1 Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.
This has been the focus of the gospel and the age of grace that we might behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us. At the end of this age this mystery will be revealed, it will be the Lord’s masterpiece, the whole universe will see the sons of God.
2 Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.
At the end of the age when the Lord appears His people will also appear “like Him”.
3 And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.
This is our hope. It is not simply to “be raptured” but to be “like Him”.
4 Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law. 5 And ye know that he was manifested to take away our sins; and in him is no sin.
Jesus was manifested to take away our sin. We have the hope that we will be like Him, like our older brother, the many brothers, that we too will take away the sins of the world.
6 Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not: whosoever sinneth hath not seen him, neither known him.
At the end of the age there will be two types of people. Those that abide in the Lord and are not sinning and those that are sinning and don’t know the Lord.
7 Little children, let no man deceive you: he that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous.
Isn’t it funny all the religious rules we have concerning who is a Christian, who is saved, who knows the Lord. These people who are stepping forward as witnesses of the sin despite the threats to themselves, their families and their career. They are doing righteousness and they are righteous even as the Lord is righteous. They are abiding in Him. They are heeding their conscience.
8 He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil.
Can we let this sink into our heart? The Lord was manifested so that He might destroy the works of the devil. The end of the age the Lord is manifested again, this time in His redeemed, transformed people, the army of God, to destroy the works of the devil.
9 Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God.
Those that are born of God will be manifested. They can’t sin, they can’t lie, they can’t go along with what is happening because they are born of God.
10 In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother.
It’s not just about doing righteousness it is also about loving your brother. Those who are of the devil don’t mind the fact that some will suffer because of their actions, it is all about what is best for them. But the children of God, their conscience bothers them not just about righteousness but also about the effect that this fraud will have on others.
11 For this is the message that ye heard from the beginning, that we should love one another.
The Lord’s command is that we love one another. If you are born of God you can’t get around that, you can’t come up for excuses, you know that even if it costs you a lot, just as it cost the Lord alot, you must do the right thing because you must love one another.
12 Not as Cain, who was of that wicked one, and slew his brother. And wherefore slew he him? Because his own works were evil, and his brother's righteous.
When crooks get caught they lie, if that doesn’t work they have no other choice but to kill.
13 Marvel not, my brethren, if the world hate you.
An article in the Atlantic, a major periodical is titled “A large portion of the electorate chose the sociopath”. It is stunning, four years ago all you heard from some was the need to resist and challenge the election results. Now the same people speak hate towards anyone who would do that now. The hateful speech they spew out is truly amazing.
14 We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death.
There is no qualification as to political affiliation or pet issues. It doesn’t matter to me who you voted for, if you voted, or if you think there was fraud or not.
15 Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him.
There has been a lot of hate spewing out and that speech reveals the heart of a murderer. I think we all know instinctively that the level of hate speech we are hearing reveals murderers among us.
16 Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.
In the same way we can perceive the love of God in those who risk all to speak the truth. A truck driver came forward as a witness that he drove over a hundred thousand ballots across the border from NY to Pa. That is illegal. When the feds came to question him it wasn’t about his testimony but rather it was to threaten him and his family. But he stood strong and recorded them. There was a woman that refused to certify the election because they violated the protocols. She was threatened but she also stood strong.
This has been the focus of the gospel and the age of grace that we might behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us. At the end of this age this mystery will be revealed, it will be the Lord’s masterpiece, the whole universe will see the sons of God.
2 Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.
At the end of the age when the Lord appears His people will also appear “like Him”.
3 And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.
This is our hope. It is not simply to “be raptured” but to be “like Him”.
4 Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law. 5 And ye know that he was manifested to take away our sins; and in him is no sin.
Jesus was manifested to take away our sin. We have the hope that we will be like Him, like our older brother, the many brothers, that we too will take away the sins of the world.
6 Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not: whosoever sinneth hath not seen him, neither known him.
At the end of the age there will be two types of people. Those that abide in the Lord and are not sinning and those that are sinning and don’t know the Lord.
7 Little children, let no man deceive you: he that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous.
Isn’t it funny all the religious rules we have concerning who is a Christian, who is saved, who knows the Lord. These people who are stepping forward as witnesses of the sin despite the threats to themselves, their families and their career. They are doing righteousness and they are righteous even as the Lord is righteous. They are abiding in Him. They are heeding their conscience.
8 He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil.
Can we let this sink into our heart? The Lord was manifested so that He might destroy the works of the devil. The end of the age the Lord is manifested again, this time in His redeemed, transformed people, the army of God, to destroy the works of the devil.
9 Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God.
Those that are born of God will be manifested. They can’t sin, they can’t lie, they can’t go along with what is happening because they are born of God.
10 In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother.
It’s not just about doing righteousness it is also about loving your brother. Those who are of the devil don’t mind the fact that some will suffer because of their actions, it is all about what is best for them. But the children of God, their conscience bothers them not just about righteousness but also about the effect that this fraud will have on others.
11 For this is the message that ye heard from the beginning, that we should love one another.
The Lord’s command is that we love one another. If you are born of God you can’t get around that, you can’t come up for excuses, you know that even if it costs you a lot, just as it cost the Lord alot, you must do the right thing because you must love one another.
12 Not as Cain, who was of that wicked one, and slew his brother. And wherefore slew he him? Because his own works were evil, and his brother's righteous.
When crooks get caught they lie, if that doesn’t work they have no other choice but to kill.
13 Marvel not, my brethren, if the world hate you.
An article in the Atlantic, a major periodical is titled “A large portion of the electorate chose the sociopath”. It is stunning, four years ago all you heard from some was the need to resist and challenge the election results. Now the same people speak hate towards anyone who would do that now. The hateful speech they spew out is truly amazing.
14 We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death.
There is no qualification as to political affiliation or pet issues. It doesn’t matter to me who you voted for, if you voted, or if you think there was fraud or not.
15 Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him.
There has been a lot of hate spewing out and that speech reveals the heart of a murderer. I think we all know instinctively that the level of hate speech we are hearing reveals murderers among us.
16 Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.
In the same way we can perceive the love of God in those who risk all to speak the truth. A truck driver came forward as a witness that he drove over a hundred thousand ballots across the border from NY to Pa. That is illegal. When the feds came to question him it wasn’t about his testimony but rather it was to threaten him and his family. But he stood strong and recorded them. There was a woman that refused to certify the election because they violated the protocols. She was threatened but she also stood strong.