Glass and Mirrors

View of the Martyrs' Memorial from our hotel room, Oxford, England

He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world. -1 John 2.2

*Propitiate- pacify, do something to take away the anger of; (-tion) atoning

Each writer of the Bible has a specific style. Just like today, you know when you are reading something by Max Lucado or C.S. Lewis. There is a definite difference, as they are from different generations, different countries, different cultures, so therefore their word usage, sentence structure, and voice is easily decipherable. They both write about Christianity but in their own way. I appreciate each author's style. They are unique and reach people differently.

When I read 1 John, I can pinpoint his style of writing. He's very black + white. Straightforward. Blunt. In a way, reading his book is difficult because it hits you so straight on, it leaves you feeling convicted because you know his words need to penetrate deep inside of you. He writes:

Whoever says he is in the light and hates his brother is still in darkness. Ch.2, v.9

Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. Ch.2, v.15

These are extreme, indeed. So he's saying we are in the darkness when we hate those who murder and steal? Yes. Is he saying that when we find our place in this world and feel perfectly content with being here, we living without God in our hearts? Yes.

Woah. A sense of urgency is in these words, and throughout the book, with the message that these are the last hours. No watered down words, here. No misinterpretation is possible.

I love the poetry of the Bible. The Psalms. The language in letters of Paul and Peter. The personification and euphony of Isaiah's passages ("The mountains and the hills before you shall break forth into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands". Isaiah 55.12). But sometimes we need to be shouted at, so to speak, by words that shake us up a bit. Getting us out of our complacent state of mind where everything revolves around me.

Max Lucado wrote a book called It's Not About Me, and it's probably my favorite of his writings because it is so personal and gripping, like 1 John. One of the biggest struggles of us all is to get over our me-centeredness. And that's a hard thing to do.
The quick summation of 1 John, I think, is reflected in Max Lucado's words:

He's the source; we are the glass. He's the light; we are the mirrors. He sends the message; we mirror it. (It's Not About Me, Max Lucado)