God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.”

Exodus 3:14

God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” Exodus 3:14

This morning, I am going to pause my preparation to host and lead worship services at the Gardens and the Lodge this Sunday 22SEP as I have largely worked through all three core themes of the message from RayFowler.Org Fruit of the Spirit Sermon series - the Fruit of Love.  As I pause, I lean on DesiringGod.com's Solid Joys daily devotion for today, which explores how believers "have the unspeakable privilege of knowing Yahweh as our Father — I AM WHO I AM — the God."  John Piper shares more about how we have this privilege by first sharing how Jesus responds to Pharisees who questioned how He could have seen and known Abraham - he responds that He is the Alpha and Omega in see John 8:56-58.  Piper continues by sharing awe in Jesus' response and how this response expresses how Jesus "took up all the majestic truth of the name of God, wrapped it in the humility of servanthood, offered himself to atone for all our rebellion, and made a way for us to see the glory of this infinite, absolute, all-sufficient God — without fear."  Piper concludes by referring us to Psalm 9:10a.  Indeed - know and trust God!

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My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God who loves me and who is full of amazing grace - giving us Yourself so that we can have unity and fellowship with God - eternally.  Thank You Jesus!  I am not deserving of such amazing grace and for my salvation.  My sin is great and it continues...daily.  Please forgive me.  Help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please continue to heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

 

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.

1 John 1:5-10

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. 1 John 1:5

In preparation for leading Sunday school 15SEP, I continue with 1 John 1, yesterday using DesiringGod.com's Look at the Book video series for 1 John which examines 1 John 1:5-10. This morning I step back to look at 1 John as a whole, using commentaries to look at key themes, including history and background of this book.  Excerpts from the introduction of the commentary to 1, 2, 3 John from The Christ-Centered Exposition Series:

• "Obviously sin is not a popular subject in our day. People will go to great lengths to hide it, rationalize it, or deny it. But we must understand that when they deny their sin they call God a liar. They challenge His Word and question His character. They say sin is not serious and Jesus did not need to die."
• "First John 1:5 is the basis for 1:6–2:2 and the foundation for 1:6–3:10, the first half of John’s letter. First John 1:5–3:10 emphasizes the truth that God is light. The second half of the letter, 3:11–5:12, emphasizes the truth that God is love."
• "To think correctly about Jesus, you must think correctly about sin. When you see sin for what it is you will immediately see your need—the world’s need—for Jesus as your advocate (2:1) and your “atoning sacrifice” (2:2 NIV). You will also avoid the error of calling God a liar."

Excerpts from the MacArthur Bible Commentary for 1 John:

