Every Day Devotion

1 John 4:21 [21] And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother. (ESV) How do you feel about commandments? We know that we are under grace, not under the Law, so does that mean that we no longer obey God's commandments?  The reality is this. If we truly love God then we will obey him. So, if God commands us to do something we obey him out of love, not out of fear of the Law. So, what has he commanded? He has commanded that we love our brother. This commandment ought not to be any kind of surprise. We know that the Law and the Prophets are summarized in this principle of loving God and loving our neighbor. Do you remember when the Pharisees questioned Jesus about what was the most important commandment? Listen to His response: Matthew 22:37–40 [37] And he said to him, “ You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. [38] This is the great and first commandment. [39] And a second is l

1 John 4:20 [20] If anyone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. (ESV) Let's be honest for a moment. We have a hard time with certain portions of Scripture. If we could use a sharpie marker and delete certain words I think some of us would do it. At the very least, by our actions, we effectively re-write the portions of the Word of God that we do not like. Let me give you an example using today's verse: If anyone says, "I love God," and hates his brother, he is the Church Treasurer. If anyone says, "I love God," and hates his brother, he is a Deacon. If anyone says, "I love God," and hates his brother, he is a respected Church Member. If anyone says, "I love God," and hates his brother, he is a Christian. You see, we may say that we believe that God's Word is the truth. We may claim that we believe that truth.

1 John 4:19 [19] We love because he first loved us. (ESV) This short verse says a lot. I have encountered many "Christians" who think that they decided to love God because they were loving people and so it was natural for them to love God. This could not be further from the truth. The only ability that we have to love comes from the fact that God first loved us. Let's take a look at our life before God's love. Romans 5:8 [8] but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (ESV) Ephesians 2:3 [3] among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. (ESV) We were not loving creatures before God showered his love upon us. We were sinners. We lived to please ourselves. Love, by definition, cares about the needs of others. We did not. We were by nature objects of wrath. It is important to realize th

1 John 4:18 [18] There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love. (ESV) I would love to say that every Christian has abandoned fear in their lives, but I would be wrong. The Apostle John recognized that fear was something that the believers in Christ in the first century church wrestled with.  We are given his words for our encouragement.  He makes a connection between fear and love.  We will look at this connection today. “I'm not afraid of death; I just don't want to be there when it happens.”  ― Woody Allen The primary fear that we face is death.  We know that it is coming. We may know in our hearts that there is no need to fear death because we belong to the Lord, yet we still struggle with this fear. So what is the solution?  John tells us that it is perfect love that casts out fear.  What is perfect love? God's love!  If we want to see our fear disappear we need

1 John 4:17 [17] By this is love perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is so also are we in this world. (ESV) We have previously considered that the definition of love that the world has is not at all the same definition that God has given us in His Word. The ultimate demonstration of real love is found in the person of Jesus Christ, who took on human flesh and died for sinful humanity. His love is sacrificial. Jesus did not wait for us to even desire his love. He shed his blood for unworthy, ungrateful, and ungodly sinners. Now, John talks about love being perfected with us. What does he mean? Can we ever have the perfect love of Christ? Are we even close? A better translation of this word would be "mature."  We know that we are maturing in our understanding of love. How do we know this? Because of the way we demonstrate love in the world that we live in. "As he is so also are we in this world." Maturity

1 John 4:16 [16] So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. (ESV) This is such a beautiful, and yet challenging, verse. We have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. I think that many of us who belong to the Lord have no problem with the part of the verse that says we have come to know the love that God has for us. But it is the next part of the verse that we have a problem with. I am looking at the word believe. Do we truly believe the love that God has for us? You see, it is one thing to know the truth of something. It is quite another to believe that it is for us. We read all kinds of passages of Scriptures that remind us that God loves us. We have likely heard multiple sermons on the topic of God's amazing love. We can mentally affirm that God is love and we know that he has love for us. But do we believe it for ourselves? I have no problem belie

