Victory Over Sin.

Isaiah 23-24, 1 John 3

The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil.  – 1 John 3:8 ESV

The people of Judah were well acquainted with sin. They were guilty of it and surrounded by it. God was punishing them for their sin and rebellion against Him. He was using sinful, godless nations as His tools to bring about that punishment. Greed, corruption, gross immorality, selfishness, perversion, apathy, idolatry, and every other form of sin was evident in the lives of the people of God and among the nations of the world. But God had called His people to live holy, set apart lives. He had consecrated them for His use and called them to be His chosen people. “For you are a people holy to the LORD your God. The LORD your God has chosen you to be a people for his treasured possession, out of all the peoples who are on the face of the earth” (Deuteronomy 7:6 ESV). He had provided them with the Law as an objective standard for righteous living. But He had also provided them with the sacrificial system as a means of receiving forgiveness and reconciliation for the sins they were bound to commit. The Law revealed their sin. The sacrificial system provided forgiveness for their sin. But rather than rejoice in the holiness of their God and bask in the amazing mercy and grace He offered them, they turned elsewhere. God indicted them for their unfaithfulness. “These people say they are mine. They honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. And their worship of me is nothing but man-made rules learned by rote” (Isaiah 29:13 NLT). Like the rest of the world around them, the people of God were living in disobedience to and showing disregard for God. So God warns of the day of coming judgment. Over and over again, Isaiah uses the term, “in that day.” He warns of a coming day when God's judgment of man's sin will be complete and comprehensive. It will include all mankind and even impact the earth itself. As in the days of Noah when sin had infected the earth, God will “empty the earth and make it desolate” (Isaiah 24:1 ESV). “The earth shall be utterly empty and utterly plundered; for the Lord has spoken this word” (Isaiah 24:3 ESV). It will be a time of sorrow and suffering, devastation and despair. But even in the midst of the darkness, God's light will shine. He will spare a remnant who will “lift up their voices, they sing for joy; over the majesty of the Lord they shout from the west” (Isaiah 24:14 ESV).

What does this passage reveal about God?

There is a day coming when God will deal with sin once and for all. He will wipe the earth clean from all the residual remnants of sin. Isaiah speaks of the coming day of the Lord, when Jesus Christ will appear a second time on the earth, but this time He will come as the Lord of lords and King of kings. He will come as a warrior dressed for battle to wage war with Satan and to destroy the last vestiges of sin on the earth. John reminds us that the reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil. The apostle Paul gives us a comprehensive list of the “works of the devil” as manifested in the lives of men and women. “When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures,  idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God” (Galatians 5:19-21 NLT). Jesus came to destroy those works. And when Jesus died on the cross, we're told His last words were, “‘It is finished,’ and he bowed his head and gave up his spirit” (John 19:30 ESV). Jesus' death paid for our sins. Not only that, His death made possible our justification. We stand before God the Father as sinless and righteous, because of the shed blood of Jesus Christ. Our sins are paid for. “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1 ESV). But sin still impacts our lives. We still struggle with indwelling sin. Sin surrounds us every day of our lives. When Jesus died on the cross, He paid the penalty for sin, once and for all. He finished that part of His assignment. But there is one last thing He has to do. And the day is coming when He will complete that task as well. We read about it in Revelation 19:5-6: “And he who was seated on the throne said, ‘Behold, I am making all things new.’ Also he said, ‘Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.’ And he said to me, ‘It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give from the spring of the water of life without payment.’” On that day, when “the Lord of hosts reigns on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem” (Isaiah 24:23 ESV), Jesus will have dealt the final death blow to sin and Satan.

What does this passage reveal about man?

Sin is inevitable. Like a cancer, it continues to spread throughout the planet, infecting not only the lives of men and women, but the creation itself. Yet, as God's children – those of us who have placed our faith in Jesus Christ as our Savior – while we are far from sinless, we do have the capacity to sin less. Because of Jesus' finished work on the cross, we have the power to live righteous lives here and now. “You know that he appeared to take away sins, and in him there is no sin” (1 John 3:5 ESV). As a result of that reality, John is able to provide us with some stunning good news.  “No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God's seed abides in him, and he cannot keep on sinning because he has been born of God” (1 John 3:9 ESV). We have a new nature. We have the Holy Spirit of God living within us. Our redeemed nature cannot and does not sin. But we do have a sin nature, and it is alive and well. Paul gives us a vivid picture of these two forces doing battle within us. “So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves. The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions” (Galatians 5:16-17 NLT). As long as we live on this earth, we will face the daily reality of sin's power and presence in and around our lives. But we do have the capacity to live righteously. We do have the power available to live as children of God rather than as children of the devil. We can love. We can live sacrificially and selflessly. We don't have to sin, but far too often, we choose to. We must constantly remember that Jesus Christ came to destroy the works of the devil in our lives – here and now. But we must also live with the hope that He is coming again, and when He comes He will eliminate sin from the earth and from our lives once and for all.

