EYE-WITNESS EVIDENCE !! : 1
John 1:1-4
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“Perhaps it is the most difficult of all the New
Testament Epistles,” writes Prof. C. Vaughan … which isn’t exactly the most
encouraging of starting points!
But 1 John will bless our hearts as we take it
slowly and simply … and read it over and over in various translations. “Even the greatest theologians and the most
skilled commentators are unable to grasp the message of 1 John in its deepest
meaning!” … so says the Southern Baptist Professor!
So if there are some parts too difficult to
understand, fear not! … we will admit the problem and press on. Moody said that when he was eating a fish
and came across a bone, he didn’t throw the whole fish away … just put the bone
aside and go on chewing the part you enjoy.
And the same goes for 1 John!
* * * * * * * * * *
1. THE
WRITER …
… John, the beloved disciple. Of course there are a few critics who deny
this, but the universal testimony for the first 1900 years was that the John
who wrote this also penned the fourth Gospel.
And he was inspired by the Holy Spirit.
2. THE
REASONS …
(a) To
Combat Heresy! False teachers were on the
prowl in the Apostolic Age. Paul had
warned the Ephesian elders in Acts 20:28-30, and now it had come to pass.
John, writing from Ephesus to a church that were,
perhaps, his converts, warns of the heresy that has been introduced in their
midst.
It is an early form of GNOSTICISM.
It taught that matter was evil … therefore Jesus did
not take a human body. Some said He was
a phantom who left no footprints when He walked. Others taught that the Christ and Jesus were two different beings
… the ‘Christ’ came upon the man Jesus at His baptism…
Notice John’s all-out attack on this heresy in his
opening sentence … and it is all one sentence in the Greek … 1 John 1:1-3.
John assures his readers that he saw Jesus
… walked with Him and talked with Him … touched Him even!!
This John, one of the original 12 apostles, was with
Him for 3½ years … and his testimony far outweighs that of these self-appointed
‘prophets’ who tell otherwise!!
(4:1-3).
(b) To
Restore to Fellowship! … v. 3
There is no fellowship between those who believe the
Bible … and those who deny its fundamental doctrines.
And those who deny the Scriptural revelation
concerning the Lord Jesus … Son of God and Son of Man … Deity and humanity in
one person … are not only out of fellowship with God’s people but with God
Himself!
By accepting false teaching, the folk to whom he
writes will cut themselves off (if they have not already done so) from the
Family of God.
(c) To
fulfil (i.e. fill full) his Joy! … v. 4
John longs to see these readers restored … or
brought into the Family of God for the first time … and nothing will bring him
greater joy. As he says in 3 John v.
4: “I have no greater joy
than to hear that my children walk in truth.”
Next to the joy that comes with salvation is the joy
of seeing one’s converts going on with the Lord! (v. 4.) And seeing others
come to know Him, too.
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WHAT A
FELLOWSHIP !! : 1 John 1:5-2:11
………………………………………………………………………………………..
Notice the emphasis upon fellowship … with
God … and with other believers (v. 3).
Now the apostle continues to enlarge upon this theme
… warning his readers of the attitudes that break fellowship … of the remedy to
restore to fellowship … and the evidence in a person’s life that such
fellowship exists.
* * * * * * * * * *
1. THE
ATTITUDES
Notice the three “if we’s”, verses 6, 8, 10.
(a) Some hide their sin from others
and still claim to be in fellowship with God.
John says they are “living a lie” (vv 5-6).
(b) Others claim to be sinless! (v.
8). This may well be an attack on false
teachers who follow the Stoic philosophy … by austere acts they mortify the
flesh and therefore claim to have attained a state of perfection.
(c) Others … like the Epicureans (Acts
17:18) taught that whilst the body may do as it pleases (“eat, drink and be
merry”) it did not affect the soul.
Therefore, they said, it was not they that sinned … only the body
they lived in (v. 10).
All of which is contrary to the Christian teaching.
We live in an age where Sin is watered down …
the very word has fallen into disuse.
Who talks about “SIN” anymore these days, except an occasional preacher?