• "John and James, his older brother (Acts 12: 2), were known as “the sons of Zebedee” (Matt. 10: 2– 4), whom Jesus gave the name “Sons of Thunder” (Mark 3: 17). John was one of the three most intimate associates of Jesus (along with Peter and James— cf. Matt. 17: 1; 26: 37), being an eyewitness to and participant in Jesus’ earthly ministry (1: 1– 4). In addition to the three epistles, John also authored the Fourth Gospel, in which he identified himself as the disciple “whom Jesus loved” and as the one who reclined on Jesus’ breast at the Last Supper (John 13: 23; 19: 26; 20: 2; 21: 7, 20). He also wrote the Book of Revelation (Rev. 1: 1)."
• "Most likely, John composed this work in the latter part of the first century. Church tradition consistently identifies John, in his advanced age, as living and actively writing during this time at Ephesus in Asia Minor."
• "Furthermore, the heresy John combats most likely reflects the beginnings of Gnosticism which was in its early stages during the latter third of the first century when John was actively writing. Since no mention is made of the persecution under Domitian, which began about A.D. 95, it may have been written before that began. In light of such factors, a reasonable date for 1 John is c. A.D. 90– 95. It was likely written from Ephesus to the churches of Asia Minor over which John exercised apostolic leadership."
• "Although he was greatly advanced in age when he penned this epistle, John was still actively ministering to churches. He was the sole remaining apostolic survivor who had intimate, eyewitness association with Jesus throughout His earthly ministry, death, resurrection, and ascension."
• "As the last remaining apostle, John’s testimony was highly authoritative among the churches. Many eagerly sought to hear the one who had firsthand experience with the Lord Jesus."
• "After the Pauline battle for freedom from the law, Gnosticism was the most dangerous heresy that threatened the early church during the first three centuries....some asserted that Jesus’ physical body was not real but only seemed to be physical (known as Docetism from a Greek word that means “to appear”)....another form of this heresy which John may have attacked was led by a man named Cerinthus, who contended that the Christ’s spirit descended on the human Jesus at his baptism, but left him just before his crucifixion.  Such heretical views destroy not only the true humanity of Jesus, but also the Atonement, for Jesus must not only have been truly God, but also the truly human (and physically real) man who actually suffered and died on the cross in order to be the acceptable substitutionary sacrifice for sin (cf. Heb. 2: 14– 17). The biblical view of Jesus affirms His complete humanity as well as His full deity. The gnostic idea that matter was evil and only spirit was good led to the idea that either the body should be treated harshly, a form of asceticism (e.g., Col. 2: 21– 23), or sin committed in the body had no connection or effect on one’s spirit. This led some, especially John’s opponents, to conclude that sin committed in the physical body did not matter; absolute indulgence in immorality was permissible; one could deny sin even existed (1: 8– 10) and disregard God’s law (3: 4)."
• "A lack of love for fellow believers characterizes false teachers, especially as they react against anyone rejecting their new way of thinking (3: 10– 18). They separated their deceived followers from the fellowship of those who remained faithful to apostolic teaching, leading John to reply that such separation outwardly manifested that those who followed false teachers lacked genuine salvation (2: 19)."
• "Since the heresy was so acutely dangerous and the time period was so critical for the church in danger of being overwhelmed by false teaching, John gently, lovingly, but with unquestionable apostolic authority, sent this letter to churches in his sphere of influence to stem this spreading plague of false doctrine."

 Looking specifically at 1 John 1:1-10, the commentary for this text from the The Christ-Centered Exposition Series shares six divisions (including one division proposed by the commentary that continues through 1 John 2:2:

1 John 1:1-4

1. Have a passion to know this life (vv1-2)
2. Have a passion to share this life (v3)
3. Have a passion to enjoy this life (in a Godly manner) (v4)

1 John 1:5-10

1. The world must know what God says about Himself (v5)
2. The world must know what God says about sin (v6-10)
   
3. The world must know what God says about Jesus (2:1-2)
   

Believers, we must be a light in this world of darkness!

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My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are light, love and truth...You are also love and my personal Lord and Savior.  Thank You Jesus!  I am not deserving of the amazing grace You already poured out for me and the grace You continue to pour out for me in inexhaustible supply. My sin continues...daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

Beloved, I am writing you no new commandment, but an old commandment that you had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word that you have heard. At the same time, it is a new commandment that I am writing to you, which is true in him and in you, because the darkness is passing away and the true light is already shining. Whoever says he is in the light and hates his brother is still in darkness.

 1 John 2

Beloved, I am writing you no new commandment, but an old commandment that you had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word that you have heard. At the same time, it is a new commandment that I am writing to you, which is true in him and in you, because the darkness is passing away and the true light is already shining. Whoever says he is in the light and hates his brother is still in darkness. 1 John 2:7-9

This morning, I continue my study of 1,2,3 John using the Christ-Centered Exposition commentary series volume for these books.  My study today focuses on a commentary-assisted review of 1 John 2:3-11. 

Per the commentary for this text: 

Main idea: "True followers of Jesus will have assurance in their salvation because they know, love, and obey Him."

Excerpt from introduction: 

• In this letter, John lays out a "threefold" test for believers to assess if we truly know Christ; (a) a theological test to determine if we "believe the right things about Christ", (b) a moral test to determine if we obey Christ, and (c) a ethical test to determine if we love others.  The text highlighted this morning examines the moral test in vv3-6 and the ethical test in vv7-11.
  

