First John Day Four

The speaker is sharing the joy of sharing the Gospel and reflecting on the mystery of the Incarnation. They read from the first letter of John, addressing different groups within the community. They emphasize the importance of knowing God intimately and overcoming evil. They warn against loving the world and its temptations. The speaker encourages the audience to focus on doing the will of God and finding stability and authentic life in that. They invite the audience to reflect on the passage and find personal inspiration in it. Dear friends, what a joy to share the Gospel. Now on this sixth day of the octave of Christmas, prayerfully pondering the mystery of the Incarnation, that radiant center of the Gospel, we continue to walk with St. John in his first letter. Let's pause for a moment, preparing ourselves to encounter the Word as living and present to us. If you will, take a deep breath slowly in and slowly out. Come Lord Jesus, allow your Holy Spirit to bring your Word to life in me. May I hear your voice, Good Shepherd. Let's enter into the Word. We read together from the first letter of John, chapter 2, verses 12 through 17. I am writing to you, children, because your sins have been forgiven for his name's sake. I am writing to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I am writing to you, young men, because you have conquered the evil one. I write to you, children, because you know the Father. I write to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I write to you, young men, because you are strong, and the Word of God remains in you, and you have conquered the evil one. Do not love the world or the things of the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, sensual lust, enticement of the eyes, and a pretentious life is not from the Father, but is from the world. Yet the world and its enticements are passing away, but whoever does the will of God remains forever. In these exhortations to the fathers and the children and the young men, John addresses really the whole community, the older, more mature members and the young members. To the older members, he speaks of possessing the knowledge of God. Knowledge in Scripture, remember, is much more than the possession of information held in one's mind. Knowledge is the experiential knowing of another person in intimacy and faithful love. I can know another person's physical attributes, their height and weight, hair color, even their DNA structure, perhaps. But to really know them as a person, their joys and sorrows, their hopes and dreams, what they delight in and their deepest fears, I must live in a loving relationship with that person. The older members know God, know Christ because they walk with him in intimate relationship. The younger members, St. John commends for overcoming evil. Their faith is a source, a power for life, a positive energy in overcoming the false promises of the world and for embracing the good and beautiful. The author then turns to a very explicit exhortation to resist the world. The world for St. John in most cases is the cultural, economic, political forces that serve to resist God and entice hearts away from the truly good and beautiful. The world works by stirring up desire, longing for more, and false security in material possessions. Notice how closely this resembles the serpent's temptation in the Garden of Eden. Genesis 3, verse 6 reads this, The woman saw that the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eyes, and the tree was desirable for gaining wisdom. The closing line of our reading brings us back to yesterday's theme. It is the will of God, doing what God's Word commands, that true stability is found, authentic life experienced. Once again, dear friends, let's open our hearts and minds to the Word as we read the passage a second time. Be sensitive to what word or phrase or image strikes you particularly in this reading. We read again from 1 John, chapter 2, verses 12 through 17. I am writing to you, children, because your sins have been forgiven for his name's sake. I am writing to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I am writing to you, young men, because you have conquered the evil one. I write to you, children, because you know the Father. I write to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I write to you, young men, because you are strong and the Word of God remains in you and you have conquered the evil one. Do not love the world or the things of the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, sensual lust, enticement of the eyes, and a pretentious life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. Yet the world and its enticements are passing away, but whoever does the will of God remains forever. Intentionally now, identify what is moving you in this passage. A single word, a phrase, a specific inspiration. Sit with it. Ponder it. Chew on it. Lord Jesus, sustain me in my daily walk with you. Hold me in intimate friendship with you that I might come to know you deeply. Fill me with the power of your love to overcome evil, to resist the enticements of the world. Help me to delight in your commands and to follow your voice, good shepherd. And friends, what a joy it is to share the gospel. ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