Monthly Archives: March 2022

THE OLD COMMAND IS NEW

Bible Study, ,

THE OLD COMMAND IS NEW

Dear friends, I am not writing a new command but an old one, which you had since the beginning. This old command is the message you heard. Yet I am writing a new command; its truth is seen in Him and in you, because the darkness is passing and the true light is already shining. (1 John 2: 7-8)

What is the old command that is now new? In the previous chapter, John highlighted the importance of walking in the light in order to maintain fellowship with one another and with the Father and the Son. This was nothing new to his readers if they were Jewish. All their lives they had been taught to obey God’s commands. They understood that they were to live their lives in the light of God’s Word.

The fact that their ancestors had failed to obey God’s Word did not change His requirements. Unfortunately, the pure word of God had been embellished over the centuries by the rabbis’ interpretations and by the addition of so many petty extras that the heart of God’s Word had been obscured.  

What was new to them was the embodiment of that Word in a person. In his gospel, John had introduced Jesus to his readers as the Word – logos.

“Logos is the Greek term translated as “word,” “speech,” “principle,” or “thought.” In Greek philosophy, it also referred to a universal, divine reason or the mind of God . . .

“John’s Gospel begins by using the Greek idea of a “divine reason” or “the mind of God” as a way to connect with the readers of his day and introduce Jesus to them as God. Greek philosophy may have used the word in reference to divine reason, but John used it to note many of the attributes of Jesus.”

http://www.gotquestions.org/what-is-the-Logos.html (retrieved November 2015)

Jesus came from the Father in person, both fully God and fully man, to reveal the true nature of God by being God’s message to His people in person. They no longer had any excuse for not knowing what the true God was like and what He required of them because it was visible in Jesus.

Jesus said that He had not come to do away with the law – torah – God’s directions for living the life that pleased and reflected Him. He came to “fulfil” it – to live it out in person and in the spirit of torah, so that they would understand what God wanted and how to obey Him. It was in this sense that the commandment was both old and new. 

Jesus did not come to change God’s standards or to do away with them. He only did away with that which obscured the true meaning of the way God wanted His people to live. The religious leaders of His day misled His people by placing so much emphasis on the petty additions to God’s instructions that they had thrown mercy out of the window for the rules of behaviour that were nothing but slavery to the people of God.

Jesus was the true light – the revelation of what God wanted – by living in loving submission and obedience to His Father. God did not want children who slavishly followed rules but had no fellowship with the Him, like the elder brother in Jesus’ story of the father and his two sons. Obedience to God’s requirements was not an end in itself. His laws were His prescription for keeping the lines of communication open between His children and Himself so that He could share intimate fellowship with them.

His commandments were never intended to be restrictive but protective because He knew our capacity to destroy ourselves when we make our own rules. Look where the rebellion of the human race against God has brought us. We have trashed His earth, wasted His resources, messed up the natural world and driven nations and peoples apart by our selfishness and greed. 

God’s way promotes reconciliation, fosters forgiveness, harmony and peace among people. It teaches us to care for our world and for one another instead of leaving a trail of wreckage and devastation behind us wherever we go.

Our sin brings death; Jesus came to bring us life – to show us what real life is when we fall in line with who God is, what He requires and what He can do with those who come back under His authority. Life is about becoming fully human again. Sin dehumanises us. It makes us less than who we really are, and who we were created to be. Jesus came to restore us to our full potential as God children. That can only happen when we return to the Father through Jesus and follow our Master by walking in the light and truth of God’s Word.

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

THE MEASURE OF TRUTH

Bible Study, ,

THE MEASURE OF TRUTH

We know that we have come to know Him if we keep His commands. Whoever says, ‘I know Him,’ but does not keep His commands is a liar and the truth is not in him. But if anyone obeys His word, love for God is truly made complete in him. This is how we know that we are in Him: Whoever claims to live in Him must live as Jesus did. (1 John 2: 3-6)

What a difference between the standards of God’s Word and the standards that are applied in many parts of the church today! In some denominations, doctrine has become the standard of acceptance. If its members adhere to the right doctrines – or at least to the doctrines they believe in – everything else is acceptable.

One denomination I know of makes infant baptism the test. If any of its members dares to be baptised by immersion as a believer in obedience to Jesus’ command, he or she is immediately excommunicated because he has “undone his salvation”. Others make premillennialism the criterion. Its members must believe in a secret rapture, an evil antichrist political world ruler and seven years of tribulation before Jesus returns.

Sometimes the standards of the church are whittled down to what is socially or politically acceptable, regardless of what the Word of God says about it. The gay agenda is a case in point. God’s clear condemnation of homosexuality is smoothed over by fine-sounding arguments and rationalisation until it sounds as though we know the truth and God is at fault.

