1 John 1:
1-4 NRSV
1 We declare to you what was from the
beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have
looked at and touched with our hands, concerning the word of life— 2 this
life was revealed, and we have seen it and testify to it, and declare to you
the eternal life that was with the Father and was revealed to us— 3 we
declare to you what we have seen and heard so that you also may have fellowship
with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus
Christ. 4 We are writing these things so that our[a] joy may be complete.
Distrust
seems to be a defining characteristic of our time. Who and what can be trusted?
Not politics or its pundits, not the press, not banks, not even our spiritual
leaders are above the ‘hermeneutic of suspicion’ and all due to past experience
of unfaithfulness. Perhaps this is the core reason for the popularity of relativism
and this ‘there is no such thing as absolute truth’ Age of ours. We have been
promised so much by so many who have failed to keep their promises. The disciple of Jesus, John, wrote a letter;
in fact he wrote a series of letters counteracting the distrust of his age and
time and the pessimism that distrust breeds. Distrust is an attempt to reduce
anxiety and fear about our lives and place in the world that fails miserably.
John’s letter exposes a life based on distrust as a fraud. Trust in the Truth
is a positive, constructive and empowering approach to building an interdependent
and mutually valuing community. John believes in Truth. John wants to emphasise that he and the other disciples
heard, seen and touched the Truth; Jesus. Jesus is no myth; the stories of His demise
and the end of His influence are greatly exaggerated. Jesus is ‘The Word of
Life’. It is faith and trust in Jesus and His story revealed in the bible that draws
people into meaningful life, meaningful friendship, cooperation and happiness. Faith
in Jesus is accepting the facts about Him as revealed in the bible, accepting
them personally, trusting that the story of Jesus and His promise of liberation
from all that would seek to harm us is the basis of building communities on
trust and truth. In John 8:32 Jesus said ‘and
you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.’ There is Truth and we will find it if we seek
it. Let’s do it together. John 1: 14 sums it up perfectly; ‘And
the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory
as of a father’s only son,[a] full of grace and truth.’ It's time to recover, have faith in and defend the Truth.