Christ in 1 John -- Son of Light

Just like Peter, John was one of the closest disciples of Jesus.  John walked and talked with Him for the entire three years of His earthly ministry.  He wrote this, his first letter not long before his death in Ephesus, probably in the late 80’s or early 90’s A.D.  You will notice that there are no personal references in this letter, indicating that it was most likely intended to be circulated among all the churches in Asia Minor.  That was a large area covering what is now Turkey, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Iran, Iraq, and Syria.

Who is the most reliable source of information about anything but an eyewitness?  In his introduction, John reminds his readers that what he has to say can be trusted since he was with Jesus from the very beginning of His ministry, and he is telling them what he heard, what he saw, and what he touched as he lived and worked with Jesus, The Word of Life:

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 (1 John 1:1).

If you will look back at the Gospel of John (see my 12/1/2014 post) you will recall that in that book John also referred to Jesus as The Word.  Notice the similarity in these two passages.

In the beginning the Word already existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was God. He existed in the beginning with God. God created everything through him, and nothing was created except through him. 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 1:1-5).

John came right out and told his fellow believers why he was writing to them:

We are writing these things so that you may fully share our joy (1 John 1:4).

He wanted his brothers and sisters in Christ to have the joy that comes with the assurance that their sins had been forgiven and that they could truly enjoy fellowship with God and with each other.  John used several contrasts to teach his readers, including us, about relationships.  He contrasted light and darkness, truth and falsehood, life and death, righteousness and sin, love and hate, fear and victory to show us that we have a close relationship with God.  That relationship was made possible by Jesus whose blood cleanses us from sin:

This is the message we heard from Jesus and now declare to you: God is light, and there is no darkness in him at all (1 John 1:5).

If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness. If we claim we have not sinned, we are calling God a liar and showing that his word has no place in our hearts (1 John 1:8-10).

My dear children, I am writing this to you so that you will not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate who pleads our case before the Father. He is Jesus Christ, the one who is truly righteous. He himself is the sacrifice that atones for our sins—and not only our sins but the sins of all the world (1 John 2:1-2).

That relationship with God will produce a life that reflects the Light that is God:

And we can be sure that we know him if we obey his commandments. If someone claims, “I know God,” but doesn’t obey God’s commandments, that person is a liar and is not living in the truth. But those who obey God’s word truly show how completely they love him. That is how we know we are living in him (1 John 2:3-5).

If anyone claims, “I am living in the light,” but hates a fellow believer, that person is still living in darkness. Anyone who loves a fellow believer is living in the light and does not cause others to stumble. But anyone who hates a fellow believer is still living and walking in darkness. Such a person does not know the way to go, having been blinded by the darkness (1 John 2:9-11).

A relationship with God will produce a life that is not focused on this world, but rather on the Kingdom of God:

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. And this world is fading away, along with everything that people crave. But anyone who does what pleases God will live forever (1 John 2:15-17).

Those who have a relationship with God will not be fooled by false doctrine, because the Holy Spirit who lives in us will show us the difference between the truth and a lie:

The Holy One has given you his Spirit, and all of you know the truth. So I am writing to you not because you don’t know the truth but because you know the difference between truth and lies. And who is a liar? Anyone who says that Jesus is not the Christ. Anyone who denies the Father and the Son is an antichrist (1 John 2:20b-22).

I am writing these things to warn you about those who want to lead you astray. But you have received the Holy Spirit, and he lives within you, so you don’t need anyone to teach you what is true. For the Spirit teaches you everything you need to know, and what he teaches is true—it is not a lie. So just as he has taught you, remain in fellowship with Christ (1 John 2:26-27).

The relationship believer has with God is that of a child.  We are God’s children, and He loves each and every one of us:

See how very much our Father loves us, for he calls us his children, and that is what we are! But the people who belong to this world don’t recognize that we are God’s children because they don’t know him (1 John 3:1).

God’s children do not live a sinful lifestyle.  We are not without sin, but sin is not our pattern for life.  We do not “keep on sinning:”

Dear children, don’t let anyone deceive you about this: When people do what is right, it shows that they are righteous, even as Christ is righteous. But when people keep on sinning, it shows that they belong to the devil, who has been sinning since the beginning. But the Son of God came to destroy the works of the devil. Those who have been born into God’s family do not make a practice of sinning, because God’s life is in them. So they can’t keep on sinning, because they are children of God (1 John 3:7-9).

