“That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life—the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us— that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. And we are writing these things so that our joy may be complete” (1 John 1-4).
John finds joy in sharing Jesus with others. Indeed, he makes a statement that his joy will be complete by sharing Jesus and others coming into fellowship with Jesus.
The Apostle John seen, heard, and touched Jesus, whom was God in the flesh. With John writing this letter decades after the crucifixion, you can still sense his passion and love for Jesus.
Have we ever tasted what John is expressing? That is, having your joy being completed by sharing Jesus with others? Moreover, does your soul yearn for others to come to know Jesus or be strengthen by Him?
These verses speak to what was going on in the inner man of John. To go a step further, it speaks to the work of the Spirit that is going on within John. One of the fruits of the Spirit is joy. In addition, while John was writing this letter, it is likely he was under persecution due to his faith in Jesus. Yet, all of the external pressures did not affect his passion for others coming to know Jesus. What we can we learn from this?
- We, too, should have an inner desire to share Jesus with others. This is evidence of the work of Spirit that leads to joy.
- If we do not have a yearning to share Jesus with others, why not? Indeed, bashfulness does not quench the “inner desire” of sharing, although it may cause hesitation. So if there is no desire nor even a thought of sharing Jesus with others, this may point to a more severe spiritual issue.
- If we do have this yearning of sharing Jesus with others, are we sharing? When we share Jesus, the truth of God’s Word, there is an invigorating joy that you experience. Let me be clear, I’m not saying we should merely pursue joy in and of itself. However, we turn that yearning into action by sharing Jesus and the truth found in God’s Word. By doing so, we get a taste of heaven.
