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Friday 29 July 2016

The Second Chapter of the First Letter of John

 



The Second Chapter of the 

First Letter of 

John

 

 

1. My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous; 2. and he is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.




(The Second Chapter of the First letter of John verses 1 to 2)




Oh God, my Father there is no greater love than this, that You forgive the whole world of its sins even if they are non-Christians, Catholics or even Muslims. When You said all You meant all. Instead of being a rigid and judgmental God, You are kind and loving, however, this does not mean that we can abuse of this forgiveness of our sins because as much as You love us, You are also merciful and just and therefore cannot turn a blind eye on our shortcomings Amen.




3. Now by this we may be sure that we know him, if we obey his commandments. 4. Whoever says, "I have come to know him," but does not obey his commandments, is a liar, and in such a person the truth does not exist; 5. but whoever obeys his word, truly in this person the love of God has reached perfection. By this we may be sure that we are in him; 6. whoever says, I abide in him," ought to walk just as he walked.




(The Second Chapter of the First Letter of John verses 3 to 6)




Oh God, my Father the criteria that You chose in order for us to measure if we are in, relationship with You or not are perfect tools, the 'Ten Commandment', for it is true one cannot say that one knows You or even loves You if one does not obey these rules. It is like being a member of a club, if one does not obey the rules of the club, one does not belong there at all.




7. Beloved, I am writing you no new commandment, but an old commandment that you have had from the beginning; the old commandment is the word that you have heard.




(The Second Chapter of the First Letter of John verse 7)




Oh God, my Father this old commandment must be that of loving You and others as our, selves. Although this is an old commandment it is the foundation of all the commandments put together, for if what we do we do out of love and ask ourselves if somebody had to do the same action to us, if we would like it, the answer would confirm our decision whether to do that same action to others or not Amen.




8. Yet I am writing you a new commandment that is true in him and in you, because the darkness is passing away and the true light is already shining. 9. Whoever says, "I am in the light," while hating a brother or sister, is still in the darkness. 10. Whoever loves a brother or sister lives in the light, and in such a person there is no cause for stumbling. 11. But whoever hates another believer is in the darkness, walks in the darkness, and does not know the way to go, because the darkness has brought on blindness.



(The Second Chapter of the First Letter of John verses 8 to 11)




Oh God, my Father I am sorry to say that many times I have declared that I hate this person and that, especially those in my inner circles, however on calming down I realise how mistaken I was. Even though I may not be accepting the reality that I am married to a person who feels that I hurt her and has no more love for me, I still have love for her. Forgive me oh God for those moments when I had made such declarations because many times I feel the weight of the cross on my shoulder as being too much to bear and forget that You are supporting me along the way by holding the other side of that same cross Amen.




12. I am writing to you, little children because your sins are forgiven on account of his name. 13. I am writing to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I am writing to you, young people, because you have conquered the evil one. 14. I write to you, children, because you know the Father; I write to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I write to you, young people, because you are strong and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one.



(The Second Chapter of the First Letter of John verses 12 to 14)





Oh God my Father You have something to say to all of us, regardless if we are adults or children or adolescents. You empower us and give us the energy to keep on fighting against the traps of the evil one, whom You already defeated. Satan You are a loser defeated and crushed Amen.



15. Do not love the world or the things in the world. The love of the Father is not in those who love the world; 16. for all that is in the world-the desire of the flesh, the desire of the eyes, the pride in riches comes not from the Father but from the world. 17. And the world and its desire are passing away, but those who do the will of God live forever.



(The Second Chapter of the First Letter of John verses 15 to 17)




Oh God my Father the values of those who love the world are different from those who base their love, hope and faith in You. Those who love the world pray to have more wealth to live a comfortable life and be rich and powerful, while those who love you pray to have more in order to share with others and help others also lead a good life, however, the riches of the second group are based on inheriting heaven more than being controlled by the riches of the world Amen.




18. Children, it is the last hour! As you have heard the antichrist is coming, so now many antichrists have come. From this we know that it is the last hour.


(The Second Chapter of the First Letter of John verse 18)




Oh God, my Father I would not be surprised if the last hour was actually that close, for during our times 2016 there have been many people who have preached against You and have been trying to spread false philosophy about You and even shooting media that is disgraceful to Your holy Name. I pray oh God my Father that I will be ready for the last hour and be worthy to appear before You for to this day I have much that needs to be corrected in myself, but I know that You are with me and that You are completing the unfinished works that due to my sinful nature I am finding it  very hard to accomplish. thank You Jesus Amen.





19. They went out from us, but they did not belong to us; for if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us. But by going out they made it plain that none of them belongs to us.



(The Second Chapter of the First Letter of John verse 19)




Oh God, my Father I am honestly more concerned about those who are still with us and don't believe in You than for those who had the courage to make a decision and not continue to live a life of a hypocrite and live a double life swinging to and fro from one religion to another.





20. But you have been anointed by the Holy One, and all of you have knowledge. 21. I write to you, not because you do not know the truth, but because you know it, and you know that no lie comes from the truth.



(The Second Chapter of the First Letter of John verses 20 to 21)





Oh God my Father, I thank You for having anointed me with the power of Your Holy Spirit which is all truth, wisdom, love and faith. I am totally convinced that no evil or negativity can come from You, however, the messages that at times come from some of our brothers and sisters in the faith do not always portray a true image of You. I thank You that You have given me this time of prayer so that I can drink from the pure fountain instead of from the muddy waters Amen.




