Genesis 1:3-23

Genesis 1:1-2

Before we dive in, though, I think it might be helpful for us to do some heavy lifting regarding authorship and context.

Genesis is obviously the first book in the Bible. But it’s also the first book of the Pentateuch, the first five books in the Bible. These five beautifully woven books were intended to be read and treated as one grand work designed to teach Israel about its history and help it with its future.

The book of Genesis, along with the rest of the Pentateuch, was written by Moses. Nowhere in this book do we have Moses raise his hand, identifying himself as the author. However, the Bible consistently assumes that Moses is the author of the Pentateuch.

“[14] Then the LORD said to Moses, “Write this as a memorial in a book and recite it in the ears of Joshua, that I will utterly blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven.” — Exodus 17:14

“[24] When Moses had finished writing the words of this law in a book to the very end…” — Deuteronomy 31:24

“[31] just as Moses the servant of the LORD had commanded the people of Israel, as it is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, “an altar of uncut stones, upon which no man has wielded an iron tool.” And they offered on it burnt offerings to the LORD and sacrificed peace offerings.” — Joshua 8:31

“[6] But he did not put to death the children of the murderers, according to what is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, where the LORD commanded, “Fathers shall not be put to death because of their children, nor shall children be put to death because of their fathers. But each one shall die for his own sin.” — 2 Kings 14:6

“[5] For Moses writes about the righteousness that is based on the law, that the person who does the commandments shall live by them.” — Romans 10:5

“[15] Yes, to this day whenever Moses is read a veil lies over their hearts.” — 2 Corinthians 3:15

“[45] Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father. There is one who accuses you: Moses, on whom you have set your hope. [46] For if you believed Moses, you would believe me; for he wrote of me. [47] But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe my words?” — John 5:45-47

If you’re not familiar, Moses was the one God called to set his people free from slavery in Egypt and to lead God’s people through the wilderness into the promised land in Canaan. However, Moses never reached the promised land, meaning Genesis was written while God’s people wandered through the wilderness.

The Pentateuch was God's preparation for his people to enter the promised land by providing them with a history and a future. God’s people had been suppressed by the Egyptians, who worshipped other gods for 430 years. Thebook of Genesis teaches God’s people the truth about God and creation. There is no multiple gods. There is no sun god, a sky god, or a god of the underworld. There is one God who is the creator of all things. And this is how he has operated throughout history. As God’s people wandered through the wilderness, preparing to enter the land promised to them, Genesis provided them with a past “rooted in the very land that they were about to enter,” and the rest of the Pentateuch supplied detailed instructions for how to faithfully live once they entered this land.

Today, we will unpack the first two verses of the 1,533 verses in the book of Genesis.

Let’s dive in.

“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.”

THE BIBLE IS ABOUT GOD

Before we unpack the nuts and bolts of these two verses, we must understand that the Bible begins with God and ends with God. Therefore, the Bible is about God. From Genesis to Revelation, it is about him— “In the beginning, God created…”

It’s easy sometimes to read the Bible with a me-centered lens, asking questions like, “What does this say about me?” “What is this saying to me?” “What does this mean for me?” But, before we ever get to those questions, we must first ask, “What does this say about God?”

God is the main character of the Bible, not you, me, Moses, Abraham, David, Peter, or Paul. Therefore, opening the Bible with any other framework would mean we’re missing the main point. Before the Bible directs our gaze inward, it directs our gaze upward. And as our gaze is directed upward, we learn that God, the creator of all things, was present and active before anything was made.

GOD IS ETERNAL

The term “beginning” implies the beginning of time. So, at the beginning of time itself, God was there. This teaches us that the creator of all things, God, is eternal. From “everlasting to everlasting” (Psalm 90:2), God was there. As Kent Hughes eloquently puts it, “Whichever way we look— to the vanishing points of the beginning or the end— God is there, having always been there.”

Is this a truth about God that we often consider? That God has eternally existed at all times. Before the foundation of the world was laid, God was there. And he wasn’t just there inactively existing. The book of Ephesians tells us that God “chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world that we should be holy and blameless before him.” So, before time existed, God was there. And before time existed, God had already crafted his perfect will of redemption through the death of his Son on the cross. And before time existed, God had a plan for your life.

GOD IS THE CREATOR

God is eternal; he has no beginning or end. This eternal God is the source of all things. The eternal God who existed outside of time created all things— “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.”

You know what’s fascinating? That word “created” is only accredited to God in the Bible. Man may build, but God creates. Man may craft, but God creates. Man may construct, but God creates. To be the creator of something implies you’re the source of something. He is the creator, and we are created! He is the source of all things; we are not!

God had no preexisting material to create anything, yet he created everything out of nothing. This is what theologians call the doctrine of ex nihilo. Hebrews 11:3 says that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible. Before anything existed, God was there, and he called into existence things that did not exist (Rom 4:17). He spoke light out of darkness (2 Cor. 4:6). The eternal God, who existed before time, created all things out of nothing.

The words “heavens” and “earth” are opposites intended to highlight totality. They’re intended to communicate all of creation, all of the cosmos. Nothing exists that has not been brought to existence apart from God. He is the source of all of life. I was having a conversation with a young man on Friday at the barbershop. He wants to design spaceships one day. I asked him to tell me an interesting fact about space.

Here’s the fact he enlightened me with: Do you know that while traveling at the speed of light (which is a speed only massless items can travel at; it’s the cosmic speed limit), it would take us roughly 25,000 years to get to the closest known galaxy? For context, it would take 2.1 minutes to get to Venus, which is 23,612,105 miles.

This vast universe is what we are describing when we say “heavens.” From the farthest galaxy to the closest stream, from the biggest star to the smallest atom, all things get their breath from God.

God is eternal—not bound by time. God is the creator—the source of all things. God is transcendent—he is above and beyond all things. The highest heaven cannot contain God (1 Kings 8:27). He exists in a league of his own; his existence doesn’t depend upon anything outside himself. He is the one seated on high (Ps. 113:5). He is the one who looks far down on the heavens and the earth (Ps. 113:6). He is the sovereign God and King, the divine ruler and creator of all, the one from whom all creation gets its life.

ORDER OUT OF CHAOS

Verse 2 then says, “…The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep…”

“Without form and void” was a rhythmic phrase in Hebrew (tohu vavohu) intended to highlight creation's disordered and empty nature. It was an empty wasteland that was uninhabitable. It’s the antithesis of what the Earth is now. The earth that is now full of life and light was once formless and lifeless.

I think the commentator Umberto Cassuto describes it well when he equates the earth to a lump of clay before the potter sculpts it into something beautiful. He says, “Just as the potter, when he wishes to fashion a beautiful vessel, takes first of all a lump of clay, and places it upon his wheel in order to mould it according to his wish, so the Creator first prepared for Himself the raw material … with a view to giving it afterwards order and life.… It is this terrestrial state that is called tohu and bohu.”

Another commentator pointed out how these words are used elsewhere in Scripture (Isaiah 34:11 and Jeremiah 4:23) to describe a barren and empty wasteland, an uninhabitable land like the wilderness.

- “…Night and day it shall not be quenched; its smoke shall go up forever. From generation to generation it shall lie waste; none shall pass through it forever and ever. But the hawk and the porcupine shall possess it, the owl and the raven shall dwell in it. He shall stretch the line of confusion over it, and the plumb line of emptiness.” — Isaiah 34:11

- “I looked on the earth, and behold, it was without form and void; and to the heavens, and they had no light.” — Jeremiah 4:23

The imagery of deep waters further describes a world unsuitable for human life. The “face of the deep” doesn’t necessarily communicate the ocean as we know it. But it signifies deep, vast, and chaotic waters.

So, Moses intentionally chose language to signify an uninhabitable land—a chaotic, formless, and dark land. And as the earth was chaotic, formless, and dark, God’s Spirit was hovering over the face of the waters. This is similar language used in Deuteronomy 32:11 to describe an eagle hovering over her nest to protect her young— “Like an eagle that stirs up its nest, that flutters over its young, spreading out its wings, catching them, bearing them on its pinions.”

So, as chaos was present, God was there. The Spirit of God brought order out of chaos, form out of formlessness, light out of darkness.

Did Moses understand the Trinity at this point? Likely not. But is this verse one of the first glimpses into God's triune nature? I think it absolutely is! Although it's not clear here in Genesis 1, we’re already catching glimpses into God's triune nature.

This is the same Spirit who hovered over the Virgin Mary as she conceived the Savior of the world. This is the same Spirit that descended upon Jesus after he was baptized in the Jordan River. This is the same Spirit who raised Christ from the dead. This is the same Spirit who fell on the early church at Pentecost. This is the same Spirit who is testifying to the Son right now. This is the same Spirit who resides within our hearts right now as Christians.

We serve a mighty and powerful God who is always working. No amount of chaos or barrenness can thwart his good plan. God can bring order out of chaos, form out of formlessness, and light out of darkness. I believe the language Moses chooses to use here would have captured his readers' attention by drawing their minds to the wilderness in which they found themselves.

Can you imagine what this phrase must have done to the heart and mind of those who first read this in the wilderness?

Year after year, as Israel wandered through the desert in hopes of God leading them into the promised land, they were reminded that the God they were following was the God who formed the formless, who shaped the shapeless, and who turned a wasteland into a garden. In the same way God prepared the earth for human habitation, he was preparing to lead them out of a desert and into a specially prepared homeland. In the wilderness, they were a lump of clay that was being prepared to be moulded. The God who possesses the power over life and death can turn deserts into gardens.

A NEW CREATION IN CHRIST JESUS

As we will learn in Genesis 2-3, sin entered the picture, and sin brought death and chaos into the world. Sin brought forth a greater wilderness, a darker darkness. But the Bible also teaches that, before the foundation of the world, God had a plan to make things right through the death of his Son on the cross. He had a plan to make us into a new creation.

2 Corinthians 5:17 says, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and have us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.”

Ephesians 2:8-10 says, “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”

All who place their faith in Jesus become a new creation. Perhaps you’re burdened with the fruit of your own sin today. Perhaps your life is in chaos because of it. Maybe you feel like you’re wandering through the wilderness with no hope of a garden. I’m here to tell you that the God who created the heavens and the earth can also make you new. In the beginning was God, and in the end God will be… and you can dwell with him in perfect harmony for all eternity.

Evangelism in Acts pt.4

Evangelism in Acts pt. 3

Evangelism in Acts pt.2

Present in the undercurrent of our passage today is this truth: a people eager to live out the gospel will be a people presented with opportunities to preach the gospel. The Holy Spirit will open up doors for us to preach. As we seek to walk in obedience to the Holy Spirit in our day-to-day lives, he will present us with unique opportunities to share the glorious message of Jesus Christ with others.

At the end of chapter 2, we see the early church exploding: “[42] They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. [43] And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles.”

Well, in chapter 3, we catch a glimpse of the wonderful signs that the apostles performed. In our passage today, we will find the apostles healing a man who could not walk, which opened up an opportunity for Peter to share the gospel's truth with a large crowd.

Now, before we begin, I want to draw our attention to who is performing the miraculous works at this moment in time—“…many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles.” God was doing something special and unique in and through his apostles at this moment in time. I believe these unique works done through the apostles were intended to validate the apostles' message regarding Jesus in the early church.

I say that to say this: the apostolic ministry that we see in the book of Acts is not being continued today. Put more bluntly. The application of our passage is not for you to walk away thinking you can heal a lame man on the street. The application of our passage is not for you to feel guilty for not having enough faith because you aren’t like Peter. There was a unique power being displayed in and through the apostles at this time.

Now, with that being said, God has been, and always will be, a God of miracles. So, I am not saying that God has stopped working, nor am I saying that he has stopped healing. God is not bound by the laws of nature. He can do as he pleases. The God who parted the seas still moves mountains today. There is no sickness that He cannot heal. And through his word, the all-powerful God of the universe invites us to pray for healing. But just because he can heal, doesn’t mean he always will. Sometimes, God plans to display his power in and through our weakness. Sometimes God plans to teach us that his grace is sufficient for us in and through our lowest moments.

CONTEXT:

At the start of chapter 3, Peter and John go to the temple to pray. At the temple gate lies a lame man who was carried there to ask for alms from those entering the temple. In other words, he’s asking for help at a place where people are most generous.

As Peter and John walked by, the man asked them for help. Peter and John pause and look at him, and Peter says, “Look at us.”

The man directs his attention to them, expecting financial help from them. But, Peter responds, “I have no silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk!”

He then takes him by the right hand and raises him up, and immediately, his feet and ankles are made strong. Leaping up, he stands and begins to walk. He enters the temple with them, walking, leaping, and praising God. The man is full of joy and excitement over God's work in his life, leading to everyone taking notice! They saw him walking and praising God, recognizing him as the one who was once lame and asking for alms. As a result, they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.

The man clung to Peter and John. The crowd was curious and ready to hear from them, which presented an opportunity for them to preach the gospel.

Now, before we get into Peter’s message, I want us to observe what led to his message more closely and see if there’s some application we can pull from it.

We live in a social media-driven age, don’t we? Social media can bring many good things, but it can also bring many bad things. When it comes to the church, one of the hidden adverse effects of social media is that it can taint our motives. It can lead us to turn private works into public works. It can lead us to believe that the world has to know about the good things we’ve done, turning private works into public works, turning works done for God’s glory into works done for our own glory.

So, with that in mind, let me ask you, “What captured the attention of the audience?” Was it Peter telling others of the work he’s done? Or was it simply the fruit of his work that captured their attention?

Nowhere in this passage do you find an ounce of evidence supporting the idea that they performed this work for personal gain. I’m convinced that if the man who was healed had not leaped, shouted, and clung to Peter, no one would have known it was Peter who had healed him. I’m convinced Peter and John would have been content exercising their good works in the shadows with zero recognition. And I believe Peter’s example demonstrates a proper view of gospel service. True gospel service must be an expression of love, not an expression of pride. True gospel service leaves behind the question, “How will this impact me?” True gospel service is content with only benefiting someone else.

Peter didn’t meet this need to acquire a crowd; he met this need as an expression of love for the glory of Christ. In our day and age, though, we feel the pressure to broadcast the work we do. When pride drives our hearts and motives, we will seek to use service to serve ourselves. We will use meeting another’s need as a marketing tool to build our brand and reputation. We will design shirts and make sentimental videos that capture the selfless acts we perform, then we will post them on our website or social media to show the world all the good works we do in our community.

But we must heed the warning Jesus gives during his sermon on the mount, “Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven. Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.”

As we see in Jesus’ words, practicing righteousness before others is not wrong. But it is wrong to practice righteousness before others in order to be seen by others. It’s our motive— our heart— that matters to Jesus. So, may we be a people eager and unashamed to practice righteousness publicly. May we be unashamed of the gospel. May we be anxious to serve and meet the needs of those around us. But may we never be eager to practice our righteousness before others in order to be seen by them. We ought to be a people who are content with crickets over trumpets. If no one ever sings our praises, we will be ok!

But, as we seek to practice our righteousness before others for our neighbor's good and Jesus’ glory, we must understand that people will likely notice. A life of obedience to Jesus will be a life of power. Impact will be made. Humble service that authentically meets the needs of those around us will authentically make an impact in the community around us, and impact breeds curiosity. A faith lived out in front of others will be noticed by others. So, if we are eager to live out the gospel, we must be ready to share the gospel. If we are willing to live out our faith, we must be willing to share our faith. Peter’s life opened up an opportunity for him to preach; the fruit of his actions promoted proclamation. The more we seek to authentically live out the gospel, the more opportunities we will likely have to proclaim the gospel.

So, let’s look at how Peter shares his faith after living out his faith.

When Peter saw the crowd, he quickly capitalized on the opportunity before him. He says to them,“[12] And when Peter saw it he addressed the people: “Men of Israel, why do you wonder at this, or why do you stare at us, as though by our own power or piety we have made him walk? [13] The God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, the God of our fathers, glorified his servant Jesus, whom you delivered over and denied in the presence of Pilate, when he had decided to release him. [14] But you denied the Holy and Righteous One, and asked for a murderer to be granted to you, [15] and you killed the Author of life, whom God raised from the dead. To this we are witnesses. [16] And his name—by faith in his name—has made this man strong whom you see and know, and the faith that is through Jesus has given the man this perfect health in the presence of you all.

