1 John (part 7)

In my first entry on 1 John, I shared the quote that God is light.

Here in chapter 4, John says, “God is love.”

So, if you’re a logician, you could set up a syllogism and try to confuse yourself:

  • God is light
  • God is love
  • Thus, light is love

Or, you could try:

  • God is love
  • God is light
  • Thus, love is light

I don’t know. And honestly, I’m not sure it matters that much. Is love light? Is light love? Is John even being literal here?

If John is being literal, then both of his declarations are beyond comprehension. If John is being figurative, which is much more likely, it’s comprehensible, but it’s incredibly difficult to explain. You can run with the metaphors, but it’s tough to know if or when they breakdown.

Perhaps, it would be helpful to look at the contrast. Instead, what if we say, “God isn’t darkness. God isn’t absence. God isn’t loneliness. God isn’t hate. God isn’t indifference. God isn’t isolation.”

Now, there is another thing John says here in chapter 4 that I wanted to draw attention to. John says, “There is no room in love for fear. Well-formed love banishes fear.“

Have you ever seen a dog afraid of its master? Have you ever seen a wife afraid of her husband? Have you ever seen a kid afraid of their dad? I’ve seen all of those. And I can assure you, in that relationship, there’s not love. There may be a form of respect, but it’s more like the submission of a slave to a master. There certainly isn’t love.

You may think I’m talking about the dog, the wife, or the kid not being able to love the dominant figure in that situation because he’s a jerk, and you’d be right. But I’m talking just as much about the dominant figure in that situation being unable to love the dog, the wife, or the kid. Why? Because love can never be controlling, domineering, overbearing, all authoritative and dictator-like. That person doesn’t love the dog, the wife, or the kid. That person loves himself. That person loves control, dominance, and feeling superior.

Aka, that person is drunk on their own pride.

And pride, my friends, is one of the things God will not tolerate. It’s one of the few things He directly opposes.

So be careful. If you can’t love the person you can see, how can you love the God you cannot see? Loving God includes loving people.

Now, we’re ready for chapter 5…

1 John (part 6)

Love.

Such a simple word and such a complex thing to understand. Three of my favorite authors & speakers have written whole books on love. Back in the day, the old classical author, CS Lewis, wrote The Four Loves. Then there’s a current one called Love Does by Bob Goff. And finally, there’s Love Wins by Rob Bell. Rob also wrote two other books called Sex God and The ZimZum of Love. Both of them cover sexuality and spirituality and how they’re intertwined.

If you want to check them out, here’s what I’d advise:

  • If you’re looking for a major intellectual analysis, go with CS Lewis. (He later wrote A Grief Observed and said that was his more heartfelt book on love, and on grief.)
  • If you’re looking for an inspiring and super practical book, read Bob Goff.
  • If you’re looking for relationship books that also connect the dots and get you thinking on a deeper level, go with Rob Bell.

But let’s get back to 1 John here for a second. John has written a letter (that only later was divided into 5 short chapters), and in it, he probably describes love more clearly and succinctly than any of the men mentioned above. Here in 1 John, he writes:

This is how we’ve come to understand and experience love: Christ sacrificed his life for us.

It’s really simple. Christ, aka the Messiah, aka Jesus, aka the Son of God the Creator… stooped down to our world, subjected himself to our world, lived amongst us in this mess of our world….and sacrificed, offered, gave up… his life, his physical body, blood and all… for us.

That’s wild! And it’s so simple.

That is our supreme model of love. Of the four types of love in the original Greek language, this is the deepest love, the love that Jesus showed us, agape love. Agape love is an action. A verb. In relationship.

And in my best Forrest Gump voice, “That’s all I got to say about that!” 🙂

1 John (part 5)

I don’t want to belabor this point in every entry on 1 John, but I feel the need to address it again quickly because, well, John addresses it again. But once I address this first item, I’ll move on to another topic.

