Read: 1 John 5:21

Review: John wraps up 1 John warning believers to protect themselves with watchful attention from idols. What exactly is an idol? The Amplified translation describes idols as false teachings, moral compromises, anything that would take God’s place in our heart—an object of extreme devotion. In America, we have countless potential idols—not little statues of bronze, metal, or stone, but anything that can slowly take God’s place in our heart. Social media, sports teams, gaming, kids’ activities, television, hobbies, career, possessions, our bodies, etc. For example, I love to play pickleball. It’s great exercise, gets me out in the fresh air and I can socialize with friends—all good things. However, if I begin to accept invitations to play on Sunday mornings and skip church or play so often that I don’t have time for my morning devotions with the Lord, then pickleball has become an idol. Guard yourselves, dear ones.

Reflection: Is there anything in my life that God is nudging me to guard myself against because it is, or is slowly becoming, an idol? Satan is crafty at converting an innocent interest into an idol to get us to worship something other than God. Take steps now to guard yourself.

Michelle Sullivan and the love of her life Sean have 4 adult sons and 2
granddaughters. She works full time as the Operations Manager for their eyewear
company and is a table leader at Stepping Stones. Michelle wrote a book called
Chocolate Cake Marriage and has been speaking to women’s groups for over 25 years.
Her passions include spending time with her family, encouraging women in their walk
with Jesus and playing pickleball! “I really enjoyed working on the 1 John Devo project
as it was fun to see what the Holy Spirit would download into me and onto the page.
Thank you for the privilege of being a part of this project.”

Read: 1 John 5:19-20  

Review: The more I live the Christian life, the more I realize that the right mindset is paramount. I’m not talking about the power of positive thinking but seeing ourselves rightly and then living from a mindset that coincides with that identity.

Physically, who I was 20 years ago is a far cry from who I am now. I weighed almost double what I weigh now. When I moved here, I lost a lot of weight. That drastic weight loss required a new mindset: instead of always choosing the big stall in the bathroom, I had to remind myself that I’m not that guy anymore and choose the smaller one. It’s a weird example, I know, but I’m convinced it translates.

Spiritually, we are of God and in Christ. While we were once swayed by the evil one and are currently surrounded by people who continue to be swayed by him, we must remember who we are. We must have a mindset that coincides with our identity in Christ.

Reflect: Colossians 3:7 is a verse that some have put to memory to remember to live from their true identity. Is there a verse or set of verses that I can meditate on and possibly memorize in order to remember who I am?

Jeremy and his beautiful bride, Dana, have been attending ACC with their two boys for
two years - and just added a baby daughter to their family! Jeremy has been working
for Caesar’s Entertainment as a poker dealer and supervisor on and off for 17 years.
At ACC he helps lead the Saturday AM men’s group and has enjoyed writing for the
church in the past, so when he was asked if he would like to contribute to 1 John
weekly devotionals it was an enthusiastic “yes”.

Read: 1 John 5:18

Review: Our new birth has permanent privileges and obligations. First, we do not sin. While we may at times fall into sin, we do not live in it. Before Christ, Christians were once "dead in sin", now we are "dead to sin." Once sin was our companion, but now our enemy. This is because God keeps him through the abiding presence and power of the Holy Spirit.

Thus, the "evil one" (Satan), no longer has power and possession over us as he once did (Ephesians 2:1-3). The CSB translation for "touch" (haptetai) is far too mild. A better translation is to "cling" (John 20:17). In other words, while Satan's clinging on the unsaved is tenacious and strong - like the clinging claws of a lion - Jesus' hold on his own is far stronger, making the Lord's prayer, “Deliver us from the evil one” and Jesus' promise “My sheep shall never perish” a lasting reality.

Reflect: A new popular phrase today is "Reverse engineering." (Interfacing with a new system.) For us, this interfacing is the new birth and lifestyle by which we are transformed into a new creation. Do I see myself in this way? How does that affect the way I view and respond to sin and Satan?

