David Bahn – Reflections

Dear children, don’t let anyone deceive you about this: When people do what is right, it shows that they are righteous, even as Christ is righteous. ⁸ But when people keep on sinning, it shows that they belong to the devil, who has been sinning since the beginning. But the Son of God came to destroy the works of the devil. ⁹ Those who have been born into God’s family do not make a practice of sinning, because God’s life is in them. So they can’t keep on sinning, because they are children of God. ¹⁰ So now we can tell who are children of God and who are children of the devil. Anyone who does not live righteously and does not love other believers does not belong to God. – 1 John 3:7-10

I would so love to say that I have never been deceived. But I’m that guy: the one who gets hooked when the bait is thrown out for the gullible one to bite. Did you know that they’ve actually created a way to get to the center of the earth? OK, maybe I won’t fall for that one, but I seem to be an easy target for the practical joke, the fun-poking set-up, the let’s-see-just-how-far-we-can-take-this tricksters. More often than not it is harmless. I’m ready to run out and buy a last minute birthday cake for the staff because they convince me I forgot and it’s my month to provide the cake.

Sometimes, however, the deceit is more grave. This really isn’t a sin. You won’t surely die. Did God really say…? Jesus has strong words for those who lead others astray – especially little ones.

And [Jesus] said to his disciples, “Temptations to sin are sure to come, but woe to the one through whom they come! ² It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were cast into the sea than that he should cause one of these little ones to sin. ³ Pay attention to yourselves! If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents,forgive him, ⁴ and if he sins against you seven times in the day, and turns to you seven times, saying, ‘I repent,’ you must forgive him.”

Interesting connection between forgiving your brother and deceiving people or causing people to fall into sin. The gravest deception of all is that there is no forgiveness possible. Perhaps the greatest show of love is to forgive someone who has sinned against us. This is our calling as children of God. To refuse to do so is sin of the worst kind.

Save us from such sin, gracious God!

See how very much our Father loves us, for he calls us his children, and that is what we are! But the people who belong to this world don’t recognize that we are God’s children because they don’t know him. ² Dear friends, we are already God’s children, but he has not yet shown us what we will be like when Christ appears. But we do know that we will be like him, for we will see him as he really is. ³ And all who have this eager expectation will keep themselves pure, just as he is pure.

⁴ Everyone who sins is breaking God’s law, for all sin is contrary to the law of God. ⁵ And you know that Jesus came to take away our sins, and there is no sin in him. ⁶ Anyone who continues to live in him will not sin. But anyone who keeps on sinning does not know him or understand who he is. – 1 John 3:1-6

A family in the church I was serving in Utah had invited the local Mormon missionaries to come visit them. When I learned that was the case, I asked if I could come by to hear them too. The conversation was going well: Polite. Respectful. Non-controversial. Then the wife offered to get us something to drink (no coffee mind you!). While she was away, I set a trap saying, “Sure is terrible about that little girl who was found murdered in the mountains outside of Salt Lake City.”

“Yes it is,” they replied.

“Did your President really say that the person who did this can never find forgiveness – either now or in eternity?” [the LDS president is considered to be “prophet, seer, and revelator.”]

“Yes,” came their reply.

I knew I had them: they don’t follow the same Jesus I follow. My Jesus (who is not the spirit brother of Satan) died for the sins of the whole world. Whoever believes in him will be saved. Only God can judge the heart of the repentant convict in regard to faith. But we would never say that there is a sin beyond God’s redemption (except to deny the Holy Spirit, which is tantamount to willful unbelief).

“See? See!? See what I mean?!?” I cried. “They don’t believe in grace. Some sins cannot be forgiven. Which sins can be, and how?”

See? God has shown his love for us! We are children of God. We all sin; we cannot keep ourselves from it. Verse 6 is one of the verses the earned this letter of John’s the term antilegomena: one of the books of the New Testament that did not receive 100% agreement that it belonged in the canon in the earliest days of the Christian Church. In the context of the remainder of scripture we understand this to be a statement about willful, unrepentant, sin – not sins of weakness, or sins from which we repent – as gross and ugly as they may be.

