<\/p>\n
As we examined the previous verses last week, we saw the moral test for our assurance \u2013 that we can know that we have come to know God if we obey his commandments. Because those that love God obey Him, and walk as the Lord Jesus Christ walked. As we move into our verses for today, we encounter another test in verse 9-11, specifically \u2013 that of love. This is the test of love. Specifically, love for one another. But, before we get to verse 9-11, we must take some time with verse 7-8, as we have a very important foundation and understanding laid for us.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Beloved<\/p>\n <\/p>\n As verse 7 begins, we see another literary affection that the Apostle John employs to his readers, \u201cBeloved,\u201d he says. This is the nature in which John has written this letter, with endearment, concern, and legitimate care for his readers. We saw in chapter 2 verse 1 he addressed them, as \u201cMy little children.\u201d These are two phrases that we will see John use repeatedly throughout this letter, \u201cBeloved\u201d and \u201cMy Little Children.\u201d And so John in so doing tells us that we are not only his little children in the faith, and the little children of God, but we are also beloved by him, and most importantly, beloved of God. Oh what a thing it is to be beloved by God! And to have Scripture written for your benefit, joy, and assurance, that we are beloved of God.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n We also have, in this one word, a simple Gospel foundation laid. If you notice, John proceeds to give an old command that is at the same time a new command to us. And then he gives a test. And so strictly speaking, he is giving us law. But he does so by prefacing to the Christian, that sweet gospel truth, \u201cbeloved.\u201d It is precisely because we are beloved that we are able to love and obey God\u2019s commands, and not be perpetually shamed by them. It is from the gospel that we obey \u2013 from Christ\u2019s obedience that we obey, from Christ\u2019s love that we love. Let us get that right. Whatever the commands are to follow, we are not following them to earn love or acceptance or righteousness, but we are obeying them because we are loved, accepted, and righteous in Christ.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n The Old Commandment<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n John writes, \u201cBeloved, 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. At the same time, it is a new commandment that I am writing to you\u2026\u201d So John is writing here for us about a commandment that is both old and new at the same time. How can this be? First we must clarify what this commandment is that he is talking about.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n What is the commandment?<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n It\u2019s interesting because he talks about this old and new commandment here, but he doesn\u2019t come out and say what exactly this commandment is, here in the immediate context, though he does eventually. If you look over at 1 John 3v11, John there reveals what the word is from the beginning, that they have heard. (Read 1 John 3v11). And then, we can turn a page or two over to 2 John, verse 5-6 (READ). So clearly, the command that John is referring to as both old and new is that we love one another. I think it is also confirming based on the more immediate context of verse 9-11, where John talks briefly on loving our brothers and those who hate their brother. So this is the commandment: love one another.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n How is it Old?<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n How is it an old commandment? What is the beginning? Some commentators that you might read, will say that beginning he is referring to the beginning of their conversion, and John is reminding them of this fundamental truth. If the beginning is their conversion, then in what sense is the command old or new? I believe it makes the most sense to say that the beginning is referring to the beginning, as in Genesis. That\u2019s why we see in 1 John 3v12, John telling us not to be like Cain who murdered his brother, right after he tells us in verse 11 that the message from the beginning is that we love one another.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n This is the word that we have heard from the very beginning, written on our hearts, to love one another. But it is not just from the beginning, but it is an old commandment, as in, the old covenant. Turn to Leviticus 19. In Leviticus 19, it begins by stating God\u2019s holiness, \u201c You shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy.\u201d Then after that, based on the foundation of God\u2019s holiness, Leviticus 19 then begins to describe how the Israelites were to treat their neighbors. It is essentially showing what it means to love your neighbor. And then we have verse 17 and 18 explicitly state, “You shall not hate your brother in your heart, but\u00a0you shall reason frankly with your neighbor, lest you\u00a0incur sin because of him.<\/span>\u00a0<\/sup>You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but\u00a0you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the\u00a0Lord<\/span>.” <\/p>\n John\u2019s initial audience, especially those who were Jews would have certainly known this Old Testament command, to love one another. In our day, we might puzzle and clue over what John is referring to, but they certainly would\u2019ve known exactly what he was talking about. So John is saying, \u201cWhat I am saying to you is not anything new.\u201d John isn\u2019t making up new commands or being innovative in any way, which would\u2019ve carried a lot of weight, and does still carry a lot of weight.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n We come to verse 8, and John says, \u201cAt the same time, it is a new commandment that I am writing to you\u2026\u201d Now how does that make sense? How can it be both old and new? Is John getting old and senile here? Surely not.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n The New Commandment<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n John recorded these words of Jesus in his gospel, “A new commandment\u00a0I give to you,\u00a0that you love one another:\u00a0just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/sup>By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/span>So here we have Jesus saying that this is a new commandment. So John in his epistle, isn\u2019t making up that to love one another is both old and new, he is simply passing along the things that he heard from Christ.