January 9

1 JOHN 1

⁵ This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. ⁶ If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. ⁷ But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. ⁸ If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. ⁹ If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. ¹⁰ If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. – 1 John 1:5-9

1 JOHN 1 TO THINK ONE IS SINLESS IS A LIE

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

Because we have inherited sin from Adam and Eve

All human beings are by nature sinful and evil

If we claim that we are sinless, we are believing a lie

The truth is that we are all wicked and sinners

We become deceived when we believe these lies

Our minds get darkened and our hearts turn hard

But God gave us a solution to get out of such darkness

He gave Jesus so we can turn to him & become righteous.

The biggest lie that  a human being can believe is that they are sinless. Most false religions teach that there is a way to achieve that state of purity or sinlessness. Let us look into the concept of original sin in some religions. According to modernreformation.org these are some of their beliefs: The Roman Catholics believe that the original sin doesn’t have much implications on their relationship with God. Original sin is merely a deprivation of holiness, a stain or deformity which can be resolved if they go to confession to a priest and they are absolved of such sins after doing penance for it. Freedom of the will is emphasized. The Reformed and Lutherans believe that since Adam’s fall, all human beings are conceived and born in sin and inclined to sin. We sin because we are sinners. The guilt of Adam has been passed down to us. In Islam, original sin is completely denied. They are all born innocent. In Hinduism, there is no original or inherent sin. Sin is ignorance about ultimate reality. Sin is intentional wrong action which causes them to accumulate karma that prevents them from escaping ignorance and illusion. In Judaism, instead of original sin, they call it evil inclination. Rabbis teaches that they must fight their evil inclination and that they are responsible to God for their actions. They are to avoid sin by studying the Torah. In Scientology, humankind is basically good and our survival depends on our own actions and unity with the universe. The Jehovah’s witness believes that Adam and Eve were created perfect and not inclined to error. When they choose to sin, they damage their perfect nature and affect all future generations. The consequences of sin are guilt, sickness and death. Wow, isn’t that a lot of varying interpretations about original sin and the concept of sin?

REFLECTION

• What have you realized after hearing of the different concepts of sin in different religions?

January 8

1 JOHN 3

 ⁶ No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him. ⁷ Little children, let no one deceive you. Whoever practices righteousness is righteous, as he is righteous. ⁸ Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil. ⁹ No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God’sseed abides in him; and he cannot keep on sinning, because he has been born of God. ¹⁰ By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother. – 1 John 3:6-10

1 JOHN 3 WHEN SINNING IS A HABIT

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

The child of God desires to please only Him

He abides in Him and doesn’t make a habit of sin

The person who has been born again seeks the truth

The godly obeys God and allows Scriptures to take root

The believer doesn’t listen to his cravings but resist it

A lover of God doesn’t participate in any of the devil’s tactics

A Christian wears his new creation in Christ which is righteous

He isn’t unsure and switching between his old and new nature.

In these following verses, John reveals to us the manifestation of the presence of God in our lives. In John 14:15, he brings us the true meaning of loving God which is to obey Him. Paul reiterates this concept of walking in the Spirit in Galatians 5. He says that if you walk by the Spirit, you will not gratify the desires of the flesh because the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh. They oppose each other and the Spirit keeps you from doing the things you want to do. Instead, you bear the fruits of the Spirit which is peace, love, joy, patience, kindness, gentleness, goodness, faithfulness and self-control. Now, in these following verses John explains the reason why a person would keep on sinning and making a habit of it. He explains that anyone who makes a practice of constantly following their old nature will do what it pleases instead of doing what God requires from them.

In verse 8, John exposes the culprit of this habitual sinning. They are children of the devil. They do not believe in the Son of God whom God has given to humanity to break from this old nature. Now, can a Christian be living his old nature and claim that he is a child of God? A true believer is not double-minded or deceived. His loyalty is to God alone. Those who practice sinning are loyal to themselves, not to God. Their idols are their appetites, pleasures and cravings. They do not and cannot please God since they are opposed to what they were made for. They were created in God’s image so that they can glorify God by becoming more and more like Christ as they mature in their faith.

REFLECTION

• What does it mean when someone who claims they’re Christian habitually sins?

