Exploring 1 John: The World Hates Us but We Should Abide in Love
1 John 3:13-15; John 15:18-19 - Be like Harrison Butker.
“Do not be surprised, brethren, if the world hates you. We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love abides in death. Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer; and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.”
1 John 3:13-15 NASB1995
Before this past week, I had no idea who Harrison Butker was - stay tuned, we’ll get to him in a moment. It is supremely ironic (and note that God doesn’t do irony but always has perfect timing) that 1 John 3:13 is part of my devotional today, given the screaming headlines everywhere. John is telling the brethren not to be surprised if the world hates you. Jesus also warned us about this hatred:
““If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, because of this the world hates you.”
John 15:18-19 NASB1995
Now let’s examine a few headlines from this week:
NFL’s Harrison Butker is slammed for speech on women and abortion - NPR
Kansas City deletes tweet disowning Chiefs Harrison Butker - New York Post
Chiefs Harrison Butker blasted for commencement speech encouraging women to be homemakers — NBC
Benedictine College nuns blast Harrison Butker’s controversial commencement speech - Forbes
NFL disavows Harrison Butker’s comments, cites commitment to inclusion - Washington Post
Petition demanding the Chiefs dismiss Harrison Butker nears goal of 150,000 - People Magazine
For those who don’t follow sports or the NFL, Harrison Butker is the kicker for the highly successful Kansas City Chiefs; he has three Super Bowl rings and he is not yet 30 years old. Butker espouses traditional Catholic views on many topics and he addressed those views in a commencement speech that he recently made at Benedictine College, a small private Catholic college in Atchison, Kansas. Butker’s views can be described as pro-life and in favor of traditional marriage and complementary roles between a man and a woman. He hopes that women from the college will choose the role that his wife has chosen as a homemaker and educator of their children. He advocates that men become more assertive in their roles in society and be there and be present for their families. He sees our culture being degraded from the top down, starting with a President who does the sign of the Cross at pro-abortion rallies. Butker prefers the traditional Latin mass. He is concerned about a church that sits quietly in the corner and doesn’t fight back, like when the COVID shutdowns were made. Here is a link to the full speech so you can read his words yourself: Commencement Speech.
Now my purpose in sharing this current “controversy” is not to be political, but to point out that Jesus and John are indeed correct: Christians who truly walk their faith and don’t just pretend to be Christians by sitting quietly in a corner and nodding in agreement at the world will be hated by the world. Harrison Butker decided to walk his faith and be an advocate for deep belief in God and for practicing righteousness. In our current society, his words are looked upon as bigotry and hate speech (or worse) and he may, indeed, lose his job for having these beliefs (so much for the NFL’s “inclusion” if that happens). Ironically, his jersey is the top-selling one now for Chiefs players and is sold out in many locations.
As a former feminist who chose a career over having a family (much to my deep regret now that I have returned to belief - I am becoming elderly and have no children or grandchildren to enjoy), his words convicted me mightily. If he had made this speech about 40 years ago, I would have been signing petitions to have him removed, too, knowing where my mind was in those days. That just proves that we can all change and be redeemed, but my return to Christ was too late to make a family my first priority. In another interesting coincidence, this chart was published recently in several news sources on the population decline that is happening around the world:
Of course the news agencies reporting this see this as a good thing, showing the empowerment of women and how they have stepped away from traditional roles around the world; this is also allegedly a good thing for the Earth. This steep decline, in fact, is a disaster from many perspectives, but I won’t go down that long bunny trail today.
John goes on in this passage to tell the Brethren that they have passed out of death into life because they love each other. Those who do not love abide in death. He even goes further to say that those who hate are murderers and they have no eternal life abiding in them. Here is some good commentary from Enduring Word on these verses:
We know that we have passed from death to life: A love for the people of God is a basic sign of being born again. If this love is not evident in our lives, our salvation can be questioned. If it is present, it gives us assurance.
