A number of you were wondering about a follow-up to last week’s message: what do we do? I think John gives us the foundational, big-picture response in the very next section of his letter. The kind of faith that overcomes the world (and all the sin in it) is a faith founded on loving God and keeping His commands, and those commands demand that we love others as Christ loves them. So as you wrestle with how you should spread gospel hope into a groaning world, don’t forget that God’s plan is for you to be a particular kind of person as you go there. This is our focus today. What do we do? We love and serve God, so that we can love and serve others as God would have us do.

This is how we know that we love the children of God: by loving God and carrying out his commands. In fact, this is love for God: to guard, preserve and keep his commands[1]. And his commands are not burdensome, for everything born of God (*born from above)[2] overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world? Only the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God [and will therefore love him, which is expressed by keeping His commands]. (2-5)

You may have a translation that says “everyone born of God.” A better translation is “everything.” Both the commands and the reborn people who follow them are from God. When John notes how “this is the victory that overcomes the world, even our faith,” I think he means for us to understand faith in light of what he just said: it’s loving God and carrying out his commands.

He is the Anointed is the One who came by water and blood—not by the water only, but by the water and the blood. So there are three testifying witnesses: the Spirit, the water, and the blood.[3] All three are in total agreement. If we accept the testimonies of people, then we must realize the testimony of God is greater than that of any person.[4] God certified the truth about His own Son. Anyone who trusts the Son of God has this truthful testimony at the core of his being. Anyone who does not trust God calls God a liar because he ignores God’s truthful testimony regarding His own Son. (6-10)

Don’t get too hung up on the water, blood and Spirit trifecta. The Law said something was established by the testimony of three witnesses. John gives three witnesses to Jesus’ claim that he was the Son of God: His baptism, his death, and the witness of the Holy Spirit.

And this is the truth: God has given us the gift of eternal life, and this life is in His Son. If you have the Son, you have eternal life. If you do not have the Son of God, you are not acquainted with that kind of life. I am writing all of this to you who have entrusted your lives to the Son of God—so you will realize eternal life already is yours. (11-13)

This is where I want to land today. John looooves the phrase ”eternal life”. It’s used 41 times in the New Testament, and he uses half of them.[5]

· John 3:36 “ Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on them.”

· John 4:14 “But whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”

· John 5:24 “ Very truly I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life.”

· John 6:47 “Very truly I tell you, the one who believes has eternal life.”

· John 6:54 “Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.”

· John 10:28 “I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand.”

· John 17:3 “Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.”

Paul told Timothy, “Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called.” (1 Timothy 6:12) I don’t think Paul was encouraging a fellow believer to kill himself. Every commentary I read said something like this: Believers have begun "eternal (aiṓnios) life" right now, experiencing this quality of God's life now as a present possession.[6] All the discussion that follows on eternal life as understood in the time of Jesus is from Lois Tverberg,[7] writing in “Eternal Life, Here and Now.” [8]

Around the time Jesus lived, the rabbis were discussing the difference between hayei olam (Hi-YAY Oh-LAHM), meaning eternal life, which is contrasted with hayei sha’ah (Hi-YAY Sha-AH), which means fleeting or earthly life. This wasn’t about before death and after death. Hayei olamwas “lasting life,” and it referred to living in a way that focused on matters of eternal importance. Hayei sha’ah was about only being concerned with short-term material needs of today: working, making money, eating, etc.[9]

This is what John is talking about.[10] We as followers of Jesus have hayei olam, and it begins now. Let’s go with John 4:14’s image: “the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” If you go to where the Boardman pops out of the ground, and put your kayak in, you are on the Boardman river. But the spring is just the beginning. That river will take you somewhere. You are on the river “now” but you are “not yet” where it plans to take you.[11]

So, how do we start eternal life now? John is clear in his gospel: Knowing God is eternal life. Knowing has to do with being transformed into the image of Christ, having the Holy Spirit at work in us, absorbing the truth of God’s word, ordering our life around the things of God, seeking to see God at work in every situation… It’s an active, all-encompassing, total life surrender and make over.

