Good morning and happy Tuesday, yes I know what you’re thinking…it’s taco Tuesday. That sweet day where you are rightly encouraged to enjoy the perfect meat filled crispy shells of delight. Oh tacos, you are so good.
Yesterday was another fun-filled afternoon at our VBS, Spring Break out 2019. We have two rotations throughout the afternoon and the kids have a choice of 4 different activities to pick from. Soccer, basketball, art or music. As a volunteer I got to choose where to volunteer so I of course picked basketball. I love the sport and played all through junior high and High School. The kids call me ‘Coach Dan’ and we have tons of fun running through drills and playing all kinds of shooting games. What a great way to hang out with the kids and be able to tie in how loving God and loving others can also fit into how we play team sports. We are at a real shortage of Godly sports figures today and our youth are seeing team sports as just another way to promote yourself and get rich. I’m thankful for the opportunity to interject God into sports.
This morning we’ll be in 1 John chapter 2. I love the book of 1 John, in fact it’s funny I should use the word love as it’s known as the book of love. John uses the word love 33 times throughout this book. He interlaces the theme of love into every nuance of our journey with Christ. In fact, great segway, this leads us right up to our study verses for the day and how walking in the Word of God will cause a love to flow from us that will produce a life that emulates Jesus Christ.
“5 but whoever keeps His word, in Him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in Him: 6 whoever says he abides in Him ought to walk in the same way in which He walked.” 1 John 2:5-6
John was a rugged fisherman and his books are noticeably very blunt and straight forward. He is just a guy that would say it like it was and not dress it all up. In fact, in verse 4 of this chapter he says that if “you say you know Jesus but don’t keep His commandments you are a liar.” John doesn’t soften the truth with his words and I love that. We live in a world today where it seems it’s all about “softening the truth.” Sometimes even to the point where the truth can get lost completely in the ease of its delivery. John’s text here is blunt, clear and concise that if you’re not in line with God and His Word, then you’re out of line.
So let’s break down the first part. “Whoever keeps His Word, in him the love of God is perfected.” Pretty straight forward. God gives us commands and instructions in His Word, if we keep them, the relationship between us and God is nearer perfection. At least it sounds pretty simple, but us humans can mess up a good deal, that’s for sure. (Adam and Eve…)
So let’s look at a few key components of what it actually means to even be able to try to keep His Word. First of all, you need to know what God’s Word says. It pains my soul to see how little people know of God’s Word. Now, I’ll throw myself right here into this group too. If I look at Dan from years ago, I’ll embarrassingly admit that I knew almost nil about the depth of God’s Word. (I still don’t know much but I learn more daily) Question? Do you want to experience a deeper, more personal walk with God? Do you want to hear God speak wisdom into your life? The way to get this is so simple, but yet I see so few grasping it. Spend time studying His Word. Grab your Bible and study it daily. Pray for the Holy Spirit to bless your understanding first and then just read. It’s just that simple. As Nike says, “Just do it.” In doing so you will gain knowledge of His Word and with the help of the Holy Spirit He will turn that knowledge into wisdom. Wisdom is the practical application of God’s Word into your life. Wisdom is the Holy Spirit allowing you to see the problems, trials and obstacles of life through God’s eyes. The wisdom of applying God’s Word will not only transform your life but it will transform the lives of those around you. So, in order to keep His Word, first you need to know it and then you need to have the Holy Spirit help you apply it.
The next verse is the focus of our study today.
“whoever says he abides in Him ought to walk in the same way in which He walked.” 1 John 2:6
So the verse is pretty clear. If you say that you are saved by Jesus, you should walk as Jesus walked when He lived here on this planet. Now of course this is impossible. Jesus was perfect and was the only prefect person to ever walk on the Earth. But does that mean we are to simply look at the impossibility and give up? Not even close. We’re told we should emulate Christ and the perfect example we have been given. Jesus sets the bar high and we strive for it.
As I’m working with the kids on shooting a basketball, I coach them all in the same shooting mechanics. I teach them the absolute best way to hold, aim, propel and spin the ball in order to give it the best opportunity to go into the goal. But I notice that out of the 20 kids in my group that the same teaching is taken very differently with very different results. Some learn quickly and emulate well, achieving great results. Some don’t listen, or they’re talking too much, and they execute poorly and wonder what happened. Why are the other kids getting more baskets? This is the crux of this verse. God sets the bar very high with the perfect life of Jesus. If we study the Word of God and live within its guidelines, we will do well for God. But if we’re not listening, maybe talking too much we can receive the same set of instructions and fall well short of others. So, does that mean that God should set the bar lower, so that more people can be like Jesus? Maybe in today’s world that line of logic might work as everybody wins and everybody gets a trophy, but that’s not how God works. God gives us Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit and His Word and then turns us loose to see what we do with them. Take all three of them, live in them daily, and then emulate the perfect life of Jesus. My friends, that is a lofty goal that will bring sweet results indeed.
So we’re told to walk the walk of Jesus. But that’s a really big broad statement, what exactly is John speaking of here? Can He please narrow that down a bit. I’m glad you mentioned it, because that’s exactly what he does for us over the remainder of the chapter. In fact, he gives us three specific things we should adhere to as we strive to walk the walk of Jesus.
1) Do not hate your brother.
“He who says he is in the light, and hates his brother, is in darkness until now. 10 He who loves his brother abides in the light, and there is no cause for stumbling in him. 11 But he who hates his brother is in darkness and walks in darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.” (1 John 2:9-11)
Remember this is known as the book of love and here we see a command we have seen throughout God’s Word…Love your brother. Although here John works it from the other side and delivers the command to ‘not hate your brother.’
