Subject 14 : The First Epistle of JOHN
[Chapter 4-2] How Should We Live From Now on? (1 John 4:7-13)
(1 John 4:7-13)
“Beloved,
let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is
born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God, for
God is love. In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God
has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live
through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved
us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God
so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has seen God at
any time. If we love one another, God abides in us, and His love has
been perfected in us. By this we know that we abide in Him, and He in
us, because He has given us of His Spirit.”
The Holy Spirit Is in the Hearts of Those Who Believe in the Gospel of the Water and the Spirit
We
are now spreading the true gospel all over the world. Without wasting a
second of our lives, we want to devote ourselves to witnessing the
gospel to the water and the Spirit.
Everyone
knows that the Apostle John is called as ‘the Apostle of love.’ That is
because the Apostle John not only knew but also believed in Jesus
Christ who came by the gospel of the water and the Spirit. He was one of
the four intimate disciples of Jesus, but was also called son of
thunder because of his impatient personality. Still, the Apostle John
was a true believer in the gospel Truth of the water and the Spirit (1
John 5:7-9).
We
have in our hearts the same faith and Holy Spirit that the Apostle John
had. And therefore, we are happy to provide the spiritual food of the
gospel Word of the water and the Spirit to the thirsty souls all around
the world. We are evermore thankful to God because God’s Holy Spirit in
our hearts enables us to carry out this precious task.
1
John 4:13 states, “By this we know that we abide in Him, and He in us,
because He has given us of His Spirit.” God the Holy Spirit resides in
the hearts of those who received the remission of sin. Have you received
the remission of your sins by believing in the gospel Truth of the
water and the Spirit in your hearts? If so, the Holy Spirit is within
your hearts. This is the unchanging truth. The Holy Spirit is with those
who have received the remission of sin in their hearts by believing in
the gospel of the water and the Spirit. Consequently, the born again,
who believe in the gospel Truth of the water and the Spirit, can
truthfully do the works of God.
Just
like Jesus started preaching the gospel after being tempted for 40 days
in the desert when He was led out to the wilderness by the Holy Spirit,
the same Holy Spirit in the hearts of the saints is guiding and
training them so that they may be able to spread the gospel of the water
and the Spirit throughout the world. If any person believes that he has
received the remission of sin through the gospel Truth of the water and
the Spirit, he clearly knows that the Holy Spirit dwells in his heart.
Thus, we have to devote ourselves to spreading the gospel of the water
and the Spirit so that those souls still in need of remission of sin can
become born again.
Those
who have the Holy Spirit in their hearts believe that God is alive, and
that He has saved us from the sins of this world. Every believer in the
gospel of the water and the Spirit witness the living God through their
own lives. There is no other way but to witness to the love of God for
those who believe in the saving Truth of the gospel of the water and the
Spirit. Since the Holy Spirit is in their hearts, they labor for the
salvation of unsaved souls.
We
have become the righteous by believing in the gospel of the water and
the Spirit. What then is the life of a righteous saint like? If we the
righteous refuse to preach the gospel of the water and the Spirit, it
would be betraying the love of our Lord. If a righteous person does not
want to live for the righteousness of God, he will be treated like the
salt that loses its flavor. The Bible states that such salt is good for
nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men (Matthew
5:13).
The Apostle John Admonishes Us to Live Our Lives Loving One Another
The
Apostle says, “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God;
and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not
love does not know God, for God is love” (1 John 4:7-8).
God
is love itself, and we who have been blessed with the faith in the
gospel of the water and the Spirit have become the possessors of His
love of the Truth. And it is proper for us to love the souls of the
others by our faith in the gospel of the water and the Spirit. God’s
children who are put on with God’s love must save those who are still
struggling with sins in the swamp of death.
We
begin knowing God by believing and recognizing the love of God that is
revealed through the gospel of the water and the Spirit. The word ‘true
love’ is truly the most appropriate to describe God. God is our Savior,
holy and merciful and almighty. We have to believe in the gospel of the
water and the Spirit in order not just to meet with God but also to
receive remission of sin in our hearts. And by believing in the gospel
Truth of the water and the Spirit, we have become the children of God
and received the gift of the Holy Spirit.
The
evidence of the presence of the Holy Spirit in our hearts is our effort
in the works for the salvation of others. We have to live for the
purpose of delivering all the lost souls of the world from their sins.
