1-14-2018 Not So New, But Not So Old 1 John 2:7-11
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Introduction:
Transition:
Almost two months ago, we read about the Apostle John’s doctrine of light—how first, it is an attribute of our Creator and (according to the opening of this epistle) foundational to the message of the Gospel. Then, we learn that walking in darkness is incompatible with a true believer. He continued building his theology by connecting being in the light not only keeps us in communion with YHWH, but also in fellowship with our brothers and sisters in the faith.
Scripture Reading:
7 Beloved, I am writing you no new commandment, but an old commandment that you had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word that you have heard. 8 At the same time, it is a new commandment that I am writing to you, which is true in him and in you, because the darkness is passing away and the true light is already shining. 9 Whoever says he is in the light and hates his brother is still in darkness. 10 Whoever loves his brother abides in the light, and in him there is no cause for stumbling. 11 But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.
In this passage this morning, John further develops his concept of light and darkness as being moral choices. Which choice one makes is determined by his/her actions, not claims, and those actions arise out of one’s character. A person might not even be aware whether he or she is walking in light or darkness, being completely deceived by sin through his or her own moral state that leads to an inability to discern good and evil—this is especially true of a prideful person. John is essentially saying here that the reality of one’s moral choice is not made by perception but by conduct—or in other words: by deeds or works—in particular here, one’s treatment of others.
Transition:
He reveals two characteristics that ought to be present in the life of a believer. I want to consider these characteristics as we think on: Dr. Christopher Benfield from Fellowship Missionary Baptist Church had two things to consider that we would be wise to also consider from this passage, he said First we must consider:
I. Our Acceptance of the Scripture (vv.7-8)
I. Our Acceptance of the Scripture (vv.7-8)
John appeals to absolute authority here!
The Authority of Scripture (v.7a)
The Authority of Scripture (v.7a)
Beloved, I am writing you no new commandment, but an old commandment that you had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word that you have heard.
“I am not writing a new commandment to you, but an old commandment”
what John is doing here is establishing his authority to speak on this matter. He is saying that what he is writing here agrees with the word of God as they know it, understand it, and have always believed it-- the Old Testament
So then, the commandment to love one another is both old and new. For the Jews, the command to love others was as old as Moses’ writings—the Torah/the Pentateuch/the Law—the first five books of the Bible which every religious Jew was required to memorize.
You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Lord.
and as new as Jesus’ words:
Therefore, John knew that he was not writing a new commandment because it is an old one the Jews have always had. However, Jesus called the commandment “new” because he interpreted it in a radically new way. The command was not new in terms of time, but new in terms of quality. Believers are commanded to love as Jesus loved them. The newness of Jesus’ command focused on the practice of love.
“the old commandment”
A few verses before in verse 3 the word “commandment” is PLURAL, but here it is SINGULAR. This is likely to imply that love fulfills all other commandments and agrees with Paul [[1 Cor. 13:13]].
So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.
In the great love chapter on agape love, we have Paul’s radical claim that love is greater than hope, and even faith! The Apostle Paul is not saying that faith is not as important; what he is saying is that faith apart from love is destructive. Christians cannot grow in the faith without love.
The Application of Scripture (v.7b)
The Application of Scripture (v.7b)
“which you had from the beginning”
Beginning of what?? Of time? When Genesis was penned? Beginning of their lives? or, at the point of hearing the good news? This text here has grammar that might suggest the hearer’s first encounter with the Gospel message. If so, then what is to follow in the coming verses and chapters agree nicely with this reading (cf. v. 24; 3:11; 2 John 5–6).
He knew a genuine believer would be unable to discredit or ignore God’s Word. And so, with the passion of a genuine believer, he exhorts his readers to apply these truths to their lives as well. We are to love whether we like it or not—but we should like it!
The Affirmation of the Scripture (v.8)
The Affirmation of the Scripture (v.8)
At the same time, it is a new commandment that I am writing to you, which is true in him and in you, because the darkness is passing away and the true light is already shining.
Yet this commandment to love is also new, because the new commandment to love departs from the old characteristics of the law with its emphasis on outward conformity through rituals to conform to certain regulations. It is new because of the effectual sacrifice of the perfect Lamb and the institution of the New Covenant—it is a new Testament!
