Do not love the world

Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them. 16 For everything in the world – the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life – comes not from the Father but from the world. 17 The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever.

1 John 2:15-17

I used to be very politically active. I worked with a local “prospective parliamentary candidate” on two occasions to try to get him elected to parliament. (He wasn’t). I twice stood for election to my local council. (I wasn’t). I even went through the process of joining the party’s candidates’ list so that I could stand for parliament myself. (They rejected me). Something that I remember vividly from this time however, was that the party was absolutely insistent that membership of their party was incompatible with membership of any other party. I suppose it makes sense. But when I was just beginning out in politics at university, the idea of joining all the main parties was quite appealing. By keeping a foot in all the camps (aside from requiring me to grow more feet) would have enabled me to find out what each of the parties was really about. It would have given me an insight into who they were, of what they believed, and perhaps keep my options open with regard to my own potential political career. But I played by the rules, and joined only the one party.

John today tells his readers that citizenship of God’s kingdom is incompatible with citizenship of “the world” – the world of sin and darkness which is the realm of the devil. It is not possible to follow God and to live an actively sinful life. If we try to keep our feet in both camps, the truth is that we are not really part of God’s kingdom at all, since that incompatibility would show that ultimately we lack trust in God’s ability and willingness to transform our lives and open the gates of heaven to us. As John says, “if anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them.” It simply isn’t possible to keep our options open; we either follow God wholeheartedly or else we are lost to him. If we fail to grasp the significance of who he is and what he has done for us, and strive to live lives that honour him, then the truth is that we don’t wholly love him.

John provides us with some specifics that might demonstrate to us that our relationship with the father might not be as secure as we might like to think. He lists three types of sin in this context. He talks about the lust of the flesh, which suggests that we chase after things that bring pleasure to our bodies but which are actually empty and meaningless. Maybe we stuff ourselves with food to bring ourselves pleasure. Maybe we drink to excess. Perhaps we use drugs that bring temporary satisfaction but which ultimately harm our bodies. Perhaps we chase pleasure by sleeping around or by using pornography. These actions are all incompatible with a genuine relationship with the father and suggest that “love for the Father is not in [us].”

The second sin John mentions is “lust of the eyes.” This suggests that we break the commandments against coveting and succumb to materialism. It might be that we lust after a new car, a bigger house, the latest phone, or a fatter pay check. It might also suggest that we lust sexually after someone to whom we are not married. Again, John stresses the incompatibility of these desires with a genuine relationship with the Father.

The third sin John singles out is “the pride of life.” If we find ourselves striving for recognition, praise, for applause then we have fallen victim to this sin and the Father is not genuinely in us.

To fall victim to these three sins is to follow the ways of the sinful world. Citizenship of that world is incompatible with citizenship of God’s kingdom. Ultimately, of course, if we pursue those things that bring satisfaction to our bodies, that make ourselves feel better about ourselves, we are pursuing a short term avenue. John tells us that “the world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives for ever.”

It is foolish therefore to pursue short term pleasure. Instead we should fix our eyes on Christ, to reflect on his sacrifice, and strive to live as he did in the world – a life of sacrifice, a life in which we put God above all things, and others before ourselves. Not easy, but ultimately far more rewarding than living the way of the world.

Anyone who claims to be in the light but hates a brother or sister is still in the darkness. 10 Anyone who loves their brother and sister lives in the light, and there is nothing in them to make them stumble. 11 But anyone who hates a brother or sister is in the darkness and walks around in the darkness. They do not know where they are going, because the darkness has blinded them.

1 John 2:9-11

A few years ago I was hurt enormously by someone who was in a position of leadership over me. Even after several years have passed, I still bear the emotional scars caused by my treatment at the hands of this person, and I suspect I will carry these to the grave. What I found particularly difficult was that this person claimed to be a Christian. I found it hard to reconcile his treatment of me with Christ’s commandment to love our neighbours as ourselves. Managing my feelings towards this person is an ongoing project; just as I think I have put my anger towards him aside and forgiven him in my heart, something happens that pushes me away from forgiveness and towards raw hatred towards this person.

