1 John 5:18-21 reads, "18 We know that anyone born of God does not continue to sin; the One who was born of God keeps them safe, and the evil one cannot harm them. 19 We know that we are children of God, and that the whole world is under the control of the evil one. 20 We know also that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true. And we are in him who is true by being in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life. 21 Dear children, keep yourselves from idols."
We come today to the last four verses of 1 John. I am sure that you noticed that in v.18-20 each verse begins with "We know". The assurance in those two words is quite helpful in a world which says that there are no absolute truths. In v.18 we read, "We know that anyone born of God does not continue to sin." This verse is not teaching us that we will come to a place where we do not sin. No, it is teaching us that we will come to the place where we will not be ruled by sin. In other words, righteousness is possible for the Believer in Christ. The ability to transcend, to choose wisely is possible.
And v.18 concludes with, "the One who was born of God keeps them safe, and the evil one cannot harm them." In other words, the enemy will never be able to come to the Believer in Christ and repossess him or her. Even though this world, as John declares in v.19, is under the control of the Evil One, the Believer is assured that he, the Evil One, can not snatch us out of God's hands.
Finally, 1 John ends very peculiarly. John writes, "Dear children, keep yourselves from idols." Recently, someone said to me that the trials in his life were from Satan. And, I am sure that Satan or more probably, his Cohorts, are involved in the trials that have crept up in his life. But to stop with Satan or his Cohorts is to miss the point behind the trials. You see, trials are one part of the two part process to growing the Believer's faith (see James 1, 1 Peter 1). And you will remember that faith is the heart's ability to see God. By the way, the other part of the process is hearing the spoken word of God (Romans 10:17). John instructs us to resist idols, which means that the Believer in Jesus Christ must not depend upon any other DEFINER of things, including the point of our trials. There is the worship of Narcissus, the god who fell in love with
himself. Is this not perhaps the supreme god of mankind, the worship of
self, the worship of man, the exaltation of man? The Satanic idea that we can be our own god and define best everything in our lives. How preposterous!
Showing posts with label 1 John. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 1 John. Show all posts
Monday, May 21, 2018
Saturday, May 19, 2018
Daily Devotional #48 (1 John 5:16-17)
To this point in 1 John, the Apostle John has been instructing the Believer on the topic of prayer. Today, we come to 1 John 5:16-17 where the Apostle provides an illustration of a prayer that is in the will of God, as contrasted with one that is not in the will of God.
1 John 5:16-17 reads, "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."
The "sin that does not lead to death," is sin that does not lead to physical death. John, here, is instructing us to pray for the Believer so that God would give him the ability to choose life and God would grant him that life. The word that John uses here for "life" is Zoe. Zoe, as we have seen, includes the ability of the Believer in Christ to transcend. And when the Believer transcends, he increases in his ability to view life, including his choices, from the perspective of eternity. Part of the Believer's problem, while living in this fallen world, is this: we are limited by time. We evaluate life from the myopic view of time. The "life" that John is talking about here is the ability to evaluate time from the standpoint of eternity.
On the other hand, the death here that the Apostle is talking about is physical death. There is sin which a Christian can commit which will result in physical death. John writes, "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 (physical) death." John is declaring that there are certain sins that can clearly lead to physical death. Such sins do NOT cause the Believer to lose his salvation, but these sins are physically lethal and must be shunned or the Believer is playing with death.
1 John 5:16-17 reads, "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."
The "sin that does not lead to death," is sin that does not lead to physical death. John, here, is instructing us to pray for the Believer so that God would give him the ability to choose life and God would grant him that life. The word that John uses here for "life" is Zoe. Zoe, as we have seen, includes the ability of the Believer in Christ to transcend. And when the Believer transcends, he increases in his ability to view life, including his choices, from the perspective of eternity. Part of the Believer's problem, while living in this fallen world, is this: we are limited by time. We evaluate life from the myopic view of time. The "life" that John is talking about here is the ability to evaluate time from the standpoint of eternity.
On the other hand, the death here that the Apostle is talking about is physical death. There is sin which a Christian can commit which will result in physical death. John writes, "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 (physical) death." John is declaring that there are certain sins that can clearly lead to physical death. Such sins do NOT cause the Believer to lose his salvation, but these sins are physically lethal and must be shunned or the Believer is playing with death.
Friday, May 18, 2018
Daily Devotional #47 (1 John 5:14-15)
Today, we come to 1 John 5:14-17 which reads, "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.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."
Someone once said, "prayer is rebellion against the status quo." It is fitting that John closes this epistle with the subject of prayer. Prayer is a simple activity. I am reminded of my prayer life every time one of my three sons contacts me and asks for something. There are times when I hear Fathers complain about their kids calling them and asking for things; things like money, perspective, wisdom. I so enjoy it when any of my sons asks me for whatever. When they do, if I am in the position to help, I gladly do it. As I Father, I also understand that there are times when "no" is a loving response to the request of my son. God is no different. He is known to say, "yes", "no", and "maybe". We must be careful to trust His loving, wise heart to know what is best for us.
Understanding the nature of prayer is greatly important before we pray. In this closing section of this letter, the Apostle John gives us instruction about prayer, then he follows this instruction with a specific illustration. In v.14-15 we the instruction and will consider it today. Tomorrow, we will consider the illustration provided in v.16-17.
Prayer is a venture, a conversation. Prayer is evidence that we are in a relationship with God. When we often pray, we do not know what to say to God. John writes in v.14, "This is the confidence we have in approaching God." Then John writes, "that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us." Prayer is not an experiment, prayer is a certainty with John, a sure thing. He knows it works, and he knows how it works. Note the choice of word, "confidence."
This kind of certainty arises from the knowledge of two fundamental principles of prayer, which John gives us here: the certainty of hearing, and the certainty of having. Notice these. "If we ask anything according to his will, we know that he hears us." Perhaps the major reason for most of the unanswered prayers of the world is they are not according to God's will, and therefore they are not heard. John makes it explicitly clear that a prayer that is according to God's will is always heard. Thus, at one stroke he demolishes all those concepts of prayer which imply that prayer is a means of getting God to do our will. Prayer is never that.
Many regard prayer as a mysterious activity by which we get God to do what we want him to do. But prayer is a means of obtaining the will of God. If we pray outside His purpose there is no assurance that our prayers will be granted. Sometimes our prayers are not according to the will of God, sometimes they are. We only know that they are or aren't when He answers. God always hears every prayer that is voiced within the boundaries of his will. This is the first certainty that forms the basis of prayer -- we know we are heard.
Someone once said, "prayer is rebellion against the status quo." It is fitting that John closes this epistle with the subject of prayer. Prayer is a simple activity. I am reminded of my prayer life every time one of my three sons contacts me and asks for something. There are times when I hear Fathers complain about their kids calling them and asking for things; things like money, perspective, wisdom. I so enjoy it when any of my sons asks me for whatever. When they do, if I am in the position to help, I gladly do it. As I Father, I also understand that there are times when "no" is a loving response to the request of my son. God is no different. He is known to say, "yes", "no", and "maybe". We must be careful to trust His loving, wise heart to know what is best for us.
Understanding the nature of prayer is greatly important before we pray. In this closing section of this letter, the Apostle John gives us instruction about prayer, then he follows this instruction with a specific illustration. In v.14-15 we the instruction and will consider it today. Tomorrow, we will consider the illustration provided in v.16-17.
Prayer is a venture, a conversation. Prayer is evidence that we are in a relationship with God. When we often pray, we do not know what to say to God. John writes in v.14, "This is the confidence we have in approaching God." Then John writes, "that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us." Prayer is not an experiment, prayer is a certainty with John, a sure thing. He knows it works, and he knows how it works. Note the choice of word, "confidence."
This kind of certainty arises from the knowledge of two fundamental principles of prayer, which John gives us here: the certainty of hearing, and the certainty of having. Notice these. "If we ask anything according to his will, we know that he hears us." Perhaps the major reason for most of the unanswered prayers of the world is they are not according to God's will, and therefore they are not heard. John makes it explicitly clear that a prayer that is according to God's will is always heard. Thus, at one stroke he demolishes all those concepts of prayer which imply that prayer is a means of getting God to do our will. Prayer is never that.
Many regard prayer as a mysterious activity by which we get God to do what we want him to do. But prayer is a means of obtaining the will of God. If we pray outside His purpose there is no assurance that our prayers will be granted. Sometimes our prayers are not according to the will of God, sometimes they are. We only know that they are or aren't when He answers. God always hears every prayer that is voiced within the boundaries of his will. This is the first certainty that forms the basis of prayer -- we know we are heard.
Thursday, May 17, 2018
Daily Devotional #46 (1 John 5:6-13)
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 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. 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. 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.
Today, we come to 1 John 5:9-13. I have included v.6-8 above for the sake of context. In v.9-10, the Apostle John is saying God's testimony is more dependable than man's. When we exercise our faith on the objective testimony of God, He gives the confirmation of His Spirit. And if we refuse to do that, then we are treating God as though he were a liar.