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n True in Him<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Back in our passage it says in verse 8, \u201cit 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.\u201d It is a new commandment which is true in him. That is, it is new and true in the Lord Jesus Christ. You see this new commandment is new, not in the sense that it has not existed before; but rather, it is new in the sense that it has been expanded upon, it\u2019s meaning and it\u2019s force has been deepened and widened. And it is new in the sense that it has been given to a new entity. The old was in relation to Old Testament Israel, the new in relation to the new testament Church which expands beyond Israel!<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n There is a new expansion to it; and there is also a new motivation to it. We love, because Christ has first loved us. We love according to his example. And his example was a sacrificial love that gave everything for the good of his object. So are we to love \u2013 sacrificially.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Here is A. W. Pink on the matter, \u201cThe Law required that I love my neighbor, which was a natural relationship [physical]; but the Gospel requires me to love my \u2018brethren\u2019 in Christ, which is a spiritual relationship. The law required me to love my neighbor as myself: to be as zealous in protecting his interests and forwarding his welfare as I am my own; Christ commands us \u2018that ye love one another, as I have loved you\u2019 \u2013 with a fervent, sacrificial, and enduring love\u2026 The \u2018new\u2019 one differs not from the old in substance, but receiving appellation from its having been renewed and beautified by Christ, and because it is now enforced by new considerations and motives\u2026 The old commandment received a new embodiment and manifestation in the eternal lover of our souls, and by His example acquired a new significance and meaning\u2026 the old commandment is now considered in a new light and is to be laid hold of with a new vigor. Love for the brethren is now urged on grounds on which it was not under the Mosaic economy. First and foremost, from the example supplied by Christ. He not only expressly ratified the original precept, but had given a pattern of charity such as had never been seen in this world before. In Him it was supremely and sublimely personified\u2026Thus we see how intimately this is linked with verse 6: in exhorting Christians to walk as their Master walked\u2026\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n True in You<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n So we have this new command that is true in him; but John tells us that it is also true in you. The Christian who has passed from darkness to life and has been given a new nature, now has the ability to truly love the church, and to truly walk as Christ walked in love and abide in him, in the light.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n I believe it is the old Jewish dispensation that is the darkness here that is now passed away, for it only had types and shadows of what was to come; but now we are live in the light of the gospel of Jesus Christ, who is the radiance of the glory of God, who is the light of the world, who is the true light that is already shining. As A. W. Pink puts it, \u201cThe eneffable glory of God has been openly displayed in and by His incarnate Son. The mists of darkness or obscurity which hovered over things in the previous era have been dispelled, and light has been shed on all its symbols.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n This command is now able to be true in us, because we have the light of the world who has given us eyes to see and wrought grace within our hearts to love one another as has never been previously possible!<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Test: Love for the Brethren<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n One of the benefits of the gospel is that as Christians we have a unique bond and a genuine love, for other believers. I\u2019m talking about strangers. Have you ever been out somewhere or away from home, and you met another believer, and because of your common faith, you had an instant bond and love with and for that person? I\u2019m sure many of us have experienced this. That\u2019s a wonderful thing. The Christian loves other Christians.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n But what about that other Christian sitting in that other pew that you see here every week? Oh now that gets a little harder. We all feel that one. But you see that is what John primarily has in mind \u2013 this is in the context of a local congregation \u2013 a local body of believers \u2013 a local church. Whoever says he is in the light and hates his fellow church member is still in darkness. Now, hatred is more than simply an emotional feeling, it is more than having disagreements and differences sometimes. Hatred is a firm, continual, deep abhorrence of someone. Hatred in and of itself is not a sin, as we are to hate sin with this deep hatred, for example. But it is sin if we hate one another. And this cannot be in the Christian, John tells us. A Christian loves his brother and abides in the light. It is the one who walks in darkness who hates his brother.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n How can John say this? Doesn\u2019t he know how hate-able that one person is!? Maybe they are, and you probably are too; but if you are a true Christian, you have the Holy Spirit within you, and that Holy Spirit does not produce hatred for the brethren; the Spirit produces love for the brothers, a great love. You see, John can speak with such certain terms about this because as H.B. Charles says, \u201cThe Holy Spirit in me, loves the Holy Spirit in my brother.\u201d It is impossible for us to truly hate one another. The love of God in a believer is so transforming that it can cause us to love those in the world who hate us for Christ\u2019s sake, and if we can love those who hate us, then we should definitely be able to love those who love most the Jesus that we love most, no matter what else is true about them! If we love the lost in the world, but we hate our brother, then it is not the love of Christ that is compelling us to love the lost, but it is our fellowship with them in darkness.