But the Bible says that SIN breaks fellowship … and
damns the soul.
2. THE
REMEDY
We are called unto holiness (2:1).
But IF fellowship is broken by sin …
(a) We
have an Advocate to whom we can go (2:1), and
(b) We
have the Sacrifice on Calvary as the basis for our acceptance and
restoration. It is the “blood” that
“cleanseth us from all sin” (1 John 1:7).
And it is available for ALL mankind (2:2).
Wait a minute;
there is a third factor to be noticed…
(c) “If
we confess our sins He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins” (1:9).
There must be sincere repentance on our part to
receive the word of pardon …
“Whoso
confesseth and forsaketh shall find mercy…”
Proverbs 28:13.
3. THE
EVIDENCE
If a person is in fellowship with God and the saints
of God (1:3) there are three avenues of evidence to be seen:
(a) Godward
… an
Obedient Walk! (2:3-6)
He is simply repeating what was said in the previous
chapter… We are to walk in the Light of
God’s revealed Word … not in the darkness of disobedience (1:6).
(b) Manward
… a Loving Walk! (2:7-11).
And John says it again … 4:20-21.
Notice the paradox in verses 7 and 8 … it is an
“old” command (v. 7) dating back to the Adamic age. Cain disobeyed this command when he slew his brother (1 John
3:11-12). Yet it is ever “new” … a
reminder that the Lord Jesus taught us to “love one another” (John 13:34). It is a command as relevant today (it’s
new!) as when it was first given (it’s old!).
(c) Selfward
… a Holy Walk! (2:6)
“Walking as He walked” says the King James
Version: Holy, Loving, Compassionate,
Kind, Merciful.
The fruit of the Spirit is to be produced in our
lives, and as others see it … they will know that we are in fellowship with God
and His people.
* * * * * * * * * *
That fellowship of love;
His Spirit only can bestow
Who reigns in light above.
Walk in the Light! Thy path shall be
A path, though thorny,
bright;
For God, by grace, shall
dwell in thee,
And God Himself is Light.
(B. Barton)
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ALL IN THE FAMILY !! : 1 John 2:12-28
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Having emphasised the reality of our Lord’s true
humanity (1:1-3) as an antidote to the false teaching prevalent among those to
whom he writes; and having combated
false attitudes and acts that break fellowship with God (deceitful walking,
1:6; denying sin, 1:8, 10; disobeying God, 2:4; and despising brethren, 2:9-11) … now the
apostle addresses various groups within the church family (2:12-28).
It must be pointed out that two different Greek
words (“Teknia” and “Paidia”) are both translated “children” in the King James
Version. And, surprisingly, in the
modern translation we are using. But
there is a distinction to be noted as we study these passages.
And why does John only address “children, young men,
and fathers”? … what about ‘daughters and mothers’?
The answer may well be that in God’s family we are
all (male and female) God’s SONS … not sons and daughters.
In Galatians 4 the emphasis is that we become SONS …
for it is the SON (not the daughter) who inherited the family blessings when he
‘came of age’.
Such was the custom of the day.
Likewise, we who are ‘adopted’ (v. 5) into God’s
family have the status of SONS … regardless of our physical sex.
So when John speaks here of ‘men’ and ‘fathers’ it
may well be that this truth is in his thinking. Certainly what he has to say applies to women as well as men …
* * * * * * * * * * *
1. CHILDREN
(“Teknia”) … vv 1, 12, 28
The apostle’s use of this word embraces ALL the
believers to whom he writes. Men and
women, old and young, mature believers and new-born babes in Christ. All of them!
There is Unmerited Forgiveness for ALL those
in His family (2:12).
And a call to Unbroken Fellowship (so live
holy!) in 2:1.
And a promise of an Unashamed Finale when He
comes to call us Home (2:28). That is,
if we remain in union with Him.
2. CHILDREN
(“Paidia) … vv 13, 18-27
Now we are addressing those babes in Christ … new
believers. Or those who have not grown
in the Faith.
(a) The
Designation … yes! They are God’s
children. Through faith in Christ they
have come to ‘know the Father’ (v. 13).