Eternal life starts with living in God's righteous path centered in God's will, making it our highest priority to further God’s interests and kingdom in every way by having eyes that see what Jesus sees, hearts that respond like the heart of Jesus, and hands that do what Jesus would do. Then, what starts now finds its perfection in life eternal in the world to come.[12]

My best explanation of what this looks like practically is the Beatitudes (Matthew 5:3-11). “Blessed are the…” There are two Greek words that Matthew could have used for blessed: one signifies “human happiness” while the other carries the idea of living the kind of life the gods live. Matthew chose the latter, makarios, to talk about participating in life with God. He chose to use a word about lasting life (hayei olam) over fleeting life (hayei sha’ah).

There are numerous ways people have unpacked the Beatitudes, and that’s probably fair, because the Bible is multi-faceted and rich. This is a way of understanding them that rises to the top for me.

We begin with “blessed are the poor in spirit.” These are the ones who understand the situation: they are broken, part of the groaning creation that longs for redemption. They are spiritually in trouble. But in spite of this, they are makarios, because recognizing the problem is the first step in inheriting the Kingdom of Heaven. The first beatitude gives the correct diagnosis: our spiritual illness makes us sick. To partially quote the first step in a lot of recovery groups, “We admit that we are powerless, and our lives have become unmanageable.”[13]

Next comes “blessed are the mourners.” They are not only aware of the problem, they bemoan the fact. They grieve their spiritual loss and the damage in the world. They are emotionally engaged now. They are thinking about the situation the way God thinks about it (“man of sorrows, acquainted with grief”[14]), and they have attached the proper emotion. But they, too are blessed, because they will be comforted. Salvation and redemption are at work in the world. God specializes at moving into these places.[15]

“Blessed are the gentle/meek/humble.” The same word is used in the Greek for bulls who pull a plow or horses that pull a chariot. Or think of the image in Job of the war horse pawing as he waits for his rider before entering the battle. They are the ones who are willing to be harnessed into the service of the Kingdom. They know that by themselves they are wild and untamed; they know that they need to be controlled, because on their own they will just tear things up. They know that if their life is harnessed in the right cause, they can be strong in the service of something greater than themselves. They begin to gain a sense of what their life might mean to others.[16]

The meek, the harnessed, are the ones who are blessed, because the owner of the earth is passing on an inheritance to those who know what it’s like to be stewarded, because they will know how to steward well in turn.

The first three beatitudes lay a foundation: brokenness, humility, servanthood. Three requirements for entering into life with God. There are no shortcuts. You can’t get around these. If you are in the Kingdom, but don’t feel as if you are experiencing life in the Kingdom, re-examine this part of your life.

* * * * *

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness.” This is a worldview shift. While in sin, people hunger for riches, money, honors, and physical pleasures. They never consider spiritual riches, or may even think they are a waste of time. But the fruit of brokenness, humility, and repentance is the longing for spiritual satisfaction. "Blessed are they who hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled."

These hungry folk have understood the problem; they have mourned their condition, and realized the answer was to live a life in submission to God. Their strength has been harnessed in God’s service, but the harder they work, the hungrier they get. They are not content to just remain as they are. They want lasting life (hayei olam) over fleeting life (hayei sha’ah).

Now, for the first time, we see people actively seeking for God. They are glad God pursued them, but they are now pursuing Him as well. They are not content simply to be. These people are blessed, because God will “reward those who diligently seek him.” When we do as the Psalmist said and “taste and see that the Lord is good,” we do want more. And what we get is a glimpse of what we will one day ultimately experience.[17]

Jesus’s next category is the first category that specifies righteous action: In one ’s relations with other people — when one reaches beyond oneself toward another — “Blessed are the merciful.”

