True community and connection with God produces a life that loves as Jesus loved...

This week we have been looking at a section of this letter that has been preserved and recorded for us in the New Testament of the Bible, called the book of 1 John. Tuesday we looked on as John wanted followers of Jesus throughout history to clearly understand that the more that their lives demonstrated a genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus as a result of how they loved others as Jesus had loved them, the more that those in the world that were hostile to Jesus would be hostile to them.

John introduced a well-known and generally accepted fact for followers of Jesus throughout history to remind the readers of this letter throughout history that because the lifestyle we are committed to living reveals who we are committed and connected to, those who demonstrate a warm regard and interest in others that is marked by a selflessness in their relationship with others provide the evidence that are no longer eternally separated from God as a result of their selfishness and rebellion against God. Instead, their love for others reveals the reality that they have experienced the transformational activity of God that has moved them into eternal life in the relationship and connection with God that they were created for.

By contrast, John explained that the person who does not live a lifestyle that demonstrates a warm regard and interest in others that is marked by a selflessness in their relationship with others reveals the reality that they still remain separated from God as a result of their rebellion against God. Because, as we discovered last week, the lifestyle we are committed to living reveals who we are committed and connected to. John wanted the members of the church at Ephesus, and followers of Jesus throughout history, to clearly understand that what spills out of our heart produces a lifestyle that reveals where we are truly at when it comes to whether or not we have a genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus.

And because of that reality, John introduced another well-known and generally accepted fact to the readers of his letter throughout history to make it unmistakably clear that those in the world that are hostile to Jesus and place themselves in opposition to Jesus would be hostile to those who were committed to live a lifestyle that demonstrated a genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus. And it is that hostility to those who were committed to a lifestyle that demonstrated a genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus that provided the evidence to reveal the reality that they were still eternally separated from God as a result being committed to a lifestyle of rebellion against God.

And as John continued this section of his letter, we see John describe what a lifestyle that demonstrates a warm regard and interest in others that is marked by a selflessness in their relationship with others looks like in the day to day life of a person what has a genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus. Let’s look at these verses together, beginning in 1 John 3:16-18:

 We know love by this, that He laid down His life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. ¹⁷ But whoever has the world's goods, and sees his brother in need and closes his heart against him, how does the love of God abide in him? ¹⁸ Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth.

Now when John uses the word know here in verse 16, this word literally means to arrive at a knowledge of someone or something. This idea of knowing is the idea of a past experience that has ongoing and continuing results. John is talking about someone who truly knows what God’s love is and how God’s love was demonstrated. In addition, when John uses the word ought, this word means to be under obligation to meet certain moral or social expectations.

John’s point here is that God’s love was made known and demonstrated in the most powerful way possible through Jesus willingness to allow Himself to be treated as though He lived our selfish and sinful lives, so that God the Father could treat us as though we lived Jesus perfect life. And Jesus willingness to demonstrate His love for us by allowing Himself to be treated as though He lived our selfish and sinful lives should have ongoing and continuing results in the lives of His followers. And that ongoing and continuing result is that followers of Jesus should live their lives in a way that is driven by the obligation to lay down their lives for one another.

So John’s command to followers of Jesus throughout history, if communicated in the language that we use in our culture today, would sound something like this: Just as Jesus was willing to give up His life for us in order to demonstrate His love for us, we are under obligation to be willing to give up our lives for one another as followers of Jesus. is life for usJohn then asks a rhetorical question to reveal a stark reality: “But whoever has the world's goods, and sees his brother in need and closes his heart against him, how does the love of God abide in him?”

Now the reason why this question is rhetorical is due to the fact that the answer to this question is so obvious that it does not require an answer. When John uses the phrase “closes his heart” this phrase was an idiom of the day that meant to shut off the center and seat of one’s emotions from another. John asked this rhetorical question to reveal the reality that the person who has the resources needed to maintain a life and observes another who lacks the resources needed to maintain life and responds to that need by shutting of their emotions that the need provokes within them, does not demonstrate the reality that the selfless, other-centered love of Jesus remains a part of their life.

John here is reminding the readers of this letter throughout history of the reality that love is a verb. You see, unlike our culture, which views and talks about love as though it were a noun, the letters that make up the Bible talks about love as a verb. Here is a clear and simple definition of love that the John is talking about here: Love is giving someone what they need most when they deserve it the least. Biblical, selfless, sacrificial, other centered love actively gives someone what they need the most when they deserve it the least.

And because of that reality, in verse 18, we see John urge the members of the church at Ephesus, who, as we have seen throughout this series, were every near and dear to his heart, “Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth.” John here is urging followers of Jesus throughout history to demonstrate a warm regard and interest in others that is marked by a selflessness in their relationship with others not only in what words they spoke to one another. John here is urging followers of Jesus throughout history to demonstrate a warm regard and interest in others that is marked by a selflessness in their relationship with others not only in how they exercised their tongues.

Instead John is urging followers of Jesus throughout history to demonstrate a warm regard and interest in others that is marked by a selflessness in their relationship with others in how they exercised their actions. John is urging followers of Jesus throughout history to demonstrate a warm regard and interest in others that is marked by a selflessness in their relationship with others in a way that was in line with the message and teaching of Jesus that forms the content of the Christian faith and that is to be an ongoing reality in their life.