(b) The
Danger
… young Christians, especially, who do not know the Bible well, are in danger
of being led astray by false teaching.
And the heresy prevalent amongst John’s readers was a denial of our
Lord’s actual humanity (v. 22).
(c) The
Deliverer
… vv 26-27. They are reminded that the
Holy Spirit is able to give them discernment.
John does not discount the importance of godly
teachers … they are one of God’s gifts to His church (Ephesians 4:11). But he assures them of the Holy Spirit’s
guidance in their study of His Word (v. 27).
Not only sin but acceptance of false doctrine can
break fellowship “with the Father and the Son” (v. 24).
Verse 27 may be written to a church where there is
no pastor/teacher. In which case John’s
concern and instruction is all the more revelant.
3. YOUNG
MEN …
vv 13-17
John addresses those in the forefront of the battle
…
Beware, he writes, of Satan’s World-system … those
priorities and values that are contrary to God’s Will (vv 15-17).
“The World” does not refer to the creation we
see … but to “everything out of harmony with God’s mind and purpose.”
4. FATHERS
… vv
13-14
These ‘mature saints’ (men and women) have walked
and talked with the Lord … maybe even sat on His knee years previous. Let them share their experiences with those
younger in the faith…
And to ALL of them (v. 28) continue to “abide in
Christ”!!
The Scripture reminds us that … alas … there will be
some of God’s children, who, when Jesus returns, will be ashamed at the kind of
sub-Christian life they had been living…
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THREE THINGS
WORTH KNOWING !! : 1 John 2:29-3:10
…………………………………………………………………….
In contrast the Gnostics (study 1) who claimed
superior knowledge revealed only to those initiated into their secret society …
the apostle John stresses things that we, as Christians, KNOW!!
Which are far more important than the vagaries of
Gnostic teaching …
1. KNOW
THE PURPOSE OF HIS INCARNATION … 3:5-10
Not just to take us Home to Heaven, but to put
Heaven into us during our earthly pilgrimage!
(v. 5).
As has been well said, “He came not only to prepare
us for the Sweet Bye and Bye … but to deliver us from the Dirty Now and
Now!” He came to make us holy … now!
As J.B. Philips has it in verse 9, the Son of God
came to “liquidate” … to put the Devil ‘out of business’!! To set his captives free. To give us victory over his wiles and
power. He came to enable us to live
holy lives.
2. KNOW
THE PURIFYING INFLUENCE OF HIS RETURN … 3:2-3
(a) In
the light of that indescribable future when we are restored to the ‘image of God’
(Genesis 1:26), and all that “glory that shall be revealed hereafter” (Romans
8:18), we should even now prepare ourselves for that Day (v. 2).
(b) But more, In the light
of the fact that we know not when that Day shall come we need to be
ever ready for it (v. 3). It is a
purifying expectation that should cause us to live every day “as if we were
converted yesterday, and going to meet Him tomorrow!”
The very unexpectedness of that event “like a thief”
(2 Peter 3) should tend to holy living on our part.
Alas, some Christians will be caught unprepared when
He comes, and will regret they have not been the kind of Christians they should
have been.
3. KNOW
YOUR PARENTAL LIKENESS … 2:29-3:1
We are born into the Family of a “righteous” Father
… we are His “children”.
And we should be righteous, too!
Note the progression of thought:
(a) The
Saviour came to make us holy;
(b) One
of the influences to motive us to holiness is the unknown time of His return,
so
(c) Be
holy!
It is the work of the Holy Spirit to reproduce the
family likeness in us day by day. It is
God’s plan that we should “be conformed to the image of His Son” (Romans 8:29)
… an image that was lost in Eden … and will be perfectly restored in Glory (1
John 3:2)!!
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FOUR MORE
THINGS WORTH KNOWING !! : 1 John 3:11-4:16
…………………………………………………………………
John continues to emphasise some things his readers
(and us!) ought to know …
1. KNOW
THE LOVE OF GOD!!
Not only 1 John 3:16, but also John 3:16
says the same thing … “For God SO loved … He gave His Son …”
Calvary is the supreme evidence that God loves YOU …
and me!
