1 John

Throughout his letter, John has tied together the love of God with the keeping of his commandments. He would have us know merely professing one loves God without expressing love through obedience is a misnomer. This is important in view of the fact a certain group of so-called believers in John’s day claimed God loved them and they loved God, while they lived lives of disobedience to God. John reminds us (again) those who love God will always keep his…

“Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God.” 1 John 4:7 In Luke chapter 10, the parable of the Good Samaritan, a lawyer asked Jesus “What must I do to inherit eternal life”? Jesus responds “What is written in the law? How do you read it?” The lawyer replied, and he answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all…

I was born a PK (that’s pastor’s kid, if you’re wondering). With that title comes certain responsibilities and certain benefits. For example, my life may very well be a sermon illustration at any point and growing up I had a much higher standard put on me (disclaimer- my dad is very considerate and always asks us before sharing anything deeply personal from the pulpit). One of the benefits is that I also have the access to many things simply as…

“My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense–Jesus Christ, the righteous one.” (1 John 2:1) I believe this verse from our daily readings really sums up the main purpose of every epistle. They all encourage us towards holiness and at the same time, remind us that our salvation is through faith in Christ alone. In this verse, John says…

Is there a more ill-defined word than love? We use it to describe our feelings for God and for pizza, for our spouses and for sports. We use it so much that it has lost its meaning, its depth, its cost in our lives. Within the past year, the words of 1 John have been messing with me. The Apostle John is not ashamed to use the word “love” – and he knows exactly what it means. Love changes our lives, our motives and…

The second chapter of 1st John opens with this: “My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world” (1 John 1-2). These are not just powerful words from a convincing orator, or a seasoned preacher, but…

Little children, keep yourselves from idols. Amen. (1 John 5:21) A trip to India will cause you to reassess things in your life. On my recent trip, it was very difficult to acclimate to the spiritual, cultural and literal climate. But undoubtedly the most unexpected aspect about the culture is that blatant, daily and literal idolatry that is a normal part of every day life. People actually purchase stone idols and pray to them. They set up shrines to their billions…