Love Your Neighbor (1 John 4.7-21)

This section in 1 John is one of the most compelling calls to love each other (our neighbors) in the whole Bible. In other areas of the Bible, love of neighbor is seen as central in the work of the Law (the first five books of the Old Testament) and the Prophet (a majority of the rest of the Old Testament) – it comes from obedience (the Law) or correction (the Prophets). But John tells us that love for our neighbor ushers us into the very heart and life of God. God’s nature is an ever flowing circle of love that seemlessly connects
Father,
Son,
and Holy Spirit.
When we love one another,
we step into that triune circle of love
and are caught up in the giving and receiving,
the emptying and filling,
the sacrifice and fullness,
the ongoing and endless energy that binds the whole universe together and makes it sing.
We step into
the oldest,
largest,
and most mysterious experience humans have ever known
by simply loving each other.

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About the Author

Isaac Gaff is the Managing Director of Worship and Creative Arts at Calvary UMC

God Stories (The Shake Family and FPU)

Adam and Nicole Shake tell their story about the impact of taking a Financial Peace University class. Calvary is offering two opportunities this fall to jump in. Go here for more info.

Deeper Dive Podcast (1 John 4.7-21)

Debbie and Isaac talk about how the love of God is manifested among in the triune life of God and how we're brought into that life of love.

Listen in your device's podcast app – Apple version here and Android version here or use the desktop-only player below.

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About the Authors
Debbie Reese is the Co-Directing Pastor at Calvary UMC
Isaac Gaff is the Managing Director of Worship and Creative Arts at Calvary UMC

Teach Us to Pray (1 John 4.7-21)

"God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them."

John gives us one of the simplest, yet mysterious revelations about God in the middle of his chapter. One of the ways to access this kind of simple-yet-mysterious kind of reality in prayer is to use this verse as a kind of centering prayer. Center prayer is practiced by using a short phrase as a focal point during your time of prayer. When distracting thoughts come into your mind, you can return to this focal point (the center) and continue to listen and quiet your mind. Sometimes varied repetition (repeating the phrase with different emphasis)  helps make us aware of both the parts and the whole.

As you pray today, try using John's phrase as an anchor for your prayer time. Come back to it when you get lost. Let it lead you into new moments of listening and quiet appreciation of God.

"God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them."

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About the Author
Isaac Gaff is the Managing Director of Worship and Creative Arts at Calvary UMC

Sunday Worship (1 John 4:7-21)

This week we'll be exploring 1 John 4:7-21.  

Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.

This is how we know that we live in him and he in us: He has given us of his Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us.

God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.

We love because he first loved us. Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister.

Each Sunday you can find the live stream here or watch the archive here. 

A Light to My Path (1 John 4:7-21)

Our text for the coming week is 1 John 4:17-21:

Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.

This is how we know that we live in him and he in us: He has given us of his Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us.

God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.

We love because he first loved us. Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister.

Question for Reflection: 

“God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them” is the kind of idea that continues to give insight the more you ponder it. In other words, there’s no end to the understanding, impact, and application you encounter when you consider John’s statement. Take a few moments today to consider those words, then set aside some time tomorrow to do that as well.

Who Is My Neighbor? (Parkside Elementary)

As children are going back to school and getting into their academic schedules again, the Promise Council of Parkside Elementary organized their annual "100 Caring Adults" morning for Tuesday, August 22.  Because we have a relationship with Parkside through the Backpack Ministry as well as a willingness to fill other needs as they arise, several Calvary folks went to the school early Tuesday morning to welcome the students and cheer them on toward a great year.  The intent is to let the students (and staff) know that they are not alone....that the community is supporting them all the way.

It was so much fun to encourage these children as they entered the school on their 2nd week of class.  While we didn't handed out food or provide shelter or medical care or tend to any other physical need, we helped to give these children what all of us need:  encouragement and support.  That's part of being the Body of Christ in the world. 

It was a rainy, cloudy day, but the Son was shining as we cheered for these children.  What difference could we all make it we just encouraged the children that we see everyday?  "Jesus said, 'Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for the Kingdom of Heaven belongs to such as these.'" Mathew 19:14.

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About the Author
Debbie Reese is the Co-Directing Pastor of Calvary UMC

Love Your Neighbor (Luke 5.17-26)

On Monday, we explored what Jesus' subversive reexamination of what's important and what's not in the life of faith through the lens of prayer. Today, that same reexamination is timely when it comes to loving our neighbors.
In Luke 5.17-26, Jesus subverts the common idea that forgiveness is something that should be held tightly and controlled through a system of religious ideals and professionals (the Pharisees and Teachers of the Law). In this story, Jesus unleashed forgiveness for this paralyzed man, but he also set in motion one of the foundational practices for what he calls the Kingdom of God – the practice of forgiveness as a continual and frequent experience, both received and given by those who are a part of this new thing God was (and is) doing. The Lord's Prayer is a great example of this received/given pattern of forgiveness: "forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us."
As you encounter your neighbor today, step into that healing circle/flow of forgiveness. If they've wronged you, forgive. If you've wronged them, make amends. When we step into the virtuous circle of forgiveness, the world becomes more like the world God longs for it to be - a world where each person recognizes the value, worth, uniqueness, and solidarity of the other in, by, and through the grace of God.