Divisions:

1. Obey Christ’s Commands and Enjoy the Assurance of Salvation (2:3-6): The commentary refers us to both Chuck Colson from his book Loving God, who writes that "the essence of the Christian life is obedience."  Dietrich Bonheoffer is similarly quoted (by Colson) that "only he who believes is obedient; only he who is obedient believes."  Knowing (via intimate understanding of the gospel/God's Word) and loving God are "wed" together in the text as these words are used more than 40 times each in 1 John. "Both lead to obedience." Guarding God's commands in our heart as a treasure serve to provide assurance of our salvation. "Because I know Him in all of His beauty, glory, and majesty, I delight in obeying Him. To obey Christ is not a burden. It is a blessing. It is my natural response to what He has done for me....In keeping and obeying His Word, my love for Jesus grows, matures, and is brought to its intended goal. And here is the beauty of the whole thing: the more I know Him the more I love Him, and the more I love Him the more I know Him....To truly abide in Christ means I will live (walk) like Christ." We are referred to John 15:4-5, 1 Corinthians 11:1, Ephesians 5:1, 1 Peter 2:21. "Like Father, like Son. Like Savior, like saint. Christ’s life becomes my life, my example, my goal, and my pattern." 
   
2. Love One Another and Walk in the Light of Salvation (2:7-11): "[T]he letters of John assume a knowledge of the Gospel of John," as the text today refers to John 13:34-35 as Jesus gives us a new command to love one another as He loves us. The commentary also refers us to Leviticus 19:18 where Moses also spoke of loving one another.  This supports John's claim that this is not a new commandment but one of old. As we experience and know God, and grow in our love of God, there is an evolving (new) "experience, emphasis, expression, and endurance" in our love of God and others.  We are reminded of a previous life in sin where we walked in darkness, blind to the love and light of Jesus.    
   

 As the commentary concludes, we are referred to the hymn Trust and Obey.

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My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God who loves me and who loved me before I loved You.  You loved me while I was still hostile to You - as a slave to sin.  Yet You saved me nonetheless and continue to richly pour out blessings on me daily...I am undeserving.  My sin is great and it continues...daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin. Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

[God] raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.

Ephesians 3

[God] raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. Ephesians 2:6-7

I maintain a pause of my deep dive of Isaiah, based on the Precept Upon Precept study series, to continue my study of Ephesians for 3 days per week as I participate in a Discipleship (D) Group that is part of my church. For my study this morning (Day 3), I remain in Ephesians 3 - with a specific focus on v14-21. As I did yesterday, I lean on DesiringGod.com Lab videos on Ephesian 3. Specifically, for this morning I watched this video from the series as John Piper describes, using the text, how Paul prays for believers (Jews and Gentiles alike) to be strengthened such that they might comprehend and grasp the breadth, height, depth, length of Christ's love, and be filled with the fullness of God.  Piper shares how this is a huge prayer as God's love and His fullness know no bounds, so to more fully comprehend these things God must provide us with supernatural powers (which He can do via the Holy Spirit).  Piper goes as far to share how such a prayer requires a miracle - which again God can do! Of course, we should understand that believers exist to glorify God so we should certainly pray this for ourselves as well as all believers!

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My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God who loves me and who gives me Your Word and the Holy Spirit so that I can more fully understand Your love and Your fullness - thank You Jesus!  I am not deserving of such blessings. My sin is great and it continues.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength. Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

Then the woman said to Elijah, “Now I know that you are a man of God and that the word of the Lord from your mouth is the truth.”

1 Kings 17

Then the woman said to Elijah, “Now I know that you are a man of God and that the word of the Lord from your mouth is the truth.” v24

The Lord is in control (Colossians 1:16-17) and everything He allows or does is for a reason - that He be glorified and His children are rescued.  Israel is deep in sin (King Ahab has been worse than those before him (1 Kings 16:30) and God causes a drought (v1).  Out of this drought, the Lord brings Elijah to a widow and her son for food.  She has little but gives what she has and learns how God provides.  This is reinforced as God uses Elijah to heal the widow's son (v19-23).