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n This type of love that Christian has for the brethren, is not a natural love. It does not come from within us. It is one that is put inside of us. It is one that comes with the new nature we receive in our new birth. It is put in us, and yet, as we exercise that new love muscle within us, and work it out, it grows by grace, and continues to be more evident and manifest in our lives, and we learn how to better love one another. \u201cWhoever loves his brother abides in the light, and in him there is no cause for stumbling.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Conclusion<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Again we are confronted with two realms in which human beings live, much like we were in chapter 1v5-10. You are either in the realm of darkness, or the realm of light. The darkness full of hate and the light full of love. The Christian is one who lives in the light, and thus loves his brethren, though there may be moments and times where they don\u2019t and thus sin in this area, it is a new way of life for the believer, the way of love. And the non-Christian is one who lives in the darkness, and is full of hate. Though there may be moments and times where the unbeliever may seem to be nice and loving, the Scripture more accurately interprets their heart, then our own imperfect discernment. Underneath any worldly or superficial love, is a black heart of hate, in the un-believer.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n But lest we for a moment congratulate ourselves and pat ourselves on the back, let us remember that we too, were once full of hatred and darkness within our hearts, and blinded by the god of this world. As Titus 3v3 reminds us, \u201cFor we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n The difference between the Christian and the non-Christian is not that one is inherently better than the other, or that one has earned something the other has not, but it is that Christian has been transferred into the light to abide in Christ and walk in him, and the non-Christian walks in the darkness, blind. In a word, the difference is grace.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n If you are a Christian, this is why we are to go and proclaim the gospel to the lost; and if you are lost here today, blinded by the darkness, this is why there is yet hope for you: Jesus Christ gives sight to the blind! Jesus Christ is the Light of the World that drives out darkness \u2013 the True Light that is already shining. Jesus Christ has not left us to stumble around in the darkness, blinded by sin and hatred, never knowing the truth or seeing the light, but he has come to give sight to the blind, to light up a dark world, and to put a warm love divine in the place where once a cold heart of hate was. Jesus Christ went through the ultimate darkness on the cross, taking God\u2019s righteous and holy hatred of sin upon Himself, so that by turning from our sin, and putting our trust in Him, we might be saved, and have His love shed abroad in our hearts, giving us a love that is foreign to our nature, but new and true in Him, and by extension, in us.<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n I will end with this quote from old commentator, Levi Palmer, \u201cLight is love\u2019s home, and love is light\u2019s offspring\u2026 As the light transforms the chrysalis into the butterfly, so light creates love, and wings it for heaven. Love grows in the light. It is a tropical plant, and thrives best in the meridian of spiritual life. Love loves in the light. When God\u2019s glory shines in the face of a Christian brother we cannot help loving him.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" As we examined the previous verses last week, we saw the moral test for our assurance \u2013 that we can know that we have come to know God if we obey his commandments. Because those that love God obey Him, and walk as the Lord Jesus Christ walked. As we move into our verses […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":685,"featured_media":3619,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"wds_primary_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[22,30,32],"tags":[34,126,205,274,278,345,465,467,557,562,589,603,678,679,699,749,765,775,1014,1056,1080,1105,1114,1131,1144,1280],"class_list":{"0":"post-3618","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-commentary","8":"category-preaching","9":"category-theology","10":"tag-1-john","11":"tag-already","12":"tag-bible","13":"tag-christ","14":"tag-christianity","15":"tag-darkness","16":"tag-exposition","17":"tag-expository","18":"tag-god","19":"tag-gospel","20":"tag-hate","21":"tag-help","22":"tag-jenkins","23":"tag-jesus","24":"tag-joshua","25":"tag-light","26":"tag-lord","27":"tag-love","28":"tag-rags","29":"tag-riches","30":"tag-salvation","31":"tag-scripture","32":"tag-sermon","33":"tag-shining","34":"tag-sin","35":"tag-true","36":"entry"},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2018\/09\/1490894-7.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":3693,"url":"https:\/\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/the-second-birth-and-its-purposes-1-john-51-5\/","url_meta":{"origin":3618,"position":0},"title":"The Second Birth and its Purposes: 1 John 5:1-5","author":"Joshua Jenkins","date":"January 7, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"\u00a0Everyone who believes that\u00a0Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and\u00a0everyone who loves the Father loves whoever has been born of him.2\u00a0By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and obey his commandments.\u00a03\u00a0For\u00a0this is the love of God, that we\u00a0keep his\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Commentary"","block_context":{"text":"Commentary","link":"https:\/\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/category\/commentary\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2019\/01\/01-science-has-figured-out-why-you-love-the-smell-of-old-books-1024x683-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2019\/01\/01-science-has-figured-out-why-you-love-the-smell-of-old-books-1024x683-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2019\/01\/01-science-has-figured-out-why-you-love-the-smell-of-old-books-1024x683-1.