How would I apply what I’ve read to my own life?

The story of mankind's redemption is not yet finished. God's divine plan is not yet complete. There is still one more thing that must happen. His Son must return. He must judge sin and Satan one final time. He must eradicate the last vestiges of sin from the earth. He must judge sinful man. He must right all wrongs and establish His justice over all the earth. And while I live on this earth surrounded by sin and daily putting to death the sin nature in my own life, I must keep my eyes focused on the end of the story. John reminds me that this world is not all there is. “And this is the promise that he has made to us – eternal life” (1 John 2:25 ESV). I must live with that promise in mind.

Father, it is finished, but it is not yet done. Jesus has paid the penalty for sin, but He has yet to destroy it from the planet. It is evident all around us. I can see it's influence in my own life. But the day is coming when sin will be no more. The day is coming when death, disease, sorrow, pain, hatred, greed, selfishness, and every other manifestation of sin in the world will be completely eliminated and Your Son will say, “It is done!” I look forward to that day. Give me the strength to live in light of that day and in the power of Your Spirit until it comes. Amen

Love of the World.

Isaiah 21-22, 1 John 2

Do not love this world nor the things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you. For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world.  – 1 John 2:15-16 NLT

Our love affair with the world comes in all kinds of shapes and forms. Sometimes we simply love what the world has to offer – its pleasures and attractions, promises and appeals to our pride. Other times we reveal our love of the world through our tendencies to turn to it for deliverance from difficulties and salvation from life's sorrows. The people of Judah were guilty of forsaking God and replacing His role in their lives as their Savior, Lord and King. They had made a habit of turning to the world as the solution to their problems. Not only did they put their hope in foreign nations, they actually worshiped the false gods of those nations. The people of God in Isaiah's day were addicted to and craved physical pleasure. They were driven by their senses. And they took tremendous pride in their own accomplishments and material attainments. But just as John warned his readers that “the world is passing away along with its desires,” so God warned the people of Judah that their world of false idols, replacements gods, and psuedo-saviors were going to be done away with. Babylon was going to fall. So would Edom and Arabia. Even the city of God, Jerusalem, would eventually fall at the hands of outside forces in 586 B.C.

What does this passage reveal about God?

God never intended for man to love this world. Even when the creation was free from the effects of sin, it was intended to remind mankind of the one who created it. In Romans, Paul makes it clear that man was never intended to worship the creation. “So they worshiped and served the things God created instead of the Creator himself, who is worthy of eternal praise!” (Romans 1:25 NLT). We are to love the Creator God, not the creation of God. But when John refers to our love affair with the world, he is not speaking of physical creation, but he uses the Greek word, kosmos. In this context, he seems to be referring to what Strong's Concordance refers to as “the whole circle of earthly goods, endowments riches, advantages, pleasures, etc, which although hollow and frail and fleeting, stir desire, seduce from God and are obstacles to the cause of Christ.” There is nothing inherently wrong with earthly goods, riches, or pleasures, but when we treat them as gods, we allow them to replace the one true God in our life. We expect from them what we should only expect from God Himself. The people of Judah had come to expect salvation from foreign nations. They had learned to seek pleasure from false gods and the immoral religions associated with them. They had made a habit out of seeking pleasure rather than holiness. They were driven more by their sensual desires than by spiritual appetites. And God was neither pleased nor tolerant. John so starkly reminds us, “If anyone loves the world, the love of the father is not in him” (1 John 2:15 ESV). 

What does this passage reveal about man?

When we love the world and the things it offers, it manifests itself in desires that come from our sin nature, rather than the Holy Spirit. It shows up as a insatiable lust for things we see and can't seem to live without. It also reveals itself in an unhealthy pride in our possessions. We tend to become what we own. Our identity becomes wrapped up in the outward accouterments of life. In other words, the phrase, “the clothes make the man” becomes a form of truth for us. We believe we are what we own, what we have accomplished and how we are perceived by the outside world. But God would have us remember, “The Lord doesn’t see things the way you see them. People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart” (1 Samuel 16:7 NLT). God is not impressed with our exterior. He is not swayed by what we wear, drive, or live in. He looks at the condition of our hearts. Even so-called religious acts do nothing to impress God if our hearts are not in them. Later on, in chapter 29 of the book of Isaiah, God will declare of the people of Judah, “These people say they are mine. They honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. And their worship of me is nothing but man-made rules learned by rote” (Isaiah 29:13 NLT). Somehow, we have convinced ourselves that the outside is far more important than the inside. We have allowed ourselves to fall in love with the world's version of the truth. We have listened to the lies of the enemy and bought in to his convincing offers of hope, healing, satisfaction, fulfillment and happiness. But God's people are designed to turn to Him as their only source for all their needs. He alone can deliver what they are looking for.