22. Who is the liar but the one who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, the one who denies the Father and the Son. 23. No one who denies the Son has the Father; everyone who confesses the Son has the Father also.




(The Second Chapter of the First Letter of John verses 22 to 23)





Amen really and truly oh God my Father, those who believe in the Son and not in the Father is a liar, for one cannot believe in one and not in the other! This also follows for some of us, who believe in You and Jesus but not in Your presence in the Eucharist, or in the Roman Catholic Church that although consists of sinners such as myself and that in the past had done many mistakes on a human level, when it became worldly it is still being led by Your Holy Spirit Amen. Therefore the time comes for all humans especially those who call themselves Christians or Roman Catholics, to ask ourselves the fatal questions.





"Who do we really believe in? Do we really believe in God, or do we believe only in ourselves? Have we become the God's of our lives? Are we being led by our human logic, or is logic helping us to follow and believe in You and Your logic? What meaning has God in our lives, does it make a difference if we believe or not as long as we keep on receiving our paycheque each month?





Oh God, we sincerely are to stop, reflect and pray for enlightenment, for we may be under the impression that we are following You but in truth, we may be following our sinful selves and the logic of our minds Amen.






24. Let what you heard from the beginning abide in you. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, then you will abide in the Son and in the Father, 25. And this is what he has promised us, eternal life.



(The Second Chapter of the First Letter of John verses 24 to 25)




Oh God, my Father I pray that the values that we have accumulated throughout the years of our spiritual journey with You be active in us. May we all be worthy of the promise of eternal life Amen.





26. I write these things to you concerning those who would deceive you. 27. As for you, the anointing that you received from him abides in you, and so you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things, and is true and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, abide in him. 28. And now, little children, abide in him, so that when he is revealed we may have confidence and not be put to shame before him at his coming.



(The Second Chapter of the First Letter of John verses 26 to 28)






I thank You, God, my Father for Your presence that dwells in me and all humanity. In us, we have written the rule of love and values. You guide us in all that we do, and if we listen to Your voice, we will now if our decisions are right or wrong, good or bad. Amen, I pray that our ears are tuned to the same frequency so that we will have one direct line of communication Amen.




29. If you know that he is righteous, you may be sure that everyone who does right has been born of him.


(The Second chapter of the First Letter of John verse 29)




Oh God my Father those born of the Holy Spirit act according to the promptings of the Holy Spirit that is when we allow You to act in our lives, but those who act according to the spirit of the world reap the sour fruits of the world that we are all witnessing.



Oh God my Father I would like to end this second  chapter of the first letter of St. John with the following prayer:-





Oh God, my Father I pray that we are always aware of the fact, that one day we will die and leave all our worldly possessions. I pray that we focus more on our spiritual aspects of our lives than our material which means of the world. For the time will come for all and I pray that we will be prepared to appear before You. I thank You for anointing us with Your Holy Spirit, for by means of Your holy presence You guide us in our ways.  I thank You for not leaving us as helpless and abandoned children. Amen



























Monday 4 July 2016

The First Chapter of the first letter of John Chapter 1

 

The First Chapter 

of the 

first letter 

of 

John

 

 

1. We declare to you what was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands, concerning the word of life 2. this life was revealed, and we have seen it and testify to it, and declare to you the eternal life that was with the Father and was revealed to us. 3. we declare to you what we have seen and heard so that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. 4. We are writing these things so that our joy may be complete.


(The First letter of John Chapter 1 verses 1 to 4)


Oh God, my Father what an experience it must have been for John to be literally an eyewitness living every experience that You shared with the apostles. Throughout every day of my life and even that of others, You are also working wonders and showing yourself to us, even during the events simple or complex that happen during our everyday life. You permit nothing to happen without a precise purpose oh God my Father, even though at the time we may not understand its meaning. However, in time You reveal all to us Amen. As did John and the Apostles, I thank You oh God for this opportunity to share these prayers and reflections with all who have the will and the time to do so. May all benefit even more than myself the insights that You share with me and even more that have been helping me each day of my life in my relationship with You and others Amen. 


 5. This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light and in him there is no darkness at all. 6. If we say that we have fellowship with him while we are walking in darkness, we lie and do not do what is true; 7. but if we walk in the light as he himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.


(The First Letter of John Chapter 1 verses 5 to 7)


Oh God my Father, in You there is no falsehood, for You are truth itself. The more You draw me close to You, the more I meditate on the Bible, the more Your light penetrates my darkness like a sharp laser beam in a surgical instrument, that shows me those areas that need healing or correcting. Amen. I thank You oh God my Father for being such a light for me, I pray that You keep on drawing me to You so that finally one day You will cleanse me of all my sins and I will be more like You than like me Amen.


8. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9. If we confess our sins, he who is faithful and just will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar and his word is not in us.


(The First Letter of John Chapter 1 verses 8 to 9)


Oh God my Father if there is one thing that I surely cannot deny is that I am a sinner and that I am prone to sin. I thank You again and again for giving me the opportunity to seek forgiveness of my sins, with the firm belief that one day I will be healed from such vices Amen.


I would like to end this first chapter of the letter of John with the following prayer:


Oh God, my Father I proclaim myself to be a sinner among sinners, however, I also proclaim that although I am conditioned by my sins I still love both You and others, even if at times I may not show this love by means of my behaviour that is prone to sin. Therefore while in Your presence I pray for more self-control because at times I end up doing, that is not what You or  I want to do instead of acting according to Your will Amen.