[17] “And now, brothers, I know that you acted in ignorance, as did also your rulers. [18] But what God foretold by the mouth of all the prophets, that his Christ would suffer, he thus fulfilled. [19] Repent therefore, and turn back, that your sins may be blotted out, [20] that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that he may send the Christ appointed for you, Jesus, [21] whom heaven must receive until the time for restoring all the things about which God spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets long ago. [22] Moses said, ‘The Lord God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your brothers. You shall listen to him in whatever he tells you. [23] And it shall be that every soul who does not listen to that prophet shall be destroyed from the people.’ [24] And all the prophets who have spoken, from Samuel and those who came after him, also proclaimed these days. [25] You are the sons of the prophets and of the covenant that God made with your fathers, saying to Abraham, ‘And in your offspring shall all the families of the earth be blessed.’ [26] God, having raised up his servant, sent him to you first, to bless you by turning every one of you from your wickedness.”

I first want us to notice how Peter is adamant about getting the limelight off himself and onto Jesus. In verse 12, he says, “Men of Israel, why do you wonder at this, or why do you stare at us, as though by our own power and piety we have made him walk?” And in verse 16, he says, “And his name—by faith in his name— has made this man strong whom you see and know, and the faith that is through Jesus has given the man this perfect health in the presence of you all.”

So, throughout this message, Peter is adamant that it was not he who performed the work he accomplished. The healing God accomplished through Peter was not by Peter or for Peter; it was by Jesus and for Jesus. When God works in and through you to meet the needs of those around you, you will be tempted to bask in the glory of praise. But if the heartbeat of our life is the glory of Jesus, we should be eager to give him the glory when he works in and through us.

Now, we’ve all met that person who does something for a neighbor and then awkwardly points to the sky with their head down saying, “It’s all God, brother!” So, just some practical counsel here. We don’t have to make it any more awkward than it already is. A simple and humble explanation of what God has done in and through you will suffice— “God has blessed me, and I felt him leading me to bless you. So, together, we can praise God!”

But, notice how, as Peter shifts the limelight off himself, he promptly shifts their focus onto the cross. In doing so, he’s seeking to show his audience how the work of the cross was a part of God’s glorious plan of redemption. It wasn’t a moment of weakness; it was a moment of power. He says, “The God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, the God of our fathers, glorified his servant Jesus, who you delivered over and denied in the presence of Pilate, when he had decided to release him.”

What Peter does here is remarkable. He’s ironically contrasting their view of Jesus with God’s view of Jesus. In doing so, he’s highlighting their guilt in rejecting and killing their Messiah. The God they’ve always worshipped is the God who has glorified the one they crucified. The one they put in the grave is the one God raised from the grave. The one they delivered to Pilate is the one God exalted to heaven. The one they denied in the presence of Pilate is the one God has given the name above all names. The one they’ve declared as a criminal is the one God declared most glorious. The one they’ve mocked is the one all will one day bow before and confess as Lord.

When the opportunity arises, we want to rightly paint a beautiful portrait of the cross. The cross wasn’t a moment of weakness; it was a moment of power. As we talk about Jesus, we want to exalt Him as the one who is most worthy of worship and adoration.

Peter goes on to say in verses 14-15, “But you denied the Holy and Righteous One, and asked for a murderer to be granted to you, and you killed the Author of life, whom God raised from the dead. To this we are witnesses.”

These verses give Jesus three titles. In addition to being God's servant, Jesus is also the Holy One, the Righteous One, and the Author of Life. These are divine titles deserving of awe and wonder. As the Holy One, he is the one set apart, pure, and belonging to the Holy God of Israel. And as the Righteous One, he is the one who was completely innocent and just, walking in perfect obedience to the Father. So, (in these two titles) Peter is further highlighting the scandal of the cross. They mocked the servant of God. They let a murderer go free in the place of the Holy One. They declared the Righteous One guilty. But, not only that, they killed the author of life.

Author means originator, founder, pioneer, leader, or source. It implies Jesus being the source of life, the one by whom all things were made by, through, and for. The creator of life came to lay his life down on the cross. They killed the author of life. But God raised him from the dead. And they were all witnesses.

In Isaiah 53, we find the prophet Isaiah describing how God’s servant who would be exalted and lifted up would be despised and rejected by man. He would be “a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.” He would be “pierced for our transgressions; crushed for our sins.” Upon his shoulders would be the punishment that would bring us peace and healing.

Then in verse 11, he says, “By his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to be accounted righteous…” So, Peter is connecting the dots from Isaiah 53 to Jesus. He is saying that Jesus was the holy and righteous servant who came to die for the guilty; by his wounds, we can be healed. Through his work on the cross, we can be accounted righteous.

So, as we share the gospel, it’s important for us to be eager to address the scandal of it. The one who holds our life together willingly died in our place. The one who knew no sin became sin so that we might become the righteousness of God. The holy one was publicly beaten and mocked. The righteous one was brutally crushed in our place. By his wounds we can be healed. The cross was a moment of power and grace because it viciously dealt with your guilt and shame.

But, for us to truly understand how remarkable the work of the cross is, we have to see how it was all a part of God’s predetermined plan of redemption. It was a fulfillment of prophecy. In verse 18, Peter says, “And now, brothers, I know that you acted in ignorance, as did also your rulers. But, what God foretold by the mouth of all the prophets, that his Christ would suffer, thus he fulfilled.” Then later on in verses 24-26, he says, “[24] And all the prophets who have spoken, from Samuel and those who came after him, also proclaimed these days. [25] You are the sons of the prophets and of the covenant that God made with your fathers, saying to Abraham, ‘And in your offspring shall all the families of the earth be blessed.’ [26] God, having raised up his servant, sent him to you first, to bless you by turning every one of you from your wickedness.”

So, although they acted in ignorance, they still stand guilty before God. But the heinous act of injustice on the cross was a fulfillment of God’s predetermined act of redemption. All throughout history, God had been saying through the prophets that he would send his servant to suffer on behalf of his people. And throughout history, God has been saying through the prophets that blessing for all the families of the earth would come through this servant.

A key element of the gospel that we cannot miss is to whom it is offered. “All the families of the earth” can experience blessing in Christ Jesus. Part of the beauty of the gospel resides in the fact that it doesn’t discriminate. One of the beauties of the gospel lies in the fact that it shows no favoritism. All who are broken and lowly can come to Jesus and find life! In him is blessing. So, we don’t share the gospel with just the rich, nor do we share it with just the poor. We share it with everyone! We are eager to take the gospel to the ends of the earth!

And, if you’re met with the question, “Does Jesus love me?” You can emphatically say, “YES! For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son that whoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life!”

As we share the gospel, we ask the question, “What is the proper response of the gospel?”

Well, Peter says, “Repent and turn back that your sins may be blotted out, that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that he may send the Christ appointed for you, Jesus, whom heaven must receive until the time for restoring all the things about which God spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets long ago.”

The language of Peter’s call here implies his audience walking in a direction away from God. Therefore, the call to repentance is a call to turn away from sin and return to God. The right response to the gospel is repentance, an abandonment of sin and a clinging to Christ, and when this takes place, forgiveness and renewal follow because we get Jesus. It’s the presence of the Lord that leads to refreshing restoration. With repentance, we get God. And a life with Jesus is far better than a life without him. In Jesus, we find forgiveness. In Jesus, we find blessing. In Jesus, we find restoration. In Jesus, we find refreshment. As we share our faith, we invite people into loving relationships with Jesus.

Evangelism in Acts pt.1

One of the best ways to become good at something is to study those who were good before you.

As a college baseball player, I wanted to be the best hitter possible, so I studied good hitters. I spent countless hours watching the swings of professional hitters. I watched their hand placement, their legs, their load, their hip placement at the point of contact, and their follow-through. Then, I would video my own swing and strive to emulate every small detail of their swing.

I believe the same principle should apply to our evangelism. If we want to be good preachers, we need to studygood preachers. If we want to communicate the gospel well, we need to look at others who communicated the gospel well. If we want to lead others to Jesus, it would serve us best to study what the early church did in leading others to Jesus.

So, for the next few weeks, we will do just that. We will examine how the early church talked about Jesus so that we can hopefully become better at talking about Jesus.

Now, if I can, I want to be honest and transparent with you for a moment. No one needs this series more than I do. My heart has become calloused and hard toward the call to share the gospel with the lost… and I’m tired of it. I’m tired of the complacency I’ve fallen into when it comes to sharing my faith. I’m tired of feeling like a wall has built up in my vocal cords, preventing me from talking about the most fantastic news in the world.

So, this series is for me more than anyone else in this room today. This series is for your pastor who has grown comfortable with not sharing the gospel. This series is for your pastor who has seemingly lost his zeal for seeing the lost come to know Christ. This series is for your pastor who has grown indifferent to the reality that there are people around him each and every day who do not know Jesus.

The aim of this series is to wake up my sleeping heart, giving me a fresh longing to see the lost come to know Christ through my own gospel proclamation. And, maybe, just maybe, if you’re like me, you need this series to pry your mouths open, too. Perhaps the Holy Spirit will stir up our stagnant hearts to shout from the rooftops the goodness of the Lord!

Romans 10:9-10 says, “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.”

In these two verses, we find belief and confession go hand in hand. When it comes to salvation, you cannot have one without the other. All who are saved will cling to the truth of the resurrection with their heart and declare their allegiance to Jesus with their tongue. And to declare your allegiance to Jesus with your tongue is to live out your allegiance with your life.

So, it’s essential for us to understand that there are two camps of people in here today: those who have done this and those who have not, those who believe and those who do not, those who have embraced Jesus and those who have rejected Jesus, those who confess him as Lord and those who confess him as fool.

In our passage today, we will find Peter drawing his audience to face this reality head-on. His audience has witnessed the crucifixion and is aware of the resurrection. But they haven’t embraced the fact that God raised him from the dead. They haven’t declared him their Lord and Savior.

At the start of chapter 1, Jesus had ascended and returned to the Father's right hand. The early church, which consisted of 120 people, had just replaced Judas with Matthias. Now, at the start of chapter 2, we find the Holy Spirit falling on the early church on the day of Pentecost. A loud sound like a mighty rushing wind came down from heaven, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. Filled with the Holy Spirit, they began to speak in tongues, meaning they spoke in languages other people could understand.

***Pentecost was a pilgrimage feast, which meant Jewish men were commanded to travel to Jerusalem to worship God. It was primarily a celebration of their harvest, where God’s people would bring the first fruits of their harvest as a thanksgiving offering to God. This is why, as we see in verses 5-11, there were devout men from every nation under heaven dwelling in Jerusalem at this time.

When this diverse and large crowd of people heard the loud commotion, they came together and were amazed at how the church spoke in their native language. They said, “[7] Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? [8] And how is it that we hear, each of us, in his own native language? [11]…We hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God.”

Please don’t miss how the first visible fruit of the Holy Spirit’s presence within the early church was the church proclaiming God's mighty works. I believe this tells us two things: (1) evangelism is a church wide call that has been a part of the church, and (2) the aim of our evangelism is God’s glory.

Right from the start, with no training and only the Holy Spirit, the church begins to proclaim God's mighty works. And they’re effective! Sure, Peter will stand up and preach in a moment. But, before Peter ever preaches, the church declares the mighty works of God, and they have their audience's ear!

You don’t have to have a degree in theology to effectively declare God's mighty works, and you don’t have to have a degree in cultural engagement to effectively engage the culture! The Holy Spirit will bridge gaps we cannot bridge. There are divisions in this world that we cannot overcome on our own effort: language barriers, racial barriers, social barriers, etc. But these barriers are not barriers to God. The Holy Spirit opens doors we cannot open, and he closes doors we cannot close. He equips us to do things we cannot do, He calls us to people we cannot reach, and he accomplishes things we cannot accomplish. And he will always lead us to seek the glory of God over the glory of self. The more full of the Holy Spirit we become, the greater God will become in our speech.

PRAYER: Holy Spirit, lead us to those who need to hear of your mighty works. Holy Spirit, help us to speak of your mighty works in power.

The early church shouted God's goodness in languages they didn’t know, which led to everyone being amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” But, as we see in verse 13, others were also mocking them by saying, “They are filled with new wine.”

Many were amazed; some were not. Many inquired, some mocked. So, a Holy Spirit-filled life will undoubtedly lead to some of the world mocking you. As you tell the world of God’s goodness, some will call you foolish. Some respond in belief, while others will react with unbelief. And the temptation will be to allow the fear of striking out to keep you from playing the game. The temptation is to allow the possibility of being mocked to keep you from sharing your faith.

As I’ve assessed my heart some this week, I think this could be an underlying contributor to why I’ve grown silent in my preaching of the gospel. I’ve grown afraid of mockery. I’ve grown to love my own reputation more than I love the reputation of Jesus. I’m more consumed with the glory of Ryan than the glory of Ryan’s Savior and Lord. Therefore, I do not share with others the glory of Jesus.

But this isn’t the case for Peter. The man who once denied Jesus three times is now facing opposition head-on. Peter stands up instead of sitting down. Alongside the apostles, he stands up and addresses the large crowd. He says,

“[14] But Peter, standing with the eleven, lifted up his voice and addressed them: “Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and give ear to my words. [15] For these people are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day. [16] But this is what was uttered through the prophet Joel:

[17] “‘And in the last days it shall be, God declares,

that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh,

and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,

and your young men shall see visions,

and your old men shall dream dreams;

[18] even on my male servants and female servants

in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy.

[19] And I will show wonders in the heavens above

and signs on the earth below,

blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke;

[20] the sun shall be turned to darkness

and the moon to blood,

before the day of the Lord comes, the great and magnificent day.

[21] And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.’

[22] “Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs that God did through him in your midst, as you yourselves know—[23] this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men. [24] God raised him up, loosing the pangs of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by it. [25] For David says concerning him,

“‘I saw the Lord always before me,

for he is at my right hand that I may not be shaken;

[26] therefore my heart was glad, and my tongue rejoiced;

my flesh also will dwell in hope.

[27] For you will not abandon my soul to Hades,

or let your Holy One see corruption.

[28] You have made known to me the paths of life;

you will make me full of gladness with your presence.’

[29] “Brothers, I may say to you with confidence about the patriarch David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. [30] Being therefore a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that he would set one of his descendants on his throne, [31] he foresaw and spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to Hades, nor did his flesh see corruption. [32] This Jesus God raised up, and of that we all are witnesses. [33] Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this that you yourselves are seeing and hearing. [34] For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he himself says,

“‘The Lord said to my Lord,

“Sit at my right hand,

[35] until I make your enemies your footstool.”’

[36] Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.”

[37] Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” [38] And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. [39] For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself.” [40] And with many other words he bore witness and continued to exhort them, saying, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation.” [41] So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls.”

You could safely argue that this is one of the most powerful messages ever preached. It’s the instrument God chose to use to explode the early church, going from 120 to 3,000 members in one day. As you closely look at the bones of this message, you will begin to realize that its power resides in the Scripture it quotes. After all, God's word—not man's word— is as sharp as a double-edged sword. The power of evangelism comes from God’s word, not human eloquence. In simpler terms, telling others about Jesus gets its power from the Bible, not our fancy words.

Human charm and clever speech can cultivate a large following, but they cannot awaken a dead heart to life. What awakens a heart to life is not the persuasiveness of the messenger, but the authority of the message, the living and breathing Word of life. It is not polished speech that saves, but the proclaimed Word of God that pierces the heart. So, as a preacher, the further I drift from the Bible, the duller my words will become. But the closer I get to the Bible, the sharper my words will become. As someone seeking to share your faith with others, the further you drift from the Bible, the duller your words will become. But the closer you get to the Bible, the sharper they will become.

In addressing the crowd, Peter quotes three different Old Testament Scriptures to drive home the point he’s seeking to make.

He quoted Joel 2:28-32 to explain the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. In doing so, he’s combating the accusation that they’re drunk. He’s saying that the actions of the church weren’t a byproduct of early alcoholic consumption; they were a fulfillment of God’s promise. They weren’t drunk with wine; they were filled with the Spirit, just as the Scriptures promised.

He quoted Psalm 16:8-11 to show that the Messiah would not see decay. In simpler terms, the resurrection was always going to come. Here, Peter is arguing that David’s words couldn’t simply be about himself. David died and was buried, and his body decayed. Therefore, David had to be prophesying about a greater Holy One who would one day come and not be abandoned to the grave. Peter is saying that Jesus is the fulfillment of Psalm 16. He is pointing to the cross, highlighting it as a moment foreknown by God. And he is pointing past it to the resurrection, highlighting it as a moment foreknown by God. He wanted his audience to know that the Scriptures foretold Jesus’ death and resurrection.

Then he stacked an extra layer on Psalm 16 by quoting Psalm 110:1 to declare Jesus’ exaltation and authority. Jesus is the risen Lord and Savior seated at the Father's right hand. Jesus is the Lord that the LORD said, “Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool.” So, Jesus’ death and resurrection are essential. But, so, too, is his ascension. Jesus is reigning and ruling at the right hand of the Father right now at this very moment.