Now, according to v.11, the testimony of God about His Son is that there is life in the Son. Through His Son, God has given to man the thing man lacks, eternal life. The word that John uses here for "eternal life" is the Greek word "Zoe". Zoe is not a life in quantity. It is life in quality. It is life that is adventurous, full, meaningful, relevant, purposeful. Eternal life is not some kind of irrevocable life insurance policy issued when we enter into a relationship with God. It is an ongoing living relationship with God, and it can not be separated from the Son.
I've a theory and it is this: if I do not know what "IT" is about, then I will make it about the lesser things involved. The question is "what is IT?" IT is a personal relationship with God. It is the daily choice to believe that He is there and that He is involved in my life. So much so, that I practice His presence like I would any earthly friend. All too often, we Christians, minor on the majors of the Christian life and major on the minors. As Christians, we want to be recognized for our growth in our righteousness. This mentality places the emphasis on the wrong thing. The Lord Jesus is our righteousness, even in our sanctification. You will remember that there is a clear difference between our Justification and our Sanctification. Our Justification was earned by the Lord Jesus through His perfectly lived life and His death on the cross where He absorbed all the penalty for the sin of the whole world. And, our sanctification is that process whereby our minds, wills, and emotions are being changed through His involvement in our lives. In this process we are being trained to think and make choices through His way of thinking and choosing.
Now, the center of our relationship with God is discovery. What gives our faith new life and energy is the experience of finding something new about God today that we didn’t know yesterday. In order for discovery to take place, there must be mystery. When my sons were younger, we played Hide and Go Seek. They loved playing that game of mystery. There were times when I had to clear my throat in order for them to find me. This is quite illustrative of God. He wants us to find Him. And, there are times when He makes it really hard to do so. In making it hard, He is strengthening our inquiry skills. Or should I say, faith skills.
Now, in v.12-13, the Apostle is not trying to make us agonize over whether or not we "have" the Son, but to give assurance. The infinite quality of God does not deny the reality of my finiteness. God is not only a life giver but He gives all life meaning. Meaning suggests that what I do matters. However, if I do not seek, I will not find. It seems to me that testing describes the result of circumstances, not the reason for circumstance. There are no isolated periods of testing. All of life is a test, and how we react expresses the context of our faith. Herein, we experience His Zoe.
Today, we come to 1 John 5:9-13. I have included v.6-8 above for the sake of context. In v.9-10, the Apostle John is saying God's testimony is more dependable than man's. When we exercise our faith on the objective testimony of God, He gives the confirmation of His Spirit. And if we refuse to do that, then we are treating God as though he were a liar.
Now, according to v.11, the testimony of God about His Son is that there is life in the Son. Through His Son, God has given to man the thing man lacks, eternal life. The word that John uses here for "eternal life" is the Greek word "Zoe". Zoe is not a life in quantity. It is life in quality. It is life that is adventurous, full, meaningful, relevant, purposeful. Eternal life is not some kind of irrevocable life insurance policy issued when we enter into a relationship with God. It is an ongoing living relationship with God, and it can not be separated from the Son.
I've a theory and it is this: if I do not know what "IT" is about, then I will make it about the lesser things involved. The question is "what is IT?" IT is a personal relationship with God. It is the daily choice to believe that He is there and that He is involved in my life. So much so, that I practice His presence like I would any earthly friend. All too often, we Christians, minor on the majors of the Christian life and major on the minors. As Christians, we want to be recognized for our growth in our righteousness. This mentality places the emphasis on the wrong thing. The Lord Jesus is our righteousness, even in our sanctification. You will remember that there is a clear difference between our Justification and our Sanctification. Our Justification was earned by the Lord Jesus through His perfectly lived life and His death on the cross where He absorbed all the penalty for the sin of the whole world. And, our sanctification is that process whereby our minds, wills, and emotions are being changed through His involvement in our lives. In this process we are being trained to think and make choices through His way of thinking and choosing.
Now, the center of our relationship with God is discovery. What gives our faith new life and energy is the experience of finding something new about God today that we didn’t know yesterday. In order for discovery to take place, there must be mystery. When my sons were younger, we played Hide and Go Seek. They loved playing that game of mystery. There were times when I had to clear my throat in order for them to find me. This is quite illustrative of God. He wants us to find Him. And, there are times when He makes it really hard to do so. In making it hard, He is strengthening our inquiry skills. Or should I say, faith skills.
Now, in v.12-13, the Apostle is not trying to make us agonize over whether or not we "have" the Son, but to give assurance. The infinite quality of God does not deny the reality of my finiteness. God is not only a life giver but He gives all life meaning. Meaning suggests that what I do matters. However, if I do not seek, I will not find. It seems to me that testing describes the result of circumstances, not the reason for circumstance. There are no isolated periods of testing. All of life is a test, and how we react expresses the context of our faith. Herein, we experience His Zoe.
Wednesday, May 16, 2018
Daily Devotional #45 (1 John 5:6-8)
1 John 5:6-8 reads, "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 Spirit, the water and the blood; and the three are in agreement."
John proclaims in these three verses three witnesses, the Spirit, the water and the blood. Note that two of these three are external and historical, and one of them is internal and personal. The water refers to Jesus' baptism which took place a the beginning of Jesus' ministry. The blood refers to the cross which took place at the end of Jesus' ministry. Of course, the Holy Spirit was present at both of these events. The point that John is making here is this: The Lord Jesus actually came to earth as a man to provide salvation for anyone who would believe. God has given to us what we lack, eternal life. His testimony is this: he who has the Son has life, because the Son is life. That is the whole point of First John.
Having said that, we do not move from death to life unless we respond to the internal working of the Spirit of God in our hearts. In John 6:35, Jesus says “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him.” The Lord Jesus is stating that mankind has an inherent inability to be saved unless we is born again, or unless the Father draws him. As you know, the word “can” has reference to ability, not permission. The scripture is clear that the Father draws us to Christ. That means he 'woos' us. The Holy Spirit is a gentleman; He doesn’t force Himself on anyone. When the Holy Spirit regenerates us He gives us new desires. Perhaps we had previously scoffed at faith in Jesus, and now we long for a deeper and firmer faith. If He had not done that work in us, we would still be in our sins.
David said it well in Psalm 23 when he wrote, "...surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life." The word "follow" is quite helpful in deepening our understanding of our condition before God. Follow in Psalm 23:6 means to rigorously and painstakingly pursue. If it were not for His grace and mercy, we'd be HOPELESS!
John proclaims in these three verses three witnesses, the Spirit, the water and the blood. Note that two of these three are external and historical, and one of them is internal and personal. The water refers to Jesus' baptism which took place a the beginning of Jesus' ministry. The blood refers to the cross which took place at the end of Jesus' ministry. Of course, the Holy Spirit was present at both of these events. The point that John is making here is this: The Lord Jesus actually came to earth as a man to provide salvation for anyone who would believe. God has given to us what we lack, eternal life. His testimony is this: he who has the Son has life, because the Son is life. That is the whole point of First John.
Having said that, we do not move from death to life unless we respond to the internal working of the Spirit of God in our hearts. In John 6:35, Jesus says “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him.” The Lord Jesus is stating that mankind has an inherent inability to be saved unless we is born again, or unless the Father draws him. As you know, the word “can” has reference to ability, not permission. The scripture is clear that the Father draws us to Christ. That means he 'woos' us. The Holy Spirit is a gentleman; He doesn’t force Himself on anyone. When the Holy Spirit regenerates us He gives us new desires. Perhaps we had previously scoffed at faith in Jesus, and now we long for a deeper and firmer faith. If He had not done that work in us, we would still be in our sins.
David said it well in Psalm 23 when he wrote, "...surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life." The word "follow" is quite helpful in deepening our understanding of our condition before God. Follow in Psalm 23:6 means to rigorously and painstakingly pursue. If it were not for His grace and mercy, we'd be HOPELESS!
Tuesday, May 15, 2018
Daily Devotional #44 (1 John 5:1-5)
As we transition into 1 John 5, we will notice that in v.1 which reads, "Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves the father loves his child as well", faith in the truth and love go together. One is the result of the other. In this first verse of 1 John 5, John is showing what it looks like to love your brother which is the previous topic in the previous chapter. And our brother is "Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God." Even when we differ on other subjects like politics or eschatology or the outcome of the Civil War, our common ground is that we believe that the Lord Jesus is the Christ.
Now, look at v.2-3. "2 This is how we know that we love the children of God: by loving God and carrying out his commands. 3 In fact, this is love for God: to keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome". In these two verses we discover that when our love for our brother arise out of our love for God and our desire to obey his Word, then we can be confident that it is really love. "This is how we know that we love the children of God," if we are acting out of love for God and a concern for his commandments. At the end of v.3 John brings attention to the idea that if we see the Bible as a set of rules, our perspective will be limited. We must admit that when we have that view, we fall into the pattern of self-righteous rule keeping. Like a child, we ask, “why do I have to do that?” However, the mature Believer understands that God’s thoughts and ways are the best for us. His commands are a blessing that keeps us within His ways. Obedience to God is not a burden for those who “believe” in Him and “love” Him. Rather, it is our privilege to follow Him.