How would I apply what I’ve read to my own life?

John goes on to remind us, “And now, little children, abide in him, so that when he appears we may have confidence and not shrink from him in shame at his coming” (1 John 2:28 ESV). We are to abide in Christ. That word, abide, literally means “to remain in” or “to be held, kept.” It carries the idea that we are to stay focused on and at rest in the saving work of Jesus Christ. We are to seek our satisfaction in Him and no one or nothing else. It is He who keeps us and sustains us in this life. The world will constantly offer false hope and a form of pseudo-salvation, but it will always disappoint and fall short. John would encourage us to remember that not only can we abide in Him now, we will be able to abide in Him for all eternity. “So you must remain faithful to what you have been taught from the beginning. If you do, you will remain in fellowship with the Son and with the Father. And in this fellowship we enjoy the eternal life he promised us.” (1 John 2:24-25 NLT). Our hope is in Christ, right now and for eternity. We can abide in Him. We can rest in Him. We can find all that we need in Him. There is no need to love the world or the things it offers. Those things will pass away, but our relationship with God the Father through Christ the Son is eternal and everlasting, and worthy of our total trust and commitment.

Father, the world can be a pretty enticing place. The things of this world can be a huge distraction and cause us to lose our focus on You and Your Son. Help us to remain in You. Help us to find all our help, hope, happiness and ultimate satisfaction in Your Son and His saving work on the cross. There is nothing this world can offer that Christ has not already provided through His sacrificial death on my behalf. Amen

Walking In Darkness.

Isaiah 19-20, 1 John 1

God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. – 1 John 1:5-6 ESV

The people of Judah had a bad habit. When they found themselves facing times of difficulty, it seems that their first response was to look for an immediate solution to their problem. And their natural impulse was to look for help through human means. When the Assyrians were breathing down their necks, it only seemed natural to turn to some other powerful nation for help. The logical solution to their problem seemed to be a military alliance with a powerful nation-state like Egypt or Cush. But God warned them that these sources of help would prove to be insufficient. He was to be their salvation. He was to be the one to whom they turned when times got tough. But in those dark moments of our lives, when things appear overwhelmingly difficult and we find ourselves in despair, it is so easy to make unwise decisions. We can find ourselves making matters worse for ourselves by focusing our energies, efforts, hopes and hearts on the wrong things.

What does this passage reveal about God?

The apostle John described God as “light.” He is unadulterated light “and in him is no darkness at all” (1 John 1:5 ESV). Light speaks of God's very nature. He is without darkness or sin. He exposes sin in the lives of men. He is pure and holy, completely truthful and provides those who turn to Him with the “light” they need to take the next step safely and securely. John goes on to say that “if we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth” (1 John 1:6 ESV). The people of Isaiah's day claimed to be in fellowship with God, but continually found themselves walking in darkness. Their lives were marked by sin and disobedience to the very one with whom they claimed to have a relationship. And when God disciplined them for their sin, rather than turn to Him in repentance, they groped around in the darkness for help. They turned to nations darkened by sin rather than turn to the light of God. Turning to God would require repentance. God was going to demand that they turn from their love affair with darkness and walk into the light of His glory and holiness. In their minds, turning to Egypt would bring them salvation without repentance. They could remain just as they were. No repentance required. No change necessary. But that wasn't God's plan. That wasn't what God expected of them. So God would have to show them what happens when they refuse the light and turn to the darkness. He would destroy their sources of false hope. “The idols of Egypt will tremble at his presence, and the heart of the Egyptians will melt within them” (Isaiah 19:1 ESV). “I will give over the Egyptians into the hand of a hard master, and a fierce king will rule over them” (Isaiah 19:4 ESV). Judah's “savior” would end up needing salvation.

What does this passage reveal about man?