After earning a BA in Bible from Northeastern Bible College, as well as a Masters
in Theology from Princeton University and New Brunswick Seminary, Ralph served
the Lord through his primary gifts of preaching, teaching and counseling since 1972 –
first with youth and then as pastor in the Presbyterian Reformed Church. He and his
wife, Terry Thompson Acerno, a retired journalist, have three grown children who
continue to reside in the metro New York area (and joyfully visit them when they
return to their Connecticut home each summer). Ralph and Terry retired and
relocated to Henderson in 2018.

Read: 1 John 5:16-17

Review: What was the sin that leads to death that John mentioned? Is the death physical death or eternal death? Ananias and Sapphira committed a sin that led to physical death (Acts 5:1-11). Paul talked about sickness and even physical death being the consequences of partaking of the Lord’s Supper in an unworthy manner (1 Cor. 11:27-30). Jesus said speaking against the Holy Spirit would not be forgiven (Matt. 12:32). We have no way of knowing when a person has committed sin that leads to death, i.e., choses to harden their heart to the point
that praying for them is futile. Yet it does and will happen. (See Jer. 7:16; 11:14; and 14:11). What are we to do? Pray for people who commit sin that doesn’t lead to death and pray that people do not commit sin that leads to death, while realizing that praying for the latter will eventually be futile.

Reflect: Read James 5:19-20. John said pray for Christians who sin. James said that we should meet with a Christian who is going astray to encourage them to repent. How would knowing God, making friends, and adding value make it easier have such a discussion with a fellow Anthemite?

The tenth of eighteen siblings, Mordecai has been married to his lovely wife, Ebone,
for 38 years and is a recently retired electrical engineer after a 39-year career as an Air
Force defense contractor. Mordecai has also served as a lay pastor, chaplain, and rela-
tional counselor in Las Vegas for the past 38 years. Despite advanced coronary artery
disease (survivor of seven coronary bypass grafts and nine heart blockages), Mordecai
continues to serve the Lord with gladness, leading ACC’s Tuesday PM online small
group and serving as an Elder.

Paul (along with his twin brother) was given up for adoption after a promise that the
boys would be raised in the Catholic faith. Their adopted parents were not particularly
religious, rarely attending church, but sent the boys to Catholic church and schools.
Paul rejected Christianity at around 13 years old, seeking what the world had to offer
until he exhausted that option and came back to faith at 28. Paul is grateful that God
never left or forsook him, although he gave Him plenty of reasons. He leads ACC’s
Tuesday AM men’s group.

The tenth of eighteen siblings, Mordecai has been married to his lovely wife, Ebone,
for 38 years and is a recently retired electrical engineer after a 39-year career as an Air
Force defense contractor. Mordecai has also served as a lay pastor, chaplain, and rela-
tional counselor in Las Vegas for the past 38 years. Despite advanced coronary artery
disease (survivor of seven coronary bypass grafts and nine heart blockages), Mordecai
continues to serve the Lord with gladness, leading ACC’s Tuesday PM online small
group and serving as an Elder.

Born in Las Vegas, Clay and his wife Kay have two children and 5 grandchildren. He has
been a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ since 1973, attending Anthem since 2015. He
helps Pastor Matt oversee ACC Small Groups and serves in the Senior Adult Ministry.
The Lord has impressed on his heart the importance of knowing, understanding, and
applying what He has spoken to us in His written word, so he was excited to participate
in helping others apply God’s scriptures to their lives by writing devotions for Holy
Spirit-inspired reflections.

Michelle Sullivan and the love of her life Sean have 4 adult sons and 2
granddaughters. She works full time as the Operations Manager for their eyewear
company and is a table leader at Stepping Stones. Michelle wrote a book called
Chocolate Cake Marriage and has been speaking to women’s groups for over 25 years.
Her passions include spending time with her family, encouraging women in their walk
with Jesus and playing pickleball! “I really enjoyed working on the 1 John Devo project
as it was fun to see what the Holy Spirit would download into me and onto the page.
Thank you for the privilege of being a part of this project.”