Now, let's consider v.4-5, which reads, "4 for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. 5 Who is it that overcomes the world? Only the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God." Three times in these two verses John emphasizes "overcoming the world." You will remember back in 1 John 2:16, John described the world as the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. I find it quite instructive that our greatest enemy is NOT outside of us. No, our greatest enemy is within.
Essentially, the bottom line question is this: How do we overcome the world? The answer is this: the life of God within us is what makes all the difference. Our dependence is on God's activity in our lives. We are at our best when we are most dependent upon God. This is the ultimate message from God throughout His word. Often, we are told that the goal of the Christian life is "a better us." This passage and the whole of scripture teaches us differently. In Colossians 2:6, we read, "So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him." This is the Christian life. Utter dependence upon the Lord Jesus. And when God shows up in our yielded lives, we must be diligent to give Him the glory. As Mike Yaconelli has said, "It is not that I don’t believe that Jesus changes you, it is just that my definition of “change” has changed. Whatever the change is, it is not so much outward as it is inward. This difference that God makes is often visible only to God...and no one else. It is a new way of looking at God, a new way of understanding God, an inner new-birth that liberates us not only from sin, but from our old way of viewing God. It is intimacy rather than ecstasy; it is seeing rather than speaking; it is loving rather than living; it is dancing rather than believing; it is silence rather than sentences; it is worship rather than wordship; it is playing rather than praying; it is yearning rather than conviction; it is faith characterized more by passion than belief." The alternative to all of this is to feed our pride. And when we feed our pride, we are in trouble. Like Nebuchadnezzar, we go from I, to me, to my, to moo.
Now, look at v.2-3. "2 This is how we know that we love the children of God: by loving God and carrying out his commands. 3 In fact, this is love for God: to keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome". In these two verses we discover that when our love for our brother arise out of our love for God and our desire to obey his Word, then we can be confident that it is really love. "This is how we know that we love the children of God," if we are acting out of love for God and a concern for his commandments. At the end of v.3 John brings attention to the idea that if we see the Bible as a set of rules, our perspective will be limited. We must admit that when we have that view, we fall into the pattern of self-righteous rule keeping. Like a child, we ask, “why do I have to do that?” However, the mature Believer understands that God’s thoughts and ways are the best for us. His commands are a blessing that keeps us within His ways. Obedience to God is not a burden for those who “believe” in Him and “love” Him. Rather, it is our privilege to follow Him.
Now, let's consider v.4-5, which reads, "4 for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. 5 Who is it that overcomes the world? Only the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God." Three times in these two verses John emphasizes "overcoming the world." You will remember back in 1 John 2:16, John described the world as the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. I find it quite instructive that our greatest enemy is NOT outside of us. No, our greatest enemy is within.
Essentially, the bottom line question is this: How do we overcome the world? The answer is this: the life of God within us is what makes all the difference. Our dependence is on God's activity in our lives. We are at our best when we are most dependent upon God. This is the ultimate message from God throughout His word. Often, we are told that the goal of the Christian life is "a better us." This passage and the whole of scripture teaches us differently. In Colossians 2:6, we read, "So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him." This is the Christian life. Utter dependence upon the Lord Jesus. And when God shows up in our yielded lives, we must be diligent to give Him the glory. As Mike Yaconelli has said, "It is not that I don’t believe that Jesus changes you, it is just that my definition of “change” has changed. Whatever the change is, it is not so much outward as it is inward. This difference that God makes is often visible only to God...and no one else. It is a new way of looking at God, a new way of understanding God, an inner new-birth that liberates us not only from sin, but from our old way of viewing God. It is intimacy rather than ecstasy; it is seeing rather than speaking; it is loving rather than living; it is dancing rather than believing; it is silence rather than sentences; it is worship rather than wordship; it is playing rather than praying; it is yearning rather than conviction; it is faith characterized more by passion than belief." The alternative to all of this is to feed our pride. And when we feed our pride, we are in trouble. Like Nebuchadnezzar, we go from I, to me, to my, to moo.
The story is told of a young boy who was
aboard a passenger train attempting to make money selling apples. He
made his way through the train car, saying, “Apples! Would you like to
buy an apple?” When he got to the rear of the car, he still had a bagful
of apples and no money. A gentleman who noticed his plight took him aside and asked to see
one of the apples. He proceeded to go to the front of the train, polish
it conspicuously with a napkin, and then walk down the aisle eating the
apple and commenting on how delicious and refreshing it was. Then he
told the boy to try again. This time, he sold every apple. The
difference? The apples had been made attractive to the potential
customers. God is still in the apple clean up business for His glory.
Monday, May 14, 2018
Daily Devotional #43 (1 John 4:19-21)
19 We love because he first loved us. 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. (1 John 4:19-21)
In 1 John 4:19, the Apostle John returns to the truth that our ability to love, as He does, is dependent upon Him demonstrating His love for us first. Thus the acid test for the Believer's understanding of God's love for him is how he, the Believer, treats other Christians. We see this in the book of Galatians where the Apostle Paul concludes the book with a fourfold description of the Spiritual (Spirit motivated) Christian. In Galatians 6, we see this fourfold description including: 1) The Spiritual Christian mends the broken (Galatians 6:1), 2) The Spiritual Christian helps the Needy (Galatians 6:2-6), 3) The Spiritual Christian sows to the Spirit (Galatians 6:7-10), and 4) The Spiritual Christians is captivated by the cross of Jesus Christ (Galatians 6:11-14).
In John’s day, these False Teachers claimed that there were religious exceptions to the rule of love. They believed that since they were so close to God, and they possessed knowledge of certain exotic secrets, and that they wore special robes, they were free from the responsibility to love their brothers and sisters in Christ. However, the command to love your brother and sister is an absolute; whoever loves God must also love his brother.
In 1 John 4:20-21, the Apostle goes on to point out that not loving people whom we can see with our eyes is not consistent with loving God whom we can see with our eyes. There are seven tests throughout this epistle that points out someone to be real or not. The first is in 1 John 1:6 is not honest with others. The second is in 1 John 1:8, this one is not honest with himself. The third is in 1 John 1:10, this one is not honest with God. The fourth in 1 John 2:4 is not honest with Christ. The fifth in 1 John 2:6 is not honest with the world. The sixth in 1 John 2:9 is not honest with his Christian brother. And, the seventh in 1 John 4:20. he is false to all.
Authenticity is a very important quality for the Christian. And ultimately, ones walk with the Lord Jesus is measured by ones treatment of others.
In 1 John 4:19, the Apostle John returns to the truth that our ability to love, as He does, is dependent upon Him demonstrating His love for us first. Thus the acid test for the Believer's understanding of God's love for him is how he, the Believer, treats other Christians. We see this in the book of Galatians where the Apostle Paul concludes the book with a fourfold description of the Spiritual (Spirit motivated) Christian. In Galatians 6, we see this fourfold description including: 1) The Spiritual Christian mends the broken (Galatians 6:1), 2) The Spiritual Christian helps the Needy (Galatians 6:2-6), 3) The Spiritual Christian sows to the Spirit (Galatians 6:7-10), and 4) The Spiritual Christians is captivated by the cross of Jesus Christ (Galatians 6:11-14).
In John’s day, these False Teachers claimed that there were religious exceptions to the rule of love. They believed that since they were so close to God, and they possessed knowledge of certain exotic secrets, and that they wore special robes, they were free from the responsibility to love their brothers and sisters in Christ. However, the command to love your brother and sister is an absolute; whoever loves God must also love his brother.
In 1 John 4:20-21, the Apostle goes on to point out that not loving people whom we can see with our eyes is not consistent with loving God whom we can see with our eyes. There are seven tests throughout this epistle that points out someone to be real or not. The first is in 1 John 1:6 is not honest with others. The second is in 1 John 1:8, this one is not honest with himself. The third is in 1 John 1:10, this one is not honest with God. The fourth in 1 John 2:4 is not honest with Christ. The fifth in 1 John 2:6 is not honest with the world. The sixth in 1 John 2:9 is not honest with his Christian brother. And, the seventh in 1 John 4:20. he is false to all.
Authenticity is a very important quality for the Christian. And ultimately, ones walk with the Lord Jesus is measured by ones treatment of others.
Saturday, May 12, 2018
Daily Devotional #42 (1 John 4:17-18)
Today, we are considering 1 John 4:17-18, 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. 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.
All humans will live forever. We will, in eternity, live forever or we will die forever. At the end of time, everyone will give an account to God. Where we spend eternity weighs in the balance. In 1 John 4:17, John is saying that if we want to have boldness, confidence, in the day of judgment, then we must let (His) love be perfected among us because when love is perfected among us, we will have confidence for the day of judgment.
Note the phrase at the end of v.17, "In this world we are like Jesus." This phrase does not mean "our efforts of imitating Him". It means He has applied His perfection to us and He is living in us. It means, "whatever good I do, it is He that is doing it." All too often, we Christians fall into the age old diabolical trap of the enemy of trying to be good enough ourselves by trying to live in a way of convincing God that we are worthy of His acceptance and love. In fact, all religions do this. The goal of Hinduism is to be a god. The goal of Mormonism is to be a god on your own planet. That age old temptation that Eve bit into ... "you shall be like God."