Could we with ink the ocean
fill,
And were the skies of
parchment made…
Were every stalk on earth a
quill
And every man a scribe by
trade;
To write the Love of God
above
Would drain the ocean dry,
Nor could the scroll contain
the whole
Tho’ stretched from sky to
sky.
2. KNOW
THE REALITY OF SALVATION
Be able to say, as Paul did, “I know whom I have
believed…” (2 Timothy 1:12).
Not a may-be-so salvation, but a know-so! Look at what John says in 1 John 3:14:
“WE KNOW that we have passed from death to
life, because we love our brothers” (N.I.V. translation); “WE KNOW that we have crossed the frontier from death
to life because we do love our brothers” (J.B. Phillips’ translation).
(a) We could make a good case
for loving to be in the company of like-minded believers … our brothers and
sisters in the Lord. And that, surely,
is an indication that we belong to Him.
(b) But
that’s not what the context reveals … John is talking about loving our
brother-man … who may even be antagonistic to the gospel.
In the previous verses he has just used the
illustration of Cain who slew his brother (vv 12-13). And he uses in the following verses the illustration of the Lord
Jesus who died for us whilst we were estranged from Him (v. 16).
During His earthly life, the Lord Jesus stressed the
need to love all men, not just those like-minded as ourselves (Matthew
5:44-47!).
The reality of our salvation is seen when we love
our brother-man … whoever he may be.
Recalling that Sermon on the Mount, John now adds
verse 23, J.B. Phillips’ translation:
“His orders are that we should put our trust in the
name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and love one another – as we used to hear Him
say in person.”
3. KNOW
THE PEACE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT … 3:24
“The man who does obey God’s commands lives in God
and God lives in him, and the guarantee of His presence within us is the
Spirit He has given us” (J.B.P.)
And if we stray from His commands (as given in verse
23) … the Holy Spirit will be grieved.
Our hearts will “condemn us” (v. 21).
But the person who “walks in the light as He is in
the light” will know God’s peace within.
4. KNOW
THE TRUTH OF THE GOSPEL … 4:1-6
The apostle warns against the false teachers. How often this theme runs through the New
Testament … and how often it is neglected in today’s pulpits!
He calls upon his readers to “test the spirits” (v.
1) … perhaps the Gnostics spoke in an unknown tongue … a counterfeit to the
Holy Spirit’s gift that was prevalent in apostolic times.
Would that spirit confess Jesus Christ’s
incarnation? The Gnostics denied
it! And the evil spirit that spoke
through them, apparently, would deny it also.
Verse 4 is a reference to doctrinal victory
… rather than moral. The Holy Spirit
will give discernment … a gift of the Spirit mentioned in 1 Corinthians
12:10. There was no need for them to
fall prey to the heretical teaching.
And in verse 6 John exercises his apostolic authority. “We” (the apostles) are God’s teachers, he
says. If any teaching differs from
ours, it is wrong! Paul said the same
thing, only stronger! (Galatians 1:9).
The early Christians continued “steadfastly in the
apostles’ doctrine” (Acts 2:42).
And so should we!
Whilst the spiritual gifts here mentioned may no
longer be available, nor do we have any apostles to instruct us, we do have the
written Word of God and the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
Beware of
false teachers … know the truth of the gospel ‘once-and-for-all delivered unto
the saints’ (Jude 3).
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LET’S TALK
ABOUT LOVE … and
show it !! : 1 John 4:7-5:3
…………………………………………………………………………
Yes, John said it … and he says it over and over
again in the first epistle.
The subject of this passage is our love for
God. Let’s analyse it under five
headings:
1. THE
DEFINITION of our Love … 5:1-3
Just as “faith without words is dead” as James 2:20 puts it … so claiming to love God without obeying Him is equally deceptive (v. 3).
Our love may or may not be displayed in
jumping and shouting and clapping and ‘hallelujah-ing’ (some folk express their
emotions that way), but it must be shown by an obedient walk. Ah! there’s the rub!
2. THE
ORIGIN of our Love … 4:15-16
God implants it in our hearts by His Holy
Spirit.