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About the Author
Isaac Gaff is the Managing Director of Worship and Creative Arts at Calvary UMC

God Stories (Ryan Watkins on Workcamp 2017)

Ryan Watkins and Michael Pitzer talk about Ryan's Workcamp 2017 experience.

Deeper Dive Podcast (Luke 5.17-26)

Debbie, Randy, and Isaac unpack more of Luke's account of the healing of the paralyzed man in Luke 5.17-26.

Listen in your device's podcast app – Apple version here and Android version here or use the desktop-only player below.  

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About the Authors
Randy and Debbie Reese are Co-Directing Pastors at Calvary UMC
Isaac Gaff is the Managing Director of Worship and Creative Arts at Calvary UMC

Teach Us to Pray (Luke 5.17-26)

In this section of Luke's gospel, Luke begins a progressive teaching section that races toward what we commonly know as the 'sermon on the mount' (which happens on a plain in Luke's Gospel). Luke shows Jesus subverting many of the religious assumptions of his day through his ministry of healing (the leper and paralytic), eating (fellowship with "sinners"), and reworked spirituality (fasting and sabbath keeping).

One of Jesus' main actions in the gospels is the call to reexamine ourselves and our practices in light of God's work among us. As you have time, read through chapters 5 and 6 of Luke. As you pray today, use those moments in prayer to ask God to subvert your own assumptions of what it means to follow Jesus.

Sunday Worship (Luke 5.17-26)

This week we'll be exploring Luke 5.17-26:  

One day Jesus was teaching, and Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting there. They had come from every village of Galilee and from Judea and Jerusalem. And the power of the Lord was with Jesus to heal the sick. Some men came carrying a paralyzed man on a mat and tried to take him into the house to lay him before Jesus. When they could not find a way to do this because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and lowered him on his mat through the tiles into the middle of the crowd, right in front of Jesus.

When Jesus saw their faith, he said, “Friend, your sins are forgiven.”

The Pharisees and the teachers of the law began thinking to themselves, “Who is this fellow who speaks blasphemy? Who can forgive sins but God alone?”

Jesus knew what they were thinking and asked, “Why are you thinking these things in your hearts? Which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So he said to the paralyzed man, “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.” Immediately he stood up in front of them, took what he had been lying on and went home praising God. Everyone was amazed and gave praise to God. They were filled with awe and said, “We have seen remarkable things today.”

Each Sunday you can find the live stream here or watch the archive here. 

A Light to My Path (Luke 5.17-26)

This coming week we'll be looking at Luke 5.17-26:

One day Jesus was teaching, and Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting there. They had come from every village of Galilee and from Judea and Jerusalem. And the power of the Lord was with Jesus to heal the sick. Some men came carrying a paralyzed man on a mat and tried to take him into the house to lay him before Jesus. When they could not find a way to do this because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and lowered him on his mat through the tiles into the middle of the crowd, right in front of Jesus.

When Jesus saw their faith, he said, “Friend, your sins are forgiven.”

The Pharisees and the teachers of the law began thinking to themselves, “Who is this fellow who speaks blasphemy? Who can forgive sins but God alone?”

Jesus knew what they were thinking and asked, “Why are you thinking these things in your hearts? Which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So he said to the paralyzed man, “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.” Immediately he stood up in front of them, took what he had been lying on and went home praising God. Everyone was amazed and gave praise to God. They were filled with awe and said, “We have seen remarkable things today.”

Question for Reflection:

One of the issues in this section of Luke's Gospel is the tight hold on forgiveness (both our reception of forgiveness and our giving of it). Does forgiveness flow as easily between you and others?

Who Is My Neighbor? (Workcamp 2017 Part 3)

This week we bring you part 3, the final of “Who Is My Neighbor” from the Senior High Workcamp participants who went to Crossville, TN this year to share the love of Christ.  Here are more testimonies from the youth:

“This week my neighbor told us that she had been in a really dark place for months after her husband died. She said that she had been praying for light and that then we showed up. I just thought this was an awesome God moment since the theme for the week was “Light It Up”.”

“My neighbor cried when we left claiming that we are God’s little angels and the only thing missing were the wings. We impacted her on a new level.”

“When Danen Kane talked about his friend struggling and sang the song he wrote for her.”

“I saw the light of Christ this week in the joy of our neighbors when they saw we had finished work on their house.”

“I saw the light of Christ in all of the girls and their willingness to get to know each other and be open!”

”I found the light of Christ when I was talking to the neighbor. She was just so thankful and I just knew that Christ had a great plan for me and that I had really found him.” - Sydney Garrells

“I saw the light of Christ in my neighbor. She provided us with food even though she did not have a lot of money. She also willingly shared her story with us and was the best neighbor I ever had in my past 5 years.”

“I saw God this week in my injury. Out of all the possible injuries that could have occurred, a cleanly broken left pinkie toe is the least painful. I am thankful that I was not more seriously injured. Also, I thank you Lord for keeping me as safe as you did.”

