[:en]SCRIPTURE: 1 JOHN 2
“Whoever claims to live in Him must walk as Jesus did” (1 John 2:6)
“Anyone who claims to be in the light but hates his brother is still in the darkness. Whoever loves his brother lives in the light, and there is nothing hn him to make him stumble” (1 John 2:9-10)
“Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For everything in the world – the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does – comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever” (1 John 2:15-17)
Anyone who is in Him must believe in the truth and obey His command. He must walk as Jesus walks. Since the beginning, there is an old command which is to love one another. When Christians are out of fellowship with God, they cannot get along with God’s people. Therefore, when we are in fellowship with God, we should walk in light and in love. Anyone who hates his brother is walking in darkness.
Peter wrote to different stages of our lives – children, young men and fathers. Children have known the Father and their sins are being forgiven on account of His name. Young men are strong because the Word of God lives in them and they have overcome the evil one. Fathers have known God who is from the beginning.
He then made a comparison of our love to the world with our love to the Father. The world consists of the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has or does. If we love the world, the love of the Father is no longer present because we cease to do His will.
Peter warned about anti-chirsit teachers who are already in this world. How do we detect them?
- They were once in the church but have departed from the truth (v. 19)
- They deny that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God (v. 22)
- They try to lead us astray (v. 26)
The Holy Spirit used the inspired word of God to teach us the truth. Believers must read the Bible themselves without always depending on humands teachers. The Holy Spirit will help us understand the Bible. Finally, he encouraged them to continue living in truth and fellowship in love with the anticipation of Christ’s coming.
LESSON:
In order to have fellowship with Christ, we must obey God’s Word and love God’s people. We can obey God’s word if we spend time in the Word and let the truth enter into our inner being. We must confess our sins and claim God’s forgiveness. We must not love the world or anything in the world. We must be able to identify the anti-Christ and hold on to what God has promised us – the eternal life.[:]