We can know we have passed from death to life by our love for other Christians. The place of hatred, of jealousy, of bitterness you find yourself in is a place of death. You need to pass from death over to life.
This means knowing two things. First, we know that we were dead. Second, we know that we have passed to life from death. To pass from death to life is the reverse of the normal. We all expect to pass from life to death; but in Jesus, we can turn it around.
This speaks to our pursuit of fellowship. If we love the brethren, we will want to be with them – and even if we have been battered and bruised by unloving brethren, there will still be something in us drawing us back to fellowship with the brethren we love.
“Do you love them for Christ’s sake? Do you say to yourself, ‘That is one of Christ’s people; that is one who bears Christ’s cross; that is one of the children of God; therefore I love him, and take delight in his company’? Then, that is an evidence that you are not of the world.” (Charles Spurgeon)
Whoever hates his brother is a murderer: To hate our brother is to murder him in our hearts. Though we may not carry out the action (through cowardice or fear of punishment), we wish that person dead. Or, by ignoring another person, we may treat them as if they were dead. Hatred can be shown passively or actively.
John seemed to have in mind the teaching of Jesus from the Sermon on the Mount regarding the true fulfillment of the law (Matthew 5:21-22).
“In the heart there is no difference; to hate is to despise, to cut off from relationship, and murder is simply the fulfillment of that attitude.” (Kennth Barker)
“Every man who hates another has the venom of murder in his veins. He may never actually take the deadly weapons into his hand and destroy life; but if he wishes that his brother were out of the way, if he would be glad if no such person existed, that feeling amounts to murder in the judgment of God.” (Charles Spurgeon)
You know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him: To live in the practice of murder – or to have a life style of the habitual hatred of our brethren – is a demonstration that we do not have eternal life abiding in us, that we are not born again.
There are many people for whom being a Christian is a “none of the above” sort of thing. They consider themselves Christians because they are not Muslim, or Jewish, or Buddhists, or atheists. But being a Christian is never a “none of the above” kind of thing.
Being a Christian is more than saying, “I am a Christian.” There are in fact some who claim to be Christians who are not. How can we know if we are one of these? John’s reply has been constant and simple. There are three tests to measure the proof of a genuine Christian: the truth test, the love test, and the moral test. If we believe in what the Bible teaches as true, if we show the love of Jesus to others, and if our conduct has been changed and is becoming more like Jesus, then our claim to be a Christian can be proven true.
Some key takeaways from this commentary:
Hatred of others can be passive or active. By snubbing or ignoring a person that you dislike we are treating them like they are dead. This one lit the big ol’ CONVICTION light in my heart! I have been guilty of this behavior many times in my life.
Jesus, in the Sermon on the Mount, told his listeners that having hatred in the heart is the same as murder and that they should also love their enemies. This turned their previous understanding of scripture completely upside down.
Hating others, particularly other believers, means that we are not born again.
Can you pass the three tests that are proof of a genuine Christian? Is the Bible true in what it teaches, do you show the love of Jesus for others, and has your conduct changed to become more like Him? Harrison Butker has probably demonstrated that he is a genuine Christian. The Christians who are in that category only by default, who still love the world, are among the ones condemning him.
One more thing: I wanted to link to this Article on Desiring God by Greg Morse. I suggest reading it to help you liberate yourself from wanting to please others before you please God. I am not excerpting it because only the John Piper sermons and messages on that site are shareable in excerpts with the proper accreditation.
Boy, 1 John has been challenging for me!! My next devotional examines 1 John 3:16-18 - Love in deed and truth.
Heaven on Wheels Daily Prayer:
Dear Lord - Please forgive me for my misguided priorities in my life. Although my career was interesting, taking care of a family would have been much more in line with Your plans for me. Please help me to pass the three proof tests that I am a genuine Christian and to destroy any hatred in my heart for others. Amen.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Commentary from Enduring Word by David Guzik is used with written permission.