Abide in Christ

“Yet I am writing you a new commandment, which is true in him and in you, because the darkness is passing away and the true light is already shining. He who says he is in the light and hates his brother is in the darkness still. He who loves his brother abides in the light, and in it there is no cause for stumbling.” 1st John 2

This is a great lesson for all of us to learn. A tough lesson for sure but still a good one for us to always have on our hearts and minds. First of all 1st John is from a student and scholar of John, speculated as being Polycarp a bishop of Smyrna in the second century. When there is still unease around this new faith that has developed in Jerusalem centered around Jesus. Polycarp was born in 69 AD and died 155 AD. A martyr for the faith he boldly sacrificed his life rather than denounce his faith. It is through the teachings of John and his world view that God nudges his understanding of the faith.

We are then called from this letter to align our actions and words, a truly difficult task. It is easy to tell a child not to stick a fork in an outlet and then not do it yourself. It is hard to tell a friend that they need to take a break from work to focus on their personal health, and then follow that advice for ourselves (if this isn’t difficult then please tell me how you do it).

What this creates, not having our words and actions align, is a believer who doesn’t know that they are blind. “But he who hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.” Pushing through the wounds and pains of this world not knowing that at times they are causing true pain to their neighbors. This is a truly dangerous place for anyone to be, because we believe that we are abiding in the light but we are actually blinded. We have to be guided back to Jesus’ light through prayer, worship, community, and the sacraments.

These traditions, rituals, and shared experiences that we have with God unites us in mission and guides us forward. We need to be recentered in the Word daily. This allows for us to alight our words of love with our actions. Now let us be challenged! Let us love our neighbor, our sibling, and our God with our lips and actions for the world to see God’s love and wonder through us.

Pax et Bonum,
Pastor Tucker, n/OLF