There is one thing that I have learned from writing books: it is one thing to start and another thing to finish. There are moments in the middle of the process where I wonder if I will ever reach the end and hold a finished book in my hands. In the muddled middle what is most important is to keep on keeping on.
The same is true in the Christian life: it is relatively easy to start, but hard to continue and cross the finish line. At the beginning of the Christian life, there is the refreshment of forgiveness and the joy of a newfound relationship with Christ. However, in the middle of our journey there are many days when it feels quite difficult to plod on, to keep putting one foot in front of the other. Thus, the key question is: how do we stay on course when we are tempted to drift?
That is the question that John answers for us in this next section of his letter. Listen for God’s word to you from 1 John 2:24-29…
As for you, see that what you have heard from the beginning remains in you. If it does, you also will remain in the Son and in the Father. And this is what he promised us—eternal life.
I am writing these things to you about those who are trying to lead you astray. As for you, the anointing you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit—just as it has taught you, remain in him.
And now, dear children, continue in him, so that when he appears we may be confident and unashamed before him at his coming.
If you know that he is righteous, you know that everyone who does what is right has been born of him.
John identifies three closely related steps to staying the course of the Christian life. The first step is: to allow what we have heard from the beginning to remain in us.
Six times in these six verses John uses the same verb, sometimes translated “remain,” or “continue,” or “abide”. The verb appears three times in verse 24 alone. John obviously loves this verb. It means that we need to allow what we have heard from the beginning to take up permanent residence in us, to make a settled home in our hearts.
There are times when we need to go back to the basics of the Christian life and have a refresher course. We do not so much need to be learning new truth, as we need to remember the old truths and put them into practice. That is what John is talking about here.
What are some of the basic truths of the Christian faith that we most need to remember and put into practice? We have mentioned them already in our study of 1 John. I believe that most of all we need to remember:
- God loves us.
- God calls us to love him with all of our heart, mind, soul and strength.
- God calls us to love our neighbors as ourselves.
Think about it. If we just focused on remembering and living out those three truths, we will stay on course in life.
The story is told of Vince Lombardi, coach of the Green Bay Packers, speaking to his team in the locker room after a horrible loss. Lombardi, holding a football aloft said: “Gentlemen, this is a football.” Lombardi knew, as any good coach does, when it is time to go back to the basics.
In the Christian life, it is important to review the basics in our minds every day and allow the things that we have heard from the beginning to take up permanent residence in our hearts. God loves us and he wants us to love him and our neighbors as we love ourselves. If we allow these truths that we have heard from the beginning to remain in us, then we in turn will be abiding in the Son, Jesus Christ, and in God the Father. The result of that abiding, both now and after death, will be eternal life.
The second step to staying the course of the Christian life is to allow God’s anointing to teach us.
If we want to avoid being led astray by all the false teachings in the world, then John tells us we have to allow God’s anointing to teach us. The Greek word translated “to lead astray” is “planao” from which we get our English word “planet”. The Greeks contrasted the planets, which they observed as wandering, or as we would say, revolving around the sun, with the stars which remained fixed. In that sense, the anointing of God is like our north star, guiding us amidst all the changes of this life.
In the Hebrew Scriptures, three different types of people were anointed: prophets, priests and kings. Jesus is the fulfillment of all of these. He is our great prophet, priest and king. Therefore, as we abide in Jesus, as we live in him and as he lives in us, we share in his anointing. The anointing is no longer limited to a few special people, the great prophets, priests and kings. God’s anointing now is for all believers in Jesus.
When and how do we receive this anointing? John may be referring to the anointing that comes to the Christian via the Holy Spirit at baptism. (Acts 8:17) The anointing is also connected with the initial teaching that the Christian receives (1 John 2:24, 27). We must always remember that the anointing of the Holy Spirit works through the word. Thus, there are two tests by which we can judge any new teaching or any decision we must make in life: is it in accord with the teaching of Scripture, and is it in accord with the witness of the Spirit within us?
We have all witnessed in our lifetimes, Cardinals of the Catholic Church electing a new pope. I believe every pope is anointed with oil when he becomes a bishop. Furthermore, all of us have a tendency, whether Catholic or not, to look to the Pope, or to a bishop, or a priest, or a minister, or some preacher on television as having a special anointing from God. While it may be true that the Lord anoints different people for different, special purposes, what John is telling us is that all of us as Christians have an anointing from God, through the Holy Spirit. Therefore, while we can and in fact need to learn much from other teachers in the Lord, we each as Christians have within us an anointing from God that teaches us and guides us.
Thus, the first step to staying the course of the Christian life is to allow those things which we have heard from the beginning to remain in us. The second step is to allow God’s anointing to teach us, and the third step is to simply abide in Christ. Word, Spirit, Jesus—that’s all we need.
John urges us to abide continually in Christ. If we do this, then we will be ready for Jesus when he comes again.
John, here, is recalling the teaching of Jesus in John 15:5. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.”
How do we abide in Christ? How do we stay connected to him? We have already spoken about one way that we do that—by allowing the teaching of Jesus to abide in our hearts. We need to read and think on the Scriptures, especially the words of Jesus in the Gospels.
Another way that we abide in Christ is through prayer. Prayer does not always require talking on our part. A very important aspect of prayer is silence and listening. If we are often quiet before the Lord I believe we will hear his voice saying, “This is the way, walk ye in it.” (Isaiah 30:21)
A third essential means of grace, or means of abiding in Christ, is the Lord’s Supper which we will be celebrating today. It is not an accident that we call it Holy Communion. Through partaking of the bread and of the cup in faith we truly commune with Christ and stay connected to him.
Then, a fourth important means of grace is the fellowship of God’s people. If we are connected to Jesus as a branch to a vine, then we will be connected to all the other branches that are connected to him. We can learn from one another and grow together into a mighty and fruitful plant for the Lord.
This leads to the final point that John makes in this section of his letter. That is that abiding in Christ will manifest itself in righteous living. If we remain connected to the love of Jesus then that love will issue forth from us to others in word and deed, and certainly the most important way we show the love of Jesus is by our actions.
Anglican priest and author Michael Green shares the following story to remind us of the impact of our actions long before our words. Green says:
I read about a missionary candidate in language school. The very first day of class the teacher entered the room and, without saying a word, walked down every row of students. Finally, still without saying a word, she walked out of the room again. Then she came back and addressed the class. “Did you notice anything special about me?” she asked.
Nobody could think of anything in particular. One student finally raised her hand. “I noticed that you had on a very lovely perfume,” she said. The class chuckled.
But the teacher said, “That was exactly the point. [It] will be a long time before any of you will be able to speak Chinese well enough to share the gospel with anyone in China. But even before you are able to do that, you can minister the sweet fragrance of Christ to these people by the quality of your lives.”[1]
St. Francis of Assisi, is reported to have said these classic words: “Preach the Gospel at all times; if necessary, use words.”
Paul puts it this way in 2 Corinthians 2:15-16,
For we are to God the pleasing aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are an aroma that brings death; to the other, an aroma that brings life.
What kind of fragrance do you spread abroad in the lives of others? Is it an aroma of life or of death? If we abide in Christ, if we stay connected to him at all times by allowing his word to remain in us and his anointing to teach us, then we will spread the sweet aroma of his love wherever we go.
[1] Michael Green, in Alice Gray’s (editor) Stories for a Faithful Heart (Multnomah, 2004), p. 95; submitted by Lee Eclov, Vernon Hills, Illinois
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