How To Know That You Are In The Light

Song:

I have the light of God in me /2x

I have the spirit of the Son of God

I have the light of God in me.

This is one of the choruses we sing as Christians. Let us think through this song and measure ourselves against the scale of the word of God.

Let us read 1 John 2:7-11, which says,

“Brethren, I write no new commandment to you, but an old commandment which you have had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which you heard from the beginning. Again, a new commandment I write to you, which thing is true in Him and in you, because the darkness is passing away, and the true light is already shining. He who says he is in the light, and hates his brother, is in darkness until now. He who loves his brother abides in the light, and there is no cause for stumbling in him. But he who hates his brother is in darkness and walks in darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.”

So, how do you know you are in the light?

You know if you do not harbor hatred against anyone.

• 1 John 2:9 says, “He who says he is in the light and hates his brother, is in darkness until now.”

Synonyms for hate:

Ill-will, hostility, bitterness, etc.

**Hatred is a poisonous heart condition that makes us treat others as enemies. It moves from mere emotion to a strong dislike of another person. The Bible treats hatred as a sin.

People can hate discipline (Psalm 50:17), Peace (Psalm 120:6), etc.

However, the focus of this teaching is people hating people.

• People can hate people – Joseph’s brothers hated him (Gen. 37:4)

• People can hate others because they are on the Lord’s side (Isa. 66:5)

• Even the poor can be hated for being poor (Prov. 19:7)

Here are some truths about hating brethren

1. One remains in darkness (vs. 9)

2. One remains in death and has no eternal life (1 John 3:14-15)

3. God considers a hater to be a murderer (1 John 3:15)

4. One remains a liar (1 John 4:20-21)

5. One cannot love a God he has not seen since he hates the person he can see (1 John 4:20-21). If we say we love God, we must also love our brethren.

6. Hatred stirs up dissension (Prov. 10:12)

7. Jesus said haters will end up in hellfire (Matthew 5:22)

So, what must we now do?

1. Stop harboring hatred against people; instead, tell them what they did wrong (Leviticus 19:17)

2. Do not seek revenge (Leviticus 19:18; 1 Peter 3:9)

3. Get rid of bitterness, rage, and anger; begin to forgive (Eph. 4:21-32; Ps. 37:8)

4. We must begin to love instead of hate. We do it not because people are good but because God is good, and He commands that we love. Is this easy to do? No, but we can do all things through Christ, who strengthens us. – Phil. 4:13

Advantages of loving your fellow (not hating)

• You will walk in the light (1 John 2:9)

• You avoid stumbling (1 John 2:10)

Someone asked, “Can we at least keep our distance from some people with whom we do not see eye to eye?”

One truth to uphold is that we cannot hate or keep malice. It is good to get this right. Of course, this is hard, but the ability to still love and pray for our enemies further proves that we are maturing in Christ (Luke 6:27-29).

However,

Keeping a distance is allowed to avoid ungodly influences, not because we hate them.

• Prov. 22:24 says, “Do not make friends with an angry man, and do not associate with a hot-tempered man, or you may learn his ways and entangle yourself in a snare…” – Berean Standard Bible.

• 1 Corinthians 5:11 says we should not associate with immoral Christians.

Since there is a thin line between keeping malice and not associating with sin and hurtful people, we must be very prayerful, trusting God to help us please Him in every situation.

How to deal with hurtful and demeaning people:

• Do everything in your power to be at peace with them (Rom. 12:18)

• Casting our burden upon the Lord in this context means we admit we are hurt but revoke our ability to take revenge and ask God to help (1 Peter 5:7).

Conclusion:

“But to those of you who will listen, I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, / bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.” – Luke 6:27-28