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Jonah 3:4-5 – 4 Jonah began to go into the city, going a day’s journey. And he called out, “Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!” 5 And the people of Nineveh believed God. They called for a fast and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them to the least of them.

 

How does the heart of man turn to the Lord? Who is ultimately in charge? What methods should we use to try to help people turn to the grace offered by Jesus?

 

In the book of Jonah, we see something astounding which helps us to grasp the calling on us all as we try to help the world see their need for a Savior. The prophet Jonah had no desire to see the people of the city of Nineveh turn to God. Jonah hated those people and their cruel empire. He did not want to see God have mercy on them. But, the Lord called Jonah to preach to the city, and so Jonah went there after a bit of a detour and a near-death experience.

 

Look at Jonah’s message. See in it all the beauty, the clever turning of phrase, the eloquence. See in Jonah’s words the deep, heartfelt persuasion. See the seeker-sensitivity on the lips of the prophet.

 

Do you not see those characteristics in Jonah’s sermon? You should not see them, as Jonah had none of them. Jonah’s message was a simple declaration of truth, “Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!”

 

What do we want to model about Jonah? I would suggest only one thing: Jonah told the truth. Jonah lacked compassion, and we do not want that to be us. Jonah lacked any desire that the people repent, and we do not want that. Jonah did not offer grace, and we do not want to model that. But, Jonah told the people the truth, and this is what we need to do.

 

What happened when truth inspired by God was declared to a hard-hearted and rebellious people? Verse 5 shows us that the people repented. They believed Jonah’s warning, and they cried out to God for mercy. For a time, we see signs of genuine conversion.

 

How could that happen? The people were dead in their sins. They heard a message that was full of issues, lacking compassion, lacking invitation, and even lacking desire that the people be saved. Yet, when the truth came to the people, something changed in the hearts of the people. Did Jonah persuade them? I doubt that very seriously. What appears to have happened is that the Lord, by his sovereign power and for his glory, reached down into the hearts of people and drew them to himself. God took a message that should not have had any impact at all, empowered it with his Spirit, and changed hearts. Yes, the people responded. They were not without responsibility. But, I would argue that any person looking at this story fairly would grasp that God moved the people who then turned to him. God is the one ultimately responsible for the salvation of the people of the city.

 

And what shall we model? Let us be like the one good thing in Jonah. Let us be a people who tell the world around us the truth. Yes, let us have better tenderness and compassion. Yes, let us speak the truth in love. But may we be people who tell the world the truth and entrust the results to God. Let us know that our persuasive tactics do not change hearts. Instead, let us grasp that a true message of the word of God, when inspired by God, can and will lead to results because of the sovereignty of God. May we trust the Lord, love the lost, and tell the truth. Then, when we see results, may we give God all the glory, 100% of the glory, because no person comes to life without being raised from the dead, and that is a miracle in the hands of the Lord.

Revelation 11:15 – Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever.”

 

Can you read the above verse without having a performance of “The Messiah” run through your head? Over the Christmas season, we hear at least snippets of Handel’s masterpiece, including the “Hallelujah Chorus,” which itself inspired an earthly king to stand in reverence and awe. But, I wonder, do we really consider what it means that the Lord reigns and will reign, that Jesus is King of kings and Lord of lords.

 

What must be true if Jesus is King? What must be true if Jesus will reign? How does this fact impact the way that we talk to others about the Savior? How might it change our evangelism and our social media discourse? How should it change the impressions of others as they consider Christian claims?

 

Think with me. Jesus is King. He will reign forever and ever. The kingdom of the world will become the kingdom of our Lord and of is Christ. What does this mean?

 

One thing this all has to mean is that God will have his way. God has the right to tell us what to do, what to feel, and how to think. He has every right to define for us our personhood, our values, and our standards. God, not man, is ultimate. God is ruler. God’s standards are right and authoritative, regardless of what people think of as the progressive course of history.