“which is true in Him”
The commandment to love one another is true in Christ and is true among the believers. The command to love first reached its truest and fullest expression in the life of the Lord Jesus Christ. He demonstrated true love by coming into the world and giving his life for all who believe. Thus the command should also be true in you—that is, in all who claim to follow Christ.
Keep in mind that John walked with Jesus. He experienced His miracles, His life, and the authority with which He spoke. John stood at the foot of the cross; he witnessed the empty tomb; and he spoke with the resurrected Lord. Jesus is the affirmation of the Scripture. The written Word became the living Word in a body of flesh.
Although the true light is already shining and the darkness has not passed away completely, the darkness is disappearing slowly but surely. Thanks to the victory of Christ, the outcome of the conflict between light and darkness is a foregone conclusion. The conflict continues, however. But like the first rays of sun at dawn slowly but steadily piercing the darkness, so the true light experienced and shared by Christians is growing.
Had there been no Jesus and no sacrifice, we would have no hope—no real picture of agape love!
Transition:
II. Our Affection for the Brethren (vv.9-11)
II. Our Affection for the Brethren (vv.9-11)
These next few verses highlight the absolute contrast drawn between light and darkness, love and hate, YHWH and the world. The two contrasts cannot coexist.
The Deception (v.9)
The Deception (v.9)
Whoever says he is in the light and hates his brother is still in darkness.
This verse ought to be a bit familiar! John has already said that a person who claims to be in the light (1:6) but has no fellowship with others is a liar and still in darkness (1:6). Then, this is a repetition to drive home stronger that if any person makes this claim but hates a Christian brother or sister, then the claim to be in the light is false.
“yet hates his brother” This is PRESENT ACTIVE PARTICIPLE which speaks of a settled ongoing attitude. Hate is an evidence of darkness (cf. Matt. 5:21–26).
“You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.’ But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire. So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift. Come to terms quickly with your accuser while you are going with him to court, lest your accuser hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard, and you be put in prison. Truly, I say to you, you will never get out until you have paid the last penny.
That person is still in darkness no matter how he or she has tried to look like and claim that they are in the light. Living in love is living in the light, since the gospel illuminates both people’s minds and their hearts to love. Love should always be the unifying force and the identifying mark of the Christian community of authentic believers.
The Devotion (v.10)
The Devotion (v.10)
Whoever loves his brother abides in the light, and in him there is no cause for stumbling.
As the opposite to 2:9, verse 10 explains that actions reveal the truth about thier faith: anyone who loves other Christians is walking in the light. There is nothing in such a person to make him or her, or anyone else, stumble. In contrast, people who claim to be Christians yet hate a Christian brother or sister are not grounded in the truth, as seen by their actions. They are walking in darkness.
“...in him there is no cause for stumbling.”
Today’s English Version says:
“there is nothing in us that will cause someone else to sin”
Yet, the New Jerusalem Bible says:
“there is in him nothing to make him fall away”
So which one is it?? Does this mean that the believer who walks in light and love will not personally stumble OR the believer who walks in light and love will not cause others to stumble???
Well, what does other scripture say?:
Matt. 18:6;Jesus says:
but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea.
Paul warns in Romans 14:
Therefore let us not pass judgment on one another any longer, but rather decide never to put a stumbling block or hindrance in the way of a brother.
and in 1 Cor 8
Therefore, if food makes my brother stumble, I will never eat meat, lest I make my brother stumble.
Well, that seems to settle, it right? We are not to cause others to stumble but look just one verse later to what we will end with this morning:
But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.
In context, the believer who walks in light and love will not personally stumble; however, both are true! The Gospel benefits the believer and others! (both other believers and the lost!)
but now we see the despair in verse 11:
The Despair (v.11)
The Despair (v.11)
A life of constant despair will always be present with a heart of hate. Those who refuse either to recognize their own blinding sin or even those who know they deal with certain sins yet refuse to repent will lead an unnecessarily difficult life full of useless pain and strife which manifests its destructiveness through relationships. This is why John concludes this thought with:
But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.
