Tag: apostle john

1 John 4:1-6

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year CLeave a comment
            The Apostle John gave some spiritually sage advice to a group of his disciples who were being influenced by false believers:  “Dear friends, don’t believe everyone who claims to have the Spirit of God.  Test them all to find out if they really do come from God.”  Lots of people make claims, but the real muster of a Christian is in embracing an embodied spirituality that truly meets the holistic needs of others.
 
            For John, there was no room for the Platonic Greek dualism of body and spirit.  Jesus was a real man with a very real body.  To deny this was to deny the faith.  Ethereal musings about the insignificance of the body were flatly rejected by John.  The apostle was concerned that the supreme Christian ethic of love be practiced through attention to both body and soul.  This means words are not enough; actual demonstrations of love are needed in order to communicate Christ to others.
 
            I’ll be the first guy to insist on some deep theological reflection on the great spiritual, cultural, and social issues of our day.  But if it does not lead to the end of some very real tangible acts of love based on that reflection, then we have not yet been called God’s friend.  Correct doctrine will always lead to loving actions of faith.  We are to glorify God with both speech and service, and never just one without the other.
 

 

            Loving God, since you cared for us by sending your Son, the Lord Jesus, to this earth as a real human being, so let my very real body and soul glorify you with words and ways of love through the power of your Holy Spirit.  Amen.

1 John 2:7-11

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year CLeave a comment
            “If we claim to be in the light and hate someone, we are still in the dark.  But if we love others, we are in the light, and we don’t cause problems for them.  If we hate others, we are living and walking in the dark.” 
 
            Simply based on this Scripture alone, it ought to be abundantly clear that hate really has no place in the Christian’s life.  Hate is never justified for any one person or group of people.  Love, however, is the consummate Christian virtue.  The highest of all truth in Christianity is the grace that is bestowed on us through the love of God.  We, in turn, reflect our Lord’s grace by loving others, no matter their gender, race, creed, or ethnicity.
 
            We all have individuals, maybe even a particular group of persons whom we do not like.  Perhaps we even despise them.  The Apostle John throws the burden of change to fall on those who claim the name of Christ and choose to hate, and not on those for whom we dislike.
 
            So, what will you do today to deal with this Scripture?  Will you begin or continue the difficult process of forgiveness?  How will you come to be ever more characterized by love?  Will you ask God to shine his light on the shadows of your heart?  For those who are in the dark do not see their flaws, but those in the light of the Son see clearly their need for God’s help.
 

 

            Glorious God, you are right and just in all you do.  Let your love shine through me today and every day so that the Name of Jesus is known as gracious and good.  Amen.

1 John 3:10-16

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment
            What’s love got to do with it?  apparently, everything.  The Apostle John makes it clear that love is the distinguishing characteristic of the Christian life.  We only fool ourselves if we say we are lovers of humanity, yet we harbor hate in our hearts.  We deceive ourselves if we claim to be loving persons, yet commit mental murder.  If we either cannot or will not control our tongues through killing another through gossip, slander, backbiting, name-calling, and complaints, then the Apostle John would say that we are evil, period.  There is no fudge factor with John when it comes to love and hate.  Either we are righteous because we love, or we are unrighteous because we hate.
 
            Love is not jealous or unkind.  Love emulates the Lord Jesus by laying down selfishness and hate and taking up the mantle of righteousness through justice and peace.  Saying one thing and living another way is unrighteous.  When words and actions work together, both expressing love, then we are walking in the way of Jesus.  The Old Testament character Cain is Exhibit A of a person who hated his brother.  He was from the evil one because he murdered Abel.  Conversely, Jesus is the consummate example of engaging in a self-sacrificial act in order to love.
 
            Until we come to the realization that our tongues have the power of life and death, we will never learn what true righteousness is and can be.  But when we begin using our tongues as instruments of righteousness, then our actions will follow.  Perhaps the best place to begin is through prayer.  Praying for the welfare and best interests of those we dislike will set us on the road to becoming the Good Samaritan who actively helps instead of passing by on the other side.
            Loving God, I praise you for your Son who demonstrated genuine love.  Help me not to be like Cain who murdered his brother and hated him, but to be like Jesus so that all my words and actions reflect your righteousness – even toward those who do not like me.  Amen.