There are times when loving someone is incredibly hard, almost impossible, yet this is the expectation that Jesus has of his followers. He provided us with an inspirational model of this behaviour. As he hung on the cross, he prayed to his father, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing” (Luke 23:34). My incident pales into comparison with this. I find it hard to forgive, yet Jesus, in agony on the cross, asked for forgiveness for his executioners!

John told us at the beginning of this letter that he was writing so that we will not sin. He wants his audience to understand our wrongdoing and assure us of our salvation. He has told that that God is light and that there is no darkness in him at all (1:5). He has told us that if we are without sin, we deceive ourselves, and reassured us that if we confess our sin will be forgiven (1:8-9). He has told us that we must strive to live as Jesus did (2:6). Now, in this passage, he gives us a specific example of how some might fall short of the expectations Christ has of us. Anyone who claims to follow Jesus but hates a fellow believer “is still in the darkness.” Such a person is outside the love of God and falling short of the expectation that God has of us. John warned us in 1:6 that “if we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth.” If we call ourselves Christians and yet hate a fellow believer, we are, John tells us, liars.

If we hate a brother or sister, we lose our sense of direction and will struggle to follow God’s plan for our lives because we have been blinded by the darkness of the world. We have removed ourselves from God’s guiding light and opted instead to follow the ways of the world.

This is an incredibly hard message for us, yet it is resolutely a call for action. We need to reflect on the relationships that we have with our fellow believers and ensure that these relationships are based on love. That’s not to say that from time to time we will not fall out or fail to see eye to eye with other Christians, but the overriding emotion we have towards these people – even those who have, inadvertently or deliberately set out to cause us hurt – should be love. If we feel anything less that that towards them then we have lost our orientation and allowed the darkness of the world to nudge us out of our relationship with God.

I wonder if there are brothers or sisters, fellow believers, who you feel hatred towards? Do you need to ask God to initiate a process of healing, to remove this hatred, and replace it with love? I have no doubt that there will be many people who without God’s intervention will find it practically impossible to turn hatred into love – I count myself amongst that number. Yet John is absolutely clear that if we are not to be liars in our faith, we have no option but to replace hatred with love.

Having established the primacy of love in our relationships with our fellow Christians, the question follows – how do we express this love? Do we put others before ourselves? Do we recognise the needs of others – material or spiritual, physical or emotional – and help to fulfil these needs? Do we know each other well enough to recognise where there is a need? Do we build relationships that are open and honest enough to admit when there is a need? This all to me suggests the need to forge incredibly close relationships with our fellow believers, to go significantly further than the typical Sunday, “how was your week?” greeting and to foster relationships that are more than simply brotherly or sisterly in name, but in practice too.

How will you attempt to develop and deepen your relationships with your Christian brothers or sisters in order to love them more? Perhaps your Church has small groups that you could join? Perhaps you could put together a prayer triplet? Maybe you could have someone round to lunch or meet them for a coffee?

The true light is already shining

We know that we have come to know him if we keep his commands. Whoever says, “I know him,” but does not do what he commands is a liar, and truth is not in that person. 5 But if anyone obeys his word, love for God is truly made complete in them. This is how we know we are in him: 6 Whoever claims to live in him must live as Jesus did.
7 Dear friends, I am not writing you a new command but an old one, which you have had since the beginning. This old command is the message you have heard. 8 Yet I am writing you 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 2:3-8

Did you see “The Generation Game” on television recently? This classic game show is (or feels) almost as old as time itself, and has itself been regenerated many times. I remember the show being presented by Bruce Forsyth and Jim Davidson when I was younger, but this time around the show was presented by those former stalwarts of “The Great British Bake Off,” Mel and Sue. There’s been much written about the revival of this show on social media and in the press; apparently, despite its relaunch, it is very similar to the previous incarnations, which, depending on your view is either a very good thing or a very bad thing.

