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1st John 2
Sermons from Commons Church. Intellectually honest. Spiritually passionate. Jesus at the centre. Since 2014.
Well but welcome to Commons Church, and welcome to year three here at Commons Church. It was two years ago on this very weekend that we launched our new community, and it has been incredible run since then. As you can see, God has been so gracious to us, and we're very thankful for that. And yet somehow, I still actually think that this is going to be the most exciting year yet for us. Last week, you met Bobby, and you got to hear her teach.
Speaker 1:And if you are anything like me, you were very excited by the voice that she brings to our community. Having another strong female voice teaching and leading us is really important. But yes. Yes. Good.
Speaker 1:Let's cheer for that. And that's really important to have that voice on our team. But Bobby's also gonna be working with helping us to establish some programs for junior and senior high students as well. And so if you are in junior or senior high or if you just want to pretend that you are for a time, then we would love to have you participate as we build out that team so you can talk to Bobby about it. Also, last week, I mentioned that Scott and Darlene and their family would be joining us this week.
Speaker 1:They are indeed here. They just got into town after driving the long drive from Ontario. But I do want to introduce them to you quickly today because Scott is here to learn about commons, to get to know all of us, and then, which we're really excited about, to be the team lead for us as we launch our next parish as we look to expand and plant new communities. We're getting a little feedback on my voice here in the city. And so Scott's gonna be heading that up for us.
Speaker 1:So guys, come on up in the stage here. Wanna And give them a chance to introduce themselves, say hi, so that you know who they are after the service and you can go say hi. So Scott, welcome.
Speaker 2:Thank you. Welcome to all of you. Just wanna introduce my family to you guys. This is Brandon. Head up.
Speaker 2:This is Hailey and Nora with a balloon. Those of you who need one of those after, you can grab one. We're so excited to finally be here. Oh, Darlene. I'll just put my foot directly in my mouth.
Speaker 2:Sorry, love. We we are excited, aren't we? Okay. Good. We've been watching this community grow for a couple years now from a from a distance.
Speaker 2:So it's pretty special to finally be on the ground, to meet more faces than just Jeremy's and to get a sense of what's happening in the city. We're so excited to join a community that puts Jesus right at the center of what's going on. So hello to you. If we don't get a chance to say hi today, please just interrupt whatever conversation we're having. Come say hi.
Speaker 1:Great. Well, there's gonna be lots of chances to get to know Scott and Darlene and their family. But please, after the service, we're having lunch. We're staying here. So go up, give them a hug, welcome them to Commons.
Speaker 1:It's great to have them here. So thanks, guys. I'll see you soon. Yeah. Give them a round of applause.
Speaker 1:That's great. Now okay. New team members. We have new journals that hopefully you've picked up. New focus for this year.
Speaker 1:This year, we have got some amazing series planned. This fall, right after this series, we are going to tackle Leviticus. Oh, two other people excited about that. That's fine. Just me.
Speaker 1:But honestly, we are going to and it is going to be fun, and I just feel so blessed to be part of this community and this story. And I can't wait to jump into year three, so, let's do that. And let me start by reading to you a portion of our text this morning. Now this is from first John, and that's where we're going to be for these next few weeks. But this is starting in chapter two verse one.
Speaker 1:And the writer says, my dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the father, Jesus Christ, the righteous one. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for our sins, but also for the sins of the whole world. We know that we have come to know him if we keep his commands. Whoever says I know him, but does not do what he commands is a liar, The truth is not in that person.
Speaker 1:But if anyone obeys his word, love for God is truly made complete in them. This is how we know we are in him. Whoever claims to live in him must live as Jesus did. Dear friends, I'm not writing to you a new command, but an old one. One that you have had since the beginning.
Speaker 1:This old command is the message you have already heard. And yet, I am writing you a new command. This truth is seen in him and in you, because the darkness is passing and the true light is already shining. Let's pray. God of all that is good in the universe, we meet this day as persons who need your forgiveness, who seek your love, who celebrate your grace, and to marvel at the magnitude and beauty of your creation.