Fellowship with God involves intimacy. Having a relationship with Him requires coming into His presence and becoming exposed to His light and glory. His holiness exposes and reveals our sinfulness. The closer we get to Him, the more clearly we see our own deficiencies. But John provides us with hope. He reminds us that “if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9 ESV). One of the benefits of living in the light is that it exposes darkness (sin). When God reveals the sin in our lives, it is not to condemn us, but it is in order to transform us. “If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves” (1 John 1:8 ESV). As God exposes the sin in our lives, we have one of two choices. We can either acknowledge it and confess it, or we can simply deny it. But when we deny the very sin that God reveals, we are calling Him a liar. We are refusing to accept His divine assessment of our lives. That was the very problem the people of Judah had. God was punishing them in order to get them to acknowledge their unfaithfulness. He wanted them to see the error of their ways and repent. But rather than repent, they sought out other sources of salvation. Rather than admit their sins, they simply looked for other “saviors.” But it's interesting to note that their choices would prove disappointing. Not only would Egypt be unable to save them, they would ultimately need saving by God. Isaiah prophesied about a time to come when God would rescue the Egyptians and cause them to turn to Him as their God. “When they cry to the Lord because of the oppressors, he will send them a savior and defender, and deliver them. And the Lord will make himself known to the Egyptians, and the Egyptians will know the Lord in that day and worship with sacrifice and offering” (Isaiah 19:20-21 ESV). The day is coming when God will send a savior, His Son Jesus Christ, to rescue and redeem even the Egyptians and the Assyrians. That day has not yet come. It will take place when Christ establishes His millennial kingdom on earth.

How would I apply what I’ve read to my own life?

God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. Our man-made solutions are always draped in darkness. Our human saviors are always flawed and marred by sin. God is the ultimate solution to mankind's problem and man's greatest problem is sin. The people of Judah had a sin problem. The people of Egypt had a sin problem. The people of Cush had a sin problem. The people of America have a sin problem. You and I have a sin problem. And the solution is Jesus. John wrote, “We proclaim to you the one who existed from the beginning, whom we have heard and seen. We saw him with our own eyes and touched him with our own hands. He is the Word of life. This one who is life itself was revealed to us, and we have seen him. And now we testify and proclaim to you that he is the one who is eternal life. He was with the Father, and then he was revealed to us.  We proclaim to you what we ourselves have actually seen and heard so that you may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. We are writing these things so that you may fully share our joy” (1 John 1:1-4 NLT). Jesus Christ was the Word of life. He is the source of eternal life. He is the means by which we can have fellowship, a restored relationship with God the Father. He came to pay the penalty for our sins. But He also came to set us free from the indwelling presence of sin in our lives. In his gospel, John describes Jesus as the light and says, “The Word gave life to everything that was created, and his life brought light to everyone. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it” (John 1:4-5 NLT).

Father, thank You for sending the Light into the world. Thank You for sending the Light into my life. I am grateful that His presence in my life continues to expose the sin in my life. His holiness continually reveals my sinfulness. Not to condemn me, but in order to allow the Holy Spirit to continue His work of transforming me into the character of Christ. You are slowly, steadily making me the light You have called me to be. But there is always the temptation to run back to the darkness, to turn to something or someone else for answers to my sin problem. Help me understand that You alone are the sole source of help and hope for my life. Amen

Our Ultimate Inheritance.

Numbers 33-34, John 8

So he said to them again, “I am going away, and you will seek me, and you will die in your sin. Where I am going you cannot come.” – John 8:21 ESV

The Israelites had traveled a long and winding road to get to the land of promise. Chapter 33 of Numbers recounts the circuitous route they took to arrive at the border of the land of Canaan. They had covered a lot of miles and committed their fair share of sins. An entire generation of them had died in the wilderness due to their disobedience and refusal to enter the land the first time they had had the opportunity. And more than 40 years later, as they stood once again on the border looking into the land promised to them by God, He had to remind them, “When you pass over the Jordan into the land of Canaan, then you shall drive out all the inhabitants of the land from before you and destroy all their figured stones and destroy all their metal images and demolish all their high places” (Numbers 33:51-52 ESV). And He had to warn them, “But if you do not drive out the inhabitants of the land from before you, then those of them whom you let remain shall be as barbs in your eyes and thorns in your sides, and they shall trouble you in the land where you dwell. And I will do to you as I thought to do to them” (Numbers 33:55-56 ESV). The land before them was to be their inheritance. It had been promised to them by God Himself. But without even reading any further, it would be easy to assume that these people were going to have a difficult time keeping God's commands regarding the land. They had a track record of disobedience and a knack for doing things their own way, rather than God's. They would eventually make it into the land, but things would not go well for them.

What does this passage reveal about God?