Truthfully, we are living the life of Jesus because we have the His love
in our hearts. It is possible for us to live for this godly purpose
because the Holy Spirit dwells in our hearts for eternity.
If
the Holy Spirit were not in our hearts, we would be unable to do the
works of God. People in their essence are beings consisting of all but
100% selfish genes. As such, people cannot help themselves but live
their lives selfishly. We can do the good works of God only because the
love of God is in our hearts through the gospel of the water and the
Spirit The Holy Spirit of God is alive in our hearts alongside the
gospel of the water and the Spirit, helping us to participate in God’s
work of salvation.
The
imperative duty for Christians who possess the Holy Spirit in their
hearts is to spread the gospel of the water and the Spirit. This is the
work commissioned to the righteous. If a Christian forgets one’s divine
duty and lives only for oneself, that person has become nothing. If a
person does not have love for others after receiving the remission of
sin, that person cannot be a child of God. Because the Holy Spirit
dwells in the hearts of the righteous, they cannot help but to
participate in the ministry of God’s salvation out of their love for
everyone. We have all come to live a spiritual life within the Holy
Spirit and through the gospel Truth in the water and the Spirit.
If
you do not possess God’s mercy in your heart, you still don’t have the
Holy Spirit in your heart either. Despite your belief in the gospel of
the water and the Spirit, you will be like flavorless salt, if you live
only for your own desires of flesh. One must keep one’s Christian duty
to spread the gospel of the water and the Spirit throughout the world.
This
is why we have to reflect on what we are going to live for. Especially,
since we are living in this end times, when the love of many are
growing cold because lawlessness abounds (Matthew 24:12), we should
recognize that many people are perishing without having heard the gospel
of the water and the Spirit. Right now, we have to participate in the
works of saving others’ souls through the gospel of the water and the
Spirit. If we are not led by the Holy Spirit to participate in the
ministry of saving others, we surely will sink to the evildoers who just
seek their own desires of flesh, and consequently, we will become
useless to God’s Church and the world alike.
One
thing we must remember is that we must discern our duty and status in
our lives. Are we working for the salvation of others, or killing their
souls? We have to carefully discern whether we are living to save others
or to kill others.
I
can behave righteously for the purpose of the spread of God’s gospel.
It is possible for all Christians to have a passion for the salvation of
others. Otherwise, how could we do so many of God’s works? We are
trying to do more of God’s works through our faith in the gospel of the
water and the Spirit. As Revelation 6:2 reports, we are going out with
our Commander Jesus to conquer the enemy time after time. The reason for
our ability to do God’s work lies with the good heart God has granted
us through the gospel of the water and the Spirit.
Is
there anyone who still has sins in one’s heart among us? That person
must introspectively reexamine oneself and recommit one’s faith to the
gospel of the water and the Spirit. We have to first discern whether we
are completely delivered from the sins of our hearts through the gospel
of the water and the Spirit. Only then can we participate in the works
of God’s salvation of others.
If
a person is still immature in one’s faith after one has been cleansed
from all of one’s sins, the person is prone to live for one’s own
benefits. That kind of person remains an immature Christian. However, as
one’s faith grows, one eventually comes to a realization that
participating in God’s works of salvation is quite joyful. Furthermore,
one feels a certain level of satisfaction as one commits oneself to the
works of salvation of others. When we live in a state of immature faith,
the joys are momentary and adversity many. On the other hand, as our
faith grows in the gospel of the water and the Spirit, we become
increasingly joyful because of our participation in God’s works of
salvation. At that level, we feel the emptiness and restlessness of life
if we stop the works of God’s salvation even for a moment.
My
fellow believers, you may ask where it says that in the Bible. And I
would answer, God has already said to us with His Word: “Beloved, let us
love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of
God and knows God” (1 John 4:7).
That is, one who loves knows God and is born of God. One who can love others possesses a mature faith.
My
friends, would you believe that over ten thousand people died in Europe
this summer because of hot weather? But it is true. CNN reported that
almost twenty thousand people died in this disaster. The abnormal
weather has killed so many people.
The
Lord said, “And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you
are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is
not yet” (Matthew 24:6). As such, we are living in the end times and do
not have the luxury of time. Hence, it is imperative for us to
recognize how to live as the righteous. We have to live for the
righteous works of God, being led by the Holy Spirit through the
predecessors who are ahead of us spiritually in God’s Church.