So, if the power of evangelism comes from God’s Word, we should rightly conclude that as we share our faith, it is good to have our Bibles open. We don’t want to convince people of our opinions; we want to convince them of what the Bible says about Jesus. The Bible is the source of truth; therefore, it is the source of the message we proclaim.

But let’s be reasonable for a moment. It takes time to reach a place where you can sit down with someone with an open Bible to explain the Bible. Most evangelistic conversations are impromptu. They occur in our break room at work or next to the treadmill at the gym. So, the best evangelists have the Scriptures written on their hearts. The best evangelists spend time studying, meditating, and memorizing the Scriptures. When we’re cut, we want to bleed Scripture. We want the word of God to be written so much on our hearts that it effortlessly oozes out of us at all times. If and when the Holy Spirit opens up a door for us to proclaim the gospel, we want to be ready to proclaim the gospel. So, may we work to get to a place where a lack of preparation is never the reason for a lack of proclamation. May we work to get to a place where a lack of evangelism doesn’t stem from a lack of knowledge.

The best evangelists are the best students. They are those who simply want to know Jesus deeply and personally and who want to share that with others. Therefore, behind every minute spent sharing the gospel are countless hours spent in communion with God, abiding in him.

Notice the centrality of Jesus in Peter’s testimony. His message is biblically sound and Christ-centered. As he speaks about Scripture, he points to Jesus. Faithful exposition of the Bible means seeing Jesus in the Bible. Peter didn’t preach to the crowd that the Psalms were about them, that they would rise above their enemies and reign victorious. He preached to the crowd that the one they crucified on the cross is the one who would rise from the dead, ascend to the right hand of the Father, and reign victorious over all. Jesus is the fulfillment of the Scriptures. He is the one by whom all of the prophecies ring true. Therefore, if our conversations surrounding Scripture don’t center around Jesus, we’ve missed the point of the Scriptures we’re discussing.

At the heart of our evangelism is a desire to introduce people to the truth about Jesus… for the glory of Jesus. We want to introduce people to who Jesus is, what he did, why it matters, and the call to repent and believe. His life, death, resurrection, and ascension are all essential components of the gospel. And as Peter shines the light on these things, he exposes the crowd as guilty sinners. In verse 36, he says, “Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.” And when the crowd heard this, “they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, ‘Brothers, what shall we do?’”

As we tell others about Jesus, we have to be willing to address sin. When we address sin, we want to create a space where people are welcomed to repentance. We want to cultivate a church culture that welcomes repentance, the turning from sin, and we have to understand that repentance is a public activity. With repentance comes private conviction of sin, which is followed by public confession of sin and public baptism for the forgiveness of our sins.

Evangelism is not a tool to make you look better. It is a humble declaration of God’s goodness. It is an open invitation for sinners like you to come to the risen Savior and experience forgiveness of sin.

3 John pt.2– Who is Diatrophes?

As the church, we exist to glorify Jesus— the One who has saved us— in everything we do. When our eyes are on Jesus, we will be a healthy church. When our eyes get off Jesus, we will become an unhealthy church. Diotrephes was a church leader whose eyes had turned away from Jesus, leading to many problems in the church. From his mistakes, we can learn a lot about what a healthy church should look like.

We’re going to do two things today.

First, we will unpack some behind-the-scenes information regarding the man mentioned in this portion of the letter. Then, we will seek to draw some application from this man's life.

Let’s dive in.

“9 I have written something to the church, but Diotrephes, who likes to put himself first, does not acknowledge our authority. 10 So if I come, I will bring up what he is doing, talking wicked nonsense against us. And not content with that, he refuses to welcome the brothers, and also stops those who want to and puts them out of the church.”

Right off the bat, I want us to notice how we could have had a fourth John if it wasn’t for Diotrephes— “I have written something to the church, but Diotrephes, who likes to put himself first, does not acknowledge our authority.”

John had apparently written something to the church, likely a letter of encouragement and counsel. But Diotrephes intercepted it, preventing the church from reading it. And John tells us why this letter was intercepted. Diotrephes intercepted the letter because he did not acknowledge John’s authority as an apostle, and rooted in that rejection was pride. As John describes it, he “likes to put himself first.”

We know little about Diotrephes beyond his character and actions described in these two verses. We don’t know his position, nor do we know his role. He could have been a corrupt pastor, maybe a crooked deacon, or perhaps just an influential church member. But, given the information in this letter, I think it’s safe to say that he possessed some type of influence or authority within the church, given his ability to reject John’s instructions, impact who was welcome, and cast out church members.

As we’ve seen in his letters, John has no problem calling someone a false prophet or antichrist. He’s quick to draw a line in the sand, separating those who are in and those who are out. Because of this, I find it interesting that he doesn’t use either of those titles to describe Diotrephes. This leads me to believe that we have two options here: (1) Diotrephes could be a false prophet waging war against the church, and John waits until he sees him face to face to pronounce such judgment against him. Or (2) it could be that Diotrephes was a believer caught in sin.

I think you could make an argument either way. Verse 11 seems to imply that Diotrephes’ actions are evil, which means he has not seen God. But, in that same breath, John doesn’t accuse Diotrephes of heresy or denying Christ. He doesn’t point-blank call him a false prophet or antichrist. So it could be that John is using such serious language as a warning to Diotrephes and the church that these actions cannot and will not be tolerated within the church. 1 Timothy 3 says, “[An overseer/pastor/elder] must not be a recent convert, or he may become puffed up with conceit and fall into the condemnation of the devil.”

Therefore, we could be seeing firsthand the fruit of placing someone in leadership too soon. We could be seeing a church leader who has allowed pride to creep into his heart and distort his leadership.

I always tell college students aspiring to become pastors to be careful and to allow God to lead them into that role in his time. Before the church becomes a place you work, it needs to be a people you love. Before you ever stand in the limelight, you need to labor in the shadows. Before you get a check from the church, you need to serve the church for free. Before you ever lead the church, you need to be led as a member of a church. Before you ever teach the church, you need to be taught as a member of the church. Don’t thrust yourself into a leadership position before you’re ready, and don’t appoint people as leaders before they’re ready. It’s tempting to elevate charisma over character and thrust someone into a leadership position before they’re ready. But, we should heed the warning in Scripture and be slow to crown someone as a leader before they’re ready because pride and conceit are easy to give in to, and conceit and condemnation are close friends. Leaders need time to fail, to be humbled, to be sanctified, to be encouraged, to learn, to process, and to wrestle with their call.

So, it could be that Diotrephes is a false prophet, or it could be that he is a church leader or influential church member who is behaving sinfully. Either way, his actions are not Christ-like; they are evil. And they must not be tolerated within the church.

Diotrophes was a common Greek name during this time in the Greco-Roman world. And, if you remember, this letter was likely written somewhere between 85 and 95 AD. If that’s the case, John is likely the last living apostle. Therefore, we’re on the cusp of transitioning out of this apostolic age. So, it could be that Diotrephes no longer saw the importance of John. It could be that he thought John was old and outdated, and that it was time to pass the torch to the next generation of church leaders. It could be that John was a threat to his position of authority. Or it could be that John was encouraging something that went against his own vision for the church. We don’t know much about why Diotrephes acted the way that he did other than his actions were rooted in pride. All we know is that Diotrophes “loved being first,” and this love for being first has led to a mess within the church.

So, what I want us to do is try to summarize some of the corrupt characteristics found within this man. In doing so, we will seek to draw some applications regarding a healthy and unhealthy church culture.

The first thing we see is that he likes to put himself first. His life was marked by pride. He wanted to be the center of attention. Instead of serving others, he served himself. Instead of supporting others, he supported himself. Instead of allowing the glory of Jesus to rule his every decision, he allowed the glory of self to rule his every decision.

Friends, pride is a dangerous thing. It’s a poison that will slowly lead to your own demise. But it’s also a sin intended to destroy those around you. Pride is like a spark in a dry forest. It will spread farther and faster than you ever imagined, destroying things you never intended to destroy. This man’s self-centeredness prevented the church from experiencing the blessing of encouragement or rebuke through John’s letter; it prevented the church from experiencing the blessing of encouragement from the presence of the brothers; and it drove members of the church out of Christian fellowship.

No sin ever impacts just you; it will always affect those around you. The implications of sin will always go farther than you ever want them to go, and pride has a strange way of blinding you to how your actions affect those around you. It hardens your heart to the reality that your actions impact others. The self-centered man doesn’t care about how his actions impact others; he only cares about how others can impact him.

What a stark contrast in men we have in this letter. Gaius was giving his life, time, and resources to support others who were carrying the gospel to those who had never heard it before. In contrast, Diatrephes was exerting effort to prevent others from carrying the gospel to those who had never heard it before. Gaius was selfless; Diotrephes was selfish. Selfless humility is fertile soil for gospel advancement, while self-centeredness is the weed that seeks to choke out gospel advancement.

A healthy church consists of men and women who are eager to put others before themselves. In using the words of Jesus, “The first will be last and the last will be first.” We bow low so Christ may be lifted high. When we crucify our egos, the beauty of the church blossoms. The strength of the church is found in hearts content with second place. And the strength of the church is crippled by hearts striving for first place. Be careful, friends, not to be driven by pride or ambition.

The second thing we see is that Diotrephes rejected apostolic authority— “I have written something to the church, but Diotrephes, who likes to put himself first, does not acknowledge our authority.”

The language here implies Diotrephes is inserting himself as the ultimate authority of the church. He’s turned his nose up at John and scoffs at his leadership and teaching. He’s rebelling against the divine authority that God has put in place over his life.

John was an apostle. The word apostle means “one who is sent.” An apostle was a special messenger with a special title who took a specific message to a specific people. So, the message John and the other apostles proclaimed was God’s message, not man’s message. In Luke 6:13 and Mark 3:14, we see Jesus choose for himself twelve disciples whom he named apostles. He called them to himself, taught them, and sent them out to preach his message. These were men who personally walked with Jesus, who were personally called by Jesus, who were personally taught by Jesus, and who were personally sent out by Jesus to preach the message Jesus had taught them. An apostle was a divinely appointed church leader responsible for proclaiming God's divine message. So, to reject John’s message was to reject God’s message. Diotrephes had allowed selfish ambition to blind himself to obedience to God.

What a terrifying reality, one we’re all tempted to follow. For us, the ultimate authority is God’s word, the Bible, the Holy Scriptures. That is the authority every one of us, pastors included, submits to. No church member is exempt from submitting to authority. As pastors, we are called to submit to God’s authority, and we are called to teach what the Bible teaches and allow that to govern us. If the Scriptures claim Jesus is the only way to eternal life, we embrace him as our only hope and proclaim his name throughout the world. If the Scriptures say something is sin, we call it sin and strive to avoid it. If the Scriptures call something righteous, we call it righteous and strive to walk in it. If the Scriptures tell us to love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, we strive to love him with every fiber of our being. If the Scriptures tell us to love our neighbor as ourselves, we seek to love our neighbors well.

A healthy church consists of men and women who submit to God’s authority. We humble ourselves and kneel before the King of kings, Jesus. The strength of the church is found in hearts that are willing to bow in submission to God’s rule. And the strength of the church is crippled by hearts unwilling to submit to God’s rule. The moment we become unwilling to kneel before the authority God has put in place over us is the moment we begin to unravel.

The next thing I want to see is that Diotrephes was a slanderer. He wasn’t simply rejecting John’s authority; he was seeking to destroy John’s reputation through slander— “talking wicked nonsense against us.” Diotrephes had begun to fabricate stories against John to recruit others to join him in his rejection of John.

Words possess great power. They can be used for good, and they can be used for corruption. They can be medicine or they can be poison. They can build up, and they can tear down. The book of James tells us that the tongue is a “restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God.” Diotrephes had begun to use his tongue as an instrument of destruction. With it, I’m sure he corporately blessed God. But with it, he also corporately cursed man. With his words, he’s slowly setting the church on fire.

A healthy church consists of men and women who seek to use their words to build others up. The strength of the church is found in lips eager to speak truth in love. And the strength of the church is crippled by lips willing to gossip or slander. May our words be medicine that offers healing, not a poison used to destroy.

Now, notice what John strives to do here, though. John moves toward his offender, not away from him. He doesn’t overlook conflict; he moves toward it. John has written a letter to the church, which Diotrephes put a halt to. He’s sent the brothers to the church, which he’s put a halt to. And now he’s, in his old age, going to attempt to come to see him face to face to address him.

If I'm honest, John’s example is tough to follow. I hate conflict, so I tend to run away from it, not toward it.

As I surveyed my heart this week, I’ve begun to realize that sometimes, I mistake fear for grace. At times, I’ve felt I’ve been gracious and merciful, when in reality, I’ve just let the fear of conflict keep me from addressing an offense. Grace and mercy are sometimes found in overlooking an offense— “Good sense makes one slow to anger, and it is his glory to overlook an offense (Prov. 19:11). But true grace and mercy aren’t found in overlooking alloffenses. Grace and mercy are displayed best when we are able to look our offender in the eyes and address them. May we follow John’s example in addressing sin face-to-face.

The next thing I want us to see is that Diotrephes refused hospitality and prevented others from showing hospitality— “he refuses to welcome the brothers, and also stops those who want to and puts them out of the church.” This is a stark contrast to the type of lifestyle Gaius was living. Gaius welcomed and supported the brothers, while Diotrephes refused them. Gaius sought to send the brothers out in a manner worthy of God, while Diotrephes kicked people out of the church who sought to support their missional efforts.

Part of faithful Christian living is being a welcoming people, especially when it comes to welcoming other believers. “We’re glad you’re here, come on in” should be words we use often! If Christ has invited us into his holy family, we should invite others into our family.

A healthy church consists of men and women who are hospitable. Our church will be most healthy when we have a healthy relationship with brothers and sisters from other churches. Our church will be most healthy when we use our resources to help our brothers and sisters from other churches. The moment we stop partnering with other brothers and sisters to the ends of the earth, we’ve journeyed into sin. The moment we begin to reject hospitality, we’ve journeyed far from God. May the Lord shut us down the moment we begin to shut our doors to those around us. The moment we begin to put ourselves first, we’ve journeyed into wickedness.

The Book of 3 John teaches us the importance of selflessness and humility within the church. To be a faithful church, we must stay close to Jesus. Gospel doctrine shapes gospel culture. We can tell if we’re walking in obedience to Jesus by the way we treat other Christians.

3 John pt.1– Who is Gaius?

What do you want to be remembered for in this life? A good businessman? A good ball player? A good salesman? A godly man? A godly woman?

Well, in this short letter, which we call 3 John, we can catch a glimpse of the reputations of various members of the early church. The reputations of some were good, while the reputations of others were not so good. Gaius, the recipient of this letter, was a man who walked in the truth. He faithfully lived out the gospel. Diatrophes was not. He was an arrogant and corrupt leader who put himself first, rejected apostolic authority, and led the church away from gospel hospitality.

The book of 3 John will force us to ask the question, “What do we want to be known for in this life?” Will we be known as faithful, selfless, loving, and hospitable Christians who inconvenience themselves for the good of others? Or will we be known as arrogant, selfish, and unloving people who push others out for the good of ourselves? What reputation are you building?

The only things that can truly shape our reputations are the small and consistent decisions we make throughout our lives. As the great prince of preachers, Charles Spurgeon, once said, “The eagle-eyed world acts as a policeman for the church… [It] becomes a watchdog over the sheep, barking furiously as soon as one goes astray..… Be careful of your private lives … and I believe your public lives will surely be right. Remember that it is upon your publiclife that the world's verdict will very much depend. (“The Parents’ and Pastor’s Joy”).”

Let’s dive in.

“1 The elder to the beloved Gaius, whom I love in truth.

2 Beloved, I pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in good health, as it goes well with your soul. 3 For I rejoiced greatly when the brothers came and testified to your truth, as indeed you are walking in the truth. 4 I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.

5 Beloved, it is a faithful thing you do in all your efforts for these brothers, strangers as they are, 6 who testified to your love before the church. You will do well to send them on their journey in a manner worthy of God. 7 For they have gone out for the sake of the name, accepting nothing from the Gentiles. 8 Therefore we ought to support people like these, that we may be fellow workers for the truth.”

As you can see, the author of this letter doesn’t point-blank identify himself at the beginning of this letter. Instead, he simply identifies himself as “the elder.”

Obviously, your Bible likely has the book titled, “3 John.” So, what has led scholars, historians, and commentators to conclude that the author of this book is John?

Well, given the similarity in the introduction to 2 John, many believe the author of 3 John is the same as the author of 2 John. And given the similarities in writing style and themes between the gospel of John and 1, 2, and 3 John, many believe the author is the same. So, it’s safe to conclude that the elder here is the apostle John.