There is a real sense in which all of God's interactions with the people of Israel were a glimpse into the future. They were a foreshadowing of something yet to come. In a way, the events of the Old Testament were a temporary or partial outpouring of God's more complete plan to come. God's promises to them were real. His love for them was complete. But His plan was far more reaching than just their initial entrance into the land. God's call of Abraham extends far into the future, all the way to the coming of Christ and even into the distant future where He will return and establish His Kingdom on earth. As we are all prone to do, the Israelites focused on the hear and now. They were short-sighted, suffering from limited vision and looking only for the more immediate benefits of their relationship with God. Even by the time Jesus appeared on the scene, the Jews were still looking for a Messiah who would provide them with immediate relief from their subjugation to Rome. They wanted a king who would rule and reign like David of old. They were looking for a political Messiah, not a spiritual one. Even Jesus' disciples kept wondering when He was going to set up His earthly kingdom. They even argued about which one of them was going to get the privilege of ruling by His side. But God's plan was far greater than a short-term, earthly reign of yet another human king.

Jesus told the Jews of His day, “I am going away, and you will seek me, and you will die in your sin. Where I am going, you cannot come” (John 8:21 ESV). His words confused them. They assumed He was threatening to commit suicide. But Jesus clarified His statement by saying, “You are from below; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world. I told you that you would die in your sins, for unless you believe that I am he you will die in your sins” (John 8:23-24 ESV). At that point, Jesus establishes the primary difference between the people of Israel and Himself. While He stood before them as a man, He was not one of them. He was “from above.” Jesus was “not of this world.” He was God. His Kingdom was not of this world. Later on in the book of John, we will read these words spoken from the lips of Jesus: “My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered over to the Jews. But my kingdom is not from the world” (John 18:36 ESV).

What does this passage reveal about man?

But the Jews couldn't see beyond the reality of their present circumstances. There vision was myopic and limited. They were not looking for a future, yet unseen Kingdom, they were wanting an immediate kingdom that was of this earth and ruled by an earthly, human king. They had turned the grand plan of God into a petty, me-centered, now-focused, short-sighted plan that focused solely on their own selfish desires. They had long lost sight of the reality that God's plan had always been far more encompassing than their own selfish desires. He had allowed an entire generation of their ancestors die in the wilderness and lose out on the blessings of the Promised Land because of their unbelief. He had refused to allow Moses or Aaron to enter into the Promised Land because of their failure to treat Him as holy. The Jews of Jesus' day claimed that God was their Father, but Jesus said, “If God were your Father, you would love me, for I came from God and I am here. I came not of my own accord, but he sent me” (John 8:42 ESV). They couldn't recognize Jesus for who He was because He didn't fit their expectations. He was a spiritual Savior and they were looking for a political one.

They had lost sight of God's plan. In fact, Jesus even accused them of being children of Satan, not God. “You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father's desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and has nothing to do with the truth, because there is not truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character for he is a liar and the father of lies. But because I tell the truth, you do not believe me” (John 8:44-45 ESV). They had learned to listen to the lies of the enemy. And one of His greatest lies is to get us to believe that God's plan is all about us. He wants us to believe that we are the stars of the show and that God exists for our glory, instead of the other way around.

How would I apply what I’ve read to my own life?

Seeing God's greater plan is difficult when we are constantly surrounded by the more immediate concerns of this temporal world. it is so easy to make it all about the here-and-now. When the Israelites were standing on the edge of the Promise Land, God told them there were going to have to remove all the nations that lived in the land. There was a long-term strategy to God's command. He was looking at the long-term health of the nation of Israel. But they would suffer from short-sighted convenience and compromise. They would refuse to do things God's way, and they would suffer the inevitable consequences. But I can do the same thing. By focusing on short-term benefits, I can lose sight of God's future-based promise. God's plan for the Israelites wasn't limited to getting them into the land. He wanted to make of them a great nation. But He also wanted to bring about a future descendant of King David who would rule and reign for eternity. God's plan for the Israelites went well beyond just the literal descendants of Abraham. He was going to bless ALL the nations of the earth through Abraham through a descendant of Abraham – Jesus Christ. I have to keep a future focus as I live in this present age. This is not all there is. God's plan does not culminate with or revolve around ME! There is more yet to come. God has more yet to accomplish. Jesus has work yet to complete. Jesus promised all those who would believe in Him eternal life. He said, “if anyone keeps my word, he will never see death” (John 8:51 ESV). That is a future promise. I must focus on that. The apostle Paul put it this way: “I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us” (Philippians 3:14 NLT). I have not yet arrived. God is not yet done. Jesus is not yet finished. My full inheritance has not yet been realized. But I eagerly await God's future fulfillment of His faithful plan.

Father, give me a future focus. Help me to keep my eyes on the prize. Don't let me make it all about me. Your plan is far greater than my own selfish desires and petty dreams. What You have planned for mankind is far greater than anything I could ever dream up. Help me to patiently and eagerly wait for the fulfillment of Your plan, instead of concocting my own. Amen

What Do You Know?

