to be your LORD. But, we must be ready to give Him everything, everyday, from now on. Oh, how He wants to commune with us!

“Call to me and I will answer thee and show thee great and mighty things you do not know.” Jeremiah 33:3 (referred to as God’s telephone number)

“Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and sup with him and he with Me.” Revelation 3:20

 

God’s Great Rescue Plan was inconceivable. Only He knew what He was up to! Now, after the fact, His testimony stands firm. Let’s start with that testimony:

¹¹ And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.

The strength of this testimony can be seen in the next verse:

¹² Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.

On what is it based? THE LIFE OF JESUS CHRIST. Let’s look:

⁶ This is the one who came by water and blood—Jesus Christ. He did not come by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. ⁷ For there are three that testify:⁸ the^[a] Spirit, the water and the blood; and the three are in agreement.⁹ We accept human testimony, but God’s testimony is greater because it is the testimony of God, which he has given about his Son. ¹⁰ Whoever believes in the Son of God accepts this testimony. Whoever does not believe God has made him out to be a liar, because they have not believed the testimony God has given about his Son. 

There are three elements to this testimony:

1. The water- This reference is to His physical body being born. The amniotic fluid that surrounds the embryo is mostly water. There is also a reference to water when Jesus was pierced by the spear in His side. The sac surrounding the heart is also filled with water and was punctured along with his heart–a sure sign of His death.
2. The blood- This reference is to His purpose, which was to be the sin sacrifice for us (2 Cor. 5:21). The entire sacrificial system was designed as a picture of what Christ would do for us–had already done for us. One of the mind-blowing verses in the Bible is Revelation 13:8, which says, “…the Lamb who was slain from the creation of the world.” How God did it, I don’t know, but we were redeemed before the world ever began and the Fall ever happened! EVERYONE is judged according to the CROSS: Those who looked forward to it and we who look back on it.
3. The Spirit- The third Person of the Trinity. He came down in ceremonial form on Jesus in the form of a dove when He was baptized (Matt. 3:16), thus officially beginning His ministry. His Father was very pleased with Him, “This is my beloved son, with whom I am well pleased.” One might go so far as to say that Jesus fulfilled the Law and the Old Covenant by living 30 years righteously, something that no one up to that point had done. Upon His baptism and the receiving of the Holy Spirit (ceremonially)*, He ushered in the New Covenant. From that point on, everything pointed to the Cross and salvation through Him.

Again and again, Jesus told them that if they didn’t believe His message, to at least believe the miracles that testified about Him (John 10:25, 32, 37, 38, 14:11). Those who refuse to believe make Jesus out to be a liar, which makes God a liar, as well. NOT A GOOD THING! They have moved from standing in front of the Judge’s bench to the Judge’s seat–which is reserved for God alone! Mankind can be so arrogant.

John ends this discussion by summarizing Christ’s life:

¹¹ And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.¹² Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.

Salvation is simple–not easy, but simple. We believe Jesus. We prove we believe Him by walking with Him continuously and obeying Him. We have the Spirit, who is Jesus, who is God, living in us and communing with us. What more could we ask?!

*Who can explain Jesus? He was God, yet human. He was sinless, which made Him eligible to be the Passover Lamb; He was human, which made Him eligible to be our sin sacrifice; He was one with God through the Spirit. I see the Spirit coming down on Jesus at His baptism as a ceremonial filling, an outward sign of an inward reality, identically to our baptism: An outward sign of an inward reality, which is “Christ in us, the hope of glory.” Col. 1:27. When we graduated from high school, we received a diploma in a ceremony that testified that we had met the requirements set before us. It was the same when I received my black belt in Karate. The belt verified that I knew what it took to be a black belt and had demonstrated my knowledge and skill. Baptism is our testimony of the transformation and indwelling inside us. It doesn’t DO anything to us; it shows WHAT HAS ALREADY BEEN DONE!

Love is an action verb. It shows up huge in this passage. Let’s take a look.

As always, read it first in your physical Bible; then, read it here and/or on your electronic device.

Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves the father loves his child as well. 

What does he mean by, “the Christ?” The Christ is the Savior, the Anointed One of Israel, their King, the Messiah. Martha spoke well for us: “I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, who is to come into the world.” John 11:27. Our trust is in His Person and in His Plan. We have put all our eggs into His basket, so to speak. We have no “plan B.” It’s all or nothing, and we have chosen to place ALL of our faith and trust in Him. Whatever He says, goes. Period. And what does He say we will do? Love His other children.

