Read: 1 John 1:1-4:6
First John is the answer to sloppy grace. John doesn’t give us small talk but he tells it like it is. He explains that if we have received the Holy Spirit, then he lives in us. He is our teacher and anyone who teaches us anything that the Holy Spirit doesn’t agree with, it is a false teaching. The Holy Spirit teaches what is true. He leads us to Christ.
The third chapter of John, tells us that those that are born of God do not commit sin because God’s seed is in us and we cannot sin. He uses the example of Cain and Abel. Cain was wicked from the beginning and his sin lead to murder. Abel was righteous from the beginning and he became the perfect sacrifice. Abel is a type of Jesus and Cain is a type of Satan. Abel was also a type of a believer and Cain a type of an unbeliever. John goes on to say that if we don’t live righteously and we don’t love other believers then we don’t belong to God.
These are serious statements and it takes a mature believer to understand them but it is saying that we don’t have to sin… in fact, we shouldn’t sin.
John warns us that not everyone who claims to speak by the Spirit, does. We can test a prophet by their claims. If they say that Jesus Christ didn’t physically come into the world, then they are false. Also, if they are true prophets of God, they will listen to the truth. If they won’t listen to truth, they are a false prophet.
Lord, you are greater than all the spirits in the world and you live in us. Help us to see the power we carry and use it for your kingdom.
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