As John puts it … “God is Love” (1 John 4:8, 16),
and when God the Holy Spirit, indwells we can expect to see the outworking of
His love in and through us.
John also mentions the Holy Spirit whose task it is
to reproduce God’s love in us (4:13).
We must remember that God is not only “LOVE” but “LIGHT” (1:5) … He is perfectly Holy. And that means that sin must be punished! See Him with both eyes … a Righteous God whose very nature demands judgement on sin (and the sinner!), but also a Loving God who ‘so loved’ the world that He provided salvation for whosoever…
3. THE
MOTIVATION of our Love … 4:9-10, 19
Why do we love Him?? “Because He first loved us!” (v. 19).
How do I know He loves us?
“In this was manifested the love of God toward us,
because that God sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live
through Him. Herein is love, not that
we loved God, but that He loved us, and sent His Son to be the propitiation for
our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us,
we ought also to love one another” (4:9-11).
We sing the praise of Him
who died,
Of Him who died upon the
cross;
The sinner’s hope let men
deride,
For this we count the world
but loss.
Inscribed upon the cross we
see
In shining letters, “God is
Love”;
He bears our sins upon the
tree,
He brings us mercy from
above.
(T. Kelly)
Love
of God displayed in all its fullness
Some modern translations do away with the word
“propitiation” (4:10; also 2:2).
It means that by His taking the punishment we
deserved, God can now be propitious (favourably disposed) toward us.
The wrath of God upon sin that we deserved has been
borne by our Substitute.
And because He did all that for me … let me show
love to Him in return (v. 19).
4. THE
DIRECTION of our Love … 4:19-21
Not only Godward (v. 19), but manward
(v. 20).
We prove our love to God by showing that love to our
fellow man, be they believers … or not!
Notice that it is not only a natural reaction to
love our brother as the Spirit of God indwells us … but it is God’s command
that we do so! (v. 21). So there!!
5. THE
PERFECTION of our Love … 4:17-18
The more we yield ourselves to the Holy Spirit the
more His love will be manifest. And the
more confident we will be as we approach Judgement Day!
A Spirit-filled believer has no fear of the unknown
future as he walks and talks with his God day by day ... “…and He tells me I am His own…” With my hand in His there is nought to
fear!!
“To you whom I love I say,
let us go on loving one another,
for love comes from
God. Every man who truly loves is
God’s son and has some
knowledge of Him. But the man
who does not love cannot
know Him at all, for
(1 John 4:7-8)
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THREE
TESTS AND THREE
TEXTS !! : in 1 John 5
…………………………………………………………………………
With something resembling a sigh of relief, we come
to the final chapter of John’s first epistle.
The constant repetition and some problem verses all make this one of the
more difficult books on which to preach.
But let us hit the ‘home stretch’ by taking a look
at THREE DEFINITIVE TESTS … and THREE DIFFICULT TEXTS!!
* * * * * * * * * *
1. THE
ETHICAL TEST
… Am
I walking in the Light? (1:6)
John brings this issue up again here (5:4-5).
Do I succumb to the world’s tug that would draw my
allegiance away from the Lord?
Or am I walking the Highway of Holiness?
Only those who know the power of the indwelling Holy
Spirit may know this victory (v. 5).
2. THE
SOCIAL TEST
… Do I love my fellow
man?
And we have come across this many a time in these
five chapters.
There is a love for the fellow believer … how good
it is to meet with them to worship our God (5:2) … but there is also the love
for our neighbour, whether he be a child of God or not (4:19-21).
3. THE
DOCTRINAL TEST
And this has been mentioned more than once in this
letter.
Being a Christian does not mean that you can believe
whatever you want to. There are certain
fundamental doctrines.
For example, you cannot deny the humanity of our
Lord Jesus as some false teachers were doing in John’s day (and ours!) and
claim to be a Christian! (4:3).
Nor can you deny His Deity and claim to be a
Christian (5:5).
Nor His being the Christ … the Messiah
promised by the Old Testament prophets (5:1).