The term elder is presbyteros in Greek. It’s the same term used in 1 Timothy 5:17 and Titus 1:5 to describe the church office of a pastor/elder/overseer, those who teach, shepherd, and oversee the congregation. This is certainly a title that could and should be accredited to the apostle John. As likely the last living apostle at this time, John was undoubtedly an elder of the church, a teacher, shepherd, and overseer of the church.

But at this point, John was also elderly. If this letter had been written around 90 AD, as many suspect, John could have been between 80 and 90 years old. John was a seasoned believer who had witnessed a lot in his lifetime. In his youth, he sat with, talked with, and followed the Messiah, the Savior of the world, Jesus Christ. In his youth, he watched blind people see, lame people walk, and the dead come back to life. In his youth, he wept as he watched the Savior die. In his youth, he raced Peter to the empty tomb when he heard it was empty. In his youth, he rejoiced as he touched the risen Savior. In his youth, he was commissioned by Jesus right before he watched him ascend to the right hand of the Father. He had the Holy Spirit fall on him in his youth at Pentecost. He then watched the early church explode when Peter preached the gospel. He watched the church walk in love. He watched the church explode under persecution. He watched Paul come to know Jesus. He watched Paul become transformed by Jesus. He, himself, led people to Jesus. He, himself, discipled followers of Jesus. He, himself, likely wept over the death of his best friends as they died under persecution for Jesus. And now, in his old age, he’s still tenderly and lovingly caring for Jesus’ people.

John is an elderly elder of the church. He is a seasoned church leader and the last living apostle who cares deeply for those he leads.

We then see the recipient of this letter, Gaius.

***We will spend most of our time today unpacking who Gaius is and why John is addressing him. But before we do, let me go on record and say that if any of you are looking for a Godly name for a boy, look no further than Gaius. I commission the next family that gets pregnant with a boy to name their child Gaius.

Gaius was a fairly common name during this time. Therefore, we have multiple instances in the New Testament where a man with this name appears. In Romans 16:23, we find a Gaius of Corinth. Paul baptized him himself, and he later hosted Paul and the church in his home. In Acts 19:29, we see a Gaius from Macedonia, who was Paul's companion and got caught up in a riot in Ephesus. In Acts 20:4, we find a Gaius from Derbe, also Paul’s companion, who helped deliver a collection of resources to the Jerusalem church.

I desperately wanted the Gaius in 3 John to be one of these guys. I thought it would be fun to have a better grasp of who this man is and what he did for the kingdom. But, although there’s a possibility that the Gaius described in 3 John could be one of these Gaiuses, it’s not likely. The timing and location indicate that we simply have multiple different Gaiuses in the Bible who played a vital role in advancing the gospel in the early church, which is comforting in its own right. The advancement of the gospel and the health of the church didn’t rest upon the shoulders of one or two faithful Christians; it rested on the shoulders of many faithful Christians who sought to live faithfully for Jesus. The same is true today. The health of the church and the advancement of the gospel will never rest upon the shoulders of one single person.

As we see in these first few verses, Gaius is one whom John dearly loved. He is the “beloved Gaius,” the one John loves in truth. In other words, John’s love toward this man isn’t superficial; it’s authentic. It’s real and rooted in truth. This is the type of love that God calls us to display. Authentic and genuine, not fake and superficial love is what we’re called to possess.

So, how would you describe your love for your brothers and sisters in the church? Do you, like John, love in truth?

In verse 2, John begins to pray for the one he loves, which should teach us to pray for those we love. A tangible way to display authentic love is through fervent prayer. To be a loving church, we must be a praying church.

John says, “Beloved, I pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in good health, as it goes well with your soul.” In other words, John prays that his physical health will match his spiritual health.

There are two things worth digging into here:

First, it’s okay to pray for physical health. This is probably more of a point for me than anyone else. But I sometimes think it’s wrong to pray for physical needs, that faithful prayers are only spiritual prayers. But that’s not true because the Bible provides examples of faithful church leaders praying for the physical health of other church members. We always want to pray Biblical prayers, and there’s strong evidence in Scripture of people praying for physical needs to be met. So, may we humbly lift the church's needs up to the Lord.

The second thing I want us to notice is what he’s saying. He’s praying that their physical health will match their spiritual health— “that you may be in good health, as it goes well with your soul.” In expounding on this prayer, Daniel Akin said, “A good point of application naturally arises from this prayer. What if I were to pray for you and ask God to bless you physically to the same degree you are healthy spiritually, and what if He answered my prayer? What would happen?! Would you be fit, sick in bed, or nearly dead? Would we need to rush you to the emergency room and have you ushered into the ICU or CCU?”

John then says, “For I rejoiced greatly when the brothers came and testified to your truth, as indeed you are walking in the truth. I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.”

Let’s paint the picture of what’s taking place here. There was a group of Christian brothers who were once with Gaius and later journeyed to John. When they got to John, they told him about Gaius' lifestyle, which caused John to rejoice. The reputation of Gaius has stirred up joy within John's heart, which has caused him to rejoice greatly! And this rejoicing caused John to pick up his pen and paper and write a letter of encouragement.

Can we press pause here for just a quick second? It would serve us well to follow John’s example here. The book of Proverbs says, “Better is open rebuke than hidden love.” So, may we be encouragers like John. When we see a brother or sister living out the gospel well, may we use our words to encourage them!

Now, John's language can be a bit strange. He says that these brothers have “testified to your truth.”

That’s a weird statement, isn’t it?

John is simply saying that the testimony of these brothers regarding Gaius is truthful. They came and accurately described what was going on in Gaius’ life. They testified to his truth, meaning they gave an accurate description of his life. The reality of Gaius’s life is that he is walking in the truth.

What does it mean to walk in the truth? It means he’s walking in obedience to Jesus, the source of truth. He’s living out the gospel. The message he’s embraced is the message he’s living. This is the reason John rejoices. He says, “I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.” One of his greatest sources of joy in his life is seeing or hearing his children walking in the truth.

The phrase “my children” likely doesn’t denote biological children. Instead, it’s likely a description of spiritual children. This could be someone John introduced to Jesus and later discipled in Jesus. Or it could be an individual whom someone else introduced to Jesus, and he has played a role in discipling. Either way, this is a man whom John has spiritually parented.

The phrase “my children” teaches us that our work has just begun once we introduce someone to Christ. Once we introduce someone to Jesus, we seek to teach them what it means to follow Jesus by walking in the truth.

Could John’s words also teach us that Christian joy is tied to Christian discipleship? There could be a multitude of reasons why we might not disciple young Christians. We might feel like we don’t have time or that we aren’t qualified. But, I want us to see that one of the repercussions of not discipling young Christians is missing out on joy. John says, “I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth!” John was encouraged by the way Gaius was living. So, one of the greatest sources of joy is seeing those you’ve invested in spiritually embrace and live out truth! In the same way that a parent rejoices over their child taking their first steps, we can rejoice over seeing those we disciple walking out their faith. Could it be that the more we pour our lives into knowing the truth of Scripture, living the truth of Scripture, and teaching the truth of Scripture, the more joyful we will become?

John then says, “Beloved, it is a faithful thing you do in all your efforts for these brothers, strangers as they are, who testified to your love before the church. You will do well to send them on their journey in a manner worthy of God. For they have gone out for the sake of the name, accepting nothing from the Gentiles. Therefore, we ought to support people like these, that we may be fellow workers for the truth.”

Here, we are beginning to see what Gaius was doing that brought John so much joy. We are beginning to see what walking in truth actually looks like.

The brothers who came and testified to John about Gaius were missionaries. They were strangers on a journey. They had selflessly gone out for the sake of the name of Jesus. They weren’t accepting anything from the Gentiles, meaning profit was not their goal. They weren’t selling a message; they were freely proclaiming the hope of Christ crucified. And Gaius was supporting them. He was exerting effort to help these brothers in their efforts to take the gospel to the Gentiles freely. Gaius was helping missionaries.

Can we just take a moment to acknowledge that the Bible has a letter written, not to the ones going, but to the ones supporting? In our attempt to celebrate those who answer the call to go, it’s easy to overlook the call to support. But to do so would be to go against God's heart.

One of our deacons, Troy Andrews, made a beautiful point a few months ago. He said, “Some will be called to go, while others are called to stay back and hold the rope.” That picture accurately depicts what Gaius was doing. Gaius was a rope holder. He was a supporter of those who went. Friends, missional support is just as important as missional living. Not everyone is called to go. Not everyone can go. But not being able to go doesn’t mean you can’t partake.

Look at what John says in verse 8: “Therefore we ought to support people like these, that we may be fellow workers for the truth.” The missionaries have fought to keep the gospel free. Therefore, the church ought to support them.

That word support is the Greek word apolambanō (ap-ol-am-ban'-o). It means to receive. So, John is saying that the type of support we are to give is a hospitable receiving. It’s not simply a throwing of money; it’s a linking of arms, a joining of lives.

But, notice how John describes those who receive and support. He calls them “fellow workers for the truth.” The Greek word for fellow workers is synergos, which means “working together.” It’s where the English word “synergy” derives from. Synergy means a cooperation of action. It implies the interaction of different elements that produce a greater combined effect than the sum of their individual effects. In other words, the gospel will go further when we work together.

Maybe your health prevents you from going on missions. Maybe your bank account prevents you from going on missions. Maybe your family prevents you from going on missions. Maybe your work prevents you from going on missions. Maybe you understand the importance of missions, but you just can’t go, and your inability to go makes you feel guilty. I hope this letter will be water to your soul. I hope you see that holding the rope for those in the trenches is just as important as being in the trenches.

God, help us to be like our brother, Gaius. God, please raise up from Harbor men and women who will answer the call to go and share the gospel with those who have never heard it before. And raise up from Harbor men and women who are content to stay and support those who go. Help us see the importance of both. May we have the reputation of being a people who are faithful in supporting those on mission for the gospel.

2 John pt.2

Now, it could be because this is a relatively new book to me, one I admittedly haven’t read much in my lifetime. But this book is good! I’ve thoroughly enjoyed reading it this week! I’ve walked away convinced that, had John lived in our day and age, he would have been an excellent rapper. He’s always poetically contrasting things like light and darkness, love and hate, truth and falsehood, children of God and children of the devil, obedience and disobedience, faith and unbelief, the Christ and antichrist. But, here it seems like John is taking his writing skills to a whole new level. In a poetically beautiful way, John is writing to a local church, encouraging her to continue to embrace the sound doctrine of Christ. As the church, we are each called to abide in Christ, and to abide in Christ, we will (1) walk in love, (2) walk in obedience, and (3) guard the truth of the Bible.

“4 I rejoiced greatly to find some of your children walking in the truth, just as we were commanded by the Father. 5 And now I ask you, dear lady—not as though I were writing you a new commandment, but the one we have had from the beginning—that we love one another. 6 And this is love, that we walk according to his commandments; this is the commandment, just as you have heard from the beginning, so that you should walk in it. 7 For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not confess the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh. Such a one is the deceiver and the antichrist. 8 Watch yourselves, so that you may not lose what we have worked for, but may win a full reward. 9 Everyone who goes on ahead and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God. Whoever abides in the teaching has both the Father and the Son. 10 If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house or give him any greeting, 11 for whoever greets him takes part in his wicked works.

12 Though I have much to write to you, I would rather not use paper and ink. Instead I hope to come to you and talk face to face, so that our joy may be complete.”

13 The children of your elect sister greet you.”  

Notice how the meat of this letter begins with John rejoicing over the church's obedience—“I rejoiced greatly to find some of your children walking in the truth, just as we were commanded by the Father.”

We won't spend much time here, but as a pastor, few things stir up more joy in my heart than seeing the church walk in the truth. The phrase “walk in truth” implies that the truths of the Bible have impacted your mind as well as your heart. And a heart affected by truth will lead to a life impacted by truth. Walking in truth is truth applied.

When you come to me excited about what God’s teaching you in the Word, I get excited. When I see you living out what you’re learning, I rejoice! One of the best ways to serve your pastors is by living out the truth of the gospel we all love and embrace.

John then says in verse 5, “And now I ask you, dear lady— not as though I were writing you a new commandment, but the one we have had from the beginning— that we love one another. And this is love, that we walk according to his commandments; this is the commandment, just as you have heard from the beginning, so that you should walk in it.”

This is a wordy few sentences. So let me try to summarize what John is saying. Here, John pleads with the church to continue walking in obedience to God by walking in love. He’s reminding the church how love and obedience are inseparable; they’re two different sides of the same coin. You can’t walk in obedience to God’s commandments without love, and you cannot walk in love apart from God’s commandments. Love and obedience cannot be separated— “This is love, that we walk according to his commandments.”

Real love flows from obedience, and real obedience is always motivated by love. Yet, we often seek to separate love from obedience and obedience from love. Let me seek to explain.

Obedience without love is displayed through an attempt to use God’s law as a means to serve yourself by building your own reputation and identity. This is what the religious leaders were doing when Jesus came on the scene. They were using the law to serve themselves, not others. The commandments were a tool to push others down and build themselves up. They were a whitewashed tomb. They dressed nice, they fasted and tithed so others could see, and they prayed loud and extravagant prayers. But there was no love for God, nor was there a love for others. They wore a mask of obedience to appear as those who had divine favor from God. But inwardly, they were corrupt and hypocritical.

Church, we’re not exempt from this. We all face the temptation to love our reputation more than we love others. We all face the temptation to use God’s law as a means to serve ourselves, not others. So, may we be careful not to use the commandments of God for something they were never intended to be. Obedience was never meant to be separated from love.

Now there’s also a temptation to swing the pendulum to the other side and think we can find love outside God’s commandments. But John’s words here teach us that that’s an impossibility. We are to “love one another,” and “love is walking according to his commandments.” The moment we seek to separate love from obedience to God is the moment we’ve journeyed into hate. But this is what we’re tempted to do.

For example, the Bible holds marriage in high esteem as a lifelong covenant between a man and a woman. But the society we live in hates this. They claim this is outdated, oppressive, and hateful. So, in the name of love, we’ve sought to redefine what marriage can and can’t be.

The Bible holds authority in high esteem, calling us to respect authority. The Bible calls us to not resist our governing authorities and to honor our father and mother. The Bible calls the man to be the head of the household and lead, love, and serve his home. But the society we live in hates this. They claim this is outdated, oppressive, and hateful. So, in the name of love, we push for equality and encourage others to live their truth and follow their heart.

The Bible holds the Sabbath in high esteem, calling us to keep the Sabbath day holy. But our society hates the idea of someone else getting an upper edge. Therefore, we embrace the notion that work never sleeps, which turns Sunday into a day to finish that deadline or wrap up that tournament. In the name of love, we sell our souls to work or sports.

The Bible holds human life in high esteem, teaching us that men, women, and children are made in the image of God. The society we live in agrees with this, stating that murder is wrong, until human life threatens our freedom to choose. Therefore, in the name of love, we embrace and celebrate the removal of life through the avenue of abortion or euthanasia.

Church, obedience without love is hypocrisy. But love without obedience is hate. If we want to be loving, we must seek to know Scripture, embrace the truth of Scripture, and rejoice with the truth of Scripture. 1 Corinthians 13:6 says, “Love does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth.” So, the moment we seek to dismiss obedience to God’s commandments in the name of love is the moment we’ve abandoned love. Obedience to God is one of the clearest ways to display our love for God and one another.

Now, in this exhortation to obey God by walking in love, John reminds the church that this commandment is an old commandment— “…not as though I were writing you a new commandment, but the one we have had from the beginning.”

God is far greater than we could ever imagine. So, a key part of the Christian life is learning new things about God. In the same way that we could never collect every grain of sand on the beach, we could never fully grasp God's fullness. But as we learn new things about God, we must remember that there are no new truths, only old truths. Therefore, a key element of the Christian life is remembering the old truths we’ve already embraced.

Now, I was doing the math this week. If this letter was written around 90AD, John had lived as a follower of Jesus for roughly 60 years by this point. It’s even possible he was nearing 90 years old by this point. Yet, in his old age, John hasn’t outgrown the simple call to love one another. We will never outgrow the call to love.

The older we get, the easier it is to become jaded. The longer you live in a fallen world, the easier it is to grow bitter. Every day that passes is another opportunity to get hurt by those around you. But, oh, the joy I feel when I see older saints still walking out their Christian faith. There are not many things more beautiful to me than seeing older saints still embracing the call to love one another as Christ has loved us.

How do we do this? How can we become a John? The only way this can take place is through the warm embrace of the gospel proclaimed in the Scriptures. The truth of the gospel is the heat that keeps our hearts soft and tender, able to display genuine love. Away from it, we will grow cold and hard. If we want to be loving people, we must keep the gospel close.

John then says, “For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not confess the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh. Such a one is the deceiver and the antichrist.”

