Wednesday 21 January 2026

Psalm 119:129-144

Background
This passage in 1 John begins with a warning to test the spirits, because there are ‘false prophets’ (v. 1) who are not from God. The writer does not leave it there though. We are told how to test the spirits: if they confess that Jesus is Lord, they are from God. Not only that, but also we will know that something or someone is close to God if they love.

We would do well as Christians, especially in this Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, to heed this warning and listen to this advice about the centrality of love. There have been far too many times when we have not acted with a spirit of love and have harmed our siblings in Christ. If we interpret our faith in such a way that it moves us to act out of prejudice, hatred, or resentment rather than love, then we do not ‘know God’ (v. 8). There is a wise saying that goes like this: "There are two types of Christian – those who bring their own prejudice, experience and baggage to scripture, and those who do this and admit it."

We must be aware of the biases we bring to our reading of scripture and test our interpretation against love, which is central to our faith. There is no getting away from this in the teachings of Jesus, nor in Paul’s letters, nor in 1 John. If our interpretation of scripture is not loving, it is not of God.

The writer of 1 John goes on to say "If we love one another, God lives in us, and his love is perfected in us.." (v. 12) Yesterday, I wrote about the importance of discipleship alongside faith. Here we are being called to allow the Holy Spirit that dwells within us to change and transform us, to perfect us, and to mould us into more loving people day by day. What a wonderful thing it will be when we finally reach that perfection and love God desires!

To Ponder:

• Can you think of a time when you did not act lovingly towards a fellow Christian? How can you use the experience to grow in love for all siblings in Christ?
• The writer of 1 John believes we are being ‘perfected’ in love. Do you believe that God can transform us in such a radical way, and do you pray for this each day?

Prayer
Lord God, please transform us into your likeness more and more each day, and perfect us in love, through the power of the Holy Spirit dwelling in us. Amen.

Bible notes author: Ruth Wilde
Ruth Wilde is a lay pastor at Emmanuel URC/Methodist church in Redditch, Worcestershire. She works in that role four days a week and spends one day a week as Tutor for the Inclusion of Disabled People and Equality Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) at Luther King Theological College. She was previously National Coordinator of the charity Inclusive Church, for which she edited the book How to Build the Church of the Future (SCM Press).