² This is how we know that we love the children of God: by loving God and carrying out his commands. 

If you want God to know you love Him, then do what He has commanded. What has He commanded?

• We could start with the Beatitudes in the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5-7;
  • We find His command to be salt and light;
  • Jesus gives more in-depth instructions concerning the 10 Commandments, particularly murder, adultery;
  • He deals with love for our enemies and what to do when we are mistreated;
  • He deals with prayer, the poor, fasting and worry;
  • He instructs us to lay up treasures in heaven instead of in this life;
  • He warns us against judging others and teaches us to ask, seek, and knock;
  • He exhorts us to enter the narrow gate and stay on the narrow road;
  • He warns us that we will be known by our fruit rather than by what we say;
  • And to be sure to build our house on the rock of His foundation.
• Skipping to John 6:29 coupled with 14:15, He tells us that our main job is to Believe Him and do what He says. In fact, we prove we believe Him by doing what He says.
• He gives us a new command (different in emphasis from the old Sinai Covenant, which was based on personal obedience in order to be righteous; we are righteous, therefore we obey!), and that command is to love one another (John 13:34).
• For more of His commands, read the Gospels and get charged up!

³ In fact, this is love for God: to keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome, ⁴ for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. 

Our biggest Weapon, our greatest Source, our Advocate, Helper, Counselor, Trail Guide, Friend and Associate is the Holy Spirit. He makes following God’s commands a pleasure–not easy, sometimes, but lightening. We find release from tension with Him when we are obedient. Pay attention to the tension. In this way, we overcome the world with its temptations, lures, traps and hidden snares.

⁵ Who is it that overcomes the world? Only the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.

Do we believe that Jesus is who He said He is and that He did what He said He did? YES! Then, let’s believe that His Spirit lives in us and will help us and encourage us to follow Him. As we already know, He’s worth every step and every breath!

 

John wants us to know without a shadow of a doubt that we are in Christ, that we are saved, sealed, and will be delivered safely over to the other side. But, we must be willing to change. If not, then the love of God isn’t really in us; love of self rules supreme in our hearts.

¹³ This is how we know that we live in him and he in us: He has given us of his Spirit. 

Elijah heard the Voice: After the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper…“What are you doing here, Elijah?” 1 Kings 19:12-13 God has us question our motives. We are to use our minds to determine what it is that would please God the most and bring Him glory as the Spirit reveals it to us. Therefore, the more we know of His Word and His Will, the more closely we listen to His voice, the more we converse with Him throughout the day, and the more heavily we lean on Him for strength and support, knowledge and wisdom, comfort and peace, joy and love, the easier and more plain it is what would please Him. Actually, the activities described above bring Him more joy than anything we could DO FOR Him.

¹⁴ And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. 

This is John’s testimony. He was an eyewitness to the LORD and His ministry. He walked and talked with Him after His resurrection, and was a recipient of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. At this time in his life, he has walked in step with the Spirit for several decades. He KNOWS what he is talking about!!!

¹⁵ If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God. ¹⁶ And so we know and rely on the love God has for us.

The best test of Christianity is whether or not a person acknowledges Jesus as his LORD in his daily life. Where’s the proof? If we say we love the LORD, but do not keep his commands nor live according to His will, then, say what we want, we do NOT actually love the LORD, for He is NOT LORD of our lives. Consequently neither is He in us. Sorry. We can’t have it both ways. We must learn to RELY on His love.

God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. ¹⁷ This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. 

Want to be like Jesus? Then love as He loved: With complete abandon, with no thought to Himself, with our best interest in mind, in complete unity with the Spirit and His Father. WE CAN DO IT WITH HIS SPIRIT IN US! But, we must train, and we must work. Repetition is our greatest teacher. Practice makes progress (not necessarily perfection).

¹⁸ There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.

Working hand in hand with the Spirit solidifies our knowledge of His love. As we walk closely with Him, we lose our fear of the unknown, of possible pain and loss, and of death. It’s our goal, anyway.

¹⁹ We love because he first loved us. 

Jesus is the Initiator of love and our Example of love. He calls us to love as He loved. Let’s emulate Him!

²⁰ Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. ²¹ And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister.