We’ve discussed this time and time again in 1 John. John is saying that the antichrist is anyone and everyone who dismisses Jesus and preaches something contrary to the truth of him that is found in the Scriptures. And he’s saying you don’t have to look far and wide to see false teachers. Many had gone out into the world to deceive back then, and many have gone into the world to deceive now.

So, how do we know what the Bible teaches about Jesus? What is true? What is false?

Well, when we were going through 1 John, we put together a concise statement regarding a biblical summary of who Jesus is. It went as follows:

“Jesus Christ is both fully God and fully man. He came to earth to live the perfect life we could not live, died the death we deserved, and rose again— defeating sin and death— to offer us new life. He is now seated at the right hand of the Father in heaven and will one day return. Every person will stand before him to be judged according to how we have lived: those whose faith resides in Christ to everlasting life and those who rejected Christ to everlasting judgement.”

So, anything that goes against these core truths surrounding Jesus is a lie, and we must seek to guard against these false teachings.

Look at the stern warning John gives in verse 8. He says, “Watch yourselves, so that you may not lose what we have worked for, but may win a full reward.”

It’s worth pausing here for a moment because there are a few interpretations regarding the reward mentioned at the end of this verse. Some think John is talking about a loss of salvation. Others think he’s talking about losing a spiritual award found in heaven (1 Cor. 3:12-15, 2 Cor. 5:10). Others think he’s talking about losing the outcome of a corporate ministry. In other words, if the church were to stray from the truth, John and his companions’ efforts would be in vain.

As we quickly wade through these different interpretations, I think it’s important to remind ourselves of what 1 John 2:19 says, “They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us.”

We’ve already established that not all who are members of the physical church are members of the spiritual church. Perseverance is a sign of authenticity. Those who are born of God will continue to walk with God. Therefore, I don’t think this verse teaches us that we’re able to lose our salvation. So, it could be that he’s referring to an award in heaven. But, I don’t want us to get so bogged down in the weeds of what the award might be that we overlook the warning! A loss is a loss, and a reward is a reward! John is sternly saying that doctrine matters! It matters what we’re being taught! It matters what we believe! It matters what we teach! It matters how we live! So, watch yourself! Watch what message you embrace. Watch what message you preach! Watch how you live!

All who are in Christ will persevere, and all who are in Christ must persevere! A tangible way that God keeps those in him is through their watchful perseverance. The warnings in Scripture are the guardrails that keep us persevering.

John then says, “Everyone who goes on ahead and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God. Whoever abides in the teaching has both the Father and the Son. If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house or give him any greeting, for whoever greets him takes part in his wicked works.” So, a tangible way to know that we have a relationship with God is our willingness to abide in Christ and his teachings. Those who embrace Jesus as Lord and Savior have God, and those who do not embrace Jesus as Lord and Savior do not have God. Now, remember that John is not likely addressing a woman with children; instead, it’s likely he’s addressing a church in a bit of a poetic and symbolic manner. So, I don’t think John’s intention here is to encourage the church to never have a non-believer in their home. Instead, he’s calling the local church to carefully watch what is being taught within their body.

As pastors, we are responsible for providing teaching, preaching, and counsel from the Scriptures, as well as guarding against false teachers and teaching. Part of our job is to protect the pulpit and ensure we don’t receive false teachers into our house. This is why we have an elder-recommended curriculum for our community groups. We want to ensure we aren’t allowing falsehood to creep into the church's life.

Now, I think there’s some beauty in how John closes his letter here. He says, “Though I have much to write to you, I would rather not use paper and ink. Instead I hope to come to you and talk face to face, so that our joy may be complete.”

If any of you know me, you know I’m a bit of a tightwad. I hate to spend money. After reading John’s words, I think he might agree with me! That brother doesn’t want to waste paper and ink. Although using these words to justify being a tightwad is tempting, I won’t. I think that would be a significant misrepresentation of John’s original intent. Instead, I want to remind us that in a digital age, face-to-face conversations are better. In a digital age where we love to hide behind a screen, John’s words remind us that face-to-face conversations are better. So, carve out space in both your schedule and budget for coffee with the saints. Prioritize gathering with the local body you’ve been called to. Face-to-face gospel conversations fuel Christian joy— “I hope to come to you and talk face to face, so that our joy may be complete.”

John then closes with the statement, “The children of your elect sister greet you.”Remember the imagery John is using. The elect lady and her children are the church, a local congregation. So, John is saying that the local body he’s with (likely in Ephesus) is greeting the local body he’s writing to. Notice there’s zero animosity found in these words, zero disdain. Instead, there’s only warm hospitality and love. We are not in competition with other congregations. We are a small family that is a part of God’s great family, a [b]ody that’s a part of the [B]ody. Warm greetings, not cold slander, are what we’re called to extend to other church families in our city, state, country, and world.

2 John pt.1

1 John 5:17-21

1 John 5:6-12

1 John 5:1-5

1 John 4:13-21

Let’s dive in.

“[13] By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. [14] And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. [15] Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. [16] So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. [17] By this is love perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is so also are we in this world. [18] There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love. [19] We love because he first loved us. [20] If anyone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. [21] And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother.”

Last week, we learned that love is part of the fruit of the Holy Spirit— “Whoever loves has been born of God and knows God.” This means that Christlike love is a miraculous work, something we cannot produce on our own efforts. Therefore, our willingness to love should be a tangible way to know we are in Christ.

Well, likewise, John here is showing us how the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives is the living proof that we are in Christ and Christ is in us— “by this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit.”

So, how do I know that I am a Christian? How do I know that I am in Christ? How do I know that Christ is in me?

The Holy Spirit has been given to you as proof. Ephesians 1 says, “we are sealed with the Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance.” Likewise, Romans 8:16 says, “The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God. So, proof that you are in God and God is in you is the Holy Spirit’s presence in your life, and proof of the Holy Spirit’s presence in your life is Christlike love. Love is fruit of the Holy Spirit. Christlike love is a miraculous work, something we cannot produce on our own efforts. Therefore, our willingness to love is a tangible way to know we are in Christ. God has given you the power to carry out the very thing he’s called you to do, which is love.

Now, there are two quick things I want to draw our attention to here in these verses:

First, I want us to notice the language John is using here to describe our relationship with God.

n this passage, John repeatedly says that we are in God and God is in us.

- “If we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us (v.12).”

- “By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us his Spirit (v.13).”

- “Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God (v.15).”

- “Whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him (v.16).”

When I was a young believer, I always subtly struggled with the question, “Which is it? Am I in Christ? Or is Christ in me?”

Well, the Bible teaches that the answer is, “Yes.” Both are equally true. Our relationship with God becomes so intertwined that we are in him, and he is in us. We abide in him, and he abides in us. There’s immense richness and beauty in both realities.

For God to be “in us” means that he is comforting, convicting, leading, teaching, and sanctifying us. He doesn’t leave us alone in this life. He dwells with us by being in us. But, in the same way God is in us, we are also “in Him.” We are members of his body, a part of his family, united as one in him. He is our joy, he is our life, he is our righteousness. To be “in him” means his righteousness covers us. We are justified, declared righteous before God, and in right standing with God because we are in God.

The second thing I want us to see is that the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives is a gift received through faith, not a wage earned through works. John is saying that the way we know that we are in God and God in us is the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives that God has graciously extended to us— “he has given us His Spirit.”

I don’t want to beat a dead horse. But, if I’m going to be redundant with something, it will be the gospel. The temptation of our heart is to read these verses through the lens of law, not grace. The temptation is to think, “If I don’t do, God won’t love. If I don’t love others, God won't love me.”

In a merit-based world, it’s easy to view God in that way. But that way of thinking is the opposite of what the Bible teaches. This passage says that we love because God loves. We do because God has done.

God is not Santa Claus. He doesn’t survey our actions and give us something only when we’re not on the naughty list. No, he’s an amazing God who offers amazing gifts to the least deserving. So, our act of love is a response to the love we’ve received. Our act of grace is a response to the grace we’ve received. Our act of obedience is a response of worship. Christlike love is a response to the love of Christ, not a means of earning the love of Christ.

Look at the progression in the following verses— “[14] And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. [15] Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. [16] So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us.”

Big picture, John is here connecting our belief with our action, our confession with our living. But, before we get to that big picture truth, I want us to do some heavy lifting here first.

First, I believe the “we” in verse 14 is John and the other apostles. John is telling others what he (and the other disciples) have visibly seen demonstrated through Jesus's life. This is the beautiful reality of the Bible, particularly the gospels in the New Testament. These writings are full of eyewitness accounts of Jesus. In the Old Testament, you find promise after promise that God will send someone to make things right. He will send a Savior, He will send a King. Well, the gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John) were written to show that Jesus is the promised Savior of the Old Testament. So, as we read the testimony of those who walked with Jesus, we see that Jesus's life, words, and works demonstrated to us the truth that the Father had sent him to save the world. Jesus spoke like the Son of God and lived like the Son of God. He gave sight to the blind, healed the sick, raised the dead to life, and fed the 5,000. Miracle after miracle, sermon after sermon, Jesus proved to be the One sent by the Father to save the world. The Scriptures tell us that he came to save us by dying for us (just as they promised). And he rose from the grave, just as the Scriptures promised.

There are a lot of beliefs in the world about Jesus. Some say he was simply a prophet or a messenger. Others say he was a blasphemer. But, we cling to and believe the apostles testimony that he is the Son of God who came to save us from our greatest enemy, sin and death. We confess that he is the Son of God who came to save sinners through his death on the cross.

The central confession of the Christian faith is that Jesus, the Son of God, has come to save sinful humanity through his death on the cross. And to confess Jesus as the Savior of the world, you’re simultaneously confessing your own need to be saved. In confessing Jesus as Savior, you also acknowledge your need for salvation. In confessing him as Savior, you’re admitting your own brokenness. Saying “Jesus is my Savior” means I know I’ve done wrong and I need Jesus to rescue me.

I saw an Instagram reel this week of people at a church writing on a piece of canvas things God has saved them from. After they wrote their thing down, they then took a paintbrush and painted over it in red, symbolizing how Jesus’ blood covers us.

Nosy me wanted to look closer and see what people were writing. On the canvas were things like “Anxiety,” “daddy issues,” and “depression.”

Now, I’m not saying that the gospel doesn’t impact these things; it certainly does. But I want to be very clear. It is your sin that the cross first addresses, not someone else’s. For me, it is my sin first that the cross addresses, not someone else’s. Christ came to save you from the wrath that would be poured out on you because of your sin. Christ came to die for the villain; the world is full of villains, and you are one of them!

Lust, jealousy, anger, resentment, hatred, drunkenness, enmity, divisions, sexual immorality, etc… These are a few of the many sins listed in the Bible that are present in your heart and life. So, confessing Jesus as your Savior is to confess your need for a Savior.

The progression here is beautiful and straightforward. All who confess Jesus as Lord will be saved, and the moment we’re saved, the Holy Spirit comes and indwells us. It’s as simple as that. All who look themselves in the mirror, acknowledge their need to be saved, and confess Jesus as their only hope for salvation will be saved. And all who make this confession will have God abiding in them, and they are abiding in God.

Have you made this confession?

Now, I want us to see this verse within its greater context. John is saying that those who confess Jesus as the Son of God will begin to walk in God's love. Our confession and our lives will coincide. To be saved from somethingmeans you don’t want to go back to that something. So, to confess Jesus as Savior is also to confess him as Lord. When we confess him as Lord, we hand over the keys to our lives, inviting the Holy Spirit to lead us. And the Holy Spirit will lead us to love, not away from it.

John says in verse 16, “So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.” So, once again, we are linking love to the cross, and the cross to our lives. The ultimate display of love was sending the Son of God to save the world. So, when we confess Jesus as the Son of God, we come to know and believe God's love for us, impacting how we live. In embracing the message of the cross, we embrace the way of the cross.

If you stick a lukewarm soda into a cooler full of ice, it will naturally become cold because of its proximity to the ice. In the same way, those who are abiding in Christ will naturally become Christlike. The closer we walk with God, the more loving we become. Those who cling to the loving work of the cross will begin to be transformed into loving people.

John then says, “[17] By this is love perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is so also are we in this world. [18] There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love.”

John is saying that the cross is a fear killer. It completely dismantles our greatest fears.

Judgment is coming. One day, we will all stand before God and answer for our lives. God will separate the sheep from the goats, the wheat from the chaff, the righteous from the unrighteous. And all who confess Jesus as their Savior are justified before God because of what Christ has done for them on the cross. Because we are in Christ and Christ is in us, we have confidence for the day of judgment. We don’t have to fear what comes after death because perfect love casts out fear.

And John is telling us that future hope impacts daily living. The call of Christian obedience is not to obey so you might stand one day; it’s to obey because you will stand one day. So, we don’t obey out of fear of judgment. We obey because our punishment has been poured out on Jesus, which frees us from condemnation and shame. We love because God first loved us. Perfect love perfects us. It makes us more and more like Jesus.

For several years, I managed a cafe called “Mars Hill Cafe.” There were many, many sweet moments at the cafe, and there were many, many difficult moments at the cafe. There were certainly some days I would love to forget, some days where we just couldn’t get our bearings straight, where everything went wrong at once, and it felt like you were a snowball being rolled down a hill collecting more and more disastrous moments. I remember there would be times when there’s chicken on the grill, corn salad still left to be made, and a line of 20 people out the door. Next thing you know, there are 18 tickets in the window, and you think you’ll never get caught up.

In those moments, as silly as it seems, what would bring me the most comfort would be playing out the worst-case scenario in my mind. I would ask myself, “What’s the worst thing that could happen today? The building burns down, and we lose the cafe? I get fired? I die?” Then, I would answer those questions, “Either the building burns down or I get fired. Either way, in 6 hours I will lie on my bed next to my wife. If I die, as painful as that might be, I will be with my Savior and Lord, Jesus, for all eternity in a much less stressful situation than this.”

Because of the cross, we don’t have to overlook our greatest fears. Instead, we can address them. Through the lens of the cross, we can look our concerns face to face and say, “You don’t scare me anymore.” The Christian faith addresses our deepest fears and enables us to joyfully and confidently walk through life.

John then concludes, “[19] We love because he first loved us. [20] If anyone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. [21] And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother.”

God’s love impacts our love. If anyone has experienced the love of God, they will seek to love like God. Anyone claiming to love God will seek to love God’s people. All who love God will also love others. Real love for God is shown in real love for people.

So, how is your heart today, friends? Is there hate in your heart toward a brother or sister? Is there unforgiveness in your heart today? Are you a liar today, claiming to love God in word while hating someone in your heart?

God commands us to love Him and His people.

1 John 4:7-12

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

1. According to 1 John 4:7–8, how is love both evidence and fruit of a relationship with God?

2. How does the cross clarify and deepen your understanding of what true love is?What does it mean that Jesus is the “propitiation” for our sins, and how is that an expression of perfect love?

3. What are some ways we might be “withholding love” in our relationships without even realizing it?

4. Reflection question: If someone observed your life, what would they learn about God’s love by how you treat others?

SERMON MANUSCRIPT:

I remember having a conversation with one of my teammates when I was in college.

I had just recently read the story of God appearing to Solomon in a dream and saying, “Ask what I shall give you.” In humility, Solomon acknowledged his inexperience as king and asked for “an understanding mind.”

I found Solomon's request to be profound, so profound that it began to shape how and what I would pray for during that season of life. Like Solomon, I began to pray fervently for God to give me wisdom, clinging to James 1:5, “If anyone lacks wisdom, let him ask God who gives generously to all without reproach.”

I thought wisdom was the greatest thing you could request from God. Until, of course, I talked with one of my teammates.

As we were riding to lunch, we were talking about this story in 1 Kings 3, and I asked him, “If you could ask God for anything, what would it be?”

His response caught me off guard, shaking me to the core. He said, “I think I would ask for love.” Then he quoted 1 Corinthians 13:13, “So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.”

His response rocked me because he was right. Wisdom is necessary; love is essential. Wisdom is beautiful, but love is vital.

“If we speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, we are a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. If we have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if we have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, we are nothing. If we give away all we have, and if we deliver up our bodies to be burned, but have not love, we gain nothing. Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.”

In our passage today, John takes some time to highlight how essential love is to the Christian faith. He’s making the argument that love is a key indicator of faith. All who know God know love. If God’s love has impacted your heart, you will begin to bleed out love. To know God is to know love because God is love.

This passage adds color to the black and white picture of love. It teaches us the source of love, and it shows us the clearest demonstration of love, which is the cross. And it answers a multitude of questions we might ask about ourselves.

We might ask, “Am I a Christian?”

John says, “Whoever loves has been born of God and knows God.”

