I John 2.3-11: You can talk the talk, but can you walk the walk?

In a culture where everyone seems to at some level say: “yeah, I’m a Christian”, how do you know who to believe? It seems like every athlete, even some rock stars, and celebrities quickly will “thank God” yet turn around and use some four letter swear word, stumble around trashed off their butt, or talk about the girls they spent the night with the night before. In an increasingly spiritualized culture, how can we take people at their word, when they claim the name of Jesus Christ? To begin let me say that I am not judging any of the afore mentioned people, I love them and hope that their testimony of Christ is true, but if we name the name of Christ we have to do it in deed as well as the words we say.

John the apostle, the beloved disciple, faced these same issues. It’s exactly what He addresses in the second chapter of his first epistle to the early church. In verse 3-11 we will see the genuine marks of a true Christian. The premise John and we’ll work off of is what James talked about in Chapter four of the book named after him. He wrote:

“What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and have not works? Can faith save him? If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food, and one of you say unto them, ‘Depart in peace, be you warmed and filled’; notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body; what doth it profit? Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead being alone. Yea, a man may say ‘Thou hast faith, and I have works’: shew me thy faith without they works, and will shew thee my faith by my works. Thou believest that there is one God thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble. But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead? Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar? Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect? And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, ‘Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness: and he was called the Friend of God’. Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only. Likewise also was not Rahab the harlot justified by works, when she had received the messengers, and had sent them out another way? For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.” (James 2.14-26)

James is not advocating a salvation by works, which many false teachers will teach. The basic truth is there is NOTHING we can do to be accepted by God. There is nothing good enough that we can bring to the table, to have him accept us into his family. The only thing we have going for us is the death, burial, and glorious resurrection of Jesus. Without that we are completely , and utterly hopeless! What James is talking about is a salvation, unto good works! We are saved so that we can now do good. This manifests itself directly into what John is talking about here in his letter to the early church. This is what John writes:

“And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments. He that saith, ‘I know him’ and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him. He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also to walk, even as he walked. Brethren, I write no new commandment unto you, but an old commandment which ye had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which ye have head from the beginning. Again, a new commandment I write unto you, which thing is true in him and in you: because the darkness is past, and the true light now shineth. He that saith he is in the light, and hatheth his brother, is in darkness even until now. He that loveth his brother is in darkness, and walketh in darkness, and knoweth in darkness, and knoweth not wither he goeth, because that darkness hath blinded his eyes.” (I John 2.3-11)

It is high time that we started to put our money where out mouths are. John here gives us three ways in which we can measure our Christianity. He says essentially, “if you say you’re a Christian, than this is what your life will look like. This is what it will be characterized by.” 1.) You obey God (v.3-5); 2.) You imitate Christ (v.6); 3.) You love others (v.7-11). The use of the word commandments is prevalent in these verse, as these characteristics flow from the greatest commands; Love God; Love people. This is the basic summary of the ten commands given to Moses.

John tells us in verses 3 thru 5 that we know that we know Him, if we keep his commandments. He goes on to say that if we say that we know him, but don’t keep his commands, we are liars. But, we’re told, if we keep the commands, “the love of God is perfected in us” (v.5). In verse six we‘re told to imitate Christ. We are to walk as he walked, and love as he loved. This is evidence all thru the gospels and we see Jesus fulfilling this “love God, love people” command. He is constantly talking about glorifying God, constantly looking for way to bring glory to God, and always putting others above himself.
The talk of a new commandment/old commandment can be very confusing. But what John is saying is that there is not new commandment, but that loving God and loving people has been the deal since creation. However, the context in which they are to carry this out is new. The church was now facing life without Jesus. So now they had to worship under the definition of faith-the things hoped for, evidence of things not seen (Heb. 11.1). They also were going to be facing, or were already facing major persecution, which would make it difficult to love others. However, if they imitated Jesus, they would love their enemies.

John’s teaching here reiterates the Ten Commandments given to Moses. All ten can be summed up into the previous paraphrase: Love God, love people. Dealing with the first four, these all focus on loving God. “Thou shalt have no other gods before me…Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image (idols)…Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain…Remember the Sabbath and keep it holy” (Exodus 3.3-8). These first four commands deal solely with worshipping and honoring God. And if these commands be understood and practiced, especially the first two, then the rest fall into place.

Secondly we are to love people. This is the second commandment, the second half--if you will-- of the Ten Commandments. “Honor thy father and mother…Thou shalt not kill…Thou shalt not commit adultery…Thou shalt not steal…thou shalt not bear false witness (lie)…Thou shalt not covet” (Exodus 3.12-17).

How are we doing on these two commands : Love God, love people? These are the marks of a genuine faith in Christ. You can’t have one without the other. Are you just talking the talk, or can you actually walk the walk?