John steps out of the doctrinal and into the practical here. He moves from teaching to practice. The fundamental test of our love for Christ is our willingness to give up our hatred for others. Hatred shows up in many forms: Malice, arrogance, resentment, hostility, conceit, anger, hurtful words and actions, stinginess, jealousy and envy, etc. The Spirit immediately begins to help us remove these forms of hatred from our lives. Are we willing to work with Him? It’s a daily process.

Abba, I pray for my brothers and sisters in Christ that they would sense Your presence and participation as You transform them into Christ-likeness. May they give themselves completely over to You today. May they be categorically committed to You, devoted to Your Way, and fully persuaded that You are worth following. May their lives be simply a shifting and sorting of priorities, a trading of their life, will, agenda, schedule, hopes, dreams, wishes, aspirations, desires, goals, pleasures, mind, attitude, thoughts and personality for Yours. Me, too. Amen.

John has been moving us to this passage. Up until now, he has been describing what the new life is and what it is not. In this passage, he reveals what he learned while walking with Jesus for three years.

⁷ Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.

John is speaking of attitude. God’s attitude toward people, His creation, is love and compassion. HE MADE US! And God has compassion on us, His children. He loves us so much that He gave us the right to choose to love Him. THAT’S BIG, because it means that people have the right to choose NOT Him, which explains the mess our world is in.

⁸ Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.

In case you missed it, John spells it out: God Is Love. He is the definition and the embodiment of love. God’s love is shown through compassion. Jesus had compassion for people. Matthew 9:36 says, When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Matthew mentions compassion three more times concerning Jesus, 14:14 When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them and healed their sick. 15:32 Jesus called his disciples to him and said, “I have compassion for these people; they have already been with me three days and have nothing to eat. I do not want to send them away hungry, or they may collapse on the way.” 20:34 Jesus had compassion on them and touched their eyes. Immediately they received their sight and followed him. In each case, Jesus had their best interest at heart and did something about it. We would do well to emulate Him.

⁹ This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him.

John would know. He was there.

¹⁰ This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.

God initiates salvation. He comes to us and invites us to be a part of His kingdom, His family. We accept His invitation by welcoming Him into our hearts and lives. He has already done all the “heavy-lifting.”

¹¹ Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. ¹² No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.

If we allow the love of God to flow through us, we become extensions of Him. People see God in us. His love flowing through us transforms us even as it flows to those around us. We complete the connection of God with His world. Through us, His current of love can flow. Are you ready?

John says that no one has ever seen God, but Jesus said that if they have seen Him, then they have seen the Father. Jesus is the exact representation of God. Let’s look at the verses:

John 14:9 Jesus answered: “Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?”

Hebrews 1:3 The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.

If people are to see God, they will have to see Him in and through us, just like Jesus. The best way I know is to show compassion on our enemies. I’m going to quote a passage that is used THREE TIMES in the Bible:

Proverbs 25:21-22 If your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat; if he is thirsty, give him water to drink. (22) In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head, and the LORD will reward you.

Jesus used it in an expanded version and illustrated it for us: ³⁷ “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? ³⁸ When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? ³⁹ When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ ⁴⁰ “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’

Paul used it as a quote from Proverbs: Romans 12:19-21 Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay.” says the Lord. (20) On the contrary: “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.” (21) Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

The idea is to show the love of Christ through our actions as if we are God to them. We ask ourselves, “What would Jesus do?” Better yet, we say, “Jesus, what would You have me do?” The Spirit inside us tells us what to do. If we ask for it, He will download compassion to you right then. He has for me. I’ll never get over it.

Let’s be righteous ambassadors for Christ to a fallen world. Let’s allow God’s love to flow through us–especially to our enemies!

Every person has a worldview. This worldview is either born of a truth or a lie. We all begin life believing the lie because it is natural. When the Spirit comes to us and reveals the truth, many believe Him, but many more do not. They prefer the lie.

4:1 Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. ² This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that  acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, ³ but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world.

⁴ You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. ⁵ They are from the world and therefore speak from the viewpoint of the world, and the world listens to them. ⁶ We are from God, and whoever knows God listens to us; but whoever is not from God does not listen to us.This is how we recognize the Spirit^[a] of truth and the spirit of falsehood.

v1 There are deceiving spirits. How many? Good question! Evidently, there are quite a few–enough to go around! Let’s look at some supporting Scripture concerning fallen angels:

³ Then another sign appeared in heaven: an enormous red dragon with seven heads and ten horns and seven crowns on its heads [Satan. The name, Lucifer, is actually a Latin derivative and not his real name]. ⁴ Its tail swept a third of the stars out of the sky and flung them to the earth [these would be the angels with him]. The dragon stood in front of the woman who was about to give birth [Mary], so that it might devour her child the moment he was born. ⁵ She gave birth to a son [Jesus], a male child, who “will rule all the nations with an iron scepter.”^[a] And her child was snatched up to God and to his throne.⁶ The woman fled into the wilderness to a place prepared for her by God, where she might be taken care of for 1,260 days [from this point, I would be speculating].