 

When we share Jesus with others, do we let our words indicate his authority? So often, the Christian message is presented as a pleading, wheedling, weepy, begging that others might consider what we offer them, maybe, pretty please, if they might just try it for a moment. And, of course, our message should be presented with compassion, passion, and urgency. We do implore others to be reconciled to God as Paul said in 2 Corinthians 5:20. But this was not in any way to compromise the fact that Jesus is the King to whom we need to be reconciled. He is the Lord over all. His reign is neither strengthened nor lessened by our responses to him. He will rule. He will not violate righteousness and right standards in order to make his kingdom more palatable to us. Grace is glorious. God’s mercy is wonderful. God is loving toward us and offers us life. But, we ought not confuse ourselves by pretending that God’s offered mercy puts us in charge and makes him our subject.

 

How should the world see the call of Christ? Again, we often try to persuade the world that we are especially nice, likeable, cool, with-it people who are just like them except that we have some extra hope in our faith. And, it is indeed true that Christians have been responsible for tremendous good in the world from neighborhood events to drilling wells in the third world, from adoption culture to baby-sitting, from rescuing the trafficked to keeping somebody’s puppy, from building hospitals to caring for the homeless—Christians have done good in the world and try to do more. But, our good actions in the world are not the end-all of our call upon the world. We are not just like the rest of the world with this genuine exception: we are sinners like the rest of the world. However, we have, under God’s power, surrendered ourselves to his lordship and found salvation by grace through faith in Christ. We are different than the world. We call the world to obey the commands of the Lord as found in Scripture, and this is a 180 degree turn from the direction of the culture around us. We believe that God has commands for what we do with our lives, our families, our bodies, our gender, our sexuality, our unborn children, our everything. We are to submit to him as the King.

 

I offer to all people the opportunity to be made right with God. Our Lord has made a way for you to be forgiven, rescued, and adopted into his family. He offers you peace, hope, love, joy, and eternal life. But, understand that he is and will be King. He does not bend to you, you and I bow to him. Yet, there is no source of greater joy than to kneel before our King, because he has made us for that purpose and we will find our greatest fulfillment when we do what we were created to do. So, I urge you, be reconciled to God as your King and find yourself under his grace.

 

To all who are believers, I remind us that Jesus reigns. He is not a little weakling just wishing people would come to him and give him a little nod of acceptance. He is mighty. He is Lord. He reigns. He will reign. He is the conquering King who will return on a war horse with a sword in his teeth and blood on his robes. He is not a wimp. He does not change his standards of righteousness just because our culture feels something is a better idea. He is God, and we bow before him.

 

May we humbly bow and find the joy in the truth that Jesus is King. He shall reign forever and ever! Nothing will change that fact. May we then yield to our Lord and have peace in his rule.

Revelation 6:5-6 – 5 When he opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, “Come!” And I looked, and behold, a black horse! And its rider had a pair of scales in his hand. 6 And I heard what seemed to be a voice in the midst of the four living creatures, saying, “A quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius, and do not harm the oil and wine!”

 

When we hurt, where can we find comfort? How do we manage to stand when it seems that the world around us is in utter chaos? Where do the people of God find strength in times of hardship and suffering? Answering such questions is a primary focus of the book of Revelation, and we should not miss such answers (even if so many cannot find these answers in their rush to define all the timeline of the future).

 

In Revelation 6, we see the Lord Jesus beginning to unroll the scroll of human history, bringing the future of our world to its proper and God-honoring conclusion. As we watch the four horsemen ride out, we see a world marked by a spirit of conquest, of war, of famine, and of death. These four, of course, mark our condition quite well. But take specific note of the words said when the third horseman rides.

 

The word of God tells us that there is a voice which speaks when the rider on the black horse is sent out. There is a measuring of the food, a clear lack being in evidence. But then there is another command, “and do not harm the oil and wine!” Somehow, in the midst of deep darkness, of a day’s wages barely containing the purchasing power to feed a person for a day, there is a limit placed on the destruction. There are parts of the world that are, at that time, off-limits from ruin.