January 7

JAMES 4

¹³ Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit”— ¹⁴ yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. ¹⁵ Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.” ¹⁶ As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil. ¹⁷ So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin. – James 4:13-16

JAMES 4 THE SINS OF BOASTING & NOT DOING WHAT’S RIGHT

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

As believers, we are called to humility and God-dependence

Boasting is indicative of arrogance and self-reliance

When one brags about his achievements and talents

He is actually removing God out of the picture

When one boast, he denies that God is Creator of all things

He cannot claim credit for anything since God made everything

Arrogance is a form of defiance against God’s provision

Boasting is defying God’s gift and is called self promotion.

What is the common factor between boasting and arrogance? They both are rooted in pride.  In Psalm 10:4, the psalmist says “In the pride of his facethe wicked does not seek him;
all his thoughts are, “There is no God.”  In Proverbs 16:18 Solomon says that pride goes before destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall. From these verses, we can define pride as an extreme love for oneself that he cannot recognize God. Another commentator defines it as not seeing ourselves as God sees us. It is also elevating oneself if not equal with God, even better. James gives us a very clear example of the sins of boasting and arrogance. It doesn’t seem outright evil to plan something and assume that things will go as one thinks as verse 13 indicates. He points out that such planning without humility and God’s counsel, the proud man will fail. Why? Because he removed God out of the picture. It is only his thoughts, his plans and his effort that counts. It is a form of idolatry. The idol is the “self.”

So, what is the antidote for pride? Colossians 3:12 says, “Therefore, as God`s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.” 1Peter 5:6 says, “Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.” Let God boast about you just as he boasted to the devil how righteous Job was. C.S Lewis once wrote, “Humility is not thinking less of yourself, but thinking of yourself less.” The same way John the Baptist says “He must increase and I must decrease.”

Another sin that James discusses here is the sin of failing to do what is right. In other words, as Christians, we are not just hearers of the word but also doers. He reiterates this in chapter 1:22,25 says But, don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves.  If you do what the perfect law says and do not forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it.

REFLECTION

• How is Galatians 6:4 a different kind of pride as discussed here by James?

January 6

JAMES 4

⁶ But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” ⁷ Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. ⁸ Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. ⁹ Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. ¹⁰ Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.¹¹ Do not speak evil against one another, brothers. The one who speaks against a brother or judges his brother, speaks evil against the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge. ¹² There is only one lawgiver and judge, he who is able to save and to destroy. But who are you to judge your neighbor? – James 4:6-12

JAMES 4 CRITICAL & WAVERING MINDS LEAD TO SIN

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

When a believer thinks highly of himself, he will find fault

It is his way of lifting himself up and putting others down

He will think and speak evil of others when he is critical

It leads to conflict and all kinds of division with others

A wavering mind cannot decide to whom it will stay faithful

It believes two opposing forces which makes them unstable

In all their ways, they are hesitant and doubtful

They don’t commit since they are very disloyal.

In the first book of James, he commands the believers to not waver. He then describes a double-minded or wavering person as someone whose loyalty is divided. He cannot make up his mind and James compares them to the wave of the sea that is very unsettled because it is blown and tossed by the wind. Such people should not expect to receive anything from the Lord according to James. No grace or blessing from the Lord is the consequence of the sin of wavering. Their loyalty is divided between God and the world, and they are double-minded in everything they do. They are committing adultery to God because they do not love the Lord their God with all their mind, heart, soul and strength. They are making sure that they get the best of both worlds. God is a jealous God and will not put up with unfaithfulness. In verse 8, James exhorts the double-minded man to purify their hearts. His antidote against the wavering mind is to humble themselves before God and obey his law.

In verse 11, he exhorts the believers not to speak evil of others or to judge them. Why do you think James cautions us to speak evil of others? Because it is against the law of love. In 1 Corinthians 13, it says that “Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant ⁵ or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful, ⁶ it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. ⁷ Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.” If we walk in love, we will not speak ill of others or judge them wrongly or harshly, but in love bear with one another.

REFLECTION

• How prevalent are wavering and critical minds in our world today?