One cannot deny that He died as a sacrifice for
sin and rose again, bodily, the third day … and yet claim to be a
Christian!
There are certain truths basic
to our faith.
So, how do you … how do I … pass the Three
Definitive Tests?
(a) No
… I’m not perfectly holy … but “if any man sin … we have an Advocate” on High
who intercedes for us. And His blood
avails to cleanse our sins away and restore us to fellowship with God.
(b) And
if I fall out with my brother … there is confession and a way back to God by
putting things right with my estranged fellow man.
(c) And
if my doctrinal understanding is shaky … then the Lord knows that I want to
understand His Book better and the One of whom it speaks.
We may not pass all the tests perfectly … but
He who sees the heart of man knows our desire to do so and to please Him. And we can count on His Spirit to help us
pass those tests. Mmmm?
* * * * * * * * * *
1. THE
MISSING TEXT … 5:7
It is true that every modern translation deletes
verse 7 from the text of Scripture. It
was not in the original manuscript written by John. It was added in the 14th century!!
What it says may not be wrong … but it is still not
a part of the inspired Word as written by the apostle.
Jehovah’s Witnesses often claim it to be one of the
main verses used to defend the doctrine of the Trinity … but no scholar uses it
for such a purpose. They know it is not
a part of the original.
2. A
PROBLEM TEXT … 5:16
What is the sin for which we are forbidden to pray
about?
To be looked at in a later sermon … … … (see Study
No. 9!)
3. ANOTHER
PROBLEM TEXT …
5:6 and 8 (Remember, verse 7 is out!!)
Commentators have trouble here … and so do I. Let’s read it again in some modern versions,
and note that they add some words to what John wrote to help us understand it
better…
Good News Bible:
“Jesus Christ is the one who came with the water
of his baptism, and the blood of his death. He came not only with the water, but with
both the water and the blood. And the
Spirit Himself testifies that this is true, because the Spirit is truth. There are three witnesses: the Spirit, the water, and the blood; and all three give the same testimony. We believe man’s testimony; but God’s testimony is much stronger, and He
has given this testimony about His Son.
So whoever believes in the Son of God has this testimony in his own
heart; but whoever does not believe
God, has made Him out to be a liar, because he has not believed what God has
said about His Son. The testimony is
this: God has given us eternal life,
and this life has its source in His Son.
Whoever has the Son has this life;
whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life” (5:6-11).
J.B. Phillips:
“Jesus Christ came with the double sign of water and
blood – the water of His baptism as man and the blood of the
atonement that He made by His death” (5:5-6).
Was Jesus the Messiah … the Son of God?
Here are three heavenly witnesses that said
“YES!”: the Father said so at our
Lord’s baptism (Matthew 3:17) and again just before the Cross (John 12:27-28),
and the Coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost attested to the fact that the
Lord Jesus was seated at the Father’s right hand (Acts 2:32-33).
“All three give the same testimony” (v. 8).
To disbelieve that Jesus is the Son of God is to
call God the Father a liar!! (v. 10).
Wow!
But to accept the testimony of the witnesses and
accept the Lord Jesus as Saviour means that one partakes of “eternal Life” (v.
11), not just a life that lasts forever in Glory … but a better quality of Life
… a more abundant Life … here and now!
“God has given men eternal life and this real life
is to be found only in His Son. It
follows naturally that any man who has genuine contact with Christ has this
life; and if he has not, then he does not
possess this life at all.” (5:11-12).
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FIVE CERTAINTIES !! : 1 John 5:11-21
………………………………………………………………………………….
Here’s a passage to make the joy-bells ring in the
heart of every believer.
John winds up his epistle by focussing upon some
anchors for our soul … things that we really can “KNOW” … to use one of his
favourite words.
Thus far we have seen his attack on the Gnostic
heresy that denied our Lord’s humanity;
we have heard him enforce the need for loving our fellow man; we noticed his constant emphasis upon
walking holy … and warning us of those things that are destructive to spiritual
growth. Now we reach the closing verses
…
1. THE
CERTAINTY OF ETERNAL LIFE … 5:10-13, 19
There are some Christians who lack assurance. They fail to rest upon the promises of God’s
Word. HE says that those who trust in
the Saviour are ‘saved’ … yet there are those who trust in the Saviour and then
wonder if they are saved … or not.
