1 John 1: “1 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched—this we proclaim concerning the Word of life. ² The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us. ³ We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. ⁴ We write this to make our joy complete.”

I read this and in my mind, I imagine John as if he is speaking to me. He is validating his proclamations about Jesus. I imagine what it must have been like for him to say, “I have heard with my own ears, and I have seen with my own eyes the person of Jesus, the One the Father has sent us and who has appeared to us. We (meaning he and Christ’s followers) proclaim this so you can have the same experience. Our fellowship is with God and Jesus, and our joy is complete! It’s for you as well.”

John’s memories are spilling over confirming the authenticity of who Jesus is to him, the apostles, and fellow believers. He knew of what he spoke because he had lived every moment of those memories. To him the words of Scripture were profoundly fresh and empowering. That’s the effect John’s encounter with Jesus had on him. And he tells us it’s for us as well?!?!? If we try to tap into what John must have been feeling, we could just as convincingly proclaim Jesus as the Messiah. But are we? If not, why?

John listened to Jesus speak and John spoke to Jesus. They spent time together. Are we listening to Jesus? (by reading the Word) Are we speaking to Jesus? (by spending time with Him in prayer) Or if not, are we loosing that personal convincing relationship with the Word of Life John referred to? I think so! Too much time away from the book that expresses God’s thoughts will obviously result in a disconnect a dullness of hearing. We will struggle to understand spiritual truths. We won’t realize how much we need Him. We will loose sight of who God is. Resulting in a nonchalant attitude towards our Savior.

John’s personal interaction with Jesus was difficult to deny. It was convincing. What about us? Is our relationship with Christ convincing? The times are desperate. Lies are being touted as Truth. Do we even recognize the deception?

Dear Readers, when it comes to our faith in Christ, the time has come to be convincing!