This is not the way of God. His way is that of grace. As someone once said, "only the empty hand of faith receives from the full hand of grace." When God looks at my life and sees the application and activity of himself in me, then he will not deny himself at the day of judgment.
1 John 4:19 is a powerful verse, it reads, "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." Love casts out fear. It gives us freedom from fear. What it really says in the original is, "fear has punishment," not "has to do with punishment," as though it always produces it. Even more literally, since this word for punishment comes from a root word which means to limit or to restrain, what John is saying here is that fear has limitation, fear imprisons us. Worry and anxiety are forms of fear, and they literally imprison us, they limit us. It is because fear has limitation. Fear imprisons us, boxes us in, binds us up, limits our life, pushes us into corners and keeps us there, and we cannot live as God intended for us to live.
John writes in v.18, "He who fears is not perfected in love." The Believer has the life of God in him. And if he isn't being defined by that life, he will not express it back to God and others. No wonder he finds himself all bound up inside. He is limited, unable to move and do as he should. But love, perfected, casts out fear. John is not talking about a perfect kind of love; it is love that is made perfect, love that is perfected, love that comes to its end and accomplishes its purpose. It is matured love. This explains why we make so many choices that we conclude at some point are stupid. His life and love best defines us. This is what frees us to live the life that He died to give us.
Australian-born Nick Vujicic was born without arms and legs. In Nicks words, "On the morning of my birth, Dad was beside her and could see my shoulder had no arm. He nearly fainted and vomited, and the nurse had to take him out of the room. I had phocemelia, no limbs, and there was no medical explanation. It wasn’t genetic and it wasn't thalidomide. They said I would be a vegetable. My mum said, “Take him away — I don’t want to see him.” But my dad comforted her and said, “He’s beautiful.” They took me home, but it took three to four months for my mother to come to terms with it. I tried prosthetics at 6-years-old, but after months of trying, I had already learned to do many things without them and they limited my movements. I was the first disabled person integrated into the Australian school system. I was bullied in school. My parents said ignore them, but I didn’t want to be special. I just wanted arms and legs to and to be like everyone else. Everyone is looking for something to make them happy — money drugs alcohol. I wanted to know I was not just a write off. Every time a kid laughed at me or excluded me from a game, that fear came back. My parents told me they would never give up on me. My home was my refuge. When I was 10 years old I wanted to commit suicide. I felt I had no value, and I thought I would always be a burden to my parents and never get married. That was until I saw a boy with no arms and legs like me, and I knew I could help him. As a teenager, I wanted to be as independent as I could be. My parents told me, “You don’t know what you can achieve until you try it.” I go swimming and fishing and do many things now like snowboarding and surfing. I can brush my teeth and wash my hair. In any situation, I do the best that I can. It’s not what you have, but what you do with it. I am not afraid to try and fail. I started motivational speaking around Australia when I was 19 and then traveled the world for five years. I had relatives in California and they encouraged me to come over: “Nick, you can make your dreams come true and reach the world.” I started up Life Without Limbs, and we just celebrated our 10th anniversary. I have traveled to 58 countries and 3 million miles — that’s no exaggeration. We are thankful to speak to world leaders, but also to orphans and the disadvantaged and forgotten. I have a caregiver to travel with me."
All humans will live forever. We will, in eternity, live forever or we will die forever. At the end of time, everyone will give an account to God. Where we spend eternity weighs in the balance. In 1 John 4:17, John is saying that if we want to have boldness, confidence, in the day of judgment, then we must let (His) love be perfected among us because when love is perfected among us, we will have confidence for the day of judgment.
Note the phrase at the end of v.17, "In this world we are like Jesus." This phrase does not mean "our efforts of imitating Him". It means He has applied His perfection to us and He is living in us. It means, "whatever good I do, it is He that is doing it." All too often, we Christians fall into the age old diabolical trap of the enemy of trying to be good enough ourselves by trying to live in a way of convincing God that we are worthy of His acceptance and love. In fact, all religions do this. The goal of Hinduism is to be a god. The goal of Mormonism is to be a god on your own planet. That age old temptation that Eve bit into ... "you shall be like God."
This is not the way of God. His way is that of grace. As someone once said, "only the empty hand of faith receives from the full hand of grace." When God looks at my life and sees the application and activity of himself in me, then he will not deny himself at the day of judgment.
1 John 4:19 is a powerful verse, it reads, "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." Love casts out fear. It gives us freedom from fear. What it really says in the original is, "fear has punishment," not "has to do with punishment," as though it always produces it. Even more literally, since this word for punishment comes from a root word which means to limit or to restrain, what John is saying here is that fear has limitation, fear imprisons us. Worry and anxiety are forms of fear, and they literally imprison us, they limit us. It is because fear has limitation. Fear imprisons us, boxes us in, binds us up, limits our life, pushes us into corners and keeps us there, and we cannot live as God intended for us to live.
John writes in v.18, "He who fears is not perfected in love." The Believer has the life of God in him. And if he isn't being defined by that life, he will not express it back to God and others. No wonder he finds himself all bound up inside. He is limited, unable to move and do as he should. But love, perfected, casts out fear. John is not talking about a perfect kind of love; it is love that is made perfect, love that is perfected, love that comes to its end and accomplishes its purpose. It is matured love. This explains why we make so many choices that we conclude at some point are stupid. His life and love best defines us. This is what frees us to live the life that He died to give us.
Australian-born Nick Vujicic was born without arms and legs. In Nicks words, "On the morning of my birth, Dad was beside her and could see my shoulder had no arm. He nearly fainted and vomited, and the nurse had to take him out of the room. I had phocemelia, no limbs, and there was no medical explanation. It wasn’t genetic and it wasn't thalidomide. They said I would be a vegetable. My mum said, “Take him away — I don’t want to see him.” But my dad comforted her and said, “He’s beautiful.” They took me home, but it took three to four months for my mother to come to terms with it. I tried prosthetics at 6-years-old, but after months of trying, I had already learned to do many things without them and they limited my movements. I was the first disabled person integrated into the Australian school system. I was bullied in school. My parents said ignore them, but I didn’t want to be special. I just wanted arms and legs to and to be like everyone else. Everyone is looking for something to make them happy — money drugs alcohol. I wanted to know I was not just a write off. Every time a kid laughed at me or excluded me from a game, that fear came back. My parents told me they would never give up on me. My home was my refuge. When I was 10 years old I wanted to commit suicide. I felt I had no value, and I thought I would always be a burden to my parents and never get married. That was until I saw a boy with no arms and legs like me, and I knew I could help him. As a teenager, I wanted to be as independent as I could be. My parents told me, “You don’t know what you can achieve until you try it.” I go swimming and fishing and do many things now like snowboarding and surfing. I can brush my teeth and wash my hair. In any situation, I do the best that I can. It’s not what you have, but what you do with it. I am not afraid to try and fail. I started motivational speaking around Australia when I was 19 and then traveled the world for five years. I had relatives in California and they encouraged me to come over: “Nick, you can make your dreams come true and reach the world.” I started up Life Without Limbs, and we just celebrated our 10th anniversary. I have traveled to 58 countries and 3 million miles — that’s no exaggeration. We are thankful to speak to world leaders, but also to orphans and the disadvantaged and forgotten. I have a caregiver to travel with me."
Friday, May 11, 2018
Daily Devotional #41 (1 John 4:13-16)
Yesterday, we considered 1 John 4:7-12 in light of the following quote from Thomas Merton: “the beginning of love is
to let those we love be perfectly themselves, and not to twist them to
fit our own image. Otherwise we love only the reflection of ourselves we
find in them.”
Today, we are considering 1 John 4:13-16, which reads, "13 This is how we know that we live in him and he in us: He has given us of his Spirit. 14 And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. 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. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them.
Notice, that in v.13-16, there is a relationship between faith and love. In v.13-14, the Apostle John says, "we know that we abide in him." That is, we are of God and "abide in him" (have continuous fellowship with God). This is happening because God has given us of his Spirit. Not "because he has given us his Spirit." Literally, "he has given us out of his Spirit." He has poured out from his Spirit, by means of his Spirit, faith and love.
In Romans 5:5, Paul writes, "The love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit, who is given unto us." God's love, the kind that accepts people for what they are regardless of what they are like, is a product only of the Spirit of God. He has given us out of his own Spirit, and, John says, that is why we know that we are of God, because the kind of love that only God can produce is in our hearts. 1 John 4:14 reads, "And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world." This kind of witnessing followed the coming of the Spirit on the Day of Pentecost, as the Lord Jesus had said He would.
Again, notice what John wrote. "...the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world." The Lord Jesus was the Son before he came to earth. The Father sent the Son. The Lord Jesus was the eternal Son of God, and has always been the Son. This relationship of Father and Son is an eternal relationship. It was as the Son that he came to become the Savior of the world. This is big, because it is only those who believe in Him and His finished work on the cross for the forgiveness of sin that are saved. The Lord Jesus didn't come into the world to save the world. No, no! He came to be the Savior and only those who believe in Him will be saved.
