1 John 2:7-14

it meant7 Beloved, I am writing you no new commandment, but an old commandment that you had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word that you have heard. 8 At the same time, it is a new commandment that I am writing to you, which is true in him and in you, because the darkness is passing away and the true light is already shining. 9 Whoever says he is in the light and hates his brother is still in darkness. 10 Whoever loves his brother abides in the light, and in him there is no cause for stumbling. 11 But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.
12 I am writing to you, little children,
    because your sins are forgiven for his name's sake.
13 I am writing to you, fathers,
    because you know him who is from the beginning.
I am writing to you, young men,
    because you have overcome the evil one.
I write to you, children,
    because you know the Father.
14 I write to you, fathers,
    because you know him who is from the beginning.
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.

Along with "little ones," "beloved" is also one of John's favorite titles for the Christians that he was writing to.  This was to remind them not only that they were loved by him, but also by God and that it was because of His great love that He made a way for us and chose us to be part of His family.  It is because of that great love that we too are called to respond in love, which we prove and demonstrate through our actions--actions that are consistent with the character and commandments of God and the new nature that has been given to us.

While all this may have sounded new and radical to those coming out of Judaism that identity determined actions instead of a code of conduct that determined your identity, John tells them it's really nothing new and was the way that it was always intended to be.  What is new about it is that it is God living in and through us that accomplishes these things.  His light shines in and through us.  This is why if we say we are children of the light and continue to walk in the darkness of habitual sin, we must be liars.  One of the most important ways we show this is how we love each other as Christians.

John then writes a little poem or song so that the Church may remember essential truths.  Here are a few of these key ideas:
1) We are forgiven for His glory (His name's sake)
2) We know through a personal relationship the God who is everlasting and is the creator and sustainer of all things.
3) We have been given the strength needed to withstand and be victorious over the attacks of Satan and the demons (and our own evil desires from our sin nature) through Jesus and the power of the Holy Spirit living in us.
4) The Word of God (not just the Bible, but the One who inspired the words of the Bible) lives within us.  Ask we study God's Word, let it fill us and let it change us, we become more like the One called the Word (see John 1 where Jesus is called this).  Again, all this is accomplished through the work of the Holy Spirit living in an and through us which not only helps us recall the Word of God but puts it into practice in our lives.

Can you say that you know the God of the Bible, the one who is the Beginning and the the End?  Do you live in such a relationship with Him that you can say with the apostle Paul, "In Him we live, and move, and breathe," and that without Him we are and have nothing of value?  Have you been given the strength to overcome the evil one or are you still living in the darkness of sin and blinded by it?  Would you say that that light or darkness lives inside of you?  Which do people see what they look at you?  More importantly, which does God see when He looks into your soul?  Are you a person that is filled with and changed by the Word of God?  Do you love his Word and His commandments? How often do you think about them?  Are we like the the one who is called "blessed" in Psalm 1 because, "his delight is in the law of the LORD and on his law he meditates day and night."? I encourage you to read Psalm 119 (read it slowly and meditate on it).  Last but not least, what do we sing about?  Is our worship driven by the nature of God?  Is it designed to point people to His work, His love, and the glory that He deserves? Is it based on the truth of God's Word?  What are you filling yourself with?  I'll go back to the words of Jesus to summarize.

Luke 6:45 English Standard Version (ESV)45 The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.