We must walk as Jesus did (1 John 2:1-6)

We must walk as Jesus did.

[1 John 2:1-6]

What does it mean for us who believe in Jesus to “live as Christians”? Thomas A. Kempis said this about living as Christians in his book “Imitation of Christ”: “Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness” (see Jn. 8:12). In this word, the Lord exhorts us to follow the life of Christ and the way He walked if we truly want to be taught and set free from our senseless heart. Therefore, the first thing we should do is to reflect deeply on the life of Jesus Christ’ (Internet). What do you think of when you deeply reflect on the life of Jesus Christ, the first thing we must do to live uprightly as Christians, according to the counsel of Thomas A. Kempis? I was reminded of the gospel song “The Way My Lord Took On” that I enjoyed sang a long time ago. Verse 1 lyrics are: ‘The way of the Lord, the way of the cross, the lonely and heavy way The rough hill way of Golgotha The tired appearance of the Lord Oh my Lord forgive me You suffered for sinners The way you so desperately wanted to give life to this world.’ Perhaps the reason this gospel song came to mind is because when I look back on the life of Jesus, the way of the cross that Jesus walked is engraved in my heart a little bit. I believe that believing in Jesus means that we must also walk the way of the cross that Jesus walked. If we say it in the Bible, I think what Jesus said in Matthew 7:13 is appropriate: “"Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it.” We each have to walk the narrow path, the path of suffering, following Jesus, taking up our own cross and denying ourselves.

In 1 John 2:6, the Bible says: “Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did.” I would like to receive a lesson from meditating on 1 John 2:1-6 in two ways under the heading, “We must walk as Jesus did” focusing on this verse 6:

First, the Apostle John said, “Whoever claims to live in Him must walk as Jesus did.” What kind of person is he who claims to live in Him here?

There is a song called “Abide in Me” among the Korean gospel songs that we sang often in our church before. Here's a summary of that song's lyrics: “For I am the Lord your God, so abide in Me/ Your Deliverer and Protector, a Shelter from the storm/ Don’t tremble with fear. Surely I will help you/ I am holding your hand, so do not be afraid/ I have called you by name; you are Mine/ You are Mine and I am the Lord your God/ You are precious in My sight and you are highly honored/ I, the Lord your God love you/ I the Lord your God love you.” The reason I liked to give this praise to God is because it reminded me of two Bible verses, and those two Bible verses gave me strength and comfort. Those two Bible verses are Isaiah 41:10 and Isaiah 43:1, 4 first half: (1) (Isa.41:10) “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” When I think about this Bible verse and the gospel song “Abide in Me,” the reason why this song and the words gave me strength and comfort is because my God is with me, He helps me, He strengthens me and He upholds me with His righteous right hand. (2) (Isa. 43:1, 4a) “But now, this is what the LORD says-- he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: "Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. … Since you are precious and honored in my sight, and because I love you, ….” When I think about this Bible verse and the gospel song “Abide in Me,” the reason why this song and the words gave me strength and comfort is because the lyrics of the song “I have called you by name; you are Mine/ You are Mine and I am the Lord your God/ You are precious in My sight and you are highly honored/ I, the Lord your God love you” seems to be based on Isaiah 43:1, 4a. The reason why these words comfort and strength me is because God has called me by name, and ‘I am His’ and I am precious and honored in God’s sight. In particular, when I see myself I am not precious and honored in my sight, it is comforting and empowering to know that God sees me as I am precious and honored, because I am bought by the atoning death of his only begotten Son, Jesus, on the cross.

