Jose’s Daily Thoughts December 2nd

1John 2:12 I am writing to you who are God’s children
      because your sins have been forgiven through Jesus.[c]
13 I am writing to you who are mature in the faith[d]
      because you know Christ, who existed from the beginning.
   I am writing to you who are young in the faith
      because you have won your battle with the evil one.
14 I have written to you who are God’s children
      because you know the Father.
   I have written to you who are mature in the faith
      because you know Christ, who existed from the beginning.
   I have written to you who are young in the faith
      because you are strong.
   God’s word lives in your hearts,
      and you have won your battle with the evil one.
God's children, young in faith, and mature in faith
My thoughts:  We all start somewhere.  God spoke to me today that we all begin somewhere in our Christian walk, but God does not want us to stay there.  The maturing process isn't necessarily on how much more we can put on our plates instead it is how much more we can trust in him.  God showed me that initially we need to understand that Jesus has washed us from our sins in such a way that we do not sin.  We keep in mind that if we do sin he has already made atonement for us; but he does not want us to stay just in that revelation.  We need to understand that there is a battle and winning in that battle means that Christ is growing in our lives.  This understanding is strength in our lives because we no longer rely on ourselves but on him who continues to make intercession for us.  Finally there is a level we can call mature faith.  In this level we not only know Christ as savior, but as Lord and we begin to see his nature and his unchanging love toward us.  John writes that we know Christ is the same as Adam knows Eve and is intimate with her.  We too need to become mature and know Christ in such a way that we are in Christ and know that we have been chosen from the beginning. 
My prayer today: 1John 2: 15 Do not love this world nor the things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you. 16 For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world. 17 And this world is fading away, along with everything that people crave. But anyone who does what pleases God will live forever.