 

Of course, there are many points to be made from this passage of the book of Revelation, but how about considering this one: God is in control, even over our suffering. The people in the passage are facing a hardship, that is without a doubt. Conquest, war, famine, and death are not fun things to face. But, right in the middle of the situation, we see evidence, solid evidence, that the Lord is still completely in control. While he may allow people to cause all sorts of hardships, the people are never the ones in ultimate control. God has the ability to protect and provide for his own, no matter how evil and chaotic the world gets.

 

We may have many questions that arise as we consider the sovereignty of God. We may wonder why it is that God chooses to do things the way that he does them. And, such questions are good in many ways. However, we also should not miss the fact of what God is telling us in his word. In this part of his word, the Lord tells us that, no matter how crazy the world gets, he is still there, still sovereign, and still able to protect and preserve. 

 

What do you face that makes you believe that all is lost? What pain has taken you to the brink of despair? When have you wondered if God is actually able to help? Remember, even as you see the limits placed here with the horseman, that the Lord is present, he is able, he is preserving, and he will be glorified. God does not lose his own, even in the midst of a world gone mad. God will preserve his own, even when he judges all of humanity. There is hope, because the Lord is always still on his throne.

Some Thoughts on Worship

 

Revelation 4:8-11 – 8 And the four living creatures, each of them with six wings, are full of eyes all around and within, and day and night they never cease to say,

“Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty,

who was and is and is to come!”

9 And whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to him who is seated on the throne, who lives forever and ever, 10 the twenty-four elders fall down before him who is seated on the throne and worship him who lives forever and ever. They cast their crowns before the throne, saying,

11 “Worthy are you, our Lord and God,

to receive glory and honor and power,

for you created all things,

and by your will they existed and were created.”

 

I’m not sure that there is a more subjectively debated issue in all of Christendom than the issue of the practice of worship. If you’ve been in modern American Christianity for any time, you have probably heard of the “worship wars,” or you have experienced them. You have seen people go to the mat battling over musical styles in worship, over dressing up or dressing down, over bright lighting or theatre settings, over drums or no drums, over volume levels, over hymns or modern music, and over so much more. However, I wonder how much of this discussion includes biblical argumentation. How much of what we think about worship is informed by Scripture rather than by experience?

 

Consider, as one aspect of worship, the passage above. There we see a vision of worship happening in the throne room of God. God’s holiness is magnified by angelic beings. The human response is to bow down before the Lord and to declare him worthy. No person can argue that this is not worship.

 

What does the above contain that we might want to consider as we consider our own understanding of worship? First, let’s talk about holiness. How well do we do in remembering that our task is centered around the holiness of God? If you know me, you will know that I am not a slave to rigid formality and severity of mood—I enjoy, well, enjoying myself. I certainly do not think God is opposed to an attitude of celebration. However, worship at its clearest and deepest point is about the holiness of God. Thus, our actions of worship ought to reflect that holiness. There is a seriousness to what we should sing, say, and do as acts of formal worship of our Lord. Those actions should reflect the worth and value of the Holy One.

 

Then, look at the human response to God’s revelation of his holiness. The elders around the throne of God fell down and declared the truth of God’s worth. There was a humility about the people. The people responded to the truth of who God is. They responded to the accurate proclamation of God’s character and attributes. They did not respond to the emotional content of the art but to the rock solid truth of the words of truth. Perhaps we should consider this when we think about worship. Perhaps it would be better that we see to it that more truth is proclaimed and that this outweighs any emotional strings that are pulled by musical style, dramatic content, or nifty lighting.

 

I recall once being told by a pastor that he could tell whether the people were worshipping God by the looks on their faces. I suppose that would be true if worship was about mere emotional engagement. However, if worship is about truth of proclamation and submissive response, the looks on our faces are not the final measure of worship. Are we treating God as holy? Are we declaring truth about him? Are we yielding our lives to him? Those are far more proper measures of worship than any others.

