Kept Safe

 

DEVOTION

THE 1^ST LETTER OF JOHN

KEPT SAFE

1 John 5:18-21

18 We know that anyone born of God does not continue to sin; the one who was born of God keeps him safe, and the evil one cannot harm him. 19 We know that we are children of God, and that the whole world is under the control of the evil one. 20 We know also that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true. And we are in him who is true — even in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.

21 Dear children, keep yourselves from idols.

NIV

The concluding remarks include once more the idea that we are safe in Christ. Jesus is supreme overall. Nothing in this world, which is under the control of the evil one, can overpower Christ Jesus. We are born of God and we are kept safe. What can that evil one do to us? Nothing! Oh, he might try. He might give his best to get us to reject Jesus and come over to his side, but he is a loser, and we have already won. We have been given understanding so that we know God is true and he speaks the truth. We also have the understanding the evil one is real, but the only thing he speaks is lies, he is incapable of speaking the truth. He is a deceiver, who only wants to destroy the truth. What we know is that we will remain in Christ and him in us, and we know the truth. The evil one cannot harm us. We also know that we cannot listen to the voices of the world, the supposed wisdom of the world, its philosophies, ideologies and rational, or logic. The voice of the world only echoes the voice of the evil one. This is why the Psalmist warned us that we should not take the counsel of the ungodly, which is the world that is under the control of the evil one. Every principle of this world comes from the evil one. That is why we do not pay attention to those principles as we are not citizens of this world, but our citizenship is in the kingdom of God. We live by the principles of God. We live in Christ, safe and secure from all alarm. We have been declared holy and blameless in the sight of God. The evil one would want us to feel guilt, condemnation, and that only leads to despair and hopelessness. Jesus paid the price for our freedom, and we are not condemned or guilty. The Lord has declared us innocent and has set us free, and because Jesus has set us free, we are free indeed. That is the only truth that counts. That is the truth we can count on, that we can base our life on, that we can live in hope that brings us love, joy, and peace in our hearts. Jesus sent the Spirit so that we can know and understand this truth. There is no mystery in the truth for we have been given understanding. We are kept safe.