Believers Do Not Love the World Because of who They Are (1 John 2:12-14)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 07-12-04

 

My Worship Time      Focus:  Believers do not love the world because of who they are.

 

Bible Reading & Meditation             Reference:  1John 2:12-14

 

            Message of the verse:  “12 ¶  I write this letter to you all, as my dear children, because your sins are forgiven for his name’s sake.  13  I write to you, fathers, because you have known him who has always existed. And to you young men I am writing because you have defeated the evil one.  14  I have written to you, dear children, because you have known the Father; to you fathers because you have known the one who has always existed, and to you young men because you have all the vigor of youth, because God’s truth is at home in you and because you have defeated the evil one.”  (Philips)  “12 ¶  I write unto you, little children, because your sins are forgiven you for his name’s sake.  13  I write unto you, fathers, because ye have known him that is from the beginning. I write unto you, young men, because ye have overcome the wicked one. I write unto you, little children, because ye have known the Father.  14  I have written unto you, fathers, because ye have known him that is from the beginning. I have written unto you, young men, because ye are strong, and the word of God abideth in you, and ye have overcome the wicked one.”  (AV)

            In these three verses John writes about the different levels of the Christian life by using the illustration of different names.  He first talks about the “little children,” and this refers to those who have been born into God’s family through the new birth, which are all believers.  He goes on to write that all believers have had their sins forgiven through what Christ has accomplished on the cross.  Next he writes to the fathers, and this refers to those who are mature in the faith.  Next he writes to the young men who are growing in their faith and the proof of this is that they are defeating the evil one.  Satan is the head of the world system, and he tries to get God’s children to get satisfaction through his counterfeit system. These young men that John is referring to are defeating the evil on by the Word of God just as Jesus did.  In the last portion of verse 13 the phrase “little children” is used again, however this is not the same Greek word as used in verse 12, and this word is referring to immature believers, those who have known the Father for sometime, yet they are not growing closer to Him as they should be.  John summarizes whom he has been writing to in verse 14 by again repeating all of these types of levels of those in the faith.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  John’s words are very sobering to me as I have looked at the different levels of the believer’s walk, or maturity with the Lord and wonder where it is that I fit.  The world is not nearly as astrictive to me as it once was, and one of the reasons is the trials that the Lord has seen fit to send my way.

 

 The Word of God was very challenging to my heart as I read it this morning, and it was also very refreshing, and convicting too.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  Trust the Lord with the different doctor appointments that Sandy and I have today, that He will see us through them and the results will bring honor to His name.  Trust the Lord as I prepare for the devotion for this evenings prayer meeting, and also for those He will send out to pray for our Church. Continue to trust the Lord as to where He would have me present the message He is giving to me. 

Memory verses for the week:  1Cor 13:8

 

Love never fails; but if there are gifts of prophecy, they will be done away; if there are tongues, they will cease; if there is knowledge, it will be done away.

PT-2 Love Not the World (1 John 2:15-16)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 07-10-04

 

My Worship Time                                          Focus:  Love not the world

           

Bible Reading & Meditation                         Reference:  1John 2:15-16

 

            Message of the verse:  “15 Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.  16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.”  (NASB)  “15 Don’t love the world’s ways. Don’t love the world’s goods. Love of the world squeezes out love for the Father.  16 Practically everything that goes on in the world—wanting your own way, wanting everything for yourself, wanting to appear important—has nothing to do with the Father. It just isolates you from him.”  (Message) 

            “Worldliness:  anything in a Christian’s life that causes him to lose his enjoyment of the Father’s love or his desire to do the Father’s will is worldly and must be avoided.  Responding to the Father’s love (your personal devotional life), and doing the Father’s will (your daily conduct)—these are two tests of worldliness.”  (Be Real) 

            In these verses John tells his readers not to love the world, nor the things that are in the world.  God has given certain desires to His children, such as hunger, weariness, and sex, which in and of themselves are not wrong.  However if a person eats too much, sleeps to much, or has sex outside the boundaries that God has shown him in His Word, then these good things become wrong, or worldly. 

