In This World

Love has been perfected among us in this: that we may have boldness in the day of judgment; because as He is, so are we in this world.1 John 4:17

As He is, so are we in this world. That is a bit of a shock, because it sure seems like I am not at all where I saw the Lord as He walks through the gospels. So, I declare John a crackpot and my judgment is the one to listen to.

Even to me that seems the wrong way to go about it. Something is wrong if the fallen judgment of one is taken over the holy scriptures. And does this not seem much like what God told Paul about His strength and Paul's weakness? And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” (2 Corinthians 12:9) Ah, there it is, grace.

How can just reborn and hardly grown up followers of Christ Jesus be like him in this world? He declares it so in His love. We are so weak, yet His perfect love is shown by the perfection of His strength in our weakness. Grace is simply us taking His word for it that we are made like Him right now, in this world. If today is our judgment day, then we have boldness in His perfect love, and not in what we see of our meager strength which does not amount to nearly enough to save even the one of us much less all mankind. Thus we see the reason for depending upon our Lord's judgment and not our own. For, John the Baptist bore this witness: "The Father loves the Son, and has given all things into His hand." (John 3:35) I am glad to be one of those all things, for I would be lost without Him!

Walk in grace, the grace of Christ Jesus our Lord! His grace is sufficient for us all.

Bucky