PSA Bible Reading Challenge 2023-2024

You may wonder why John wrote these letters.  He answers this question very clearly in vs. 13: “I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life.”  So, we know that John is writing to believers.  He is writing to that community who profess Jesus as the Lord and Savior.  He is writing to believers so that they would be assured that they have eternal life.  Do you ever wonder if you will have eternal life?  This verse assures us beyond a shadow of a doubt that we will have eternal life.  

But there is more in this chapter.  We read that those who are children of God do not sin.  Wait, what?  I sin, am I not a child of God?  It seems like John says that.  We should be used to this author making statements that stake a post in the ground and require that others measure themselves against that statement.  I find myself falling short of that statement.  And yet at the same time I know that I am a child of God and that God has forgiven me of that sin.  I know that I have the Son and so as a result I have life.  I praise God for that.

He ends this chapter and this letter by encouraging us to keep away from idols.  Idols, those things which take the place of God in our lives.  Those things that provide a barrier between us and God.  Anything can do that, anything can be an idol.  Just be aware of what is putting a barrier between you and God.  Once you have identified it then you have identified an idol in your life. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ruAll_8tXi8

Okay, so it isn’t Chris Tomlin, but it is probably a camp song that we all grew up singing and it is from the Scripture that is found on Day 51 of the 90 Day Challenge.  I haven’t taken the time to thank you for faithfully following your Scripture and reading along on the challenge.  It is a blessing to me to be able to be in the Word daily and know that when I reflect on it there are others that are doing the same.  Praise God for that.

So, besides a classic camp song, this Scripture has spawned a real challenge to all of us to love one another because we know that the source of this love is God.  One of the most telling lines of this Scripture is where we hear in vs. 10 that the real sign of love is not that we love, but rather that God has loved us.  Us loving God is easy.  He is perfect, he created us, he redeemed us, he has done everything and then some for us.  God loving us…well, not so easy.  Even while we were yet sinners…he still loves us.

Then there is vs.18 one of the most quoted Scriptures that I use these days.  Have you noticed how our country has changed since 9-11?  We have become a country of fear.  We make decisions based on fear.  Our presidents make decisions based on fear.  We make policies based on fear.  If we were able to truly love then we would not fear.  I know, you say that the Bible was not written to address politics.  I tell you that it absolutely was.  Jesus stood up to the most powerful nation in the world.  Yeah, you tell me, but he was crucified.  But in that crucifixion he conquered death and gave us not only eternal life, but a way to live here on this earth.

We have to not allow fear dictate our lives.  If perfect love casts out all fear, and I believe it does, then we have to cast it out and live our lives based upon the promises and the hope that Jesus instills within us.  I think we have a long way to go to reach that goal.

I really feel like I should quote one verse from this chapter and then drop the mic.  But there is so much more that I want to talk to you about like: Why does Cain always get the short end of the stick in regards to his sacrifice and why wasn’t it accepted.  All we read in Genesis is that for Cain and his offering the Lord had no regard.  We don’t know why, we don’t know what it was about his offering that was displeasing to the Lord.  But here in I John we read that he is from the evil one.  Okay, I understand why he said that because he is talking about faith and action.  How can a murderer have faith?  So, of course Cain is from the evil one because he was a murderer.  But wait, so was Paul!  Paul killed Christians before he knew the Lord and he was able to be redeemed.  How did I get into a discussion about capital punishment here?  If Paul had been put to death for his murderous actions we would not have the churches which we have today.  Capital punishment simply cannot be justified by any Scriptural arguments.  It simply doesn’t work for Christians.

Here is some image from Tintoretto who is an artist that I really appreciate.

I still haven’t given you the drop the mic verse:

Let us love, not in word or speech, but in truth and action

[silence]

We can’t really read these verses without having the Gospel of John, chapter 13:34 in front of us.  Here Jesus is with his disciples at the last supper and he gives them a “new commandment” (or in the Latin mandatum novum from which we get Maundy Thursday).  The new commandment that he gives in the Gospel of John is that “you would love one another”.  This really doesn’t sound like rocket science.  Well, it isn’t rocket science.  It is a new commandment which Jesus insists that his disciples not just hear but actually obey and put into practice.