That is, perhaps, helpful. But it is clear and comforting that we are children of God because of his love for us, and not because of our lack of sin. We who have be brought to faith in Jesus Christ will seek to honor him in all we do. And when we fail, we confess our sins, receive his forgiveness, and thank God that we are his beloved children. Our obedience to God grows out of our identity as God’s children. Our failures to do so gives witness to our continuing need for God’s redemptive love, and his goodness to us claiming us as his children.

See how much he loves us?!? Yes indeed. Thanks be to God!

I am writing these things to warn you about those who want to lead you astray. ²⁷ But you have received the Holy Spirit, and he lives within you, so you don’t need anyone to teach you what is true. For the Spirit teaches you everything you need to know, and what he teaches is true—it is not a lie. So just as he has taught you, remain in fellowship with Christ.

²⁸ And now, dear children, remain in fellowship with Christ so that when he returns, you will be full of courage and not shrink back from him in shame.

²⁹ Since we know that Christ is righteous, we also know that all who do what is right are God’s children. – 1 John 2:26-29

“Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” So says Jesus. “Follow me and we’ll have the best fun you’ve ever had.” One of those invitations is welcome and appealing. The other not an easy sale. Jesus’ invitation includes a reality check: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me.” The world’s invitation offers cheap thrills, easy ways, no pain, no cost. No problem; just fun, ease and happiness.

“There is a way that seems right to man, but the end thereof is the way of death.” (Proverbs 16:25) There are those who really do want to lead us astray. There are those who wish to see the ruin of others – either because misery loves company. There are still others who wish to see our ruin – just because they have evil motives, and ill will toward others.

God’s people will seek to honor God, help their neighbor, and not lead others into temptation. We know the way we should go, and what is good and right. We remain in fellowship with Christ because we have been called by him, gifted with the Holy Spirit and recognize the lies of the evil one for what they are.

We remain in fellowship with Christ and when he returns we will greet him with joyful confidence. He has not pulled a fast one one us. He has not lied to us. He has told us the truth and the Spirit has confirmed that to be so in our hearts. Our Savior will not lead us astray. He leads us to life and eternal joy.

Dear children, the last hour is here. You have heard that the Antichrist is coming, and already many such antichrists have appeared. From this we know that the last hour has come. ¹⁹ These people left our churches, but they never really belonged with us; otherwise they would have stayed with us. When they left, it proved that they did not belong with us.

²⁰ But you are not like that, for the Holy One has given you his Spirit, and all of you know the truth. ²¹ So I am writing to you not because you don’t know the truth but because you know the difference between truth and lies. ²² And who is a liar? Anyone who says that Jesus is not the Christ. Anyone who denies the Father and the Son is an antichrist. ²³ Anyone who denies the Son doesn’t have the Father, either. But anyone who acknowledges the Son has the Father also. – 1 John 2:18-23 [NLT]

Sometimes a self-consumed concern about our faith leads us to self-doubt and despair. Is our faith strong enough? Do we believe rightly? Are we really saved? One approach to such doubts is simply to dismiss them: they’re silly and non-consequential. This may appear to be a wise and mature approach. After all, doubts about God, his word, or truth are groundless. But these issues are not inconsequential. If you do not have it right about who God is and what he has said and done, and what he has promised or threatened to do, you could be in danger of facing grave ramifications to say the least.

A better approach to such doubts is to ground them where they belong. Is my faith strong enough? Not the right question. Rather we should ask, “Is my Savior is strong enough to save me?” Am I really saved? No need to doubt that if you simply rely on God’s word and promise: “Whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” (Romans 10:16) Do I believe rightly? Now there’s an important question to which John supplies the answer: Whoever believes in Jesus Christ has it right.

