REAL CHRISTIANITY
1 John 2:7-11
TWO POSSIBILITIES
Real Christianity - #6 in study of 1 John
In the passage before us, 1
John 2:7-11 we are faced with two possibilities, hatred or love. Paraphrasing from an old saying about a
wedding bride’s attire (“Something old, something new, something borrowed,
something blue.), I have outlined this passage as,
SOMETHING OLD – Vs. 7
SOMETHING NEW – Vs. 8
SOMETHING BLINDING – Vss. 9, 11
SOMETHING TRUE – Vs. 10
SOMETHING OLD – Vs. 7
Brethren, I write no new commandment
unto you, but an old commandment which ye had from the beginning. The old
commandment is the word which ye have heard from the beginning.
The old commandment to love
referred to here had been around for a long time. It began as an Old Testament truth. Leviticus
19:18
The commandment to love was
also old in the sense that anyone hearing the Gospel message over any length of
time would have been confronted with his command to love. Matthew 2:37-40, John
13:34-35
From the beginning the
disciples were confronted with this command to love on a higher level. They were called upon to love each other as
much as Jesus had loved them.
We are called upon to love
one another as much as Jesus loved us.
How much did Jesus love us?
V
He loved us
enough to leave the splendors of Heaven where He reigned with the Father to
come to earth and become a man like us.
V
He loved us
enough to endure 33 years of life among them that were vastly inferior to Himself.
V
He loved us
enough to die on the cross of
1
John 4:10
V
He loves us
enough to offer forgiveness and eternal life to all who will believe on Him.
John 3:16
V
He loves us
enough to continue to intercede for us at the right hand of God.
Jesus says to you and me, “I
want you to love each other as much as I have loved you. If you do this, the world will know that you
are my disciples.”
Jesus calls it a “new
commandment”. John called it an old commandment,
but only in the sense that those John was writing to had heard it since the
beginning of their contact with the Gospel of Christ. It was old in time but
new in vitality.
SOMETHING NEW – Vs. 8
Again, a new commandment I write unto
you, which thing is true in him and in you: because the darkness is past, and
the true light now shineth.
How can something be old and
new at the same time?
Let me give you an example.
We are grandparents.
For us this is not new. We have been grandparents for almost seven
years.
But each time a grandchild is
added to the family it is “new”. There
is a new life, a new baby which gives us a new joy and excitement each time it
is experienced.
The commandment to love on a
higher level was true in the Lord Jesus.
He went to the cross for us.
But even now, He is still loving us. The extent of his love continues to
increase. The intensity of his love continues to increase.
His love is new in extent and
intensity every time He saves a soul.
His love is new in extent and
intensity every time He extends forgiveness to a believer.
His love is new in extent and
intensity every time He answers a prayer.
His love is new in extent and
intensity every time He talks to God in our behalf.
The new commandment to love is true in Him.
And the new commandment to
love is true in us as well if we are truly born again. 2 Corinthians 5:17
There is new joy and
intensity each time we help someone out of love for Christ.
There is new joy and
intensity as we forgive someone out of love for Christ.
There is new joy and
intensity as we bond together in fellowship with other Christians.
There is a new joy and
intensity when we win someone to Christ.
Now why is this new
commandment to love possible?
Because the darkness is
passed! Ephesians 2:1
Why is this new commandment
to love possible?
Because the darkness is
passed and the true light is now shining!
The true light is now shining
in our hearts. John 8:12
And my friend the light of
life is a light of love. The more we allow Jesus’ light to shine through us,
the more our love increases in joy and intensity.
The commandment to love is
new in another sense.
Each day Jesus finds new ways
to love us.
Each day we should find new
ways to love each other. Love is not to be stagnant. It is to grow.
SOMETHING BLINDING – Vss. 9, 11
1 John 2:9 - He that saith he is in the light, and hateth his brother, is in darkness even until now.
There are people who claim to
be saved, to have been born again. And
yet these people’s lives are filled with hatred.
Sometimes they hate people of
another race.
Sometimes they hate people of
another nationality.
Sometimes they hate people
who have hurt them.
Sometimes they hate people
who have hurt those they love.
Sometimes they hate other
Christians because they have hurt them, or a loved one, or because they have
become jealous of that other Christian.
Sometimes they hate
practically everyone.
The person who hates his
brother is in darkness.
The person who hates his
brother may claim to be walking in the light of the Lord, but the facts convict
Him.
1 John 2:11 - But he that hateth
his brother is in darkness, and walketh in darkness,
and knoweth not whither he goeth,
because that darkness hath blinded his eyes.
Now we can rationalize this
hatred. We can call it something other
than hatred.
·
“Oh I don’t hate
him. I just don’t want to be around him.”
·
“Oh I don’t hate
her. I just can’t listen to him teach knowing what he has done to me.”
·
“Oh I don’t hate
her. I just can’t forget how she’s hurt me.
We know of people who have
been “blinded by hatred”.
We know of people who have
blown up buildings and killed innocent people out of hatred.
We know of people who have
murdered or harmed family or friends in the rage of hatred. It’s in the news all the time.
And we don’t think that
hatred effects us.
If we maintain animosity
towards another
If we fail to forgive
If we harbor a grudge
If we have something against
someone else
We are walking in darkness
and we can’t think clearly because we are deceived.
Hebrews 12:15 – Looking diligently lest any man fail of the
grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby
many be defiled;
When we fail to forgive we
are not allowing God’s grace to control us.
When we hate we are not
allowing God’s grace to control us.
When we have something
against someone, we are not allowing God’s grace to control us.
We have failed of the grace
of God.
A root of bitterness can
spring up and trouble us.
It makes us miserable and we
fail to think of act clearly because we have been blinded.
And the worst part of it is, many others are defiled by our bitterness.
They are hurt by our bitter
words and actions and can become bitter themselves.
They can inherit our
bitterness towards others.
Many a son or daughter,
husband or wife, brother or sister can become bitter against someone else
because the bitterness of a family member.
Many a friend can become
bitter because of the bitterness of another family member.
I want you to stop and think
for a minute.
Have you been blinded by
bitterness or hatred?
SOMETHING TRUE – Vs. 10
1 John 2:10 - He that loveth his brother abideth in the
light, and there is none occasion of stumbling in him.
We already saw that Jesus is
the light of the world.
If we abide in that light, we
will allow Jesus to shine through us.
When we abide in the light,
Jesus controls us through His Spirit.
When we abide in the light,
we allow Jesus to cleanse us from all sin.
When we abide in the light
Jesus loves others through us.
And we love others we will
not stumble in darkness.
But more important than that,
others will not stumble over us! We will not cause others to trip over us.
If Christians only realized
how their own bitterness makes others to stumble! They’d be more willing to let Jesus change
them.
Don’t be a stumbling block.
Walk in the light!
Love instead of hate!
This is true!
The two possibilities are
love and hate.
SOMETHING OLD – Vs. 7
SOMETHING NEW – Vs. 8
SOMETHING BLINDING – Vss. 9, 11
SOMETHING TRUE – Vs. 10