The Culture of Hope Founded on Faith
1 John, Part 1 – Jesus’ Commandments
Both Matthew 22:37-39 and Mark 13:34 record the scribe’s question, “What is the most important commandment?” Keep in mind that God’s commandments are to be obeyed: they are not suggestions. Jesus’ answer was, “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind … And the second is like unto it, thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.”
As recorded by the writer of the Gospel of John, Jesus clarified that the two are, in fact, connected: “A new commandment I give unto you, that you love one another. As I have loved you, you also love one another. By this shall all men know that you are my disciples, if you have love one to another” (John 13:34). In his first epistle, John expounds further on this relationship between our salvation, i.e. love of God, and the expression of our relationship with God through our joy, holiness, and love.
The commandment itself demonstrates belief in Jesus as Savior and love for one another as both inseparably connected and proof of our salvation: “This is His commandment, that we should believe on the name of His Son, Jesus Christ, and love one another, as He gave us commandment. He that keeps His commandments dwells in Him, and He in him. And hereby we know that He abides in us, by the Spirit which He has given us” (1 John 3:23-24).
That being the case, 1 John 4:21 implies that the love we are commanded to express is, in fact also the outcome of the first commandment, to love the Lord your God with all your being: “And this commandment have we from him, that He who loves God loves His brother also.”
Although it is a small book, the first epistle of John is jam-packed with fundamental truths for believers on the topics of assurance of salvation, holiness, and protection from false teaching. The writer of 1 John uses multiple metaphorical opposites from the natural world to demonstrate the contrast in the lives of those who believe to salvation and those who do not believe: light and darkness, love and hate, the Spirit of God and the spirit of antichrist, God’s children and the children of the devil. Because the book contains entirely too much for me to cover in one devotional, this is only the first of several explorations on the book of 1 John that I will post over the next few weeks.
Update/Prayer Request: Praise God for answered prayer! The oncologist agreed with us that the tumors are gone. At his suggestion, Dan went to an ENT yesterday regarding the congestion issues. We were reassured by The ENT that his sinus and related issues are not as serious as the PET scan report suggested. The doctor prescribed an antibiotic for what he believes to be a low-grade infection. Between that, the inhaler he is already using, and prescription-strength Flonase, Dan should see some improvement soon. Though extremely slow to do so, his digestive issues are gradually healing as well. Please continue to pray for his healing and increased mobility in my right hand.
