Right now, our small group is going through Tim Keller's study on 1 John. I love Tim Keller's books, and I love his study on Romans, but I'm sometimes displeased with some questions that appear in his smaller studies (ok, I've only done two of the smaller ones, including the 1 John--the other was Galatians). Some of the questions are heavily influenced by some interpretation that Keller himself has made, and to consider an answer is to stand on ground that Keller has established in his mind but not in the study.
All of that being said, I still find his studies very useful, and most of the questions are pretty good. The lesson we worked through last evening (Lesson 6: Something to Rely On [1 John 4:7-21]) had a question that I found useful, because, while it has a seemingly obvious answer, it forced me to look at the actual text to support my answer. So, the question:
Many people look at outward circumstances of their lives to determine whether God loves them. What is the problem with doing that? According to John, how do we really know God loves us?The passage has clear evidence of two sources of assurance that God loves us: Jesus (vs.9-10) and the Holy Spirit (vs.13).
Verses 15-16 say that "whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God . . . [comes] to know and to believe the love that God has for us." What does it mean to confess that Jesus is the Son of God? I could try to go into the implications of God having a Son, but I think we can answer very simply: it means that we believe that he is who he said he is. Verse 14 implies that this requires believing those who ". . . have seen and testify that the Father . . . sent [Jesus] to be the Savior of the world." And so the Bible (or more specific to this case, the New Testament) is a source of evidence that bears witness to God's love for us in Jesus. The New Testament is written largely (perhaps entirely) by people who have both seen and testify to the truth about Jesus.
In verse 13, we are told that "we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit." John 15:26 says that the Spirit ". . . will bear witness about [Jesus]." And so the Spirit assures us of God's love by "[bearing] witness with our spirit that we are children of God . . . and fellow heirs with Christ" (Romans 8:16-17). 1 John says that our being called children of God is evidence of his love (1 John 3:1), and so there is a logical progression from the Spirit's ministry in us to an affirmation of God's love.
So what about those outward circumstances of our lives? I'll venture to say that the Scripture I've looked at so far has already shown us the way in which God proves his love, but a person could ask "so are Christ and the Spirit the only ways that God shows his love?" While I can not think of any other ways (or at least any other ways that are conclusive), I will not bother with giving a firm "no." But the Bible does give some clear indications of what sort of "outward circumstances" we can expect as followers of Christ.
Jesus himself said that because he "chose [us] out of the world, . . . the world hates [us]" (John 15:19). He doesn't stop there. In John 16:2, he says that his followers will be treated as religious outcasts and even killed by those who think that doing so is a service to God. The rest of Romans 8:17 says that we must "suffer with [Jesus] in order that we may also be glorified with him."
Does this mean that suffering (an outward circumstance) is then evidence of God's love for us? My gut tells me no, particularly because non-Christians suffer, too. It may be evidence when it is coupled with saving faith, but even then, I hesitate to call it evidence of his love. I can confidently assert, however, that it is not evidence against his love. Jesus tells his disciples that he has told them about their impending suffering "to keep [them] from falling away" (John 16:1). He is telling them not to doubt the love that God has for them. He has chosen them (John 15:19); they will suffer. Those two realities coexist.
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