“I saw the light of Christ in many places this week. First of all, I saw it in the faces of many of my peers. So many of the youth were simply on fire for God. One specific peer stuck by me all week and taught me what it meant to follow Christ wholeheartedly. She has such a big heart and loves every single person so dearly. This week Tasha showed me unending friendship and compassion. Tasha showed me what a Godly woman is and how exactly she should act. Tasha showed me what determination meant in all that she did and said. Tasha became a forever friend in simply a week and I’m so glad God blessed me with such a great companion.”

Love Your Neighbor (1 John 5.6-15; 4.16-21)

As we talked about in Tuesday's podcast, John's first letter is an incredibly rich appeal to the churches who received John's letter. As we consider how to better love our neighbor this week, I want to jump to the end of the chapter that comes right before the text we talked about Sunday (1 John 5.6-15):

God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. We love because he first loved us. Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister.
1 John 4:16b–21 (NIV)

John reminds us that our claim about loving God first begins in the action of loving our neighbor. In fact, he says that you can't have one without the other. Understandably, this is a hard thing to do – almost impossible. But John reminds us at the beginning of this passage that "we are like Jesus. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment." In a world where fear is used on a regular basis to prompt us to not love our neighbors, John reminds us that in this world we take on the fear-dispelling nature of Jesus – a nature that is centered, grounded, and continually revolves around a love that operates out of identity with the other ('in the flesh' or incarnation, John would say)  instead of fear of the other. May God fill us with that kind of love today and in these days ahead.

God Stories (Tasha Schuckman on Workcamp 2017)

Calvary member Tasha Schuckman talks with Michael Pitzer about her workcamp experience this past July.

Deeper Dive Podcast (1 John 5.6-15)

Randy, Debbie, and Isaac talk about the first century gnostics challenge to the churches John was caring for along with how we think about "in" and "out" in Christianity.

Listen in your device's podcast app – Apple version here and Android version here or use the desktop-only player below.

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Questions or discussion? Click here to comment.

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About the Authors
Randy and Debbie Reese are Co-Directing Pastors at Calvary UMC
Isaac Gaff is the Managing Director of Worship and Creative Arts at Calvary UMC

Teach Us to Pray (1 John 5.6-15)

The last part of our text for this week says:

“13 I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life. 14 This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. 15 And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him.”

When we pull this section out of John’s flow of thought in his letter, we might be tempted to make broader generalizations about God’s will (and what’s in and what’s out of God’s will and what we ask for in alignment with that will). But John doesn’t leave it that open-ended. He goes on to say:

“16 If you see any brother or sister commit a sin that does not lead to death, you should pray and God will give them life. (I refer to those whose sin does not lead to death. There is a sin that leads to death. I am not saying that you should pray about that. 17 All wrongdoing is sin, and there is sin that does not lead to death.) 18 We know that anyone born of God does not continue to sin; the One who was born of God keeps them safe, and the evil one cannot harm them.”

I put parentheses around the last half of v 16 and v17 because they really function as a footnote for John - something that needs to be noted but is not the main point of his thought flow – so for now, let’s set those verses aside and look at the whole thing again:

“13 I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life. 14 This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. 15 And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him. 16 If you see any brother or sister commit a sin that does not lead to death, you should pray and God will give them life. 18 We know that anyone born of God does not continue to sin; the One who was born of God keeps them safe, and the evil one cannot harm them.”

Part of our prayer life, according to John, is the assurance that sin does not have power over us and that God’s will for us is to have lives where the marring and scaring effects of sin become less and less as we approach God more and more. God’s will centers around our confident/assured approach to connecting with the One who continually offers renewal, grace, and peace as he calls and receives us back to himself again and again and again and again…

As you pray today, rest in the knowledge that sin does not have final power over us. Know that God’s desire is to pour a life that is eternally new into your spirit each and every day.

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About the Author

Isaac Gaff is the Managing Director of Worship and Creative Arts at Calvary UMC

Sunday Worship (1 John 5:6-15)

This week we'll be exploring 1 John 5:6-15).  

This is the one who came by water and blood—Jesus Christ. He did not come by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. For there are three that testify: the Spirit, the water and the blood; and the three are in agreement. We accept human testimony, but God’s testimony is greater because it is the testimony of God, which he has given about his Son. Whoever believes in the Son of God accepts this testimony. Whoever does not believe God has made him out to be a liar, because they have not believed the testimony God has given about his Son. And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.

I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life. This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him.

Each Sunday you can find the live stream here or watch the archive here. 

A Light to My Path (1 John 5.6-15)

Our text for the following week is 1 John 5.6-15:

This is the one who came by water and blood—Jesus Christ. He did not come by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. For there are three that testify: the Spirit, the water and the blood; and the three are in agreement. We accept human testimony, but God’s testimony is greater because it is the testimony of God, which he has given about his Son. Whoever believes in the Son of God accepts this testimony. Whoever does not believe God has made him out to be a liar, because they have not believed the testimony God has given about his Son. And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.

I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life. This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him.

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Question for Reflection

In a world that is placing less and less emphasis on the validity of testimony, why do you think the Apostle John leans heavily on testimony in this section of his letter?