Now, notice v.15-16, which reads, "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. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them." When we believe and confess that Jesus is the Son of God, it proves that God's life is in us. Where his life is, his love will be, because love always follows the life of God. And, as a result, we will love God and others.
Today, we are considering 1 John 4:13-16, which reads, "13 This is how we know that we live in him and he in us: He has given us of his Spirit. 14 And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. 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. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them.
In Romans 5:5, Paul writes, "The love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit, who is given unto us." God's love, the kind that accepts people for what they are regardless of what they are like, is a product only of the Spirit of God. He has given us out of his own Spirit, and, John says, that is why we know that we are of God, because the kind of love that only God can produce is in our hearts. 1 John 4:14 reads, "And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world." This kind of witnessing followed the coming of the Spirit on the Day of Pentecost, as the Lord Jesus had said He would.
Again, notice what John wrote. "...the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world." The Lord Jesus was the Son before he came to earth. The Father sent the Son. The Lord Jesus was the eternal Son of God, and has always been the Son. This relationship of Father and Son is an eternal relationship. It was as the Son that he came to become the Savior of the world. This is big, because it is only those who believe in Him and His finished work on the cross for the forgiveness of sin that are saved. The Lord Jesus didn't come into the world to save the world. No, no! He came to be the Savior and only those who believe in Him will be saved.
Now, notice v.15-16, which reads, "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. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them." When we believe and confess that Jesus is the Son of God, it proves that God's life is in us. Where his life is, his love will be, because love always follows the life of God. And, as a result, we will love God and others.
Thursday, May 10, 2018
Daily Devotional #40 (1 John 4:7-12)
7 Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. 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. 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. 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. (1 John 4:7-12)
Three times in these verses John repeats "love one another". This kind of love is "from God." I think of that great quote from Thomas Merton, “the beginning of love is to let those we love be perfectly themselves, and not to twist them to fit our own image. Otherwise we love only the reflection of ourselves we find in them.” Of course, God's love is not like this, but for us humans, it is so important that we view this command to "love one another" through this quote from Thomas Merton.
Now, this kind of love is "from God." This means that at the root of all God does is love. Even his judgments, his condemnations, arrive from love. Our problem is this: we do not recognize love in its fullest. Look at v.9-10.
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. 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. (1 John 4:9-10)
In his book, Ragamuffin Gospel, Brennan Manning writes, "God loves in a manner that defies human comprehension and escapes human IMITATION. God loves us unconditionally, as we are and not as we should be, because nobody is as they should be."
In v.10, John writes, "This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins." The Lord Jesus came to make it possible for you and me right with God without lowering God's standard. He came to satisfy justice, to meet the demands of a broken Law, to pay the full debt, to satisfy the penalty.
Then notice v.11-12 where we read, "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."
John is reminding us that the source of our ability to love others gets back to relationship with this one who is characterized most by love. Of course, our ability to love is lacking. But, as our understanding of love grows in the context of our authentic relationship with the LORD, we will grow in our ability to love.
This kind of love shows up in the world with a variety of expressions. One such expression came from a group of children in a small village. An anthropologist was winding up several months of research in that
small village, the story is told. While waiting for a ride to the
airport for his return flight home, he decided to pass the time by
making up a game for some children. His idea was to create a race for a
basket of fruit and candy that he placed near a tree. But when he gave
the signal to run, no one made a dash for the finish line. Instead the
children joined hands and ran together to the tree. When asked why they chose to run as a group rather than each
racing for the prize, a little girl spoke up and said: “How could one of
us be happy when all of the others are sad?”
Tuesday, May 08, 2018
Daily Devotional #39 (1 John 4:4-6)
Today, we come to 1 John 4:4-6, which reads, "4 You, little 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 of truth and the spirit of falsehood."
Look at the first word in each of these three verses. What do you see? Note that each verse begins with a pronoun ... You, They and We. Three separate groups, which are not the same. Notice, the first group. "little children." These are said to be "from God" in v.4. Note how they overcame the false teaching ... v.4 reads, "You, little 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." The power to overcome the Evil One is the power of the Lord Jesus Himself. Our faith must always turn, in hours of darkness, to the One who gave us the Scriptures. We must be careful to evaluate all things through the lens of His definition of all things, because He is greater than the evil one.
The Bible must be more precious to us than life itself. We must not just come to the scriptures every day. No, no, we must come to Him through the scriptures, asking Him to write His word on our hearts. Most often, His word is most precious to us, when we have been granted a hunger and thirst for Him. And that hunger and thirst comes on the heels of some kind of hardship.
I am reminded of the story of Hien Pham who was a Vietnamese Christian who worked as a translator for the missionaries in the 1960’s and 70’s during the war. After Vietnam fell, Hien was captured by the Viet Cong and imprisoned.
For a long time, while in prison, Hien held on to his faith, remembering the words of his Bible that he could no longer read. Until the day, when Hien began to wonder, “Maybe there is no such thing as God.” Soon his questions became convictions, and one night he decided not to say his prayers. After a while, he decided to no longer believe in God. “I’m through with God,” he said to himself that night. “When I wake up in the morning, it will be no more God for me and no more prayer.”
The next morning, Hien, the newest atheist in the camp, stood in line
as the commanding officer of the prison barked out the assignments for
the day. Hien’s job that day was to clean the latrines. He cringed
when he heard it. This was the ultimate form of indignity for the
prisoners. The latrines were filthy and Hien would spend the entire day cleaning that filth.
The soiled toilet paper was not flushed through the primitive plumbing,
but was put into waste baskets. One of Hien’s last jobs of the day was
to empty these waste baskets. All day long he had labored with
reminders to reinforce his new belief that there is no God.
How indeed could a loving God leave him here and not rescue him from
this living hell? But as Hien’s work for the day was coming to an end,
something in the last trash can happened to catch his eye. It was a
piece of paper with printed type. Anxious to read language once again, he looked around
to make sure no one was watching. He then quickly rinsed off the filth
and tucked the paper into his pocket.
That
night after everyone had fallen asleep, Hien carefully took out his
flashlight and removed the still damp paper from his pocket. In the
upper right hand corner he saw printed Romans 8. This was a page from the Bible. In a state of shock, Hien began
reading. The first verse he read was Romans 8:28: “We know that in all
things, God works for the good of those who love him, who have been
called according to his purpose.”
Hien read on: “What then shall we say in response to all this? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all, how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?… No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels or demons, neither the present or the future, nor any powers, or anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
That night his heart was turned back to the God of eternal life, as Hien read the scriptures once again. The Bible is meant to be like a pane of glass, through which we look and see God. We must be careful to not make it about the glass or the printed page only, for He is the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.
Look at the first word in each of these three verses. What do you see? Note that each verse begins with a pronoun ... You, They and We. Three separate groups, which are not the same. Notice, the first group. "little children." These are said to be "from God" in v.4. Note how they overcame the false teaching ... v.4 reads, "You, little 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." The power to overcome the Evil One is the power of the Lord Jesus Himself. Our faith must always turn, in hours of darkness, to the One who gave us the Scriptures. We must be careful to evaluate all things through the lens of His definition of all things, because He is greater than the evil one.
The Bible must be more precious to us than life itself. We must not just come to the scriptures every day. No, no, we must come to Him through the scriptures, asking Him to write His word on our hearts. Most often, His word is most precious to us, when we have been granted a hunger and thirst for Him. And that hunger and thirst comes on the heels of some kind of hardship.
I am reminded of the story of Hien Pham who was a Vietnamese Christian who worked as a translator for the missionaries in the 1960’s and 70’s during the war. After Vietnam fell, Hien was captured by the Viet Cong and imprisoned.
For a long time, while in prison, Hien held on to his faith, remembering the words of his Bible that he could no longer read. Until the day, when Hien began to wonder, “Maybe there is no such thing as God.” Soon his questions became convictions, and one night he decided not to say his prayers. After a while, he decided to no longer believe in God. “I’m through with God,” he said to himself that night. “When I wake up in the morning, it will be no more God for me and no more prayer.”
Hien read on: “What then shall we say in response to all this? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all, how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?… No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels or demons, neither the present or the future, nor any powers, or anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
That night his heart was turned back to the God of eternal life, as Hien read the scriptures once again. The Bible is meant to be like a pane of glass, through which we look and see God. We must be careful to not make it about the glass or the printed page only, for He is the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.
Daily Devotional #38 (1 John 4:1-3)
Today, we return to 1 John 4:1-3 which reads, 1Dear 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. 2This
is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that
acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, 3but
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."
"Many false prophets have gone out into the world." In John's day, there were teachers going about doing certain signs, giving predictions of things to come, and performing miracles. John writes, "Do not believe these spirits -- until you have tested them."