January 5

JAMES 4

What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passionsare at war within you? ² You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask. ³ You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions. ⁴ You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. ⁵ Or do you suppose it is to no purpose that the Scripture says, “He yearns jealously over the spirit that he has made to dwell in us”? – James 4:1-5

JAMES 4 WORLDLY PASSIONS LEAD TO SIN

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

When we desire earthly things, we open doors to sin

The devil prowls to keep us away from Him

The Lord God made us in his own image

So that we look more and more like Him

We were created for worshiping only Him

When we pursue worldly things, it leads to sin.

The book of James exposes the many causes of sin. In these following verses, he identifies the sources of quarrels and fights which in itself are sins. He points out that passions and desires make us do things that lead to quarrels and fights. Passions and desire can be good if it is going to bring glory to the Lord, but if they are things that are worldly, it will definitely open doors to sin. In verse 4, James mentions adultery as friendship with the world. Many bible verses especially in the book of Hosea, spiritual adultery is synonymous to idolatry. God is steadfast and faithful and he expects his people to also be devoted to him alone because he is a jealous God, wanting our loyalty and service to him alone. He won’t settle for less or won’t be pleased if we are seeking worldly pleasures instead of his love for us. James uses very strong language as an enemy of God if we are hedonistic or pleasure seekers. In verse 5, God yearns jealously for the desire that he has put in our hearts which is to long for him alone. When we have idols that we place prior to our devotion to Him, he hates that because we are hurting ourselves when we do that.

Covetousness is also another source of such sins. When we want to possess what we do not have or own, we resort to doing anything in our power to get that desire or want. That is covetousness. That will lead to other sins such as murder as he talks about in verse 2.

He also identifies in verse 3 that selfishness and pride also lead to conflicts. When a believer is not humble enough to ask God for something good for him, pride is clearly the reason for such self-sufficiency. When we are independent and self-reliant, we discount the need to ask for help from a higher source. We think we can take care of things. This mindset clearly removes God in the picture who is the source of all help and wisdom.

REFLECTION

·       Cite instances when a good passion or desire can easily turn into an idol that God hates?

January 4

GENESIS 3

²⁰ The man called his wife’s name Eve, because she was the mother of all living. ²¹ And the Lord God made for Adam and for his wife garments of skins and clothed them.²² Then the Lord God said, “Behold, the man has become like one of us in knowing good and evil. Now, lest he reach out his hand and take also of the tree of life and eat, and live forever—” ²³ therefore the Lord God sent him out from the garden of Eden to work the ground from which he was taken. ²⁴ He drove out the man, and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim and a flaming sword that turned every way to guard the way to the tree of life. – Genesis 3:20-24

GENESIS 3 BANISHED FROM GOD’S PRESENCE

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

When we rebel and go against God’s design for man

We will experience feelings of guilt and shame

Our design is to be in constant relationship with the Lord

Sin drives us out of that purpose since we are choosing the world

Sow only what is true and you will feel God’s presence

If you believe lies, you’ll be banished and experience his absence.

The ultimate aftermath of the sin of Adam and Eve is their banishment from the presence of God and from all that he provided for them in the garden of Eden. How perfect their lives were before the fall. They had no idea what hunger, pain, illness, rejection, envy, greed or loneliness were because they walked with the Lord daily in that garden. Things have drastically changed after their sin. They now feel the separation from the paradise where they used to have God’s presence. They are now introduced to rejection and pain resulting from God’s absence. To add to those damages, they now have to toil the earth to provide for their needs. It used to be easy for them because God gave them an environment where they had everything they needed. Sin opened up all kinds of doors to the world of evil.

God made sure that the garden was guarded. The serpent has corrupted their minds and they now have exposed the garden to something that wasn’t in God’s original plan. The next thing God did was to place a cherubim at the east side of the garden. In Ezekiel 10:18 the cherubim were the watchers. God placed them there so that they could guard the tree of life which was preserved for what God intended it to be.

Barnhouse comments “Any angel of the lowest rank could have dealt with Adam. The flaming sword was pointed against Satan to keep him from destroying the way of access to the altar, which God had set up.”

Despite all the consequences of their sin, God still showed compassion to them when he made garments of skin to cover their nakedness. There had to be an animal killed to get that skin to cover them. It foreshadows how God covers their shame with the skin from an animal, just as Jesus, the Lamb of God, would die to cover the sins of the whole world.

