Faith Is The Victory
By Professor E M Blaiklock M.A., Litt.D.
THE TEXT: (1 John 2: 29-3: 24)
CHAPTER TWO (concluding verse): If you know that He is just, you know that everyone who practises righteousness is born of Him.
CHAPTER THREE:
See what unearthly love God has given us, that we should be called
(as indeed we are) the children of God. This is why the world does not recognise us, as it did not recognise Him. Beloved, we are the children of God now, but it has not yet been made clear what we shall be; but we know that when He is shown forth we shall be like Him because we shall see Him as He is.
And everyone who has this hope in him, purifies himself just as He is pure.
Everyone who practises sin practises also lawlessness, for sin is the breaking of the law. And you know that He was revealed to take away our sins, and sin does not exist in Him.
Every one who abides in Him does not continue in sin. Every one who continues in sin, has not seen Him nor come to know Him.
Little children, let no one lead you astray. The one who practises righteousness is righteous even as He is righteous.
The one who practises sin is of the devil, for the devil sins from the beginning. That is why the Son of God was revealed to undo the works of the devil. Every one who has been born of God does not practise sin, because His seed abides in Him. And he cannot continue sinning because he has been born God. In this the children of God and the children of the devil are revealed. Everyone who does not practise righteousness is not of God, and the one who does not love his brother. For this is the message you have heard from the beginning, that we love one another. Not as Cain was of the Evil One, and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own deeds were evil and his brother's righteous.
Do not wonder, my brothers, if the world hates you. We know that we have passed over from the realm of death to that of life because we love our brothers. The one who does not love his brother remains in the realm of death. Everyone who hates his brother is a man-slayer, and you know that such a one has not eternal life abiding in him. Thus we have come to know what love is, because He laid down his life on our behalf, and we should lay down our lives for our brethren.
Whoever has this world's goods, and observes his brother in need, and shuts up his heart from him, how can God's love abide in him?
Little children, let us not love with words and with the tongue, but in deeds and in truth. Then we shall be sure that we are of the truth, and shall reassure ourselves before Him whenever our heart condemns us, because God is greater than our heart, and He knows all things. Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, we have confidence before God, and we receive from Him whatever we ask, because we keep His commandments and do those things which are pleasing in His sight. And this is His commandment, that we should believe in the name of His Son Jesus Christ, and love one another even as He commanded us. He who obeys God's commands abides in God, and God abides in him. And it is through the spirit He gave to us that we know that God abides in us.