Ep. 123 | 123 John Part 5: A New Commandment
Speaker: Jesse Turkington
Available on all podcasting platforms
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Available on all podcasting platforms -
Summary
123 John Part 5
Jesse presents John's "new" commandment and explores the apparent contradiction of its newness.
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Scriptures Explored: 1 John 2:7-11, Matthew 5:17-18, Matthew 22:36-40, John 13:34-35, John 15:9-12, Jeremiah 31:31-34, John 8:12.
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You can reach Jesse at: jesse@parableministries.com
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contact@parableministries.com
https://www.parableministries.com
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If you feel led, give to the work of Parable:
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Music created by Chad Hoffman
Artwork created by Anthony Kuenzi
Speaker’s Bio
Jesse Turkington is the executive director of Parable Ministries and has been a Bible teacher since 2014. When Jesse was just finishing high school, he started a little Bible study at his parent’s house. Little did he know, this Bible study would change the direction of his life. He fell in love with the richness of the Bible and he wanted to pursue serious study. About 10 years later, Jesse still carries that passion for the Bible and from this passion was born Parable Ministries - a Bible teaching resource. Jesse believes that the Bible is a life changing book and that it can transform the way we view the world.
Transcript
Intro:
Hey there, welcome to Pickled Parables. This podcast is presented by Parable Ministries as a Bible teaching resource. Thank you for joining us. Pickled Parables is a podcast about taking in and living out the Bible. Here we will study, contemplate and testify to the Bible's incredible teachings and how it leads us to live better lives. To stay up to date with all things parable, follow us on Instagram at parable underscore ministries and visit our website at parableministries.com. We hope today's message finds you well.
Message:
Hey everybody, it's your boy Jesse.
I get to share the next two passages in our First John series.
This episode will focus on our first passage, chapter two, verses seven through 11.
This paragraph is fun to explore because it's a direct result of Jesus' teachings being meditated on and thoughtfully being put into practice.
With this letter being attributed to the Apostle John, it makes sense that his content would reflect the profound teachings that changed his life.
We have in all four of the Gospel accounts, collections of Jesus' teachings arranged in a way to help tell a story, the story of Jesus.
Several of the Apostles had a hand in crafting these Gospel accounts, and throughout the Pastoral Epistles and the General Epistles, we get to see how Jesus' teachings have been adopted by his closest followers.
For instance, let's take a look at our first few verses.
Beloved, I am writing you no new commandment, but an old commandment that you had from the beginning.
The old commandment is the word that you have heard.
At the same time, it is a new commandment that I am writing to you, which is true in him and in you, because the darkness is passing away and the true light is already shining.
Whoever says he is in the light and hates his brother, he's still in the darkness.
Whoever loves his brother abides in the light, and in him there is no cause for stumbling.
But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and he doesn't know where he's going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.
Without remembering Jesus' teachings, this passage could be a little confusing.
There's an apparent contradiction of, this is not a new commandment, it's an old commandment, but it's a new commandment that I give to you.
Without some sort of context, that doesn't make a lot of sense.
We soon learn that this old commandment, which is now new, is to love your brother and sister in Christ, and it highlights the danger of hating your brother or sister.
So to fully understand what John is aiming for here, let's look at the teachings he's referring to.
The first one will be in the Gospel of Matthew.
Right in the middle of Jesus' sermon on the mount, Jesus declares, Do not think that I have come to abolish the law, the old covenant law, or the prophets.
I have not come to abolish them, but to fulfill them.
For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the law until all is accomplished.
And later, near the end of Matthew's Gospel account, Jesus is approached by an old covenant lawyer, a Pharisee, and asked, Teacher, what is the greatest commandment in the law?
And Jesus said to him, You shall love the Lord your God with all of your heart, with all of your soul, and with all of your mind.
This is the great and first commandment.
And a second is like it.
You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
On these two commandments depend all of the law and the prophets.
Then in John's Gospel, after Jesus washed his disciples' feet, he tells them, A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another.
Just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.
By this, all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.
A little bit later in this conversation, Jesus adds, As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you.
Abide in my love.
If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love.
These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and your joy may be full.
This is my commandment, that you love one another, as I have loved you.