⁷ Then war broke out in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. ⁸ But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. ⁹ The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him [a description of Satan’s fall along with the angels who sided with him].

Hebrews 12:22 uses the word “innumerable” for the number of angels in heaven. Obviously, there is a finite number; it is just too vast for our finite minds. The concept I want us to grasp this morning is that God’s spirit world is much larger and much more real than our world. It’s like our world is the yolk of an egg whose white portion is limitless.

I love the account of Elisha in 2 Kings 6:8-23 when the king of Aram sent forces against Israel where Elisha lived. Elisha’s servant cries out in fear, but Elisha says, “Do not fear, for more are with us than with them.” He opens his eyes to see angels in fiery chariots surrounding the army. Elisha prays, and the whole army is struck with a kind of blindness so that they don’t realize where they are. They are led to Samaria where they are fed and sent back home [grace]. Aram no longer raided Israel after that event.

One of the boundaries that Satan and his followers crossed is the one of speaking for God. Satan did it with Adam and Eve and with Jesus, and his followers do it continuously with those who do not have the Spirit of God in them. Thus, we test the spirits.

How do we test the spirits? It’s simple: The spirit (in the person) must acknowledge Jesus as God’s Son and that He came to earth in the flesh. Why so specific? Because Satan created a lie for each facet of the redemption story:

• He didn’t really come from God; he was a man who became a god (Mormonism)
• He wasn’t really God’s Son, but just a prophet who spoke for God (Islam)
• He wasn’t really human, but just an incarnation who looked human (Gnosticism)

If there’s a way to twist the Truth, Satan has done it. Any variation of the Gospel as given in 1 Corinthians 15 is from the spirit of the antichrist and his way of thinking, which is, basically, Satan’s way of thinking. What IS the TRUE Gospel?

¹ Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. ² By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. ³ For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance^[a]: that Christ [the Messiah had to be human and God together, tried but sinless; otherwise, He could not have been our sin sacrifice] died for our sins according to the Scriptures, ⁴ that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,

v4 We have overcome this spirit of deception through the Holy Spirit who lives in us!

v5 This verse is key to understanding our daily news: Satan controls the airwaves. Paul refers to him as the prince of the power of the air (Ephesians 2:2). The world listens to Satan and his cohorts and is deceived. Paul talks about strongholds and arguments in 2 Corinthians 10:3-5, and rulers and authorities in Ephesians 6:12. BIG verses!

v6 The Spirit bears witness with our hearts when truth is spoken (Romans 8:16). Whether a person believes the truth or rejects it tells the tale of which spirit to which they are listening. “This is how we recognize the Spirit of truth and the spirit of falsehood.”

We know that if 12:00 is the correct time, then anything else, no matter how close, is the wrong time. That’s the way it is with truth. It’s narrow, just like the gate, and the road that leads to life (Matthew 7:13-14).

Let’s get on the right road each morning and walk with Jesus on that road all day!

Lord Jesus, thank You for coming to earth, living a sinless life, and dying for us–and then rising from the dead! Thank You for including us in so great a salvation. You love us so; may we love You with all our heart, soul, mind, and with all our strength. Lead us on this narrow road of Truth. Amen

As we begin this morning, ask the Father to open your mind and heart to His message to you. Ask Him to speak as you read His word. Let’s tune in:

¹¹ For this is the message you heard from the beginning: We should love one another. ¹² Do not be like Cain, who belonged to the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own actions were evil and his brother’s were righteous. ¹³ Do not be surprised, my brothers and sisters,^[a] if the world hates you. ¹⁴ We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love each other. Anyone who does not love remains in death. ¹⁵ Anyone who hates a brother or sister is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life residing in him.

¹⁶ This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. ¹⁷ If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person? ¹⁸ Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.

