Old Made New

May 7

Read: 1 John 2:7-11

Old Made New

“Beloved, I am writing you no new commandment, but an old commandment that you had from the beginning…At the same time, it is a new commandment that I am writing to you…”

The way of Christ is a way of the “old made new''. This is important for us to understand. It stands in contrast to the old being discarded and then something new coming to replace it. Jesus does not “throw away and replace” - he “makes the old new”. Jesus does this by shedding his true light on those things that were once in the darkness - “the darkness is passing away and the true light is already shining.” (v.8) This is the catalyst for change. This brings new life to old commandments, old relationships, old conflicts, old habits. It is in this way that something can be at the same time both old and new. Once the light of Christ shines on someone or something it will never be the same!

Think of your own experience with Jesus. The “old you” passes away and a “new you” is brought to life. We begin to see things in a new light. When “the true light” of Christ shines upon something it ceases to be the “same old thing”. (cf. John 1:9). A great example of this is how you view your own past. Chances are when you look back at your life, you can see in hindsight the ways that God was pursuing you way before you ever realized it! We begin to see how our past hopes, dreams, fears, failures, victories and defeats were all shaping us in ways we would never have guessed in the moment. That which is “old” (our past) becomes something “new”(an encouraging example of God working in us). It is no longer just “our story” - it becomes HIS story that we are woven into. Our past becomes something new. This is what happens when the “true light” of Christ shines on something. What exactly is this “light of Christ”. Well, we have a hint in the word that John uses to open this section: “beloved”. (v.7)

The light of Christ reveals to us that WE ARE LOVED. Not just us, but others in the world as well. That is the power of this one word, beloved, that starts this sectio. Think about that. YOU ARE LOVED. You always have been. Jesus’s love for you is “old”... he has had it for a long time. Yet, this idea - actually being LOVED by God - can feel quite NEW. This is the “light” that Jesus shines on darkness… chasing it away. This is what allows us to experience the world and each other anew. When we realize that WE are loved by Christ, and when we realize that OTHERS are loved by him as well, then the “old” things we have had “since the beginning” take on a whole new life! When we are awakened to the fact that we are beloved we change, but not necessarily the world around us. Our boss is our same old boss. Our co-workers are the same old co-workers. Our spouse is the same spouse… kids the same kids… neighbors, teammates, cashiers at the store, even our enemies… all of them are the “same old” people and yet our interactions with them and who WE are becomes NEW. We go into the same old job, and yet it has a whole new life to it. We wrestle with our same weaknesses, but with a new outlook and hope for the future. We respond differently to how we are treated when we rest in the fact that we are “loved” by Christ. The expectations and requirements that we place on others - our attempts to get our needs for love and acceptance met by them - they fade away and are met by Christ’s love instead. Our old world becomes new as well as the people we interact with in it.

This love of Christ is not reserved for just “us and Jesus”. What I am meaning to say is that we often think of this experiencing the love of Christ as something that is mystical and only happens when we are praying or reading the bible or going to church. We lose sight of the role that we play for each other. There is actually a very tangible way that we experience the love of Christ: That is through each other. The love of Christ actually flows most often through others to US… and then through us to OTHERS. This is the fellowship of believers. This is the family of God. This is the body of Christ. John is talking to us - the “beloved”- which are those who have “fellowship” with God, Christ, and each other through observing, sharing, hearing, and obeying. (re-read 1 John 1). This “newness” of life and transformation starts within the “brotherhood” of the believers and extends out into the world at large. Our love for others begins within the people of God and works its way out … even to the extent of our enemies! Our experiencing of Christ’s love for us is intertwined with our experience of love between one another. This is necessary for us to be in the light - so much so that the scriptures declare:

“Whoever says he is in the light and hates his brother is still in darkness. Whoever loves his brother abides in the light, and in him there is no cause for stumbling.”

Do you see how this example begins with someone who says “I am in the light”? This is a person who WANTS to follow Christ… who WANTS to be “in the light”. One of the first tests of being in the light is our love of the brotherhood/ fellowship with one another / other believers. Neither us nor anyone else in the world will be convinced of the love of Christ without it being lived out in the midst of the people of God. We will not know what it means to be the “beloved” apart from one another and harboring hatred, anger, and unforgiveness. Once we experience our true identity of “beloved”, we can return that love to other brothers and sisters in Christ as well as the rest of the “same old people” around us. The light of Jesus making all things new! Then there is HOPE, even if our circumstances and the people around us never change… we do. We change into “loved ones''. We put on our new identity: the “beloved”. You have been the “beloved” from before you were even born! That is why “this is not a new commandment but an old one.” It is something that has always been true about you. You will never be able to love others without first being loved. You cannot be in the light while hating your brother. You cannot hope to love enemies when you can’t even love friends!

Do you feel lost? Are you having trouble moving forward? Are you ready for something “new”? The problem might be that you lack fellowship with other believers and that you are harboring hatred towards others. Nothing will “cause you to stumble'' or make you feel like you do not “know where you are going” faster than hatred of others which keeps you in darkness. (v.10-11) You will never be fully convinced of Christ’s love for you apart from the fellowship of believers… relationship with other brothers and sisters in Christ. Trying to move forward while remaining in darkness, outside of Christian fellowship, not convinced that you are loved by Christ, and in turn hating others will never work. Who would have thought that our lack of direction and our stumbling could stem from our experience of love!?! It is time for us to come out of the darkness and into the newness of life afforded us in Christ! Christ is making you new. He is ready and willing to renew the world around you… breath new life into your relationships… give you a new outlook for your job, your marriage, your church. It starts by accepting this truth: YOU ARE LOVED, and you cannot be “in the light” and yet out of community while hating your brother. It just doesn’t work that way. Love you guys. - JDP