We might ask, “Am I a godly friend/husband/wife/parent/coworker/boss/etc?

John says, “Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.”

All who are godly are loving. To walk like God is to walk in love.

Let’s dive in.

“[7] Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. [8] Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. [9] In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. [10] In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. [11] Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. [12] No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.”

LOVE, THE FRUIT OF A RELATIONSHIP WITH JESUS

In these first two verses, John says the same thing in two different ways: a positive way and a negative way— “[7] Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. [8] Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.” John essentially says that those who know God will love others, and those who don’t will not.

Love is not a means to a relationship with Jesus; it is the fruit of a relationship with Jesus. To withhold love from another is to swim against the current of the Holy Spirit’s leading. Simply put, our willingness to love is a key indicator of how we know we have a relationship with Jesus. It is one of the best signs that we have a relationship with Jesus. Your willingness and ability to love are a tangible way to know you are a Christian.

Now, packed deep into the crevasses of these two verses are some nuggets I want us to try to dig out for a moment.

First, I want us to notice where John said love is from— “love is from God” and “God is love.” So, love is woven deep into the fabric of God’s being; it’s tied to his identity. In commenting on this verse, John Piper said, “Love is from God the way heat is from fire, or the way light is from the sun. Love belongs to God’s nature. It’s woven into what he is. It’s part of what it means to be God. The sun gives light because it is light. And fire gives heat because it is heat.” So, love is from God because God is love.

Now, God is also eternal. So, if love is directly tied to the identity of an infinite God, then that means his love is everlasting. It has no beginning or end. This means that God’s love extended to us isn’t rooted in our performance for him. No, it’s rooted in who he is. Therefore, his love is undeserved; it’s uninfluenced by anything we can do for him. It’s firmly rooted in Jesus.

So, practically speaking—and we’ll unpack this more in a moment—the love we are called to display is undeserved and selfless love that reflects God's undeserved and selfless love. If God’s love toward us doesn’t depend on what we can do for him, then our love for one another shouldn’t rely on what others can do for us.

The second thing I want to draw our attention to is the parallel between being “born of God” and “knowing God.” John says, “Whoever loves has been born of God and knows God.”

So, how do we know we’ve been born of God? How do we know we know God? Our ability to love is the key indicator of our relationship with God.

We’ve discussed this a few times while studying this epistle, but let’s ensure we know what it means to be “born of God.” This phrase highlights a miraculous encounter that takes place within the hearts of those who believe in Jesus. When you give your heart and life to Jesus, something miraculous occurs within you. You experience a new birth. You become a new creation; your heart of stone is replaced with a heart of flesh, and you are no longer a child of Satan, but you are a child of God.

In talking with Nicodemus, Jesus says, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God…. Unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God… As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”

So, those who believe in Jesus are born again to eternal life. They can see the kingdom of God. God’s seed abides in them, meaning the Holy Spirit now resides in their hearts, and they have been brought to life in Him. The eyes of their hearts have been opened to ways of God’s kingdom, and they can walk in obedience to their King, Jesus, in ways they could not before.

So, do not miss this! John is saying that Christian love is a Holy Spirit-driven activity. Your willingness to love is the fruit of the Holy Spirit’s presence in your life. No one born of God withholds love from another.

But John parallels the reality of being born of God with knowing God. You cannot have one without the other. Those who are born of God are those who know God, and those who know God are those who have been born of God.

We talked about this a few weeks ago, but to “know God” has a relational and intellectual aspect to it. It’s a term that highlights obtaining knowledge (I know that 2+2=4). So, I know that Jesus died for my sins. I know that Jesus rose from the dead. I know that my sins can be forgiven through Jesus. However, it can also be used within a relational context. As a husband knows his wife in a way that no one else in this world knows her, we can intimately know God. So, to know Jesus is to intellectually know about Jesus and relationally know Jesus. Knowing Jesus means understanding who he is and what he came to do for you on the cross. But it is also to embrace him as your Lord and Savior. It’s knowledge that seeps from the mind into the heart; it’s knowledge that impacts your affections and desires. Knowing Jesus means I understand what He did on the cross for me, and I give my life to Him.

John is, therefore, saying that Christian love is fruit of a relationship with Jesus. The deeper we grow in our understanding of God, the more loving we should become. The longer we walk with Jesus, the more we should walk like Jesus. Gospel doctrine leads to gospel practice. A relationship with a loving God should shape us into loving people.

The fruit of the Holy Spirit’s presence in your life is found in your willingness to love. The deeper we grow in our understanding of God, the more loving we should become.

This reminds me of Jesus’ conversation with the lawyer who sought to put Jesus to the test by asking, “Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

Jesus responds with his own question, “What is written in the law?”

The lawyer responds, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and soul and will all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.”

Jesus says, “Bingo! Do this, and you will live.”

But then the lawyer responds, “Well, who is my neighbor?”

Jesus responds with a story.

He says a man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, was stripped of his clothes, beaten, and left half dead. Then a priest walks by and passes by on the other side. Then a Levite walks by and passes by on the other side. Then a Samaritan walks by and has compassion. He went to him, treated his wounds, took him to an inn, and cared for him. Then the next day, he leaves money with the innkeeper and says, “Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.”

Jesus asked the lawyer, “Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?”

The lawyer said, “The one who showed him mercy.”

And Jesus said, “You go, and do likewise.”

So, to love one another is to have a heart full of compassion. To love one another is to show others mercy. Those who know God know love. They know the extreme measure He has gone to demonstrate His love to us and are willing to walk out that type of love to others.

THE CROSS, THE GREATEST DISPLAY OF LOVE

John says, “[9] In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. [10] In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.”

How do we know God is loving? We know he’s loving because of God's extreme measure he’s taken to make things right for us. The cross is the defining point of God’s love. It shows us just how much God loves us. There is no greater display of love than the act of willingly laying your life down for those you love.

Notice what John is saying here. The eternal God, who is love, manifested (exposed, made visible) his love to us by sending his Son to the cross for us. God sent His Son to the cross so that we might go free; He sent His Son to die so that we might live through him! He sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins!

The New Testament uses the term propitiation only within the context of the cross. It’s a term of sacrifice, a term of offering, a term of atonement. It’s always used within the context of atoning for sins. It’s the same term used in chapter 2, when John says, “He (Jesus) is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.” In Romans 3:25, Paul uses a similar term: "whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins.” Similarly, the author of Hebrews says, “Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation (hilaskomai) for the sins of the people.”

So, making Jesus a propitiation for our sins was an act of love. It was God’s loving act of sending his Son to absorb his just wrath toward the sin that you rightfully deserved. The cross is where God’s mercy, justice, love, and wrath all collide. Jesus’ death completely satisfied God's wrath. The wrath that should have been poured out on you was poured out on Jesus. Jesus lovingly came to die in your place.

When we question whether or not we’re loved in this life, we look no further than the cross. The atoning work of Christ on the cross is far greater than you could ever imagine. Jesus Christ is the propitiation of our sins, which is the declaration of God’s love for you and me.

“[11] Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. [12] No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.” The economics of God’s kingdom are where the vertical impacts the horizontal. God’s love for you should impact how you love others. The love we have received in Christ enables and empowers us to love. Recipients of God’s love become extenders of God’s love. God abides in us and we in him, leading us to live out Christ-like love. It’s the fruit of the Holy Spirit in our lives. So, although we’ve never seen God, we can see his love displayed through the love we show one another.

The word perfected here means to bring something to completion or maturity. So, in the same way that muscles grow through use, our love is matured when lived out. We don’t become stronger by thinking about the gym; we grow stronger through the activities done at the gym. In the same way, God’s love is refined and strengthened through the action of love.

So, do you want to become more loving? Pray that God will give you more opportunities to work out the muscle of Christian love. Do we want to become a more loving church? Pray that God will give us more opportunities to work out the muscle of Christian love.

When we live out the gospel, the gospel is displayed. When we walk in Christ-like love, God’s love is displayed. Walking in love is a tangible way to let others see God in this life. May we represent him well!

1 John 4:1-6

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

1. Why is the doctrine of the humanity and deity of Jesus so essential?

2. Why do you think it's so important to "test the spirits" in today's world? What are some modern examples of spiritual messages that might sound good but are actually misleading?

3. What practical steps can you take to start testing every spiritual message more faithfully?

4. Why is it essential to stay rooted in Scripture as we test spirits?

SERMON MANUSCRIPT:
Let’s dive in.

“[1] Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world. [2] By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, [3] and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already. [4] Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. [5] They are from the world; therefore they speak from the world, and the world listens to them. [6] We are from God. Whoever knows God listens to us; whoever is not from God does not listen to us. By this we know the Spirit of truth and the spirit of error.”

Before we get to the heart of John's message, we must first unpack this verse's potential awkwardness. In this first verse, we find a topic not often discussed in our day and age: spirits. John says, “Do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God.”

This might seem strange to many people. It might make us uncomfortable as if we’re starring in a ghost-hunting show on the SyFy channel.

So, what does it mean to test the spirits?

Given the full scope of this verse and passage, this exhortation is found within the context of a proclaimed message. “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world.”

So, John is alluding to something we all internally understand but rarely discuss. There is an aspect of life that we cannot see, a spiritual aspect of life. We are physical beings, but we are also spiritual beings. Therefore, John is saying that there is a spirit behind every message preached: either the Spirit of God or the spirit of this world, the Spirit of truth or the spirit of error, the Spirit of light or the spirit of darkness. There’s no middle ground between the two; there’s no third option.

Not all spirituality is good, and not all messages claimed to be from God are actually from God. Therefore, we must not accept every message at face value and must be careful not to believe everything we hear. Just because someone says God told them something doesn’t mean it’s really from God—so we should always check if it matches what the Bible says. We must test the spirits to see whether they are from God. We must ask ourselves, “Is this message from the Holy Spirit, or is it from a deceptive spirit?”

In just a moment, we will examine the testing metric given in Scripture to determine whether or not a message is filled with the Holy Spirit. But before we do, I want to draw our attention to the word “many.” We must test the spirits to see whether they are from God because many false prophets have gone out into the world with a spirit of deception. There are a lot of teachers who set out to deceive God’s people. False prophets aren’t an anomaly; there are not a few sprinkled here and there. They are more common than we realize; they are everywhere.

In Matthew 24, Jesus speaks about false prophets: “Many false prophets will arise and lead many astray.” He describes them as those “who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves (Matt. 7:15).” Paul uses similar language, describing them as “fierce wolves” who will “come in among you, not sparing the flock.” He goes on to say that “from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted things, to draw away the disciples after them (Acts 20:29).” Similarly, Peter tells us that false prophets “arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction (2 Pt. 2:1).” Likewise, Jude says, “For certain people have crept in unnoticed who long ago were designated for this condemnation, ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into sensuality and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.”

So, we see the terrifying reality that not only are there many false prophets but that false prophets seek to (at times) operate within the church. In the same way that fruit flies seek to live within the comfort of your home, false prophets seek to live within the church. Fierce wolves come in among us in sheep’s clothing. From among us will arise men speaking twisted things. They have crept in unnoticed and will secretly bring in destructive heresies.

This week, I was discussing specific theological issues within the church with someone. He argued that the church has always been divided over these controversial topics throughout its history. Therefore, there’s no way to honestly know what is or isn’t true because, historically, the church hasn’t agreed.

Perhaps, there has been confusion littered throughout church history because false teachers have continually crept into the church bringing destructive heresies? Maybe Jesus knew what he was talking about when he warned us that many false prophets will rise up and lead many astray? False prophets have been and will continue to try to influence the church throughout church history.

Falsehood will always lurk in the shadows of truth. Where truth resides, lies hide closely behind. Therefore, it’s ok to be skeptical. In fact, it’s wise not to believe everything you’ve been told. God tells us not to believe every spirit. Do not embrace everything you’ve heard. It’s dangerous to you and disobedient to God to unquestionably embrace everything you hear. So, test the spirit of those who bring to you a message from God. Ask yourself, “Is this message from the Holy Spirit or a deceptive spirit?”

But how? How do we know the spirit of the message we are hearing? What test should we use?

Well, the test John gives us is centered around Jesus— “By this you know the Spirit of God: every sprit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God.” Jesus is the litmus test for truth. How someone treats Jesus is how we know if they are from Jesus. The way we know if something is really true is by seeing what it says about Jesus.

In John 15, Jesus says that the Father will send the Spirit of truth to “bear witness about Jesus.” And in John 16, he says that when the Spirit comes, “he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you.”

So, the Spirit of God has come to (1) bear witness about Jesus, (2) guide us into the truth about Jesus, and (3) glorify Jesus. So, if the Holy Spirit has come to bear witness about Jesus, then the message of a Holy Spirit-filled preacher/teacher/prophet will be to bear witness about Jesus. If the Holy Spirit has come to guide us into the truth about Jesus, then the message of a Holy Spirit-filled preacher/teacher/prophet will be centered around what the Bible teaches about Jesus. If the Holy Spirit has come to glorify Jesus, then the message of a Holy Spirit-filled preacher/teacher/prophet will be centered around the glory of Jesus.

The litmus test of truth is centered around Jesus. “Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already.”

In our day and age, the humanity of Jesus isn’t much of a hot topic. Not many dispute the fact that Jesus was a historical figure. However, many dispute the fact that Jesus was divine. So, why does John feel the need to stake his flag on the ground of Jesus' humanity?

Well, it is believed that John is addressing a specific heresy that had begun to creep into the church during this time. A group had crept in and started teaching that Jesus wasn’t a man. This is what we call Gnosticism. Gnostics held to the belief that the material world is corrupt and evil and that Jesus wasn’t a literal human. To them, there was tension between the physical and spiritual worlds. This led some to believe that Jesus only seemed to be human and that he only appeared to suffer and die on the cross. So, instead of coming actually to atone for our sins on the cross, they taught that Jesus came to wake people up to their true nature as divine beings trapped in material bodies. To the gnostic, atonement wasn’t the purpose of Jesus’ coming; spiritual enlightenment and liberation were.

So, John specifically addresses this false teaching that crept into the early church. This teaching was detrimental because it undermined the fact that Jesus is the faithful high priest who has been made like his brothers in every way (Heb. 2:17). It undermines the fact that he lived the perfect, obedient life that we could not live, facing real temptations like you and me. It undermines the fact that he humbled himself to the point of dying on the cross for our sins.

The humanity of Jesus is equally important as the divinity of Jesus; Jesus is fully God and fully man. The word became flesh and dwelt among us. He laughed like us, cried like us, bled like us, got tired like us, got tempted with sin like us. But, he, unlike us, never sinned. Therefore, anyone who undermines either the humanity or deity of Jesus does not possess the Spirit of God; they have the spirit of deception resting on them.

Jesus Christ is both fully God and fully man. He came to earth to live the perfect life we could not live, died the death we deserved, and rose again— defeating sin and death— to offer us eternal life. He is now seatedat the right hand of the Father in heaven and will one day return. Every person will stand before him to be judged according to how we have lived: those whose faith resides in Christ to everlasting life with him and those who rejected Christ to everlasting judgment apart from him.

Church, you will undoubtedly come in contact with men and women who wage war against the Jesus of the Bible. You will come in contact with people who undermine the humanity of Jesus, just like John did. You will come in contact with people who undermine the deity of Jesus. You will come in contact with people who downplay the cross. You will come in contact with people who overlook the resurrection. You will come in contact with people who wage war against the Kingship of Jesus. You will come in contact with people who scoff at the reality of judgment. You will come in contact with people who seek to erase the reality of hell. You will come in contact with people seeking to rob Jesus of the glory he deserves. So, may we test the spirits, carefully examining what they say about Jesus.

In verse 4, John says, “Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.”

Notice, first, the gentle language John uses in this section. In verse 1, he says, “beloved.” In verse 4, he says, “Little children.”

When dealing with doctrinal truths within the church, it would serve us well to follow John’s example here. Gentleness is often better than heavyhandedness.

Sometimes, when we encounter truth, we become so passionate about truth that we become mean-spirited. But, I would argue that those who have the Holy Spirit residing within their hearts handle the sword of truth with gentle care.

May we never put down the sword of truth. But, may we always be careful with how we handle it. There’s a right way and a wrong way to encourage someone away from doctrinal error. And I believe one of the best ways is to follow in the footsteps of John here. The more firm our theology grows, the more tender our voice should become. May we be clear on truth and gentle in posture.

While we’re here, let’s also examine this passage within its context. This warning on doctrinal error is wedged between two passages specifically discussing Christ-like love.

- “And this is his commandment, that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he has commanded us (3:23).”

- “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God (4:7).”

This should tell us that it is unloving to allow someone to believe something that is not true. To love someone like Christ is to show and encourage them toward truth. In a world that equates love with freedom to live and believe however you want, the Bible says that true love promotes truth.