Speaker 1:You see the fragility of our faith and the buckling under to injustice we fall to, the adopting of patterns more convenient than compelling in our lives, and yet you continue to call us graciously forward into something better as we enter into this new season together. As summer gives way to fall and students head back to classrooms, as workplaces swing into new renewed rhythms. As we prepare again as a community to be led by your spirit in this third year together. We pray that you would remind us of the delicate beauty of your self giving. That we might fill our neighborhoods, our schools, our workplaces, and indeed this space that we gather in today with lives that reflect the love of your son.
Speaker 1:Forgive us when we fall short. Invite us towards you when we are fearful. Remind us today of our essential identity in you. In the strong name of the risen Christ, we pray. Amen.
Speaker 1:Alright. Year three, chapter two, first John. Here we go. And this is a passage that I have read many times throughout my career, and I always have found incredibly compelling when I do. As a preacher, I love the way that this writer is able to move from prose into something more like poetry and then back into something more didactic all without missing a beat.
Speaker 1:Personally, though there are many times I fall short of it, I happen to think that preaching should be compelling and conversational. I think we should learn and engage our minds, but I also do think it should be beautiful. I remember having a conversation with a theologian slash professor slash writer about the idea of preaching. And he lamented the fact that so many preachers think they're doing performance art these days. And I totally got his point.
Speaker 1:I mean, you can go way too far with smoke and mirrors and props and catchphrases. But at the same time, I said to him, sure. I mean, I hear what you're saying, but preaching is performance art. You know that. Right?
Speaker 1:Any story that you share, any idea that you are compelled to get across to another human being, any real influence you have with another human, this is because of art. As Dostoevsky said, beauty will save the world. And so good stories should be beautiful even if they're sad. Sermons should be good stories even when they're hard to hear. And so part of what is compelling when I listen to the writer of first John is that what I hear is a good sermon.
Speaker 1:As the scholar Ian Marshall says, this writing begins without any of the formal features characteristic of a letter. And since the conclusion also lacks any typical features of a letter, we must conclude that this writing is not so much a letter as a written sermon. The close relationship between the writer and his readers show that the author was writing for the benefit of a particularly close group of people. This is a pastor, a shepherd. He's preaching to his community, and this is, in some sense, performance art that we are reading.
Speaker 1:Now hold on to that because we'll come back to it later, and it's important. But for now, let's walk through this passage together. And first of all, the writer addresses his audience in an interesting way. He starts, my dear children. Now, this dear children, this in English is the translators trying to get across the connotation of the Greek word technia.
Speaker 1:And technically, what technia means is little child, But it's a familiar term. It's a relationship term. It's not a technical description of parentage. It's a signal of intimacy, little child. And we get this.
Speaker 1:Right? When I was in public school, I had a teacher, a French teacher. Her name was Madame Roger. And I had a complex relationship with Madame Roger. I really liked her and she really liked me, but I was not always the easiest kid to have in the classroom.
Speaker 1:I was smart and I was really good at the way that we do school. But because of that, I got bored very quickly. And also because I really like to be the center of attention, that didn't mix very well. So I would bother the other kids while they were still working and I would try to get the attention of Madame Roger in all kinds of inappropriate ways. I still work very hard to get the attention of my wife in all kinds of ways, even if she is the only one to see my antics.
Speaker 1:But at the course of our time together, madam Roger and I developed a relationship, and she began to call me Mon Petit Shu. Anyone French here? That's right. Mon petit choux, my little cabbage. That's what she would call me.
Speaker 1:Now that sounds strange, but in French, it's a term of endearment. At least that's what she told me, and I will take her French word for it. But that's kind of how the writer starts here. My little cabbages. Yet at the same time, if we use that language today, it feels a bit different.
Speaker 1:Right? If I got up on a Sunday and I addressed everyone here as my little children, that would be strange. At least partly because I look like I'm 20, younger if I shave, but also because in our culture that would feel kind of condescending. Right? Like I'm separating myself from you.
Speaker 1:Like like I'm the teacher, you're the little children, come and sit at my feet and listen to all the incredible things that I have to say. But that's not quite what's going on here in first John. And you can see this if you watch the pronouns. The writer says, my dear children, my little cabbages, I write this to you so that you will not sin. So this is the teacher, the pastor, speaking to almost at his community.