Notice, in v.1 John writes,
"Test them, John encourages" because behind the false prophet is an evil spirit. On the other hand, there is the Holy Spirit of truth, the Spirit of love. And just as God speaks through men, so evil spirits speak through men. Following the Lord Jesus Christ means we accept what he says is the explanation of the power behind evil in the world. John says, "test these spirits, try them." Lay them alongside a measuring stick, and if they do not match the measuring stick of God's truth, throw them out.
There are two parts to the test.
First, the test that the Son of God came incarnate which means that He was 100% man and 100% God. In 1 John 4:2 we read, "...every spirit which confesses that Jesus is Christ, come in the flesh, is of God...". It was when he was born as a babe in Bethlehem and grew up in Nazareth that he bore the human name of Jesus. The teaching of Scripture is that this Jesus of Nazareth, this historical Jesus, is the predicted Messiah of the Old Testament. God, himself, came into human history. This is the Spirit of truth. Jesus makes this claim about himself, In John 10, he says, "Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another way, that man is a thief and a robber; but he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the gatekeeper opens; the sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out," {John 10:1-3}.
Then he says,
"I am that good shepherd. I came in the predicted way, the way the prophets announced. I was born in the right place, at the right time, in the right way. I came exactly as it was announced. I am the door; I am the shepherd of the sheep," (John 10:14)
Now he who confesses this, John says, is of the truth, is of God. But anyone who teaches otherwise, that Jesus Christ is not God come incarnate, is not of God. Do not listen to him, pay no attention to him. Regardless of how amazingly he talks, he is not of God. He is of the spirit of error, the spirit of antichrist, that has already gone out into the world. This is the most important doctrine which can never be compromised. It is the one thing that is fundamental to all Christian faith. He came as a man, humbled himself, and became obedient unto the death of the cross.
Now the second thing that John brings out here is that this must not only be acknowledged as a historical fact, but it must order the life of the one who teaches it. This word "confess" in v.2 means to commit your life to something. In this case, to commit oneself to the truth. It is more than a mere acknowledgment or a profession that this is true; it is a commitment. It means to actually trust this great historic person. Anyone who does not actually trust in this truth, and live by it, do not listen to them either.
So, to know if a teacher is of the truth, we must ask: "Do you acknowledge the entrance into history of the Son of God as Jesus of Nazareth, the man who loved and died and rose again from the dead?"
Then we must ask: Do you follow him? Do you live by this?
John says if they do not confess that Jesus is the Christ, come in the flesh, this is the spirit of error, of antichrist.
"Many false prophets have gone out into the world." In John's day, there were teachers going about doing certain signs, giving predictions of things to come, and performing miracles. John writes, "Do not believe these spirits -- until you have tested them."
"Test them, John encourages" because behind the false prophet is an evil spirit. On the other hand, there is the Holy Spirit of truth, the Spirit of love. And just as God speaks through men, so evil spirits speak through men. Following the Lord Jesus Christ means we accept what he says is the explanation of the power behind evil in the world. John says, "test these spirits, try them." Lay them alongside a measuring stick, and if they do not match the measuring stick of God's truth, throw them out.
There are two parts to the test.
First, the test that the Son of God came incarnate which means that He was 100% man and 100% God. In 1 John 4:2 we read, "...every spirit which confesses that Jesus is Christ, come in the flesh, is of God...". It was when he was born as a babe in Bethlehem and grew up in Nazareth that he bore the human name of Jesus. The teaching of Scripture is that this Jesus of Nazareth, this historical Jesus, is the predicted Messiah of the Old Testament. God, himself, came into human history. This is the Spirit of truth. Jesus makes this claim about himself, In John 10, he says, "Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another way, that man is a thief and a robber; but he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the gatekeeper opens; the sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out," {John 10:1-3}.
Then he says,
"I am that good shepherd. I came in the predicted way, the way the prophets announced. I was born in the right place, at the right time, in the right way. I came exactly as it was announced. I am the door; I am the shepherd of the sheep," (John 10:14)
Now he who confesses this, John says, is of the truth, is of God. But anyone who teaches otherwise, that Jesus Christ is not God come incarnate, is not of God. Do not listen to him, pay no attention to him. Regardless of how amazingly he talks, he is not of God. He is of the spirit of error, the spirit of antichrist, that has already gone out into the world. This is the most important doctrine which can never be compromised. It is the one thing that is fundamental to all Christian faith. He came as a man, humbled himself, and became obedient unto the death of the cross.
Now the second thing that John brings out here is that this must not only be acknowledged as a historical fact, but it must order the life of the one who teaches it. This word "confess" in v.2 means to commit your life to something. In this case, to commit oneself to the truth. It is more than a mere acknowledgment or a profession that this is true; it is a commitment. It means to actually trust this great historic person. Anyone who does not actually trust in this truth, and live by it, do not listen to them either.
Then we must ask: Do you follow him? Do you live by this?
John says if they do not confess that Jesus is the Christ, come in the flesh, this is the spirit of error, of antichrist.
Monday, May 07, 2018
Daily Devotional #37 (1 John 4:1-3)
1Dear 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. 2This
is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that
acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, 3but
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. (1 John 4:1-3)
Faith is believing something that is true. It is not convincing yourself that something is true when you know it is not. In order to be a Christian you must be a believer, because from faith comes life, strength, peace, joy, and everything else that the Christian life offers. As the people of God, we are called to be believers.
In addition, we are also called to be unbelievers. There is a time when unbelief is the right thing. In order to live it is necessary both to inhale and to exhale. These are contradictory things: You cannot inhale and exhale at the same time, but both are absolutely necessary to maintain life. You cannot inhale unless you exhale, and you cannot exhale unless you have inhaled.
It is the same with this matter of belief and unbelief. You cannot believe truth without rejecting error. You cannot accept Christ without rejecting self. This is what John is declaring here in 1 John 4:1-3.
Now, this section comes as a parenthesis in John's discourse on love. And, it is significant that this warning comes in the midst of John's discourse about love, because the false spirits make a great deal out of love. Every cult does what it does and teaches what it teaches in the name of love. The oldest trick in Satan's bag of tricks is to show a spirit of friendly concern and to appear to offer the fulfillment of love.
In the Garden he said, "if you take of this fruit you will become as gods. You will discover the thing you were made for, and which God is trying to keep you from. As your friend, I suggest you take of the fruit and eat". But the Scriptures warn us that the mark of childish immaturity is to be caught up and taken in by that kind of approach, "to be tossed about by every wind of doctrine" {Eph 4:14}, every new teaching that comes along.
The mark of spiritual maturity is unbelief in that which is false and believing in that which is true. Tomorrow, we will consider this proposition in a more deeper fashion.
In addition, we are also called to be unbelievers. There is a time when unbelief is the right thing. In order to live it is necessary both to inhale and to exhale. These are contradictory things: You cannot inhale and exhale at the same time, but both are absolutely necessary to maintain life. You cannot inhale unless you exhale, and you cannot exhale unless you have inhaled.
It is the same with this matter of belief and unbelief. You cannot believe truth without rejecting error. You cannot accept Christ without rejecting self. This is what John is declaring here in 1 John 4:1-3.
Now, this section comes as a parenthesis in John's discourse on love. And, it is significant that this warning comes in the midst of John's discourse about love, because the false spirits make a great deal out of love. Every cult does what it does and teaches what it teaches in the name of love. The oldest trick in Satan's bag of tricks is to show a spirit of friendly concern and to appear to offer the fulfillment of love.In the Garden he said, "if you take of this fruit you will become as gods. You will discover the thing you were made for, and which God is trying to keep you from. As your friend, I suggest you take of the fruit and eat". But the Scriptures warn us that the mark of childish immaturity is to be caught up and taken in by that kind of approach, "to be tossed about by every wind of doctrine" {Eph 4:14}, every new teaching that comes along.
Saturday, May 05, 2018
Daily Devotional #36 (1 John 3:24)
In 1 John 3:19-24, John introduces the idea that God's love does three things for the Believer: It exposes a
doubting heart, it gives confidence and effectiveness to prayer, and it
gives evidence that the Believer is being filled with the Spirit. Today, we are considering the third of these three: the love of God gives evidence that the Believer is being filled with the Spirit.
In 1 John 3:24, we read, "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."
The idea that the Apostle John is imparting to us is the more that we see ourselves through God's eyes, the more we will be willing to allow the Spirit of God to control our choices. In Ephesians 5:18, the Apostle Paul writes, "Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit." In context Paul is contrasting a life motivated by the flesh (the sinful desires within us all) and a life motivated by God's Spirit. Paul writes, "Do not get drunk on wine..." Wine is mentioned 123 times in the Bible. Every time wine is mentioned, it is mentioned in a positive light. But "drunk" is mentioned 64 times in the Bible. And you guessed it, every time it is used in the Bible, it is used in the negative. Drunkenness produces a lack of reality, because the influence of alcohol has an effect on the decision making center of the brain. In contrast, fullness of Spirit produces a heightened sense of reality.
Paul doesn't stop there, he writes, "...be filled with the Spirit." There are those who teach that this verse teaches that some Believers have more of the Spirit than others. This verse does not teach that the Believer in Jesus gets more of the Spirit. It means that the Spirit gets more of the Believer. And the more that the Spirit gets of the Believer, the more the Believer will yield to the Spirit. Thus, he will be filled with the Spirit.