REFLECTION

·       Cite instances how sin banishes us from God’s presence? How is it similar to the banishment of Adam and Eve?

January 2

GENESIS 3

⁸ And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the coolof the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. ⁹ But the Lord God called to the man and said to him, “Where are you?” ¹⁰ And he said, “I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked, and I hid myself.” ¹¹ He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?” ¹² The man said, “The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit of the tree, and I ate.” ¹³ Then the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this that you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.” – Genesis 3:8-13

GENESIS 3 SHAME AND BLAME

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

God’s purpose for man is to be in relationship with him

Desires and longings make us disobey God which leads to sin

Sin is a turning away from God’s love; it results in shame

Then we begin to point to others and start the blame game

Because we were designed to bring glory to God

We experience shame because we aren’t fulfilling that goal.

This chapter on the fall of Adam and Eve gives us a very clear understanding where shame and blame come from. The part of this chapter happened after they ate of the forbidden tree. Let’s focus on the event and what happens after they partook of the devil’s lure. Notice what they did as soon as they heard the sound of the Lord walking in the garden. They hid. Hiding is the result of the guilt and the shame that sin brings about. The shame is the consequence of our going against what we were designed to do: to have intimacy with God and to bring him glory. Sin distorts that purpose. Instead of bringing glory to God, it leads us to bring glory to ourselves. The priority becomes self-pleasing instead of God-pleasing.

In verse 9, God asks Adam where he is. We know that God sees and knows all things. Why did he have to ask this? He didn’t ask Eve, just Adam. Remember that Adam was given dominion over all God’s creation (Genesis 1:26-28)? God asked this to make Adam accountable for Eve who is under his care and his authority over the serpent. God asked this question expecting Adam to take responsibility for their disobedience since he was the one given authority to rule over the earth and all living creatures. Instead, he made all excuses and declared his guilt and shame by hiding.  In verse 11, God was expecting Adam to confess his sin and be accountable for it but he didn’t. In verse 12, the blame game starts. Adam blames the woman for enticing him and also blames God for giving him the woman who got him in trouble. When God asked Eve “What is it that you have done?” It’s not like he didn’t know what they did. It is also expecting Eve to confess and admit their sin. But she also replied with a blame towards the serpent. No one took responsibility for what they did. They both engaged in shame and blame.

REFLECTION

• Share insight how this shame and blame become results of sin in our current setting.

December 31

HOSEA 12

⁷ A merchant, in whose hands are false balances, he loves to oppress.
⁸ Ephraim has said, “Ah, but I am rich; I have found wealth for myself;
in all my labors they cannot find in me iniquity or sin.”
⁹ I am the Lord your God from the land of Egypt;
I will again make you dwell in tents, as in the days of the appointed feast.

¹⁰ I spoke to the prophets; it was I who multiplied visions,
 and through the prophets gave parables– Hosea 12:7-10

HOSEA 12 PRIDE GOES BEFORE SIN

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

Those who boast about their wealth and riches

Are deceived because every good gift comes from God above

The wicked does not acknowledge that there is a God

They manipulate others so they can profit well

The proud thinks that his wealth is his own doing

He doesn’t recognize God’s provision and blessing.

In these following verses, the prophet Hosea presents the manifestations of the wicked and the proud. He describes a merchant who has false scales to trick people into thinking they got a good deal. They actually deceive the buyers so they could earn more profit. During the time this was written, the market was the shopping mall. The vendors could easily do something with the scale to trick the weight of the goods they are buying. Even in our online shopping, we could still find dishonest sellers. They could easily pay someone to write dishonest reviews so they could sell their product and then deliver a much inferior item to their customer. Another way to cheat consumers is to put false promises of the product that it cannot truly deliver.

In verse 8 the self-made man who thinks that it is his own hard work and effort which made him wealthy. They forget that every blessing they have is from God. They become proud and self-reliant and do not thank or acknowledge God’s provision for them. It is foolish to think you can do anything without God’s hand in it. Everything comes from him.

REFLECTION

• How are self-sufficiency and deceitfulness both sins that stem from pride?