And it is here, in this section of this letter, that we discover a timeless truth when it comes to connecting in true community. And that timeless truth is this: True connection and community with God produces a life that loves as Jesus loved.  Just as it was for followers of Jesus in John’s day; just as it has been for followers of Jesus throughout history, true connection and community with God produces a life that loves as Jesus loved.

The timeless reality is that because of the timeless principle that the lifestyle we are committed to living reveals who we are committed and connected to, those who demonstrate a lifestyle that is driven by a warm regard and interest in others that is marked by a selflessness in their relationship with others provide the evidence that they are living in true connection and communion with God.

By contrast, those who does not live a lifestyle that demonstrates a warm regard and interest in others that is marked by a selflessness in their relationship with others reveals the reality that they still remain separated from God as a result of their rebellion against God. As followers of Jesus, Jesus willingness to demonstrate His love for us by allowing Himself to be treated as though He lived our selfish and sinful lives should have ongoing and continuing results in our lives. And that ongoing and continuing result is that, as followers of Jesus, we should live our lives in a way that is driven by the obligation to lay down their lives for one another. Just as Jesus was willing to give up His life for us in order to demonstrate His love for us, as followers of Jesus we are under obligation to be willing to give up our lives for one another. is life for us

And the timeless reality is that, as followers of Jesus, we are to demonstrate a warm regard and interest in others that is marked by a selflessness in our relationship with others not only in what words we speak to one another or by how we exercise our tongues. Instead as followers of Jesus, we are to demonstrate a warm regard and interest in others that is marked by a selflessness in our relationship with others in how we exercised our actions. As followers of Jesus, we are to demonstrate a warm regard and interest in others that is marked by a selflessness in our relationship with others in a way that was in line with the message and teaching of Jesus that forms the content of the Christian faith and that is to be an ongoing reality in our live.

As followers of Jesus, we are to be constantly reminded of the reality that love is a verb. Unlike our culture, which views and talks about love as though it were a noun, the letters that make up the Bible talks about love as a verb. Love is giving someone what they need most when they deserve it the least. Biblical, selfless, sacrificial, other centered love actively gives someone what they need the most when they deserve it the least. And the timeless reality is that true connection and community with God produces a life that loves as Jesus loved

  

So here is a question to consider: What is the lifestyle that you are committed to living producing? Is the lifestyle that you are committed to living producing love? Hate? Indifference? What does your life reveal about how you view love? Is love a noun or a verb in your life?

Because, as we have discovered, true connection and community with God produces a life that loves as Jesus loved...

What hostility reveals about our view of Jesus...

At the church where I serve we are in the middle of a sermon series entitled Connect. During this series, we are looking at a letter that is recorded for us in the New Testament of the Bible, called the book of 1 John. During this series, we are going to discover the components that make for true connection and community. During this series, we are going to discover the landmines and roadblocks that keep us from true connection and community. And as we go through this series, our hope and our prayer is that God would move by the power of the Holy Spirit in our heads, hearts, and hands, in a way that moves us to the place where we can experience the connection and community with God and one another that we were created and designed to experience. 

This week I would like for us to spend our time together picking up where we left off last week. And as we jump into the next section of this letter that has been preserved and recorded for us in the New Testament of the Bible, called the book of John, we will see John reveal for us another timeless truth when it comes to how we can experience the connection and community with God and one another that we were created and designed to experience. So let’s jump into the next section of this letter together, beginning in 1 John 3:13-15:

Do not be surprised, brethren, if the world hates you. ¹⁴ We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love abides in death. ¹⁵ Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer; and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.

John begins this section of his letter to early followers of Jesus who were from the church at Ephesus with a seemingly surprising command: Do not be surprised brethren, if the world hates you. What is so interesting is that the word surprised here, in the language that this letter was originally written in, literally means to be extraordinarily disturbed by someone or something so as to be surprised. As we have talked about earlier in the series, when John uses the word world, he is referring to those things in the world that are hostile to God and place themselves in opposition to God and His kingdom.

So John’s command, if communicated in the language we use in our culture today, would have sounded something like this: Do not be surprised so as to be disturbed by the reality that those in the world that are hostile to Jesus and place themselves in opposition to Jesus would be hostile to you and hate you. You see, in giving this command, John was echoing back to the very words that he had heard Jesus communicate to he and the rest of the disciples. Words that John recorded for us in the account of Jesus life that bears his name. Let’s take a minute and look at those words together, beginning in John 15:17-21:

"This I command you, that you love one another. ¹⁸ "If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it hated you. ¹⁹ "If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, because of this the world hates you. ²⁰ "Remember the word that I said to you, 'A slave is not greater than his master.' If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you; if they kept My word, they will keep yours also. ²¹ "But all these things they will do to you for My name's sake, because they do not know the One who sent Me.

You see, just as Jesus wanted His closest followers to understand, John wanted the members of the church at Ephesus, and followers of Jesus throughout history, to clearly understand that the more that their lives demonstrated a genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus as a result of how they loved others as Jesus had loved them, the more that those in the world that were hostile to Jesus would be hostile to them. As we discovered last week, the lifestyle we are committed to living reveals who we are committed and connected to.