Being merciful involves understanding the proper use of authority and power. All that mercy requires is a position of the barest advantage over another, even for the most fleeting of moments. Whenever the merciful are in a situation where their actions can have an impact, they show mercy. With power comes responsibility, and the merciful are always thinking about how to pass on the mercy they were shown. They want to be a mirror of God to the world.[18] The merciful are blessed because the mercy that they show to others will be returned to them – perhaps by others, but by God for sure.[19]

“Blessed are the “pure in heart.”. The pure in heart are blessed, because they not only mirror God’s life, they participate in it. They will catch clearer and clearer glimpses of God’s nature as they participate in His character, and it will increasingly define the primary instincts of their heart and mind. The pure in heart will see God, because the more we get out of the way, the more God gains clarity in our hearts and minds.[20]

“Blessed are the peacemakers,” those whose actions reflect a God who sacrificed himself to make peace with us. This is a difficult move, because we are not just “peacekeepers.” Peace Makers seek out hostile environments, and they make peace, often at cost to themselves. We think of it often as what happens in war zones, or in genocidal countries….but it can happen in your house...in this church…. at school, at work, among your friends… It cost Jesus a crucifixion; it will cost us too:

· we have to sometimes bite our tongue and sometimes loose it

· we have to swallow our pride

· we have to check our emotions

· we have to give unmerited favor (grace)

· we have to both do justice and love mercy

· we have to be broken and spilled out…

all for the sake of the high calling of bringing God’s peace into places that lack it. The blessed of God’s kingdom mourn the lack of peace and take righteous action to make peace.[21]

“Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness….when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me.” In this group, we find those whose desire for righteousness has been translated into action. They are bold; they have to be. This will not be easy. Hardship, discomfort, and persecution may follow. They are dedicated to bringing Truth and Mercy and Peace and Life to everyone. They are willing to pay the ultimate price for the sake of the Gospel.[22] Their reward in the life to come will be great.

So that is what it means to participate in hayei olam (eternal life), makarios (the life of the gods – or specifically, the life of God). Know Jesus – which must result in increasingly becoming like him.

* * * * *

Let’s #practicerighteousness this week.

1.Look at the Beatitudes carefully and prayerfully, and identify one in which you know you need divine help.

2. Confess this to God – and to at least one other person

3. Pray for God’s power to be made perfect in your weakness

4. Exercise God’s power (“practice righteousness”) purposefully in this area.

5. Stay in accountability for a season with the person in #2.

__________________________________________________________________________
[1] HELPS Word Studies

[2] “Everything” is a better translation than “everyone.” So it’s people, but it’s also God-breathed words of revelation: the Law, the Prophets, etc. Note that in John 3:3 translations will use both “born from above” and “born again.”

[3] John is riffing on himself J (John 3:3-5; 19:34; 20:20, 25–27).

[4] In both the OT and NT important issues were decided with the testimony of two or three witnesses (Deut 17:6; 19:15; John 8:17; 2 Cor 13:1; 1 Tim 5:19; Heb 10:28).The water is probably a reference to his baptism John the Baptist; the Spirit the descending of the Holy Spirit as a dove; “by . . . blood” a reference to his death.

[5] Matt 19:16, 29; 25:46; Mark 10:17, 30; Luke 10:25; 18:18, 30; John 3:15 -16, 36; 4:14; 5:24, 39; 6:27, 40, 47, 54, 68; 10:28; 12:50; 17:2-3; Acts 13:46, 48; Rom 2:7; 5:21; 6:22f; Gal 6:8; 1 Tim 1:16; 6:12; Titus 1:2; 3:7; 1John 1:2; 2:25; 3:15; 5:11, 13, 20; Jude 1:21. I don’t know where I got this list. Probably Precept Austin.