Here’s the first item: John makes it pretty clear that those who make a practice of sin are not of God. But those who make a practice of righteous deeds and good acts are from God. That isn’t to say anyone who follows Jesus is perfect. It’s that their habits, their lifestyle, their modus operandi is good acts, righteous living, fruits of the Spirit.

Now that we’re clear on that, let’s talk about love. Love is a topic that comes up again and again in the letter of 1 John. He writes,

For this is the original message we heard: We should love each other.

Paul said it in his letters. Jesus said it in his ministry. The prophets said it in their proclamations. God said it in the Law, in Torah. So this isn’t a new message. It’s just saying it again, perhaps in a different or fresh way.

John says later that anyone who doesn’t love is as good as dead. To say it another way, love is what gives life meaning. Without love, life isn’t worth living.

And John is very clear that love isn’t a word, a noun, or some abstract concept. Love is a verb. It’s something that must be acted on. Love acts. Let’s not talk about it and theorize about it; let’s actually do it. Practice love.

As Bob Goff says, “Love does.”

How’s that look? We’ll explore that in the next entry.

1 John (part 4)

John has a pretty scathing critique when he comments on the state of our world. Here’s what John says:

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’s pretty straight forward, but to put it in other words:

  • Wanting your own way= selfish / inconsiderate
  • Wanting everything for yourself= envy / jealousy
  • Wanting to appear important= status / worth from others

Of course, it’s easy to critique others and point the finger, “Yeah, people suck.”

But when I turn the mirror on myself, I realize I’m guilty of these same things, and I find myself falling prey to them more often than I’d like to admit.

So that’s why I share this, not to get on the “holier than thou” train, not to point the finger and say you suck or other people suck. But I share it because it’s worth the introspection and asking yourself how much of your life is spent pursuing these three things. Because these behaviors have one dead end: they just isolate you from God. Plain and simple.

And being isolated from God is not what any of us desire.

1 John (part 3)

For such a little letter, 1 John sure is action-packed.

We’re still in chapter 2 when John says, “You veterans know the One who started it all; and you newcomers–such vitality and strength! God’s word is so steady in you. Your fellowship with God enables you to gain a victory over the Evil One.”

“You veterans” – this language is used of older people, people who are experienced, people who have been around the block and seen a few things in their lifetime. These are the veterans of the faith. Then, there is a group of newcomers. And both bring something to the table. I think of Jack Canfield’s audiobook called Maximum Confidence. He tells a story of an old buck, nearing the end of his life, looking across the ridge at a young buck.

The old buck says to himself, Oh, look at that young buck. To have his strength, his vitality, his energy, his drive again. What I wouldn’t give to have that. He’s got so much to offer. But what would that young buck want with an old buck like me?

But little does the old buck know the young buck is looking right back at him thinking to himself, Oh, look at that old buck. He looks so stately, he’s full of knowledge, has so much experience and confidence and I have so much I could learn from him. What I wouldn’t give to have his wisdom. He’s got so much to offer. But what would that old buck want with a young buck like me?

The magic happens when they are willing to get over themselves and strike up a conversation with the other. When they can appreciate the other and interact with the other and find common ground and mutual respect with one another.

And doesn’t that sum up what John is saying here? Young and old, experienced and new to the faith– both groups have something to offer the other.

Now before I wrap this up, two quick notes to wrap up this little passage in 1 John 2. Have you ever had someone say they see God’s Word living steadily in you? Man, that’s an incredible compliment and means you’re doing some things well. Keep it up! And if you haven’t heard it, work toward it.

And that last bit on living well in God’s strength and God’s Word, living well in Jesus– that is what enables victory. As the old preachers used to say, that fellowship with God gives you “victory over sin, hell, and the Devil.”

I’ve been reading Steven Pressfield lately, and I can’t help but think of beating the Resistance.

Today, I wrote this blog. I beat the Resistance. I overcame the Evil One when I clicked publish. Why? Because writing is my life’s work. It’s my calling and a way I hang out with Jesus. I read the Scriptures and I wrote what I learned and what I think may help others. Old buck to young buck. Or young buck to old buck, depending on your age.

