Friday
Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves the father loves his child as well. This is how we know that we love the children of God: by loving God and carrying out his commands. This is love for God: to obey his commands. And his commands are not burdensome, for everyone born of God has overcome the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world? Only he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.
(I John 5:1-5, NIV)
The Apostle John is a first cousin of Jesus and one of his closest companions. Along with Peter and James, John develops a special friendship with Christ that provides opportunities for him to know Jesus more intimately than the other disciples. He is the one who leans on Jesus during the “Last Supper” (John 13:23-25) — as an expression of their close friendship — and is the only disciple who stays with Jesus when he is on the cross (John 19:26). John is the author of the Gospel of John, Revelation, and the three letters of John.
The purpose of John’s First Letter is to confront the heresy of Gnosticism which taught that the spirit was good, but all matter is evil. In concluding his argument about the reality of Christ’s incarnation, John insists that the true test of a Christian’s life is whether or not the love of God is evident in a person’s relationship with others. John emphasizes that loving God means keeping his commands and, in doing this, the Christian “overcomes the world” (v. 4). In The Message, a contemporary translation of the New Testament, Eugene Peterson’s wording for verse 4 is this: “The conquering power that brings the world to its knees is our faith.”
Although John does not use the word “peace” to describe the gospel message as frequently as the Apostle Peter and the Apostle Paul, the substance of his teaching is the same. John preaches the love of God like no other early church leader. He refers to the peace of God in his second (1:3) and third letter (v. 14), with the clear memory of Jesus’ gift of peace given to the disciples after his resurrection (John 20:19-23). For him, peace with God, a “right relationship” with Jesus, means living a life of love for others. John’s words are words of triumph because the love of God will overcome the world.
Prayer
God of love, we thank you for your love for us and for giving us new life. Help us to understand that loving you means keeping your commands – and that means loving others. Thank you for the exciting promise that if we believe Jesus Christ is the Son of God, we will overcome the world. Amen.