We are all children of God or are we? Does this passage conjure up any doubt in your mind? Are you feeling a bit guilty because you know you’re a sinner? These are some serious questions to wrestle with as we read through this passage and figure out what it is saying to us.
Right off the bat, John tells us to remain in fellowship with Christ so that when he returns we won’t cower back in shame. That stirs up some memories of being a child and breaking my mom’s hall mirror. My brother and I had been told NOT to climb in the closet. We didn’t listen. As a result, the mirror, which was affixed to the closet door, was smashed into a million pieces when the closet door somehow slammed into the wall as we were climbing in the closet. Talk about cowering in shame. That’s when you wish you were invisible.
But how about how we’re living our lives? Would we need to cower from God if we faced him today? Are we obeying Christ’s teachings, living as he lived? Or are we “climbing in the closet” because we think we know what’s best for us? Those who do what is right are called God’s children. Trying to do our own thing isn’t always the right thing.
Do you ever think about the day that Christ returns? We don’t know when it will be or if it’s even going to happen during our lifetimes. But we need to be ready. John would suggest here that those who are eagerly awaiting that day are keeping themselves pure. What does that mean? Share your thoughts in the comments. I suppose it means we need to keep ourselves safe from lust and self indulgence, as well as other sins that keep our minds off God and only focused on ourselves.
I’m not sure I understand what John is saying about sinning. How do we get to a place where we don’t sin? I don’t even think it’s possible in this life. What about those who close themselves off to the world, spend their days in prayer, and don’t allow the world to permeate their safe haven. Is that what is intended here? Are we all supposed to close ourselves in and avoid all temptation and circumstance that will lead us to sin?
Somehow I don’t think so. Yet, we can choose how we live, who we associate with, what we read, what we watch, how we react. We can curb our sinning when we have the knowledge of what sins are. We have that benefit. If we know something is sinful, and we continue to do it, our heart’s desire wins over our obedience to Christ. That does not keep us pure.
We can’t blame the world for all the wrong if it doesn’t know any better. If the world is oblivious to God and God’s laws. It makes sense that the world offers a major breeding ground for sin and evil. But as children of God, we have something special. We have a future with God to cling to when the going gets rough.
“Those who have been born into God’s family do not make a practice of sinning, because God’s life is in them. So they can’t keep on sinning, because they are children of God.” God’s life is in us. The Holy Spirit. We’ve talked about that in other reflections about how God’s spirit in us can help us discern right from wrong. We need to rely on that promise to stand strong when temptations come and life happens. We can have both clarity and rescue from the same source. We have no excuse.
How are you doing at being obedient to God?
Let’s pray. Lord, I struggle with sins in my life that I can’t seem to shake. How much closer would I be to you if I were able to be more obedient. Help me see those things in my life that need to be eliminated and give me the power to overcome. I don’t want to feel any shame when I meet you face to face. I want you to be proud of my work and devotion to you. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