Now I ask, “Where did they find those requirements among the commands of Jesus?”

Peter had blown it badly. He was in the depths of despair because his beloved Master, whom he professed to love, was dead, and he had no opportunity to seek His forgiveness for his terrible words on the eve of His death. Jesus had warned him about a coming test, but Peter had brushed it aside with a cock-sure denial of his weakness. “Even though everyone else forsakes you, I will never do it!”

Then it happened. Peter was caught off guard by a servant girl in the courtyard of the high priest’s house. He lied, and he could not take it back. Instead of owning up, he lied again, twice more and then the cock crowed. It was Jesus’ look that undid him. He remembered Jesus’ warning – too late, and that look of compassion cracked him up. He wept as he had never wept before – big, tough, blustering, motor-mouth Peter!

No, it was not that he did not believe in the right doctrines, or that he failed to carry out the right rituals. He lied about his association with Jesus.

However, there was a sequel to Peter’s failure. Jesus was back among them, alive, as He said He would do. He found His disciples in Galilee, back fishing. He prepared a delicious fish barbeque for them and invited them to join Him. After breakfast, when their hunger was satisfied, He turned to Peter with an unexpected question. “Simon, son of John, do you love me?”

Not, “Why did you do it?” or “Do you promise never to do that again?” but a simple, “Do you love me?” Jesus said nothing about Peter’s failure. Not a word of accusation. Not a whisper of reproach. Just “Do you love me?” Three times, “Do you love me?” Peter must have had to think very deeply about his response. Did he really love Jesus? Why did He ask him that question? Any other question would have been easier to answer.

But, you see, that’s the difference between belonging to a club or organization and belonging to Jesus. We don’t keep the rules because we love the club. We keep the rules so that we are not thrown out, but belonging to Jesus is based on a different criterion.

If you love me, show it by doing what I have told you. (John 14:15 – The Message)

We have already talked about the essence of God’s nature. God is love. Love is the energy that drives Him. Everything about Him is motivated by love. It stands to reason, then, that love is the glue that binds Him to us and, therefore, should bind us to Him.

Our love for Jesus is the power behind everything we do or should be. If we find it difficult to obey Him, we need to ask the question of ourselves that Jesus asked Peter: “Do I really love Him?” Love is the only force that will keep us in union with Him. When we are driven to obey by the fear of punishment, we are still slaves at heart. When we are motivated by love for Jesus, we are the true children of God. 

Not our belief systems or adherence to our church’s requirements, but our love for Jesus, demonstrated by our obedience to what He told us in His word, is the acid test. Our love for Him is expressed by the way we hate what He hates and care about what He cares about. It’s not about keeping rules or else . . . It’s about loving Jesus enough to uphold everything that is important to Him.

Do you really love Him?

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

KEEP THE RECORD CLEAN

Bible Study, ,

KEEP THE RECORD CLEAN

My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father – Jesus Christ the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world. (1 John 2: 1-2)

John – from “Boanerges”, a son of thunder to “the beloved disciple” – a changed man if ever there was one! What transformed him so completely? Was it the discovery of a love so great that he could never be the same again? It was love that paid his debt and set him free to live and love in the power of the Holy Spirit.

John’s first chapter, artificially subdivided, but nevertheless significant, is all about fellowship. What must we do to protect our fellowship with the Father and with His Son, Jesus Christ? “Don’t fool yourself if you have sinned,” said John. “Own up and come clean with God. You can’t fool Him, and you will be estranged from Him until you admit your guilt and receive His pardon and His cleansing.”

Sin is no longer an issue to God, but it is still an issue to us because it affects our fellowship with the Him. “So,” John said, “you don’t have to sin any more.” God has taken care of our sin, once for all, through the death of His Son. He has not only removed it from us, but He has also broken its power over us. He has unmasked the devil who deceived us into believing that we owed allegiance to him, masquerading as Lord, and holding us captive by our bias towards sin.

However, we are still left with the responsibility of making choices, and that makes us vulnerable to the remnants of our sin nature. We can still be tripped up in unguarded moments, and we can still give in to the temptations of the flesh in weak moments, but that does not mean that we must start all over again. God’s provision is complete. We have a legal expert, Jesus, the Righteous One, who continues to plead our case with the Father.

He has a watertight case for mercy – His own blood that He gave as an atoning sacrifice. What does that mean? Our sin did not only corrupt and pollute us so that we could no longer have access to our Father, but it also offended God. God is perfectly holy, just and righteous in all His ways. Our sin was a stench in His nostrils. It made Him very angry because it was an affront to all He did for us.

Imagine a human father building a beautiful home for his family in a quiet and peaceful neighbourhood, tastefully furnishing it with comfortable furniture, and stocking it with every delectable food item for their pleasure and enjoyment. It has a games-room with comfortable couches, a huge flat screen TV, every imaginable kind of book to read and game to play, a bar with fruit juices of every flavour in a refrigerator and tasty snacks of every kind, and every facility you can think of in the house.