¹⁹ This is how we know that we belong to the truth and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence: ²⁰ If our hearts condemn us, we know that God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything. ²¹ Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God²² and receive from him anything we ask, because we keep his commands and do what pleases him. ²³ And this is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he commanded us. ²⁴ The one who keeps God’s commands lives in him,and he in them. And this is how we know that he lives in us: We know it by the Spirit he gave us.

From the beginning of Jesus’ Gospel, He preached love. The sermon on the mount is an excellent example:

⁴³ “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor^[a] and hate your enemy.’ ⁴⁴ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, ⁴⁵ that you may be children of your Father in heaven.” Matthew 5:43-45

Let’s look closely at the passage in 1 John:

• v11 His message was always the same: LOVE.
• v12 Cain acted out of anger, jealousy, envy, and hatred. We combat these feelings by the Spirit within us (verse 24). The fight inside is a sure sign of our salvation.
• v13 Jesus told His disciples the same thing: “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first.”John 16:1 To be like Jesus means that people will treat us just as the world treated Jesus. Sinners act like sinners. Get used to it.
• v14 The love we have for our brothers and sisters in Christ and the compassion we have for lost souls is confirmation of Christ’s love in our hearts. We have passed from death to life (John 5:24). How should His love affect us daily? Do not offer any part of yourself to sin as an instrument of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer every part of yourself to him as an instrument of righteousness. Romans 6:13
• v15 A reiteration of verse 12 and Matthew 5:21-22. Murder is part of the list of unrighteous living in Romans 1:29-31.
• v16-18 This is a good example of how to love our brothers and sisters. Our society is well-off enough that this problem doesn’t present itself very often. But, when it does, we should be the first ones to their door. Notice that it does NOT include everyone, but just the family of God. Should we be stingy concerning the rest of mankind? Certainly not. But our main concern is loving the brethren. We give to those outside the Body of Christ as the Spirit leads us, and always with the hope of reaching them for Christ, with Christ, by Christ.
• MEMORY VERSE: Dear children, let us not love with [just] words or speech but with actions and in truth. 1 John 3:18
• v19-22 Inner peace comes by walking long enough with and close enough to Jesus to know the difference between what our hearts tell us and what He tells us. Our hearts are fickle and full of wickedness; they amplify what is in our minds and give feeling to our thoughts. Now we see why we must renew our minds constantly with the word of God. We must be in constant contact and continuous conversation with Jesus. Otherwise, we will believe our hearts and act out of passion. THAT’S DANGEROUS! See Galatians 5:19-21 for a list of out-of-control passions.
• v23 The Gospel in a nutshell. We believe that Jesus is who He said He is, that He did what He said He did, and that He will do for us what He said He would do: Save us! Then, we love as He loved. He told the Jews that followed Him across the lake to Capernaum, “The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.” John 6:29. Then He told the disciples (in the upper room just before His crucifixion), “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.” John 13:34 Both of these verses are combined in verse 23. Notice that its address is 3:23, just like Romans 3:23 is the beginning of the Roman Road to Salvation.
• v24 It takes the Spirit to love as He loved, so being able to do so is our verification that we are saved. His Spirit within us is our seal of salvation. It’s Jesus in us! When we have Him, we have already moved from death unto eternal life (see verse 14).

John wanted us to know with certainty that we are saved. He gave us the signs of salvation: Love in our hearts, His Spirit in us guiding us, and the world hating us. Let’s take comfort in that fact that as it was for the first Christians, it is for us today. “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever.” Hebrews 13:8

The first time I read this passage, I was pretty bummed. I was saved when I was 6, which means that most of my sinful habits developed WHILE I was a Christian. I still fight with some of them to this day: Quick temper, harsh words, judgmental attitude for starters.

Upon other readings of this passage, I began to realize that it’s talking about our walk with Him and not just our deeds. Let’s look:

²⁸ And now, dear children, continue in him, so that when he appears we may be confident and unashamed before him at his coming.

²⁹ If you know that he is righteous, you know that everyone who does what is right has been born of him.

3 See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. ² Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears,^[a] we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. ³ All who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure.

⁴ Everyone who sins breaks the law; in fact, sin is lawlessness. ⁵ But you know that he appeared so that he might take away our sins. And in him is no sin. ⁶ No one who lives in him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen him or known him.

⁷ Dear children, do not let anyone lead you astray. The one who does what is right is righteous, just as he is righteous. ⁸ The one who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work. ⁹ No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God’s seed remains in them; they cannot go on sinning, because they have been born of God. ¹⁰ This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not God’s child, nor is anyone who does not love their brother and sister.