Now to I John II, he tells the readers in vs.10 that we should love our brothers and our sisters.  Now, take note that Jesus actually goes a step further.  Listen to the words of Jesus in Matthew 5:  ⁴³ “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ ⁴⁴ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, ⁴⁵ so that you may be children of your Father in heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous. ⁴⁶ For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? ⁴⁷ And if you greet only your brothers and sisters, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same?”

The author then makes a random transition from teaching us a new commandment, to love our brothers and sisters in Christ, to warning us about the anti-Christ.  At the end of this warning we are reminded to abide in Christ.  Again, this is another referral back to the Gospel of John where Jesus tells us in John 15:4ff that we are to abide in him just as he abides in the Father.  It is a great second chapter which reminds us of the very many important lessons that Jesus has taught us.

There isn’t much of an introduction to I John.  It is believed to be written by the same person who wrote the Gospel of John and who wrote Revelation.  So, this person is the beloved disciple, John.  The author does not self identify in this book, but does so in II John and III John.  This is a book of the Bible that often gets confused with the Gospel of John.  In fact, if you read John 1 and I John 1 you will see some similarities as we talk about light and darkness, as we talk about the life that came into this world.  There are a lot of commonalities so it is not strange to say that this was written by the same person who wrote the Gospel of John.

A primary memory verse for this chapter is vs.8 which reminds us that we all sin and anyone who says they do not sin, is a liar.  That is pretty harsh but those are not my words, even though I agree with them.  Saying that we all sin also should not serve as a justification for sin.  The fact that we have sinned leads us to believe only that we are in need of a redeemer.  I John gets to that in vs.9 where we read one of the greatest assurances of pardon that we know of: “If we confess our sins, he who is faithful and just will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”  

Another great memory phrase, just a portion of a verses, is seen in vs. 5 where we read that God is light and in him there is no darkness at all.  What a great reminder that God is the giver of all good and perfect gifts (James 1:17) and that God will certainly make sure that all things work for good for those who trust in the Lord.  God is light, and there is no darkness in Him.  God is good all the time…All the time, God is good.

There are a number of fascinating things in this Scripture.  Not the least of which makes me think of this song.

You find in this song, at the very end, the verse: the earth will soon dissolve like snow.  It has to come from this chapter in II Peter.  Now, whether it is good theology or not, I love the song.  If you look at vs.11 it seems that this just might happen.  Especially since we also believe that there will be a new heaven and a new earth.  

So, what we are really talking about is judgment day.  We are talking about the day that Jesus will be coming back again.  Peter tells his people to not fret and not worry because it seems like Jesus is taking his own sweet time to come back and save us while all around us our loved ones are dying at the hands of the Romans.  He tells his people in vs.8 that a thousand years to us is but one day to the Lord.  That is a great consolation for those of us who are waiting with baited breath for Jesus to come back again.  It just encourages us to live each day as if he were coming back today.  What a way to live.

But he also speaks about what Paul wrote.  Now this is stunning.  Here is someone in the New Testament writing about what someone else wrote in the New Testament.  That is really mind-blowing to me.  So, of course Peter and Paul knew each other.  Peter was considered the head of the early church and Paul was considered the greatest evangelist of the early church.  Peter here totally supports Paul and says that what he writes is true, even if it is a bit confusing at times.  That is nice to hear.  And so we finish with II Peter.

So here Peter saves his harshest words for those who at one time walked in the faith and now have turned their back on Jesus.  It seems that he is pointing out specifically people who have turned their back on the Word in order to gain physical pleasures.  As you read through this chapter I hope you hear the strong emotions that ought to be coming through.  Let’s set the context a little bit.  Peter was living in an era where if you believed in Jesus and admitted it, then your life was at stake.  He had personally witnessed a number of disciples and apostles martyred because of their faith.  He himself will be martyred.  As tradition has it he will be hung upside down on a cross because he did not feel worthy enough to be hung on a cross in the same way that his Savior was hung.  Here is a painting by my favor artist to depict Peter’s martyrdom.