Brandi Nelson and her husband of twenty-eight years share 4 kids between them. Brandi is a
former dancer/choreographer who loves Jesus, her family, Bible study, and Siamese cats.
Currently, she serves her husband as he leads the worship/music ministry at ACC. She also
shepherds women as a group leader for Bible Study Fellowship (BSF). Brandi is grateful for
how the Holy Spirit has grown her spiritually through this study: blessing her marriage and
strengthening her love for the Body of Christ.

Jim is a retired helicopter pilot of 30 years who flew for Grand Canyon tours and TV
news shows. He was also a missionary pilot in Madagascar. He has been married to
Pam for 38 years (she is the church’s business and operations director) and they have
three grown kids. He has been part of Anthem church for nearly 11 years and is
currently working on a master’s degree in biblical studies.

Dave Johnson was born in Fort Wayne, Indiana and at age 15 met his wife, Lisa. He and
Lisa have four children and have called Henderson their home since 1998. Dave came
to know the Lord at the age of 12 and has served in church ministry primarily in the
area of administration for most of his adult life. Dave and Lisa are original members of
Anthem and now he serves as an Elder. Dave was excited to participate in the devo-
tional writing process to share his heart and voice with the church.

After earning a BA in Bible from Northeastern Bible College, as well as a Masters
in Theology from Princeton University and New Brunswick Seminary, Ralph served
the Lord through his primary gifts of preaching, teaching and counseling since 1972 –
first with youth and then as pastor in the Presbyterian Reformed Church. He and his
wife, Terry Thompson Acerno, a retired journalist, have three grown children who
continue to reside in the metro New York area (and joyfully visit them when they
return to their Connecticut home each summer). Ralph and Terry retired and
relocated to Henderson in 2018.

Jeremy and his beautiful bride, Dana, have been attending ACC with their two boys for
two years - and just added a baby daughter to their family! Jeremy has been working
for Caesar’s Entertainment as a poker dealer and supervisor on and off for 17 years.
At ACC he helps lead the Saturday AM men’s group and has enjoyed writing for the
church in the past, so when he was asked if he would like to contribute to 1 John
weekly devotionals it was an enthusiastic “yes”.

Dave Thornhill was born in California, grew up in Washington State, and has called
Henderson, NV home since 2011.  He and his wife, Heidi, have three wonderful kids:
Spencer, a Philosophy & Theology graduate from Whitworth University - and recent
interim youth pastor; Conner, an Aerospace Engineer major at Virginia Tech - and recent
president of VT Baptist College Ministries; and Brianna, a junior at New Horizons Academy
- and faithful server in Sunday morning kids’ ministry. They have attended Anthem since
2012 and have engaged with the community in myriad ways over the years; Dave enjoys
writing and seeks to serve the Kingdom through stories and thoughts.

Read: 1 John 5:14-15

Review: We all want something and often work very hard to acquire it. We sometimes take our requests to God in prayer, and we do not get what we want. The question is, what was your motivation for asking? Was it for selfish reasons, or was it for God’s purposes and glory? In these two verses, John says that your request should be according to His will, and when we ask in that way, He hears us. Now be assured that He always hears our prayers, but He responds to prayers with the proper heart and motivation. The answer will be a response to what God desires, not necessarily what we expect, so we should trust Him with the result. In the book of James we read, “You ask and don’t receive because you ask with wrong motives, so that you may spend it on your pleasures” (James 4:3).

Reflect: Heavenly Father, keep my heart focused on You and Your activity. I want to experience You fully as I walk in the Spirit. Show me what You're doing in my life and in the lives of Your people so I can make the adjustments necessary to join You in your activity.

Jim is a retired helicopter pilot of 30 years who flew for Grand Canyon tours and TV
news shows. He was also a missionary pilot in Madagascar. He has been married to
Pam for 38 years (she is the church’s business and operations director) and they have
three grown kids. He has been part of Anthem church for nearly 11 years and is
currently working on a master’s degree in biblical studies.