Now, this is specifically talking about a brother or sister in Christ, another Christian. If you are a follower of Christ, you will love other followers of Jesus. Now notice it doesn’t say it will be easy. Some people are just hard to love, but loving doesn’t depend on how easy it is for you, it depends on your heart. Your heart for Jesus. We are to love the brethren, all of them. In fact, John in his bold speech says that if you don’t love your brothers and sisters, that “he walks in darkness.” If you were with me for the study of “the light” yesterday, (1 JOhn 1) you know that “God is light and in him is no darkness.” Light is the pure good of God and darkness is pure evil and the absolute absence of God. My friends this verse should rock you to the core in its honest revelation. If you have hate in your heart, you CANNOT have God in your heart. If you hate a fellow believer, you have the absolute absence of God in your heart. If you want to walk the walk of Jesus, you first need a pure love for your brothers and sisters in Him. Your love for the brethren is a picture of your heart that the world sees.
2) Do not love the world.
“Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world. 17 And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.
World here is from the Greek word “kosmos” and it specifically refers to the world system, the organized system headed by satan which leaves God out and is in opposition to Him. It’s the “dog eat dog” world we live in. When I think of this "world", I think of the millions of lost people in it and the fact that there is no love between them. People kill, steal, destroy and hate each other. There is no love, there is no respect and it is full of darkness. The world is full of self-satisfaction. We’re told hundreds of time a day what we need to be satisfied. We need money, the things money can buy, fame, better looks, easier lives, more modern electronics, to be better connected with the world, to be more entertained and my favorite…you just flat out deserve more. I’ve been seeing these buzz words every where lately. You deserve it. You deserve more money in your job. You deserve a BMW. You deserve a better home, meaning in general, just bigger. (You could have the best mid-sized house on the planet but somehow one that is 1000 sq ft bigger is somehow better?) This is marketer’s prose and folks, it’s straight from satan. We don’t deserve anything better. We deserve what God has given us and we should be happy in it. We are told here by John that if we are to emulate the walk Christ walked here on this planet, we cannot be lovers of the world. “But godliness with contentment is great gain. 7 For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. 8 But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. 9 Those who want to get richfall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. 10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.” (1 Tim 6:6-11)
I have walked the walk of the world before and it was a sad, frustrating walk indeed. It started with always jockeying for a job that made more money. Without money you can’t buy the stuff. If you can get money then the fun starts…or does it? A big house, cars, toys, junk, stuff, stuff, stuff. I’ve heard it said that you don’t own your stuff, but your stuff owns you. It couldn’t be more true. We’re told in Matt 6:24, “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.” John is laying it out here, if you love the world, the love of the Father is not in you. The desires of the flesh, the desires of the eyes and your pride to be more is not from God, but dictated from this world. And this world? We’re told it’s passing away my friends. Whoever does the will of God abides forever, but the things of this world will fade. Do not love the world.
3) Do not follow false teaching.
“Who is a liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist who denies the Father and the Son. 23 Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father either; he who acknowledges the Son has the Father also.” 1 John 2:22-24
What is false teaching? If it does not proclaim the entire gospel of Jesus Christ it is false. Period. Jesus came to this Earth born of a virgin, lived a perfect sin-free life, died on a cross to atone for the sins of mankind, was resurrected 3 days later and then ascended into Heaven to sit at the right hand of God the Father. My friends that is the Gospel of Jesus Christ pure and simple. If any part of it is omitted or altered in any way, it is false doctrine and false teaching.
John mentions the word antichrist here and that scares a lot of people. Let me explain antichrist. First let’s break down the term. It’s two words “anti” and “Christ.” “Anti can mean two things. It can mean “to be in place of” or it can mean “to be against.” So, an antichrist can be someone that is completely against Christ or it can be someone that puts themselves into the place of Christ. Most people pigeon hole the term antichrist into the book of Revelation where John speaks of the antichrist during the great tribulation. First of all, there is not just one antichrist in God’s Word but several. In fact, throughout history there have been countless antichrists…maybe millions. We see right here in this chapter in verse 18, “Children, it is the last hour, and as you have heard that antichrist is coming, so now many antichrists have come.” You see to properly understand an antichrist you need to better view the differences between them. One that fully denies Jesus Christ is an “anti-Christ”, meaning they are fully against Christ. But to BE and antichrist you will claim that you ARE Christ. You are “in place of” Christ or claiming to be Christ. In fact, did you know that in the end days, there will not be one antichrist but two? In chapter 13 of the book of Revelation, we find the description of them both. One will be a political leader and one will be a religious leader. Between the two of them they will lead the world astray to fulfill God’s plan. But that’s a whole different study.
I addressed false teachings a few weeks ago in 2 Peter 2 in an in depth study. If you missed it or want a refresher, you can go back to The5MC.com and find it under the 2 Peter tab. Folks, we are responsible for the teaching we sit under. You can’t just recklessly pick a church that doesn’t preach the true gospel and then emerge OK years later. The teaching of a false gospel will have catastrophic results to those who teach it as well as though who sit under it. Do not sit under false teaching.
So today we’ve looked at 3 ways that we can walk in the ways of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Love your brother, do not be in love with the things of the world and keep yourselves from the false teaching of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. What powerful words we have from the Lord this morning.
My prayer for you today is simple…that you ‘want’ the Word of God. That you desire it as you desire food for your body today. That you experience hunger pangs for God’s Word just as you do for physical food. We are told that God’s Word is the bread of life and I pray that you hunger for His Word. And as you experience that hunger that you will feast on the truth of His Word. In doing so you will refresh your soul and draw near to a loving God that so desperately wants a closer relationship with you.
Love Him and Love His Word. Blessings for your day.
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