This process of how people know who God is and how He works is a lifelong process. I don't know what happened to the widow and her son but I suspect that they sought God and God continued to reveal Himself to them as they grew in maturity in their love of God.

This interaction with Elijah reminds me of Jesus' interaction with the woman the well where a Samaritan woman encounters the promised Messiah.

We must all move beyond knowing that God is real to truly seeking Him and growing in Christ.

Therefore let us move beyond the elementary teachings about Christ and be taken forward to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from acts that lead to death, and of faith in God[.] Hebrews 6:1

 

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God who continues to reveal Himself...daily!  Thank You Jesus for always being there and providing for me, guiding me, healing me, protecting me, etc.  I am not worth such love.  I am often harsh with my words and actions. Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You do.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior. Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

Afterward, Joshua read all the words of the law—the blessings and the curses—just as it is written in the Book of the Law. There was not a word of all that Moses had commanded that Joshua did not read to the whole assembly of Israel, including the women and children, and the foreigners who lived among them.

Joshua 8

Afterward, Joshua read all the words of the law—the blessings and the curses—just as it is written in the Book of the Law. There was not a word of all that Moses had commanded that Joshua did not read to the whole assembly of Israel, including the women and children, and the foreigners who lived among them. v34-35

Just as God is perfect, the Bible is perfect - as is God (see also John 1).  God wants us to read the whole Bible and KNOW it.  We must not to add to or subtract from it - it becomes important for many reasons, including that it enables us to put on the full armor of God.  Most importantly, when we know the Bible we know God.  

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God, and Your Word is perfect and I am blessed to have Your Word where I can spend time with You, understand more about You and Your will for my life.  Thank You Jesus - I am not worth such blessings.  I am harsh with my words and thoughts.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You do.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal and cure Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo. Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others. Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

God is not human, that he should lie, not a human being, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill? I have received a command to bless; he has blessed, and I cannot change it.

Numbers 23

God is not human, that he should lie, not a human being, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill? I have received a command to bless; he has blessed, and I cannot change it. v19-20

God delivered the above message to Balak through Balaam.  Key for us to remember is that God is not like us - He is God.  This is of course obvious but many of us, including myself, get mad or be disappointed with God because we expect Him to be good to us or to respond to us in prayer how we expect.  

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. Isaiah 55:8

God does say that we will get anything that we ask for in His Name:

"And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son.  You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it." John 14:13-14

 

Yet what does "in my name" mean - for me it means "in His image" in the sense that we were made in His image (see Genesis 1), and made to glorify God.  When we renew our mind, we can better recognize His desires.

 

May [the Lord] give you the desire of your heart and make all your plans succeed. Psalm 20:4

 

My Prayer: Lord God, You are an awesome God full of love and compassion for me.  Thank You Jesus - I am not worth such love.  I am harsh with my words.  Please forgive me and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You do.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo. Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as the Lord and Savior. Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

Sacrifice thank offerings to God, fulfill your vows to the Most High, and call on me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you will honor me.

Psalm 50

Sacrifice thank offerings to God, fulfill your vows to the Most High, and call on me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you will honor me. v14-15

God does not want empty actions, He wants us to truly know, desire, and worship Him.  Verses 8-13 demonstrate this through God's own words that He has no needs for the sacrifices that are part of the ceremonial law.  We are also to be living sacrifices - be who God intends for us.

These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates. Deuteronomy 6:6-9

Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do. James 1:22-25

 

Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Romans 12:1

 

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God that provides for His children all needs - and everyone is worthy regardless of abilities, circumstances.  You know everything about us, including our sin, yet You chose us anyway, suffering and dieing for us so that we would not be slaves to sin and so we could have eternity in heaven with You.  Awesome!  Thank You Jesus!  I am not worth such love and blessings.  I continue to worry and fail to display love to others as You show to me.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me turn from such sin and turn towards You instead.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, mind and strength.  Help me love others as You do.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give me strength.  Give Lisa strength.  Please heal and cure Lisa of her cancer and the side effects from chemo and radiation.  Help me lead and serve Lisa, Zach and Dustin and serve You.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message today and every day.