1 John 5

We know that those who have become part of God’s family do not make a practice of sinning, for God’s Son holds them securely, and the evil one cannot get his hands on them. We know that we are children of God and that the world around us is under the power and control of the evil one. And we know that the Son of God has come, and he has given us understanding so that we can know the true God. And now we are in God because we are in his Son, Jesus Christ. He is the only true God, and he is eternal life. – 1 John 5:18-20 NLT

John wraps up his letter with a few simple declarations about what it is we should know as believers in Jesus Christ. He says we should know that as believers, because we belong to God and He cares for us, we will not live lives that are characterized by habitual, repeated sin. We will not be easy prey to the enemy. Sin will be a part of our lives, but not a prevalent or pervasive part. We won't make it a practice of sinning. We will find sinning repulsive, not attractive. Why? Because we are held securely in the hands of Jesus Christ. He not only died for us, He lives for us. He has given us His Spirit to empower us. Sin becomes an anomaly in my life, not normalcy.

Secondly, John says that we should know that we are children of God. We should recognize that we are called to be set apart, distinct and different from the world around us. In fact, he reminds us that we should also have an awareness that the world is under the power and control of the enemy. Nothing we see happen in the world should surprise or shock us. The news we see on TV and in the daily paper should not be news to us at all. It is the natural outcome of a world under the control of Satan. The Message paraphrases verse 19 this way, "We know that we are held firm by God; it's only the people of the world who continue in the grip of the Evil One." That makes it a little more personal, because we are not talking about an impersonal world, but about real people who are "in the grip of the Evil One." They are enslaved to sin and to Satan. He is using them and abusing them daily. He cares nothing for them, but only desires their destruction. But we have the privilege of being children of God. Do you see the dichotomy here? We are the "haves" and they are the "have nots." We have what they need, but we are like children from a wealthy family who walk by the poverty in their own community everyday without using our abundant resources to do anything about it. Yes, we are called to distinct, but that does imply distance. We know we are children of God, and we know they are not. But our desire should be that they experience the same adoption into God's family that we have enjoyed.

Finally, John says that we know that Jesus is the Son of God and that He has given us the ability to understand and know God. John uses two different words for "know" here. The first word is eido and it simply means that we recognize or understand. We see or perceive that the Son of God has come. It is evident in our lives and in His ministry to us and through us. This has to do with perception. The second word is ginosko and it has to do with intimacy. It means "to know, understand, perceive, have knowledge of." Because Jesus Christ has come into my life, I have the ability to know God in an intimate and personal way. I have been reconciled or made right in my relationship with Him. I was once an enemy, but now I am His child. I was once under His divine wrath, but now I enjoy His love and compassion. I have a personal relationship with the one true God.

Do you know that today? Do you think about it? Do you see it and perceive it in your life every day? It reminds me of the words of the old hymn, "I Know Whom I Have Believed."

I know not why God's wondrous grace To me He hath made known, Nor why, unworthy, Christ in love Redeemed me for His own.

But I know Whom I have believèd, And am persuaded that He is able To keep that which I've committed Unto Him against that day.

I know not how this saving faith To me He did impart, Nor how believing in His Word Wrought peace within my heart.

But I know Whom I have believèd, And am persuaded that He is able To keep that which I've committed Unto Him against that day.

Father, there is a lot I don't know. But I do know that Your Son came to give me eternal life and because of simple faith in the gospel message, I am now Your Son and have a relationship with You that I never could have had any other way. I also know that I am Your child and I live among people who do not enjoy that same privilege. They are under the control of the enemy. They are slaves to unrighteousness. Give me a heart for them. Don't let me walk past them, judging them as I go. May I perceive their predicament and understand that I have the answer. It is the same gift I received from You. Amen

Real Love.

1 John 4

This is real love. It is not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins. – 1 John 4:10 NLT

John has been talking a lot about living a life where our actions match our confession – where what we do lines up with what we say we believe. And this chapter continues that theme. He hammers home once again that our lives should be characterized by love – for God and for one another. Why? Because love comes from God (Vs 7). The very capacity we have to love is a gift from God and reveals that we belong to Him. It also reveals to the world around us that God exists and is at work in us. "No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us, and his love has been brought to full expression through us" (Vs 12 NLT). God has given us His Spirit, who in turn gives us the capacity to love.We give evidence of God's presence in us through the love that flows from us.

But John's main point seems to be that we get to experience real love by remembering what God did for us on the cross. He sent His own Son to die on our behalf. Jesus took our place and our punishment upon Himself. He paid the price we could not pay. He wiped clean the insurmountable debt we owed by sacrificing His own life. This is the doctrine of propitiation. Sounds like a big theological term, but it's really quite simple. It comes from the Greek word hilasmos which means "an appeasing or propitiation." Verse 10 is translated this way in the New American Standard Version: "In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins."

