In this passage John warns his audience to not only be aware of but also to test the message that false teachers bring to them. This warning certainly applies to us today. We're well aware of the Gnostics that taught falsehood in the first century. There were others that John warned his readers about. Asia Minor and especially Ephesus at that time were filled with magicians and mysticism. Heresy was rampant. The leaders of these cults claimed they were led by the supernatural. How many times have we seen this in modern times; people led astray by the likes of David Koresh or Jim Jones? Of course there are false teachers in the church today also even if they're not as extreme as the two men just mentioned. We need to guard against this. That's the warning in these verses.
I think it's important to note that John instructs his readers to "test the spirits" themselves. It's not the work a preacher. It's our responsibility. The only way we can adequately do this is to have a thorough knowledge of the scriptures.
When reading verse 2, remember the false doctrines in John's day that questioned the Deity of Christ. Others questioned His humanity. This verse like so many others in this letter refutes the Docetic Gnostics. The verb "is come" or "has come" is from a perfect tense verb. It indicates a past action with existing results.
The negative statement of verse 3 tells the same truth that verse 2 stated positively with the additional point that to refute the deity and humanity of Christ is to display the spirit of antichrist. It is possible to have the right spirit (love) of truth and still be in error. It's also possible to have the wrong spirit while knowing much truth. That's why it's so important that we have the right attitude AND stay grounded in the truth.
The word overcome in verse 4 is a perfect tense verb. That means the readers had previously made a decision about false teachers, rejecting them and the conviction of refuting them stayed with the readers.
As true today as when it was written, in verse 5 John points out the popularity of false teachers was due to the fact that their message suits what the world wants to hear. When we're surrounded by people like Joel Osteen who teach nothing but feel good lessons, the words of Paul in Second Timothy 4:1-4 need to be remembered.
I think the important message of verse 6 stems from the words, "We know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error." That word know is a present, active verb. That means we keep on knowing God. We increase in our knowledge of God. If we don't continue to read and study how will it be possible for us to increase our knowledge? Faith is either growing or dying. There is no middle ground.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Monday, October 12, 2009
Showing Our Love (First John 3:17-24)
If the welfare of our fellow Christians require that we give our lives for them (see verse 16) then certainly we can make smaller sacrifices which only involve "stuff". If we can't handle that then the love of God isn't in us. That's what this passage, particularly verse 17 is telling us. It's so easy to claim we'd die for someone we love. After all, how often will we really be confronted with that possibility? For some reason though, it's harder for us to live for those we love. I think that's the point John is making here.
Verse 18 is a summary of the ideas just talked about. It's John's way of saying just do it. Show your love. Don't talk about it.
If our love is on display in our actions, seen in our deeds and in truth, we know that we're in the truth. That's what verse 19 says. I also think it's putting into action what Peter writes in Second Peter 1:10.
The next two verses tell us that God is greater than our hearts. He forgives us easier than we forgive ourselves. I've covered that in previous posts but isn't that so important? If we're walking in the light as discussed in chapter one and if we believe what's written here than we can take down that spiritual tightrope so many of us have walked on. We have assurance of our forgiveness.
The verbs in verse 22 are all present tense verbs; all emphasizing continuous action. Whatever we keep asking we keep receiving because we keep on keeping His commandments and continue doing the things that please Him.
I think verse 23 could and should be considered one of the cornerstone verses in the New Testament. Too many of us act like we can do the first part of the verse, believing in Jesus without living the second part which is loving each other. This command is singular though meaning we can't have one without the other. It's impossible to separate faith and practice. Our belief MUST be based in love for it to be true belief and not just empty words. (See James 2:20, John 13:34, 15:12 and 15:17.)
Verse 24 is a reference to Christ's own words in John 14:23. This idea is also taught in Ephesians 1:7 and Colossians 1:13-14. John also discussed this fellowship earlier in chapter 1 and verse 3.