• v28- Our walk with Him makes us confident and unashamed at His coming. If we go to meet Him first, we are STILL confident and unashamed because walking with Him is what He asks us to do.
• v29- Jesus may know our hearts, but we don’t know other people’s hearts. The only way we can tell is by their habitual tendencies, in this case, their righteous acts. Are they living according to the Spirit? Is there any conscience? Are they striving to become more like Christ? Are WE striving to become more like Him?!
• v3:1- I LOVE THIS VERSE! He has adopted us! WOW! If you’ll remember, Roman adoption was forever; it couldn’t be undone. Paul had this in mind when he wrote: (4) For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love (5) he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will– Ephesians 1:4-6. In these verses, Paul uses these words: chose, holy, blameless, love, adopted, pleasure, and will. If we were to read through verse 10, we would hear these words: praise, grace, freely, loves, redemption, forgiveness, riches, more grace, lavished, all wisdom, understanding, mystery, his good pleasure, purpose. I highlighted a couple of the words that tell me that God does not do these things reticently, but gladly. He waited a long time (by our standards) to put into effect the Gospel of Jesus Christ wherein He reached out to all mankind in order to FREELY POUR OUT LAVISHLY His love and grace and forgiveness and riches and wisdom…etc. If the world would stop long enough to investigate what God has done for them through Jesus, many of them would run to Him as we did. Sadly, many wouldn’t. They don’t want to give up doing things their way. They don’t want to know Jesus.
• v2- Glorification is what happens when we see Jesus. He is making us like Himself: loving, joyful, peaceful, patient, kind, good, faithful, gentle, and having self-control (all taken from Galatians 5:22-23). We could go to 1 Corinthians 13 and apply that list, as well: We do not envy, we do not boast, we are not proud. We do not dishonor others; we are not self-seeking. We are not easily angered, we keep no record of wrongs. We do not delight in evil but rejoice with the truth. We always protect, always trust, always hope, and always persevere. We never fail in these things (verses 4-8). Wherever we are in the process, we fast forward to the end to be like Him. That’s encouraging!
• v3- For this reason, we continue to “purify ourselves,” which means to continue to “put off” the old person and “put on” the new person, “created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.” Ephesians 4:24.
• v4,5,6- Jesus took away our sins. From now on, we live for Him WITH Him inside us guiding us, speaking to us, and through His Word, “teaching us, rebuking us, correcting us, and training us in righteousness.” 2 Timothy 3:16. If He is in us, we cannot sin without conscience or consequences (for more on the discipline of God with His children [us], read Hebrews 12:4-12). These sins don’t break our relationship with Him, but they do affect our fellowship with Him.
• v7,8,9,10- It boils down to having the Spirit in us. If Jesus is our Lord and He lives in our hearts and controls our lives, then we strive to please Him. We take each thought captive to Him; we put off our old habits and create new ones in His likeness. We actively love through our actions and our words. If someone is not interested in following Christ in this fashion, then Jesus is not in that person. Otherwise, he would feel the conviction of the Holy Spirit and respond accordingly. The test is to see what a person does habitually. What is the overall action? Who does the person follow on a daily basis?

The song, “They’ll Know We Are Christians By Our Love,” pretty much says it all.

Verse 1:

We are one in the Spirit
We are one in the Lord
We are one in the Spirit
We are one in the Lord
And we pray that all unity
May one day be restored

Refrain:

And they’ll know we are Christians
By our love, By our love
Yes, they’ll know we are Christians
By our love

Verse 2:

We will walk with each other
We will walk hand in hand
We will walk with each other
We will walk hand in hand
And together we’ll spread the news
That God is in our land

Verse 3:

We will work with each other
We will work side by side
We will work with each other
We will work side by side
And we’ll guard each man’s dignity
And save each man’s pride

Verse 4:

All praise to the Father
From whom all things come
And all praise to Christ Jesus His only son
And all praise to the Spirit
Who makes us one

By Our Love-King and Country (a pretty good version)

¹⁸ Dear children, this is the last hour; and as you have heard that the antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come. This is how we know it is the last hour. ¹⁹ They went out from us, but they did not really belong to us. For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us; but their going showed that none of them belonged to us.