Read: 1 John 5:11-13

Review: Verse 12 says that those who have the Son, have life and those who don’t have the Son, don’t have Life. Those who believe in the name of the Son of God already have eternal life. Eph. 1:11-14 says we are included in Christ when we believed the gospel message and marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance.

The Bible says our spirits are eternal and will live either with God in eternal joy, with no more sorrow or pain or apart from him in an everlasting state of torment. We don’t really understand what eternal joy or eternal torment fully means but the contrast is easy to understand. We need to continually thank God that we already have that promised inheritance of an eternal life that will be full of unspeakable joy and no more pain.

Reflection: Lord, help me not to worry about the future because I have an eternal life of great
happiness with you guaranteed already. Help me to be concerned about how I should act now as I go through this temporary life, keeping my eyes on that which is eternal.

Read: 1 John 5:9-10  

Review: My son placed his hand on the Bible swearing to tell the truth, and nothing but the truth. Testifying in a murder trial—key witness in the shooting of a gang member. In our quiet gated community, the career criminal walked into a teenage party allegedly to shoot attendees. Steven witnessed his friend grab the man’s gun and when the thug lunged for it, he was fatally shot. Steven’s testimony changed an attempted murder conviction to involuntary manslaughter.

Testimonies matter. The truth they reveal have the power to change the outcome of the individuals affected by it. If human testimonies have that much power, how much more power does the testimony of Mighty, Holy God wield? In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God … The Word became flesh and dwelt among us. (John 1:1,14) Believe the whole truth and nothing but the truth.

Reflect: But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, a curse be on him! (Galatians 1:8). Many religions who knock on our doors don’t believe Jesus is God. Am I believing false testimony, or do I trust God’s testimony?

Read: 1 John 5:7-8

Review: I was listening to a podcast the other day that was presenting some information as fact.  Many of the facts that were presented seemed slanted or outright inaccurate.  After a bit of careful fact checking I realized just how much of what I heard was not accurate or reliable.  This is a constant tension that people have been managing forever, but the pace and amount of information available to us today exacerbates the issue.

In 1 John we know the same types of inaccuracies had crept into this new body of believers.  John quickly brings them to three things from God in order to be a witness to Jesus true identity; the Spirit, Water and Blood.  This is a fantastic example for us today.  Using God’s truth to sift through the confusion this world presents, prepares us to live out and defend the one true faith.

Reflect: When confronted with “facts” do I test and approve with Gods principles or my own understanding? How might this reading convict you to ensure what you already believe has come from the one true God?

Read: 1 John 5:6

Review: Scholars have debated this verse for some time, but the generally accepted interpretation is that the “water” refers to Jesus’ baptism and the “blood” to His death on the cross. At the time, there was false teaching of dualism: 1) that the physical was evil or corrupt and 2) the superiority of the spirit. There was also teaching that God’s spirit departed from Jesus just before His death and was denied the bodily resurrection.

John counters this false teaching and speaks to external, objective signs of Jesus and His humanity. Earlier in 1 John 4:2, John states that someone with the Spirit of God will acknowledge that Jesus came in an actual body. Many people today believe Jesus was real, but the number drops considerably when asked if they believe He was fully human, fully divine, and led a sinless life to serve as the perfect sacrifice for our eternal life.

Reflect: How about me? What do I believe about Jesus, and does it match 100% with what the Bible teaches?

Read: 1 John 5:5

Review: John’s use of “but” in this verse should be read as “only”. Only the ones who believe that Jesus was the Son of God are able to conquer the world. That is the faith that is the victory mentioned in verse 4. Faith in Jesus is also one of the two requirements for one to be considered “born of God” and loving others is the evidence of that. John’s message hasn’t just come full circle, it’s everything IN the circle! Love, faith, remaining, obedience, and victory all together, all at once.

John has been presenting an entangled network of conditions, specifications, inclusions, exclusions, and outcomes throughout his letter. However, these are not just joined together, but supportive of one another and serve as both the means and the result of a life lived in true obedience to the one true faith in the one true God.