 

Christians, may we stop the worship wars by returning to Scripture. Can a modern song focus us on the truth of the character of God and his holiness? If so, sing it. Can an ancient song focus us on the biblically presented perfections of God, than sing it. Does an old song focus us on shallow, emotional half-truths, then do not sing it no matter what hymnal it appears in. Does a modern song grab our emotions while ignoring the central focus on the Lord, then get rid of it.

 

What about more than music? The service of formal worship is about the declaration of the truth of God in Scripture. Yes, this should connect with our emotions because the truth of God grabs at our souls. However, we do not need to artificially shape things to bring about a response that is more a response to art than to truth. When art bows to truth, the two can blend in a wonderful moment. However, the focus of worship is and has always been the truth of God as expressed in the word of God.

 

This all only scratches the surface of the truth of what we must consider as we consider worship. However, it is important that we think about this topic and let it be directed by Scripture. Even the above paragraphs only scratch the surface of the passage above. Yet, they point us in the direction of the holiness of God and a proper human response of reverent awe and submission.

Revelation 3:20 – Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.

 

Is Jesus knocking at the door of your heart? I’ve often heard that question asked, generally in the context of the end of a church meeting and generally aimed at those who are on the fence about whether or not to place their trust in Jesus. The passionate evangelist will tell the congregation that Jesus is knocking at the doors of the lost, and the sinner who opens their heart to the Savior will be saved—which is, of course, true. However, the problem with that being the way this verse is handled is this: It is intended for Christians.

 

What might it mean that the Lord is knocking at the heart doors of believers? Consider the context. Jesus is speaking to the church in Laodicea. It is a church that has become smug and self-confident. It is a church that thinks they can pull themselves up by their own bootstraps and strategize their way to success. They think they are really smart, personally successful, and quite appealing. But God says to them that they have no idea how poor, blind, and naked they really are in his sight. And it is to such people he says that he is knocking on the doors of their hearts, ready to restore and have fellowship with those who open to him.

 

Getting the context clear offers you and me a challenge if you are a believer in the Lord Jesus. Is your heart open to the fellowship and presence of the Savior? Are you humble? Do you realize that you cannot be strong on your own? Do you see that you cannot impress God with your goodness? Do you see that you have no good in you that the Lord has not granted you? Are you able to recognize that the source of joy that lasts is in the glory of God and not in the multiplying of possessions and comforts?

 

How about for your church as a whole? Do you see that you, as a body, do not impress God with your strengths? Can you recognize that the Scripture is not telling churches to cleverly strategize their success apart from the power of the Spirit of God working through them? Does your church recognize that we exist for the glory of God and not to be the best club on our block? Can your church see that worship is about declaring truth and humbling ourselves under God’s majesty more than it is about tweaking emotions or impressing the lost? Ultimately, are you and your church submitted to the word of God as your final authority on all things relating to life and godliness?

 

The Lord knocks on the hearts of Christians because, if we are not careful, we close our hearts to our Savior. We can impress ourselves. We can think we are great in our outreach programs or in our doctrinal superiority. We need to be reaching out. We need doctrinal fidelity. We need rich, Scriptural worship. But we cannot do any of that without being open to the Savior and submitted to his word. We must grasp that we need Jesus to be the church. We need Jesus to live our Christian lives. We are not as strong as we think we are. This is why the Savior knocks and offers the sweetness of his presence and fellowship.

 

Yes, if you do not know Jesus, the truth of the old evangelist is correct. Jesus says that if you will open your heart to him—trusting him and him alone for your salvation while turning away from all other sources of hope and authority—you will be saved. But the truth of the passage is for believers. We can grow cold and selfish if we are not careful. Our churches can become smug and self-reliant. To us the Savior declares that he knocks and is willing to return to his right position of supremacy in our hearts. And, when we yield to him, he also promises eternal rewards and joy.

Amos 4:11-13

 

11 “I overthrew some of you,

as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah,

and you were as a brand plucked out of the burning;

yet you did not return to me,”

declares the Lord.

12 “Therefore thus I will do to you, O Israel;

because I will do this to you,

prepare to meet your God, O Israel!”