In 1 John 2:6, the Apostle John said, “Whoever claims to live in Him must walk as Jesus did.” What does ‘living in Him’ mean here? As I meditated on this word, I was reminded of Jesus’ “The parable of the vine” in John 15, written by the same author, the Apostle John. In particular, I remembered verses 4-5: “Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.” Here in John 15:4, the Apostle John said, “Abide in me,” and in 1 John 2:6, he said, “live in Him.” Here, the words “Abide” and “live” have the same meaning. In other words, the Apostle John said in two verses to ‘live in the Lord/abide in the Lord’. Therefore, in 1 John 2:6, ‘living in Him’ means to abide in the Lord. Then, when we think about the word abiding in the Lord based on John 15:4-5, it means that just as a branch is attached to the vine, so living/abiding in the Lord means being attached to the Lord, never leaving the Lord and being with the Lord. The reason this is important for the Apostle John is because we can bear much fruit when we abide in the Lord as His disciples. In other words, we cannot do anything apart from Him unless we live (abide) in Him (v. 5).

Do you know why fish try to jump out of the tank? There are three reasons (Internet Hankook Ilbo): (1) First is when there is not enough dissolved oxygen in the water. At this time, most of the fish come out of the water to breathe, stick their babies out of the water and pout their mouths. (2) Second, they come to the surface to catch prey or escape from predators. (3) Third, it is said that even when the fish has a skin disease or a foreign object is on its skin, the fish flies out of the water. However, as in the well-known Korean saying, “A fish cannot live apart from a fish tank,” we cannot do anything apart from the Lord (v. 5). Conversely, if we abide in the Lord, we can do all things. If we say it in a bible verse, it is Philippians 4:13 – “I can do everything through him who gives me strength.” The important thing here is not to say “I can do everything”. What is important here is “through him who gives me strength” (v. 13). When the Lord gives us strength, we can live contentedly with Him alone, whether we are in abundance or in need (vv. 11-12). Therefore, “Whoever claims to live in Him” mentioned in 1 John 2:6 is the one who abides in the Lord. Then how can we know if we are abiding in the Lord? Look at 1 John 2:5 – “But if anyone obeys his word, God's love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him.” How can we know whether we are the ones who say we live (abide) in the Lord, we can know if we are the ones who keep the Lord's word or not. In other words, if we keep the word of the Lord, we can know that we are in Him. In other words, those who claim to live in the Lord (v. 6) are those who keep the words of the Lord. And those who keep the words of the Lord, the Bible says, that God's love is truly made complete in them (v. 5). That is, those who live (those who abide in) the Lord refer to those in whom God's love is truly made complete. To put this a little differently with the words of John 15:9-10, those who live (those who abide in) the Lord are those who live in the love of God. Look at John 15:9-10: “Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you; abide in My love. If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love; just as I have kept My Father's commandments and abide in His love.” In these verses, the Apostle John says that those who live in the Lord, that is, those who abide in the Lord, keep the word of the Lord, and those who keep the Word of the Lord are those who abide in the love of the Lord. Looking at this, the Apostle John seems to be talking about these three things: ‘abiding in the Lord’, ‘keeping the word of the Lord’, and ‘abiding in the love of the Lord’. In other words, the Apostle John seems to equate ‘those who abide in the Lord’ with ‘those who keep the word of the Lord’ and ‘those who abide in the love of the Lord’. Those who abide in the Lord keep the word of the Lord, and those who keep the word of the Lord abide in the love of the Lord. Those who abide in the Lord keep His word, and the Lord's love made complete in them (1 Jn. 2:5-6). And by keeping the word of the Lord in this way, the joy of the Lord is full (abundant) in the disciples of Jesus, whose love is made complete in them (Jn. 15:11).