Reflect: Christ is in the business of conquering the world (Jn. 16:33). Being of one spirit with Christ means that the same goes for me. How well does my daily agenda align with Jesus’ agenda of “overcoming”? Holy Spirit, teach me today what it means to overcome.

Read: 1 John 5:1-4

Review: This rich passage explains how the active love for the Father that a born-again Christian has will have very real fruit in their church life. The born-again Christian will experience the love of the triune God and in turn not only obey His commandments but love the fellow child of God who also has the Holy Spirit within them. This Holy Spirit connects them.

John writes that our faith in Jesus is what propels this relationship with God, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. This faith is firstly a gift and is best exercised with full surrender. As the passage states, this faith is the victory that has conquered the world. God does the doing; we do the surrendering, accepting, and obeying.

We can exercise our faith by resting in the fact that God makes all the fruit happen. Faith comes first and then the fruit.

Reflect: So, what would Jesus do? He would spend time with God & the Holy Spirit and then genuinely love others with his overflowing love & joy. With this in mind, where is your source for loving others?

Read: 1 John 4:18-21

Review: Living the truth of Jesus in everyday life in John’s day must’ve been very challenging. Life was characterized by ethnic division, hatred, and indifference. Unity and love, when practiced, were likely within ethnic groups and occasionally between individuals from different ethnic groups. The Church likely consisted of more non-Jewish than Jewish Christians resulting in a situation characterized by fear, distrust and apathy rather than love and unity.
 
Do fear, distrust, and apathy still divide the Church today? Breaking that divide required an act of God and courage back then and may require the same things today. God’s command to love our brother and sister was not and is not optional. “If anyone says, “I love God,” and yet hates his brother or sister, he is a liar.” So, what’s the state of the Church today? We either love God and others or we’re liars? There’s no middle ground!

Reflect: How might remembering that we love because God first loved us make it easier for me to love my brothers and sisters? Besides ethnic division, hatred, and indifference, what other stumbling blocks need to be addressed if the Church is to be known for its love and unity?

Read: 1 John 4:15-17

Review: Way back in 1964, before I was a real Christian, I could have told you that Jesus is the son of God just as easily as saying Mickey Mantle was the Yankee's star batter. But it made no difference in my life since I did not, as John states, "Know the love of God." It was only many years later that I realized and recognized Jesus as- not only the Son of God-but the one who died and rose for me. That truth made all the difference in my love for God and His love for me. Love is not meant to be a one-sided affair. John tells us it must be a mutual relationship with God and ourselves if it is to "remain" and be "complete." In a secular world where me-ology has replaced the-ology, John's words are timelier than ever.

Reflect: How many relationships have I had that I thought were complete and final only to later see them tragically end: broken and unfulfilled? How would I respond if I were asked, "How can anyone be confident of anything in this transient world of brokenness, heartache and tragedy?”

Read: 1 John 4:11-14

Review: John commands us to "Love one another" echoing Jesus recorded in his gospel.  He should know something about that as he refers to himself as the "the other disciple whom Jesus loved" indicating something special in this relationship that he seems to want to help us to understand and to share in.  But he makes clear that the love starts with the Father, to the Son and then to us.  Being the objects of this love, we should, in turn, love each other.

It seems that we need to get in touch with the love being bestowed upon us in order for us to be able to love one another.  Another way of describing is to abide in His Love which Jesus says twice John 15:9-10.  The beauty of this revelation not only fortifies us emotionally, but positionally we can be assured that we abide in Him because of the witness of the Holy Spirit who guides us into this and all truth.

Reflect: This scripture may seem to present a high bar for us to live, but in the context of what John is teaching us throughout this book, it starts with God's love for us.  What kind of things keep me from experiencing fully the love the Father has for me through His Son?

Read: 1 John 4:7-10

Review: As a young dancer, my dream was to be on Star Search (Gen X’s version of AGT). I carefully studied tv dancers, comparing myself for progress to see if I had become like them. Was I “good enough” yet?

