John bangs the drumbeat of love again in this letter. Love is the defining command for Christ followers. Put succinctly, And now, dear lady, I am not writing you a new command but one we have had from the beginning. I ask that we love one another. And this is love: that we walk in obedience to his commands. As you have heard from the beginning, his command is that you walk in love (5-6).
Love is walking in obedience to God’s commands.
How can I show that I love God… obey His commands? That’s John’s messages. That’s the Gospel message. John bangs this drum in every writing we have from him in the NT. It MUST be pretty important!!!
My heart wondered how am I doing in my love for God? I review the 10 Commandments in my head. I consider the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7) next. I call up Scriptures and Scripture themes from my 40 years of reading the Bible yearly.
How am I doing? Eh. Some faithful and some not so faithful. I can see places where I have grown and learned and matured, and others where I continue to struggle.
I see areas of advance and areas where I have lost some ground. I remain a sinner saved by grace, imperfect and impure yet deeply in love with God –Father, Jesus, Spirit –striving to live for my God despite my failures, seeking to walk in love which means obedience to the God who saved me.
Lord, God, I am so grateful for You. Please forgive my failures and strengthen those areas of my character and life that fall. Hone those areas that are mostly faithful to You that they would grow in faithfulness. Chisel me into a son prepared, if necessary, to die for You and the faith You offer, and who lives for Your honor and glory every day. I pray in Your blessed name. Amen.
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