[6] Robert W. Yarbrough says this relates especially to the quality of life in this age, and to both the quality and duration of life in the age to come. (Quoted at preceptaustin.com) Also, “"Eternal (166 /aiṓnios) life operates simultaneously outside of time, inside of time, and beyond time – i.e. what gives time its everlasting meaning for the believer through faith, yet is also time-independent.” (HELPS Word Studies)

[7] Read her excellent book, Walking In The Footsteps Of Rabbi Jesus

[8] https://engediresourcecenter.com/2019/09/24/eternal-life-here-and-now/

[9] The rabbis believed that the study of Scripture one of the most important ways you could partake in hayei olam. Jesus is likely critiquing this when he says, “You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life.” (John 5:39-40)

[10] Paul also spoke about hayei olam in Romans. “We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life… For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him. The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God. In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your body to him as instruments of righteousness.” (Romans 6:4, 6-13)

[11] It reminds me of what God’s messenger told Daniel: “As for you, go your way till the end. You will rest, and then at the end of the days you will rise to receive your allotted inheritance.” (Daniel 12:13) You got inheritance from your father in those days. Daniel was already a child of God, experiencing the fullness of life as a child of God. There was an inheritance in store, but meanwhile there was life in God’s family.

[12] https://www.studylight.org/dictionaries/eng/bed/e/eternal-life-eternality-everlasting-life.html

[13] The opposite is pride. Cursed, or Miserable, are the proud, those who think they are okay, the ones who think they are all put together. The hardest kids to coach are not the ones who know they are terrible; it is the ones who think they’ve got it all together. The hardest person to counsel…the hardest novice to train… The Cursed would say, “I admit that I am powerful, and my life will be what I make it.”

[14] Isaiah 53:3

[15] In contrast, “Miserable are the hardened.” They know there are problems in them and around them, but they convince themselves that they will be okay, or that’s it’s nothing to be worried about, and they detach the proper emotion from this reality. They distract themselves or drown their emotions or convince themselves simply not to mourn the state of the world. They know the diagnosis, but they hate the cure.

[16] In contrast are those who are miserable/cursed because they want to remain wild. They don’t want a constructive or a structured life. They don’t want authority; they want to do their own thing, follow their own heart, put their strength toward themselves, not bring their lives into submission to others. They are all about the self. It’s the difference between Sinatra’s “I Did It My Way” and the Lord’s Prayer of “Thy will be done.”

[17] But those who hunger after unrighteousness always want more too. The difference is that what they are consuming is making them emptier. They “Taste and see that X is fun, or entertaining, or gets me friends, or distracts me, or numbs me,” and don’t realize it is not good, and that it will never fill them, no matter how much they consume. They are satisfied with the temporary illusion of fullness. Only one of these options is the life of the blessed.

[18] In contrast, the miserable/cursed are the merciless, those who take every ounce of power they have and try to turn it into a pound. Literally, they pound people with power. They are users of others to benefit themselves. If the merciful think of their responsibility toward others, the miserable think of other people’s responsibility toward them.

[19] Remember “forgive us our sins, even as we forgive those who sin against us”?

[20] The miserable, then, are devious, the corrupt in heart. They do not think like God, they do not feel like God, and they wallow in it. Even if they do good things, it is not because they want to. It is because they have to, or because they have found a way to blend self-serving acts with what appear to be good deeds. The devious in heart will not see God, because they are so busy seeing themselves.

[21] In contrast are the miserable/cursed, those who disrupt the peace. They have not experienced or don’t understand the mercy or peace God has offered them, so they don’t pass it on. They leave a trail of discord behind them wherever they go. It’s gossip, unforgiveness, the love of drama, the creation of tension and anger when there was none. Instead of seeking out situations in which to make peace, they move into peace-filled situations and make strife.

[22] In contrast are the miserable/cursed, those who persecute the righteous. They, too are bold. They hate the message of Mercy and Peace, because it undermines their lives. They are glad to make the righteous and even the unrighteous pay, because they hate the message and the messenger.