²⁰ But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth.^[a] 21 I do not write to you because you do not know the truth, but because you do know it and because no lie comes from the truth. ²² Who is the liar? It is whoever denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a person is the antichrist—denying the Father and the Son. ²³ No one who denies the Son has the Father; whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also.

²⁴ As for you, see that what you have heard from the beginning remains in you. If it does, you also will remain in the Son and in the Father.²⁵ And this is what he promised us—eternal life.

²⁶ I am writing these things to you about those who are trying to lead you astray. ²⁷ As for you, the anointing you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit—just as it has taught you, remain in him.

There are three things that are important in this passage:

1. Antichrist
2. The anointing
3. Acknowledgement of Jesus

Let’s take them in reverse order. Acknowledging Jesus as God is paramount to salvation because to receive one is to receive the other. Jesus was Immanuel, God with us. He was not just a man who became God through his sacrifice, but God who came to earth to sacrifice Himself for us. The sacrifice had to be perfect whereas no human has ever been perfect after Adam and Eve’s fall. This truth is borne out in the sacrificial system that was used for 1500 years: a perfect lamb was chosen to bear the sins of the people. Yet, because the lamb was not human, it could only cover man’s sin. Only the blood of a human-a perfect human-could pay the price ONCE FOR ALL.

Exodus 12:5 The lamb must be without blemish or defect, and you may take them from the sheep or the goats.

Leviticus 16:34 And this shall be an everlasting statute unto you, to make an atonement for the children of Israel for all their sins once a year. And he did as the LORD commanded Moses.

Hebrews 10:4 It is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.

Hebrews 10:8 First he [Christ] said, “Sacrifices and offerings, burnt offerings and sin offerings you did not desire, nor were you pleased with them (Psalm 40:6-8)”–though they were offered in accordance with the law. (9) Then he said, “Here I am, I have come to do your will.” He sets aside the first [covenant] to establish the second [covenant]. (10) And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

Hebrews 9:26 But he has appeared once for all at the culmination of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself. 

Hebrews 7:24 Because Jesus lives forever, he has a permanent priesthood. (25) Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.

Secondly, the Anointing is His Spirit. Jesus told His disciples that He would send the Advocate, the Spirit of Truth to them (John 14:16-17, 15:26, 16:7, 13). He will guide us into all truth; we do not even need to be  taught by others! His Spirit teaches us. This teaching and our learning is called sanctification. Jesus told us how it works:

John 17:17 [Father,] sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth.

The Spirit teaches us when we read His word. Learning the words of God and the words of Christ gives the Spirit the base we need for Him to teach us. Read, Read, READ!

Third are the antichrists. We are conditioned to think of THE ANTICHRIST, the one who will come and be led by Satan to take over the world, but he is really one of a long line of antichrists. The definition of an antichrist is in verse 22, whoever denies that Jesus is the Christ, God in the flesh. If that’s the case, then there are entire religions made up of antichrists!

The sequence is this: We accept the truth about Jesus Christ: That He is God come down in human form to be our substitutionary sacrifice. We, then, receive the Holy Spirit, Who begins to teach us and guide us into all truth about what we have done, Who Jesus is, what is real and what is counterfeit, and what is coming. The main thing is to stay connected to the Vine. We are to abide.

John 15:5 “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me [abide, allow me to lead] and I in you [allowing Him to have full access to our lives], you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing [of spiritual or eternal value or effect].”

Let us not be led astray by our own logic, the devil’s lies, or by “shiny objects.” Let’s fix our eyes on Jesus and listen to His voice as He leads us. As we read His words, He speaks to us, so READ HIS WORD!

Today’s reading deals with mind-set. We are to keep these things in mind as we go about our day. We are to review them daily to keep them fresh and fixed in our minds.

Reasons for Writing

On Not Loving the World

¹⁵ Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father^[a] is not in them. ¹⁶ For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world. ¹⁷ The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever.