There are those who would discredit God, deny Jesus, and reject the work of the Holy Spirit. There are those who point toward the decline of the church in America as evidence of an antiquated belief system. There are those who say that Jesus was just a good guy, or an interesting religious figure of his day, but nothing more. There are those who say there is no God. These are the antichrists whose intent is evil and destructive. They come to steal, kill, and destroy. But Jesus has come to give life in abundance. Those who trust in him will be saved.

Doubts are best faced, acknowledged, grounded in the clear Word of God, and dismissed with the power of the Holy Spirit. But doubts do not disprove faith; they may even help us focus on what is true and clear: Jesus is the Messiah, the Christ, the Anointed One, the Savior in whom we trust. Through faith in him we are saved.

Do not love this world nor the things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you. ¹⁶ For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world. ¹⁷ And this world is fading away, along with everything that people crave. But anyone who does what pleases God will live forever. – 1 John 2:15-17

In the movie, Martin Luther: Heretic (A BBC film from 1987), Luther is depicted teaching his students about God’s grace. There is nothing we do to earn it, or deserve it, but God simply and fully forgives us for Jesus’ sake. The students struggle with this idea, and one asks, “You mean I can do whatever I please? I can sin all I want…” Luther answers, “Yes. And what pleases you? So what do you do? Drink yourself senseless? Make faces at the Duke? Spend the rest of the week in a whorehouse?” (You can watch the scene here – as well as the rest of the movie.)

The question remains, however: what pleases God? How do I please him. The answer lies in faith: believing in God; believing that he is good; believing that he is true to his word; believing that although we do not deserve to receive his blessings he grants them to us for the sake of Jesus. When we believe in God and acknowledge his faithfulness, righteousness, love and mercy, we please God. It’s that simple. It’s not just what we do, but how we view God, how we acknowledge who he is and all that he has done for us in Jesus that pleases him.

The world can never offer true eternal goodness, grace and blessing. Its gifts are fleeting and never truly satisfy. But the favor God offers is pure, holy, true, and deeply and eternally satisfying for all who believe in him.

Dear friends, I am not writing a new commandment for you; rather it is an old one you have had from the very beginning. This old commandment—to love one another—is the same message you heard before. ⁸ Yet it is also new. Jesus lived the truth of this commandment, and you also are living it. For the darkness is disappearing, and the true light is already shining.

⁹ If anyone claims, “I am living in the light,” but hates a fellow believer,^[a] that person is still living in darkness. ¹⁰ Anyone who loves a fellow believer^[b] is living in the light and does not cause others to stumble. ¹¹ But anyone who hates a fellow believer is still living and walking in darkness. Such a person does not know the way to go, having been blinded by the darkness.

¹² I am writing to you who are God’s children
    because your sins have been forgiven through Jesus.^[c]
13 I am writing to you who are mature in the faith^[d]
    because you know Christ, who existed from the beginning.
I am writing to you who are young in the faith
    because you have won your battle with the evil one.
¹⁴ I have written to you who are God’s children
    because you know the Father.
I have written to you who are mature in the faith
    because you know Christ, who existed from the beginning.
I have written to you who are young in the faith
    because you are strong.
God’s word lives in your hearts,
    and you have won your battle with the evil one. – 1 John 2:7-14

I was recently thinking about how easy it is to become self-absorbed. This is especially true as we get older. We become more impatient. We become less tolerant. I think it has to do with getting tired of going the extra mile, being patient with others, and having a built-in resentment toward others who don’t quite get it as clearly and fully as we do (OK, as clearly as I do!). It’s time for things to go my way. It’s time that people start being patient with me!

Warning: Grumpy old man in the house!

Then there are those impatient young men who want their slice of the pie now. Today is almost too late for them. They get a new car because they want one, and yet they don’t have the money, so they borrow the money to get the car. Now. Pay for it later.

Then there are those  women who are mature in the faith, who seem to have a nearly inexhaustible amount of patience and grace toward others…until they don’t. Then the get frustrated, and too often bitter, and too easily provoked.