Speaker 1:But then he says, if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the father. Jesus Christ, the righteous one. And so almost immediately, he shifts now to we. Now it's us. Now we're in this story together.
Speaker 1:And then he goes even farther. He says, he, meaning Christ, is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, but not only for ours, also for the sins of the whole world. There is this very intentional movement here from pastor as teacher to participant within the community to identification alongside the entire story of creation. We're in this together. The writer is not separating himself out from the group with this dear children language.
Speaker 1:If anything, he's actually pushing his community to recognize our identification, our solidarity within the human story. We are in this together, and this, this is the story of God's open ended surprising grace. That's what matters. And here's why that movement is so important to the writer. Next he says, we know that we have come to know him if we keep his commands.
Speaker 1:Whoever says I know him, but does not do what he commands is a liar and the truth is not in that person. But if anyone obeys his word, love for God is truly made complete in them. Now, this phrase, love for God is made complete. The NIV has a decision to make here. And they have to decide whether they want to go big or go safe, and they went safe.
Speaker 1:And that's because this is a genitive in the Greek. And that means you have two options when you bring this into English. Either God is the object, so we are talking about our love for God being made complete, or God is the subject, we are talking about God's love, the love of God being complete in us. Now that's important difference. And scholars debate this all day if they want to, and they do want to.
Speaker 1:But I happen to agree with one scholar named Dejong who basically says, guys, I'm not sure the writer of first John sees the problem here. I mean, yes, technically, Greek can go two ways here, but if the writer doesn't see the need to clarify it for us, is it possible that's because he doesn't want to? Maybe what he wants to say is that your love for God and God's love in and through you, these are somehow inseparable. Here's why that's significant. Because four verses ago, this author was addressing this audience as my dear children, my little children, mon petit chou.
Speaker 1:And now he says, you my cabbages, you have the divine flow, the perfect love of God moving in and through you. You might think that your children, but when I look at you, I don't see kids anymore. What I see is divine. What I see is Jesus. I used to see people whose kids would bring them paintings or crafts or other some bizarre assemblage of incongruous shapes and colors.
Speaker 1:They would say to that child with a straight face no less, oh, that's beautiful. Let's take that home. We should put that on the fridge. And I used to think to myself, well, that's what parenting is about. Right?
Speaker 1:You say nice things. So being encouraging even when your kid hands you glued together popsicle sticks. Your job as a parent is to pretend you are proud no matter what. And what I've realized now as a parent is that it's not really the artwork that matters, it's the eyes that do. Right?
Speaker 1:Because somehow, when your kid brings it over, you are legitimately proud of that Play Doh snake. You mean to tell me that you made this snake? You rolled this Play Doh out with your own hands? This is incredible. People need to know about this.
Speaker 1:Let me log in to Instagram because the world has been waiting to see this. I posted it last week. You can go check it out after the surf then. Well, that's a part of what I think is going on here. This pastor, he writes and he says, oh, my little cabbages.
Speaker 1:Don't you see that when I look at you, I don't see kids. I don't see your failures. I don't see anything that's beneath me. What I see is Jesus living and breathing and moving through the world in technicolor. And it's incredible to watch.
Speaker 1:But here's the thing. He says, don't just see a little bit of Jesus. He says, no. When I look at you, what I see is God's love made complete. Now, this is the word teleios in Greek.
Speaker 1:And it means full, complete, accomplished, perfect, done, finished. He says, when you follow this command, this new command, which is really a very old and ancient one, What I see is Jesus, the perfect love of God made manifest. Now, the section that follows in verses eight and seven and eight get a little confusing here. The writer says, dear friends, and by the way, notice here we're not cabbages anymore. We're friends now.
Speaker 1:And actually, it's beloved. The word is agapatos in Greek. So he says, beloved, I'm not writing to you a new command about an old one, one which you've had since the very beginning. This old command is the message you've heard from the start. And yet, you know what?