            The message gives a good understanding of the next phrase of this verse, “Love of the world squeezes out love for the Father.”  This makes it easy to understand. 

            John goes on in the next verse to give three things that are in this worlds system that can do much harm to the believer, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life.  It is interesting that Satan used these three tactics to cause Eve to fall.  “When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.”  Good for food is the lust of the flesh, pleasing to the eye is lust of the eyes, and it was desirable for gaining wisdom is the pride of life.

            As believers we can become friends with the world, (James 4:4), “You adulterers! Don’t you realize that friendship with this world makes you an enemy of God? I say it again, that if your aim is to enjoy this world, you can’t be a friend of God.”  Next a believer can be spotted with the world, (James 1:27),  “Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.”  John give the next step to this downward spiral of the believer, when in 1John 2:15 he writes that the believer is not to love the world, so it is possible for a believer to love the world.  The next step is found in Romans 12:2 where Paul tells the Roman believers not to be conformed to the world.  “Don’t let the world around you squeeze you into its own mould, but let God re-make you so that your whole attitude of mind is changed. Thus you will prove in practice that the will of God is good, acceptable to him and perfect.”  The Phillips version gives the meaning of the Greek word conformed as being squeezed into its mold.  The last step is to be condemned with the world, and that is found in 1Cor. 11:32, “But when we are judged and disciplined by the Lord, we will not be condemned with the world.”

            Lot’s life shows this downward spiral is possible in the life of a believer.  Probably is Peter would not have wrote about “righteous Lot,” few people would have figured he was a believer.  First Lot looked toward Sodom.  Next he pitched his tent toward Sodom in the well-watered plains of Jordan.  Then he moved into Sodom.  Next when Sodom was captured by the enemy, Lot was captured, too, even though he was a believer.  When God destroyed Sodom everything Lot lived for went up in smoke, he was saved so as by fire and lost of eternal rewards.  (1Cor. 3:12-15)  “ Now anyone who builds on that foundation may use gold, silver, jewels, wood, hay, or straw.  But there is going to come a time of testing at the judgment day to see what kind of work each builder has done. Everyone’s work will be put through the fire to see whether or not it keeps its value.  If the work survives the fire, that builder will receive a reward.

But if the work is burned up, the builder will suffer great loss. The builders themselves will be saved, but like someone escaping through a wall of flames.”  (NLT)

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  In order for me to live a life that is pleasing to the Lord I must stay away from falling into the trap of the world’s system.  Romans 12:2 gives me a good way of not falling into this trap where is says but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that I can prove what is pleasing to the Lord.  Transformation is the key to be pleasing to the Lord.  The Spirit of God uses the Word of God to transform me into the image of Christ. 

 

The Word of God was full of challenges for me as I studied it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  Believe that the Lord will direct my path, and give me the grace to handle what He has for me to do.  Continue to trust the Lord with the things He is doing in Canada with our investments. 

Memory verses of the week:  1Cor. 13:4-7

 

Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.  

Love Not The World (1 John 2:12-17)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 07-09-04

 

My Worship Time      Focus:  Love not the world

 

Bible Reading & Meditation             Reference:  1John 2:12-17

 

            Message of the verses:  “12 ¶ I write unto you, little children, because your sins are forgiven you for his name’s sake.  13 I write unto you, fathers, because ye have known him that is from the beginning. I write unto you, young men, because ye have overcome the wicked one. I write unto you, little children, because ye have known the Father.  14 I have written unto you, fathers, because ye have known him that is from the beginning. I have written unto you, young men, because ye are strong, and the word of God abideth in you, and ye have overcome the wicked one.  15 Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.  16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.

17 And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.

            This section is going to be a bit different that what I usually do, as I am following the outline that is in Dr. Wiersbe’s book on 1John, “Be Real.”  He generally explains a paragraph from the Scriptures he is writing on in one or the chapters of his book, and in this case the paragraph are the verses above.  Sometimes he does not go verse by verse, but jumps around in his commentary of the paragraph, as he is doing in this section.  

