1 John 3:19-24

1 John 3:19-24 … Confidence and assurance are at the core of the Scripture before us. Everyone needs affirmation from time to time. Our nature is such that we have doubts, questions, and concerns. Are we on the right path? Is God truly there? Is the Bible truly the Word of God? How can I know I’m saved and justified before a holy God? All these things wash across our minds as we work through our own sin nature and live in a world that is increasingly hostile to living by the eternal Word of God. That’s what 1 John 3:19 is giving us: assurance. “This then is how we know that we belong to the truth, and how we set out hearts at rest … whenever our hearts condemn us.” Our obedience to Him is not motivated by rules but by love for Him. Our love for Christ causes us to want to do those things that will please Him (3:22), the most important of which is our personal salvation, which comes as His free gift (grace), through our faith in Him. One of the evidences of faith is the outworking of love toward others, which, as 1 John 3:18 has said, is not just words, but actions. All this is enabled by His Holy Spirit, who He gives freely to all who profess faith in Him. That’s what abiding in Christ is all about.