And because of that reality, it should not come as a surprise that those in the world that are hostile to Jesus and place themselves in opposition to Jesus would be hostile to those who were committed to live a lifestyle that demonstrated a genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus. It should not come as a surprise, because those who are hostile to God and place themselves in opposition to God and His kingdom have committed themselves to a lifestyle of rebellion against God.

However, in verse 14, John introduces a well-known and generally accepted fact for followers of Jesus throughout history in that we know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brethren. John introduces this well-known and generally accepted fact to remind the readers of this letter throughout history that because the lifestyle we are committed to living reveals who we are committed and connected to, those who demonstrate a warm regard and interest in others that is marked by a selflessness in their relationship with others provide the evidence that are no longer eternally separated from God as a result of their selfishness and rebellion against God.

Instead, their love for others reveals the reality that they have experienced the transformational activity of God that has moved them into eternal life in the relationship and connection with God that they were created for. By contrast, John explained that he who does not love abides in death. Now, as we have discovered throughout this series, the word abide means to remain in a sphere of existence. John’s point here is that the person who does not live a lifestyle that demonstrates a warm regard and interest in others that is marked by a selflessness in their relationship with others reveals the reality that they still remain separated from God as a result of their rebellion against God.

Because, as we discovered last week, the lifestyle we are committed to living reveals who we are committed and connected to. The person who engages in a lifestyle that is committed to selfishly rebelling against God and others is revealing the reality of a lawless rebellion against God. The timeless reality is that, because children tend to take on the characteristics and character of their parents, no one who is born of God engages in a lifestyle that is committed to selfishly rebelling against God and others.

The timeless reality is that all humanity, whether religious or irreligious, whether near or far from God, would arrive at the conclusion that a person has a genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus as a result of how they love others as Jesus had loved them. And because of that reality, the person who does not live a lifestyle that demonstrates a warm regard and interest in others that is marked by a selflessness in their relationship with others reveals the reality that they still remain separated from God as a result of their rebellion against God.

John then reinforced this reality in verse 15 with an incredibly strong statement: Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer. With this statement, John was once again echoing back to the very words that he had heard Jesus communicate, this time as part of perhaps the most famous sermon that He ever preached. Words that are recorded for us in an account of Jesus life that we know today as the gospel of Matthew. Let’s take a minute and look at those words together, beginning in Matthew 5:21-22:

"You have heard that the ancients were told, 'YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT MURDER' and 'Whoever commits murder shall be liable to the court.' "But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty before the court; and whoever says to his brother, 'You good-for-nothing,' shall be guilty before the supreme court; and whoever says, 'You fool,' shall be guilty enough to go into the fiery hell.

You see, just as Jesus wanted those who listened to perhaps His most famous sermon to understand, John wanted the members of the church at Ephesus, and followers of Jesus throughout history, to clearly understand that we are guilty of murder when we respond to our desires being blocked in a way that damages another. We are guilty of murder when we respond in anger either to the wrong things or in the wrong way in a way that damages another.

We are guilty of murder when we angrily verbally bully another, whether that verbal bullying is face to face or on social media, in a way that damages the heart of another. We are guilty of murder when we angrily speak in a way that disrespectfully slanders another person in a way that damages the heart of another. We are guilty of murder because Jesus is not simply concerned with our external behavior.

We are guilty because at the end of the day Jesus is concerned with our internal heart condition. Jesus is concerned with our internal heart condition because Jesus knows, and human history has shown, that what is in the heart will eventually spill out. John wanted the members of the church at Ephesus, and followers of Jesus throughout history, to clearly understand that what spills out of our heart produces a lifestyle that reveals where we are truly at when it comes to whether or not we have a genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus.

And because of that reality, John introduced another well-known and generally accepted fact to the readers of his letter throughout history: and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him. John wanted to make it unmistakably clear to the readers of this letter throughout history that those in the world that are hostile to Jesus and place themselves in opposition to Jesus would be hostile to those who were committed to live a lifestyle that demonstrated a genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus.

And it is that hostility to those who were committed to a lifestyle that demonstrated a genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus that provided the evidence to reveal the reality that they were still eternally separated from God as a result being committed to a lifestyle of rebellion against God. And as John continued this section of his letter, we see John describe what a lifestyle that demonstrates a warm regard and interest in others that is marked by a selflessness in their relationship with others looks like in the day to day life of a person what has a genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus.

We will continue to look at this section of John’s letter on Friday…

The lifestyle we are committed to living reveals who we are committed and connected to...

This week we have been looking at a section of a letter that has been preserved and recorded for us in the New Testament of the Bible, called the book of John. So far this week, we have seen John explain that everyone who engages in a lifestyle that is committed to selfishly rebelling against God and others is engaging in a lifestyle of lawlessness. And because of that reality, John explains that sin is lawlessness. John is revealing the reality that, at the end of the day, acts of omission and commission against God and others is ultimately about a lawless rebellion against God.  And because of that reality, everyone who engages in a lifestyle that is committed to selfishly rebelling against God and others is revealing the reality of a lawless rebellion against God.

