We continue with lessons learned from Sheep Among Wolves, Volume II, a documentary about disciple-making movements in Iran.

The film was released in 2019, but some of what I heard about the Ayatollah I’m hearing today. An October 6, 2022, editorial in the Wall Street Journal said that the Ayatollah’s actions are a “gift to secularism,” declaring correctly that “religion doesn’t flourish when it’s compulsory.”

But the Iranian believers were saying several years ago:

The best evangelist for Jesus is the Ayatollah. People are finding out that Islam is a lie. They’re 40 years into their “utopia,” and it’s not there…Mosques are empty in Iran. – From Sheep Among Wolves, Volume II

Their philosophy of ministry is that they are always discipling people, even before they become believers. Jesus did. They point out that there was A LOT the original twelve didn’t understand. With a large number of new believers, pre-believers the “church” is messy. But that’s ok:

In the graveyard, there is perfect order. Nurseries are messy. Samson wouldn’t be a leader in our churches: he had character issues, anger issues, and lust issues.

The bottom line?

The “software” of the gospel will not run on the “hardware” of the west in the Middle East. (It doesn’t run well in the US either!)

Again, it’s a film worth seeing on many levels.

Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel, which has come to you, as indeed in the whole world it is bearing fruit and increasing—as it also does among you, since the day you heard it and understood the grace of God in truth. (Colossians 1.5, 6, ESV)

As I wrote last year, I don’t know why this is the only “holiday” in which the “eve” gets more attention than the day! Halloween = “All Hallows Eve” or the Eve of All Saints’ Day.

All Saints’ Day is a celebration of all Christian saints, particularly those who have no special feast days of their own, in many Roman Catholic, Anglican and Protestant churches. In many western churches, it is annually held on November 1…It is also known as All Hallows Tide, All-Hallomas, or All Hallows’ Day.

I can’t do better than the writer of the Hebrews:

And what more shall I say? For time would fail me to tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets—who through faith conquered kingdoms, enforced justice, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, were made strong out of weakness, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight. Women received back their dead by resurrection. Some were tortured, refusing to accept release, so that they might rise again to a better life. Others suffered mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were killed with the sword. They went about in skins of sheep and goats, destitute, afflicted, mistreated—of whom the world was not worthy—wandering about in deserts and mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth. And all these, though commended through their faith, did not receive what was promised, since God had provided something better for us, that apart from us they should not be made perfect. Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. (Hebrews 11.32 – 12.2, ESV, emphasis mine)

At a friend’s recommendation, I recently watched Sheep Among Wolves, Volume II, available on YouTube. It’s a nearly 2-hour documentary about disciple-making movements in Iran. Strongly recommend. Here’s a highlight:

The churches in the west are definitely weak in our theology of suffering or martyrdom…In America, we’re trying to make the most of this life. The Iranians are saying, “Forget this life, I’m betting on the next one!” – From Sheep Among Wolves, Volume II

Therefore believers in Iran are more like the folks Peter was writing to:

Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed…Therefore let those who suffer according to God’s will entrust their souls to a faithful Creator while doing good. (1 Peter 4.12, 13…19, ESV)

I’ll share another highlight from the movie after All Saints Day.

If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied. (1 Corinthians 15.19, ESV)

How do we live in an age where the government seems to make one bad decision after another? (No offense intended: whichever party is in power, at least half the people are asking that question!)

Peter has a word, and remember, when Peter was alive, Nero was the emperor, and the Roman Empire persecuted Christians.

Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as servants of God. Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the emperor. (1 Peter 2.16, 17, ESV)

How well are we doing at keeping these short sentences?

• Live as people who are free,
  • not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil,
  • but living as servants of God.
• Honor everyone.
• Love the brotherhood.
• Fear God.
• Honor the emperor/president/governor…

We move into 1 Peter in our 5x5x5 Reading Plan (don’t ask why the books are ordered as they are…except they’re interspersing the gospels throughout the year). A friend of mine, an English professor, used to say that Paul’s epistle to the Romans was “dense text,” meaning a lot of weighty information packed into a small space. After wading through 1 Peter 1, I don’t think Paul has a monopoly on dense text!

Here’s just a small sample:

Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to those who are elect exiles of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in the sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and for sprinkling with his blood: May grace and peace be multiplied to you. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. (1 Peter 1.1 – 5, ESV)

Elect, foreknowledge, sanctification, obedience, born again, resurrection, inheritance, salvation… Heavy theology! Followed in the rest of the chapter with such topics as endurance through suffering, challenges to holiness and sober-mindedness.

But what grabs me is how chapter 2 starts. After all these heavy topics, what’s the so what?

So put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander. (1 Peter 2.1, ESV)

Common, everyday stuff. As I said, heavy theology, calls to holiness, “purify your souls by obedience to the truth,” etc. What does that look like? Well, for starters, “…put away malice, deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander.”

I think God would have us spend less time trying to understand (and argue about!) complex theology and more time figuring out how to put it into practice.

Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you. (Ephesians 4.31, 32, ESV)

I said I would just hit a few highlights in 1 John, and I have. We close our time in John’s epistles with the messages of 2 John and 3 John. They are simple:

• 2 John is written to a lady, and the message is: don’t welcome or help false teachers.

If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house or give him any greeting, for whoever greets him takes part in his wicked works. (2 John 1.10, 11, ESV)

• 3 John is written to a man, and the message is: do welcome and help true teachers.