Verse 18 is a summary of the ideas just talked about. It's John's way of saying just do it. Show your love. Don't talk about it.
If our love is on display in our actions, seen in our deeds and in truth, we know that we're in the truth. That's what verse 19 says. I also think it's putting into action what Peter writes in Second Peter 1:10.
The next two verses tell us that God is greater than our hearts. He forgives us easier than we forgive ourselves. I've covered that in previous posts but isn't that so important? If we're walking in the light as discussed in chapter one and if we believe what's written here than we can take down that spiritual tightrope so many of us have walked on. We have assurance of our forgiveness.
The verbs in verse 22 are all present tense verbs; all emphasizing continuous action. Whatever we keep asking we keep receiving because we keep on keeping His commandments and continue doing the things that please Him.
I think verse 23 could and should be considered one of the cornerstone verses in the New Testament. Too many of us act like we can do the first part of the verse, believing in Jesus without living the second part which is loving each other. This command is singular though meaning we can't have one without the other. It's impossible to separate faith and practice. Our belief MUST be based in love for it to be true belief and not just empty words. (See James 2:20, John 13:34, 15:12 and 15:17.)
Verse 24 is a reference to Christ's own words in John 14:23. This idea is also taught in Ephesians 1:7 and Colossians 1:13-14. John also discussed this fellowship earlier in chapter 1 and verse 3.
How We Love (First John 3:13-16)
In this passage John contrasts love and hate. As mentioned earlier, this is a method John uses elsewhere in his writings to drive a point across. Previously in this book John calls his audience his, "Little children". Here they are called brethren or brothers. Considering the fact he just finished talking about brotherly love in the past passage, I don't think this is coincidence.
Verse 14 tells us that love for each other is what distinguishes children of God from children of the devil (see verse10). The obligation to love has been taught from the beginning of Christianity (verse 11). It's because we love love each other that we've "passed" from death; migrated or moved away from spiritual death.
There's an obvious and common misinterpretation of this verse. John is NOT saying this is "the" or even "a" condition absolving us from past sins. Our brotherly love is evidence of our certainty and knowledge of salvation. It's not the condition that saves us! It's the evidence we present based on the knowledge that we've passed from death to life. Guy N. Woods wrote the following about this verse. "This does not mean that love alone is the basis of our acceptance before God. What it does mean is that love is the base on which all other virtues rest."
The "does not love" of verse 14 is followed in the next verse with "whoever hates". This indicates the two are identical in meaning. John is showing that in the absence of love there is hate. It means that if we're not demonstrating love, we are demonstrating the attitude and spirit of a murderer. Murder is hate carried out in an action. John is saying without love we are carrying that hate. Wow! Ever think of it like that? Jesus Himself forbade the attitudes that lead to murder in Matthew 5:21-22. Unnecessary anger violates in spirit the command not to murder.
The "we know" in verse 16 is a perfect active verb. That of course means it's from an investigation of the facts that we come to possess the knowledge of love. Beyond the obvious importance this gives the passage, this was another way John was able to take a shot at the Gnostics who thought only they possessed knowledge. The phrases "laid down" and "lay down" in this verse come from the same word used in John 10:11, 17 and 18 when Jesus talks about the good Shepherd. It's telling us that we know love. We know what it is from seeing Christ display it for us. (See Second Corinthians 5:21, John 3:16 5:13 and Romans 5:18.)
I can't remember if it this is from Guy N. Woods or Tom Miller. I apologize for not having it in my notes but concerning the part of this verse that tells us that "we also ought to lay down our lives..." we know that Christ's death was the greatest possible proof of love. If we imitate Him as we should, the same evidence of love which prompted Him will be seen in us. The willingness to give what one has for the sake of others is the essence of true love.
Verse 14 tells us that love for each other is what distinguishes children of God from children of the devil (see verse10). The obligation to love has been taught from the beginning of Christianity (verse 11). It's because we love love each other that we've "passed" from death; migrated or moved away from spiritual death.
