1 John 3
1 Behold, what manner of love the Father hath
bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world
knoweth us not, because it knew him not.
2 Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it
doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear,
we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.
3 And every man that hath this hope in him
purifieth himself, even as he is pure.
4 Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also
the law: for sin is the transgression of the law.
5 And ye know that he was manifested to take
away our sins; and in him is no sin.
6 Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not:
whosoever sinneth hath not seen him, neither known him.
7 Little children, let no man deceive you: he
that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous.
8 He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the
devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was
manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil.
9 Whosoever is born of God doth not commit
sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God.
10 In this the children of God are manifest,
and the children of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God,
neither he that loveth not his brother.
11 For this is the message that ye heard from
the beginning, that we should love one another.
How often do
we stop to consider what God has done for us? If you are as I am it is not
enough. God has chosen to give himself to us and make us to be as He is. The
human mind with its fallen bent toward the self is always asking why. Why did
God make me? What does He expect of me? What’s in it for Him?
The idea of
giving by nature with only a desire for another to be full and complete is foreign.
Even when we say He did all this for me in the back of our mind, in that place
where questions are asked that are never spoken, we wonder what the catch is.
It is this
comprehension problem in us that causes to not be able to reconcile Gods vengeance
and wrath with His love and mercy. How many well-meaning believers have worked
themselves to exhaustion to do the work of God only to feel slighted when they don’t
receive the blessings they expect.
If we look
for the wrong gifts we overlook the true and precious gift. God has made
himself our Father. What does that mean? It means He has placed His seed in us.
He has made us to be one with Him.
When Messiah
said He was the son of God the Pharisees attempted to stone Him for making
Himself equal to God. They would have been fine with Jesus teaching that all
that God had was given to Him; for this is simply to make God a benefactor.
However to say He was a son was to say that who He was down to his DNA was a
replica of who God was. When we have a child they are a combination of our DNA
and our spouses which while making them in our image it is not an exact image.
If we were to give both the x and the y chromosomes the child would be our
clone; an exact image.
If we take
this natural scenario and place it in the spirit which is the essence of our
being and life we may see some hint of this gift. God has formed a juxtaposition
of life in us. As a seed goes into the ground and dies before God makes it to
grow into a harvest, or as sperm and egg become a new creation in the womb
maturing to the image of its father, so we are placed in Messiah and at the
same time Messiah is placed in us, we are hidden in Him while He is being
formed in us. As this new creation forms and matures it begins to appear the
same as the Father from which it has come. On the day of our manifestation we
will be as He is and we will know as He is known.
John says to
think it not a strange thing when men cannot see this life being formed in you.
They could not see the life of the Father living in Messiah and because they did
not honor God in their heart they could not honor His son in the flesh.
Those who
understand that their very life is now one with the Father and we are in His
Son and Him as He is in use and have been filled with the expectancy of this
change seek after this purification of heart.
Pure life
has no sin for truly the law is a description of the life found in the Father.
Those who attempt to live by obedience to the law will find only death in
themselves; however those who expect the Father to live in them will find He
does not sin.
Messiah is
the lamb that takes away the sin of the world. Bulls and goats blood covered it
only but the blood of Jesus brings life.
Is John
saying if I commit a sin I am not His child. No he is not. Sins plural is any
transgression of the law; sin singular is the cause of all manifestations of
sin. This core is the self-generated life that Adam sought to achieve.
In the
believer as Christ is formed in Him the works of the devil are destroyed. If we
attempt to live for God by our own effort we are not seeking to be born of His
Spirit but of our flesh. Jesus concluded of those who would make their own way
to God that they were children of their Father the devil and John gives us the
same conclusion those who are not putting their trust in Messiah and the Spirit
of God for the source of their every moment of life are children being formed
of the devil.
Our
righteousness is not generated by us but it does that which is righteous. Our righteousness
is His righteousness and it is obvious to all in the same way His was.
So we must
see that within us are both the flesh and the Spirit if we are believers. To which
ever we place our trust our living is born; for this reason if we see transgression
in our life we know that we have sown to our flesh and brought to birth death
in us. If we find ourselves in the sin we must repent and place our expectation
of having life in Him and John assures us if we confess our sin He is faithful and
Just ( after all He has paid for them) to forgive us our sins.
Righteousness
becomes evidenced in our lives by love. When we truly love God and men we do
not sin. From Moses to John all that God has promised and given and desired in
us is love. Not the false love of the world that only endures for the time it
encourages the self of the lover making them either feel good or believe they
are good by it.
True love
has no thought of the self it does not attempt to endure but it expects.