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2019\/01\/01-science-has-figured-out-why-you-love-the-smell-of-old-books-1024x683-1.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":3601,"url":"https:\/\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/light-and-darkness-commentary-on-1-john-1v5-7\/","url_meta":{"origin":3618,"position":1},"title":"Light and Darkness: Commentary on 1 John 1v5-7","author":"Joshua Jenkins","date":"August 13, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Verse 5 begins as a link to the previous 4 verses where the apostle John laid a foundation of the person and work of Christ as the foundation upon which what we read here today is built upon. In the opening verses we were also introduced to the theme of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Commentary"","block_context":{"text":"Commentary","link":"https:\/\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/category\/commentary\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2018\/08\/office-wood-table-with-blank-notepad-pencil-glasses-and-cup-of-coffee_1627-105.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2018\/08\/office-wood-table-with-blank-notepad-pencil-glasses-and-cup-of-coffee_1627-105.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2018\/08\/office-wood-table-with-blank-notepad-pencil-glasses-and-cup-of-coffee_1627-105.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":3725,"url":"https:\/\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/the-light-shines-in-the-darkness-john-14-9\/","url_meta":{"origin":3618,"position":2},"title":"The Light Shines in the Darkness: John 1:4-9","author":"Joshua Jenkins","date":"March 19, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"\u00a0 In him was life,[a]\u00a0and\u00a0the life was the light of men.\u00a05\u00a0The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. 6\u00a0There was a man\u00a0sent from God, whose name was\u00a0John.\u00a07\u00a0He came as a\u00a0witness, to bear witness about the light,\u00a0that all might believe through him.\u00a08\u00a0He was not the light,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Commentary"","block_context":{"text":"Commentary","link":"https:\/\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/category\/commentary\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2019\/03\/light-in-darkness.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":3605,"url":"https:\/\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/sure-sin-surer-savior-commentary-on-1-john-1v8-10\/","url_meta":{"origin":3618,"position":3},"title":"Sure Sin, Surer Savior: Commentary on 1 John 1v8-10","author":"Joshua Jenkins","date":"August 20, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"In Context In verse 5-7 that we looked at last week, there is a real emphasis on the importance of holy living. John stresses that true Christians walk in the light, and live lives that are consistent with the fellowship they have with God. Then here in verses 8-10 John\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Commentary"","block_context":{"text":"Commentary","link":"https:\/\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/category\/commentary\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2018\/08\/vt003_-_old_books_grande.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2018\/08\/vt003_-_old_books_grande.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2018\/08\/vt003_-_old_books_grande.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":4366,"url":"https:\/\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/the-pattern-of-heaven-on-earth\/","url_meta":{"origin":3618,"position":4},"title":"The Pattern of Heaven on Earth","author":"Joshua Jenkins","date":"March 2, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"9\u00a0As the Father has loved me,\u00a0so have I loved you. Abide in my love.\u00a010\u00a0If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as\u00a0I have kept\u00a0my Father's commandments and abide in his love.\u00a011\u00a0These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Commentary"","block_context":{"text":"Commentary","link":"https:\/\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/category\/commentary\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2021\/03\/heaven.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2021\/03\/heaven.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2021\/03\/heaven.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2021\/03\/heaven.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2021\/03\/heaven.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":4391,"url":"https:\/\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/friends-of-jesus\/","url_meta":{"origin":3618,"position":5},"title":"Friends of Jesus","author":"Joshua Jenkins","date":"March 16, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"14\u00a0You are\u00a0my friends\u00a0if you do what I command you.\u00a015\u00a0No longer do I call you servants,[a]\u00a0for the servant\u00a0does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for\u00a0all that I have heard from my Father\u00a0I have made known to you.\u00a016\u00a0You did not choose me, but\u00a0I chose you\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Commentary"","block_context":{"text":"Commentary","link":"https:\/\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/category\/commentary\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2021\/03\/stars-scaled.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2021\/03\/stars-scaled.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2021\/03\/stars-scaled.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2021\/03\/stars-scaled.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2021\/03\/stars-scaled.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2021\/03\/stars-scaled.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3618","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/685"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3618"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3618\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3619"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3618"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3618"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/themajestysmen.com\/joshuajenkins\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3618"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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