You
now have to decide in your heart whether you are going to live a life
of salvation for others or that of killing others. You will be given
chances to live righteously by the Lord’s guidance, only if you are
determined to live your life for the righteous works of God. If we do
not live for the purpose of the righteous works of God, our time would
be wasted, flowing away like a constant stream. Thus, we have to use our
time wisely, looking for chances to spread the gospel of the water and
the Spirit. We have to keep in mind the Scripture passage that says,
“See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise,
redeeming the time, because the days are evil” (Ephesians 5:15-16). If
we fail to do so, we will live a life of regret and eventually will be
used by Satan the Devil, losing the faith in our souls.
My
fellow saints, although I am a person of many flaws, I still have the
compassionate heart for the salvation of others. Because we have in our
hearts the gospel of the water and the Spirit, we can practice the
merciful love of God. We can live a victorious life because God’s
compassionate love is already included in the gospel of the water and
the Spirit, which we believe.
We Have to Care for Each Other
1
John 4:12 reads, “No one has seen God at any time. If we love one
another, God abides in us, and His love has been perfected in us.”
Have
you ever seen God? No one has seen God with one’s physical eyes.
However, we have come to know God through Jesus Christ, and His love was
inscribed onto our hearts. Today’s Scripture passage says that if we
love one another, God already abides in us and His love has been
perfected in us.
God
has cleansed all our sins when we were still sinners through the gospel
of the water and the Spirit. God has further made us into His holy
people and adopted us as His children. Instead of condemning us to
death, God has given us new life. This is the love of God. Because we
have received new life through the love of God, we also have to
participate in God’s works of saving others. God’s Church has to become a
place where such believers dwell.
I
want to tell you that you and I should be faithful to our duty in God’s
works. Married men and women are faithfully participating in serving
the gospel. Young men and women in Christ are serving the Lord for the
same purpose. Even the youngsters, boys and girls in God’s Church, are
dong their parts in the works of salvation for others. Our physical
shortcomings do not matter when we do the works of God. Once we finish
one task that God has given us, He gives another task of saving others’
souls. We are joyous as we faithfully attend to the new task.
If
only we commit ourselves to work for the salvation of others, why would
God not take care of our physical shortcomings? Isn’t that why God has
saved us? Hasn’t God overlooked our flaws?
Therefore,
a recent born-again saint should respect the spiritually mature persons
in Christ for that reason. Sometimes, people become rebellious once
they are revived and nurtured in the Word of God. Children often stand
against their parents, ignoring all their parents’ favors. In order not
to disparage our spiritual leader, we have to realize how much God has
loved us through them. If we work for the gospel of the water and the
Spirit in the right way, we come to realize how much the leaders and the
predecessors in God’s Church have been tolerant of us. Once we realize
how much love we have received from God, we become able to convey the
same love to others.
Just
as our Lord has not weighed our physical strength or our piety in His
decision to save us, we have to live by faith. Just as our Lord has
looked at the center of our hearts, we have to live by faith in our
hearts and not by our flesh. We often observe brothers and sisters in
God’s Church trying to live faithfully for the purpose of the gospel. If
a person is living so for the purpose of spreading the gospel, we must
tolerate that person’s physical shortcomings. The Scripture tells us,
“Love covers all sins” (Proverbs 10:12). The Apostle Peter also
admonishes us, “And above all things have fervent love for one another,
for ‘love will cover a multitude of sins’” (1 Peter 4:8). There is no
fear in God’s love.
A
person who commits himself to save the souls of others would overlook
any flaw of another person and concentrate all his efforts on his
commitment. If we were truly living for God, we would be like that.
However, we often live quite differently because our faith is immature.
Therefore, we have to learn from the faith of those spiritually ahead of
us.
You
and I are serving others as well as trying to save the souls. What does
the Lord say? He says those who have come first should serve the ones
that have come last. Just because we are serving a flock of sheep that
is still immature, does that mean that we have to wash their feet quite
literally and just wash their faces and feed them? Of course, if we were
serving infants, we would do so. However, as they grow in their
spiritual maturity little by little, we have to hold them, guide them,
and pray for them in our efforts to teach them the truth for their
spiritual growth. We may have to help them with big problems, but we
must also let them resolve some of the small problems on their own.