John says, “Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.”

So, as we test the spirits of the messages we hear, it’s important to remember that we also have the Holy Spirit within us. There is one body, one Spirit, one hope, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all. The same Spirit that empowers one to preach truth resides within your heart to help you know truth. The Holy Spirit lives in our hearts and helps us know what is true and right. He helps us maneuver through teachings, protecting and empowering us to overcome falsehood.

When it comes to the spiritual world, we sometimes lose sight of this reality. God is greater than Satan. God is sovereign; Satan is not. God is omniscient; Satan is not. God is omnipresent; Satan is not. God is omnipotent; Satan is not.

As I was preparing this week, I did some cross-referencing. In doing so, I started reading 2 Peter 2:9, which says, “the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment, and especially those who indulge in the lust of defiling passion and despise authority.” I love that line, “The Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials.” God’s not ignorant, nor is he weak. He’s wise, and he’s willing. He uses trials to save and sanctify his people, making us more like him. Like an experienced and wise goldsmith, God knows just when to pull us out of the fire to make us more precious and more holy. Greater is he who is in you than he who is in the world. The Holy Spirit resides within our hearts and teaches us truth. So, as the spirit of the antichrist is out in the world, seeking to wage war against Christ, we do not have to fear.

John then says, “They are from the world; therefore they speak from the world, and the world listens. We are from God. Whoever knows God listens to us; whoever is not from God does not listen to us.” False teachers are popular teachers. The world loves their message because it’s the world’s message. Those whose hearts reject Christ love messages against Christ. Those who are walking in darkness love dark messages. Those who are living in falsehood love falsehood. The world listens to the world’s message.

If popularity is our goal, it would be better for us to forsake Christ. But, if faithfulness to Christ is our goal, then we must never abandon him. If the glory of Christ is what we live and breathe for, then we cling tightly to him, no matter what it costs in this life!

John says in verse 6, “We are from God. Whoever knows God listens to us; whoever is not from God does not listen to us.”

Who is the “we” and “us” here?

John is making a distinction between his readers and himself here. The “we” and “us” in verse 6 are clearly separate from the “you” in verse 4 and the “they” in verse 5. So, I join the majority in believing John is referring to himself and the other apostles, those who were eyewitnesses of Jesus and divinely appointed messengers of Jesus.

I do not believe I am a part of this “we, ”nor do I believe that any other pastor, prophet, or influencer is a part of this “we.” The “us” in verse 6 is an exclusive VIP club we are not invited to join. I believe John exclusively refers to the [A]postles of Christ, the divinely appointed messengers of Christ. Therefore, a simpler way to read this verse in our day and age would be: “[The Bible] is from God. Whoever knows God listens to [the Bible]; whoever is not from God does not listen to [the Bible.]”

We have been given the Holy Spirit-inspired word of God— breathed by God, penned by men— and it is profitable for “teaching, reproof, correction, and training… that we may be complete, equipped for every good work.” So, if we want to discern the difference between the Spirit of truth and the spirit of error, we must be students of God’s word.

The book that is in your lap today is from God. The Bible is the final authority. The best way to know what is true or false is to test it according to God’s word. Those who know God listen to his word. Those who do not know God do not listen to his word. We have not received the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God.

1 John 3:11-24

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

1. Why do you think John emphasizes what love is not (using Cain as an example) before showing what love is through Christ?

2. John says that “everyone who hates his brother is a murderer.” How does this statement reshape how we view our internal thoughts and feelings toward others?

3. John says that “everyone who hates his brother is a murderer.” How does this statement reshape how we view our internal thoughts and feelings toward others?

4. John writes, “Let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.” What’s the difference between talking about love and showing love?

5. How can we as a church community hold one another accountable to love not just with emotions or intentions, but with real, sacrificial action?

SERMON MANUSCRIPT:

Good Morning. My name is Brady King and I am one of the pastors here at Harbor Community Church. If you have been coming for any amount of time you will know that I am not typically the one up here teaching most Sundays. Ryan is usually up here and he is our only full time vocational pastor. Wayne Cunningham and I serve as the other lay pastors.

Now today we are jumping back into our study of the book of 1^st John. We took the last 2 weeks off to focus on the easter story as we celebrated the death and resurrection of Jesus. So I think we may need a little refresher of where we left off.

Today we will be looking at 1 John 3:11-24. So as you are flipping in your bibles to 1^st John I want to give a quick recap from the passages leading up to where we are today.

One of the major themes of this letter is how John uses striking contrasts to emphasize his points.

1 John 1

In the first chapter we saw a major theme contrasting light and darkness. Don’t walk in the dark, Do walk in the light. We were reminded that we all once walked in the darkness, but 1 John 1:9 tells us that “if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” So the challenge was clear, if we want to be cleansed and healed from our sin, we must walk in the light. And Ryan encouraged each of us to live in the light.

1 John 2

Chapter 2 continues this same theme and takes it a step further to talk about abiding with Christ Jesus. The contrast is that you can abide in the things of the world – the desires of the flesh, the desires of the eyes, and the pride of life – or we can abide with God the Father. And John really starts to draw the dividing line in the sand. He makes clear that the distinction that really matters is what you do with Jesus. He goes so far as to say that anyone who denies that Jesus is the Christ is a liar and an antichrist. And the call is clear that we are to abide with Jesus. Jesus is our advocate. He is the propitiation for our sins, the one who purchased our salvation. So our response to Jesus is to obey his commandments, because we have been set free from sin by his sacrifice on the cross.

1 John 3:1-10

In the beginning of 1^st John chapter 3, we looked at the contrast between walking in lawlessness (sin) and walking in righteousness. And we saw the dividing line between the two. Those who continue on in sin are of the devil. But those who have been born again through Jesus will will be walking in righteousness. And verse 10 really sets the stage for our passage today. It says,

“By this it is evident who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother.”

And so this is where we are going today. We are going to dive into what it does and doesn’t look like to love one another.

Here is an outline for what we are going to see.

1. We are called to love one another (vs. 11)

2. What Love is NOT (vs. 12-15)

3. What Love IS (vs. 16-18)

4. We are called to examine ourselves to see if we really do abide with Christ in Love. (vs. 19-24)

1 John 3:11-15

Read with me starting in 1 John 3:11

11 For this is the message that you have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another. 12 We should not be like Cain, who was of the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own deeds were evil and his brother's righteous. 13 Do not be surprised, brothers, that the world hates you. 14 We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers. Whoever does not love abides in death. 15 Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.

1. This is the call to love one another (vs. 11)

Vs 11 sets the stage with a reminder of the command of Jesus and what had been taught by all the disciples. This is 1 of 6 times that John will remind his readers of the command to “love one another.” So if he says it that many times, it must be important. So we need to pay attention. So I think the most natural starting point is to ask the question, what does it mean to “love one another?”

1. This is what Love is NOT (vs. 12-15)

I think John starts answering that question in verses 12-15 by first explaining what loving one another IS NOT.

He first does this by pointing us back to the Old Testament story from Genesis 4 of Cain and Abel. Cain is the first born son to Adam and Eve and Abel is his younger brother. So these are literally the first children born in history.

So Cain was a farmer – grew food in the field.

Abel was a rancher – raised sheep.

1 Now Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bore Cain, saying, “I have gotten a man with the help of the Lord.” 2 And again, she bore his brother Abel. Now Abel was a keeper of sheep, and Cain a worker of the ground. 3 In the course of time Cain brought to the Lord an offering of the fruit of the ground, 4 and Abel also brought of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat portions. And the Lord had regard for Abel and his offering, 5 but for Cain and his offering he had no regard. So Cain was very angry, and his face fell. 6 The Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry, and why has your face fallen? 7 If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is contrary to you, but you must rule over it.”

You can see it here after verse 7. Cain has already started to give into sin. He hasn’t fully given over to it yet, but God searches and knows the heart. Let’s take a minute here to point out that, at this very moment, God gave Cain an off ramp. He gave him a clear warning, “sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is contrary to you, but you must rule over it.”

Illustration : Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade “he chose…poorly”

Has everyone seen the old Indiana Jones movies? Particularly Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade?

At the end of the movie remember how they made it to the temple where the holy grail is kept but the can’t figure out how to get through to the actual room with the grail. You see the Nazi leader (Walter Donovan) selfishly seeking power and glory for himself as he sends in others to die trying to retrieve the grail for him. He even goes so far as to shoot Indy’s dad to force Indy to figure out a way through.

Then, after Indiana Jones finds a way through and gets to the room containing the Holy Grail, they are faced with a choice. Donovan, the Nazi, has a choice. Choose wisely and live. Or choose poorly and die.

But we see him pick a beautiful golden cup, covered in jewels. And he drinks from it, expecting to find eternal life and glory. But… in what used to be my Dad’s favorite line, the Old knight tells us…“He Chose… Poorly.”

Cain faced the same kind of dilemma. Selflessly offer a sacrifice to God in Faith. Or, selfishly give in to sin and go down the road that would lead to murdering his brother.

God offered Cain a way out when he was running into sin.

In this moment, Cain had a choice.

• Continue chasing after sin, or stop, and look to God for the strength to overcome sin.

• Follow God, or rebel against God.

• Walk in love, or walk in anger.

• Trust God, or trust his own desires.

And unfortunately, Cain Chose… “POORLY.”

8 Cain spoke to Abel his brother. And when they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother Abel and killed him. 9 Then the Lord said to Cain, “Where is Abel your brother?” He said, “I do not know; am I my brother's keeper?” 10 And the Lord said, “What have you done? The voice of your brother's blood is crying to me from the ground. 11 And now you are cursed from the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother's blood from your hand.

This is the picture that John is warning us against in 1 John 3 verses 12-15.

But you may be sitting there thinking, “I would never kill anyone so I’m glad I’m safe there.” But look again at what verse 15 says,

15 Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.

Uh oh, that changes the game doesn’t it? So we must not read these verses and start to feel superior to Cain because “we would never do that.” The standard of God is not, “don’t physically murder your brother.” The standard of God is to love our brother.

Jesus made a similar comparison in the sermon on the mount.

²¹ “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.’ ²² But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire.   

Jesus ups the ante and John reiterates the point here in 1 John. God is primarily concerned with our heart’s desires. Unrighteous anger and murder are both still sin. And God is still holy, so he takes both seriously.

So let these verses remind us that we are called not to hate or harbor anger towards our brothers and sisters. Rather, we are called to love one another.

Question: So what does it mean to love one another?

Verses 11-15 showed us the negative. They tell us what loving one another DOES NOT mean. Don’t be like Cain.

Now verses 16-18 show us the positive. They show us what loving one another DOES mean. And it is beautiful.

16 By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. 17 But if anyone has the world's goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God's love abide in him? 18 Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.

1. This is what Love IS. (vs. 16-18)

Verse 16 starts by telling us what love is. I think that in today’s world we have a lot of different voices telling us about love. One of the most common phrases you hear amongst Christians is that “God is Love.” We will be in chapter 4 in a couple weeks where John literally tells us that “God is Love.”

That is absolutely true, God is Love. But what does that mean exactly? How do we know what Love really is?

Verse 16 gives us the answer.

16 By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers

***Ultimately, above all else, Love is what Jesus did for us on the cross.***

• Jesus is the embodiment of Love. God is Love because God himself laid down his life for us.

• When we had no way to be reconciled to God because of the sin that condemns us, God himself became the way of reconciliation.

Contrast verses 16-18 that tell us what Love IS, with what we read in verses 12-15 telling us what Love IS NOT.

• Love is NOT envious (vs 12). Love IS sacrificial (vs 16).

• Love does not take life (vs 12). Love surrenders life, and gives life to others (vs 16).

• Love is not selfish. Love is SelfLESS.

• Love does not take from others. Love gives generously to others.

• Love is not “me” centered. Love is “others” centered.

• Love does not breed death (vs 15). Love brings life.

By going to the cross on our behalf, Jesus gave us the most tangible picture of what love is. Jesus, being God in the flesh, left heaven, was born into our broken world, yet never sinned. Then, when the time was right, Jesus willingly walked a path of deep sorrow and unbelievable suffering, to the point that he was betrayed, beaten, mocked, ridiculed, and tortured. All before being murdered in one of the most torturous ways possible.

And the crazy part about it all is this….. he knew everything that was coming, and he did it anyway… for one main reason… So that you and I, who were dead in our sins, could be made alive. He went to the cross so that we could have Hope. He suffered and bled, so that each of us can live with peace and joy in every circumstance, knowing that the full price has been paid for our sins against a holy God.

That, my friends, is what love is. And that is the kind of love that Jesus now calls us to!

Illustration: Rooster Hawkeye

As many of you know I have several farm animals. And sometimes the farm can teach us some profound lessons about God and his design. A year or two back we had about 6 chickens and 1 rooster to protect them from hawks. When we got him, his previous owners told us that he had once killed a hawk protecting his hens. So naturally we named him Hawkeye. One day I was travelling home from a work trip in Mississippi and Emily called me in a panic because she pulled up to the house and 2 dogs were inside our chicken fence and she couldn’t see the chickens. There were feathers everywhere. She knew for sure they had all been killed. She jumped out of the car and ran out to chase the dogs off. Meanwhile the phone was still connected to her car so I could just hear a bunch of hollering off in the distance. I didn’t know if all the chickens were dead, or if the dogs were gone, or if the dogs had eaten Emily or what. Finally Emily came back on the phone and told me the dogs were gone and after some searching she found all of the chickens. They were all alive. Our rooster Hawkeye had them protected underneath the coop.

So I finally made it home an hour or so later and we assessed the damage. 2 hens were missing some tail feathers but that was mostly it. But Hawkeye was in rough shape. He had taken the full brunt of the 2 dogs. Unfortunately, later that night he ended up passing from his injuries. But the lesson Hawkeye taught me was humbling. He was placed on this earth with an innate desire to protect his hens. And he did that with everything he had until his very last breath. He quite literally gave his life to ensure that his ladies were safe and secure.

That in and of itself is heroic. the story even gets a little better. One of our hens had just started sitting on some eggs to try to hatch them about a week earlier. She ended up hatching out 5 chicks a few weeks later. So not only did he fight off 2 dogs to save his adult hens, but Hawkeye literally gave his life so that these 5 chicks could be born and have life. Now today Hawkeye Jr. protects the same hens.

This is such a picture of the gospel as it mirrors the sacrifice Jesus made for us. He showed his live for us by laying down his life, so that we could have eternal life. This is the same kind of love that Jesus is talking about when he says, “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.   

In another sense, the act of becoming a Christian requires this same kind of self sacrifice. The first step to becoming a Christian is to repent of your sins and crucify your old self. Obviously, I mean this in a spiritual sense, and not in a physical sense. But the whole point of being a Christian is that you are saying, “my old self is dead, I am now a new creation in Christ.” This is the essence of the gospel.

Galatians 2:20 says,

“20 I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”

To become a Christian we are called to die to our old self, and be born again as a new creation.

• We die to sin, and live in faith.

• We put to death our old, worldly desires of the flesh, and walk in new life, following the commandments of God.

Thankfully, God knows we can’t do this on our own, that’s why Jesus had to come and show us the way. That’s why Jesus came to die,… so that we might live. And he serves as the perfect example of what we now strive to live for.

Now I think that verses 17-18 give is very practical direction as to how this love will manifest itself in our daily lives.

17 But if anyone has the world's goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God's love abide in him? 18 Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.

I will point out that word “brother” in verse 17 is the same word used in verses 14 and 16. It

Greek = ἀδελφὸν = Adelphon – Literally means "from the same womb."

John’s command in these verses is to care for the needs of our brothers and sisters in our church family. He does this with some very strong language. “if anyone has the world's goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God's love abide in him?”

John is making the case that if you see your brothers and sisters in need and your response is, “oh well” then you need to do some serious reflection on whether or not you truly are a follower of Jesus

The idea of seeing your family in need and doing nothing to help is incompatible with Christianity. In John’s mind, that idea does not compute.

To bring this into our context, what this means is that there should be no needy member of Harbor Community church. There should never be a person in our church family who lacks for any need. The picture in Acts 2 is that when there were needs in the church, those who had extra started selling what they had to provide for their brothers and sisters. Would you be willing to do that?

Question: Here are some questions to ponder.

• Would you sell off some of your comforts to pay for the needs of a brother or sister?

• Would you trade in your nice new car and drive an older one so that you could buy a struggling brother or sister a reliable vehicle to get to work?

• Would you trade your expensive vacation to a more affordable option so that you could help pay a family’s rent when the main breadwinner lost his job?

• Would you open your guest bedroom to let a family stay with you for a few months while they are looking for a place?