There's an obvious and common misinterpretation of this verse. John is NOT saying this is "the" or even "a" condition absolving us from past sins. Our brotherly love is evidence of our certainty and knowledge of salvation. It's not the condition that saves us! It's the evidence we present based on the knowledge that we've passed from death to life. Guy N. Woods wrote the following about this verse. "This does not mean that love alone is the basis of our acceptance before God. What it does mean is that love is the base on which all other virtues rest."
The "does not love" of verse 14 is followed in the next verse with "whoever hates". This indicates the two are identical in meaning. John is showing that in the absence of love there is hate. It means that if we're not demonstrating love, we are demonstrating the attitude and spirit of a murderer. Murder is hate carried out in an action. John is saying without love we are carrying that hate. Wow! Ever think of it like that? Jesus Himself forbade the attitudes that lead to murder in Matthew 5:21-22. Unnecessary anger violates in spirit the command not to murder.
The "we know" in verse 16 is a perfect active verb. That of course means it's from an investigation of the facts that we come to possess the knowledge of love. Beyond the obvious importance this gives the passage, this was another way John was able to take a shot at the Gnostics who thought only they possessed knowledge. The phrases "laid down" and "lay down" in this verse come from the same word used in John 10:11, 17 and 18 when Jesus talks about the good Shepherd. It's telling us that we know love. We know what it is from seeing Christ display it for us. (See Second Corinthians 5:21, John 3:16 5:13 and Romans 5:18.)
I can't remember if it this is from Guy N. Woods or Tom Miller. I apologize for not having it in my notes but concerning the part of this verse that tells us that "we also ought to lay down our lives..." we know that Christ's death was the greatest possible proof of love. If we imitate Him as we should, the same evidence of love which prompted Him will be seen in us. The willingness to give what one has for the sake of others is the essence of true love.
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Being Righteous...Part Two (First John 3:7-12)
One of John's techniques is to state his points repeatedly to drive the message home. That is true in verse seven when he begins the thought by addressing his audience as "Little children"; the same term of affection he used in 2:1 and 2:18. "Let no one deceive you" restates the same point he made in 1:8, 2:18, 26 and 3:1-3. It doesn't matter if one says they are righteous. The litmus test is whether one does righteousness. The old adage of show me don't tell me rings true here. Once again, John uses the present tense of a verb. In this verse practices or doeth is a present tense which means we're to keep on doing it. We are to continually practice righteousness.
"Just as He is righteous" or "even as He is righteous" depending on your translation, doesn't mean that we will attain the same level of righteousness as Christ. It means that He is the model or pattern of righteousness that we should attempt to follow.
In verse 8 John says that if you live a life of habitual sin you're of the devil. You demonstrate your relationship to the devil by conforming to his character instead of conforming to the character of Jesus. An evil heart is deliberate, willful and persistent. It means you mean to sin purposely. If you live as the devil, you are considered as belonging to the devil.
I have the following statements in my notes. I'm sorry I can remember who wrote it so I can't give credit where it is due. Someone said, "The wisest, greatest and best characters of whom we read in the scriptures never laid claim to sinlessness in this life but on the contrary exhibited the weaknesses common to humanity and often confessed them with penitence and shame." Abraham, David, Peter and Paul come to mind.
The verb in verse 9, "does not sin" comes from poio, a present active verb. It means the person does not keep on doing sin. Here John is restating what he wrote in verse 6. What is "His seed" that remains in us? The word of God (Luke 8:11). "Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom." (Colossians 3:16)
Why can't a person born of God with His seed in him live a life of continuing sin? The seed (word of God) is in us. If it's in us it's what controls our lives and directs our actions. Children of God don't use sin as the guiding principle of their lives. Read Romans 6:1-6. From that we know we've died from sin, risen from baptism to live a new live and have been delivered from sin.