We
have to be decisive, committing our hearts to live by faith. Our
predecessors in faith have suffered so that we may live faithfully our
lives as Christian in these decaying days.
Even
the immature in faith still serve God somehow, but they must imitate
the faith of their predecessors who are working on the salvation of
others. What they should imitate is not their predecessors’ physical
attributes but their hearts, which is single-minded on serving God. We
should learn to value the preciousness of others instead of their
weaknesses: “The person has really precious mind. He is doing works of
salvation for others, even though he has such and such flaws. He is
doing God’s works so vigorously with his whole heart!”
We
will lose a lot, if we fight with one another. We can go as far as
killing another person completely. Do you want to lead in killing
people? If we don’t want to be used for evil purpose, we must live for
the salvation of others. As it is said that “God is love,” because of
that love within us, we are able to do the works of saving others. To
follow God’s will is to work for the salvation of others.
Those
who are born again by their faith in the gospel of the water and the
Spirit live with the single purpose of bringing salvation to the
unsaved. We must determine ourselves to live the righteous lives so that
the purpose of our lives coincides with the will of God. Sometimes we
go astray by the evil thought that encourages us to live for our own
benefits. As such, we are prone to go astray, if we do not determine our
hearts to follow God’s will. Those who are firmly determined on
pursuing the will of God can quickly turn around when they find
themselves living for the evil purpose to satisfy their selfish desires.
Anyone
who finds oneself at fault should confess one’s fault frankly and stand
fast on the gospel of the water and the Spirit. Do not expect only
emotional changes in your Christian life. One’s spiritual life does not
consist of one’s narcissistic self-occupation that overwhelms one with
tears. When we shed tears, we have momentary relief from our stress.
However, crying has the side effect of causing one to be satisfied with
the mere emotional catharsis, which could certainly be good for one’s
psychological well-being. One’s psychological well-being is useless for
the emotion-oriented in learning spiritually essential lessons. Such
people are wasting their lives by failing to recognize the basic purpose
of their lives.
As
God is the God of love, the righteous should live for the salvation of
others. As you have already done well in the past, you should keep up
your good work for that purpose. It is no different for the recently
born again.
There
are not many recently born again in our church. It has been at least
one year for all of you since you have come to our church and heard and
believed in the gospel, hasn’t it? If your church experience is less
than a year, we might reasonably think that you are behaving the way you
have to do because you know no better. Then, it’s time for you to live
for the salvation of others. We have to live from our youth for the
purpose of God’s glory. Then, God will bless you and hold you. God will
also pour out His wisdom on you, making you strong both in body and in
spirit. He will assist you and protect you.
However,
if you are interested only in yourself and not in saving the souls of
others, there is nothing but curses and death that awaits you.
Selfishness without love is death.
My
fellow saints, our Christian literature ministries are in fact works of
salvation for the souls of others. My heart sympathizes the Apostle
John at the moment of his authorship. What I am trying to tell you is
that our hearts, which are filled with the Holy Spirit, are similar to
the heart of Jesus, who is the God of love that gives us a new life. In
the hearts of the born-again brothers and sisters dwells the Holy
Spirit. Simply, we have to decide between living for our physical
benefits that kills the souls of others or for God’s purpose of
salvation for the souls of others. I decide to live as the latter. All
of us have to decide to live according to the latter standard. However,
since our hearts are easily shaken, we have to determine our minds and
stand fast on the gospel whenever our hearts are shaken.
My
fellow saints, have you ever seen people who have lived their lives for
the sake of others? Some have even lived their lives for others without
even knowing the gospel. We have also heard of people who have donated
their entire life savings as scholarship to schools. We hear of stories
where old ladies that have sold rice cakes and bean sprouts all their
lives donating their saving they have gathered by that means. It is
amazing love that a person would donate one’s entire life saving back to
the society. Some people donate their entire life savings for the
purpose of the poor. Although they have not received the remission of
sin, I admire their spirits. Although they have not served out of their
conviction for the gospel of the water and the Spirit, their hearts for
serving others are on the right place.
If
even those who are not born again dedicate their lives for serving
others, how should we who have received the remission of sin live our
lives? Should we not live with the right state of faith in Jesus Christ?
The Holy Spirit is within us who have believed in the gospel of the
water and the Spirit. Because the Holy Spirit is within our hearts, it
is proper for us to do the righteous works. The Holy Spirit rejoices
when we live our lives for the salvation of the souls of others.
