Blake Allen, Student Pastor, LHBC
1 John 1:3-10
“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. 5 This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. 6 If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. 8 If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.”
When I look at my two children, I am amazed at how different they are. Their little personalities are so different. My daughter is always smiling. My son is always mean mugging people. My daughter is loud, excited, expressive, and full of energy. My son is quiet, chill sometimes, focused, and knows what he wants, when he wants it. They act like kids of course, but God has truly wired them differently.
When I consider the grandeur of God’s creation in mankind, I am amazed of how differently God has wired us. He has created us uniquely. He is the author of diversity. He has intricately fashioned and designed us in the womb (Psalm 139:13-16). We have been made specifically in mind by our creator.
But even though we have differences in the way we think, feel, process, look, act, perceive, etc., there is so much we have in common.
We Have a Common Past
1 John 3 reminds us that we have all fallen short of the glory of God and we were separated because of our sin. And anyone who thinks otherwise have been deceived. To claim we are sinless is to call God a liar. But the apostle John lets us in on a little secret: God does not lie for there is no darkness in Him. Therefore, we all have a common past: we were separated from God, walking in darkness. Thankfully, He did not leave us in that state….
We Have a Common Savior
God is light. Jesus is the light of the world. And through Jesus Christ, believers are made children of the light. We have fellowship with the Father and Christs’ church because of what Jesus has done for us. John reminds us it is by His blood that our sins have been cleansed. Like the song goes: what can wash away our sin? Nothing but the blood of Jesus.
We Have a Common Mission
If we confess with our mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in our hearts that God raised Him from the dead, we will be saved (Romans 10). We are saved from sin and created for His workmanship (Ephesians 2:10). We each have a purpose to fulfill for God’s glory. Part of that purpose is to live on mission for Him as a disciple of Jesus. We are called to fulfill the Great Commission. The Great Commission mandate is not an option for believers. It is not for a select few. It is not for “evangelist” only, for Paul says we are to do the work of an evangelist even if we are not naturally gifted at it as evangelist are (2 Timothy 4:5).
In 1 John 3, the apostle John is “proclaiming” what he has “seen” and “heard.” He is proclaiming the Gospel to provide assurance to a generation of believers who are being confronted by false teachings in their time. Sound familiar? We too have been flooded with disinformation and false teachings in our culture. And we must push back the darkness as children of the light. We have a common mission, namely, the Great Commission.
We Have a Common Bond
We have fellowship with the Father and each other because what Christ has done on the cross. Christ has torn down the wall of hostility and brought us together as one kingdom citizen (Ephesians 2:14). From 2020-today, we have covered the topic of division in our society left and right. But there has not been much talk about unity. We need to address problems but we also need viable solutions. And, we have more in common than we realize.
The solution to man’s problems begins with a relationship with Christ. Then, a relationship with a common Christ should lead to a common mission to make disciples. Do you want to see change happen? Then are you reaching someone for Christ with the Gospel, doing the work of an evangelist? The reality is this: behaviors won’t change until the heart does. Only Christ can fix the heart. And our responsibility is to make Him known in our world. And when we preach the Gospel and meet needs, a pattern Jesus left for us to follow, we will see an enhance of true fellowship in our culture through the blood of Jesus.
PRAYER FOR TODAY
Father, unite your church as one. May we walk in fellowship with you and your church. Amen.
MEMORY VERSE OF THE WEEK:
Philippians 1:18b-21
Yes, and I will rejoice, 19 for I know that through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my deliverance, 20 as it is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death. 21 For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.