As we can see, this commandment to love God and others is not a new commandment.
Like Jesus said, it is the very first of the old commandments from Deuteronomy, chapter 6.
Yet in the Upper Room Discourse, this command is instituted again by Jesus, telling his disciples, this is my commandment.
Love one another, as I have loved you.
See, Jesus did not come to abolish the Old Testament law, but rather to embody the heart of the law and fulfill it in complete obedience.
It reaches all the way back to the promise of a new covenant that was declared by a prophet in the Old Testament.
In Jeremiah, chapter 31, it says, Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah.
I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
No longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, Know the Lord, for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the Lord.
I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.
As the old law came from the heart of God, so Jesus carried it out in perfect submission.
Through the work of Jesus Christ, mankind can be reconciled before God.
Just as Hunter presented in the last episode, Jesus is our propitiation.
He is our advocate before the Father.
He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.
And by this, we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments.
Thus, through the adoptive agency of Christ, and through the indwelling of his Holy Spirit, we then carry the heart of God's law within us.
Like Jeremiah says, I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts.
The fruit of the Spirit then grows within us as we intentionally walk with God.
This is a long process that leads from positional sanctification to progressive sanctification.
All of this comes about because of Jesus completing the Old Covenant and ratifying a New Covenant with his death and resurrection.
So as Jesus says in the Gospel of John, this is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.
Jesus is once again highlighting the heart of the Old Covenant law, and its driving force that leads into the New Covenant.
Jesus as the Revealer makes what was old into something new.
It also becomes something new for its larger audience.
While the Old Covenant law was made between God and the people of Abraham, this New Covenant invites people of all nations to join it.
People who have not yet heard of the Old Covenant law.
So as we come back to 1 John chapter 2 verse 7, we can see the result of Jesus' teachings influencing John's words.
John says, Beloved, I am writing you no new commandment, but an old commandment that you had from the beginning.
The Old Commandment is the word that you have heard.
At the same time, it is a new commandment that I am writing to you, which is true in Jesus and in you, because the darkness is passing away, and the true light is already shining.
This new commandment that was given by Jesus to his disciples, and now from one of his disciples to the church, is wrapped up in the example of Christ.
Love one another as I have loved you.
It's suspected that throughout this letter, John is making a defense against people bringing in new and contradicting teachings.
In 1 John 2, verse 26, it says, I write these things to you about those who are trying to deceive you.
Thus, we can understand John's goal in bringing the focus back to Jesus and his specific teachings.
Let's follow the example of Christ.
Let's love one another as Christ so dearly loved us.
John uses the examples of light and darkness to show the contrast of walking in the example of Christ versus walking in the shadow of self.
As John recorded in his gospel, Jesus declared, I am the light of the world.
To be near Jesus, to practice his examples and to follow his teachings is to walk in the light.
But to merely pay lip service to or abstain from Jesus' commandments is to shun the light and walk in darkness.
John continues in verse 9, Whoever says he is in the light and hates his brother, he is still in darkness.
Whoever loves his brother abides in the light, and in him there is no cause for stumbling.
But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and he doesn't know where he is going because the darkness has blinded his eyes.
Remember how Jesus said, As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you.
Abide in my love.
Whoever loves his brother abides in the light.
Taking inspiration from Jesus' teachings, John prompts his readers to remember the example of Christ, and to follow through on his command to love one another as I have loved you.
My dear friends, let us remember the teachings of Jesus.
Let us walk in the light of the great I am, the light of the world, and follow his example.
Like Jesus said in John chapter 8, I am the light of the world.
Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.
It's clear that these teachings had an incredible impact on Jesus' disciples.
And here, John shares with such eloquence what he learned from Jesus.
Let us love one another, as Christ has loved us.
Outro:
Thank you for listening to Pickled Parables. If you enjoyed this message, please rate us, subscribe and share with your friends. If you're interested in more things like this, check out our secondary podcast called My Dusky Bible. To stay up to date with all things Parable, follow us on Instagram at parable underscore ministries and visit our website at parableministries.com. Parable is a volunteer organization and we would deeply appreciate your prayers. Thank you for joining us today, we'll catch you later.
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