Slideshow image

23 “And this is his commandment, that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he has commanded us.”

1 John 3:23

In verse 23, the Apostle specifies which commandment he referred to in verse 22. This is the charge that guarantees fellowship with God and answered prayers (petitions that align with God’s purposes). When Christians keep God’s commandments, they can come boldly into His presence and present their requests.

Bible experts say there are 613 commandments in the Old Testament and 1,050 in the New Testament. Now that’s way too many for us to even consider knowing, let alone obeying!

Jesus knew that, so He summarized those 1,663 commandments into two:

37 And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

Matthew 22:37-39

When we examine all of those mandates, we will conclude that the most important of them is to love God and others. But love does not happen without a cause. Therefore, John tells his readers an important commandment: to believe who Jesus is and what He’s done.

John’s usage of the word “believe,” (Greek “pisteuo”) consists of three elements:

  • to be persuaded that Jesus is the Son of God and Messiah
  • to be convicted by an inner and higher prerogative of the soul
  • to entrust one’s salvation to Jesus Christ.

As we can see, believing goes far beyond mere intellectual assent. Thousands of people during Jesus’ time saw Him, heard Him teach, and saw Him perform countless acts of God. Many believed in Him, but Jesus did not entrust Himself to them because He knew their faith was superficial (John 2:24). Believe it or not, even demons have this kind of faith (James 2:19), and they even tremble in fear!

True saving faith produces genuine love for God, allowing us to love others. Our faith will prove to be real only if it enables us to express our love for God by extending His grace to others. Believing in God and loving Him are not two separate commands. They are two sides of the same coin. You can’t claim to believe in God unless you love others; you can’t say you love God and people unless you first believe in Christ.

Have you put your trust in Jesus Christ? Are you experiencing faith, love, and obedience in your Christian walk?

Pursue the Savior today!

#ptsblogs

#PursuingTheSavior