Sigh: Seems we’ve all got our challenges.

John writes to us all: Old, young, men, women, new to the faith, mature believers. He has a word for each of us, and that word is love. It’s either a reminder of God’s love for us – inexhaustible, unmerited, unconditional, sacrificial, or our calling to love one another – with the same attitude, fueled by God’s love for us.

We must do this. We must love one another. We cannot say we love God and despise our neighbor. We cannot say we follow Jesus and turn our back on even the most vile sinner. We cannot pretend that we don’t know Jesus’ commandment to love one another. For the very nature of God’s love requires that we not horde it to ourselves.

These are good words. Words of grace and truth. For you and for me. They are words for all kinds of people in all kinds of seasons of life.

My dear children, I am writing this to you so that you will not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate who pleads our case before the Father. He is Jesus Christ, the one who is truly righteous. ² He himself is the sacrifice that atones for our sins—and not only our sins but the sins of all the world.

³ And we can be sure that we know him if we obey his commandments. ⁴ If someone claims, “I know God,” but doesn’t obey God’s commandments, that person is a liar and is not living in the truth. ⁵ But those who obey God’s word truly show how completely they love him. That is how we know we are living in him. ⁶ Those who say they live in God should live their lives as Jesus did. – 1 John 2:1-6

Some people have a very cozy relationship with God. It’s called easy-believism, cheap grace, or cozy faith. Dietrich Bonhoeffer railed against it in his seminal work, The Cost of Discipleship. He was particularly distressed that so many people who professed Christ involved themselves in the Nazi movement in Germany, following Hitler rather than Christ. Wikipedia summarizes Bonhoeffer’s thoughts this way:

Cheap grace, Bonhoeffer says, is to hear the gospel preached as follows: “Of course you have sinned, but now everything is forgiven, so you can stay as you are and enjoy the consolations of forgiveness.” … In contrast to cheap grace,

“costly grace confronts us as a gracious call to follow Jesus, it comes as a word of forgiveness to the broken spirit and the contrite heart. It is costly because it compels a man to submit to the yoke of Christ and follow him; it is grace because Jesus says: ‘My yoke is easy and my burden is light.’”

I would offer a slightly nuanced expression of the last part of the equation, more explicitly along the lines of John’s thoughts here. Hearts that are broken and contrite over sin will also desire to follow Jesus. He is our righteousness, the champion of our faith, the fulfillment of all that God has designed us to be. Jesus calls sinners to follow him. He forgives us, looks past our sins, and sets us on a higher path.

Most Christians I know have a desire to follow Jesus. They do not wish to sin. They believe it is wrong to follow the ways of the world, and want to follow Jesus. But those same folks, along with me, fail. We sin. We turn aside from the path of true life. Thank God we have an advocate who pleads our cause before the Father. Jesus’ plea is simple: “I died for them,” Jesus says, “have mercy!”

When we receive Jesus’ call to follow him, we are moving toward the heavenly Father. We are embracing his grace. We are forgiven. That is an every-day calling, a way of life, and moves us from a cozy faith to a vibrant and living way of life.

This is the message we heard from Jesus and now declare to you: God is light, and there is no darkness in him at all. ⁶ So we are lying if we say we have fellowship with God but go on living in spiritual darkness; we are not practicing the truth. ⁷ But if we are living in the light, as God is in the light, then we have fellowship with each other, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from all sin.

⁸ If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. ⁹ But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness. ¹⁰ If we claim we have not sinned, we are calling God a liar and showing that his word has no place in our hearts. – 1 John 1:5-10

Perhaps you’ve seen the sarcastic/funny remarks made by supervisors whose employees don’t quite meet minimum standards:

• “Since my last report, this employee has reached rock bottom…..and has started to dig.”
• “His men would follow him anywhere…but only out of morbid curiosity.”
• “I would not allow this employee to breed.”
• “This employee is really not so much of a ‘has-been’, but more of a definite ‘won’t be’.”
• “Works well when under constant supervision and cornered like a rat in a trap.”
• “When she opens her mouth, it seems that it is only to change feet.”
• “He would be out of his depth in a parking lot puddle.”
• “This young lady has delusions of adequacy.”
• “He sets low personal standards and then consistently fails to achieve them.”
• “This employee is depriving a village somewhere of an idiot.”