            The name of this chapter is “The Love God Hates,” and it there is discussed four reasons why Christians should not love the world.  This first section explains what the world is.

            There are different uses of the word world in the Scriptures, as it can mean the physical earth, the people who live on the earth or the system headed up by Satan that opposes Christ and all is doing.  The last is what the believers are to hate.  John writes in verse 15 that believers are not to love the world, nor anything in the world because the Lord Jesus Christ opposes all of it.  Christ came to pay for our sins so that He could take us out of the world system.  Believers are to be in the world, but are not to be of the world, and there is a big difference.  This is how the apostle Paul wrote about where the citizenship of the believer is:  “For our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.”  (Philippians 3:20) 

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  It is good to realize exactly what the definition of the world system is, and it is also good to realize that my citizenship is in heaven.  Jesus Christ’s death on the cross defeated the three enemies of the believers, which are the world, the flesh, and the devil, and it is important to remember this. 

 

The Word of God was challenging to my heart as I read it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  Trust the Lord will bring about the way for Andrew Lech to return our money to us.  Continue to pray for Ann as she works to this end with Andrew.

 

Memory verses for the week:  1Cor. 13:4-7

 

Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, endures all things.

Walking in the Light (1 John 2:9-11)

SPIRITUAL DIARY F0R 7-08-04

 

My Worship Time                  Focus:  Walking in the light

 

Bible Reading & Meditation             Reference:  1John 2:9-11

 

            Message of the verse:  “9  He who says he is in the light, and hates his brother, is in darkness until now.  10  He who loves his brother abides in the light, and there is no cause for stumbling in him.  11  But he who hates his brother is in darkness and walks in darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.”  (NKJV)  “9  If anyone says, "I am living in the light," but hates a Christian brother or sister, that person is still living in darkness.  10  Anyone who loves other Christians is living in the light and does not cause anyone to stumble.  11  Anyone who hates a Christian brother or sister is living and walking in darkness. Such a person is lost, having been blinded by the darkness.”  (NLT)

            In these three verses John writes some sobering things about love, sobering because for one thing a persons walk can determine whether or not he is in fellowship with the Lord, by showing whether or not he is in fellowship with other believers.  John says that if a person says that he loves God, yet hates his brother in the Lord, he is walking in darkness, because if he who loves his brother will be abiding in the true light.  Hatred blinds a person, while love opens person’s eyes to see what God wants them to see.  It is important to note that true Christian love has to come from the Holy Spirit, for it is not a natural thing to be done, because man is selfish.  A Christian brother who is walking in the darkness can, not only stumble himself, but also he can cause others to stumble. 

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  True Christian love can only come from the Holy Spirit who lives within me.  As I read this passage it has shown me that I still must love those who have left our church.  I believe that it is all right to be upset with the things that they have done, because I truly believe that God is also upset with what they have done, and it is God who will do the work in their hearts to bring them to repentance, an I am only to pray for them that they will yield to the urging of the Holy Spirit to repent. 

 

The Word of God was very refreshing to me as I read it and studied it this morning, and it was also convicting to my heart.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  I trust the Lord with the outcome of what is going on in Canada, and I trust the Lord to work things out with those who have left our church, that He will call them to repentance. 

Memory verses:  1Cor. 13:4-7

 

Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

 

Love is True in Christ (1 John 2:8)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 07-05-04

 

My Worship Time                                          Focus:             Love is true in Christ    

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                     Reference:  1John 2:8

 

            Message of the verse:  “On the other hand, I am writing a new commandment to you, which is true in Him and in you, because the darkness is passing away, and the true light is already shining.”  (NAS)  “Yet I am writing you a new command; its truth is seen in him and you, because the darkness is passing and the true light is already shining.”  (NIV)

            This new commandment is true in the life of Christ, for Christ is love, and Christ has demonstrated His love for both friends and enemies as He died upon the cross for the sins of the world.  Christ’s life was a new demonstration of this old commandment to love, and it started at His birth.  Luke points this out in Luke 1:78, “Through the tender mercy of our God, With which the Dayspring from on high has visited us.”  This word for dayspring is a word that means a new sunrise, and when Christ came into the world things changed because of His presence. 