God’s children will love each other as brothers and sisters.  True brothers and sisters, members of the family of God, will not be like Cain, who killed his brother.  In the same way that Cain hated his brother, Abel, because Cain was evil, the world will hate us because the world is evil:

This is the message you have heard from the beginning: We should love one another. We must not be like Cain, who belonged to the evil one and killed his brother. And why did he kill him? Because Cain had been doing what was evil, and his brother had been doing what was righteous. So don’t be surprised, dear brothers and sisters, if the world hates you (1 John 3:11-13).

God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. This is real love—not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins (1 John 4:9-10).

Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other. No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us, and his love is brought to full expression in us (1 John 4:11-12).

God’s children are fearless!  We have nothing to fear in death, and we have nothing to fear in life since our focus is on His kingdom and not this world:

And as we live in God, our love grows more perfect. So we will not be afraid on the day of judgment, but we can face him with confidence because we live like Jesus here in this world. Such love has no fear, because perfect love expels all fear. If we are afraid, it is for fear of punishment, and this shows that we have not fully experienced his perfect love (1 John 4:17-18).

For every child of God defeats this evil world, and we achieve this victory through our faith. And who can win this battle against the world? Only those who believe that Jesus is the Son of God (1 John 5:4-5).

John concluded his letter by reassuring all believers that they have eternal life and that God hears our prayers when we ask for anything that pleases Him.  Therefore, my prayer this week is that you have the relationship with God that John wrote about.  I pray that you will spend eternity in Heaven with Him and with all those who believe in Jesus, The Son of God, The Word of Life:

I have written this to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know you have eternal life. And we are confident that he hears us whenever we ask for anything that pleases him. And since we know he hears us when we make our requests, we also know that he will give us what we ask for (1 John 5:13-15).

All Scripture references are from the New Living Translation.

Christ in 2 Peter -- The Morning Star

Peter wrote this letter from Rome, probably about 66 A.D., shortly before his death.  The purpose of this short letter was to both encourage and warn his fellow believers.

Peter began to encourage his brothers and sisters in Christ (and that includes us!) in the very first verse of the first chapter.  Peter had been one of Jesus Christ’s closest disciples.  He had walked and talked with Jesus all during His ministry.  He was on the Mount of Transfiguration when Jesus was glorified, and Peter heard the voice of God saying, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him (Matthew 17:5)!”  And here, as we begin to study this letter of encouragement, we see that he told his friends, his brothers and sisters in Christ, and he tells us that the faith we have is the same as his!  Now, if that doesn’t encourage you when you feel like your faith is weak, I don’t know what will!  This is how Peter began his letter:

Simon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, to those who through the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ have received a faith as precious as ours: Grace and peace be yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord (2 Peter 1:1-2).

First of all, he said that our faith comes because of God’s righteousness, not ours.  He also said that our faith is precious, and that we can have faith that is abundant.  He wrote that “abundant faith” comes through knowing more and more of God and Jesus.  The first chapter of his letter tells us how our faith can grow.  He repeated that even the growth of our faith is an act of God, that He gives us everything we need in order to know Him better, and that it was He who called us to Himself:

His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness (2 Peter 1:3).

Secondly, Peter taught that we need to live Godly, morally excellent lives.  We are able to do that, even though we live in a sinful world, by faith which grows by growing our knowledge of God:

For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ (2 Peter 1:5-8).

Therefore, my brothers and sisters, make every effort to confirm your calling and election. For if you do these things, you will never stumble, and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (2 Peter 1:10-11).

Peter warned his friends, and he warns us today, about false teachers and false doctrine.  He warned that their teachings would be destructive and that they would deny Jesus who gave his life for them.  They would promote depraved conduct and dishonor the truth that is taught in the Word of God:

But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves. Many will follow their depraved conduct and will bring the way of truth into disrepute (2 Peter 2:1-2).

That is why Peter made the point of reminding us that we cannot interpret God’s Word to suit our own whims or our own desires.  God’s word does not change, anymore than God Himself who never changes:

Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet’s own interpretation of things. For prophecy never had its origin in the human will, but prophets, though human, spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit (2 Peter 1:20-21).

Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows (James 1:17).

“I the Lord do not change. So you, the descendants of Jacob, are not destroyed. Ever since the time of your ancestors you have turned away from my decrees and have not kept them. Return to me, and I will return to you,” says the Lord Almighty (Malachi 3:6-7).

Peter knew that his friends would face many, many temptations and would be confronted with many false teachers.  He knew there would be a time of darkness, a time that we would have to wait before Christ would return.  He knew without a doubt that Jesus would return, but he had no way of knowing how long that darkness, that night would last.  That’s why he referred to Jesus as the Morning Star:

We also have the prophetic message as something completely reliable, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a light shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts (2 Peter 1:19).