As human beings, if we compare ourselves to Jesus, are we ever “good enough?” Nope. Apart from Christ, our hearts produce evil. So how does a loving God forgive sin and remain loving? John tells us, “God is love." If this is true, he must punish the sin/evil that destroys people (or he wouldn’t truly love them).  God so loved the world, that he sent his only Son to become the sin (2 Cor. 5:21) that must be punished: an “atoning sacrifice.”

As Christians, God conforms us to the image of Christ. Through faith in Him, I am mercifully declared “righteous/good enough” and may live (perhaps even dance) in eternity!

Reflect: God remained both loving and just by taking our punishment upon himself. Why do I even need an atoning sacrifice to have eternal life? Do I compare my sin to the sins of others or do I compare my sin to the sinless example of Christ?

Read: 1 John 4:6

Review: John says in this verse “We are of God”.  The Cambridge Dictionary says about the word “of” that it is “used to show possession, belonging, or origin”.  In other words, we are His to be used as best serves His purposes.  That gives us an authority that is recognized by others who are also of Him and know Him, so they pay attention to what we have to say regarding Him and His truth.  By the same token, they that are not His, do not recognize the truth that we have to share with them.  By recognizing this distinction, we can know whether we are speaking or hearing from the spirit of truth or of error.

Reflect: Do I live with an awareness of the authority that comes from the fact that “we are of God”?  If, so how does that reveal what is from the spirit of truth and the spirit of error in my daily life as I interact with saints and ain’ts?

Read: 1 John 4:5

Review: We would all agree that in today’s world we are barraged with information from everywhere. The news, social media and opinions from friends and family can be conflicting and confusing to say the least. Much of the time the worlds messages we receive are so strong and seemingly united that if we as Christians are not paying attention, we can be wrongfully affected. World views, by their nature, oppose God views and that should come as no surprise. Listening to those who abide in the world instead of those who abide in Christ is dangerous business.

The book of 1 John has given us this very clear direction that we can use for the purposes of discerning the voices we hear. We will all do well to be sensitive to the Spirit, be trained up to test and approve what we hear with Scripture and to hunger for the truth.

Reflect: What practical steps can I put in place to ensure I am discerning the truth each day? What may I need to eliminate from my life that continually feeds me information from those who do not abide in Christ?

Read: 1 John 4:4

Review: C.S. Lewis said, “When the whole world is running toward a cliff, he who is running in the opposite direction appears to have lost his mind.” That’s how it is for us who take 1 John 4:4 as truth to stand on: “He who is in me” (the Holy Spirit teaching us) is far stronger than “he who is in the world” (false teachers fueled by the spirit of deception - 4:6).

This should empower us not to fear false teachers or to fear looking like we’ve lost our minds, but rather trust the Lord and obey what His Holy Spirit of truth is teaching us. By doing so, we can overcome the powers of darkness and walk with boldness in this life, assured we are building our lives upon truth. In a world that looks like the Satan’s lies are winning, the truth that we have already conquered them makes all the difference.

Reflect: What would it look like if I truly took this truth and lived it out? In what areas in my life am I prone to follow the crowd because I am embarrassed of looking like I’ve lost my mind?

Read: 1 John 4:2-3

Review: The coming of "Jesus Christ in the flesh", refers to the great Christian doctrine called, "The Incarnation", in which the eternal Son of God became fully human. For Christians, this is both wonderful and amazing, for in Jesus we witness God, not invisible and distant, but personal and intimate. In Jesus, the love of God is made known, not only in his life, but in his physical death on the cross for our sins. Further, through his bodily resurrection, we are promised that we too shall be raised to new life. For John, there can be no middle ground or compromise regarding the incarnation for without it the Christian’s faith is in vain.

Reflect: Many today see Bible believing Christians as extremists who are unwilling to accept all religions as equal paths to God regardless of what they believe. John identifies such beliefs and people as "antichrist" in nature. If I were confronted by such a person, how would I respond?

Read: 1 John 4:1

Review: In preparing their agents to spot counterfeit money, the U.S. Secret Service initially trains them to study only legitimate bills. They spend considerable time concentrating on originals so they can immediately spot a fake.

