Devotionary

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Ep 182 – 1 John 1:5-2:2 PT 6 Jun 21, 2017

Show notes

This is the final episode on 1 John chapter one, verse 5 through chapter two, verse 2. It is called "Jesus Christ, the Righteous" and will take a look at John's powerful description of Jesus as our advocate or intercessor in heaven. He not only died for us, He currently represents us in the throne room of God, His life a constant reminder to God the Father that our sins have been paid for in full. We no longer face any threat of judgment for our sins – past, present or future. In fact, Paul would have us remember, "There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus" (Romans 8:1 ESV). All because we have been given the righteousness of Christ. He took on our sins and their penalty. We took on His righteousness. It is what is often called The Great Exchange. And while we still harbor a sin nature and must crucify the flesh on a daily basis, we can do so in the power of the Spirit and with the assurance that any sins we commit are paid for and fully forgiven when confessed.

Ep 181 - 1 John 1:5-2:2 PT 5 Jun 20, 2017

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This is our fifth episode on 1 John chapter one, verse five, through chapter two, verse two. This episode is entitled, "Godly Fellowship" and addresses John's emphasis on our need for ongoing and uninterrupted fellowship with God and His Son. It is our fellowship with God and Jesus that makes possible godly fellowship with other believers. As we live in the light, we are able to reflect that light on to others. It was the apostle Paul who said, "For God, who said, 'Let light shine out of darkness,' has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ" (2 Corinthians 4:6 ESV). It is impossible to spend time in the light of God's presence and not have His glory reflect on to those around us. We end up being transformed into the likeness of Christ and bearing His characteristics in the form of the fruit of the Spirit. Fellowship with God the Father and Jesus Christ, His Son, is essential to our ability to live in unity with others.

Ep 180 – 1 John 1:5-2:2 PT 4 Jun 19, 2017

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This is our fourth episode on 1 John chapter one, verse five, through chapter two, verse two. This episode is entitled, "The Danger of Deception" and deals with three very dangerous perceptions that lurked in the church to which John wrote. They each involve sin and our outlook regarding it. There are those who deny its very existence and, as a result, deny their need for salvation. They believe sin is simply a figment of man's imagination or a throw-back to less enlightened times in man's long history. Sin is nothing more than the natural outcome of a lack of education or opportunities. It's merely a byproduct of man's environment. Then there are those who acknowledge the reality of sin, but who deny their guilt when it gets exposed in their lives. They simply refuse to admit they did something wrong. But there is a third group John addresses. These individuals claimed to be walking in the light, but their behavior revealed something altogether different. Their lives were characterized by darkness, not light. And like the other two groups, they were living a lie and, in the end, only managing to deceive themselves.

Ep 179 – 1 John 1:5-2:2 PT 3 Jun 18, 2017

Show notes

Today, we continue our look at 1 John chapter one, verse five, through chapter two, verse two. Today's episode is entitled, "To Sin or Not to Sin" because in these verses John is going to address the ever-present reality of sin in the life of the believer. While we have been freed from the penalty for our sin, we have not had the presence of sin eradicated from our lives. We still harbor our sin nature and must daily battle with its presence and its desire to fulfill what Paul calls the desires of the flesh. But John is going to make it perfectly plain that, as believers, we no longer have to sin. We have an option. Because we now have the Holy Spirit of God residing within us, empowering us to resist the pervading influence of the flesh. We can say no to sin and yes to righteousness. It is a daily choice, a minute-by-minute decision. And John will remind us that when we do sin, because we will, we don't have to despair, we simply need to confess our sin and receive God's forgiveness – paid for by the death of Jesus Christ on the cross.

Ep 178 – 1 John 1:5-2:2 PT 2 Jun 17, 2017

Show notes

This is our second episode on 1 John chapter one, verse five, through chapter two, verse two. Today's episode is entitled, "If we say…" and in it we are going to take a close look at what John had to say to those who denied their need for a Savior. For some, it showed up in their unbelievable denial of even having a sin nature. Others simply said they were not guilty of sin. But in either case, John had strong words for them. They were liars and living in a fantasy world. We can say what we want about sin. We can deny its existence. We can refuse to admit we commit sin. We can try and diminish the gravity of the sins we do commit. But our opinion is not the one that matters. It's not what we say. It's what God has said. And He has made it quite clear that ALL have sinned. Not some. All. And the penalty for sin is death. But the good news is, there's a way of escape. There's a means by which we can have our sin debt wipe clean and our penalty taken care of. Once and for all.