In today’s verses from John’s first letter, John focuses on God’s commands and whether these are new or old. Before he reflects too much on this point, however, he makes clear that in his view, keeping God’s commands is an indication of whether or not someone truly knows God. It is not possible, John maintains, for someone to say that they know (and follow) God, whilst simultaneously ignoring the commands that he makes on our lives. Once again, John uses the term “liar” to refer to such a person. On the other hand, if someone knows God and strives to obey his commands, then “love for God is truly made complete in them.” In other words, striving to lead a life that is obedient to God demonstrates that an individual truly loves God and wants to honour him in all that they do. John extends this by saying that if you want to see if someone genuinely loves God, then they will be striving to live as Jesus did, striving to reach the perfection of Christ.

John makes it clear that there is a continuation between the commands that Christ gives and those “old” commandments which the Jews amongst his readership would, in particular, be familiar with. The “old” commands have been around since the beginning, and would probably be most familiar in the Ten Commandments given to Moses. John stresses that what he is writing here is not replacing these commands but rather building on them. At the same time, the command is also new, since it has been interpreted by Christ and fulfilled through his death and resurrection. Whilst the old command dealt heavily in guilt and punishment, this new command is best characterised by love, specifically the love that Jesus has for all his followers, as seen in his willingness to die in their place upon the cross. The call that Christ makes on the lives of his followers is in a way new, and is evident in Jesus and his followers. As a consequence of Christ’s commands, the world is slowly beginning to change. Jesus is the light of the world, the one true light, the source of all goodness in the world. This light shines not only from Christ himself but from all those who chose to follow him, to honour him by living according to his commandments.

It’s not enough just to honour Christ with our words; we must also honour him with our actions. Those of us who claim to follow him have a responsibility to live as Christ did, and to be beacons of Christ’s light and love in the darkness of the world around us. Each day as I read the news it seems to be that this is more important now than at any point during my life. Let’s all strive to follow Christ and to be beacons of the true light in the world we encounter each day of our lives.

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. 2 He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but for the sins of the whole world.

1 John 2:1-2

Later this week I’m going to Ipswich to visit Martin. As well as my former music teacher, Martin is something of a mentor to me, in terms of my life, my career and my faith. He’s been a source of guidance, support and inspiration to me since I first met him, nearly thirty years ago. I wonder if you have such a person in your life?

John saw himself as such a figure in the early church. He had first met Jesus when he was a fisherman working the Sea of Galilee, and had witnessed Jesus’ ministry first hand. Now, in his dotage, he has decided to write to the younger members of the church to share his wisdom and insight with them. We can see right from the start of this chapter the affection he had for Christ’s younger followers, referring to them as “my dear children.” We also see one of the reasons for John putting pen to paper; he writes, “so that you will not sin.” Straight away (and rather reassuringly after the last lines of the previous chapter), he offers reassurance. He says that “if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father – Jesus Christ, the Righteous One.” Jesus will serve as our representative before God in his heavily court, pleading our case and acting as our defence in our trial. Jesus is able to do this, since he is Righteous – he is sinless, blameless and therefore doesn’t share our guilt in the way that a fully human advocate would.

It’s great to have Jesus as an advocate, but as John continues he makes it clear that he is more even than this. He is the “atoning sacrifice for ours sins.” Our sin deserves punishment since we have time and time again turned from God’s laws, we have fallen short of the expectations that God has of us. We are, in a word, guilty. Yet the price of our sin has already been paid, our punishment has already been borne. Jesus, perfect and sinless, and God himself, took our punishment upon himself when he died upon the cross. Not just that, but he defeated death itself by rising again three days later. As a result of Jesus’ death and resurrection, there is no longer a price to pay for our sin, there is no longer any punishment to be borne.

John makes clear that Jesus is the atoning sacrifice not just for himself and the other apostles, nor just for the original recipients of this letter, but for all people. He is the atoning sacrifice “for the whole world.” Anyone who accepts that Jesus died in their place gains immeasurably from Christ’s sacrifice, since the price of their sin has been paid, and consequently they are admitted without cost to God’s eternal Kingdom. How remarkable!

John’s letter is intended to help us, as Christians, to not sin, but John is clear right from the outset that even when we do sin, all is far from lost, because Jesus is our advocate with the Father, and bore the punishment that we deserve in our place. What an awesome revelation this is, and how reassuring as we strive to do our best to live lives worthy of God, but fully aware of our own weaknesses and frailties. We can be confident of our salvation and so can be confidence of our faith. Let’s strive to live today knowing that we have every reason to be confident, whilst giving thanks to Jesus for his representation before God and for taking on himself the punishment that we deserve.