When it is complete, he invites his family to view the house and to move in. All they need to do is to bring in their clothing and live under his authority and guidance, and in harmony with one another in their beautiful home, sharing the blessing of everything he has provided.

What do his children do? They thumb their noses at him, refuse to move into the home which he had built for them at great cost, and choose to live in the garden shed which is full of clutter, rats, and cockroaches, because they do not want to live under his authority or keep his rules. Even worse than that, they break into the house and trashed it from one end to the other, smashing the furniture and throwing the food and drink on the floor.

Would that father not be justifiably angry with his children? He has done everything for them out of the love of his heart, but they reject his love because they did not want to be restricted by his authority. He turns his back on them and let them go their own way, and face the consequences of their choices, but he grieves for them because he still loves them and wants them to return to him.

God was justifiably angry with humanity because we did that to Him. We sniffed at His love; we refused to live under His roof, and we trashed the beautiful earth He created for us.  Worst of all, by making our own rules, we destroyed the bodies He created to be His home. He did not only want to live with us; He wanted to live in us, but we fouled up our hearts with so much sin that we became a stench in His nostrils.

So, what did He do? He sent His own Son, made exactly like we were before we chose to rebel against our Father. He lived a pure life in a fouled[up world with stinking people messed up by sin. They took Him and threw Him out, killing Him by nailing Him to cross because His life showed them up for who they were, and they hated Him for it.

However this was God’s plan because His perfect Son was to take our place. He poured out His wrath against our sin on His Son until His anger was fully satisfied. Now He is free to woo His estranged children back to Himself and clean them up when they respond to His love. 

God’s remedy for sin was for all sin, for all people, for all time. Did you get that? Don’t let anyone ever tell you that Jesus only died for the elect. John stated very clearly that He atoned for the sins of the whole world. Everyone has been forgiven but it is only effective for those who have received His forgiveness by faith and come back to the Father to live in His house, under His authority and in obedience to Him.   

So. everyone is invited to return, and we don’t have to sin any more. Let’s keep the record clean so that we can enjoy fellowship with the Father and with His Son, Jesus Christ.

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

HONESTY IS THE KEY

Bible Study, ,

HONESTY IS THE KEY

If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make Him out to be a liar and His word is not in us. (1John 1: 8-10)

I had a recent experience when this Scripture came home to me very vividly. I was in a group of believers and told a story which contained a lie. It came out so unexpectedly that I was caught out and could not wriggle out of it without great embarrassment. On reflection I tried to tell myself that it was nothing and that it didn’t matter, but I could not shake it off my conscience.

This passage of Scripture came repeatedly to my mind. It was not the content of the story that mattered but the fact that I had embellished it with a lie that bothered me. Not even confession to the Lord and taking responsibility for what I had done would give me peace. I knew that I had to own what I had done to a trusted fellow believer.

I am very close to my pastor and I chose to write a letter of confession rather than speak to him because I am able to express myself more freely in a letter. His response was kind and gracious. He said something like this: “Don’t you just love the Holy Spirit? He so gently does everything He can to protect our fellowship with the Father.” That’s it, my dear readers! And the moment I received his message and knew that I had acknowledged my sin to another person, God’s peace once again flooded my heart.

How difficult it is for us to face our sin and own it! Why are we so reticent to acknowledge what we have done when we leave the path of God’s Word and go our own way? John said that we deceive ourselves. Self-deception is just as damaging as Satan’s lies because they have the same source – the devil; and his intention is to disturb our fellowship with the Father and keep us away from enjoying our union with Him.

From God’s perspective, it is not our sin that is the problem – He has taken care of that through the death of His Son. It’s our unwillingness to own it and to come clean with Him. Why do we keep lying to ourselves and to God when we know that He knows our deepest and most intimate thoughts and actions? Pride keeps us from being honest with ourselves and God and robs us of the fellowship we could and should enjoy with Him.

The Father did everything possible to restore us to Himself so that we could return to the state of innocence and righteousness that Adam and Eve enjoyed before they chose their way above His. It cost Jesus His life to bring us back to the Father. Why do we forfeit the honour of closeness to Him just because we won’t acknowledge that we have sinned?

God is not demanding that we drag up everything we have done since birth. That’s not the issue although some people tag the same refrain repeatedly onto their prayers, “And forgive my sins,” as a blanket statement just in case they have forgotten something that God might be holding against them.  Have they forgotten that God has cleaned the record, once for all?

John’s first chapter is about fellowship. What is it that gives us the confidence that we can have fellowship with the Father and with His Son, Jesus Christ; and what disturbs our fellowship with Him?