By contrast,  the person who remains connected with God as they are mystically and spiritually united with Jesus will not engage in a lifestyle that is committed to selfishly rebelling against God and others. The point that John wanted to drive home to the readers of his letter throughout history is that the person who has  truly recognized Jesus for who He truly is; the person who has identified themselves as having a genuine and authentic relationship with God will not engage in a lifestyle that is committed to selfishly rebelling against God and others.

John then explained that if we know that Jesus is totally just and right in character and actions, then the person engages in a lifestyle that is committed to doing what is just and right reveals the reality that they have a genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus. By contrast, the person who engages in a lifestyle that is committed to selfishly rebelling against God and others reveals the reality that they are demonstrating a connection with the lifestyle of lawless rebellion of the Devil.

John wanted to make sure that the reader of his letter would not be misled in a way that caused them to go astray in their relationship with Jesus to instead embrace the idea that they could remain in genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus while engaging in a lifestyle that is committed to selfishly rebelling against God and others.

John then explained that because children tend to take on the characteristics and character of their parents, no one who is born of God engages in a lifestyle that is committed to selfishly rebelling against God and others. John then explained that the reason that is the case is due to the fact that His seed abides in him. John’s point here is that the very nature and character of God remains present in the life of a person who has a genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus. And because of that reality, John explains that a person who has a genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus cannot sin because they are a part of the family of God as a child of God as a result of God’s transformational activity in their lives.

A commitment to a lifestyle of lawless rebellion against God is not possible for a person who lives in a genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus because of the presence of the very nature and character of God that is present in their lives, as they have a new heart and the Holy Spirit’s indwelling presence. John then reinforced this reality by reminding the readers of his letter throughout history that anyone who engages in a lifestyle that is committed to refusing to do what is just, fair, and right reveals the reality that they are not a child of God who is a part of the family of God.

In addition, John explained that anyone who does not demonstrates a warm regard and interest in others that is marked by a selflessness in their relationship with others reveals the reality that they are not a child of God who is a part of the family of God. John then proceeds to provide the evidence to back his claims as he concludes this section of his letter in 1 John 3:11:

 For this is the message which you have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another; ¹² not as Cain, who was of the evil one and slew his brother. And for what reason did he slay him? Because his deeds were evil, and his brother's were righteous.

As we have talked about earlier in this series, when John refers to the beginning here, he is referring to the first time that the members of the church had heard the claims of Christ and the message of the gospel. And as part of the claims of Christ and the message of the gospel that they had heard from the beginning, John reminded the readers of his letter of a command that Jesus gave His followers throughout history. A command that is recorded for us in a section of an account of Jesus life in the Bible, called the gospel of John. So let’s look at the command together, beginning in John 13:34-35:

"A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another."

Notice what Jesus did not say. Jesus did not say "By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you love the right doctrine and theology." Jesus did not say "By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for the ideas about God." Jesus did not say "By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you love doing things for God in order to earn favor with God." That is not what Jesus said.

Instead, Jesus said that all men, in other words all humanity, whether religious or irreligious, whether near or far from God, would arrive at the conclusion that you are a disciple; that you are a follower of Jesus who knows and does what Jesus knows and does, by your love for one another. All humanity, whether religious or irreligious, whether near or far from God, would arrive at the conclusion that a person has a genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus as a result of the reality that they loved others as Jesus had loved them.

John then pointed the members of the church at Ephesus to an event from history that is preserved and recorded for us in a section of the very first letter in the Bible, called the book of Genesis. In Genesis chapter four, we read of an event from history involving Adam and Eve’s son, named Cain, and his brother Abel. Cain grew up to follow in his father’s footsteps as a farmer, while Abel grew up to become a shepherd who took care of domesticated animals.

Just as God’s people today worship the Lord by giving back a portion of the financial resources we have been given, Cain and Abel gave back a portion of the resources that they had been given. Cain responded to God’s provision to him as a farmer by giving back a portion of the produce that God had provided him. Abel also responded to God’s provision to him as a shepherd by giving back a portion of the animals that God had provided him.

Yet, while both Cain and Abel responded to God’s provision by giving back to God a portion of the resources that they had received as an act of worship, we see God have differing responses to their acts of worship. God accepted Abel’s act of worship, but rejected Cain’s act of worship.

Cain responded to the rejection of his act of worship with an anger that was evident in his attitude, his actions, and even his posture. Cain responded to the Lord accepting Abel’s offering, but rejecting his offering by hunting Abel down and killing him. Cain, in a cold hearted and premeditated fashion, took the life of his younger brother.

You see, Cain’s murder of Abel was an external manifestation of the reality that sin, selfishness, and rebellion had dominated his life. Cain’s lack of faith revealed itself in his act of worship and his response to God rejecting his offering. Instead of recognizing that selfishness and rebellion was dominating his life, Cain sought vengeance that flowed from jealousy and envy of Abel.

John pointed the members of the church at Ephesus to this event from history as evidence that Cain embraced and engaged in a lifestyle that was committed to selfishly rebelling against God and others that revealed a lawless rebellion against God. And that lawless rebellion against God revealed the reality that Cain demonstrated the characteristics of the devil by engaging in a lifestyle that is committed to selfishly rebelling against God.

And it is here, in this section of this letter, that we discover a timeless truth when it comes to connecting in true community. And that timeless truth is this: The lifestyle we are committed to living reveals who we are committed and connected to.  Just as it was for followers of Jesus in John’s day; just as it has been for followers of Jesus throughout history, the lifestyle we are committed to living reveals who we are committed and connected to.