My favorite is the “delusions of adequacy” comment. Funny. Unless you know someone who labors under such delusions. Sadly, I do. The person who will remain anonymous, and who is an acquaintance from many years ago had no clue as to his ineptness. He was blind to his own inadequacy and impact on others. (No one reading this can possibly know of whom I speak, so don’t bother trying to figure it out.) I’m not certain that he was deceiving himself regarding any sinful propensity, but I do know he was blind to his own social deficiencies. He was not a joy to be around.

What’s worse, however, is when someone is not aware of the extent of his or her own sin. In fact, M. Scott Peck says that such an unawareness of one’s own shortcomings is the essence of evil. It is necessary that we first draw the distinction between evil and ordinary sin. It is not their sins per se that characterize evil people…The central defect of the evil is not the sin but the refusal to acknowledge it (P. 69).

Thankfully, however, we have a God who confronts us with our sin, calls us to repent and confess our sin, and promises to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Perhaps that gives greater urgency to the prayer of Psalm 139:23-24

That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life— ² the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us— ³ that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. ⁴ And we are writing these things so that our joy may be complete. – 1 John 1:1-4

My son and I had a good visit the other night – the night before his wedding. It wasn’t the usual pre-wedding advice kind of talk, but a conversation about a wide-ranging number of topics. We talked about politics. We talked about his job. We talked about some of his experiences growing up. We talked about the universe, galaxies, stars, and the possibility that we’re not alone in the universe. It was a faith-challenging conversation for both him and me.

In the end, however, I offered the idea that there are some fundamental realities that we have to deal with: good and evil, love, grace, truth. That seemed to have helped him a bit. It certainly does sustain me. In the end we didn’t even touch on the most significant touchstone of our faith: Jesus’ resurrection from the dead.

John’s witness, however, is to the reality of Jesus’ life, suffering, death, and resurrection. He makes no bones about it: he saw Jesus. He touched him after Jesus rose from the dead (or at the very least Thomas did). He heard Jesus’ words of life, grace, and truth. This is the real deal. Through the real Jesus, we have a real relationship with the Father, and a deep and profound joy that is not fully expressed until we share it with others.

Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, ¹³ bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. ¹⁴ And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. ¹⁵ And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. ¹⁶ Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. ¹⁷ And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. – Colossians 3:12-17

We’re here at a ranch near Quinlin, Texas for our son’s wedding. This will be a day of great joy and celebration – not only because of Aaron & Erin’s wedding, but also because as of 11:30 last night all nine (9) of our grandchildren are here with us. I’m sitting at the table in the great room with my youngest granddaughter. Naomi is coloring. Shelby (the oldest) is getting ready to take Morgan, Jackie, and Bekah for a walk. Peter is playing with the trains of our Mexican Domino centerpiece while Jackie colors on the floor. James is unpacking a new game, Ticket to Ride.  Diane is cooking with Lori and Tim. Matt & Dana have made it down and a concerned daddy is looking for his three children who just left for a walk. He’s not going to let a zebra or emu (yes, they’re on the ranch too) get them.

Later a number of folks will arrive from various parts of Texas. The California, Pennsylvania, and Colorado contingents have already made it here. We’ll celebrate. We’ll worship. We’ll have a great day. For all these things I am very thankful.

The passage above will be the text for their wedding. They have already instructed me not to go too long. But it’s a good reminder for us all:

Put on compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, and beyond all that put on love. That calls for an intentional effort. That will bless you as husband and wife. That will reflect God’s loving character for you. That will lead you to forgive each other – just as God has forgiven you in Christ.That is a very good thing.