jon mark

for the last week i have been studying i john 1 and most of my time on the first four verses. and it’s been a great time of challenge, which may seem trivial to you if you read through those verses. but i’m going to try and explain why…

the apostle john is writing to churches who were scattered about. unlike some of the books in the old testament, it wasn’t sent to any specific church or city. so i’m thinking there is going to be some direct implication for me and for you.

he starts out, “we proclaim”…WHAT?…”the one who existed from the beginning”. ok, so they are proclaiming Christ, not too deep. then he lays down foundation on why those listening should believe what they have to say and not what some other teacher or pastor may have to say. he points out how they saw Jesus, heard Jesus, touched Jesus…they had a personal relationship with Jesus, up close and personal.

so he is sharing with other believers about Jesus, and not just what He did for someone else or what someone else had told him. this was first hand knowledge about who Jesus was and what He had done. it was something that john knew first hand and was confident of.

but why was he sharing this with believers? so that they could have this same type of relationship with Jesus and they could experience the same blessing, joy, they he had experienced. vs 3-4 “we proclaim to you what we ourselves have actually seen and hear so that you may have fellowship with us. and our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. We are writing these things so that you may fully share our joy.” (NLT)

so john and the other apostles had a relationship with Jesus which was so awesome that they just had to get the word out. they wanted others to experience this same type of personal relationship and the blessings of it. they wanted them to experience it first hand and not just hear from them or from others.

all that being said…i have really been challenged with whether or not my relationship with Jesus is so awesome that i just have to tell others. do i share with other brothers and sisters what God is doing in my life so they can be encouraged and experience that same thing? uhhhhhhhhhhhhh??? well, i share on my blog once a week…that’s not cutting it though! i have really been challenged to make it a point to share with others who God is to me and what God is doing in my life. and not just share it with other believers, but also with those who have never had a relationship with Jesus.

so how does this apply to you? feel free to share with a comment!