I JOHN A Case Study In Back To Basic CHRISTIANITY

I JOHN A Case Study In Back To Basic CHRISTIANITY

I John is impressively written by The Apostle John who was a marvelous man who was loved by Jesus Christ and walked faithfully with Him. John is a man of love, you will find that love talked about throughout I John. He was not only a personal eyewitness who actually saw Jesus heal, preach, teach, die on the cross and arise from the dead, He was His close friend! He had a beautiful strong loving, committed comrade relationship with Jesus!

I John is interesting because it opens without the usual components of a greeting salutation, or particular audience. John just merely says “I write unto you!” John writes because he desires to give another generation of believers confidence and assurance that would help deepen their FAITH! He demonstrates how one can walk in the Light of God’s Word and have fellowship with Him. It is here we find that “GOD is LOVE!” The Key verse in I John is: “I write these things to you who believe in the name of the SON of GOD so that you may know that you have eternal life…”

It is sad but true many have a sad contaminated view of what love really is. Since God is LOVE; can you really love without knowing Him? The world says love is what makes you feel good and you really do not have to have moral principles. You are free to have sex outside of marriage or do just about anything that feels okay since “we are not hurting anyone” Take a good look around us; it’s not working with all this freedom we have chaos. Lord help us! The rules of life in the world constantly changes. So much so it is not always clear what’s what! But with God you can be clear. His internal guide The Holy Spirit is there to make you conscious of what’s right and wrong! The wonderful thing about God is He allows you to choose!

This is why it is so important to know the Word of God! John writes about Jesus “incarnate” meaning embodied in a body of flesh! The Bible is HIS STORY! He wants you to come to know Jesus as your advocate! Jesus was God wrapped in sinless flesh! Through the plethora of Scriptures in the Bible, within its (66) sixty six books we are given an arsenal of spiritual wisdom. I John is an invaluable resource to help assure you of God’s wonderful gift of eternal life! Through Jesus Christ we are given the gift of His precious Holy Spirit, that is to those of us that believe! It is here in I John, that you will be impressed by the depth of his Love for the Lord. John also writes to warn us of false teachers who twist the TRUTH!

John illustrates the acute contrast between LIGHT and darkness, TRUTH and error, LOVE and hate, LIFE and death, GOD and satan! He does a wonderful thorough job of teaching us the basic principles of Christianity. One thing that is clear that we ALL need a Savior! Without Him we are defenseless to sin which beckons daily therefore we need His Holy Spirit! “If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the TRUTH is not in us. If we confess out sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from ALL unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make Him out to be a liar and His Word has no place in our lives.”

A wonderful transformation that begins from the inside out begins to take place, when you accept Jesus Christ into your heart! It is important to regularly take personal inventory. Confession brings about repentance; repentance brings about a change of heart that stimulates your transformation process. When your conscience is clear you can come to God freely without fear. He knows your motives and your hearts intent. Salvation is the process by where you grow spiritually and become stronger each day. You become better equipped to recognize and resist sin more each day as you exercise your spiritual strength as you implement His principles in your daily life. This is a lifelong process! We never get to the point that we can do without the Lord! We are forever children dependent on the Father regardless of age, in need of a Savior. The good thing is that He is always just a prayer away!

I John tells us “Not to love the world or anything in the world.” This does not mean that we cannot have full happy lives. Quite the contrary! Jesus died so we can have an abundant life. But it is important to know that worldliness is not limited to what you do or where you go. It is your mindset. Many often and down through the years refer to the scripture in Isaiah 55 “Your thoughts are not my thoughts and neither are your ways my ways...” If you will read a few earlier scriptures in this chapter you will find that Isaiah is talking about the thoughts of a wicked person and the thoughts of an evil man… Never underestimate the power of the presence of the Holy Spirit! Either you believe in His Power to transform or you doubt, which only quenches His Spirit! Too many discount the Authority of the presence of His Holy Spirit! Jesus says: “Let this mind be in you that was also in Christ Jesus...” Philippians 2This scripture shows the difference the presence of the Lord makes in one’s life!

I John teaches us about the antichrist; false teachers who pretend to be Christians. One really does not need to be fearful but discerning and aware. It is important to know who you are in Christ so you are not caught off guard. God is a Spirit of TRUTH and is able to shine the Light on any darkness. “I AM writing these things to you about those who are trying to lead you astray. As for you, the anointing you received from HIM remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as the anointing teaches you about ALL things and as that anointing is real not counterfeit just as it has taught you, remain in HIM.”

As His children God Loves us, this is why we are called the children of God! (God has no grandchildren) It is through prayer spoken or unspoken we communicate with Him! Once we accept Jesus Christ as our personal Savior this means that we are committing to live our lives differently? Or does it? You are saying that you want to put God’s WAY first! Have you really committed to God? Is Jesus now the LORD of your life? Do you want to live to please God? It is important to get to know Him personally in order to become close to Him! We are now a part of God’s family! God did not say that it would be easy to obey Him! Remember it’s about His will and not ours… God is the one who determines who is a part of His family, not us!

John presents a clear picture of Jesus Christ! He presents the fundamental basics of Absolutes of the Christian life! He leaves very little room for compromise! This is wonderful Scripture from I John to keep in mind! “GOD is LOVE! Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment , because in this world we are like HIM. There is no fear in LOVE. But Perfect LOVE drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made Perfect in Love.”