1 John 3:1-10

Be still: take a moment to gather mind and body together – to be present. It can help to take a few deep breaths. Perhaps as you do so, imagine the breath coming in through the soles of your feet and going out through your fingertips…

Read: 1 John 3:1-10

‘Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we will see him as he is. All who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure.’ (vv2-3)

Encounter: What a wonderful gift is the ability to see clearly! A couple of years ago I noticed that my eyesight was becoming less clear, as cataracts (common in the aged…) began to develop. I went for a check-up and was referred for treatment. What followed was transformational – I can now see better than I ever could before! Every day I look around at the buildings and the trees and give thanks for the seemingly miraculous technology that has made all the difference.

Jesus gave sight to many people, most notably to a man born blind (see John 9). But in verse 2 of today’s reading, we find an amazing promise that is for all of us, sighted or blind. One day we shall see far more than buildings or trees – we shall see Jesus, and see him as he is! In Revelation John tries to draw us a sketch of that vision, but his rich words inevitably fall far short of what it will be like to see, with our own eyes, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords!

Verse 3 takes that promise and turns it into a challenge. If we will, one day, be like Jesus, then it’s only right that we do our best, however feeble, to prepare ourselves for that day, to ‘purify ourselves as he is pure’.

Apply: That is quite a challenge! Until that future time when heaven and earth are united, and sin and death are no more, every day presents us with little decisions (What to have for breakfast? What brand of coffee to buy?) and big ones – Do I do the kind thing or the selfish one? Do I resist that temptation or give in to it?

We won’t get through our days without making many wrong, sinful decisions, but the challenge is to shift our compass, to try, prompted by the Holy Spirit, to make more good, pure decisions every day.

Devote: Lord Jesus, help me to hold on to the promise that I will see you as you are, and to be more like you every day.