We deceive ourselves

If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us

1 John 1:8-10

In my day job I’m a teacher. As I sit and write this I’m currently on holiday (yes, again…), but when I return to school next week it will be the beginning of a very busy time as I prepare my Year 8 pupils for their Common Entrance exam. Whilst I sit in Costa writing his, I hope that they are at home busily completing the homework that I set them. As always, I asked them to complete some past paper questions, which they are to mark themselves. I hope that the process of assessing their own work will help them to gain a better understanding of what the examiner will be looking for when their final scripts are marked. There’s always the temptation for pupils to mark their answers over generously, but as I always tell them, if they do this they are lying to themselves, since in order to improve they need to first admit that they’ve made mistakes and use this insight to improve their work next time.

John speaks today of the need to admit the mistakes that we make in our own lives. We need to own up to the sin that we commit. He tells us that “if we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves.” God promises us that our sins will be forgiven if we confess our sins, but before we can confess our sins we need to first accept that we have sinned. Anyone who has acknowledged Jesus in their life but still believes that they live a good life and therefore is free of sin is lying to themselves. Indeed, John goes so far as to say that “the truth,” a true understanding of God, is “not in us.” We have misunderstood what it means to follow Christ.

John expands on this in verse 10. If we believe that our lives our free of sin, we make Jesus “out to be a liar.” He told us that we are sinners and called on us to repent our sins to find peace with God. If we say that we do not sin, then we are contradicting God, who has made it plain that in his eyes we are sinners. If we contradict God, then John tells us that “his word is not in us,” since it is God’s word – the words of Jesus, the Spirit-inspired words of scripture – that affirm that we are sinners. If we know and understand God’s word then it will be clear to use that we are sinners. If we still claim that we are not, then we do not know God’s word sufficiently well, or we have seriously misunderstood what God’s word says.

On the other hand, once we have accepted that we are sinners, we are able to confess our sins to God, to admit to our mistakes and to ask for God’s forgiveness. If we do this, then he will “forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” He will put our sinfulness out of his mind, and we will find our citizenship in his Kingdom. We can be assured of this because God is “faithful and just.”

How do you stand with this passage? Do you know and understand that you are a sinner? In which case, have you repented your sin and asked God for forgiveness? Be assured that if you have, God will forgive you your sin and purify you from all unrighteousness.

This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. 6 If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth. 7 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 1:5-7

My two year old son has a very interesting way of talking about sunrise and sunset. Rather than talking about the sun rising or setting or talking he talks about the dark coming in or going. He used to associate the dark coming in with bedtime but since the clocks changed and he has been going to bed in the daylight, it has become increasingly tricky to persuade him that it is bedtime! He often objects saying that the dark hasn’t come in yet. Thankfully in the last few days he’s been a little happier and has managed to explain to me that it’s still light  because “the clocks change.” Funny boy!

The verses in today’s reading say much of the light and the dark and how we live our lives. Having introduced his fellowship with Jesus in the preceding verses, John here begins to unpack some of the message that he and Jesus’ other disciples heard from Jesus. His first point is that “God is light; in him there is no darkness at all.” John associates God’s goodness with light. Since there is no darkness at all in God, John is stating that God is completely good; there is nothing at all within him that is anything either than good. The darkness that we see in the world, therefore, all the bad and unpleasant things are not of God; they do not come from God. How could they if there is nothing bad or unpleasant in God’s character?

If we “walk in the darkness,” therefore, if live our lives in a way in which our character is tinged by darkness, by badness, by unpleasantness, we are not living a life that reflects God’s character. If we say that we are Christians, that we follow God and follow Jesus’ example and yet choose to do things that would displease God, then we are liars; we are lying to ourselves, to those around us, and to God. We do not “live out the truth.” These are strong words for all those who think of themselves as Christians, since most, if not all of us, sometimes opt to do things that we know are not pleasing to God, but do them anyway. John tells us that if this is true of us, then we are liars.