Back in chapter two, John states, “and He Himself is the propitiation for our sins; and not for ours only, but also for those of the whole world” ( 1 John 2:2 NASB). The doctrine of propitiation means that the person and death of Jesus Christ appeased or turned away God’s wrath, satisfying His holiness by meeting His righteous demands. In other words, Jesus’ sacrifice made it possible for God to be propitious (or favorable) to us. God is Holy and cannot tolerate evil. In fact, as a holy God, He had to punish evil and mete out justice. That justice demanded death. The wrath of God against the sinfulness and rebellion of mankind could only be satisfied by His just demands being met. Someone had to pay. The problem was that man was in no condition to pay the price that God demanded. So we stood before God's wrath fully deserving His verdict of "guilty" and His sentence of death and eternal separation from Him. But God stepped in with His own solution. He showed His love by coming up with a perfect plan that involved His perfect, sinless Son.  Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross satisfied all the requirements of God's justice, turned away His wrath, and reconciled or restored us to a relationship with Him. John says, "That's real love!" He loved us at our worst. He loved us when we didn't deserve love. He loved us when we couldn't love Him back. Paul puts it this way, "But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners" (Romans 5:8 NLT). So John's logical conclusion is, "since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other" (Vs 11 NLT). God's incredible love for us is the motivation behind our love for one another. Just how much has God loved us? "God showed how much he loved us by sending his only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him" (Vs 9 NLT).

As John so clearly puts it, "We love, because He first loved us" (Vs 19 NASB). You can't say you love God and then turn around and hate your brother (Vs 20). "If anyone boasts, "I love God," and goes right on hating his brother or sister, thinking nothing of it, he is a liar. If he won't love the person he can see, how can he love the God he can't see?" (Vs 20 MSG). If you are loved by God, and you are, then you should love God in return. More than that, you should love others with the same kind of love He has shown you. As Charles Ryrie so aptly puts it, "To live a love-filled life is to live a God-filled life."

Father, thank You for Your incredible love for me. I didn't deserve it. I still don't deserve it, but I bask in it every single day of my life. Help me learn to love my brothers and sisters in Christ with the same selfless, sacrificial love. So that the world may know that You live within me. By this will they know that we are Your Son's disciples, if we love one another (John 13:35). Amen

The Proof Is In the Pudding.

1 John 3

Dear children, let us stop just saying we love each other; let us really show it by our actions. – 1 John 3:18 NLT

My wife loves it when I say, "I love you!" But she loves it even more when I show here how much I love her with actions that express my love for her. If all I ever did was express my love in words, but never backed it up with tangible, heart-felt acts of kindness and love, she would begin to question the truth behind my words. With that in mind, today's blog is like a part two of yesterday's blog, "Talk Is Cheap." John seems to be the same basic thought by continuing to stress love in action. Our lives are to be characterized by Christ-likeness. We are to live in purity and sinlessness, so much so that we stand out as children of God, rather than children of the devil (Vs 10). One of the ways we express our Christ-likeness is through our love for one another. John reminds them: "This is the message we have heard from the beginning: We should love one another" (Vs 11 NLT). Our love for one another is proof or evidence that we are in Christ and have His Spirit living within us. "If we love our Christian brothers and sisters, it proves that we have passed from death to eternal life. But a person who has no love is still dead" (Vs 14 NLT). What kind of love are we talking about? Is it a sentimental, Hallmark Card kind of love expressed only in words? No. John makes it clear that the kind of love he is talking about is the kind of love that Christ showed to us. "We know what real love is because Christ gave up his life for us. And so we also ought to give up our lives for our Christian brothers and sisters" (Vs 16 NLT).

You see, real love is tangible. It is measurable. The proof is in the pudding as the old saying goes. In fact, the original phrase was "the proof of the pudding is in the eating." It meant that the true value or quality of something can only be judged when it is put to use. In other words, results are what counts. Isn't that what John is saying? "Let us stop just saying we love each other; let us really show it by our actions" (Vs 18 NLT). What are the results of our so-called love for one another? Is the abiding love of Christ in us showing up in abiding love for others? Do we love as He loved?

"And this is his commandment: We must believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and love one another, just as he commanded us" (Vs 23 NLT).

Father, You have expressed Your love for me by sending Your own Son to die in my place for my sins. You continue to show Your love to me every day by continuing to shower me with Your grace and mercy when what I really deserve is Your wrath and justice. Yet I find it hard to love others. I can mouth the words and claim to love them, but so often fail to back it up with actions. Your Son showed His love by dying for me. The first step in learning to love others more is for me to learn to die to myself. To give up my rights, my will, and my own comfort for the good of others. Amen

Walk The Talk.