13 For behold, he who forms the mountains and creates the wind,

and declares to man what is his thought,

who makes the morning darkness,

and treads on the heights of the earth—

the Lord, the God of hosts, is his name!

 

The book of Amos begins with the spiraling judgment of God on the nations around the land of Israel. God shows that he will not allow the rebellion of mankind to go on forever unpunished. One might imagine the people of Israel watching God declare the punishment to fall on Syria, Moab, or even Judah with joy. But then the focus of the book becomes Israel, and the people are in deep trouble.

 

From chapters 2-3, God shows that Israel has turned against him in myriad ways. And, if we are not careful, we will start looking at the book as a mere historical lesson about the rebellion of the northern kingdom. But, we must recognize that we live, as Israel lived, surrounded by spiritual lawlessness and corruption. No person who looks around in our world would consider the landscape to be becoming more godly.

 

As chapter 4 comes into view, God repeatedly shows Israel how he warned the nation time and time again. He allowed the people to face hardships to help them to see their need to return to him. But the rebellious nation refused to turn from their sin and return to the Lord.

 

Does that not make you wonder about your own culture and situation? How many things have happened around us that should be driving us to our knees before the Lord? How many pains, crimes, hardships, and disasters should have drawn us as a people to seek the mercy and favor of the Lord. Yet, in all things, as a people, it seems that our nation continues to flaunt our rebellion.

 

With all that said, it is the final passage of chapter 4 that should cause us to tremble. The nation has seen the call of God to return. The nation has refused to return. And, because they have refused and refused and refused to return to the Lord, God says this, “prepare to meet your God, O Israel!”

 

God says to a rebellious people who have refused all of his warnings that, at the end of the day, they had better be ready to meet their Maker. The Lord will stop sending warnings. Instead, he will come on his own. And the obvious intent here is to warn them that, without repentance, there will only be judgment to come.

 

Are we ready to meet our God? No, my country is not Israel. Yet, my country is made up of human beings, people created by God and under obligation to turn to him rather than oppose him. We should repent. We should put an end to our evils. We should seek the mercy of the Lord in Christ. And we are not doing so. Are we ready, then, when the Lord says to us, “Prepare to meet your God!”?

 

May passages like this one drive us to prayer and repentance. While I love to preach the mercy of the Lord, there is a wrath of God as well. In fact, the concept of the mercy of God makes no sense apart from the reality of his right and just wrath. I would not be faithful as a preacher did I not warn us that God must righteously judge. We must, as a people, turn to him and seek his mercy. We must learn from the pains of this life that our only hope is the love of the Lord. Because, without turning to his grace, we will find ourselves meeting him in judgment, and that will not go well for the rebels—it never has.

Joel 2:12-14

 

12 “Yet even now,” declares the Lord,

“return to me with all your heart,

with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning;

13 and rend your hearts and not your garments.”

Return to the Lord your God,

for he is gracious and merciful,

slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love;

and he relents over disaster.

14 Who knows whether he will not turn and relent,

and leave a blessing behind him,

a grain offering and a drink offering

for the Lord your God?

 

There are many running themes in the Bible. We regularly see God show us his holiness and perfection. We regularly see the theme of sacrificial substitution in which one life is given for the sake of another. We see a running and building plan of the promised Messiah coming to rescue. We see the theme of the curse of sin and the power of God pushing back the darkness.

 

Here in Joel 2, we see a beautiful theme that shows up time and time again in Scripture—Old Testament and New Testament. We see the theme of the mercy of God offered to those who will come to him in faith and repentance. Yes, this passage is directly about the life of the people in Judah. But, it is a perfect depiction of the merciful character of God toward all who will turn to him.

 

In Joel’s prophecy, the people of God have faced tremendous hardships. Enemy armies and a locust plague have ruined the land. There appears to be no hope for any sort of a future for the people of Judah. And, the book lets us know that the people have faced this destruction because of their sin against the Lord. This is righteous judgment that they are suffering.

