Someone may ask you if you have been born again. How do you know? The apostle John answers the question in 1 John 2. It isn’t as much about what we say but we do. Being a disciple of Jesus changes the essence of who we are. We keep His commands, we abide in Him, and it shows in our relationships.
Keep His Commands
Jesus was asked which commandment was the greatest. He said, “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.” He told them it was the first and greatest commandment. The second was “Thou shalt love thy neigbour as thyself.” Then He told them that all the law and the prophets hung on those two. It makes sense. When you love someone you don’t steal from them, or want what they have nor do you lie to them or take away their life. John writes that when we keep His commands, it demonstrates our love for Him.
Abide In Him
In the Book of John 15, he writes about the vine, the branches and the vinedresser. He quotes the words of Jesus, “Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit, of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.” Here in 1 John 2, John writes, “He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.” Jesus, is the source of our life. The psalmist wrote, “For with You is the fountain of life; in Your light we see light.” It changes the way we live. The sap of His love flows through us.
Shows in Relationships
The final picture John gives us is how we treat our Christian family. If you hate your brother, he writes, you are still walking around in the dark. You cannot see where you are going. You are blind. In contrast the one who loves his brother is in the light so there is no reason to fall. As we live in love relationship with Jesus, we live to please Him and He loves through us. Does this picture reveal your heart? We keep His commands, we abide in Him, and it shows in relationships.