The timeless reality is that the person who engages in a lifestyle that is committed to selfishly rebelling against God and others is revealing the reality of a lawless rebellion against God. The timeless reality is that the person who remains connected with God as they are mystically and spiritually united with Jesus will not engage in a lifestyle that is committed to selfishly rebelling against God and others. The person who has truly recognized Jesus for who He truly is; the person who has identified themselves as having a genuine and authentic relationship with God will not engage in a lifestyle that is committed to selfishly rebelling against God and others.

The timeless reality is that the person who has a genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus will not be misled in a way that causes them to go astray in their relationship with Jesus to instead embrace the idea that they could remain in genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus while engaging in a lifestyle that is committed to selfishly rebelling against God and others.

The timeless reality is that, because children tend to take on the characteristics and character of their parents, no one who is born of God engages in a lifestyle that is committed to selfishly rebelling against God and others. The timeless reality is that the person who has a genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus as a part of the family of God cannot engage in a lifestyle that is committed to selfishly rebel against God, because they have been brought into the family of God. A commitment to a lifestyle of lawless rebellion against God is not possible for a person who lives in a genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus because of the presence of the very nature and character of God that is present in their lives. The timeless reality is that all humanity, whether religious or irreligious, whether near or far from God, would arrive at the conclusion that a person has a genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus as a result of how they love others as Jesus had loved them.

So here is a question to consider: What does the lifestyle that you are committed to living reveal about who or what you are committed and connected to? What does the lifestyle that you are committed to living reveal about who or what you are a child of and have taken that characteristics and character of?

Because, as we have discovered, The lifestyle we are committed to living reveals who we are committed and connected to.

A timeless danger that can lead us astray...

This week we are looking at a section of letter that has been preserved and recorded for us in the New Testament of the Bible, called the book of John. Yesterday, in 1 John 3:4-6, we saw John reveal the reality that, at the end of the day, acts of omission and commission against God and others is ultimately about a lawless rebellion against God.  And because of that reality, everyone who engages in a lifestyle that is committed to selfishly rebelling against God and others is revealing the reality of a lawless rebellion against God.

However, John drove home the reality that the person who has  truly recognized Jesus for who He truly is; the person who has identified themselves as having a genuine and authentic relationship with God will not engage in a lifestyle that is committed to selfishly rebelling against God and others. Today, as John continues this section of his letter, we see Him warn the members of the church at Ephesus of a timeless danger that they were facing. Let’s discover that timeless danger together, beginning in 1 John 3:7-8:

 Little children, make sure no one deceives you; the one who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous; ⁸ the one who practices sin is of the devil; for the devil has sinned from the beginning. The Son of God appeared for this purpose, to destroy the works of the devil.

As we talked about earlier in this series, when John uses the phrase “little children” this was a term of endearment that John used to describe the members of the church at Ephesus. You see, John cared deeply for the members of the church and desired their spiritual good and growth. And because of that reality, John warned the members of the church at Ephesus to make sure no one deceives you. In other words, John was warning the members of the church at Ephesus, and followers of Jesus throughout history, to make sure that no one misled them in a way that caused them to go astray in their relationship with Jesus.

And to make sure that no one misled them in a way that caused them to go astray in their relationship with Jesus, John explained that the one who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous. When John states that He is righteous he is proclaiming that Jesus is right in character and is always right and just in His actions. John’s point here is that if we know that Jesus is totally just, fair, and right in character and actions, then the person engages in a lifestyle that is committed to doing what is just and right reveals the reality that they have a genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus.

By contrast, in verse 8, John states that the one who practices sin is of the devil; for the devil has sinned from the beginning. Now Jesus and the other authors of the letters that make up the Bible teach us that the Devil is the leader of a group of supernatural beings who known as demons. We also know that the Devil and demons have superhuman, but limited knowledge and power. The Devil and demons are angels that were created by the Lord before the creation of the universe, who rebelled against God sometime before the fall of humans that is recorded for us in the very first letter in the Bible in Genesis 3.

And the Devil and the demons that follow the Devil are driven by a desire to destroy the Kingdom of God and the people of God. John’s point here is that the person who engages in a lifestyle that is committed to selfishly rebelling against God and others reveals the reality that they are demonstrating a connection with the lifestyle of lawless rebellion of the Devil. When John states that the devil has sinned from the beginning, he is reminding the readers of his letter throughout history that the Devil has acted out of a selfish love and rebellion against God since the beginning of time.

And because the devil has, from the beginning of time, been committed to destroy the Kingdom of God and the people of God, John states that Jesus, as God in a bod, took on flesh and entered into humanity in order to destroy the works of the devil. John’s point here is that Jesus took on flesh and entered into humanity in order to abolish and bring to an end that which was brought into being by the work of the Devil to attempt to destroy the Kingdom of God and the people of God. Jesus took on flesh and entered into humanity in order to abolish and bring to an end the enslavement to a lifestyle that is committed to selfishly rebelling against God and others that came about as a result of the devil and his desire to destroy the kingdom of God and the people of God.