 

But God says, “Yet even now.” Even now, if you will see your sin and turn from it, there is hope. Even now, if you will let go of selfishness and self-determination and yield to the rule of the Lord, there is hope. Even now, after great damage has been done, damage caused by the hateful rebellion of the people, God offers restoration. If the people will turn from their sin and seek the mercy of God, he will rebuild them to such a place that they will again be able to worship him and see his favor.

 

Later, in verse 25 of Joel 2, the Lord promises, “I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten.” If the people will repent and return to the Lord, God tells them that he will restore to them the damage done by the judgment they earned.

 

The Lord is a restoring, forgiving, loving, merciful God. That is as common a theme in Scripture as any other. God will judge, there is no doubt about that. But God will forgive those who come to him and get under his rule, seeking his mercy. God is gracious and he makes the way for us to be forgiven. Whatever their losses, whatever their pain, the blessings of repentance will more than make up for the hardship.

 

What a joy it is to grasp that God restores. Repentance is not merely a doleful turning away from our failings to live with our sorrow. No, repentance is a move toward the Lord who tells us that he can give us back far more than we lost in our failings. He will give us back far more than we earned in his judgment. He will heal our wounds, salve our hearts, and grant to us a future under his care.

 

Have you ever thought that you have so ruined your life with your failings that you have no future? Hope in the concept of the kind mercies of God. He welcomes us back. He tells you and me, “even now…” He will forgive when we return. He will restore. He will rebuild our lives. No, we may not see all that restoration on this side of eternity, but the Lord will not leave his people hanging. He will be kind. He will do good. He will give comfort and joy. Return and find restoration in the grace of our wonderfully merciful Lord.

 

How do you do this? If you are outside of the grace of God, find his mercy by turning from sin and receiving Christ as Savior and Lord. If you are in Christ, find God’s healing by repenting of sin and trusting that he can fix your future.

Hosea 11:8-9

 

8 How can I give you up, O Ephraim?

How can I hand you over, O Israel?

How can I make you like Admah?

How can I treat you like Zeboiim?

My heart recoils within me;

my compassion grows warm and tender.

9 I will not execute my burning anger;

I will not again destroy Ephraim;

for I am God and not a man,

the Holy One in your midst,

and I will not come in wrath.

 

In the early lines of the book of Hosea, we see God compare the northern kingdom of Israel (Ephraim) to an adulterous woman. In fact, the memorable tableau of Hosea and Gomer, a man married to a wife who willingly chooses a life of prostitution instead of faithfulness is intended to mirror the sadness of Israel’s faithlessness. God shows that those people willingly and repeatedly betrayed him, regardless of his kindness and faithfulness to them.

 

Of course, the Old Testament is full of the prophesies of the judgment of God that will fall on that people who turned away from the Lord. He promised them judgment for unfaithfulness before he ever entered into covenant relationship with them. The consequences of rebellion against God were part of the terms of the covenant between God and national Israel.

 

If we are not careful, we will read those Old Testament promises of judgment, and we will consider God to be harsh. After all, we like to think that we would be gentle and understanding if we were the ones in charge. Yet, a faithful look at the Old Testament shows us that God is truly a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love.

 

Notice in the verses above the sweet kindness of the Lord. His compassion is stirred toward his people. He willingly withholds the judgment that the people have more than earned. He does not enjoy doing to them what the terms of the covenant require.

 

Now, let us not read the words above as though God will not judge. We must not assume that the patience of the Lord and the compassion of our God somehow do away with his justice. He will be just. But, he is gloriously compassionate.

 

Let the words of Hosea 11:8-9 melt into your understanding of the kindness of God and the glory of the gospel. The conflict in Scripture is not one of God seeking more people to condemn and loving to crush people. Instead, the conflict in Scripture is the question of how can God exercise compassion while still fulfilling his justice. In the case of Israel and in the case of humanity, the answer is the same: the gospel of Jesus Christ.