In 1 John 3:24, we read, "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."
The idea that the Apostle John is imparting to us is the more that we see ourselves through God's eyes, the more we will be willing to allow the Spirit of God to control our choices. In Ephesians 5:18, the Apostle Paul writes, "Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit." In context Paul is contrasting a life motivated by the flesh (the sinful desires within us all) and a life motivated by God's Spirit. Paul writes, "Do not get drunk on wine..." Wine is mentioned 123 times in the Bible. Every time wine is mentioned, it is mentioned in a positive light. But "drunk" is mentioned 64 times in the Bible. And you guessed it, every time it is used in the Bible, it is used in the negative. Drunkenness produces a lack of reality, because the influence of alcohol has an effect on the decision making center of the brain. In contrast, fullness of Spirit produces a heightened sense of reality.
Friday, May 04, 2018
Daily Devotional #35 (1 John 3:22)
21 Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God 22 and receive from him anything we ask, because we keep his commands and do what pleases him. (1 John 3:21-22)
Today, we will consider what the Apostle John writes in v.22, "and receive from him anything we ask, because we keep his commands and do what pleases him."
When we are not defined by a condemning heart, we are not motivated by self. We are motivated by the heart of God, who is gives to us His heart. The Believer does not find his confidence in his flesh (his desires which are not influenced by the wisdom of God). As a result of actually seeing God working in his life, the Believer actually discovers the heart of God and is defined by it. Herein we discover a picture of the normal life of a Christian. It is centered in prayer, because prayer is the most characteristic and the most fundamental relationship that a Christian can experience.
Now, note the words: "receive from him anything we ask, because we keep his commands and do what pleases him." Notice that there is a condition to the prayer. When we are walking in the Spirit, in a personal relationship with God, He tells us to ask whatever and He will deliver. God has not promised to give us everything that we ask for...He has promised to give us that which is in step with His will for our lives. Praying ultimately for His will in our lives is the goal. There have been many times that I have asked God for certain things and He has not delivered like I thought He should. But, since when has it been about MY will.
Finally, Debbie and I have seen God do some amazing things down through the years. I shall never forget that faithful day that we found ourselves in debt to the tune of ten thousand dollars. I remember that daily the Lord brought a man's name to my mind. I didn't want to call this man, because I didn't want him to know the financial status that I was in. To make a long story short, I called him one Thursday night. He told me that God had given him a sizable amount of money that he didn't expect, and that when God had done this several times before, he knew that God had someone in mind. That Friday, that man, wrote me a twelve thousand dollar check. I later asked him why twelve thousand instead of the ten thousand that I was asking for. He said, "the amount that the Lord had given me, the previous Monday, was twelve thousand dollars". And, after hanging the phone up with me, he asked the Lord "if he should give to me all of it". Of course, the Lord said "yes". But, the interesting twist to this story is this: my bills totaled up to four hundred dollars short of twelve thousand instead of ten thousand.
God doesn't always give us what we ask for. The most important thing that He does give us is this:
Today, we will consider what the Apostle John writes in v.22, "and receive from him anything we ask, because we keep his commands and do what pleases him."
When we are not defined by a condemning heart, we are not motivated by self. We are motivated by the heart of God, who is gives to us His heart. The Believer does not find his confidence in his flesh (his desires which are not influenced by the wisdom of God). As a result of actually seeing God working in his life, the Believer actually discovers the heart of God and is defined by it. Herein we discover a picture of the normal life of a Christian. It is centered in prayer, because prayer is the most characteristic and the most fundamental relationship that a Christian can experience.
Now, note the words: "receive from him anything we ask, because we keep his commands and do what pleases him." Notice that there is a condition to the prayer. When we are walking in the Spirit, in a personal relationship with God, He tells us to ask whatever and He will deliver. God has not promised to give us everything that we ask for...He has promised to give us that which is in step with His will for our lives. Praying ultimately for His will in our lives is the goal. There have been many times that I have asked God for certain things and He has not delivered like I thought He should. But, since when has it been about MY will.
Finally, Debbie and I have seen God do some amazing things down through the years. I shall never forget that faithful day that we found ourselves in debt to the tune of ten thousand dollars. I remember that daily the Lord brought a man's name to my mind. I didn't want to call this man, because I didn't want him to know the financial status that I was in. To make a long story short, I called him one Thursday night. He told me that God had given him a sizable amount of money that he didn't expect, and that when God had done this several times before, he knew that God had someone in mind. That Friday, that man, wrote me a twelve thousand dollar check. I later asked him why twelve thousand instead of the ten thousand that I was asking for. He said, "the amount that the Lord had given me, the previous Monday, was twelve thousand dollars". And, after hanging the phone up with me, he asked the Lord "if he should give to me all of it". Of course, the Lord said "yes". But, the interesting twist to this story is this: my bills totaled up to four hundred dollars short of twelve thousand instead of ten thousand.
God doesn't always give us what we ask for. The most important thing that He does give us is this:
a personal relationship with Him. And this personal relationship includes story like this. Stories like this go a long way in helping us to tell others about our Father who is in Heaven.
Thursday, May 03, 2018
Daily Devotional #34 (1 John 3:21)
In 1 John 3:19-24, John introduces the idea that love does
three very important things for the Believer: It exposes a
doubting heart, it gives confidence and effectiveness to prayer, and it
gives evidence that the Believer is being filled with the Spirit. Yesterday,
we considered the first of these three: Love exposes a
doubting heart. Today, we will take up the second: The love of God gives confidence and effectiveness to our prayers.
In 1 John 3:21-22, we read, "21 Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God 22 and receive from him anything we ask, because we keep his commands and do what pleases him."
Like any relationship, when we do not increase our interaction within the relationship, the relationship will suffer. Of course, when we talk to God, that is called prayer. Prayer is the expression of our dependence upon God. And the Christian life is greatly dependent upon talking to and listening to God in prayer.
Notice the connection that John makes between prayer and our confidence. If you and I fear someone, our involvement with them will be limited. Of course, the opposite of this is true, as well. If we feel accepted by them, we will draw ever so closer to them. It is no different with God. Prayer grows out of correct understanding of God's love. And if we have received his Son's gracious gift, our acceptance before Him can not be improved upon. As a result, we seek Him more and more in prayer.
Recently, our family was asked by my sister in law's family to watch their dog while they made a weekend trip out of town. We met my sister in law and her family to take the dog home with us. When we first saw Genevive, she was quite reluctant to come to us. In fact, she cried all the way back to our house. By the end of the weekend, one would have thought that she was our dog. We grew to be so close with her because we loved her and expressed that love to her. And she, as a result, reciprocated that love. This is a picture of what the Apostle John is getting at here in v.21.
Tomorrow, we will consider in more detail v.22, "and receive from him anything we ask, because we keep his commands and do what pleases him."
Like any relationship, when we do not increase our interaction within the relationship, the relationship will suffer. Of course, when we talk to God, that is called prayer. Prayer is the expression of our dependence upon God. And the Christian life is greatly dependent upon talking to and listening to God in prayer.
Notice the connection that John makes between prayer and our confidence. If you and I fear someone, our involvement with them will be limited. Of course, the opposite of this is true, as well. If we feel accepted by them, we will draw ever so closer to them. It is no different with God. Prayer grows out of correct understanding of God's love. And if we have received his Son's gracious gift, our acceptance before Him can not be improved upon. As a result, we seek Him more and more in prayer.
Tomorrow, we will consider in more detail v.22, "and receive from him anything we ask, because we keep his commands and do what pleases him."
Wednesday, May 02, 2018
Daily Devotional #33 (1 John 3:19-20)
In 1 John 3, the Apostle John is contrasting the themes of love and hate.Today, we come to v.19-20, which reads "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."
In 1 John 3:19-24, John introduces the idea that love does three very important things for the Believer: It exposes a doubting heart, it gives confidence and effectiveness to prayer, and it gives evidence that the Believer is being filled with the Spirit. Today, we will consider the first of these three: Love exposes a doubting heart.
For the first six months of my Christian experience, whenever my Pastor gave an alter call, I would go down. On one occasion, my Pastor asked me, "why do you come down every Sunday?" I responded, "because I sinned this week." I did not understand that the moment that I trusted the Lord Jesus to be my Savior, His perfection was deposited into my Justification account before God. Justification means to be made right before God. And when the Lord Jesus died on the cross and I received the free gift of salvation, I was made perfect in the eyes of God. I did not understand that Jesus plus nothing equals everything including His perfection.
When we begin to understand that we have never, nor will we ever earn God's favor, it is then that we begin to understand His love for us. In v.19, John writes, "This is how we know that we belong to the truth..." This means when we give ourselves to the Lord Jesus who is the truth, we will see that our struggle for God's acceptance is over. It is then that we are freed from a condemning heart. It is then that we are freed to respond to His pure love with a pure love of our own. It will never be a perfect love, this side of heaven. But, it will be a pure love because it comes from a heart that has been reshaped by the Perfect One.