Verse 10 relates to what's just been said. It also follows the thought written in 2:29 and 3:4. If we don't have the love for our brothers that we're supposed to have, it means we don't have the same Father. It excludes that unloving person from the family. Again, there is no gray area in John's writings. We're either on God's side or the devil's side.
John's readers had heard the message of verse 11 since the beginning of their knowledge of Christianity. This is a cornerstone principle of Christianity. (John 13:34-35, John 15:12-14 and First John 2:7) I hope we've known this from the beginning of our walk with Christ.
In verse John again compares and contrasts. In an interesting note, John uses the word sphazo here where we read murdered or slew. That verb literally means to butcher, to slit the throat with a knife. Genesis doesn't tell us how Cain killed Abel. It may be surmised from John's use of this word that this is the way Cain did it. What we do know is that Abel made his offering by faith. Cain's offering was rejected because it violated God's instructions (Genesis 4:5-7). Cain murdered his brother. Therefore Cain hated his brother. Hate is a characteristic of the devil and his children. Therefore Cain was of the devil. Guy N. Woods wrote in his commentary on this verse, "Basic in every difficulty and dispute between brethren today is the absence of brotherly love." Think about it. There's not a problem or dispute that's ever torn a congregation apart or separated Christians from each other that didn't stem from this.
"Just as He is righteous" or "even as He is righteous" depending on your translation, doesn't mean that we will attain the same level of righteousness as Christ. It means that He is the model or pattern of righteousness that we should attempt to follow.
In verse 8 John says that if you live a life of habitual sin you're of the devil. You demonstrate your relationship to the devil by conforming to his character instead of conforming to the character of Jesus. An evil heart is deliberate, willful and persistent. It means you mean to sin purposely. If you live as the devil, you are considered as belonging to the devil.
I have the following statements in my notes. I'm sorry I can remember who wrote it so I can't give credit where it is due. Someone said, "The wisest, greatest and best characters of whom we read in the scriptures never laid claim to sinlessness in this life but on the contrary exhibited the weaknesses common to humanity and often confessed them with penitence and shame." Abraham, David, Peter and Paul come to mind.
The verb in verse 9, "does not sin" comes from poio, a present active verb. It means the person does not keep on doing sin. Here John is restating what he wrote in verse 6. What is "His seed" that remains in us? The word of God (Luke 8:11). "Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom." (Colossians 3:16)
Why can't a person born of God with His seed in him live a life of continuing sin? The seed (word of God) is in us. If it's in us it's what controls our lives and directs our actions. Children of God don't use sin as the guiding principle of their lives. Read Romans 6:1-6. From that we know we've died from sin, risen from baptism to live a new live and have been delivered from sin.
Verse 10 relates to what's just been said. It also follows the thought written in 2:29 and 3:4. If we don't have the love for our brothers that we're supposed to have, it means we don't have the same Father. It excludes that unloving person from the family. Again, there is no gray area in John's writings. We're either on God's side or the devil's side.
John's readers had heard the message of verse 11 since the beginning of their knowledge of Christianity. This is a cornerstone principle of Christianity. (John 13:34-35, John 15:12-14 and First John 2:7) I hope we've known this from the beginning of our walk with Christ.
In verse John again compares and contrasts. In an interesting note, John uses the word sphazo here where we read murdered or slew. That verb literally means to butcher, to slit the throat with a knife. Genesis doesn't tell us how Cain killed Abel. It may be surmised from John's use of this word that this is the way Cain did it. What we do know is that Abel made his offering by faith. Cain's offering was rejected because it violated God's instructions (Genesis 4:5-7). Cain murdered his brother. Therefore Cain hated his brother. Hate is a characteristic of the devil and his children. Therefore Cain was of the devil. Guy N. Woods wrote in his commentary on this verse, "Basic in every difficulty and dispute between brethren today is the absence of brotherly love." Think about it. There's not a problem or dispute that's ever torn a congregation apart or separated Christians from each other that didn't stem from this.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)