Daily Bread - MAR/07/07

1 John 2:19 - "They went out from us but they were not of us. If they had been of us they would have remained with us. Nevertheless it is revealed that none of them are of us."

Betrayal and broken fellowship is the hallmark of rejecting Jesus. Judas was, of course, the model of this broken trust. One of the primary themes of the first Epistle of John is the love of the brethren and the fellowship that results. John takes the position early on in this Epistle that redemption and fellowship are equally the results of fellowship with God, "If we walk in the light as He is in the light then we have fellowship one with another and the blood of Jesus Christ, His Son, cleanses us from all sin" (1 John 1:7).

The fellowship that we have with the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit is equated to the fellowship that we have with those who are begotten of God (1 John 3:17; 4:12, 20; 5:2). If an individual does not have fellowship with God then he cannot have fellowship with those who are begotten of God, and, conversely, if there is no fellowship with the brethren, there is no fellowship with God. The Epistle of 1 John provides the proofs of fellowship to distinguish between those who are of God and those who are deceivers. The chief characteristic that John gives of those who have been born of God is the love one for another. Beloved, let us love one another (1 John 4:7-8; John 13:35).

Blessings,

Pastor Mark Spitsbergen
abidingplace.org