When Peter referred to Christ as The Morning Star, it created a mental picture of the bright star that is seen in the sky just before dawn.  The dark place, or the night, represents the time between Christ’s ascension into Heaven and His return.  During this dark time is when we live in opposition to the world’s order, the time when false teachers and false doctrines will arise. We wait for Him in the darkness, in anticipation of the time when He will eliminate all darkness. The dawn represents the time when God’s light will fill all of creation, when Christ will reign as King of Kings and Lord of Lords, when every knee will bow to Him, and His enemies will be His footstool.  Just like the morning star that we see in the dark sky just before the sun comes up, Jesus will come for His people just before He comes to rule in eternity:

I wait for the Lord, my whole being waits, and in his word I put my hope. I wait for the Lord more than watchmen wait for the morning, more than watchmen wait for the morning (Psalm 130:5-6).

“Surely the day is coming; it will burn like a furnace. All the arrogant and every evildoer will be stubble, and the day that is coming will set them on fire,” says the Lord Almighty. “Not a root or a branch will be left to them. But for you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its rays. And you will go out and frolic like well-fed calves. Then you will trample on the wicked; they will be ashes under the soles of your feet on the day when I act,” says the Lord Almighty (Malachi 4:1-3).

To the one who is victorious and does my will to the end, I will give authority over the nations . . . just as I have received authority from my Father. I will also give that one the morning star (Revelation 2:26, 27b-28).

“I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star (Revelation 22:16).”

One thing that Peter specifically warned about has even more relevance to us today.  The believers in his day were impatient for Christ’s return.  They thought it would happen in their lifetime.  And here we are, almost 2000 years later, and we are still waiting.  God knew we would be impatient.  Mankind has always been impatient and always will be.  But Peter explained that God is sovereign, that He is not being slow to fulfill His promises, but He is patient with His creation, not wishing destruction on anyone:

Above all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. They will say, “Where is this ‘coming’ he promised? Ever since our ancestors died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.” . . . But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance (2 Peter 3:3-4, 8-9).

Every day we live, we are one day closer to His return.  And when He returns, He will come in judgment:

But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything done in it will be laid bare (2 Peter 3:10).

Will you be ready when He comes?

So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him (2 Peter 3:14).

That is my prayer for you and for me this week, along with the last verse in Peter’s second letter, 2 Peter 3:18:

Heavenly Father,
(Help us to) grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be glory both now and forever! Amen.

All scripture references are from the New International Version.

Christ in 1 Peter -- The Stone The Builders Rejected

The book we know as 1 Peter began its life as a letter, written by Peter, the Apostle of Christ, to the churches in northern Asia Minor, what is now Turkey.  It was written from Rome in around 63 A.D. The letter was written in Greek, the most widely spoken language of the day, and it would have been copied by the leaders of each of the churches and spread throughout the region.  The purpose of the book was to encourage the Christians, in the face of persecution, to live holy lives, obedient to God, submissive to earthly authorities, with honor, and showing respect to all people.

Peter began his letter by reassuring the Christians, primarily Gentile, but also the Jewish Christians, that their salvation was achieved because of the mercy of God, by the resurrection of Jesus.  He encouraged them to live in anticipation of eternal life with Him when we all realize the ultimate salvation – salvation from eternal death:

All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is by his great mercy that we have been born again, because God raised Jesus Christ from the dead. Now we live with great expectation, and we have a priceless inheritance—an inheritance that is kept in heaven for you, pure and undefiled, beyond the reach of change and decay. And through your faith, God is protecting you by his power until you receive this salvation, which is ready to be revealed on the last day for all to see (1 Peter 1:3-5).

This encouragement was necessary to the early Christians who were being persecuted on all sides – the established religious system saw the early believers as heretics; the non-religious society saw the believers as strange and judgmental and “holier than thou;” the Roman government saw these people who worshipped a “King” as insurrectionists.  It’s no different for Christians today!  Today, if a Christian truly lives his or her life according to the Word of God, he or she will face persecution, or at the very least ridicule and marginalization.  American Christians have it easy, though, compared to Christians in other parts of the world.  We may be inconvenienced, ridiculed, snubbed, or passed over for a promotion at work, but we are not losing our lives because of our faith – at least not yet.  We really, really need to be in prayer for our brothers and sisters in other parts of the world who are losing everything because of their faith, and we need to pray that the freedoms we enjoy will be preserved.  Every day we hear of Christians being killed in the Middle East, and there is also persecution in China, North Korea, India, Pakistan, and other parts of the world.  This is the kind of persecution Peter was addressing.  So Peter’s letter is as fresh and applicable today as it was almost 2000 years ago.  We need to study this book as though it was written just for us, because in God’s magnificent plan, it was!