I
am not accusing you of not having noble spirits. What I am saying,
though, is that we should live our lives for the purpose of loving one
another. If someone seems to be dying, we should help him to live, and
not kill him instead. Do you understand? We have to do the life-giving
works.
Our
spiritual predecessors have flaws. The recently born again Christians
also have flaws. As a matter of fact, there is not a single person
without any flaw. However, we should remember that it was our Lord who
has granted us salvation. How did He save our souls? He did it with the
power of the gospel of the water and the Spirit. He became our
propitiation for our salvation. That was the love of God.
As
our Lord did so for us, we have to live a life that gives life to our
brothers and sisters, and to the souls of others. Should we not live for
that purpose? That is how we can keep our hearts bright. The words of
the righteous do not inflict emotional hurts because they are based not
on hate but love. I can share my heart without any hesitation when I
meet with my coworkers. This is possible because we know each other so
well and trust each other.
My
fellow saints, the Scripture says that love covers a multitude of sins
(1 Peter 4:8). If we believe in the love of our Lord, then all our
shortcomings are covered. We have to cover our flaws with His love, and
the precious parts of our hearts must be revealed in our service of the
gospel. We have to live for the purpose of spreading God’s love.
I
love you all in our Lord, at a time when the Lord’s return in at hand
and the world is changing at an increasing pace. We should not
discriminate among our brothers and sisters; loving some and hating
others. We should love all in our Lord. Would we help others if we were
of this world? It is hard to find anyone who gives without an ulterior
motive among the people of the world.
How
sincerely are we living our lives for the souls of others? We live our
life, dedicating everything that is given us for the purpose that our
Lord sees fit. We should not give up our faith, when we have lived so
hard to keep the faith in the gospel Word of the water and the Spirit.
The Lord has said that we should love more fervently one another as the
end times become more imminent. Since love belongs to God, it is right
for us to love one another. It is written in 1 John 2:10, “He who loves
his brother abides in the light, and there is no cause for stumbling in
him.” If we do not know God’s love, we cannot love one another.
I
want to make a request to you. Love and comfort your brothers and
sisters in Christ. Do so to one another. We have to not only devote
ourselves to the works of salvation for those who have not yet received
the remission of sin, but also to the works of encouraging those who
already came in God’s Church. We have to reconcile where there have been
strives according to our faith in God’s love that is revealed in the
gospel of the water and the Spirit. All in all, we have to do the works
of reviving life instead of killing the souls of others.
I
am thankful to God that there are many souls that are being born again
by the gospel of the water and the Spirit all around the world. Yet, it
is not an easy task to nurture their souls. Still, we are empowered by
nurturing the souls of the yet immature. We have to attend to the needs
of the newly born again, feeding them with the spiritual food of the
Word of the truth. When we do so, we the predecessors are empowered in
return. We are transformed into people of faith when we dedicate
ourselves to the spreading of the gospel with our whole hearts. True
faith cannot grow in us, unless we are faithful in serving the gospel of
the water and the Spirit.
Just
as our Lord has served us and sacrificed for us in His love for us, we
have to be determined to be used in the works of the salvation of
others. Our minds should be determined to say, “Lord, allow me to live
for the works of saving others. My Lord God, please bless me.” To live
such a life is our destiny.
Is
there among us anyone who boasts of one’s righteousness in flesh after
being born again? We should never do such a thing. Don’t we all struggle
to serve the Lord? We still have to live the remaining days of our
lives for the salvation of others. We will not have a real purpose in
life unless we live for the salvation of others. There are only two
options in our lives; to save other souls or to kill them. We will live a
life without regret, if we choose to live for others. If we live in
thanksgiving in Jesus Christ who has bestowed us the gospel of the water
and the Spirit, we won’t regret at the end of our lives.
Wisdom
is a necessity when we try to save the souls of others. Saints are not
nurtured by merely agreeing with everything they do. What needs to be
reproached has to be reproached. Yet, it should not be carried over
unnecessarily. When we come to recognize our evilness and sins, all we
need to do is repent and turn around from them in our faith in the
gospel of the water and the Spirit. We can do the works of God
faithfully in our faith in the gospel of the water and the Spirit.
Thanks to be God the Father through Jesus Christ our Lord!
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