1 John 4:15 [15] Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. (ESV) The reality of Jesus as a historical person on this earth is undisputed. Our western calendar is based upon the fact of Jesus' historic birth. Christianity is based upon those who follow Jesus. Many may dispute whether or not there is a God. Many dispute whether or not Jesus himself was, and is, God, but history confirms the reality of Jesus' existence. John makes clear that if we claim to abide in God, and have God abide in us, there is a critical requirement for us. We must confess that Jesus is the Son of God. It seems that many of the people we meet will confess anything but that Jesus is the Son of God. Every belief system outside of Christianity diminishes the deity of Jesus Christ. The title Son of God is a title of being equal with God the Father. When you consider Jesus' claims you come to realize that he did not allow for other religions to also be ri

1 John 4:14 [14] And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. (ESV) The Apostle John writes that he testifies about what he has seen. Can you imagine what John had actually seen. There were 12 disciples. Of the twelve disciples Jesus spent the most time with three: Peter, James, and John. But of the three, John was referred to as the disciple that Jesus loved. That does not mean that Jesus did not love the others, but John was very close to Jesus. John was there when Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead. He saw Jesus shed tears of compassion when the Savior saw all of the people mourning the loss of Lazarus. John was there when Jesus fed five thousand people by multiplying the five loaves and two fishes of a small boy. The Apostle would have remembered the death and resurrection of the Savior. There were so many things that John witnessed. Listen to his words in his Gospel: John 21:25 [25] Now there are also many other things tha

1 John 4:13 [13] By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. (ESV) It is wonderful to know the truth that we have been called by God and saved by his amazing grace. Yet, there are times that we doubt. The cares, worries, and distractions of the world rob us of our confidence that we are actually the Lord's children. The enemy seeks continually to rob us of the assurance of our faith. The Apostle John reminds us today that we have been given God's precious Spirit. This wonderful Holy Spirit lives within us and encourages our hearts. He reminds us that we belong to Him. What an incredible help he is to us. The more that we walk with the Lord the more we are reminded that we cannot do anything without his help. That help comes directly from the Spirit whom we have been given. “The Christian’s life in all its aspects—intellectual and ethical, devotional and relational, upsurging in worship and outgoing in witness—is supernatur

1 John 4:12 [12] No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us. (ESV) For most of all of the eons of time God was not able to be seen. Many people in this world look at the fact that God cannot be seen and foolishly conclude that God does not exist. Can one claim that they did not know God existed and therefore they are "off the hook" for their lives of sin and rebellion toward God's Law? Here the Apostle Paul's response: Romans 1:20 [20] For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. (ESV) God's invisible attributes are nonetheless real. God has made himself known. God then stepped into this world and made himself physically known in the person of His Son, Jesus.  For thirty plus years  God himself was here in human form. And the world saw true

1 John 4:11 [11] Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. (ESV) BELOVED. Consider whom the Apostle John is speaking to. Beloved. Those who belong to the Kingdom of God are loved. John also loves those whom he is writing to. We are called many things by all kinds of people, but beloved is a title that we all should embrace. As a believer in Jesus Christ we are recipients of the most amazing love. IF GOD SO LOVED US. Consider how God loved us. We were spiritually dead in our sins. We were following all of the passions and desires of our flesh. We were in rebellion to all of God's Law. We were slavishly following the marching orders of the devil himself. This position of utter rebellion caused us to be considered children of God's wrath. But God, seeing our wickedness, made a way possible for us to not only spared his wrath, but made a way to become his children. We are now heirs of his kingdom. We have eternal reward instead of eternal ruin. We h

1 John 4:10 [10] In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. (ESV) Some people think that it is a miracle that they love God. While there is truth to the concept that a miraculous event took place in their coming to faith in Christ, the real miracle is not that they love God, but that God should love them! John makes it clear in this verse that the true miracle of love is found in God's love for us, not in our love for him. Part of our problem with fully realizing God's amazing love is the fact that we have an inaccurate view of our own sin.  If we grasp just how sinful we are we will be astonished that God could ever love us. Do you remember the response of the Prophet Isaiah when he found himself in God's presence? Isaiah 6:5 [5] And I said: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the

1 John 4:9 [9] In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. (ESV) We have all heard eloquent words about love. We love the idea of love. Certainly, all of us want to feel loved. We understand that love is from God. The beautiful thing about God's love is that he is not all about talk, he is about action. When we look at our Savior, Jesus Christ, we see love in action. Because God loved us he sent his only Son into the world. John describes this action as the love of God made manifest among us. God sent his only Son into the world. I want you to consider that for a moment.  Where would you willingly send your own son?  If you knew for certain that sending your son to a place would guarantee that he would be falsely accused, hated, beaten, and brutally murdered would you send him? That is exactly what God the father did in sending his Son into the world. Why would our heavenly Father send h

1 John 4:8 [8] Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. (ESV) There are people in this world that we meet that make a lasting impact on us.  You can probably think of a coach, a mentor, or even a family member that changed your whole way of thinking. As powerful an impression a person can make, they cannot compare to what happens when we encounter God himself.  He will change everything about us. That change is so great that we are now motivated to love others and cannot any longer live a life that does not love. Sadly, there are many who claim to know God, but their lack of love shows them to be the phonies that they are.  Jesus was speaking to the Jews about how they were to have a genuine love for others. He points out that they had been brought up to believe that love is something we only give to those who love us. But is that really love?  Listen to the challenging words of the Savior: Matthew 5:43–48 [43] “You have heard that it was said, ‘You s

1 John 4:7 [7] Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. (ESV) Much has been said about love throughout the centuries of time. Love is powerful. Those who claim to know God and those who do not claim to know God each have an understanding of love. The great Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. had this to say about love: "Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that." - Martin Luther King, Jr. While many can speak about love it is best to go directly to the source.  Where does love come from? The Apostle John tells us right in this verse that love is from God. It is important for us to realize that love is not from our sinful selves. Love is from God.  The reason that the world fails so much at love is that they do not recognize the source of love.  If you want to love properly you must receive love from the source of love; God. We are all l

1 John 4:6 [6] We are from God. Whoever knows God listens to us; whoever is not from God does not listen to us. By this we know the Spirit of truth and the spirit of error. (ESV) You can tell what people believe by discovering who they listen to. As the Apostle John continues to instruct the church he lets them know that one of the major distinctions between true believers and those who are enemies of God is whether or not they are willing to listen to apostolic teaching.  John is an Apostle and speaks for the validity of the teaching of the Apostles. Following the teaching of the Apostles is foundational to our faith. Those who listen to apostolic teaching are from God. If we go back to the very beginning of the church we will find that the Apostles teaching was something very important to those new converts. And if we are truly part of the same church we will also have that same devotion.  Take a look with me at the Book of Acts, which tells the story of the beginning of the

1 John 4:5 [5] They are from the world; therefore they speak from the world, and the world listens to them. (ESV) In the previous verse the Apostle John reminds us that we are children of God.  We belong to him, and his Holy Spirit dwells within us. Now he refers to those who are very different from us. They are "from the world." This can be confusing for us. What is John referring to when he describes people who are "from the world." Aren't we all from the world? Below is some definitions for "the world." "According to Strong's Concordance , it means, "An apt and harmonious arrangement or constitution, order, government. The inhabitants of the earth, men, the human race. The ungodly multitude; the whole mass of men alienated from God, and therefore hostile to the cause of Christ. World affairs, the aggregate of things earthly. The whole circle of earthly goods, endowments riches, advantages, pleasures, etc., which although hollow

1 John 4:4 [4] Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. (ESV) When you were a child were you ever afraid of monsters being in your room at night?  I actually believed there were tickle monsters under my bed that would tickle me to death if I got out of bed in the middle of the night.  That's a humorous story, but you can probably identify with having a very real fear as a child of some kind of monster. Imagine, if you were terrified that there was some kind of monster in the room and you called out to your father.  Your dad came into your room and reassured you that there was nothing to be afraid of. There was no monster in your room, and even if there were a monster in the room your father would protect you. I want you to think of that kind of comfort that a father gives a young child. That is the kind of comfort the Apostle John gives to the church that was being harassed by spiritual monsters.

1 John 4:3 [3] and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already. (ESV) What does it mean to "confess Jesus?" Let's look at that idea together.  This concept can be defined as "genuinely proclaiming the truth about Jesus' true nature." John has just established that the truth about Jesus involves both his eternal deity as well as his coming in human flesh. Those who deny those truths and confess a Jesus that is different are not from God. It is important to know that many will claim to confess Jesus, yet we are not to be fooled. We are to test the spirits to see if they truly speak from the inspiration and leading of God's Holy Spirit.  If they do not pass that test then we know that they are led by a different spirit. That spirit is now here defined as the spirit of the antichrist. In our world that wants to accept every person and ever

1 John 4:2 [2] By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, (ESV) When you hear someone teach what they claim is truth do you consider that there is a spirit behind that voice directing the conversation?  John is telling us exactly that. So, when you listen to a teacher you need to listen to the spirit.  Does the person speaking acknowledge that Jesus Christ is exactly who he said he was?  If so, you are listening to the Holy Spirit.  If not, there is a demonic spirit speaking. John's test for determining whether God's Holy Spirit is speaking is a doctrinal test.  The specific doctrine here is the incarnation.  The incarnation is God becoming flesh.  Jesus is God eternal who took on human flesh.  He was both God and Man on earth.  If you look at all kinds of various cults that have come about you will find one unifying theme; they deny the incarnation in one way or another. Listen to how the Apostle

1 John 4:1 [1] Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world. (ESV) Have you ever heard someone declare, "We are not supposed to judge."? Many Christians refuse to stand against anything that a teacher says because they do not want to be guilty of judging another "believer." They take this from Jesus' words in Matthew 7:1 where he said, " Judge not, that you be not judged ." So, while we must obey Jesus' words we must also know what he meant. When Jesus instructs us to not judge others he is referring to a self-righteous kind of condemning of another brother. In other words, we are not to look to ourselves as the authority over another person. God is the one who judges, and the standard of judgment that he uses has been revealed in his written word, the Bible. Now, as we look at what the Apostle John tells us here in our verse today we come

1 John 3:24 [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. (ESV) We have spent much time looking at how God gives commands that we are supposed to obey. As we think of how great God is it can be intimidating to think of obeying his every command.  After all, we are still struggling with this sinful nature.  Is it too much for God to ask us to obey him? The reality is, our Heavenly Father does not ask us to do something that he is not willing to help us accomplish. In this verse today we are reminded that a person who keeps Gods commandments gives evidence that there is a genuine relationship with God.  We abide in God.  He abides in us.  Relationship.  One can argue that they have kept some of God's commandments, but the one who truly belongs to God not only keeps his commandments, but they have a genuine relationship with him. How do we experience that relationship?  By his

1 John 3:23 [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. (ESV) 1 John is a short book.  5 short chapters. It is one of the books of the Bible you should read again and again.  John reminds us of what it means to be a true follower of Jesus Christ.  There are three key words that this verse gives us. These words are: obey, believe, love. Yes, I realize the word obey is not in the verse, but the word "command" is.  And what are we to do with Christ's commands? Obey! OBEY: For many people who claim to follow Christ the word "obey" is not in their vocabulary.  We like to think that we are to do whatever we want and God should just be ok with it.  We live lives that are defined by disobedience, and yet we offer up worship to God. There is a major contradiction in our lives when we embrace both disobedience and worship at the same time. 1 Samuel 15:22 [22] And Samue

1 John 3:22 [22] and whatever we ask we receive from him, because we keep his commandments and do what pleases him. (ESV) Let's be honest. You read the first words of this verse and you got a little greedy. "Whatever we ask we receive from him." It sounds almost like a guaranteed Christmas wish list, doesn't it? I imagine that the average person can ask for a lot of things.  And many of the things that we would ask for are things we need like food, clothing, health, and other kinds of necessary provision.  Granted, we might ask for some other goodies as well. So, what is John really saying here. I want to start by defining what John is not saying in this verse.  John is not espousing a "Blab it and Grab it" theology.  We do not just bark at God and he has to come running and give us whatever we want. John is also not promoting a theology that says if you did not get what you wanted from God you obviously do not have enough faith.  But, let's look

1 John 3:21 [21] Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence before God; (ESV) I want to look at the last few words of this verse.  "Confidence before God." Do you have confidence before God?  So many people have terror before God.  Those that do not know God ought to have terror before God.  But, I am convinced that many of God's people still do not fully realize that they can have confidence before God. God is a good father.  In fact, he is the greatest father of all. The Word of God makes clear that he loves his children.  The greatest example of that love is found in the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, God's Son, given for us.  He saw us in our wickedness and rebellion and made a way possible for our relationship to be restored.  That is a loving father. So, this brings us back to the question, "Why do I not feel confident before God?"  Part of the problem is that our heart can be fickle. When we follow our hearts instead of findin

1 John 3:19-20 [19] By this we shall know that we are of the truth and reassure our heart before him; [20] for whenever our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and he knows everything. (ESV) We are told in modern music, movies, and other media to "follow our hearts."  It makes us feel good to know that our heart will guide us.  Whatever we feel is what we should do. There is a small problem with this plan, however. The Word of God tells us that our hearts cannot be trusted! Listen to what the great prophet Jeremiah says about the human heart: Jeremiah 17:9 [9] The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it? (ESV) So, then, how can we know that we belong to God? How can we know that we are of the truth?  How can we be reassured of our standing with Him? Our hearts, instead of being trustworthy in leading, actually condemn us.  The Apostle John declares, "God is greater than our heart, and he knows everything.&

1 John 3:18 [18] Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth. (ESV) If you go to any Hallmark store you can find hundreds of cards full of words of love. Many a young man has purchased a card full of beautiful words thinking that those words can sway the heart of a young woman. Others have tried their hand at writing their own beautiful words for their beloved.  And yet, our divorce rate in this country is almost 50%. I am sure that in all of those marriages, at one point or another, loving words were spoken.  But words are not enough. John says that words and talk are inadequate in loving others completely.  We must take action.  To use this illustration of married couples the fact is that if we do not back up our words with actions our spouse will not feel loved at all.  Many couples come to divorce because they say they do not have feelings of love any more.  The reason the feelings are gone is because the actions of love are gone. Feelings fo

1 John 3:17 [17] But if anyone has the world's goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God's love abide in him? (ESV) This verse packs a powerful punch.  As we have seen in our trip through 1 John God is concerned with the sincerity of our hearts.  It's one thing to say that we have a relationship with God, but there ought to be evidence to back it up  This verse is another challenge for us.  It will compel us to more than thoughts and feelings, but actions. The first phrase of our verse is interesting.  "If anyone has the world's goods."  The sad reality is that what usually happens is the "world's goods have us, instead of us having the world's goods."  So, the first thing we need to realize is that we are not to be owned by material things.  We are to be stewards of what God has allowed us to have.  Let's look at the next phrase, "Sees his brother in need." My physical eyesight

1 John 3:16 [16] By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. (ESV) "Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that." - Martin Luther King, Jr. "God proved His love on the Cross. When Christ hung, and bled, and died, it was God saying to the world, "I love you." - Billy Graham So many people claim to know what love is.  Hollywood gives us movies that are more about lust than love.  The love that the world offers is selfish.  It tells us that we deserve to take pleasure in any form that we desire.  We deserve this.  So, we grow up under this influence as prideful, self-serving, brutes that abuse others in order to get what we want.  This is not love. The Apostle John reminds us that the way we know love is by seeing the sacrificial love of Jesus Christ.  He laid down his life for us.  He sacrificed his perfect self for our

1 John 3:15 [15] Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him. (ESV) I have a brother.  I love my brother.  But, I can remember that as a child I would get very frustrated with him and would say, "I hate you."  This was followed by a lecture from my mother who reminded me that as a believer in Jesus Christ I do not have the option to hate my brother.  I usually responded with, "Well, I strongly dislike him." This was also unacceptable.  My mother was quite knowledgeable of the Scriptures and in particular the Apostle John's admonition. The one who hates his brother is a murderer.  That is a strong statement. We tend to flippantly throw around the words, "I hate you," and I daresay we are not plotting someone's death. The problem is we have our own standards that are not consistent with God's standards.  According to God's perfect standard to hate someone from the heart i

1 John 3:14 [14] We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers. Whoever does not love abides in death. (ESV) John uses powerful imagery to describe our new life in Christ. He speaks of passing from death into life.  This certainly coincides with the Apostle Paul describing a Christian as a brand new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17). But have you considered the evidence that one has gone from death into life?  I imagine that if we were coming up with evidence of a changed life we would come up with something different than John does. We might say that we have passed out of death into life if we behave better.  We give up some nasty habits.  Perhaps we brush our teeth more, and become more pleasant to be around. I do think that there are people that equate Christianity with a behavioral adjustment.  And while it is not a bad thing to work on your outward actions or habits that is not the evidence John is talking about that shows you have passed fro