See what verse 10 says about such doubts!!
Whilst we are saved by what God sees
(the sinner sheltering under the Blood that cleanses from all sin, 1 John 1:7),
we are assured by what God says in His Word … “These
things are written so you may know…” (v. 13).
John’s Gospel was written that men might believe in
the Lord Jesus (John 20:31)…
But John’s First Epistle is written so that
believers might have assurance of sins forgiven and a Home on High (1 John
5:13).
It should be pointed out that the word ‘believe’ is
in a present, not past, tense. That
means … “He who believes (trusts) in the Lord Jesus … and keeps on
believing!” As 1 John 2:24 says, “Let
that therefore abide in you, which ye have heard from the
beginning. If that which ye have
heard from the beginning shall remain in you, ye also shall continue
in the Son, and in the Father. And
this is the promise that He hath promised us, even eternal life.”
2. THE
CERTAINTY OF ANSWERED PRAYER … 5:14-15
We have a Heavenly Father who delights to have His
children pray to Him. And here is one
of the many promises in His Word that He will answer.
The ‘catch’ is that our prayer requests need to be
“in accordance with His will” (v. 14).
That’s the qualifying phrase!!
There
are four ways God answers Prayer:
1. No,
not yet;
2. No,
I love you too much;
3. Yes,
I thought you’d never ask;
4. Yes,
and here’s more
3. THE
CERTAINTY OF VICTORY … 5:18
King James Version:
“We know that whosoever is born of God sinneth not; but he that is begotten of God keepeth himself, and that wicked one toucheth him not.”
“We know that no child of God keeps on sinning,
for the Son of God keeps him safe, and the Evil One cannot harm him.”
New International Version:
Notice how the modern translations correct the tense
of the verb. A believer does not “continue
to sin”. Sin is no longer a habitual
practice.
He may slip … and God has made provision for that (1
John 2:1 … “If any man sin…”)
But it needs to be pointed out that whilst He is
able to keep us safe from the Evil One’s attacks, yet we are exhorted to “keep
ourselves” (Jude 21) in the place where He can keep you!
“The Lord has promised to keep us ‘in all our ways’
… but not in all our wanderings!” (G.
Williams.)
4. THE
CERTAINTY OF THE INCARNATION … 5:20a
Back again to John’s attack on the Gnostics. This is how a modern translation puts it …
“We know too that the Son of God has actually
come to this world, and has shown us the way to know the One who is true” J.B. Phillips.
Satan’s attack on the Person of Christ … His
Humanity (as in Christian Science) or His Deity (as in Jehovah’s Witnesses) or
His Supremacy (as in Freemasonry) or His Sufficiency (as in Roman Catholicism)
… still continues to our day. One is
amazed at the constant New Testament warnings concerning false teachers
compared to the virtual silence on the subject found in most churches…
5. THE
CERTAINTY OF FELLOWSHIP … 5:20 b
Bear in mind that in the Scriptures the word ‘know’
has the connotation of intimate union.
Fellowship on the highest plane!
When it says Adam “knew” his wife (Genesis 4:1) it implies more than a
casual “Hi, there!” when they met in the street!!
And the Lord Jesus has made it possible for us to
have fellowship with the Father … and Himself … which takes us back to John’s
introduction … 1 John 1:3-4.
Amen!!
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THE SIN
UNTO DEATH !! : 1 John 5:16-17
………………………………………………………………………………..
What is this “sin unto death”? Why are we forbidden to pray for the person
who commits it?
Commentators come up with a host of explanations.
Some say it was only possible to commit it in the
Apostolic Age … others say it is even more common today than ever before. Some equate it with the Unpardonable Sin
(see Matthew 12:22-37), and other writers do not. I do … and that is our starting point …
1. WHAT
HAPPENED? … Matthew 12:22-37
The healing of a demoniac has resulted in two
reactions:
(a) The
People
acknowledged the Messianic claims of the Lord Jesus (v. 23).