So, I think we can understand why Peter felt so strongly about this.  He does not mince words and here we have the most clear description of hell that we find pretty much anywhere in Scripture.  

For today there is an equal anger in my heart for those who would claim to be disciples of Jesus Christ and yet lift up causes that simply go antithetical to Jesus’ message of love and mercy.  Yes, we have the judgment of God and it is clear that it is coming, but no where in Scripture do we read about that judgment coming at our hands.  It is God who judges and only God who can decide and declare who is guilty.  It is a harsh chapter but one we should read with an eye to identifying those times that we say we represent Jesus but we really in fact just represent ourselves.

This is one of those Scriptures that is sneaky important.  If you look at vss.19-21 you will see that this Scripture is one of those that people use to stress the authority of Scripture.  I am one of those people.  I do believe that the Bible is much more than just a history book.  I do believe that the Bible was written with much more authority than any other book which we have.  I do believe that the Bible is inspired by God and contains inerrant truths.  When you look at vs.20 most of us interpret it as stating that we are not free to come up with an interpretation of Scripture that does not reflect the character of God nor the historical witness of God’s Word.  That is crucially important.  

If you go back to vs.16 and you read that “we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ”, he is speaking about being an eye witness to what Jesus was able to do.  Remember, this is II Peter, so it is the second letter written by Peter, the disciple that many call primary.  We read in vs.17 of the account that Peter had with James and John when he climbed the mountain and Jesus was transfigured.  For the transfiguration Scriptures you can read them at: Matthew 17:1–8, Mark 9:2–8, Luke 9:28–36 .

Peter is speaking from the viewpoint of an eyewitness who not only believes that Jesus is the Messiah, but he also experienced the living, dead, and resurrected Jesus.  One of my favorite scenes of Jesus and Peter is found when Peter is rehabilitated in John 21:15-19 where Jesus takes Peter and his betrayal and turns it around into a beautiful time of reconciliation and healing.  That is the perspective from which it is written.

We find this Scripture also in James 4:10, but Peter gives us a chance to hear about how God will lift us up.  

In this Scripture we read in Peter’s final exhortation that we need to beware because Satan is like a roaring lion.  We are called to be alert and disciplined and to resist him.  We are assured that even though we may be suffering a little while there will come a time when we will be restored and established once again.  It is a strong encouragement to a people who needed to hear that they would be lifted up in a time of much confusion and persecution.

He then ends the letter with greetings including one to the church in Babylon.  What does he mean Babylon?  It is generally thought, and I agree, that he is referring to Rome.  This thought will come in handy in Revelation because we often see a reference to Babylon which we know probably means Rome.  He tells us to greet each other with a kiss.  What a nice thought.  

The strength of this passage for us today can be found in vs.7a.  The first part of vs.7 reminds us of this guy below.  

But having said that, keep in mind that we are nearer to the end today than we were just yesterday.  The events that have been happening in our world have really accentuated the sense that we just might be very close to the end.  We are very close, and I can tell you that the believers in Peter’s days were feeling the pressure of the end in a way that we cannot even imagine.

This is why he mentions in vs.12 this “fiery ordeal” that his readers are going through.  The “fiery ordeal” is the Roman government not taking prayer out of school, but rather taking the mother and the father of children and murdering them because they were believers.  The “fiery ordeal” that they were experiencing was not removing the 10 Commandments from a courthouse but rather watching their children be forcibly conscripted into the military with you as a parent not having a say.  The ordeal that the Christians of the first century experienced absolutely made them feel like, or at least certainly made them hope that, the end was near.  

So how do we act and react as the end approaches?  Look at vs.19 where Peter tells us that as we suffer we must entrust ourselves to God’s will and continue to do good while we lay our lives over to God so that His desires would be realized.  This is crucial to understanding how we live our lives in the 21st century.  Trust in the Lord with all your heart, mind and soul, and do good.