Love the Father, Not the World

Rev. Lucas Witt, pastor at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Baltimore, MD, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to study 1 John 2:12-17.

St. John tells us why he is writing. He desires all Christians to have confidence that their sins are forgiven by the Father for Christ’s sake. He desires older Christians to remain grounded in the truth they have been taught from the beginning. He desires younger Christians to know that the victory that Christ has won belongs to them through the abiding Word of God. For that reason, St. John warns us against the love fo the world. Those things are not from the Father and are passing away. Instead, St. John encourages us toward the will of God, which abides forever.

“The Love of God” is a series on Sharper Iron that goes through the three epistles written by St. John the Apostle and Evangelist. As St. John rejoiced to be the disciple loved by Jesus, so he writes his epistles to give us the same joy when we know that we are the beloved of God. God’s love for us in Jesus shapes our lives as Christians in all that we believe, say, and do.