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Good morning my “Walking with Jesus” friends,
As the intensity of the American political race heats up, if you haven’t already, you will soon find yourself at a loss, seeking to discern TRUTH. Of all the media outlets, have you found one to be consistently reliable in reporting TRUTHFULLY, accurately, the events of the day? On a scale of 1-10, how much do you trust the media to be telling you the truth, with 10 being so confident, you’d build your life major decisions on what they tell you?
But reporting the news and journalism are two different things are they? “Journalism” has long ago moved to shaping your understanding of what the events mean, why the events occurred, and advising you on how your life should respond to those events. So as the world watches America prepare for what may be the most significant presidential election in our lifetime… how should all people, in every society, make the most important decisions which will shape their family & society futures? What truths should guide them?
This week I’d like to help us learn how to filter information, through a God given filter. Would you join me in a walk through the little letter of 1 John, toward the back of your Bible? It is amazingly relevant to the society in which you live, no matter where you live in the world.
1 John is the first of three short letters written by the man who may have been the closest friend of Jesus. 5 times John refers to himself as “the disciple Jesus loved” in his account of Jesus’ life, titled simply ‘John’s Gospel’ in your Bible, the fourth book of the New Testament. John’s account of Jesus’ life has a great deal not found in the other three “Gospels” because John wrote from a very personal, eye witness perspective, wanting us to see how Jesus’ life impacted many real people, from all walks of life.
By the time John writes his little letter 1 John, he’s likely living in the major city of Ephesus, and is perhaps the only remaining disciple alive, of the 12 original disciples. Not long after this letter, John was arrested and exiled to the island of Patmos where he received the inspired vision which he wrote and we know as Revelation, the last book of our Bible.
John wrote 1 John to help people who had never seen Jesus, never heard Jesus speak, never experienced one of His miracles, and they were therefore doubting the truth of the reports that they were hearing. There were no photographs, no actual ‘video footage’ of any of the miracles. Did they really happen? Then, as now, liars, cheats, scam artists were everywhere, cheating people out of their money and their businesses, so people were very cautious and even suspicious of outrageous claims.
Not only did John want to assure people that Jesus had been a real person who did amazing miracles, taught amazing truth about God, and then died and rose again, and returned to heaven…, John wanted people to understand Jesus, as the Son of God, and that He could change their lives from where He was at that moment, in heaven, alive and powerful! Hebrews 7:25 says it well.. “Because Jesus lives forever…He is able to save completely those who come to God through Him, because He always lives to intercede for them.” Paul had written in Romans 8:34 “Christ Jesus who died – more than that, who was raised to life – is at the right hand of God and is interceding for us.”
So now we understand why John begins his little letter 1 John with a very clear proclamation that he was an eyewitness, a friend, a personal companion of Jesus, and that this Jesus was far more than just a man, He was God from before the beginning, who came to earth incarnate in a human body, for all to see, hear, and believe! “We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard…” Go ahead friends, read 1 John 1:1-4 and see with what enthusiasm and confidence John writes, challenging us to believe the truth about Jesus! What truth? Let’s look closely…
“This is the message we have heard from Him (Jesus) and declare to you: God is light, in Him there is no darkness at all. If we claim to have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live in the truth.“ (1 John 1:5,6) Then and now, this is a line of demarcation in life. “Light” represents TRUTH. God is all truth, there is not a shred of deceit or untruth in Him. God defines truth. Jesus claimed to be the living truth (John 14:6) and He promised that any who followed Him, who believed in HIM, who lived His truth, would not walk in darkness. (John 8:12) Those people who claim to live in relationship with Jesus, live by God’s truth. They reject any distortion of God’s truth. They speak God’s truth and they hold themselves accountable to God’s truth.
Therefore, when someone who claims a relationship with Jesus, is found to be deceitful, distorting truth, spinning truth to their advantage, the authenticity of the relationship with God which they claim, will be suspect. Integrity of character is an unwavering core value in a relationship with Jesus. And therefore every aspect of the life of a person claiming an authentic relationship with Jesus should be passed under the inspecting searchlight and should be found to be only truthful… true to their marriage covenant; truthful in all financial dealings; truthful to their promises, and always accountable to the highest standard, Jesus Himself.
“But if we walk in the light (truth) as Jesus is in the light, we have fellowship (honest relationship) with one another and the blood of Jesus purifies us from all sin. If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.” (1 John 1:7,8) My friends, think about all the trusting relationships you have. Your doctor, dentist, pastor, lawyer, financial advisor, closest friends, family. When is the last time your trust was broken? How long did it take for you to rebuild trust in that person? Authentic relationship between a person and God can only be a fully truthful relationship. No secrets. No pretending. The same is true for genuine, mutually beneficial, trustworthy relationships between people, especially people who claim a relationship with Jesus.
Now listen closely to John. “If we claim we have not sinned, we make Him (God) out to be a liar and His word is not in us.” Paul wrote: “ALL have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23) No person, anywhere, is fully sinless, only Jesus. Which is why what John said next is so important: “If we confess our sins, He (God) is faithful and just, and will forgive us our sins and purify (cleanse) us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9) I’d like us to park right here for the rest of today and let’s soak in this.
Do you hear God’s JUSTICE… sin must be paid for by death and punishment. The worst thing we can do is argue, point fingers at others and blame, or turn our back on God. The best thing we can do is confess, agree with God’s assessment of our condition, and then repent, turning to Jesus as the one who paid with His life so we could be set free from our deserved execution! But there’s more… do you see it? God then PURIFIES us, CLEANSES us, so we can live FREE and RESTORED in a wonderful, joyful, victorious relationship with Jesus!
John did… and He invites us all to join him. That is the essence of “walking with Jesus” as His friend! Remember John 15:9: “As the Father has loved Me (Jesus) so have I loved you. Now remain (live daily) in My love…I have told you this so that you My joy may be in you and your joy will be complete. My command is this: love each other as I have loved you. You are My friends if you do what I have taught you…You did not choose me but I chose you…”
May I invite you to take your journal, find a quiet place and have a great chat with Jesus who loves you more than you can imagine. Let Him overwhelm you with what He’d like your relationship to be, how He’d like to grow it.
Here’s a challenge… write a description of the Jesus you know. All His characteristics that are important to you!!
How Jesus and you relate to each other. How you discern when He’s speaking to you and what He’s saying. How you know your attitudes or words or actions are not honoring to Him. And then discuss what you’ve written…with Jesus! Now that will be a very interesting experience. Maybe life changing. And I’m looking forward to meeting with you again tomorrow morning!
Bible images provided with attribution to www.LumoProject.com.
Have a comment or question about today’s chapter? I’m ready to hear from you, contact me here.
Pastor Doug Anderson 262.441.8785
“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, with our eyes fixed on Jesus…” (Heb. 12:1,2)
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