Ep 177 – 1 John 1:5-2:2 Jun 16, 2017

Show notes

With this episode, we move into the next section of John's letter. For the next few weeks we will be camping in 1 John chapter one, verse five, through chapter two, verse two. Today's episode is entitled, "Light in the Darkness" and will describe not only the coming of Christ as the light of the world, but the transformative power of that light to change the way we live our lives. John will use the contrasting images of light and dark to help us understand the dramatic nature of the change that Jesus' coming into the world was meant to produce. There are no gray areas with Jesus. He's not a dim light that barely makes a dent in the darkness. He is the all-powerful light of God that permeates and penetrates, not only illuminating, but eliminating the sin that darkens the lives of mankind. But as John will make painfully clear, there are still those who prefer living in the dark. They hate having their sins exposed and find comfort in the hiddenness that comes with living in darkness. And when we as believers choose the darkness over the light, John says we do not practice the truth.

Ep 176 – 1 John 1:1-4 PT 5 Jun 15, 2017

Show notes

This is our final episode in the first four verses of 1 John chapter one. I've entitled this episode "God Made Visible" and it will continue our look at the divinity and humanity of Christ. John is adamant about establishing the veracity of Jesus' claim to be the Son of God come in human flesh. There is no doubt that this claim is difficult to get your head around. It sounds unbelievable, if not preposterous. And, as in John's day, there are still many who find it difficult to swallow the idea of God becoming a man and living among us. That God would use a human being as His spokesperson or as an example of righteous living is a whole lot more believable. But, according to John and the other apostles, that is not what God did. He sent His Son. Jesus, the second member of the Trinity, appeared as a man and made God visible. He walked among men. He knew what it was like to suffer from hunger, grow tired, be tempted, cry, face rejection, and eventually die. And He did it all without committing a single sin. Unbelievable? No doubt about it.

Ep 175 – 1 John 1:1-4 PT 4 Jun 14, 2017

Show notes

For today's episode we remain in 1 John chapter one, verses 1-4. I've entitled this episode "Christ, the Eternal Life" but it has to do with far more than just our future existence in heaven. Far too often, we equate eternal life with eternity. And while that is the ultimate outcome of our faith, Jesus came that we might have abundant life, here and now. Our eternal life does not begin at death or when the Lord returns. It began when we placed our faith in Christ as our Savior. And John wants to point out that Jesus is not just the way to eternal life, He is the eternal life. Jesus even said of Himself, I am the way, and the truth and the life" (John 14:6 ESV). Jesus is the very essence of life. It is only through Him that we can have life – including abundant life here and eternal life in the future. Eternal life is far more than a guarantee of heaven. It is about a relationship with God the Father through Jesus Christ, His Son. John wanted his readers to know that their eternal life began at salvation, because they came to know the one who is eternal life. And he wanted them to live in that reality.

Ep 174 – 1 John 1:1-4 PT 3 Jun 13, 2017

Show notes

Today's episode is entitled "The Incarnation" and is based on the first four verses of 1 John chapter 1. We have chosen to remain in these opening verses because there is a lot of rich content packed into what seems to be a short section of Paul's letter. The incarnation, or Jesus' taking on of human flesh, is an essential doctrine of the church. For Paul, it was non-negotiable and critical in terms of the entire gospel message. Had Jesus not become a man and lived a sinless life, He would not have been the proper sacrifice to pay for the sins of mankind. His divinity and humanity were both necessary. He was the God-Man, who was fully capable of living in complete dependence upon God, obeying all His commands and, therefore, accomplishing what no other human being had been able to do. It was His perfect obedience and sinless life that qualified Him to be the unblemished lamb, chosen by God to die in the place of sinful men and women. To refuse Christ's deity is to deny the gospel. And Paul knew that salvation was impossible apart from the incarnation of Jesus.

Ep 173 – 1 John 1:1-4 PT 2 Jun 12, 2017

Show notes

In today's episode, we'll remain in the first four verses of 1 John 1. This episode is entitled "Something Worth Proclaiming" because John is going to address that passion he shared with the other disciples for sharing the good news regarding Jesus Christ, the Word of Life. John's desire was that others would come a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ as their Savior and enjoy not only fellowship with God the Father, but with the rest of the body of Christ. For John, the real heart of the matter was the non-negotiable nature of Christ's incarnation. In other words, the gospel was completely dependent upon the reality that Jesus, the Son of God, had taken on human flesh and lived among us as a man – but without sin. Jesus wasn't just another man. He wasn't merely a good teacher with some powerful moral truths to share. He was the very Son of God and, therefore, God Himself. And not only that, Jesus was, by His own self-admission, the only means by which men could be restored to a right relationship with God. And that was a truth John found more than worth proclaiming.

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