AUGUST 23 = 1 JOHN 3
HOW WE KNOW THAT WE BELONG
On Sundays, we gather and we sing and we declare that we belong to a kingdom that is not of this world. Yet, on the weak days, many of us have lingering doubts about our standing before God. Maybe it feels like we’re not good enough, or that we don’t pray enough. Maybe it’s been years since we invited someone else to be saved. Maybe that’s because we’re not so sure it’s for everyone. Including, perhaps, ourselves.
Today, John is going to tell us how to know that w...
AUGUST 23 = 1 JOHN 3
HOW WE KNOW THAT WE BELONG
On Sundays, we gather and we sing and we declare that we belong to a kingdom that is not of this world. Yet, on the weak days, many of us have lingering doubts about our standing before God. Maybe it feels like we’re not good enough, or that we don’t pray enough. Maybe it’s been years since we invited someone else to be saved. Maybe that’s because we’re not so sure it’s for everyone. Including, perhaps, ourselves.
Today, John is going to tell us how to know that we belong to the truth and how we can set our hearts at rest in his presence. Does that sound like a good thing to know?
“This is how we know that we belong to the truth and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence:
Great! Tell us, John, how do we know for certain that we belong to the truth? How do we once and for all set our hearts at rest in God’s presence?
If our hearts condemn us, we know that God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything.
Thank you, John. I think I just heard you say that if my heart doesn’t condemn me, I am in the clear.
But, wait a minute! Or are you saying that we know we belong only if our hearts don’t condemn us? If so, that is not of much help.
Let me get the whole sentence here. Is John saying even if we feel condemned in our hearts, that is not relevant, because it’s not a matter of our own judgment, but of God’s judgment of us? That sounds better. But how do I know if God condemns me or not?
Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God and receive from him anything we ask, …
This sounds helpful. If my heart does not condemn me, then I am confident that when I ask God to forgive me, he will do it. Are there any conditions we need to know that might limit this wonderful free pass?
“…because we keep his commands and do what pleases him. …”
Oh, no! This doesn’t seem helpful at all! My heart doesn’t condemn me because I keep his commands and I do what pleases him? Now I truly despair, because I know that no has kept the ten commandments, and my holiest days are still full of disobedience and sin. I’m back to confusion again. What commands is he talking about?
“And this is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he commanded us. The one who keeps God’s commands lives in him, and he in them.”
There apparently is just one or two commands that John is actually talking about here. Believe in Jesus. Love one another. In other words, my good standing with God is not based on me doing good things, but in accepting the free gift of forgiveness that comes from his Son, Jesus Christ. I nearly gave up when I was just covering these verses one sentence at a time. But now I think I’m seeing what John is saying: I know that I at right with God because I trust in the blood of Jesus to cover me. So now how my heart feels is no more of an issue. There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus!
And this is how we know that he lives in us: We know it by the Spirit he gave us.”
So, we come to the bottom line of this matter of knowing that you know that you know that you are right with God: Listen to the Spirit that He gave you. The Spirit will tell you that you belong because you believe. The Spirit will tell you that you are not perfect, and you never were, but you have taken God at his word and put your trust in him. The Spirit will tell you that he is God’s gift to you, not something that you earned by being good enough.
The fact that the Spirit is there speaking in the first place tells us that he lives in us. Otherwise, we would have no comfort, for the Spirit is the comforter. We would have no help, for the Spirit is the helper. We would have no counsel from God, for the Spirit is the counselor. The Spirit is the one who distributes spiritual gifts from the Father and who makes him known to our hearts.
So, I know that I belong because the Spirit confirms that I am right with God. I am trusting in the blood of Jesus. That’s all I can do. That’s all I need to do. I am his, and he is mine, forever.
Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift! Amen.
