Week 8 - Day 1

Day 1: “All Together, All at Once” – by Matt Olin (Discipleship Pastor)

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.