Tag Archives: the book of 1 John

January 8
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“If someone claims, ‘I know God,’ but doesn’t obey God’s commandments, that person is a liar and is not living in the truth.” (1 John 2:4, NLT)

Here is the essence of knowing God: Obedience to His commandments.

It is not doing great things in God’s name that shows we know Him.  It is not acquiring volumes of knowledge about God that shows we know Him. It is not the depth of our sacrifice that shows we know God. To know God is to obey His commandments.

God’s commandments are to love God with all our being; and to love our neighbor as we love ourselves.  (Please see Mark 12:30-31.)

To be sure, to do great things in God’s name; learning all we can about Him; and sacrificing ourselves for His name’s sake are honorable ambitions.  However, unless these and other works begin at God’s initiative, our labor and our accomplishments are in vain.

Let complete obedience to our Creator and our God be our daily goal. It is only through obedience that we become like Him.  – Luther

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December 29
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“See how great a love the Father has bestowed on us, that we would be called children of God; and such we are. For this reason the world does not know us, because it did not know Him.” (1 John 3:1, NASB)

The scriptures tell us that a pupil is not above his or her teacher. If the teacher suffers the slings and arrows of ignorant people, the pupil should expect nothing less.

Jesus is God in human flesh, blood, and bone. He came because God loved the world; but the world did not return His love. The world preferred its ways to God’s ways. The world preferred its gods to the one true, living, God.

The evidence of God’s love is the gift to us of His own name. As His children, we are His heirs; and as His heirs, all that came to Jesus has also been set-aside for you and me.

With this in mind, always live a life worthy of the Name you’ve been given. Our heavenly Father’s good name may not always be honored on this earth, but the mere whisper of it anywhere in the universe makes available to us every blessing and gift from heaven!  – Luther

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December 19
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“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.” (1 John 2:16, NIV)

There you have it in a nutshell: The world’s attraction is what feels good (lust of the flesh), what looks good (lust of the eyes), and what lives large (the pride of life) — all ahead of its time.

This is not to say that God doesn’t want His children to feel good, look good, and enjoy all of the joys of this life: He does, more than we usually realize. However, His gifts arrive when they will give us pleasure; not cause us pain.

To lust is to want it all now; and the intoxication of pride lasts only for a short while. Viewed from this perspective, is it easy to see the difference between the offerings of the world, and the gifts of our heavenly Father?  – Luther

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