In 1 John 3:19-24, John introduces the idea that love does three very important things for the Believer: It exposes a doubting heart, it gives confidence and effectiveness to prayer, and it gives evidence that the Believer is being filled with the Spirit. Today, we will consider the first of these three: Love exposes a doubting heart.
For the first six months of my Christian experience, whenever my Pastor gave an alter call, I would go down. On one occasion, my Pastor asked me, "why do you come down every Sunday?" I responded, "because I sinned this week." I did not understand that the moment that I trusted the Lord Jesus to be my Savior, His perfection was deposited into my Justification account before God. Justification means to be made right before God. And when the Lord Jesus died on the cross and I received the free gift of salvation, I was made perfect in the eyes of God. I did not understand that Jesus plus nothing equals everything including His perfection.
When we begin to understand that we have never, nor will we ever earn God's favor, it is then that we begin to understand His love for us. In v.19, John writes, "This is how we know that we belong to the truth..." This means when we give ourselves to the Lord Jesus who is the truth, we will see that our struggle for God's acceptance is over. It is then that we are freed from a condemning heart. It is then that we are freed to respond to His pure love with a pure love of our own. It will never be a perfect love, this side of heaven. But, it will be a pure love because it comes from a heart that has been reshaped by the Perfect One.
Tuesday, May 01, 2018
Daily Devotional #32 (1 John 3:16)
"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." (1 John 3:16)
There is a fascinating study of the 3:16's in the Bible awaiting anyone who would venture down that road. Today, we will only consider 1 John 3:16. There is a clear connection between our belief in Jesus and how and whom we love. Our growing understanding of the eternal will eventually translate into laying down our life for others. This is the essence of the life that the Lord Jesus died to give us. It will lead us to live in a way that lays down our life for others. Laying down our lives is predicated upon Jesus first laying down his life for us. He never takes his disciple somewhere he is unwilling to go, himself. He never asks of us something He himself is unwilling to give.
Every day there are clear opportunities for us to lay down our lives for others. Friends, family members, and even those whom we have never met are awaiting the influence of God through our yielded lives. Most of the time these moments go unnoticed. Most would consider them no big deal. However, in the kingdom of God, these moments influence the lives of eventual Believers with whom we will spend eternity in heaven. The question is this: will you be a part of this process?
“Greater love has no one than this,” Jesus once stated, “than to lay down one’s life for his friends.” Why would anyone choose to put themselves at the rear of the line in any context? Because that person understands love. In 1969 the Thresher, an American made submarine, imploded off the coast of Virginia out in the Atlantic. When the officials examined the cause of the implosion, they cited faulty welding. Someone once said, "Biblical conviction will keep you from capsizing in a world of torrential waters." We live in a world that is full of intense pressures. And if we are not defined by the truth, well, we will implode under the intense pressure.
God created us with two basic needs:1) to be loved, and 2) to love. We all naturally long to be loved, but this is not the ultimate goal. The ultimate goal is to love, but we can not give what we do not have. The security that being loved brings to the human heart enables us to love others, even those who do not love us. If we have faulty welding, we will implode. When we accept ourselves as He does, we cease to pursue the acceptance of others, then we are secure enough to live for a purpose much bigger than ourselves.
Toward the end of his life, Dr. John Nash received the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences. John Nash is the only person to be awarded both the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences and the Abel Prize. Dr. Nash went from a person who said, "In madness I thought I was the most important person in the world" to the person who said, "I've made the most important discovery of my life. It's only in the mysterious equation of love that any logical reasons can be found. I'm only here tonight because of you. You're the only reason I am...you're all my reasons.” Of course, the reason John said the latter was due to the unending love of his wife, Alicia. Alicia Nash was the unsung hero of this duo. As chronicled in the movie, A Beautiful Mind, Alicia endured the greatest of difficulties with John, all the while continuing to love John, even when most encouraged her to forsake him. Their story illustrates the essence of agape love. Loving the unlovable, even when they can not return the love.
There is a fascinating study of the 3:16's in the Bible awaiting anyone who would venture down that road. Today, we will only consider 1 John 3:16. There is a clear connection between our belief in Jesus and how and whom we love. Our growing understanding of the eternal will eventually translate into laying down our life for others. This is the essence of the life that the Lord Jesus died to give us. It will lead us to live in a way that lays down our life for others. Laying down our lives is predicated upon Jesus first laying down his life for us. He never takes his disciple somewhere he is unwilling to go, himself. He never asks of us something He himself is unwilling to give.
Every day there are clear opportunities for us to lay down our lives for others. Friends, family members, and even those whom we have never met are awaiting the influence of God through our yielded lives. Most of the time these moments go unnoticed. Most would consider them no big deal. However, in the kingdom of God, these moments influence the lives of eventual Believers with whom we will spend eternity in heaven. The question is this: will you be a part of this process?
“Greater love has no one than this,” Jesus once stated, “than to lay down one’s life for his friends.” Why would anyone choose to put themselves at the rear of the line in any context? Because that person understands love. In 1969 the Thresher, an American made submarine, imploded off the coast of Virginia out in the Atlantic. When the officials examined the cause of the implosion, they cited faulty welding. Someone once said, "Biblical conviction will keep you from capsizing in a world of torrential waters." We live in a world that is full of intense pressures. And if we are not defined by the truth, well, we will implode under the intense pressure.
God created us with two basic needs:1) to be loved, and 2) to love. We all naturally long to be loved, but this is not the ultimate goal. The ultimate goal is to love, but we can not give what we do not have. The security that being loved brings to the human heart enables us to love others, even those who do not love us. If we have faulty welding, we will implode. When we accept ourselves as He does, we cease to pursue the acceptance of others, then we are secure enough to live for a purpose much bigger than ourselves.
Toward the end of his life, Dr. John Nash received the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences. John Nash is the only person to be awarded both the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences and the Abel Prize. Dr. Nash went from a person who said, "In madness I thought I was the most important person in the world" to the person who said, "I've made the most important discovery of my life. It's only in the mysterious equation of love that any logical reasons can be found. I'm only here tonight because of you. You're the only reason I am...you're all my reasons.” Of course, the reason John said the latter was due to the unending love of his wife, Alicia. Alicia Nash was the unsung hero of this duo. As chronicled in the movie, A Beautiful Mind, Alicia endured the greatest of difficulties with John, all the while continuing to love John, even when most encouraged her to forsake him. Their story illustrates the essence of agape love. Loving the unlovable, even when they can not return the love.
In madness, I thought I was the most important person in the world.
Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/john_forbes_nash_jr_539727
Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/john_forbes_nash_jr_539727
In madness, I thought I was the most important person in the world.
Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/john_forbes_nash_jr_539727
Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/john_forbes_nash_jr_539727
Monday, April 30, 2018
Daily Devotional #31 (1 John 3:14-18)
These verses remind of a song titled, Signs of Life. In that song, we read, Where are the signs of life, the love that proves there is a beating heart inside? Where are the signs of life, the compassion and concern that makes this world turn? Where are the signs of life? As in that song, the Apostle John identifies a sign of the life of God in the life of the Believer. "We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love each other."
One sign of the presence of God in the life of the Believer is love (agape). The word “agape” is rarely found in ancient Greek literature. It appears in Homer ten times. Three times it appears in Euripides. But it appears 320 times in the New Testament. That choice to remain committed no matter what. This is the type of love that is displayed by "laying down" one's life. The "laying down" here means the giving up of self-interest, the voluntary surrender of the right to meet our own needs in order that we might meet the needs of another. It is the giving up of self in order that we might minister to another type of love.
Now, I am sure that you noticed that in v.16, John writes "...we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters." Then in v.17, John writes "... If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them..." Why the plural in v.16, brothers and sisters? Then the singular in v.17, brother and sister? The answer is that it is so easy to talk about loving the brothers and sisters at the expense of the brother or sister. Biblical love is always personal and active. This type of love (agape) resembles God best. Agape risks. It risks what is dear to us, like our lives, our reputation, our plans.
It was early Spring in 1983 and I had been a Christian for about 18 months. Through a series of events God had led me to consider attending Bible College. In fact, I had made application to three different Bible Colleges in the Southeast of the USA. One Sunday night, I arose from my church pew at the First Baptist Church in Garden City, Georgia, I walked toward the back door, planning to go eat dinner with a group of friends,. Then, I heard a voice yelling out my name. I turned around and noticed an older couple wanting my attention. I vaguely knew them, but they knew me than I knew them. They had been praying for me for quite some time. As I walked toward them, they asked if they could have a brief conversation with me. As I sat there, I found myself stunned as they shared with me that for three months they had known that God wanted them to pay for my college education. This was the first time, as a Christian, that I experienced agape. I will never forget that couple. They remain in my prayers to this day, and it has been 35 years since that early Spring evening. They demonstrated agape to me and many others, as I discovered later.
Agape love is not natural for any human. It defines the person who is growing in his understanding of God's love. As Jim Elliot once said, “God always gives His best to those who leave the choice to Him.”
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