Speaker 1:Maybe I am writing a new command. Because the darkness is passing and the true light is already shining and things already look different to me now. And so the obvious question here is, I mean, what is going on? Are we talking about a new command or an old command? Which is it?
Speaker 1:Is this an old command that just got a fresh update, a new coat of paint? Or a new command that reminds us of an old one, like a retro command, like a hipster Jesus style throwback command? Is that what we're talking about, John? I mean, if this command is how the love of God is going to make made complete in us, it's pretty important for us to figure this out. Right?
Speaker 1:I mean, why be so opaque? Well, the thing is, this letter here is deeply influenced by the gospel of John. And so for example, this new command language comes from the gospel of John, comes from chapter 13. And there, Jesus himself says, a new command I give you, love one another. For just as I have loved you, so you must now love each other.
Speaker 1:And that passage is connected to another one in the synoptic gospels where Jesus sums up the entirety of the Hebrew scriptures by saying love God and love people. And that goes all the way back to Leviticus 19 where God says, love your neighbor as yourself for I am the Lord your God. So this old command that you have had since the very beginning, which is now a new command through which the love of God will be made complete in you is love one another. And why? Because I am the Lord, and that's what I do.
Speaker 1:Now, are certainly easier ways the writer could have said all that, but that's not his point. See, he wants to pull you along with this, and he wants to invite you here. He wants to force you to dig and wonder and think about what this old ancient dusty command that becomes new in Jesus again could be. He wants something as simple as love one another to feel fresh and exciting again. He wants something you've heard a thousand times before in a 100 different sermons to somehow come alive again in your imagination.
Speaker 1:This week, you may have heard Apple released a new phone, the iPhone seven. And it looks exactly like the iPhone six s that I have in my pocket. And that looks exactly like the iPhone six that my wife has. But here's the thing, they had this video where Johnny Ive, the designer, talked about the new design and all the new things that they had done. And they had this beautiful photography, and he was so excited about it, and he had that British accent.
Speaker 1:And by the end of the video, I was like, oh my goodness, this thing is incredible. How do I get one? And so I went online to order it, but I didn't because I'm stronger than that. Here's the thing. If Johnny Ive can make me excited about a phone that I already have in my pocket, and the writer of first John can get me excited about something I've heard since I was in kindergarten.
Speaker 1:Love one another. That is God's love made perfect in you. Because this isn't a piece of consumer culture that's designed to be replaced in thirty six months or less. This is the story of the universe that has been woven through the fabric of creation since the moment that God said go. And it's a good story.
Speaker 1:But the thing about a good story is it needs to be told well. This is where that conversation about performance art comes back in. Because after all this invitation and explanation, this inviting you to search back to the beginning, the writer now shifts gears here. And he moves into something more like poetry. Now if you open your bible to verse 12, you'll see that the lines are indented here.
Speaker 1:That's the translators trying to signal to you that things have changed. We're into poetry here. And this is what he says. He says, I'm writing to you, my little cabbages, because your sins have been forgiven on account of his name. I'm writing to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning.
Speaker 1:I'm writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one. I'm writing to you, dear children, because you know the father. I'm writing to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I'm writing to you, young men, because you are strong. And the word of God lives in you, and you have already overcome the evil one.
Speaker 1:Now if you read through this chapter and you just keep barreling through, it almost feels a little silly when you get to this part. I mean, it's repetitive, and it's a retread of material that we've already talked about. And to be honest, if you take it at face value, it claims to be a little grandiose, doesn't it? I mean, you have overcome the evil one? Come on.
Speaker 1:Does anybody honestly here feel like that describes them perfectly all the time? And yet here's the thing. This writer knows that there's a difference between having something explained to you and having something spoken over you. See, he's already explained it to us. Now, he wants to perform it for us.
Speaker 1:And so he turns, and he faces his audience, and he says, my dear children. Those of you who are just starting this journey, I know that you don't always feel like it, but you need to trust me on this one. You are forgiven. And I know you can't always articulate it. You don't always have the perfect words and the language to capture this faith journey that you've just started on, but here's the thing, you know the father.
Speaker 1:You do. You know that. Right? Then he says, fathers, you who have been around the block before. And those of you who have helped some of the children here start their journey toward God.