            John says that this love that is in Chris is now in those who are His because the darkness is passing away and the true light is shinning.  Darkness represents Satan, and light represents Jesus Chris, so there is a great conflict in the world today because of light and darkness.  Love has overcome the darkness in those people who have been born again, and they are to spread their light to those who are still in the darkness, for when you take light into a dark room it will always overcome the darkness that is in the room.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  It is good to be reminded that because Jesus Christ has shinned His light on me, that I too am able to shine His light onto others, and the way to do that is through love.  1Corinthians 13:13 speaks of faith, hope, and love, but says the greatest of these is love, for love will last on forever and ever.

 

The Word of God was refreshing to my heart as I read it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  Trust in the Lord with all of my heart, and lean not upon my own understanding, in all my ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct my path.

Memory verses:  1Cor. 13:4-7

 

Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love dose not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

The Old (1 John 2:7)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 07-01-04

 

My Worship Time                                                                  Focus:  The old

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                     Reference:  1John 2:7

 

            Message of the verse:  “I am not writing to tell you of any new command, brothers of mine. It is the old command which you had at the beginning; it is the old message which you have heard before.”  (PHILIPS)  “Beloved, I am not writing a new commandment to you, but an old commandment which you have had from the beginning; the old commandment is the word which you have heard.”  (NAS)

            John is writing to his readers to remind them that there has always been a commandment to love.  It can be seen in this verse that the emphasis is new.  In the previous section John has been writing about commandments in general, but in this section he lifts out the commandment of love and puts it above the rest of the commandments.  Paul writes much about love in his letters, especially in his letter to the Corinthians, and in particular in chapter 13, where he concludes that love is the greatest.  As mentioned before about the word love, it is the Greek word agape that is used on many occasions in the NT.  The Greeks had three words for love, and two of them are found in the NT, agape is the kind of love that God loves with, and is also the kind of love that believers are to love one another with.  Philia is a friendship kind of love and is where we get the name for Philadelphia, which means city of brotherly love. 

            It should be noted that when a person is born again that God puts this agape love into their heart, and it is certainly different from the kind life that a person has had before their conversion.  Romans 5:8 have this to say about this kind of love, “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”  Romans 5:5b give more insight into a new believer’s new love, “because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.”  This new commandment of love is not natural for a person, but it is a gift that God gives to all of His born-again children, and He wants us to love one another to show that we truly belong to Him.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  As I think back to last nights lesson on “Who is God,” and the discussion that our group had about being able to show others who God is, I can’t help but think by loving the brethren, and also having a love for the lost will surely go a long way in showing the lost who my God is.

 

The Word of God has been a big challenge to my heart as I read it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  To be available to have the Lord fill me with His agape love for my wife and for others.

 

Verses to memorize for the week:  1Cor. 13:4-7

Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wronged suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 

Love Perfected (1 John 2:5-6)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 06-29-04

 

                                                           

My Worship Time      Focus:  Love perfected

 

Bible Reading & Meditation             Reference:  1John 2:5-6

 

            Message of the verse:  “5 But those who obey God’s word really do love him. That is the way to know whether or not we live in him.  6 Those who say they live in God should live their lives as Christ did.”  (NLT)  “5 But if anyone obeys his word, God’s love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him:  6 Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did.”  (NIV)

            As stated in the SD on 6-27-04, there are three reasons as to why a person obeys another, and in this case God, and the most mature reason to obey God is because we love Him as stated in verse five.  I believe that John is speaking about a continuous action of obedience.  If a person is not saved then he will not keep the commandments of the Lord, but if a person is saved there will be times when he does not keep the commandments of the Lord, but when he doesn’t he will realize that it was sin and then confess it as sin to the Lord.  Christianity is a relationship with the living God through Jesus Christ The Lord, and when believers realize that this is a relationship and they do something that offends the Lord then they should want to get that relationship back on track by confessing the offence to the Lord. 

