After encouraging his readers by listing the privileges they have in Christ, John now gives them the first direct exhortation of the letter. Their sins are forgiven and they know God and they have overcome the evil one; consequently, they cannot and must not love the world. He not only tells them they are not […]
These verses are at first difficult to understand. John addresses what looks to be three groups of people and commends/exhorts them for three different aspects of Christianity that are true of each. He then repeats the process while slightly altering the commendations. Why he does this at this point in the letter and who exactly […]
I don’t think I’ve ever read a (an?) historical book that was more well-researched than this one. The amount of information in the story and its breadth of scope (he tells the story from both the American and British perspectives) are enormously impressive. The author obviously spent a ton of time researching before he wrote. […]
The author is an assistant professor at Duke Divinity School. She’s a believer (I think) and has faced numerous health issues in her life. The latest and most severe is that she’s been diagnosed with a terminal form of colon cancer. This book is about her dealing with her diagnosis and reconciling her circumstances to […]
First let me say that I love just about anything having to do with water. I love driving over bodies of water, I love looking at dams, and perhaps my favorite place on earth is a marina just about anywhere. If you planned a trip with an itinerary consisting solely of visiting dams and marinas, […]
In 2:3-11 John lists and discusses three tests of the faith that he says must be true of the believer. The follower of Jesus will keep His commandments (3-5a); walk in the same manner as He walked (5b-6); and love other believers (7-11). If these three things are not true about a person he cannot […]
First of all, let me clarify that this is not a biography of Kenny Rogers. You won’t learn the importance of knowing when to hold ‘em and when to fold ‘em if you read it. It’s actually a biography of Kirk Kerkorian, and the title refers to his willingness to gamble huge stakes on his […]
In 2:3-11, John lists and discusses three tests of the faith that he says must be true of the believer. The follower of Jesus will keep His commandments (3-5a); walk in the same manner as He walked (5b-6); and love other believers (7-11). If these three things are not true of him, a person cannot […]
This book was recommended to me as an interesting read about a very little-known event of major significance. My take on it is that it’s a fairly compelling read, but the event it describes didn’t seem as groundbreaking as the author tried to make it sound. The story takes place in the Jim Crow south […]
John completes the thought expressed in 1:5-10 and makes sure that what he wrote about confession and sin in 1:8-10 is not abused or misunderstood. 1 John’s tone changes in verse 1. He addresses his readers as my little children. John is likely an old man as he writes these words. He is the teacher […]
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