In contrast, if we “walk in the light,” if we follow the example of Christ, then we can be included in God’s fellowship, we can be his sons and daughters, the brothers and sisters of Christ. And if we are the children of God, then we will be purified from all our sin, and forgiven all that we have done, through the blood of Jesus, God’s son. When Jesus died on the cross, free of sin, blameless and perfect in the eyes of God the Father, he paid the penalty for the sin of all people. Jesus wiped clean our lives and made us perfect in God’s eyes, so that we might join his kingdom, and share in Jesus’ inheritance. eternal life with his Father in heaven.

I find these words incredibly challenging, since I know that there are times when my words and actions dishonour God. Maybe you find this a challenge too. I am so grateful to Jesus for paying the price of my sin, however, and will resolve to do my utmost to walk in Christ’s light rather than in the darkness of the world. Will you join me?

A relationship that will endure

That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched – this we proclaim concerning the Word of life. 2 The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us. 3 We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you may also have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. 4 We write this to make our joy complete.

1 John 1:1-4

As I approach my forties, I’ve begun to realise that friendships come, and friendships go. For much of my life I have tried to cling to every friendship I have made but I have come to realise that this is not possible, even in the days of social media like Facebook. There are only so many friendships a person can keep up, and losing touch with friends is part of normal life. Despite this, one group of friendships has remained constant in my life; the friends I spent my school days with remain my closest friends to this day, even twenty years after leaving school. I suppose that one of the reason that these friendships in particular have endured is because of what we have in common; we’re all similar ages, with a similar outlook on life, and with shared interests. Perhaps most importantly, though, we have a shared history that holds us together. That might be why so much of our time when we meet up, much to the consternation of our significant others, is spent reminiscing about things we got up to at school.

At the beginning of his first letter, John, the writer of this letter, and also the Gospel that bears his name, speaks of a relationship that will endure, a relationship that he has and that he hopes others will find for themselves. He begins by stressing his desire that his readers “may also have fellowship” with him. He wants all those who read his letter to be united in friendship with him. Indeed, he says that this would make his “joy complete.” As he approaches the end of his life, he desires nothing more than for all of his readers to join together with him in fellowship.

The friendship that John refers though is more than simply an earthly relationship. He says this his fellowship is “with the Father, and his Son, Jesus Christ,” and those who enter into the fellowship that John writes about will also enter into this eternal fellowship. John doesn’t just want us to be united with him, he wants to show us how it is possible for us to be united with Jesus Christ, God himself. The bond that John envisages will endure because it is built around shared interests, namely a belief in God the Father and his son, Jesus Christ. More importantly, though, this fellowship will endure because it is not simply a bond during this lifetime, but an eternal bond. Fellowship with Jesus is not something that starts and ends with our birth and death. John affirms, as he did famously at the beginning of his Gospel, that Jesus has existed “from the beginning,” before the creation of the universe, the earth, and of humanity. Similarly, this fellowship has no end point, since it brings eternal life.

How can John be so sure about this? He sets out his case here. He says that he has seen Jesus with his own, eyes, he has touched him. As one of Jesus’ closest disciples, one of the fishermen whom Jesus called right at the start of his ministry, he was privileged enough to spend a great deal of time with Jesus. He saw him, and he heard him. He marvelled at Jesus’ miracles, he listened to Jesus incredible teachings. He saw him die on the cross, and he saw him raised to life. At the same time he understands the eternal nature of Jesus and that when he touched his hands, he was touching the hands that quite literally created the earth, which gave life to all people, and now want to restore the life originally envisaged to all those who enter into his fellowship. It’s not surprising that John feels such excitement regarding his fellowship with Jesus, and not surprising that he wants to share his experiences with us now in the hope that we too will come to know Jesus, and desire to enter into his fellowship.

John was a witness to Christ’s ministry, and he testifies the truth of all that he saw to us. He wants us to share in his joy. Do we accept all that John tells us? Do we believe that he speaks the truth? Will we join him in fellowship with Jesus? Will we make John’s joy complete by joining in an eternal fellowship with God the Father and his son, Jesus Christ?