Saturday May 30, 2020

1 John 3:1-10

1 See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. 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 Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. 3 All who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure.

4 Everyone who sins breaks the law; in fact, sin is lawlessness. 5 But you know that he appeared so that he might take away our sins. And in him is no sin. 6 No one who lives in him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen him or known him.

7 Dear children, do not let anyone lead you astray. The one who does what is right is righteous, just as he is righteous. 8 The one who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work. 9 No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God’s seed remains in them; they cannot go on sinning, because they have been born of God. 10 This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not God’s child, nor is anyone who does not love their brother and sister.

How do you feel about meetings? Our current context has altered meeting preparation in many ways. You all might not have to get as dressed up or do as much homework as you would normally. Think about a time when you had a big job interview. What all went into your preparation? I imagine you tried to know as much about the organization and its hierarchy as you could. You probably went over your vision and the reasons why you’re a good fit for the team. You fine tuned your resume so it showed the quality of your experience in the field, etc. And then the day arrives and you’re face to face for the interview. Now, in seeing the person who could potentially be your supervisor, you conform to their likeness in order to highlight and deliver the best you have to offer in the manner that speaks directly to them.

Our life is preparing for the meeting that matters above all meetings. To see Jesus face to face, as he is. Who we will be is not fully known yet because we haven’t seen Jesus face to face. When we do, we will fully conform to his likeness because our faith will become sight. In the meantime, life is getting ready for that meeting. Praying like everything depends on God and working like everything depends on us. Our character is transformed as we repent and receive God’s forgiveness. We are preparing for that great meeting by being conformed to the image of Christ which is evident in our love for God and neighbor. For John, it seems that the failure to love God and neighbor is the greatest of all sins. If we fail to love our neighbor, the love of God isn’t in us and we are still ensnared by sin. John doesn’t mean, as followers of Jesus, we won’t ever sin again. “No one who lives in him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen him or known him” (verse 6). In other words, no one who lives in Christ sins as a habit. Sin can no longer be the regular mode of our life if we are in Christ. In preparation for the great meeting, we do what is right even when it’s hard. We keep each other from falling. We follow the footprints of Jesus until we see him face to face and hopefully hear him say to us, “Well done my good and faithful servant.” Imagine what that day will be like? How well are you preparing for that great meeting?

‘Lord, it belongs not to my care
Whether I die or live;
To love and serve Thee is my share,
And this Thy grace must give.
If life be long, I will be glad,
That I may long obey;
If short, yet why should I be sad
To welcome endless day?

Christ leads me through no darker rooms
Than He went through before;
He that unto God’s kingdom comes
Must enter by this door.
Come Lord, when grace hath made me meet
Thy blessed face to see;
For if Thy work on earth be sweet
What will thy glory be!

Then I shall end my sad complaints
And weary sinful days,
And join with the triumphant saints
That sing my Savior’s praise.
My knowledge of that life is small,
The eye of faith is dim;
But ‘tis enough that Christ knows all,
And I shall be with Him.’