EVENING SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 10/16/2024 9:28 PM
My Worship Time Focus:
PT-2 “Introduction to 1 John 2:12-14”
Bible Reading & Meditation Reference: 1 John 2:12-14
Message of the verses: “12 I am writing to you, little children, because your sins have been forgiven you for His name’s sake. 13 I am writing to you, fathers, because you know Him who has been from the beginning. I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one. I have written to you, children, because you know the Father. 14 I have written to you, fathers, because you know Him who has been from the beginning. I have written to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one.”
I
have been talking about physical growth and spiritual growth and like physical
growth, spiritual growth ultimately depends on God’s power, but it also
requires the element of human responsibility.
This is the part that has been difficult for me to understand ever since
I became a believer many, many years ago and it is my hope that my study of
these verses will help me to better understand the things that I am to do in
order to continue to grow in grace and in the knowledge of my Lord Jesus
Christ. MacArthur writes that “All
spiritual calls to obedience make that obvious.
In fact, the New Testament repeatedly echoes the call for Christians to ‘work
out your salvation with fear and trembling’ (Phil. 1:12). Peter commanded believers to ‘grow in the
grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ’ (2 Peter 3:18a), while
Paul exhorted them to ‘be imitators of God, as beloved children (Eph. 5:1). Paul also set forth spiritual growth’s
ultimate goal:
‘Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one
thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies
ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in
Christ Jesus (Phil. 3:13-14; cf. Rom. 8:29).” “29 For those whom
He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His
Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren” (Rom. 8:29).
“He understood that ‘the goal for the prize of the
upward call of God’ is to become like ‘Christ Jesus’ (cf. Phil. 2:5;
3:10). The apostle John reiterated that
same truth when he wrote, ‘The one who says he abides in Him ought himself to
walk in the same manner as He walked’ (1 John 2:6). As those who love the Lord, believers are to
continually pursue holiness ‘like the Holy One who called [them]’ (1 Peter
1:15). Thankfully, God has provided His
church wit gifted men to help believers as they grow in that pursuit”
11 And
He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as
evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, 12 for the equipping of the saints for the work
of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; 13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith,
and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the
stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ. (Eph. 4:11-13; cf. vv. 15-16; 3:16-20; Rom. 8:29; 2 Cor. 3:18;
Gal. 4:19; 1 Peter 2:2).
“Every biblical command toward
sanctification assumes the necessary obedience of the ones commanded. That makes it clear that believers have a
duty to faithfully and obediently use the means of grace to grow to maturity.”
Lord willing more tomorrow from this
introduction to these very important verses.
10/16/2024 9:39 PM
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