Saturday, July 10, 2010

Refreshed In The Privileges Of Understanding


Today we are concluding our brief walk through 1 John and, like most books of the Bible, I regret having to move on. I have found tremendous blessing and convictions in these words and feel renewed in several areas of my life. This is exactly what we look for and need every time we open God’s Word. We should desire to have to face our ugliness, to have it met by God’s love and overpowered by God’s grace. We should desire to be changed every day when we immerse ourselves in his wisdom and beauty; to be changed into the character of Jesus. This is how we are equipped to walk in our mission every day.
John gives us a proper end to this letter as he states a recap of the privileges and advantages of a true believer.  First:
We know that anyone born of God does not continue to sin; the one who was born of God keeps him safe, and the evil one cannot harm him. (1 John 5:18)
Now we all know that we continue to sin in small ways every day and must maintain a heart of repentance. The sin John refers to here is the whole-hearted giving ourselves over to sin. Being born of God we have received a re-birth that broke our dependency on sin and gave us a dependency on God’s love and righteousness. If we are still giving ourselves whole-heartedly to sin then we cannot consider ourselves born of God or we are in rebellion. John also reminds us here that God has given us the fortitude in ourselves to avoid sin and the enemy can no longer influence us to do what our re-birth has freed us from doing. If we choose to give ourselves whole-heartedly to sin again we cannot blame the enemy or anyone else. It is clear that to do this we have to make a conscience decision to take such action against God and his love for us.
Second:
We know that we are children of God, and that the whole world is under the control of the evil one. (1 John 5:19)
We know it but I think we sometimes forget it. We have nothing in common any more with this world or the people who belong to it. We are in it but not of it. We take part in order to fulfill our mission but we don’t get attached to things, we don’t take our pleasure in the same manner, we are looking forward to a better future. Don’t be surprised by the sins of this world and don’t bother getting angry about it, although their actions can make us profoundly sad at their condition. Remember, people are only doing what comes natural to them. We can try to teach them but until they encounter Jesus and accept his gift of love and salvation they will never understand. We must be true to our Lord, our mission and our purpose, just as the people of the world are true to their lord.
Third:
We know also that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true. And we are in him who is true—even in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life. (1 John 5 :20)
This has got to be the greatest privilege in the history of the world, to receive understanding so that we may know our Father. The greatest story ever told is that of the cross and we have the privilege to be its story tellers. What a thrill it is to witness the eyes of the walking dead opened to the way, the truth and the life. To have the privilege of such deep and incredible fellowship with our God every single day, every moment of the day; sometimes I wonder if we forget the wonder of it all. We have such rich fellowship with the provider of our salvation, joy, peace, contentment, hope, and love. We should be dancing in the street every day, celebrating what it is we have found in Jesus Christ, the bringer of love, life, hope and such wonderful joy. My friends, let’s find the time to dance today and to show to this world that what we have is real, and that they can have it too. What a mighty God we serve, who desires that none should perish.

1 comment:

elderchild said...

“Love Not The World”

”For the WHOLE world(not just a portion) is under the control of the evil one”.......(I John 5:19)

“Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world will pass away, and the lust thereof: but he that does the will of The Only True GOD will abide for ever.”(IJohn2:15-17)

“If you were of the world, the world would love it’s own: but because you are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. Remember the word that I said unto you, the servant is not greater than his Master. If they have persecuted Me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept My saying, they will keep yours also.” (John15:19-20)

“Where do wars and fighting among you come from? Do they not come of your lusts that war in your members? You lust, and have not: you kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: you fight and war yet you have not, because you ask not. You ask, and receive not, because you ask amiss, that you may consume it upon your lusts. You adulterers and adulteresses, don’t you know that friendship with the world is to be at enmity with The Only True GOD? Therefore whoever will be a friend of the world is the enemy of The Only True GOD.” (James 4:1-4)

“The world cannot hate you; but the world hates Me, because I testify that the works of this world are evil.” (John 7:7)” and “The Messiah gave Himself for our sins, that He might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of The Only True God, Our Father.”(Gal 1:4)

The Messiah testified: “If the world hates you know that it hated Me before it hated you.”(John 5:18) Truly, Truly, I say unto you, except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abides alone: but if it die it brings forth much fruit. He that loves his life in this world shall lose it; and he that hates his life in this world shall have it unto life eternal.” (John 12:24-25)

John testified: “Marvel not, my brethren, if the world hates you.” (I John 3:13) “ James testified, “Whoever would be a friend of this world is the enemy of GOD”(James4:4)

The “earth and it's life forms” are The Creation of The ONE and Only True GOD, Father of ALL! The “worldly” systems are the creation of, and under the dominion of “the god of this world”, he who is “the father of lies”, he who “has blinded the minds of those who believe not The Messiah”! All the nations of this world are under the dominion of, and serve, the “god of this world” for he provides the fuel that feeds mankind’s “imag”ination. And sadly, mankind’s “imag”ination is destroying Creation(air, water, land vegetation, creatures) and perverting that which is Spirit(Truth, Light, Life, Faith, Love, Peace,, All that is Truly Good) ;-(

Peace, in spite of the dis-ease(no-peace) that is of this world and it's systems of religion, for "the WHOLE world(not just a portion) is under the control of the evil one" indeed and Truth......

Truth IS, a lie is not.......

Abide in The Truth....... francis