So there you have it. And tomorrow, we’ll do it again. See you there.

1 John (part 2)

As chapter 1 transitions to chapter 2, you’ll find an interesting dichotomy. On one hand, John is talking about the light and God himself being the light and how we can share in that life with Him and with others. But here’s the kicker:

If we claim we’re free of sin, we’re only fooling ourselves. A claim like that is errant nonsense, John says.

And I’d have to agree. I haven’t met a person, including myself, who was perfect and free of sin–even after Jesus got ahold of my/their life. There’s no one perfect.

So that’s the truth on one hand.

But on the other hand, we have this saying from John, which I’ll quote in full:

Here’s how we can be sure that we know God in the right way: Keep his commandments. If someone claims, “I know him well!” but doesn’t keep his commandments, he’s obviously a liar. His life doesn’t match his word. But the one who keeps God’s word is the person in whom we see God’s mature love. This is the only way to be sure we’re in God. Anyone who claims to be intimate with God ought to live the same kind of life Jesus lived.

Whoa!

So if we say we’re free of sin, we’re lying and fooling ourselves. But if we don’t live the type of life Jesus lived and we don’t keep God’s commandments, then we’re liars.

How do you balance that one out?

If I had the perfect answer, I’d clearly tell you. The best I can come up with right now, after walking with Jesus for 18 years, is you live in that balancing act. You give it your best in trying to keep His commandments, day-in and day-out; and you pray for a lot of help from the Holy Spirit and a lot of forgiveness when you inevitably fail at it. You fail forward. You fall 7 times, but get up 8. You don’t make a habit or lifestyle of sin. Instead, you make habits and a lifestyle out of following Jesus and living out the fruits of His Spirit (which you can find in Galatians 5).

Live in the balancing act.

Now, let’s see what John has to say in the next section.

1 John (part 1)

It’s weird. I’m trying to write a post on a book that I read over three months ago. I’ve been reading Steven Pressfield’s “The War of Art” and I can’t help but notice I’ve been facing The Resistance. It’s been distracting me from writing, keeping me from this blog. It’s been slowing me down, this Resistance. It’s a dreadful foe. And sadly, it’s gotten the best of me.

So now I’m taking on the Resistance, and I’m writing these entries on 1 John. Ironically, this little letter from John feels much the same way. It’s a trip down memory lane: the old man John, at the end of his life, realizing there is a lot more he still wants to share about Jesus, the man, the Messiah, the God in flesh that he encountered and lived with in his early years.

John starts it off in that reflective tone, saying,

“From the very first day, we were there, taking it all in — we heard it with our own ears, saw it with our own eyes, verified it with our own hands. The Word of Life appeared right before our eyes; we saw it happen! And now we’re telling you in the most sober prose that what we witnessed was, incredibly, this: The Infinite Life of God himself took shape before us…

Our motive for writing is simply this: We want you to enjoy this, too. Your joy will double our joy!”

And that my friends, is why I’m writing this post for you. 1 John is an incredible little letter with a ton of insights. I won’t be able to cover them all, but my hope is to share a few of the best nuggets I found.

Here’s one for the go…

God is light, pure light; there’s not a trace of darkness in him.

Talk about a loaded statement! Light is a baffling and complex entity!

It has no mass. It is both a wave and a particle. There is visible light, infrared light, x-rays and ultraviolet light. It’s speed in a vacuum is a constant, but those different types of light mentioned above act differently, show up in the world differently, travel at different speeds, and serve very different purposes in our world. It makes my brain hurt just trying to wrap my head around it. So if this analogy of God and light is true, or if God is actually light (who knows?!), then our attempts to understand light and/or God just give us a greater appreciation for it / Him.

If you ever want to dive deeper into it, read a book or two on the concept of light. Study particle theory, wave theory, electromagnetic theory, or quantum theory. Rob Bell has done a little bit of work in this area and perhaps you’d enjoy listening to it. Or maybe just start out with a nice little wikipedia article. Either way, prepare to be scratching your head. I’ll see you on the next one!