The transcript of the service is below, if you wish to read it.
I John 2:15-17;28,29 (The Message)
15-17 Don’t love the world’s ways. Don’t love the world’s goods. Love of the world squeezes out love for the Father. Practically everything that goes on in the world—wanting your own way, wanting everything for yourself, wanting to appear important—has nothing to do with the Father. It just isolates you from Him. The world and all its wanting, wanting, wanting is on the way out—but whoever does what God wants is set for eternity.
28 And now, children, stay with Christ. Live deeply in Christ. Then we’ll be ready for Him when he appears, ready to receive Him with open arms, with no cause for red-faced guilt or lame excuses when He arrives.
29 Once you’re convinced that He is right and righteous, you’ll recognize that all who practice righteousness (doing what is right) are God’s true children.
I John 2:15-17;28,29 DOING WHAT IS RIGHT
Springford Baptist Church: June 13, 2021.
The tragic, hate motivated event in London this past week left a whole family dead and a young 9 year old boy without his family. It left a community and a country horrified by what happened. We are left struggling to understand why people make the choices that they do.
This is an extreme example of someone having a choice between right and wrong, between good and evil. With profound sadness, we recognize that the young man driving the truck who deliberately killed this Muslim family made the choice not to do what is right and good.
The choices that we make every day do have far reaching outcomes. I am praying that we will again be convinced how much it matters to be led by God in doing what is right, in choosing to live deeply in Christ and to practice righteousness.
The key to the choices that we make will be who or what we love. Here in I John 2:15-17 there is strong admonition not to love the world’s ways and the world’s goods. If we love the sin filled ways of the world then that will become our motivation.
A person who loves only self and makes decisions without regard for others will not be choosing to do what is right and God pleasing.
This is a strong and revealing statement that, “Love for the world squeezes out love for the Father. (vs. 15b)
A heart that is filled with love for God the Father will want to choose to do what is right.
By contrast we read, “Practically everything that goes on in the world—wanting your own way, wanting everything for yourself, wanting to appear important—has nothing to do with the Father. It just isolates you from Him.” (vs. 17)
We, as followers of Jesus have declared that we want to be closer and closer with God through our faith in Jesus. The choice to follow the ways of the world would have a person moving further and further away from God and being isolated from Him.
One of the really difficult realities of this pandemic in senior care homes has been residents having to be in isolation. If a resident presented symptoms, they had to remain in isolation until a negative Covid test was confirmed. Before vaccinations, new residents or residents returning from hospital had to remain in isolation for 14 days. All the isolating that has been required during the rampant spreading of the Covid virus, has been so hard on everyone. We want to be close to those we love and who love us.
Know that God who loves us immensely wants to be close with us. He does not want our choices to follow the ways of the world to isolate us from Him. And when there is sincere love in our hearts for God then we also want to be close to Him, not feeling at a distance because our own choices have isolated us from the One who loves us more than anyone else ever could.
“The world and all its wanting, wanting, wanting is on the way out—but whoever does what God wants is set for eternity.” (Vs. 17b)
The ultimate destiny of choices to live with the wanting, wanting, wanting values of the world is on the way out. This does not build a life that will last. The choice to do what God wants, to do what is right, results in us being all set for eternity, living forever close with God.
It seems an obvious choice doesn’t it? Knowing that God loves us and that He longs for us to live in close intimacy with Him, the choices that we make every day will matter greatly.
This Scripture emphasizes that the way to keep consistently choosing God and the life-giving ways of God is to follow this instruction, “And now, children, stay with Christ. Live deeply in Christ.” (vs. 28)
Isn’t that a wonderful image of staying with Christ and living deeply in Christ?
This is not a skimming the surface kind of relationship. We live deeply in Christ as we spend time looking for Him and listening for Him. When we invite Jesus to guide and to be part of every detail of our lives, we are living deeply in Him.
I love conversations with people when we discover things we never knew about someone before. We can always keep on discovering more about who Jesus, God’s Son is and this knowing Him more gives insight into DOING WHAT IS RIGHT.
We read at the end of this Scripture passage, “Once you’re convinced that He is right and righteous, you’ll recognize that all who practice righteousness (doing what is right) are God’s true children.”
Is there a circumstance in your life where you are trying to decide what DOING WHAT IS RIGHT will mean. The answer you get to the question, “What is the right thing to do here”? will depend on who you ask. If you ask someone who is inclined to look for whatever has the best benefit financial or otherwise, the answer will reflect that. If you ask someone who prefers to look for the easy road to travel, the answer will reflect that. If you ask someone who under any circumstance looks to avoid confrontation, that will be evident in the answer. If you ask someone who wants to ensure that things stay the same and do not change, you can expect a certain kind of answer.
What if we bring the question, “What is the right thing to do here”? to Jesus? What kind of answer can we expect from Him?
How will we listen carefully for His response.
Our day to day lives will reveal who we have been listening to in answering again and again in a whole variety of circumstances, “What is the right thing to do here”?
When we do listen for Jesus and choose to do what is right, we are God’s true children (vs. 29) and it will be evident that we belong to Him. I am praying that You and I will have that kind of family resemblance!