 

Our God has tender compassion toward those who have rebelled against him. He will judge us if we refuse him. However, God has chosen to show us his kindness by taking upon himself his right wrath for sin. Thus, we can be forgiven because of the justice of God poured out on his own Son. God’s love is incredible. His justice is perfect. His tenderness is overwhelming. And all this is present right here in the Old Testament words of God to Israel.

2 John 5-6 – 5 And now I ask you, dear lady—not as though I were writing you a new commandment, but the one we have had from the beginning—that we love one another. 6 And this is love, that we walk according to his commandments; this is the commandment, just as you have heard from the beginning, so that you should walk in it.

 

How complicated is Christianity? If you ask some people about the Scriptures or about going deep with God, you would think that our faith is such a great and abiding mystery that only the experts could understand it. Some would make it appear that the Bible is such a difficult thing to handle that, without a special type of gifting that elevates you beyond the reach of the average Christian, you will never get it.

 

Can I suggest to you that such has never been the intent of God. The Lord has never tried to make the faith inaccessible to any who are genuinely his. God wants you to be able to read the Bible, understand the Bible, and obey the Bible. And, if this is God’s will, it is clear that, though the Bible has some complicated parts, it is most certainly not inaccessible to the average Christian who is willing to give it a fair reading and obey its commands.

 

Take the text above. John is writing a letter to a church full of people he knows and cares about It is the second-shortest letter in the New Testament. John has little to say, but he wants to say it clearly. And what profound mysteries will the apostle open to the local church?

 

Look at the two verses above and ask yourself what they mean. Are they hard? No, they are not. There are two commands, two sides of the same coin. John calls the local church to love one another and to do so by obeying the commands of God.

 

Loving one another is nothing new to biblical teaching. The latter six of the Ten Commandments are about loving others. Honestly, the interpretation of the Sabbath command in Deuteronomy also places that command’s purpose in love for one’s household. So much of the civil law of the Old Testament is about loving others and treating them with fairness and kindness. And, of course, we know that Jesus and the apostles regularly called his followers to love one another.

 

Of course, we must separate the command to love from the sappy, anything goes, never judge, false foolishness of our modern society. Loving another person is to be committed to do them good. Thus, loving is not mere emotion. Loving is carrying out the commitment to another’s good.

 

How, then, do we love? We love by obeying God’s commands as verse 6 above tells us. When we love other people, we do what the word of God commands us to do. Thus, we treat people with kindness and charity. We correct our friends who are going astray. We pray for those who are hurting. We weep with those who weep. We share the gospel with the lost. We love by doing the very things that God repeatedly tells us to do.

 

Nothing about the commands above is hard to understand. I’ll grant you, they are hard to do. It is hard to love when our natures are to be selfish. It is hard to obey when battling down the flesh. But, make no mistake, this is not hard to grasp. The word of God is clear and simple.

 

Friends, so often, Christianity is summed up with the call to love God with all you’ve got and love your neighbor as yourself (cf. Matthew 22:37-40). If you grasp the truth of the gospel and the call to love God and others, you’ll pretty much have it figured out.

 

Don’t miss the gospel here. The Bible teaches that we are sinners who need their sin to be forgiven. We cannot do enough good, not even enough loving of others, to earn forgiveness. Instead, we must throw ourselves on the mercy of the court by receiving the gift of forgiveness in Christ. Jesus God who came to earth, lived a perfect life, died a sacrificial death, and rose from the grave. If we trust in Jesus and turn from our sin and self-determination, we will be saved. As Jesus and his followers have said from the beginning, we must repent and believe to be saved.

 

But, once you’ve got the gospel, the rest must not be thought of as so hard as to turn any Christian away from Scripture. Love God. Love others. Obey the commands of God. Yes, there will be a few categories that require some thinking: election, end times, the problem of evil, painful sin issues, etc. However, for the most part, we must understand that God gave us a faith that is able to be received by a child and understood by non-scholars. Be confident, then, that God’s word is accessible to all of God’s children. And, when all else is hard, fall back on loving God, loving others, and obeying God’s commands for God’s glory.