            The NIV translation uses the word “complete” to describe the kind of love that a believer can have with the Lord.  If the believer keeps the Lord’s commandments out of the motivation of love then his love will be made complete, or it will be perfected.

            Verse six goes on to say that if we belong to the Lord then we will walk as the Lord Jesus Christ walked while He was on the earth.  I do not know everything that is meant by this, but one thing I do know is that when Jesus Christ was on the earth He walked in dependence upon His Father at all times, trusting His Father, and obeying all that He had for Him to do. 

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I have to decide way it is that I want to obey the commandments of the Lord.  Am I obeying because I have to, need to, or because I want to?  I know that there are times I obey for one of these different reasons, yet my desire is to obey the Lord because I want to, because of love.

 

The Word of God was refreshing to my soul, and it was also a challenge to my heart as I read it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  I wish to trust the Lord and obey Him today because of the love that I have for Him, a love that he started in my heart when He saved me from sin, and placed me into the Body of Christ, the Church.

Memory verses:  1Cor. 13:4-7

 

Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love doe not brag and is not arrogant, doe not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all thing, hope all things, endures all things.  

Walking in the Light (1 John 2:3-4)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 06-27-04

 

My Worship Time                  Focus:  Walking in the light

 

Bible Reading & Meditation             Reference:  1John 2:3-4

 

            Message of the verse: “3 Here’s how we can be sure that we know God in the right way: Keep his commandments.  4 If someone claims, "I know him well!" but doesn’t keep his commandments, he’s obviously a liar. His life doesn’t match his words.”  (Message)  “3 ¶ And by this we know that we have come to know Him, if we keep His commandments.  4 The one who says, "I have come to know Him," and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him;”  (NAS)

            John is telling his readers that there is one way to make sure that a person knows the Lord, and that is to do what the Lord has told us to do, in other words to keep His commandments.  There can be three motives as to why a person keeps the commandments:  1) Because we have too; 2) because we have to, and 3) because want to.  A person who obeys the Lord because he wants to is doing it because He loves the Lord, and wants to please Him in everything he does.

            John goes one to write about people who have no desire to follow God’s commandments, and says that they are liars, because that person’s life does not match up with his words.  There is a saying that if you talk the talk you have to walk the walk.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  As I am studying this section of 1John, I cannot help but think about the differences between king Saul, and king David.  I have always been interested in knowing the difference between these two men, because there are many sins that they both have committed recorded in the Scriptures, and in fact there are more of the sins of David mentioned in the Scriptures than that of Saul, yet God makes the statement that David is a man after God’s Own heart.  As I study this passage I am beginning to realize that the reason that David was a man after God’s own heart is because he walked in the light, when ever he sinned he was willing to confess his sins to the Lord, and whenever he did this David realized that his sin was something that was not only wrong, but was something that broke God’s heart.  David also knew that God forgave his sins because of His great love for David.

 

The Word of God was very refreshing to me as I read it this morning, and it was also a very big challenge too. 

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  I believe that God is giving me a message to share with others, and I trust the Lord to prepare me to give this message and to also provide an audience of those He wants to hear it.

Memory verses for the week:  1Cor. 13:4-6

 

Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices in the truth;

The Advocate and the One who Makes Propitiation (1 John 2:1-2)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 06-24-04

 

My Worship Time      Focus:  The Advocate and the One who makes propitiation 

 

Bible Reading & Meditation             Reference:  1John 2:1-2

 

            Message of the verse:  “1 ¶  My little children, I am writing these things to you that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous; 2  and He Himself is the propitiation for our sins; and not for ours only, but also for those of the whole world.”  (NAS)  “1 ¶  I WRITE these things to you, my children, to help you to avoid sin. But if a man should sin, remember that our advocate before the Father is Jesus Christ and he is just, 2  the one who made personal atonement for our sins (and for those of the rest of the world as well).”  (Philips)

            John continues the theme of sin into this next chapter.  He uses two words in these first two verses, which describe two of the works that the Lord Jesus Christ does, or has done in the past. The words are Advocate, and propitiation, and they are significant words for the believer, and unbeliever too.  The word Advocate can mean a defense attorney, one who walks along side you when you are in court.  The Holy Spirit is One who walks along side the believer.  Jesus Christ is Advocate to those who have accepted Him as Saviour and Lord, and He represents us in God’s court in heaven when Satan decides to accuse us of doing wrong.