You see, John wanted to make sure that the reader of his letter would not be misled in a way that caused them to go astray in their relationship with Jesus to instead embrace the idea that they could remain in genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus while engaging in a lifestyle that is committed to selfishly rebelling against God and others. We see John hammer this point home in what he says next in verse 9-10:

 No one who is born of God practices sin, because His seed abides in him; and he cannot sin, because he is born of God. ¹⁰ By this the children of God and the children of the devil are obvious: anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor the one who does not love his brother.

As we discovered earlier in this series, when John uses the phrase born of God, here is revealing for us the reality that when we respond to Jesus making Himself known to us by placing our confident trust in Him and recognizing and acknowledging who He is by accepting Him as being large and in charge of our lives, we become a part of the family of God. As we talked about earlier in this series, becoming a part of the family of God as a child of God is solely the result of God’s transformational activity in our lives. It is only through God’s transformational activity in our lives that flows from His desire to bring us into an eternal relationship with Him that results in us becoming a child of God as a part of the family of God.

By contrast, when John refers to the children of the devil, he is referring to one who demonstrates the characteristics of the devil, who engages in a lifestyle that is committed to selfishly rebelling against God in an attempt to destroy the kingdom of God and the people of God. John here is reminding the readers of his letter throughout history that, as a general rule, children tend to take on the characteristics and character of their parents. And intuitively we know this to be true. That is why we can cringe or bow our chest in pride when our children say or do something the reflects us, right? And we experience this when we say something that sounds just like our parents.

And because of that reality that children tend to take on the characteristics and character of their parents, John states that no one who is born of God engages in a lifestyle that is committed to selfishly rebelling against God and others. John then explains that the reason that is the case is due to the fact that His seed abides in him. But what does that mean? The phrase His seed refers to the very nature and character of God that is present in a follower of Jesus.

John’s point here is that the very nature and character of God remains present in the life of a person who has a genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus. And because of that reality, John explains that a person who has a genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus cannot sin because they are a part of the family of God as a child of God as a result of God’s transformational activity in their lives. John’s point is that a person who has a genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus as a part of the family of God cannot engage in a lifestyle that is committed to selfishly rebel against God, because they have been brought into the family of God.

But how does what John is writing here relate to what John wrote in 1 John 1:8-9? Because in 1 John 1:8-9, states that “If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us.” John seems to state that we deceive ourselves when we proclaim that we are not guilty of selfishly rebelling against God.  However, here John states that a person who has a genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus as a part of the family of God cannot engage in a lifestyle that is committed to selfishly rebel against God, because they have been brought into the family of God.

So which one is it? Is John contradicting himself here? Friday, we will discover the answer to this question…

Connection with God vs. Rebellion against God...

At the church where I serve, we are in the middle of a sermon series entitled Connect. During this series, we are looking at a letter that is recorded for us in the New Testament of the Bible, called the book of 1 John. During this series, we are going to discover the components that make for true connection and community. During this series, we are going to discover the landmines and roadblocks that keep us from true connection and community. And as we go through this series, our hope and our prayer is that God would move by the power of the Holy Spirit in our heads, hearts, and hands, in a way that moves us to the place where we can experience the connection and community with God and one another that we were created and designed to experience. 

Now this week, I would like for us to spend our time together picking up where we left off last week. And as we jump into the next section of this letter that has been preserved and recorded for us in the New Testament of the Bible, called the book of John, we will see John reveal for us another timeless truth when it comes to how we can experience the connection and community with God and one another that we were created and designed to experience. So let’s jump into the next section of this letter together, beginning in 1 John 3:4-6:

Everyone who practices sin also practices lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness. ⁵ You know that He appeared in order to take away sins; and in Him there is no sin. ⁶ No one who abides in Him sins; no one who sins has seen Him or knows Him.

Now to fully understand what John is communicating here, we first need to be reminded of the context in which John was writing this letter. As we talked about earlier in this series, John, as part of this letter, was addressing an issue that had arisen as a result of some people who had left the church at Ephesus and were trying to influence others to leave the church at Ephesus. There were some people who had attend the church at one time, but had left the church, who were claiming that you could have close connection with God while living their day to day lives in a way that is marked by moral and spiritual darkness as a result of selfishness and rebellion against God.

There were some people who had attend the church at one time, but had left the church, who were proclaiming that they were not guilty of selfishly rebelling against God and others.  There were some people who had attend the church at one time, but had left the church, who were proclaiming that one could have close connection with God while living a life that was in disobedience to the commands and demands of God. 

Once again John is circling back to an earlier claim that he had made in this letter that the person who has a genuine and authentic relationship with God will persist in obeying the commands and demands of Jesus, as opposed to the claims of those who left the church at Ephesus that one could have close connection with God while living a life that was in disobedience to the commands and demands of God.

Now with that context in mind, John begins that section of his letter by explaining that everyone who practices sin practices lawlessness. Now this word practice, in the language that this letter was originally written in, means to carry out an obligation of a moral nature. As we have talked about earlier in this series, when John uses the word sin, this word refers to acts of omission and commission against God and others that flow from our selfish love that places us above God and others in rebellion against God and others.

So John is explaining that everyone who engages in a lifestyle that is committed to selfishly rebelling against God and others is engaging in a lifestyle of lawlessness. Now this word lawlessness literally means to be anti-law. This word conveys that sense of a person who lives in lawless rebellion against someone or something.