The tools of Satan: There are only three listed, but, oh, how effective they are! From GotQuestions.Org:

1. The lust of the flesh- The uncontrolled desire for what makes us feel good. “Pastor Mark Bubek defines the flesh this way: ‘The flesh is a built-in law of failure, making it impossible for natural man to please or serve God. It is a compulsive inner force inherited from man’s fall, which expresses itself in general and specific rebellion against God and His righteousness. The flesh can never be reformed or improved. The only hope for escape from the law of the flesh is its total execution and replacement by a new life in the Lord Jesus Christ.’” Lust of the Flesh
2. The lust of the eyes- “Simply put, the lust of the eyes is the desire to possess what we see or to have those things which have visual appeal. This coveting of money, possessions, or other physical things is not from God, but from the world around us. John emphasizes that these physical things do not last; they will pass away. In contrast, the child of God is guaranteed eternity.” Lust of the eyes
3. The pride of life-  The attitude that we do not need God. “The pride of life can be defined as anything that is ‘of the world,’ meaning anything that leads to arrogance, ostentation, pride in self, presumption, and boasting.” The Pride of Life

We are warned by John that if we love any of these and chase after them, we ignore the love of God in our lives. If we do it without conscience, then we probably do not have the Holy Spirit in us. If we do not have the Spirit, then we are not saved. He is our SEAL unto salvation (2 Corinthians 1:22, 5:5).

Verse 17 tells us to “keep our eyes on the prize.” What is forever is what is important. Let’s keep the main thing the main thing!

Abba, I want to keep my eyes focused on You, so open my eyes to spiritual things. Help me focus on what is eternal and not what is temporal. May I make relationships my main concern, especially those that lead to the salvation of souls. How do I do that? By focusing on You and following You throughout my day. Lead me into all truth, into witnessing situations, and according to Your will for my life. Amen.

 

John established His letter with a proclamation that Jesus is the Word of life. He then explains how we come to Him and how we are sustained by Him.

What is our TRUTH? (5) This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is not darkness at all. Light and darkness describe the difference between God (not just good) and evil. We walk in darkness until He shines His light on us and we receive it.

What is our REALITY? (6) If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth. This pertains to salvation.  John 3:19-21 tells us that we must choose to walk in His light.

What is our SALVATION? (7) But if we walk in the light has he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin. We trust His light one time (the first time) for all time (from that point on).

What is our DECEPTION? (8) If we claim to be without sin [without the need of coming to Christ], we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. This verse is particularly pertinent to those who claim to be “good enough” on their own.

What is our DELIVERANCE? (9) If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. This is a salvation verse. Christians use it in conjunction with James 5:16, but we must realize that our sins have been removed from us; we are washed clean by the blood of Jesus! Our sin can hinder our fellowship with the Father, but it cannot “kill” us anymore.

What is our JUDGEMENT? (10) If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us. WE NEED JESUS. If we do not believe that He is the ONLY WAY, the ONLY TRUTH, and the ONLY LIFE, then His word is not in us and we are not saved.

What is our GOAL? (2:1) My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father–Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. Jesus does not need to plead our case to the Father every time we sin; His blood on the altar does that for us. It means that all our sins–our very lives–are covered in the blood. God now uses our weaknesses and our susceptibility toward sin to make us godly (like God). How? In the same way that a muscle needs resistance in order to become strong. We need to learn to resist temptation to sin, not so that we can live independently for God, but to learn to rely solely on the Spirit. The eighth chapter of Romans explains this process.

What is our MESSAGE? (2) He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world. As churchy as it sounds, this is the message of salvation that the world needs to hear. HOW we say it is not as important as THAT we say it. The Spirit will take it from there.

Pray that the Spirit will empower us to resist temptation. Use temptation to catapult you into the presence of our Lord! Oftentimes, PRAISE is our best weapon against temptation.

1 John 1:1-4

1 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched– [many people only trust what they can see and experience. John is giving account of just that!] this we proclaim concerning the Word of life. [for an expanded view of the “Word of life,” read the first 14 verses of John’s Gospel]

2 The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us. [Remember: “If Someone prophesies his own death, burial, and resurrection, I’m going with whatever He says!”]

3 We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. [the two are One. Jesus said so in John 10:30]

4 We write this to make our joy complete [with you as part of our fellowship; John is including US].

Lord Jesus, as I ponder these verses, I am reminded that John walked with You for three years living with you, watching you, listening to you, and experiencing life with you. He was there when you were tried and sentenced; he was there at the crucifixion–close enough for You to address him personally about your mom; he was there at the tomb and saw that it was empty; he was there in the upper room–both times–when you “transported in;” he was on the boat when You were on the beach; he was there when You ascended back to the Father; he was even there in heaven to see You open the scrolls!

I know I can believe John. May I take his words seriously as I read them. Please help me to apply them to my life. Increase my faith, Lord, by increasing my knowledge, thus giving You more ways to communicate with me.

Amen