IN THE LIGHT OF LOVE
Opening Prayer
Lord Jesus, thank you—in you, nothing is too hard; nothing you call me to is impossible. Assure me as I read Scripture today.
Read 1 JOHN 2:3–11
For additional translations of the passage, use this link to Bible Gateway.
Love and Hatred for Fellow Believers
3 We know that we have come to know him if we keep his commands. 4 Whoever says, “I know him,” but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in that person. 5 But if anyone obeys his word, love for God[a] is truly made complete in them. This is how we know we are in him: 6 Whoever claims to live in him must live as Jesus did.
7 Dear friends, I am not writing you a new command but an old one, which you have had since the beginning. This old command is the message you have heard. 8 Yet I am writing you a new command; its truth is seen in him and in you, because the darkness is passing and the true light is already shining.
9 Anyone who claims to be in the light but hates a brother or sister[b] is still in the darkness. 10 Anyone who loves their brother and sister[c] lives in the light, and there is nothing in them to make them stumble. 11 But anyone who hates a brother or sister is in the darkness and walks around in the darkness. They do not know where they are going, because the darkness has blinded them.
Footnotes
- 1 John 2:5 Or word, God’s love
- 1 John 2:9 The Greek word for brother or sister (adelphos) refers here to a believer, whether man or woman, as part of God’s family; also in verse 11; and in 3:15, 17; 4:20; 5:16.
- 1 John 2:10 The Greek word for brother and sister (adelphos) refers here to a believer, whether man or woman, as part of God’s family; also in 3:10; 4:20, 21.
New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Reflect
May God’s love fill us today that we may walk in the light of love by the power of the Spirit.
The word ‘know’ here is significant, and John uses it four times in the first five verses. The early form of Gnosticism (from the Greek for ‘to know’), which was troubling the church in Asia, reveals why.
John is concerned that those who claimed special knowledge about spiritual things then were not obeying the commands of Jesus. They taught, among other things, that Christ could not have come in the flesh as all matter was evil. This led to behavioral issues, as they denied the importance of the body. John brands them liars
(v. 4). It was fashionable a few years ago for some Christians to wear bracelets with the letters ‘WWJD’ engraved – ‘What would Jesus do?’ This was to cause the wearers to ask themselves that question before giving way to temptation. It is good to think about how Jesus would respond in any given situation, so that we might try to live as he did (v. 6). This can only be achieved by the power of the Holy Spirit, not by knowledge or armbands.
John’s ‘new command’ (vv. 7, 8) is similar to that of Jesus, that we love one another.1 Jerome’s description of the elderly John being carried into the church at Ephesus saying, ‘Little children, love one another!’ reveals this too.2 He had grasped the centrality of love in the gospel message. As Christ loves us, so we must love one another. Hatred is no option for the believer. The false teachers of John’s day failed to grasp this, but we must not. Failing to love will mean walking around in darkness, blinded by hatred, as is sadly the case in some circles on social media. That will lead to stumbling and falls. Walking in the light means walking in love.
Apply
As you think about this day, ask yourself, ‘What would Jesus do?’ Ask for God’s help to live in his love and give it away to others, like Jesus did.
Closing prayer
Lord Jesus, I am amazed that you love me; you came to die for me and now you intervene for me as I continue to wander from your will for my life. My amazement turns to gratitude; I want to serve you in ways that shares your love with others.
1 John 13:34,35 2 David Jackman, The Message of John’s Letters, BST, IVP, 1988, p11
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