And because of that reality, John explains that sin is lawlessness. John is revealing the reality that, at the end of the day, acts of omission and commission against God and others is ultimately about a lawless rebellion against God.  And because of that reality, everyone who engages in a lifestyle that is committed to selfishly rebelling against God and others is revealing the reality of a lawless rebellion against God.

However, as John points out in verse 5, Jesus, as God in a bod, took on flesh and entered into humanity in order to take away, or remove, such acts of omission and commission against God and others that flow from our selfish love that places us above God and others in rebellion against God and others from humanity. And, as John points out, Jesus us able to do that because in Him there is no sin. In other words, Jesus, in His very nature and character, has no sin. And Jesus, in His conduct here on earth, never selfishly and rebelliously did anything that He should not have done, and never did not do the things that He should have done that hurt God and others.

And because of that reality, in verse 6, John states that no one who abides in Him sins; no one who sins has seen Him or knows Him. But this morning, what does that mean? Is John saying that Christians should never sin? Is John saying that if a person really has a relationship with Jesus, that they would never sin?

To understand what John is communicating here, we first need to be reminded of what John means when he sues the phrase abides in Him. As we have talked about throughout this series, abiding refers to someone who does not leave a certain realm or sphere of existence. This is the idea of remaining in connection and communion with God as we are mystically and spiritually united in Jesus as followers of Jesus. John’s point is that that the person who remains connected with God as they are mystically and spiritually united with Jesus will not engage in a lifestyle that is committed to selfishly rebelling against God and others.        

In addition, when John states that no one who sins has seen Him or knows Him, the phrase has seen Him literally means to mentally or spiritually perceive Jesus for who He truly is. The phrase knows Him literally means to arrive at the knowledge of someone so as a means of identifying or relating to them. This phrase conveys the sense of having a past experience that has ongoing and continuing results.

John is talking about a person who has entered into a relationship with God that is an ongoing reality in their lives. Once again John is answering the question “How do I know that I have a genuine and authentic relationship with God?”

The point that John wanted to drive home to the readers of his letter throughout history is that the person who has  truly recognized Jesus for who He truly is; the person who has identified themselves as having a genuine and authentic relationship with God will not engage in a lifestyle that is committed to selfishly rebelling against God and others. And as John continues this section of his letter, we see Him warn the members of the church at Ephesus of a timeless danger that they were facing.

Tomorrow we will discover that timeless danger…

True community and connection with Jesus Christ will produce confidence in us...

This week we are looking at a section of a letter that has been preserved and recorded for us in the New Testament of the Bible, called the book of John. In 1 John 2:28-29, John explained that those who remain in close connection and communion with Jesus will have a confidence and boldness in that relationship and connection when they see Him face to face. This confidence and boldness comes from knowing that they had lived in genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus that leveraged their time, treasure, and talent into the kingdom mission that they had been given by Jesus.

John then revealed the reality that when we respond to Jesus making Himself known to us by placing our confident trust in Him and recognizing and acknowledging who He is by accepting Him as being large and in charge of our lives, we become a part of the family of God.

As John remembered and reflected on Jesus conversation with Nicodemus, the point that John wanted to make unmistakably clear is that if we know that Jesus is totally just, fair, and right in character and actions, then the person whose life is marked by doing what is just and right reveals the reality that they have a genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus as part of the family of God. John is revealing the reality that it is the life of a person who reveals and reflects Jesus in their character and conduct that produces the confidence that, when Jesus returns, they will enter into the fullness of the community and connection with God that they were created for as part of the family of God.

And as John continues in his letter to these early followers of Jesus, we see John transition to reveal the reason why followers of Jesus can have confidence as a result of their connection with Jesus as a part of the family of God. So let’s discover that reason together, beginning in 1 John 3:1:

See how great a love the Father has bestowed on us, that we would be called children of God; and such we are. For this reason the world does not know us, because it did not know Him.

Now to fully understand what John is communicating here, we first need to understand what John means when he states “See how great a love the Father has bestowed on us, that we would be called children of God;” What is so interesting is that this statement, in the language that that letter was originally written in, is actually in the form of a question and answer. The word that John uses here for the word great literally refers to how glorious something is. If John were making this statement in the language that we use in our culture today, this statement would sound something like this: “Do you realize how glorious the love is that the Father has bestowed on us that we would be called the children of God?”

When John refers to followers of Jesus as being called children of God, this phrase conveys the concept of being identified with someone as a result of displaying the characteristics of another, in this case God. John then answers his own question by affirming the reality that those who have a genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus that is reflected by a life that reveals and reflects Jesus are identified by others as being children of God.

John’s point here is that the glorious love that God bestows on followers of Jesus results in a life that looks more and more like Jesus. And as followers of Jesus live lives that look more and more like Jesus, they will be identified by those around them as being in relationship with God as part of the family of God.

John then reminded the members of the church at Ephesus, and followers of Jesus throughout history, that the world, which, as we discovered a few weeks ago, refers to those things in the world around us that are hostile to God and place themselves in opposition to God and His kingdom, “does not know us, because it did not know Him.” John’s point here is that those in the world that are hostile to God and oppose God do not identify with or have genuine and authentic connection and relationship with followers of Jesus because they did not identify with Jesus so as to trust and follow Jesus. Instead they rebelled and rejected Jesus and His message and teachings.