1 John 2

Those who say they live in God should live their lives as Christ did. – 1 John 2:6 NLT

Our confession should be backed up with action. What we say we believe should show up in how we behave. John was really clear on this. But this was not some new kind of teaching. He was just expanding on the very words of Jesus found in the Great Commission: "Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age" (Matthew 28:19-20 NLT). Jesus Himself taught that His disciples would be marked by a life of obedience to His commands. Obedience to His commands would mean that every one of His disciples would live a different kind of life. So John is simply teaching what Jesus taught when he says, "And how can we be sure that we belong to him? By obeying his commandments. If someone says, 'I belong to God,' but doesn’t obey God’s commandments, that person is a liar and does not live in the truth. But those who obey God’s word really do love him. That is the way to know whether or not we live in him" (1 John 2:3-5 NLT). Our obedience to His commands is proof that we belong to God. It is how we know whether or not we really belong to Him. It is the evidence of our new relationship. Because without a relationship with Christ we would not even have a desire or an inclination to obey His commands.

John says that we should live as Jesus did. What does He mean by that? For one thing, it means that we are to live in submission to the Father. Also, we are to live in complete dependence upon the Father and in absolute obedience to His desires. Jesus did. Jesus also lived a life of sacrificial service to mankind. So should we. But the temptation is to live with the spotlight focused on us and our needs and desires. Jesus came to serve, not to be served. He came to give Himself away, not to have others give to Him. In doing so, He was doing the will of the Father. One of the greatest evidences that we have an abiding relationship with God is the love that we show for one another. John says, "Anyone who loves other Christians is living in the light and does not cause anyone to stumble" (Vs 10 NLT). Jesus Himself said, "Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples" (John 13:35 NLT).

We are to love and live as Jesus did. Our walk should match our talk. How we behave should line up with what we say we believe. We are to love one another. We are to live in obedience to God. We are NOT to love the world or the things of this world. Our lives are to be characterized by Christ-likeness. We are to follow His example. We are to live as He lived. We are to love as He loved. We are to give as He gave. We are to do as He did. We are to walk the talk.

Father, may my life be increasingly more marked by Christ-likeness. May obedience to His commands be what motivates me and marks me as one of Your children. Amen

So You Say?

1 John 1

If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. – 1 John 1:6 NASB

If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us. – 1 John 1:8 NASB

If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar and His word is not in us. – 1 John 1:10 NASB

Three times in the opening of this little letter, John uses this little phrase, "if we say." And all three seem to have to do with saying or claiming something that is not really true. I say I have fellowship with God, but I still live in darkness (sin). I say I have no sin, but the reality is I do and I'm everyone knows it but me. I say I have never sinned, but by claiming that I contradict the word of God and make Him out to be a liar. Saying it doesn't make it so. Words really are cheap. What I say really doesn't matter if it isn't backed up by truth and lived out in reality. I can say I believe in God, love God, worship God, and fear and respect God, but if it doesn't show up in my daily life, it is nothing but lip-service and empty words.

John seems to be calling us to live it, not say it. Do it, not just claim it. He says, "if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another" (Vs 7 NASB). In other words, if we live lives that are in obedience to God and in daily fellowship with God, then it will be evident in the way we live with one another. We won't have to say it, because others will see it. It will be visible proof that the blood of Jesus has cleansed us from all sin. John goes on to address this issue of sin. He says, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness" (Vs 9 NASB). All we have to do is agree with God about the fact that we are sinners who sin. Confess it. Admit it. Fess up to it. To do so reveals that we have the truth of God's word in us. To deny it just shows that we never really heard the truth. And one important point here is that we realize that to NOT confess is to say that we have no sin. When we refuse to confess, it is as if we are telling God that we have no sin to confess. We might as well just come out and say so. That's John's third point. Lack of confession is basically saying to God that we have not sinned. Every time we sin and refuse to confess it, we are telling God He is a liar, because God says we all sin. On top of that, His Holy Spirit personally convicts us of sin on a daily basis. His Word convicts us of sin. When that happens and we choose to ignore the sin in our lives and not confess it, we make Him out to be a liar. We are telling God that He is wrong.

So what do you say? Do you walk in the Light? Do you confess? Are your actions more powerful than your words? Do your actions speak louder than your words? John says, "God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all" (Vs 5 NASB). Are you living in that Light? If so, it will be evident to all those around you, no matter what you say.

Father, may our actions speak louder than our words. May we be a people who are known by how we live in the Light, not just what we have to say about it. When we fail to live in the Light, may we be willing to confess it and accept your forgiveness. Not deny it and claim to have never done it. Words are cheap. Your grace was not. Amen