            The word propitiation carries with it the meaning of being satisfied with God’s holy Law.  God loves the world, yet He is Holy and thus cannot look away from sin, so His solution was the sending of His Son, Jesus Christ into the world to pay the debt of sin.  God is satisfied with Christ’s sacrifice of sin and thus He can justify the believer on the basis of Christ’s death.  The OT word for propitiation is mercy seat, and the mercy seat was on top of the ark of the covenant.  There were two angels upon the top of the mercy seat and one represented God’s justice, and the other His love.  The blood of the sacrifice was placed upon the mercy seat once a year to cover the sins of the nation of Israel.  God’s justice was satisfied as He looked at the blood of an innocent sacrifice, and thus God’s love could forgive.  Now it is worth noting that in this second verse John writes that this propitiation was for the whole world, and it surely was as can be seen in John 3:16, for it is offered to the whole world, yet as explained it certainly has application to the believer.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I need to remember at all times that forgiveness is free to me, but it was so very costly for God the Father, and for God the Son.  When I sin it is good to remember that that is what caused the death of the perfect Son of God, on my behalf.

 

The Word of God was convicting to my soul today as I read it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  Trust the Lord to be in the courthouse at Barrie ON this morning working out His perfect will for the lives of the investors, and also for Andrew Lech.  I pray that the Lord will continue to impress upon my heart the cost of forgiveness.

Memory verses for the week of 6:20-04:  1Cor. 13:4-6

Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth;  

Lying And Forgiveness (1 John 1:8-10)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 06-21-04

 

My Worship Time                  Focus:  Lying & Forgiveness

 

Bible Reading & Meditation             Reference:  1John 1:8-10

 

            Message of the verse:  “8 ¶  If we say we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and refusing to accept the truth.  9  But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us from every wrong.  10  If we claim we have not sinned, we are calling God a liar and showing that his word has no place in our hearts.”  (NLT)  8 ¶  If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.  9  If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.  10  If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us.”  (NKJV)

            In verse eight John is saying that believers should not fool themselves into thinking that they do not sin, but they are to accept that truth.  The reason that he writes this is because he knows that all believers have two natures, and the old nature can never do anything that is pleasing to the Lord, and thus whenever a believer yields to the old nature he sins.  Many times when a believer sins he does not want to admit his wrong doing, yet that is exactly what John says should be done, for in verse nine he gives the remedy to sin, and that is to agree with God that we have sinned and believe that God will forgive you of your sin.  The verse goes on to say that God is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins and also to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.  He is just to do this because of what His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ did upon the cross to pay the penalty for our sin.  God can forgive us and not go against His perfect justice, because that was taken care of on the cross. 

            In verse nine John again brings up the topic of lying, and in this verse the believer is lying to God and this is a bad thing to fall into.  The sequence of lying in these first ten verses goes as follows:  First the believer lies to himself, then to other believers and finally he lies to God.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  In these verses I can see God’s wonderful love, and because of this wonderful love, I can see His forgiveness.  I can see a sequence that I do not want to fall into, and that is lying to myself, others or especially to God. 

 

The Word of God has been challenging to my heart as I have studied it this morning. 

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  Trust the Lord with all of my heart, and lean not upon my own understanding, in all my ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct my path.  Trust the Lord with this trip we are about to take, and trust the Lord with the outcome of our investments with Andrew and His working in Andrew’s heart through the efforts of Ann Dekker. 