John is reminding followers of Jesus throughout history that it is God’s transforming love in our lives that identifies us as His children as we live lives that reveal and reflect Jesus to those around us. It is God’s transforming love that is the source of the confidence that we can have as followers of Jesus that we possess and genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus. And it is that genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus that will result in a life that is lived in a way that is distinctly different from those around us who rebel and reject Jesus. And as a result, those who rebel and reject Jesus will not identify with followers of Jesus because they have refused to identify themselves with Jesus.

John then concluded this section of his letter by returning to what followers of Jesus will experience at the end of God’s story here on earth when Jesus returns to earth. We see John make this return in 1 John 3:2-3. Let’s look at it together:

 Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is. ³ And everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.

Here John reminds followers of Jesus throughout history that, while their identity is that of a child of God that has a genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus, what that connection with Jesus will look like in eternity has not been disclosed or made known. However, while John did not know what that relationship and connection with Jesus would look like in eternity, he did know something. When John uses the word know, this word refers to the introduction of a well-known and generally accepted fact. John then explained that the well-known and generally accepted fact that he did know was that “that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is.”

 John here is revealing the reality that when Jesus returns to earth, followers of Jesus will be transformed so that they can participate in the Divine nature in the fullest form of community and connection with God. John is reminding followers of Jesus throughout history that, in eternity, we will share in the fullness of Jesus’ character and rightness. Now the big fancy church mumbo jumbo talk word for what John is referring to here is the word glorification. 

You see, when we read the letters that make up the Bible, we discover that, apart from a relationship with Jesus, human beings are sinners who sin; as John pointed our earlier in this letter, apart from Jesus, we are selfish people who hate the light and love darkness.

However, when we become followers of Jesus, we become saints who sometimes sin. As followers of Jesus, we have a new identity and are being transformed by the Holy Spirit who takes up residence in us and begins to make us more and more like Jesus in our character and conduct. The big fancy church mumbo jumbo talk word for this is sanctification.

Yet there are still times where we live our lives in the power of our old nature before we became followers of Jesus and selfishly do things that hurt God and others and fail to follow the message and teachings of Jesus, which the Bible calls sin. John’s point here is that when Jesus returns, those who have a genuine and authentic relationship with Him will be transformed into saints who never sin. We will be able to fully participate in the Divine nature.

And because of this reality, John states in verse 3 that everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure. Now when John uses the word hope, this word refers to looking forward with a confident expectation that something promised is going to happen. In this case, the hope that John is referring to is the confident expectation that Jesus promise to return is going to happen. And this confident expectation in Jesus return is an ongoing reality in their daily lives as they live in genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Him.

And because of this confident expectation of Jesus return in the daily lives of those who have a genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus, John states that these followers of Jesus purify themselves just as Jesus is pure. This idea of purifying literally means to cause one to be morally pure. John’s point is that followers of Jesus who have genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus will live their lives in such a way that causes them to grow in moral purity which produces a life that looks like Jesus in character and conduct.

And it is here, in this section of this letter, that we discover a timeless truth when it comes to connecting in true community. And that timeless truth is this: True community and connection with Jesus Christ will produce confidence in us.  Just as it was for the members of the church at Ephesus; just as it has been for followers of Jesus throughout history; true community and connection with Jesus Christ will produce confidence in us.

The timeless reality is that, as followers of Jesus, our community and connection with Jesus Christ will produce confidence when we meet Him. As we as followers of Jesus live our lives in a way that reveals and reflects Jesus in our character and conduct, we can have confidence that, when Jesus returns, we will enter into the fullness of communion and connection with God that we were created for.

As followers of Jesus, our community and connection with Jesus Christ will produce confidence because of God’s love for us. It is God’s transforming love in our lives that identifies us as His children as we live lives that reveal and reflect Jesus to those around us. It is God’s transforming love that is the source of the confidence that we can have as followers of Jesus that we possess and genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus. And it is that genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus that will result in a life that is lived in a way that is distinctly different from those around us who rebel and reject Jesus. And as a result, those who rebel and reject Jesus will not identify with followers of Jesus because they have refused to identify themselves with Jesus.

As followers of Jesus, our community and connection with Jesus Christ will produce confidence for the future that drives us to become more like Him in the present. The confident expectation that we have as followers of Jesus that Jesus will return as a result of our genuine and authentic community and connection with Jesus will drive us to live our day to day lives in a way that we are becoming more like Jesus in character and conduct.

So here is a question to consider: are you living the extraordinary lives of meaning, purpose, and significance that God created us for? Are you living life in the confidence that comes from a genuine and authentic relationship and connection with Jesus? Are you living lives with a confident expectation of Jesus return that is driving you to become more like Jesus in the present?

Because, as we have discovered, true community and connection with Jesus Christ will produce confidence in us. Our community and connection with Jesus Christ will produce confidence when we meet Him. Our community and connection with Jesus Christ will produce confidence because of God’s love for us. And our community and connection with Jesus Christ will produce confidence for the future that drives us to become more like Him in the present.