One of the purposes (horizontal purpose) of the Apostle John's writing of 1 John is that in 1 John 1:4, which we have already meditated on, he said: “These things we write, so that our joy may be made complete.” And the vertical purpose of the Apostle John writing 1 John is to have fellowship with God the Father and the Son Jesus Christ (v. 3). In other words, the purpose of the Apostle John preaching Jesus Christ and His gospel was so that those who heard Jesus Christ and His gospel through him could believe in Jesus and have fellowship with God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ and that they too may enjoy eternal life like him. If the purpose of the Apostle John preaching Jesus Christ and His gospel was “fellowship with us” (v. 3) and “our joy” (v. 4), the Apostle John wanted the saints of the early church to receive and enjoy the fullness of joy that God the Holy Spirit gives horizontally from their vertical fellowship with God the Father and Jesus Christ the Son. Therefore, in 1 John 2:6, “Whoever claims to live in Him” is he who abides in the Lord and keeps His word while having fellowship with God the Father and Jesus the Son. Therefore, those who live (those who abide in) the Lord are full of the joy of the Lord because the love of God is truly made complete in them. I hope and pray that we live (abide) in the Lord who lives a life filled with the joy of the Lord.

Second and last, the Apostle John said, “Whoever claims to live in Him must walk as Jesus did.” What does it mean to walk as Jesus did here?

One of my personal favorite phrases is “The kind of person you are is far more important than the kind of work you do”. It teaches us that “being” is far more important than “doing.” And we are taught that actions should flow naturally from existence. So, I want to pursue a life of faith that focuses on being rather than doing. Rather than focusing on the question of what I am doing for the Lord and for the saints, I want to live my life of faith by focusing on the question of who I am before God. And I want to have pain in my heart when there is only talk and no action. For example, if I love God and love my neighbor only with words, but don’t obey God's word in real life and hate my neighbor, I want my heart to be in pain. As I was reading Psalms 23 to 31 at the last Morning Prayer meeting, I meditated on Psalms 23:4 in connection with Psalms 22:1 – (Ps. 23:4) “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me,” (Ps. 22:1) “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, so far from the words of my groaning?” As I meditated on these two Bible verses in connection, I remembered the words of Matthew 27:46 when Jesus said, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” on the cross. And as I meditated on Matthew 27:46, I meditated in connection with Psalms 23:4, and the question I posed at that time was to ask myself what was the comfort that Jesus received before he was crucified and died on the cross, like the one who is in “the valley of the shadow of death,” and who had been forsaken by His own Father God. In other words, I wondered what kind of comfort Jesus had in the midst of the excruciating pain of being abandoned by Heavenly Father on the cross. At that time, the word that came to mind was Isaiah 53:11 that I preached the previous Sunday: “After the suffering of his soul, he will see the light of life and be satisfied ….” That is, God the Father was “satisfied” when he saw “the suffering of his soul” that his only-begotten Son Jesus Christ, who bore all our iniquities, who suffered and died on the cross. I thought that this was the comfort Jesus received on the cross. In other words, it was thought that the comfort that Jesus received in the midst of the extreme pain of being abandoned by God the Father on the cross was to satisfy God the Father by obeying the Father God’s will even to the point of death on the cross.

In 1 John 2:6, the Apostle John said, “Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did”. Here, the phrase “… must walk as Jesus did” is the lesson that ‘We must also do as Jesus did’. Then, in order for us to do as Jesus did, we must first know what Jesus did. What did Jesus do? We can think of two things, one is what Jesus did in the past and the other is what Jesus is doing now:

What Jesus did in the past was to die on the cross as a propitiation for our sins.

Look at 1 John 2:2 – “and He Himself is the propitiation for our sins; and not for ours only, but also for those of the whole world.” Here, the word “propitiation” means “satisfaction.” Jesus died on the cross as the sacrifice of the Passover lamb, which satisfies God’s holy requirement to punish sin (MacArthur). The Apostle John said this not only in 1 John 2:2 but also in 4:10 – “In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” He said that God sent His Son Jesus into this world as the propitiation for our sins. Why did He do that? The Bible says that it was because God loves us. The Bible says this is love. Therefore, if we put into practice the lesson that we should do as Jesus did, we must love as Jesus loved us and took on all our sins as the propitiation for our sins. We must love God. To love God means to obey our Heavenly Father's will, like His Son Jesus did. Also, we must love our neighbor according to the twofold commandment of Jesus. We must faithfully carry out the “ministry of reconciliation” that God has given us (2 Cor. 5:18). We must share with our neighbors the “words of reconciliation” (v. 19) that God has entrusted to us. And we must be reconciled to one another (1 Thess. 5:13).