“But the one who hates his brother”
In the context of this letter, those who hated other Christians probably referred to the false teachers and their followers who had left the fellowship of the church and thereby had rejected John and the other true Christians. They claimed to love God, but they hated other children of God. “Believers” who hate are in darkness and not light, in sin and not in fellowship with God. Hate is a sign of unbelief. Light and darkness, love and hate cannot exist in the same person. This is typical of John’s black or white statements. He expresses the ideal! Often, however, believers struggle with prejudice, unlove, and neglect! The gospel brings both an instantaneous change and a progressive change.
“is in the darkness and walks in the darkness”
They are lost, having been blinded by the darkness. To hate, then, is to choose the darkness and to shut oneself off from the light. The Apostle Peter reminds us that this is not limited to unbelievers only— For believers: to hate is to separate oneself from the presence of God and from the fellowship of other believers. [[2 Peter 1:9]]
For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins.
“the darkness has blinded his eyes”
Sadly and interestingly, this can refer to either believers’ remaining sin nature, or the actions of Satan (cf. 2 Cor. 4:4). There are three enemies of mankind that lead to a hatred toward YHWH and the things of Christianity:
the fallen world system;
Satan which includes his demons; and
our own fallen nature—sin (cf. Eph. 2:2–3, 16).
So What?
So What?
Despite our sin nature, there is hope even in the greatest despair!
“For no good tree bears bad fruit, nor again does a bad tree bear good fruit, for each tree is known by its own fruit. For figs are not gathered from thornbushes, nor are grapes picked from a bramble bush. The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.
The “true light” is the light of God’s self-revelation now revealed through the life and resurrection of Christ. Light is a biblical metaphor usually for truth, revelation, and moral purity. We are called and equipped to be the light of the world
“Hate” and “love” are present tenses and speak of hatred and love as fixed principles of life. The man or woman who chooses hatred as a way of life is in the darkness and cannot see or discern spiritual things. This means that darkness is now, and always has been, the moral and spiritual atmosphere of his/her life. Conversely, the man or woman who chooses brotherly love as a way of life “abides in the light”, which means that he/she lives his life within the light of divine revelation and is mature in the faith.
Do you have hate? You should hate only sin—especially your own sin. Charles Spurgeon said it best when he said:
Can You Love Sin?
“If I had a brother who had been murdered, what would you think of me if I ... daily consorted with the assassin who drove the dagger into my brother’s heart; surely I too must be an accomplice in the crime. Sin murdered Christ; will you be a friend to it? Sin pierced the heart of the incarnate God; can you love it?”—Charles Spurgeon
Conclusion:
If you have been saved, do you embrace fellowship as you should? Does the light serve as the authority and guide for your life? Are you committed to living according to the Word?
Meditating on scripture is how we discern our own areas of spiritual blindness. Only YHWH can guide us to these blind spots and then help us see our way out of them. John has exposed one key area that impacts the church today. Our lack of love for other Christians is sin that keeps us from fellowship with YHWH as well as biblical fellowship with one another--even if we feel good about ourselves. We need to pause regularly and ask ourselves if we are guilty of “hating” Christians around us, especially here in our local church. Additionally, as we’ll see later by John in this epistle, this lack of love most often expresses itself, not in anger or conflict but in indifference. How much do we really care about the Christians around us? Do we care enough to get involved in their lives, to help them with personal needs? Or are we deceiving ourselves into thinking we are good people, but not a “people person” while being unengaged in the body of Christ?
The saved truly love the brethren, but is our love all it ought to be? Do we love as Christ calls us to? Are we genuinely burdened for the needs of others? We cannot say we love others as we should and ignore the desperate needs of those here today.
If you are here today and are not saved, you remain in darkness. You may say you believe the Scriptures are the very words of the most high God, but you have neglected the very message of this divine book. The Bible teaches that we must receive Christ as Savior and Lord if we are to inherit eternal life. If you have rejected the gracious offer of salvation, you remain defiant to the Word.
Whatever the case may be, whether saved or lost, Christ is the answer. I pray that each of us will respond to the leading of the Spirit in accordance to the Word.