3 John 4 --- I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.
This morning I slept through my 5:30 AM and my 6:30 AM alarms like they didn't exist. Luckily, my son came and woke me up at 7:00 AM because I don't know when I was going to wake up on my own! As I sat down to have my quiet time with the Lord all I could hear in my head was the theme song to 'Saved by the Bell'. So, finally after praying for a while I was able to push the song's "I don't think I'll ever make it on time" line from my mind and slow down a bit and focus on Him.
So, we journeyed on to verse four which is the final verse in this letter's opening/greeting. What we found here was JOY, but let's look at where and what the joy was from.
John says there is no greater joy than to know one of his children is walking in the truth. We've discussed truth a great many times and we know Jesus and the Word are Truth. So that was the greatest level of joy he knew, for his children to walk in Jesus, walk in the Word, to walk in Truth.
Now we need to point out walking in truth isn't just about memorizing scripture and checking religious boxes on a list. If that were all there was to it then the pharisee's would be exactly what they thought they were, the pinnacle of godliness. However, we've learned that we can't just follow a long list of rules, memorize as much as we can and call it a day. That is religion and it creates a way for us to do something in our strength and understanding that makes us look and feel as though we are holy and good on the outside. However, it leaves room for us to be dead, hypocritic and even wicked on the inside. Read what Jesus had to say to those who walked in religion:
Matthew 23:23-28
23 “What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are careful to tithe even the tiniest income from your herb gardens, but you ignore the more important aspects of the law—justice, mercy, and faith. You should tithe, yes, but do not neglect the more important things. 24 Blind guides! You strain your water so you won’t accidentally swallow a gnat, but you swallow a camel!
25 “What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are so careful to clean the outside of the cup and the dish, but inside you are filthy—full of greed and self-indulgence! 26 You blind Pharisee! First wash the inside of the cup and the dish, and then the outside will become clean, too.
27 “What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs—beautiful on the outside but filled on the inside with dead people’s bones and all sorts of impurity. 28 Outwardly you look like righteous people, but inwardly your hearts are filled with hypocrisy and lawlessness.
Wow…. That's direct and Jesus doesn't pull his punches here. This is what comes of checking religious boxes instead of abiding in Jesus, abiding in relationship, abiding in truth, abiding in the Word. Those things require more than just knowing scripture. They require more than just showing up to church to check a box.
What it does requires is Jesus. Plain and simple. It also helps to have the tax collector's heart from Luke 18, that was focused between himself and God. All that mattered, was his sin was great, but God was greater and the only way to get right. Whereas the Pharisee's heart was focused on himself and how much better, holier, and wonderful he was. All that mattered for him was himself, his hard work and how he wasn't like sinners.
Okay so lot's a rambling here, but where the Lord led me today was to see was John was abiding in love, abiding in Jesus, walking in truth. He was in relationship with the Lord. So, the greatest joy for John wasn't in his own salvation, his own walking in truth, or abiding in Jesus... yes, there is ABSOLUTE overflowing JOY because of those things, but he says his greatest joy was to see someone else genuinely walking in Truth, abiding in Jesus, walking out relationship and not just religion.
I could go on, but the journey must come to a close for now.
How are you walking today?
What are you walking in?
Where are you finding joy?
I pray you'll explore those questions, while being the Berean and getting into your Bible, going to these scriptures, and seeing for yourself what God has to say!
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