In the verse for today, John is expressing the same message. We are to test the spirits behind the false prophets against what God has spoken in His word (Bible). Without a good knowledge of scripture, spotting a false teacher or having a biblical worldview is impossible. There is no end to the voices in our world today from preachers, politicians, and social media giving false messages. Many people fail to read and study scripture daily and are unprepared when faced with a decision or false concept requiring a godly/biblical response.

Reflect: Do I know scripture well enough to spot false teaching? What am I doing to avoid being deceived by false messages?

Read: 1 John 3:23-24

Review: The apostle John provides a simplified version of God’s will for the Christian life: 1) believe in the name of His Son, Jesus Christ; and 2) love one another as He commanded us.

Why is believing in the name of His Son, Jesus Christ so important? Because at the name of Jesus every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Joseph was told to name Him Jesus because He will save His people from their sins. Now that’s why we believe in His name.

Do we really need to be commanded to love one another? Are we often too self-centered, busy, or preoccupied to love one another? Obeying these commands shows that we are abiding in Christ and Christ is remaining in us. When that remaining takes places, we can bear much fruit. Are you obeying these commands?

Reflect: Which command do I find it easier to obey: Believing in the name of His Son, Jesus Christ or loving one another? Why? How might my soul’s brokenness (holes, wounds, and rejections) prevent me from believing in the name of His Son, Jesus Christ and loving other believers?

Read: 1 John 3:19-22

Review: “Michelle, you are not enough! You fail often, you let people down constantly.” My heart’s condemnation at its finest. Condemn is defined: to express complete disapproval of, typically in public. Satan knows what words provide opportunity for the most heartache. But God is greater than our hearts!

My son Steven struck out as the final out in the Little League championship game to lose 4-3—his head hung low, but he displayed honor and integrity. On the way to the car, he let Satan’s hiss and the weight of the loss bury him in shame. As his parent, I hugged him tight and told him that I was never more proud of him because he demonstrated such great sportsmanship. His heart spoke condemnation, but his parent brought truth and hope to his heart. When your heart condemns you, let your Father in Heaven encourage and restore you—He is greater.

Reflect: Am I letting my heart condemn me? Am I allowing the lies that the evil one hisses at me steal my joy? Lord, please remove the condemnation, replace them with your truth, and then take my weakness and failures and use them for your glory. Thank You that You are greater than my heart.

Read: 1 John 3: 16-18

Review: Commotion swirls the kitchen scene as though a cyclone struck a carnival; favorable smells and people and food and words, all jumbled together in volume.  A dinner party.

I prefer small, quiet, familiar gatherings.  I grouse when told she has gone outside the inner circle and invited neighbors to Thanksgiving dinner.  Why summon the chaos?  Why solicit the awkward how-do-you-do’s?

But she knows better.  Understands deeper. The neighbors have had a rough go and need generous, welcoming friends.  They need to be distracted from routine by the thunderous spectacle of our place and our chaos.

We laugh and feast and uncover shared experiences.  Hours evaporate into evening coffee.  In this world, let us look to create those moments, for as John wrote “…we know we have passed from death to life because we love our brothers and sisters.” Even when we don’t want to.

Reflect: Who in my life needs my love, not just “in word or speech, but in action and in truth?”

Read: 1 John 3:13-15

Review: Saying you love someone requires little effort, doing something costs more.

Years ago, I prayed that God would help me meet a neighbor I never saw. A short time later I parked my brand-new pickup across the street from them to water my dad’s yard. Suddenly my neighbor’s garage door opened. They quickly, without looking, backed out of their garage and right into my truck.

In my mind I heard, “you’ll meet them now”. They were mad and yelled, “Why are you parked here!?” Thankfully, I responded in love, believing God had set it up. A few weeks later, I saw him at the mailbox and went to greet him. He apologized for his actions and through tears said he had just found out his wife was dying of cancer. We prayed right there at the mailbox. If we don’t know someone, we don’t know what they’re going through or what they need.

Reflect: Am I willing to love others, even if they’re in the wrong and it costs me something? Jesus does, and he asks us to, also.