(b) The Pharisees accused the Lord Jesus of
being in league with the Devil! (v. 24).
And He follows up His attack upon them with the
statement that they are “blaspheming the Holy Spirit” (v. 31).
2. WHAT
IT IS NOT …
(a) It
is not mere verbal Blasphemy or Swearing … bad as that is! Christians should have clean tongues! (Ephesians 4:29).
(b) It
is not Theft … even the thief on the cross was able to find forgiveness, albeit at
the last hour…
(c) It
is not Drunkenness … or Drug Abuse …
Church history tells of many in the grip of these
‘demons’ whose shackles were broken and who experienced the joy of sins
forgiven.
(d) It
is not Adultery … or some other sin of the flesh.
King David was guilty of this sin with Bathsheba,
but Psalm 51 tells of the forgiveness he found.
(e) It
is not Pride … ‘the sin by which the angels fell…’
Indeed many a rebel has come to the place of bowing the knee to the Saviour and handing over the reins of his life. Pride can be … must be … forgiven, if the sinner is going to come to Christ.,
“The way into the Kingdom of God begins by going
downstairs…”!
(f) It
is not Murder … David, and Saul of Tarsus in the New Testament, both had hands red
with the blood of those they had slain.
But the “vilest offender who truly believes, that moment from Jesus a
pardon receives…” And they believed.
3. WHAT
IT IS!
Again we think of the incident in Matthew 12. The reaction of the Pharisees was not a
spur-of-the-moment accusation. It was
the climax of a festering hostility toward the Saviour. All the evidence was before them … a miraculous healing … yet they still
refused to acknowledge our Lord was sent from God.
Nicodemus had witnessed similar miracles and been
honest enough to confess that Jesus was who He claimed to be (John 3:2).
And now the Holy Spirit, whose task it is to convict
of sin and reveal the truth to the heart of man, is speaking to these
Pharisees. And they reject His witness!
The unpardonable sin is a heart attitude which
progressively hardens itself against the Voice of the Spirit to the heart.
A sin against the Lord Jesus (like that of the
soldier who drove his spear into the Saviour’s side) might be forgiven.
But a sin that rejects the continual wooing and
pleading of the Holy Spirit until the Holy Spirit withdraws Himself is the
sin that has no forgiveness!
Let’s notice some examples…
1. Genesis
6:3. It was just before the Flood. God pleaded with men … by His Spirit as Noah
preached … but the time came when the Spirit of God ceased to plead … and
judgement fell.
2. Exodus
8 to 14 tells
of the ten plagues sent to drive Pharaoh to his knees. Firstly we read … “Pharaoh hardened his
heart…” (8:15, 32, etc.).
Then come the solemn words, 10:27, 14:8 … “But the
Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he would not let them go.” Now Pharaoh is ‘past Redemption
point’. His day of salvation is past …
the Spirit has stopped striving with him.
No use praying for him (1 John 5:16).
He has quenched the voice of God’s Spirit once too often.
3. Jeremiah
11:4-14 …
Judah has sinned once too often and the Lord commands His prophet … “For
according to the number of thy cities were thy gods, O Judah; and according to the number of the streets
of Jerusalem have ye set up altars to that shameful thing, even altars to burn
incense unto Baal. Therefore pray
not thou for this people, neither lift up a cry or prayer for them: for I will not hear them in the time
that they cry unto Me for their trouble.”
4. Hosea
4:17
records how God tells Hosea to stop preaching to the House of Ephraim (Israel). “Let them alone!” … they have sinned once
too often.
5. Romans
1:21, 26, 28
speak of how “God gave them up!” because they had refused to listen to the
repeated warnings of His Spirit.
6. John
8:21 …
perhaps spoken to the same Pharisees as Matthew 12 … “Whither I go ye CANNOT
come!”
* * * * * * * * * *
The Sin unto Death is that sin (whatever it may be)
persisted in despite the Spirit’s pleading … that is committed once too often
and results in the spiritual death of the soul being ‘finalised’ here and
now. Beyond Redemption Point!
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