We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son, Jesus Christ. 1 John 1: 3

Did you get that? We have fellowship with one another and with the Father and the Son because we know and believe the truth about Jesus. What disturbs our fellowship with one another and with God? Not our sin but our dishonesty. We are still in the flesh and in a fallen world. Sin will still be a part of us until we shed this body and depart for the realm where we are no longer subject to sin.  

The Holy Spirit does not convict us of sin; He convicts us of righteousness (John 16: 8-10). He holds up God’s standard of righteousness so that we can come back into line with God’s Word. When we are honest enough to take responsibility for our sin, He responds by washing away our unrighteousness and restoring our fellowship with the Father.

Isn’t that worth a little bit of humility?

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

HOW DO YOU GET ON WITH YOUR BROTHER?

Bible Study, ,

HOW DO YOU GET ON WITH YOUR BROTHER?

This is the message we have heard from Him and declare to you: God is light; in Him there is no darkness at all. If we claim to have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth. But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, His Son, purifies us from all sin. (1 John 1: 6-7)

Amazing, isn’t it, that so much of Christianity today is about holding to the right doctrine, and not about living the right life! John was a Jew – and a practical man. He gives us a simple test for what He calls “walking in the truth”. How do you get along with you brother or sister in the Lord?

There are two words which John uses to describe the essence of God in a nutshell – light and love. He does not say that God is a light, or even that one of God’s attributes is light. He says that God IS light. What does he mean by light? He is not talking so much about physical light – although God is the source of light which includes physical light. He means that God is the essence of everything that is right, pure, and untainted with corruption or imperfection. God illuminates everything so that no imperfection of any kind can be concealed.

The second word John uses to describe God’s essence is “love”. God harbours nothing in His being that is detrimental to His creation, no animosity, impure motive or attitude that will adversely affect anyone or anything, regardless of their response to Him. His attitude towards His creation is positively good.

God’s essence is in perfect balance: He is good to everything He has made because He is love; He always does the right thing and acts with perfect justice because He is light. He cannot be anything else because He is holy – He is always true to who He is.

Those who do not know, understand or believe the true nature of God, attribute to Him the imperfections of human nature. Many reject God’s forgiveness because they do not understand His righteousness. God is light – He cannot sweep sin under the carpet, but He is also love – He could not ignore man’s plight. He is in perfect balance; therefore He made a way by sending Jesus to become a man, live a perfect life and die as a sinner in our place. It’s as simple as that.

But where does that leave us? I said that John was a practical man. God’s provision for us demands a response. He provided forgiveness for the whole world. There is not a single person who is excluded from returning to the Father and being restored to His family but – and this is where the great divide comes between those who are in the kingdom of God and those who are not – everyone must respond, individually and personally by receiving His forgiveness and coming back under His authority.

God effects a change in our hearts from hatred and enmity towards Him to trust, love and allegiance to Him. The Holy Spirit takes up residence in us as God’s temples, and exerts His influence to guide us along the way of God’s instructions. When we live in obedience to God’s word, we walk in the truth. Part of God’s requirement is that we love our neighbour as ourselves. That means playing open cards with our fellow men as we do with God, desiring and doing what is best for them.

John uses this as a test of our obedience to God’s way of truth, not do we believe the right things but how do we get on with each other? It’s no use claiming to be in fellowship with the Father if we have unresolved issues with His children. John says that’s lying, because fellowship with God and with one another go together. Fellowship implies that we have a common basis for living, allegiance to Jesus as Lord, and that we do life together. That is not possible if we harbour grudges, hide our issues and don’t live transparently with one another.

That certainly does not mean that we drag every little perceived hurt out into the open and make an issue of it. The problem, a lot of the time, is that we imagine things about the other person that are not true because we are self-absorbed. Why do we think that other people are always thinking about us – good or bad – or that they have ulterior motives when they say or ask something? That kind of thinking reveals our hearts, selfish – not theirs!

Paul’s counsel and the counsel of the New Testament writers is “live at peace with everyone; forgive as the Lord forgave you; be tolerant towards one another; love one another; give each other the benefit of the doubt; be honest with each other; don’t put on a show or wear a mask; don’t pretend to be who you are not.” This kind of attitude makes for harmony and shows that we are really walking in the light with each other and with the Lord.

We may slip up now and then but do the right thing – communicate. Admit you blew it and ask for forgiveness, Forgive quickly when another has offended you. The bottom line is – show mercy because you have received mercy. Another’s offence against you is miniscule compared with your offence against God, and He freely forgave you.

This is the acid test of fellowship – not adhering to the right doctrines but walking in the light with one another if you want to walk in the light with God. Take responsibility for your own life before you hold grudges against others. When we do that, we can be assured that the blood of Jesus will perpetually keep our hearts clean.

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.