Beloved, it is a faithful thing you do in all your efforts for these brothers, strangers as they are, who testified to your love before the church. You will do well to send them on their journey in a manner worthy of God. For they have gone out for the sake of the name, accepting nothing from the Gentiles. Therefore we ought to support people like these, that we may be fellow workers for the truth. (3 John 1.5 – 8, ESV)

3 John closes with a warning about a guy named Diotrephes:

I have written something to the church, but Diotrephes, who likes to put himself first, does not acknowledge our authority. So if I come, I will bring up what he is doing, talking wicked nonsense against us. And not content with that, he refuses to welcome the brothers, and also stops those who want to and puts them out of the church. (3 John 1.9, 10, ESV)

Diotrephes:

• Likes to put himself first
• Does not acknowledge John’s authority
• Doesn’t welcome the traveling teachers
• Prevents others from doing so as well

There will always be a Diotrephes!

But there are also people like Gaius (the addressee of the letter) and Demetrius (verse 12) – good guys.

It’s all about discernment, but God helps us with that!

Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world…Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. (1 John 4.1, 4, ESV)

It always catches my attention when I read the same thing in two different places. Here’s the recent reading from 1 John:

Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure. (1 John 3.2, 3, ESV)

A promise with a “so what?” “Everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.” Purifies himself… Didn’t we just see that in 2 Corinthians?

Therefore go out from their midst, and be separate from them, says the Lord, and touch no unclean thing; then I will welcome you, and I will be a father to you, and you shall be sons and daughters to me, says the Lord Almighty.” Since we have these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit, bringing holiness to completion in the fear of God. (2 Corinthians 6.17 – 7.1, ESV)

Same setup: a promise of God’s presence in 2 Corinthians; a promise of his appearing in 1 John. Therefore: “let us cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit, bringing holiness to completion in the fear of God.”

Intentionality: 

• Purify myself as he is pure

• Cleanse myself from every defilement of body and spirit

• Bringing holiness to completion

Life requires intention and paying attention, as I wrote recently.

¹  Blessed are the undefiled in the way, Who walk in the law of the LORD!
²  Blessed are those who keep His testimonies, Who seek Him with the whole heart!
³  They also do no iniquity; They walk in His ways. (Psalm 119.1 – 3, NKJV)

Continuing our highlights from 1 John and his frequent use of “abide.” Here’s one of my favorites:

…I write to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one. 1 John 2.14, ESV)

You young men…

• are strong
• The Word of God abides in you
• You have overcome the evil one

It reminded me of an iconic quote from the original Star Wars movie. Darth Vader says about young Luke Skywalker:

The force is strong with this one.

The parallel is a strong one (no pun intended!): who is in danger from someone who is strong because “the Word of God abides in you”? The arch-enemy! “You have overcome the evil one.”

And how does the Word of God abide in us? The first step is to memorize it! Please read this blog I wrote back in 2019, explaining how 82-year-old (at the time) Max Barnett teaches scripture memory. Read the blog, start the habit. And scripture memory is very much one of those disciplines to which the 7 days/week rule applies.

Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. (Colossians 3.16, ESV)

I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you. (Psalm 119.11, ESV)

We move from Titus to 1 John in our 5x5x5 New Testament Reading Plan. I’ll just capture a few highlights over the next couple of days. One thing I noticed was John’s use of “abide.” Here’s an example:

Let what you heard from the beginning abide in you. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, then you too will abide in the Son and in the Father. And this is the promise that he made to us—eternal life. I write these things to you about those who are trying to deceive you. But the anointing that you received from him abides in you, and you have no need that anyone should teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about everything, and is true, and is no lie—just as it has taught you, abide in him. Children of God And now, little children, abide in him, so that when he appears we may have confidence and not shrink from him in shame at his coming. (1 John 2.24 – 28, emphasis mine)

Here’s the technical definition of the Greek word translated “abide” from stepbible.org (a resource I highly recommend!):

μένω (menō) ‘to stay’ (G3306)to stay, remain, live, dwell, abide; to be in a state that begins and continues, yet may or may not end or stop. “To abide in Christ” is to follow his example of a life obedient to the will of God. – stepbible.org

It’s a common word, used in a variety of contexts. However, as nearly as I can tell, the idea of “abiding in” occurs only in John’s writings. For example:

If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. (John 15.7, ESV)

We are to take up our residence in Christ as he takes up his residence in us! In the metaphor of the vine in John 15, “abide” is a permanent connection. The branch can’t even exist without the vine.

I wonder why John is the only one to use this language. Maybe because John had a stronger sense of being in relationship with Jesus. In his gospel, he refers to himself as “the disciple whom Jesus loved.” (See, for example, John 21:7). I don’t think John was the only disciple whom Jesus loved. I think he loved them all! But, maybe John was the only one who realized this. I am the disciple whom Jesus loves…and you are too!

Whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked. (1 John 2.6, ESV)

See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him. (1 John 3.1, ESV)

Fall color is essentially over for us, but we enjoyed four weeks of it from the spectacular aspen on the left, which we saw at Copper Mountain on September 23, to our own large aspen on October 22. A few hours after that picture was taken, the winds came in at 30 mph, blowing most of the leaves off, and about 40 hours later, we woke up to our first snow.

While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, shall not cease. (Genesis 8.22, ESV)

Daniel answered and said: “Blessed be the name of God forever and ever, to whom belong wisdom and might. He changes times and seasons; he removes kings and sets up kings; he gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who have understanding. (Daniel 2.20, 21, ESV)