Sunday, December 8, 2024

PT-3 "Intro to "The Purifying Hope" (1 John 2:28-3:3)

 

EVENING SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 12/8/2024 10:30 PM

 

My Worship Time                                                      Focus:  PT-2 “Intro to ‘The Purifying Hope’

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                   Reference:  1 John 2:28-3:3

 

            Message of the verses:  28 Now, little children, abide in Him, so that when He appears, we may have confidence and not shrink away from Him in shame at His coming. 29 If you know that He is righteous, you know that everyone also who practices righteousness is born of Him.  1 See how great a love the Father has bestowed on us, that we would be called children of God; and such we are. For this reason the world does not know us, because it did not know Him. 2 Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is.  3 And everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.”

 

            Sometimes the introductions that are found in MacArthur’s chapters are very short and sometime they are very long, this one is very long and so it will take us a few days to comment on the introduction to these verses.

 

            In my last SD I finished by quoting Romans 8:22-25, and now I want to make some more comments that come after the quoting of these verses, and they will be from a quotation from MacArthur’s commentary.

 

“To be sure, the present joys of salvation cannot compare with the ultimate, surpassing joys that divine hope guarantees for the future, when salvation is fully realized.  For instance, the continuing battle against sin that Christians experience here (Rom. 6:6, 12, 19; 7:24-25; 8:4-6, 12-13; 2 Cor. 7:1; Gal. 3:3; 5:24; Phil. 3:3) will terminate forever when they reach heaven (Rom. 8:30; 13:11; 2 Tim. 2:10; cf. Ps. 73:24).  In addition to being made sinless, believers will also receive perfect, glorified bodies that God has prepared for them (Rom. 8:23; 1 Cor. 15:43; Phil. 3:20-21; cf. 2 Cor. 3:18), bodies that will complement their already redeemed souls.”

 

            Now that I am caught up I will continue on with this introduction.

 

            One of the things that we can realize in this life as born-again believers in Jesus Christ is to experience the joy that comes with the forgiveness of sin.  Here is a list of verses that goes along with that truth:  (Ps. 32:1-2; Matt. 9:2; Luke 5:20; Col. 2:13).  We also know the power of the indwelling Spirit, to see His fruit in one’s life (Gal. 5:22-23), next to experience answered prayer, which is also a great joy (1 John 5:14-15), next to engage in spiritual fellowship (Ps. 133:1; Heb. 10:25, worship (Ps. 34:3), and service (cf. 2 Cor. 8:1-7), however all that satisfaction falls far short of the ultimate joy the saints will enjoy when God forever fulfills the promises that form their hope.  Now remember I stated that “hope” in the New Testament is a noun and not a verb.

 

            MacArthur writes “Since eternal glory—the goal of hope—is the reason for God’s saving plan and purpose, Scripture sets forth a complete theology of hope that, first of all, finds its beginning in the unchanged God, who cannot speak anything but the truth.  The psalmist wrote, ‘Why are you in despair, O my soul? And why are you disturbed within me?  Hope in God, for I shall again praise Him, the help of my countenance and my God’ (Ps. 43:5; cf. 78:7).  God’s promises of care (1 Peter 5:6-7), protection (Ps. 121:8; Jude 24), guidance (Ps. 23:3), and sustenance (Phil 4:19) mean believers can confidently trust Him regarding His promises for the future.”

 

            One thing for sure is that we will be looking at hope for a while as we continue in this introduction, and also when we begin to look at the different “Points” that come from these verses.

 

12/8/2024 11:06 PM

 

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