All Saints (Observed): Epistle, 1 John 3:1-3                       

1 John 3:1-3

The first epistle from the pen of John is a place where I have spent a lot of time. I may have read it more than any other epistle of the New Testament. It is the basics of being loved by Jesus and loving Him back. He does His part infinitely well. My side? Not so well. Onward.

The third chapter begins with perhaps one of the most sublime statements in all the Scriptures. I’m not going to reproduce it in this meditation because I want you to open your Bibles … yes the actual book (only on a device if you must), and read, ponder and mark it even. Verses one through three. In the center of that passage there is a comment from John that identifies our not being known by the world. And the world doesn’t know us (God’s Christians), because the world did not (and does not) know Jesus. I think it would be fair here to say that “know” has at least the connotation of being embraced and not just recognized.

My thought today centers on how much we want to be known by the world. Liked, appreciated, heralded, even. You can say it many ways, but we love positive strokes. And I’m including myself. But you see, in John’s divine estimation, we’re not appreciated because our Savior wasn’t. And that’s to put it mildly.

Think of all we do to be liked in the church world and beyond: great facilities, superb technology, hot music and program after program. And at the end of the day, though I do believe we want people to know Jesus, and those things may be attempts to that end, we want to be known, liked and appreciated. Jesus wasn’t. Jesus, the real Bible Jesus has never been known by the world the way John uses this word. He did not expect to be. He died for you and me covered in the world’s spit. 

If we are liked by the world, if we have it’s notice and accolades or if we live for them, well perhaps we don’t know the real Bible Jesus either. Now go read 1 John.