Love and Sin

I John 3:1 See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him. 2 Beloved, we are God's children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. 3 And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.

John has a few main themes in his letter; two of them are brought together here: love and sin.  We are to be overwhelmed by the fact that God loved us while we were yet sinners.  But this not mean God does not care of sin hangs around, and He wants it to matter to us as well.  He goes on to say in no uncertain terms that now that we have become children of God, sin needs to take a hike and get lost out there. It is inconsistent for us to say we are His children and then go on sinning. It really is an either/or proposition. He then goes on and talks more about love. Just as it is inconsistent for us to say we are His and go on sinning, it is a contradiction to say that we love God but fail to love our brothers and sisters in Christ. Sin is out; love is in.  John goes on to summarize this way:

23 And this is his commandment, that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he has commanded us. 24 Whoever keeps his commandments abides in God, and God in him. And by this we know that he abides in us, by the Spirit whom he has given us.

The Gate

Psalm 118:19 Open to me the gates of righteousness,
    that I may enter through them
    and give thanks to the Lord.
20 This is the gate of the Lord;
    the righteous shall enter through it.
21 I thank you that you have answered me
    and have become my salvation.
22 The stone that the builders rejected
    has become the cornerstone.
23 This is the Lord's doing;
    it is marvelous in our eyes.
24 This is the day that the Lord has made;
    let us rejoice and be glad in it.

What a profound psalm with a window to the Gospel!  Christ is the gate through Whom the righteous enter, just as His is the door to the sheepfold.  He is our salvation and the Cornerstone.  This is the Lord's way.  What wonderful pictures of the Savior to reflect on as we rejoice and worship together today. One more thing that is noteworthy in this psalm is the use of the same refrain to open and close this Messianic psalm: 

29 Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;

    for his steadfast love endures forever!

Steadfast

 

Psalm 116:1  I love the Lord, because he has heard
    my voice and my pleas for mercy.
2 Because he inclined his ear to me,
    therefore I will call on him as long as I live.

Psalm 117:1 Praise the Lord, all nations!

    Extol him, all peoples!

2 For great is his steadfast love toward us,

    and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever.

Praise the Lord!

Once again we have a personal psalm of praise followed by a call to corporate praise.  The first begins with this declaration of love for the Lord because He has heard and answered His call for help. Unlike men who are liars, treacherous, and unfaithful, God is steadfast, gracious, righteous, loving, and merciful. The psalmist knows that God will be with him all through this life and when he passes to the next. Because of this he vows to be faith to God and worship Him alone.

The Mark of Faith

I John 2:1 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. 2 He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world. 3 And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments. 4 Whoever says “I know him” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, 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.

There are some chapter of scripture - especially letters like this - that cover several themes, making it hard to choose one above the others. John goes on to talk about the New Commandment of loving one another, not loving the world, and then watching out for lying false teachers.  But he begins here with a firm reminder that makes him sound like James: if we say we believe, we need to live like it and obey what God has commanded us.  Christ is our advocate to intercede for us when tempted and tested, but He is also our commander and ultimate example of living by faith - trusting God's plan enough to obey Him at all times. We need to prove the testimony of our mouth by the way we live.

THE Eternal Life

 I John 1:1 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life— 2 the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us— 3 that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. 4 And we are writing these things so that our joy may be complete.

When we turn to John's first letter, we often gravitate toward the second half of the first chapter, which focuses on Jesus as the Light and promises us cleansing and forgiveness in Christ.  But we really need to appreciate the first half of the chapter, which points us to the full experience of Christ: hearing, seeing, touching Life in the person of Christ.  Of course, John's experience was totally "in person," where they hearing, seeing, and touching were a physical reality.  But the spiritual is just as real.  It intrigues me that John refers here to the eternal life. It is the one and only, just as Christ is the One and Only Son of the Father, who was manifested, incarnated, came to earth as true Life.  John wanted his readers, including us, to come into that same fellowship with the Father and Son, and the joyful life we can only experience with them.  Forgiveness flows from fellowship. 

Our Motivation

Titus 3:1  Remind them to be submissive to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good work, 2 to speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward all people. 3 For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another. 4 But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, 5 he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, 6 whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

Verses 3 through 6 are often recognized as a great summary of the work of Christ. It begins with the word "but," indicating that God did something to change everything.  He send Christ, by His grace, to be our Savior.  The Holy Spirit also was very much involved, giving us new birth and cleansing.  This changed us from who we used to be - disobedient, lost, self-willed and self-centered.  Working our way back up through the passage, this should be our motivation for submission to authority, obedience to God, good works, loving speech, and respect for others. The work of Christ is a game-changer in all our relationships.

The Power of Change

Titus 2:11 For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, 12 training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, 13 waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, 14 who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.

Once again, in this chapter, Paul wastes no time in getting to his exhortations about what needed to happen in this church to which Titus had been sent to "get things in order."  He begins by challenging each "stage-in-life group" - older men, older women, younger women, younger men, and servants - to step up to their responsibilities and live holy lives - changed lives before a lawless society.  In the paragraph above, he then tells them why: God has shown grace not only to save us from the penalty of sin, but to change us and help us live above to power of sin in this life.  Christ came to redeem us, clean us up, and work in and through us.  The Gospel is the power of a life changed for eternity.