1 John 2:18-27

1 John 2:15-17

All of us have a fundamental allegiance, a trajectory of our hearts and affections.  A critical question is where will our love take us in eternity?  Will we love the world (Gr. cosmos), i.e. the creation apart from the Creator, or will we be devoted to the Creator himself?  While living in the tension of being in the world but not of it, we understand that our desires have been twisted by the Fall.  As we grow in sanctification, may the focus of our hearts be not so much on what we are running from, but more on to whom we are running as we pursue the expulsive power of a new affection.

1 John 2:12-14

Our security in this life is found in the central hope of the gospel which is the offer of forgiveness of sin in Christ.  As a result of this redeemed and restored relationship, we know the Father intimately.  For the seasoned saints among us, the challenge is to avoid becoming crusty and calcified in our walk of faith, while drawing comfort that the infinite Father cares for us in our finitude.  The younger and stronger must harness their vigor and energy for the kingdom, while remembering not to put our confidence in that which cannot save, but rather in God abiding in us.

1 John 2:7-11

A canary in a coal mine serves as a warning when something bad is about to happen.  Likewise John gives us a warning test for our social relationships within the church.  The commandment to love one another has been present among God’s people from the beginning of his covenant with them so, in that sense, it’s an old commandment.  At the same time, the grace and truth that come to us through Jesus write this commandment upon the tablets of our hearts in a new way.  It is not possible to continue hating our brothers while claiming to walk in the light of the gospel.  Rather we are called to build each other up, to move toward one another when friction does arise, and to avoid being a stumbling block to our brothers and sisters, thereby walking in the light.

1 John 2:1-6

The elder John speaks in today’s text with both real authority and real affection.  He communicates that he loves his readers, and knows the One who loves them even more.  For followers of Jesus, sin ought not to be the norm in our lives; we should flee from it.  Even so, in the vestiges of sin that still cling to us, we have an advocate (paraclete) who pleads before the Father on our behalf, appealing to the perfect sacrifice of Jesus as our propitiation.  As we are kept in Jesus, we are called to live out our “keptness”.

1 John 1:5-10

In contrast to the gnostic heresy of the Apostle John’s day which claimed the need for special hidden knowledge (gnosis), John presents God as a revelatory God who makes himself known to his people.  He is the one who gets to define the standard of light and darkness, good and evil.  We cannot claim to be in fellowship with God’s people while continuing to willfully practice darkness without repentance.  Conversely, walking in the light binds us together — our sanctification is a group project!  As we confess our sin to our God who already knows our heart, he is faithful and just to deliver us from darkness, debt and defilement.

1 John 1:1-4

Today marks the beginning of our journey through the Johannine epistles which we’ll often view through the lens of John’s gospel.  Our holy and transcendent God took on flesh in the person of Jesus to draw near to us in a manner that we can apprehend, and by which he assures us that he sees us and loves us.  It’s not necessary to labor under the burden of trying to do enough or be enough.  The ground of our assurance is the gospel.  After he came down from heaven, he now sends his gospel out to his people, then draws us back in to enjoy koinonia fellowship with each other, before sending us back out into the world to make Jesus known.  Our joy will be complete when he returns to make all things new.

Psalm 2:1-12

Throughout the past year, as we’ve worked through 1 and 2 Samuel, the question we were looking into was, “How will Yahweh bring his king out of conflict?”  In today’s Psalm, we get a foretaste of the reign of great King David’s greater son, Jesus.  Both pagans and sinful disciples of God are prone to scheme and rage against his rule.  There is no wisdom in that, even as it reveals God’s wrath both now and still to come.  In response to our holy God’s just wrath, we are invited to take refuge in the one who turned away God’s wrath from us by his incarnation, crucifixion, resurrection and promise to return, our Savior Jesus.

2 Samuel 24:1-25

Our series through 1 and 2 Samuel concludes today on an encouraging note.  While we may not always fully understand challenging passages of Scripture, we do well to look to other, clearer passages to help us make sense.  Because of God’s character displayed through the whole of Scripture, we can gladly follow him even in uncertainty.  When we recognize the sinful posture of our hearts, as with King David, may we cultivate tender consciences and cast ourselves upon Yahweh’s covenant mercy, publicly bearing witness to his utter faithfulness to accomplish his kingdom purposes.

2 Samuel 23:8-39

There are many unhelpful ways one might relate to their past.  Today as we hear so many names of those who came before us, we see an emphasis on covenant relationship within the family of God.  We recognize that our hope is rooted in the name Jesus gives us when he calls us his own.  His Spirit works to order our loves as he leads us into love for our church community.  We are reminded that we’re never truly alone as we stand in the line of God’s people of the past, of our current community and of the kingdom that he continues to build even through weakness.