Peter reminds us that Jesus had been rejected.  He was the Cornerstone that had been written about by the prophet, Isaiah, and by the psalmist, David:

Therefore, this is what the Sovereign Lord says: “Look! I am placing a foundation stone in Jerusalem, a firm and tested stone.  It is a precious cornerstone that is safe to build on. Whoever believes need never be shaken (Isaiah 28:16).

The stone that the builders rejected has now become the cornerstone (Psalm 118:22).

Peter teaches us that we are stones, too.  Our lives are to be the living stones that God uses to build His church, building upon the Living Cornerstone that is Jesus Christ:

You are coming to Christ, who is the living cornerstone of God’s temple. He was rejected by people, but he was chosen by God for great honor. And you are living stones that God is building into his spiritual temple (1 Peter 2:4-5a).

Jesus Himself told his disciples that they would suffer.  He was trying to prepare them for all the hardship and persecution that they would endure by following Him:

“Look, I am sending you out as sheep among wolves. So be as shrewd as snakes and harmless as doves. But beware! For you will be handed over to the courts and will be flogged with whips in the synagogues (Matthew 10:16-17).”

“If the world hates you, remember that it hated me first. The world would love you as one of its own if you belonged to it, but you are no longer part of the world. I chose you to come out of the world, so it hates you. Do you remember what I told you? ‘A slave is not greater than the master.’ Since they persecuted me, naturally they will persecute you (John 15:18-20a).”

Jesus said that He chose us to come out of the world.  Peter called us resident aliens in a foreign land. That’s because he knew that our citizenship is in heaven:

Dear friends, I warn you as “temporary residents and foreigners” to keep away from worldly desires that wage war against your very souls. Be careful to live properly among your unbelieving neighbors. Then even if they accuse you of doing wrong, they will see your honorable behavior, and they will give honor to God when he judges the world (1 Peter 2:11-12).

As citizens of the United States of America, we see on the news every day stories about illegal immigration, undocumented aliens, immigration reform, etc.  As Christians, we should identify with these “resident aliens” who live among us, because as Christians, we are “resident aliens” in this world.  We are here only temporarily.  Our citizenship and our eternal homeland is Heaven.  Our King is Jesus, and we must answer to Him.  But He commands us to “live properly” in this, our temporary home.  Part of that “living properly” is to submit to all human authorities – we are not above the laws of this land:

For the Lord’s sake, submit to all human authority—whether the king as head of state, or the officials he has appointed. For the king has sent them to punish those who do wrong and to honor those who do right (1 Peter 1:13-14).

Peter gives us a long list of ways we are to live, but it is summarized in a few short words:

As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light (1 Peter 2:9b).

Even when we are persecuted, insulted, mistreated, or even just inconvenienced, we are taught that we need to show others the goodness of God.  If we always do the right thing by showing others the love of God, we will be less likely to suffer.  And if we do suffer, He will know it, He will remember it, and He will reward us for it:

Now, who will want to harm you if you are eager to do good? But even if you suffer for doing what is right, God will reward you for it. So don’t worry or be afraid of their threats (1 Peter 3:13-14).

So then, since Christ suffered physical pain, you must arm yourselves with the same attitude he had, and be ready to suffer, too. For if you have suffered physically for Christ, you have finished with sin. You won’t spend the rest of your lives chasing your own desires, but you will be anxious to do the will of God (1 Peter 4:1-2).

Dear friends, don’t be surprised at the fiery trials you are going through, as if something strange were happening to you. Instead, be very glad—for these trials make you partners with Christ in his suffering, so that you will have the wonderful joy of seeing his glory when it is revealed to all the world (1 Peter 4:12-13).

If you are insulted because you bear the name of Christ, you will be blessed, for the glorious Spirit of God rests upon you (1 Peter 4:14).

But it is no shame to suffer for being a Christian. Praise God for the privilege of being called by his name (1 Peter 4:16)!

My prayer for you, for me, and for all the persecuted Christians all over the world is taken from the last part of chapter five of 1 Peter:

Dear Jesus,
(Help us to) stay alert! (Reminds us to) watch out for (our) great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. (May we all) stand firm against him, and be strong in (our) faith. (Cause us to) remember that your family of believers all over the world is going through (even more suffering than we are, more than we can comprehend). All power to (Jesus) forever! Amen.

All scripture references are from the New Living Translation.