 

Memory verses for the week:  1Cor. 13:4-6

 

Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices in the truth, 

Fellowship (1 John 1:7)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 06-20-04

 

My Worship Time                  Focus:  Fellowship

 

Bible Reading & Meditation             Reference:  1John 1:7

 

            Message of the verse:  “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.”  (NIV) “1:7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.”  (AV)

            John is contrasting walking in the dark, in verse 6, with walking in the light here in verse 7, and the differences are totally the opposite.  When the believer is walking in the light, he is walking in the Lord, in the fellowship of the Lord.  When the believer is walking in fellowship with the Lord, then he will have fellowship with other believers.  When a believer is walking in the light there may be times when he will sin, and when I speak of sin here I am speaking of a person who is not controlled by sin, but a person who falls and then he realizes it and confesses his sin to the Lord, and as the rest of the verse says, “and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin.”  I believe John is saying to the believers he is writing to that we will sin, but we are not to live in the power of sin, and if we are doing that and say we have fellowship with the light we are lying, but if when we sin we confess it to the Lord, He will cleanse us and forgive us from the sin.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  The question begs to be asked as to why would the Lord want to forgive me of my sin? And the answer is love.  Song of Solomon 8:6,7 “Place me like a seal over your heart, like a seal on your arm; for love is as strong as death, its jealousy unyielding as the grave. It burns like blazing fire, like a mighty flame. Many waters cannot quench love; rivers cannot wash it away. If one were to give all the wealth of his house for love, it would be utterly scorned.”  These two verses help me to understand the power of God’s love.

 

The Word of God was both a challenge to my heart and a delight to my heart as I read and studied God’s Word this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  To walk in the Light and to have fellowship with my fellow believers.

Memory verses for the week:  1Cor. 13: 4-6

 

Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices in the truth;

 

Telling a lie, not Living in the Truth (1 John 1:5-6)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 06-19-04

 

My Worship Time                  Focus:  Telling a lie, not living in the Truth

 

Bible Reading & Meditation             Reference:  1John 1:5,6

 

            Message of the verse:  “5.  And this is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is light, and in Him there is no darkness at all.  6. If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth;”  (NAS)  “5.  This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all.  6. If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.”  (NKJV)

            Dr. Wiersbe entitles his commentary on 1John:  “Be Real,” and these verses give a good reason as to why he decided to use that title.  In order of a believer to be real, he must walk in the light of God’s Word, for God’s Word is truth.  If a believer is living a lie then he is not being real, and is not walking in the truth. 

            In verse five John tells his readers the message that he wants them to hear, the message that he has heard from the Lord Jesus Christ, and that message is that God is light, and in God there is no darkness at all.  God is perfect, and there is no sin in Him, nor could there ever be any sin in Him for He is the Truth, and He is the Light.  These two words help to describe God to John’s readers.  If a person takes a light into a dark room, the light will always penetrate the darkness, and there will be light in the room.  When God shines His Light into a dark and sinful room many times people will run from His Light, and return to the darkness because they cannot stand the light. 

            John goes on to say that if a person is continuing to walk in sin and then say that he has fellowship with God then that person is lying, and is not practicing the truth, or living in the truth. 

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  There are many enemies that I, as a believer have, and these enemies are out to destroy my walk with the Lord Jesus Christ.  Among these enemies are the world, the flesh, and the Devil.

            My computer has recently had many different virus on it, and in thinking about these virus and how they get there and also what they do, and thinking about why someone would take the time to make things like this, God has been working in my heart to show me that there are times when the virus of sin acts in the same way in my life.

            It seems to be easy to have my computer infected with a virus, it can happen just by getting onto the Internet.  The Internet is like the world, and if I am to go out into the world I must be protected by the Word of God, and if I go out into the world of the Internet, I must be protected by a virus protection program, and must keep it updated all of the time because there are new virus’ waiting to attack my computer every time I get on the Internet. 

            Just like a virus can ruin the effectiveness of my computer if left undetected, so can sin ruin my testimony for the Lord if left undetected.  The answer sin is to confess it to God as John wrote in 1John 1:9.

 

The Word of God was both convicting, and also it was also challenging to my heart as I studied it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  Trust the Lord to keep the virus of sin from affecting my testimony for the cause of Christ.

Memory verses:  1Cor. 13:4,5

Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered,