"I came that they may have life and have it abundantly."
What is it to have life no less have life abundantly? Are we not alive? What exactly is Jesus doing?
It all may be simpler than you think. To be alive is to have life in you but life as we know it is ephemeral. It does not last. Though we are alive right now we may not be alive tomorrow. In that sense, we are barely alive, kept tethered to this world and animated only by a thin thread. Let's say the average lifespan is 80 years which is 5.81 x10^-9 (.00000000581) the age of the universe. Put another way, if the age of the universe was condensed to a year, one life span would take 0.18 seconds (180 milliseconds) to complete (about time it takes to do a Google search and half the time it takes to blink your eyes once (300-400 milliseconds). That's 5 generations per second with the human race appearing only in the last 12 and a half minutes.
So we are barely alive, containing only enough life to last a short while. But if we have eternal life in us, then we are eternally alive. And if that Eternal Life only exists in God, then only if God dwells within us can we live eternally. And if Jesus is God who truly did rise from the dead, he must possess eternal life. And if he dwells within us by faith, how much then will he have come so that we may have life and have it in abundance!
Showing posts with label 1 John. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 1 John. Show all posts
Thursday, October 6, 2011
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
1 John 3:2
"Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is."
It is when we look upon Christ "as he is" that "we shall be like him". God has created us to be in his image, that is the human image of Christ, so that we might always reflect God's glory. Like mirrors, we shine only that which we behold. So if our eyes are turned towards Christ, will they not reflect his glory as the risen Son of God exalted to the right hand of the Father?
We are children of God. We are mere children who have not yet grown into heavenly adults with all the rights and privileges of kingdom citizenship. We cannot yet vote in the Kingdom. Our adult bodies may fool us into thinking we are grown, they are but flesh and not spirit. But he who looks upon Christ shall be mature in spirit, perfect in every way and as verse 3 puts it, "pure as he is pure".
But rest assured, my beloved, you will be men and women of God by the power of simply beholding the risen Christ slain from the foundation of the world. As you draw nearer to Christ your vision of him will only become clearer until the great and fearful day of his coming when you will see him as he truly is: The risen messiah, broken for you.
It is when we look upon Christ "as he is" that "we shall be like him". God has created us to be in his image, that is the human image of Christ, so that we might always reflect God's glory. Like mirrors, we shine only that which we behold. So if our eyes are turned towards Christ, will they not reflect his glory as the risen Son of God exalted to the right hand of the Father?
We are children of God. We are mere children who have not yet grown into heavenly adults with all the rights and privileges of kingdom citizenship. We cannot yet vote in the Kingdom. Our adult bodies may fool us into thinking we are grown, they are but flesh and not spirit. But he who looks upon Christ shall be mature in spirit, perfect in every way and as verse 3 puts it, "pure as he is pure".
But rest assured, my beloved, you will be men and women of God by the power of simply beholding the risen Christ slain from the foundation of the world. As you draw nearer to Christ your vision of him will only become clearer until the great and fearful day of his coming when you will see him as he truly is: The risen messiah, broken for you.
Saturday, July 16, 2011
1 John 5:10
"Whoever believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself. Whoever does not believe God has made him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has borne concerning his Son."
God sent his Son into the world to bear witness on our behalf. The testimony of Jesus Christ is that though we are guilty, we shall be declared not guilty. We are justified and set free from punishment. This is the testimony God has concerning us, that though we have sinned, all is forgiven.
However those who do not believe this message and thus does not trust in the Son of God makes God out to be a liar.
When faced with this beautiful truth, it is unthinkable that anyone should respond by crucifying Christ. A messenger brings good news and he is insulted, beaten, and killed instead of welcomed. They do not believe the gospel of Jesus Christ and so accuse God of being a liar. How broken are we that beautiful truths bring pain when we hear them? Oh how far we've fallen!
As anyone who has gone through an abusive relationship can tell you, after being told lies and being put down all your life, you can hardly believe when people tell you the truth. You cannot believe someone loves you and moreover, it actually hurts when someone speaks to you words of affirmation. Believe in the good news and be patient with those enslaved by the world. God is not a liar.
God sent his Son into the world to bear witness on our behalf. The testimony of Jesus Christ is that though we are guilty, we shall be declared not guilty. We are justified and set free from punishment. This is the testimony God has concerning us, that though we have sinned, all is forgiven.
However those who do not believe this message and thus does not trust in the Son of God makes God out to be a liar.
When faced with this beautiful truth, it is unthinkable that anyone should respond by crucifying Christ. A messenger brings good news and he is insulted, beaten, and killed instead of welcomed. They do not believe the gospel of Jesus Christ and so accuse God of being a liar. How broken are we that beautiful truths bring pain when we hear them? Oh how far we've fallen!
As anyone who has gone through an abusive relationship can tell you, after being told lies and being put down all your life, you can hardly believe when people tell you the truth. You cannot believe someone loves you and moreover, it actually hurts when someone speaks to you words of affirmation. Believe in the good news and be patient with those enslaved by the world. God is not a liar.
Thursday, July 14, 2011
1 John 1:1
"That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched—this we proclaim concerning the Word of life."
You really need to take a step back to enjoy the full enormity of this sentence.
That which is from the beginning is God. Not any god, but the Triune Creator God, the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit who was, is and is to come. He is the eternal one and the basis upon which all theing draw their being. He IS by definition and cannot NOT BE. He is the great "I AM", unchanging and unfathomable and untouched by time. However...
This creator God speaks to us so that we might hear him. Christ appears to us so that we might see him. But this is standard fare as religions go. They all have their own mystical experiences and visions and voices from the beyond. But what is unthinkable is that we have touched Him. We touched the fabric of all being. At one point , our God was made manifest on Earth and we could physically touch his hands and kiss his cheek and feel comforted by his embrace. We have touched the Word of life because he has reached out and touched us first so that we might live again and live eternally in fellowship with him and each other so that our joy may be complete. Who is like the LORD?
You really need to take a step back to enjoy the full enormity of this sentence.
That which is from the beginning is God. Not any god, but the Triune Creator God, the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit who was, is and is to come. He is the eternal one and the basis upon which all theing draw their being. He IS by definition and cannot NOT BE. He is the great "I AM", unchanging and unfathomable and untouched by time. However...
This creator God speaks to us so that we might hear him. Christ appears to us so that we might see him. But this is standard fare as religions go. They all have their own mystical experiences and visions and voices from the beyond. But what is unthinkable is that we have touched Him. We touched the fabric of all being. At one point , our God was made manifest on Earth and we could physically touch his hands and kiss his cheek and feel comforted by his embrace. We have touched the Word of life because he has reached out and touched us first so that we might live again and live eternally in fellowship with him and each other so that our joy may be complete. Who is like the LORD?
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
1 John 4:18
"There is no fear in love, but perfect love drives out fear because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love."
Just as there is no fear in love, there is no condemnation in Jesus Christ. It is through faith in Christ's blood that we hope for life. It is through this faith that love is made complete in us. Perfect love drives out fear because fear is the opposite of faith. The one who stills fears God's judgment is not perfect in faith and thus not perfect in love.
A child of God never needs to fear his parents. A child respects his parents, of course, and is disciplined when he goes astray, but there is no fear of losing his parents love. There is nothing now that could ever separate us from the love we have in Christ. The fear of God is not fear of punishment, but wonder and awe over how powerful God is. God's power to crush Satan is so awe inspiring as to be both tremendous and fascinating at the same time.
It is out of love and respect that true obedience is established, not out of fear of punishment. It is God's love and kindness which leads us to repentance, not fear of damnation. People who preach the "turn or burn" gospel preach a different gospel to their own demise. Love can only come by grace, not by law which has to do with punishment.
Just as there is no fear in love, there is no condemnation in Jesus Christ. It is through faith in Christ's blood that we hope for life. It is through this faith that love is made complete in us. Perfect love drives out fear because fear is the opposite of faith. The one who stills fears God's judgment is not perfect in faith and thus not perfect in love.
A child of God never needs to fear his parents. A child respects his parents, of course, and is disciplined when he goes astray, but there is no fear of losing his parents love. There is nothing now that could ever separate us from the love we have in Christ. The fear of God is not fear of punishment, but wonder and awe over how powerful God is. God's power to crush Satan is so awe inspiring as to be both tremendous and fascinating at the same time.
It is out of love and respect that true obedience is established, not out of fear of punishment. It is God's love and kindness which leads us to repentance, not fear of damnation. People who preach the "turn or burn" gospel preach a different gospel to their own demise. Love can only come by grace, not by law which has to do with punishment.
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