What Jesus is still doing is defending us before God the Father if we sin.

Look at 1 John 2:1 – “My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.” The word “Advocate” here is translated “Helper” in John 16:7. Its literal meaning is “one called alongside” (MacArthur), and it means a divine being who is with the saints by their side. Its eschatological meaning means ‘a lawyer who helps the defendant’ in God’s judgment (Internet). In modern language, it means 'defense attorney' (MacArthur). Can you imagine us standing before God's court, and Satan prosecutes us to our Judge, our holy and righteous Heavenly Father? (MacArthur) In Revelation 12:10, the Apostle John refers to Satan as “the accuser of our brothers”. Even though our faithful and righteous God has forgiven us and cleansed us from all unrighteousness since we have already confessed out sins (1 Jn. 1:9), Satan pretends that we are sinners and accuses us to the Judge God (accusation). At that time, the righteous Jesus Christ, who becomes our High Priest, becomes our lawyer and defends us before God, our Judge.

How will Jesus defend us? Will He not show the nail marks and a spear mark when He died on the cross, bearing all our sins in our place, before our holy and just Judge, Heavenly Father? (Jn. 20:27; Rev. 5:9, 13: 8) Where can we find such clear and convincing evidence? Can our Heavenly Father condemn us by looking at the solid evidence? That is why the Apostle Paul not only said in Romans 8:1, “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” but also said this in Romans 8:33-34 first half: “Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who is he that condemns? …” Therefore, when we sin, we must confess our sins (1 Jn. 1:9) by believing that the righteous Jesus Christ, who is our Advocate before God the Father (2:1), became the propitiation for our sins (v. 2). Then the faithful and righteous God will forgive us our sins and will cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1:9). And we must keep God's commandments (2:3). If we confess our sins and don’t keep the commandments of God again, we are liars and the truth is not in us (v. 4). But if we keep the commandments of God, “by this we shall know that we know him” (v. 3). In other words, we come to know God more clearly or experientially by obeying God's commandments. And the Bible says that if we obey God's word, God's love will truly be perfected in us (v. 5).

We who say we live in Jesus must do as Jesus does. Just as branches are attached to the vine, we must abide in the Lord and never leave Him and be with Him. He who abides in the Lord keeps His word. And he who keeps His word will truly have the love of God perfected in him. In a word, he who lives in the Lord keeps the word of the Lord, and he who keeps the word of the Lord abides in the love of the Lord. And the joy of the Lord is full in the disciple of Jesus, whose love is perfected in him by keeping the word of the Lord in this way. Therefore, such a person bears much fruit. Then the Bible says that he who says he lives in Jesus, he does what Jesus did. What did Jesus do? What Jesus did in the past was to die on the cross as the propitiation for our sins. Because God loves us, He paid the penalty for our sins by having Jesus died on the cross as the sacrifice of the Passover lamb. Therefore, God's holy requirements were satisfied. We who know this love of God obey the twofold commandment of Jesus and love God and also love his neighbor. And we faithfully carry out the ministry of reconciliation that the Lord has given us with the word of reconciliation. What Jesus is still doing is defending us before our Heavenly Father when we sin. When we stand before God's court, when Satan prosecutes us to our Judge, holy and just, Heavenly Father, that is, when Satan pretends that we are sinful and tells that to God, Jesus, who is the defendant's lawyer, is defending us before God. Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. It is God who justifies us, who can condemn us?

As the one who lives in Jesus Christ, and who wants to obey His word and abide in His love,

James Kim

(August 4, 2019, with gratitude for the love of the Lord Jesus Christ, who died on the cross as the propitiation for my sins, rose from the grave and ascended into heaven, who is still defending me at the right hand of God)