Speaker 1:You know him who is from the very beginning. And not not the beginning of this community, not not the beginning of this religious movement. No. I mean the beginning. Like when the cosmos was formed and love was birthed, you know that him from the beginning.
Speaker 1:And so when the pressure of being a father figure in community feels a little bit heavy, that's okay. Because you got this. You know who's on your side. You know that. Right?
Speaker 1:And you, young men, young women, those of you in the prime of your story who want to do amazing things with your life, incredible things for God. Listen to me for a second because you are so so strong, he says. And you've already overcome so much. In fact, anything that could possibly get in your way, you are already well past that. Because it's the very heart of God that beats inside of you right now.
Speaker 1:So that creativity that you feel and the energy that you tap into when you need it, that sense of drive and purpose and significance about what you will do with your life, that's God. You know that. Right? You see, sometimes, we have all of these good ideas in our head. And we have talked, and we've studied, and we understand what's going on in the Greek.
Speaker 1:And intellectually, we get it. But then there are those moments where you just need to hear someone say it to you. Look. You are stronger than you think you are, And you have more to offer than you realize you do. And you have overcome.
Speaker 1:Because there is nothing that stands between you and the creative force of the universe. All that is good is on your side. God is in you and through you. And when you love, his love is made complete in you. You know that.
Speaker 1:Right? See, this is the moment in the sermon where John comes down off the stage and he grabs someone in the front row and he says, listen, I love Jesus, and I can see him in you. And it's breathtaking. Sometimes, we need to hear someone else say the things that we struggle to believe about ourselves. Ourselves.
Speaker 1:Because sometimes when you're not strong, to hear you are strong makes you strong. And that's okay. Because you weren't supposed to be yourself by yourself. You become yourself in community. And the more you surround yourself with people who speak the truth in love, people who remind you of who you want to become, the more natural it will be to be that person.
Speaker 1:And so if you need to hear it this morning, then hear this. You are strong. And if you need to hear me say it, then hear this. You are forgiven. If you need to hear the words, then listen to me.
Speaker 1:You know him who is from the beginning. Because he is in you and through you, and he is dying to make his love complete in you. That's who you are. And this is what the table of Christ is all about for us as Christians. It's it's where good sermons turn into performance art because it's where the word of God is now spoken directly to us.
Speaker 1:We come and we hear you are forgiven, And you are strong because it was for you that Christ's body was broken and his blood was shed. So today, my dear children, I invite you to come to this sacred table because you are stronger than you know. I invite you to this table because God's love is in you and through you and it shines out from you. I see it. I invite you to come because you have overcome any evil that could possibly stand against you.
Speaker 1:Because you know the father. Because you are forgiven and welcomed and well embraced at the table of God. I invite you to come to this sacred table today because I see Jesus when I look at you. And so children and fathers and mothers and young men and young women, come. Let's eat together at the table of Christ.
Speaker 1:And when you hear the words of the Eucharist, know that they are spoken over you. Can come up the center aisle, take and eat the elements, and then return to your seat along the outside. If you are seating in the overflow in the gym, then please come up along the outside aisle by the curtain, and then you can return to your seat to the inside aisle as well. But come, let's eat together. Before we pray, I wanna remind you that we have prayer available.
Speaker 1:And if you need someone to pray with you, perhaps speak something over you. If you need to hear these words again, then please, after the service, come up to the front. There'll be people here to meet you and pray with you if you need that. But let's pray together as we close. God, thank you for this incredible gift of your starts from your generative generosity and it flows down to us.
Speaker 1:It takes root and it blossoms and it grows and it's passed on. God help us to understand that this is the divine flow that you imagined. That we would be loved by you and that we would pass that on to those around us. And in that way, your love would be made complete in us. God, as we continue to move towards you, as your spirit invites us and guides us and transforms us into the likeness of your son.
Speaker 1:May we bring the self giving love of you into every conversation that we have. And may we know that because of this we are strong. We are forgiven. We are welcomed and we are well embraced at your table. And so we come to you because you welcome us.
Speaker 1:In the strong name of the risen Christ, we pray. Amen.