These are hard questions, but this is the mindset that John says all Christians should have towards our brothers and sisters. He goes so far as to say that if you wouldn’t do this, maybe you need to ask, “does God’s love really abide in me?”

John then finishes this thought in verse 18 by reminding us that our love leads to action. We can say that we love something all day long, but our actions show were our love truly lies.

Illustration : Lacrosse

Since I was in high school I have said that I would love to play lacrosse. It looks awesome on TV and it seems like a skillset that I would be good at. So I have talked many times about how I would love to play lacrosse. But you know what, I have never even come close to playing lacrosse. The closest I have ever been is literally picking up a lacrosse stick in academy and tossing a ball back and forth with a friend for about 2 minutes.

My words say one thing, but my actions reveal the truth. I say I would love to play lacrosse, but my actions show that I really don’t have any desire to play lacrosse.

18 Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.

Now lets look at the last section of our passage from 1^st John. Starting in verse 19.

19 By this we shall know that we are of the truth and reassure our heart before him; 20 for whenever our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and he knows everything. 21 Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence before God; 22 and whatever we ask we receive from him, because we keep his commandments and do what pleases him. 23 And this is his commandment, that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he has commanded us. 24 Whoever keeps his commandments abides in God, and God in him. And by this we know that he abides in us, by the Spirit whom he has given us.

1. This is the call to examine ourselves to see if we really do abide with Christ in Love.  (vs. 19-24)

I think the main question being asked in these verses is this, “How do we know that we abide in Christ?” Or put another way, “How do we know that we really are Christians?”

• We follow and cherish God’s commandments. (vs. 22 & 24)

• We believe in Jesus. (vs. 23)

• We love one another, in the same sacrificial way that Jesus loves us. (vs. 23)

• The Holy Spirit gives us peace and assurance. (vs. 24)

Now I am pretty confident that the people here in our church are spread all across the spectrum today. Some of you hear these words and think, “man, praise God, I have been loving my brothers and sisters joyfully, I feel secure with God my Father.”

And others here today may be listening and thinking, “man, I feel like I can relate more to Cain than Jesus. My life doesn’t show much evidence at all of loving my brothers and sisters.”

The beauty of the gospel is that our salvation is not dependent on our actions. Whether we have been killing it or killing Abel, we are reminded that God is not surprised. He already knows.

20 for whenever our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and he knows everything.

And the beauty of the gospel is that God knew just how sinful we are, and yet he still sent his son Jesus to die for us and pull us up out of the pit of darkness. Not by our strength, but by his strength.

These verses today are not intended to stack a burden on your back that you need to work harder to love your brothers and sisters. No! These verses today should serve as a reminder that Jesus Christ loved us so much that he knew how bad we are, and he came and sacrificed himself so that we could experience a love we don’t deserve.

23 And this is his commandment, that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he has commanded us.

God’s commandment for us today is to believe in the name of his son Jesus Christ. Christ did the work to save us. It’s by his righteousness that we are made righteous. It’s by his blood that we are washed clean. It’s by his perfect obedience that we are given the strength to obey God’s command to love one another. And when we rest in the beauty of that gospel message, the Christlike love that we have received will pour out all over our brothers and sisters.

24 Whoever keeps his commandments abides in God, and God in him. And by this we know that he abides in us, by the Spirit whom he has given us

This passage ends with a beautiful reminder. God didn’t save us and then throw us to the wolves to figure it out on our own.

Rather, God saved us, then he came to dwell within us. The Spirit of God was sent to live inside of us and help us and guide us as we seek to love one another like Jesus.

Conclusion

So wherever you are today, rest in the work of Jesus on your behalf. We love because he first loved us. If you are struggling today and have questions or want to talk further about this, come find me after the service or grab the person you came with and we would love to continue to share more about how Jesus has loved us and given us life.

Easter Sunday (John 2)

Palm Sunday (John 12:12-19)

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1. Are there expectations you’ve placed on Jesus that he hasn’t fulfilled—like the crowd expecting a warrior king but receiving a humble servant? How do those unmet expectations affect your trust or obedience? What does it look like to follow the real Jesus, not just the one you hoped for?

2. How does seeing Jesus as the fulfillment of God’s long-planned promises (like in Zechariah 9) grow your trust in Scripture and in God’s plan for your life?

3. What would it look like for you to respond to Jesus not just with admiration but with allegiance? Is there a part of your life—habits, relationships, goals—where Jesus is still more of a guest than King?

SERMON MANUSCRIPT

Several years ago, I went to New York, and while I was walking out of a store with my father, I remember seeing this crowd of people rushing by us. Cameras were flashing. People were shouting. It was a big ordeal.

I remember my dad and I thinking, “Who in the world are they chasing?”

It turns out it was Vanessa Hudgens from High School Musical.

This particular moment for me in New York teaches us an essential truth for our passage today: we flock to people that we view as important. Some of us will drop what we’re doing to witness Vanessa Hudgens walk down the street of New York. Others will not. Some of us will drop what we’re doing in order to see Lebron James walk by (because he’s the GOAT). Others will not. Some of us will drop what we’re doing to get a picture with the President of the United States. Others will not.

But here’s the deal: only one person in the history of the world is worthy of a crowd's attention, and his name is Jesus. In today’s passage, we will see the one worthy of a crowd's attention come humbly riding into Jerusalem one last time before he died. And as the spotlight is on him, he humbly walks to the cross in perfect obedience to the Father’s will.

CONTEXT

Let’s try to set the context of this passage.

Jesus had just raised Lazarus from the dead. Following this, Jesus and his disciples, Martha, Mary, and Lazarus, had a celebratory dinner in Bethany. During this dinner, we saw Mary take expensive ointments and wash Jesus’ feet with her hair. This action of Mary was such an incredible act of worship, which communicates to us the truth that “Jesus is worthy of complete surrender— courageous, unashamed, open-handed surrender.”

Following this sweet moment of worship, we see Jesus make plans to enter Jerusalem for the last time before his death. His time has come. His death is on the horizon, and he knows it. And this last and final entrance into Jerusalem is a big deal. Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem was widely celebrated because the crowds had heard about Lazarus being raised from the dead, and they believed that he was the long-anticipated king who would lead them to victory over their enemies. They thought that he was the king that would bring peace to his people.

But, although Jesus is the king of Israel, he was not the type of king they expected. The crowd was expecting a warrior and they got a servant. They were expecting a sword and they got a cross. They were expecting a gold crown and they got a crown of thorns.

Let’s dive in.

“12 The next day the large crowd that had come to the feast heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem. 13 So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, crying out, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!” 14 And Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, just as it is written,

15 “Fear not, daughter of Zion;

behold, your king is coming,

sitting on a donkey's colt!”

16 His disciples did not understand these things at first, but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things had been written about him and had been done to him. 17 The crowd that had been with him when he called Lazarus out of the tomb and raised him from the dead continued to bear witness. 18 The reason why the crowd went to meet him was that they heard he had done this sign. 19 So the Pharisees said to one another, “You see that you are gaining nothing. Look, the world has gone after him.”

A LARGE CROWD

In verse 12, we see a feast taking place. “12 The next day the large crowd that had come to the feast heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem.”

John 11:55 and John 12:1 tells us that Passover is at hand. John 11:55, “Now the Passover of the Jews was at hand, and many went up from the country to Jerusalem before the Passover to purify themselves.” John 12:1, “Six days before the Passover, Jesus therefore came to Bethany, where Lazarus was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead…”

So, the Passover Feast is at hand. Passover is one of the three pilgrimage feasts (Passover, Pentecost, and Feast of Booths), meaning Jews must journey to Jerusalem to celebrate it. Passover was a time when God’s people journeyed back to Jerusalem to both celebrate and reflect on how God saved his people from slavery in Egypt through the bloodshed of a spotless lamb.

Are we familiar with this story? God’s people are in slavery in Egypt. God has heard their cries and is preparing to lead them out of slavery, into the promised land. As God’s preparing to lead his people out of slavery, he announces the last plague that will take place in Egypt. He will strike down the firstborn child of every household in the land. In order to be spared from this judgment, every family was commanded to slaughter a lamb without blemish and spread the blood of the lamb on the doorpost, and in doing so, the LORD would passover their household and spare them. Exodus 12:13 says that “the blood shall be a sign for you…I will see the blood, I will pass over you, and no plague will befall you.” So, by the blood of a spotless lamb, God’s people were spared from his judgment.

The passover feast was therefore a time of remembrance, reflection, and celebration of God’s faithfulness on behalf of his people. Jews from far and wide would come to Jerusalem to celebrate this feast, and during this feast each year, the Israelites would sacrifice a lamb in order to celebrate and remember God’s faithfulness.

This tells us that Jews from all over are now in Jerusalem celebrating this feast, which means that when John says “a large crowd” was present, he means a LARGE CROWD was present!

A Jewish historian named Josephus, for example, estimated roughly 2.7 million people were in attendanceduring one Passover around 66-70AD. Now, that number could be inflated, but it could not be. We simply have no way of definitely proving that number. So, to be really, really safe, let's just say 1 million people were in attendance. That’s still A TON of people.

Let me give you a visual that might help you understand how large this crowd is. An estimated 236,016 people attended Fat Tuesday this year. To put the Passover crowd into perspective, let's multiply that crowd by 5, and you will be pretty close to our overly safe estimate of 1 million people in Jerusalem at this time. So, for every person present at Fat Tuesday, add another 10 people. And, just for fun, you would have to multiply our Fat Tuesday crowd by 11 to get Josephus’ estimation of 2.7 million people, which means that for every person present at Fat Tuesday, you would have to add another 11 people.

Put simply, this is a LARGE CROWD “that had come to the feast.”

LAZARUS IS ALIVE!?

Now, if you look down to verses 17 and 18, you will see that the people who saw Jesus raise Lazarus from the grave are continuing to bear witness about Jesus. Because of this testimony, a large crowd will meet him. Word has gotten out amongst this crowd that Jesus, who raised Lazarus from the dead, was coming to Jerusalem. Everyone wants to see the man who has power over death!

Now listen! This is far from the main point of this passage. But may the same be true of us, saints.

The Bible says that we were dead in our trespasses and sins, but by God’s grace and mercy, we have been made alive with Christ. So, like Lazarus, we once reeked of death. But now, we let off the aroma of Christ. May the testimony about how we have come to know Jesus lead others to Jesus.

SAVE US, KING!

Upon hearing this news about Jesus, the crowd takes action. Look at verse 13, “So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, crying out, ‘Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!’”

Now, when you compare John’s account of this story with the other gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke), you will notice that John is the only one who tells us what type of branches are being used here. He tells us that this crowd “took branches of palm trees and went to meet Jesus.”

So, why? What is the significance of them grabbing palm branches?

I think the type of branches they’re grabbing tells us who they believe Jesus is and what they’re trying to communicate about Jesus. Ever since 164 B.C., during the Maccabean Revolt, where the Syrian army was driven out of Jerusalem, and the temple was restored, palm branches had become a national sign of kingship and victory. Palm branches were the badge of a conquerer. The crowd has heard about the power of Jesus. Therefore, they assume that Jesus is the one who possesses the power to deliver them from Roman oppression, which leads them to welcome Jesus as king. And as they meet Jesus with palm branches in hand, they cry out, “Hosanna!” “Hosanna” means “save us now.” This is a cry of desperation! Then they exclaim, “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel.” This comes from Psalm 118:25-26, which says, “Save us, we pray, O LORD! O LORD, we pray, give us success! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD! We bless you from the house of the LORD.” These verses would have been recited and sung regularly during both the Feast of Tabernacles and Passover. The saying, “Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord,” would have been a common way of greeting anyone traveling into the temple during one of these feasts.

However, John recorded an important detail in their greeting here. The crowd adds, “Even the King of Israel!” They’re declaring Jesus as the long-anticipated King of Israel, who possesses the power to come and save them. In hearing of Jesus's works, the crowd thinks he’s the long-awaited Messiah who will set them free from Roman captivity. So, they’re ready to crown him as king.

THE HUMBLE KING

Now, following the recording of that proclamation, John (and every other gospel writer) makes a point to tell us what Jesus chooses to ride into Jerusalem on. As we see in verse 14, Jesus finds a young donkey, sits on it, and rides into the city.

Look at verses 14-15,

“14 And Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, just as it is written,

15 ‘Fear not, daughter of Zion;

behold, your king is coming,

sitting on a donkey's colt!'”

Unlike the other gospels, John spares quite a bit of detail here. For example, Matthew tells us that Jesus sent his disciples to retrieve the donkey for which he had made miraculous provisions. Luke tells us that Jesus stopped and wept before he entered the city. But John simply tells us about Jesus finding and sitting on the donkey and how that act fulfilled an OT prophecy found in Zechariah.

So, why doesn’t he spare the details about the donkey? Why is the donkey detail important?

Well, it’s important because it fulfills what was written. In Zechariah 9, God promised Israel a new king who would come riding on a donkey, and the donkey reveals to us the type of King he would be!

Let’s talk about a donkey for a moment.

Donkeys aren't necessarily anti-kingly. Throughout the Old Testament, there are multiple examples of kings possessing and riding on donkeys. So, the shock value of this moment isn't that donkeys are anti-kingly; the shock value is that donkeys are anti-warly (I know that I'm making up words here, but bear with me).

During this time, horses would have been a symbol of war and power (Isaiah 31:1-3; 1 Kings 4:26). Unlike donkeys, horses are big, fast, strong, and powerful. But Jesus didn’t come mounted on a horse; he came mounted on a donkey, just as it was written. This would be like the army trading in their Hummers for Prius'. No matter how good the gas mileage is, no sergeant will load up their platoon in a Prius and take them into battle. Similarly, one would expect a king coming to save his people to come mounted on a horse, not a donkey. Yet, this long-anticipated king would come in gentle lowliness, not boastful oppression. Jesus was not entering as an arrogant king who would rule over his people. He was entering as a humble king who would serve his people by laying his life down for them. He came not to be served but to serve.

AS IT IS WRITTEN.

Now, at the end of the story, we know that Jesus would usher in peace for his people through his death on the cross. But no one understood this at this point in time, not even his disciples.

In fact, before we look at verse 15, skip to verse 16. John says, “His disciples did not understand these things at first, but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things had been written about him and had been done to him.” So, Jesus’ disciples and the crowd do not truly understand what Jesus is doing here. But, the moment Jesus was raised from the grave, things clicked.

Can you imagine the excitement here when they understood Zechariah 9? That which was once foggy has now become clear. That which was once black and white is now seen in bright colors.

Before the foundations of this world, God had already planned to send His Son to the cross. The King of kings was always going to be the humble servant who came to humbly lay his life down on the cross. And we see this all throughout the Old Testament. As we now read the Old Testament, we can see clearly how, the King of kings and Lord of lords was always going to come as a humble servant. The one deserving of a gold crown would always come to wear a crown of thorns. In Genesis 3, God promised to send a seed from Eve who would crush Satan’s head. In Isaiah 53, “God promised to send one who would be pierced for our transgressions and crushed for our sins. The punishment that brought us peace was upon him. By his wounds we are healed.”

I had a conversation with a good friend of mine at the gym this week about the Old Testament. He was essentially asking, “If we’re under a new covenant, what’s the purpose of the Old Testament?” In other words, “Why do we need to read the Old Testament?” As we talked over the loud music, I gave him a brief overview of the Old Testament, which consists of various types of writings (narratives, wisdom, prophecies, etc.). These are still profitable for teaching and correcting today. But I also shared with him how the Old and New Testaments work hand in hand. The Old Testament gives us context for the New Testament. If you only read the New Testament, you would still read the Old Testament because the New Testament references the Old Testament. As you read through the New Testament, you will find over 300 direct quotes from the Old Testament and over 1,000 allusions and indirect references. So, as you read through the New Testament closely, you will find tremendous beauty in the Old Testament. The more you fall in love with Jesus, the more you will love the Scriptures that point to Jesus.

As you read the Old and New Testaments together, you will learn that God is so much bigger than you could ever imagine. Although we may not always be able to see it now, God orchestrates everything for our good and his glory. This is what took place with the disciples after Jesus’ death and resurrection. They began to see how every minute detail of Jesus’ life was orchestrated by God for our good and his glory. Jesus coming into Jerusalem on a donkey was a small detail of a great moment that God had spoken of long before it ever happened. It happened just as it was written.

Let’s turn over to Zechariah 9:9 for a moment.

“Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion!

Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem!

Behold, your king is coming to you;

righteous and having salvation is he,

humble and mounted on a donkey,

on a colt, the foal of a donkey.

I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim

and the war horse from Jerusalem;

and the battle bow shall be cut off,

and he shall speak peace to the nations;

his rule shall be from sea to sea,

and from the River to the ends of the earth.”

Due to the Babylonian captivity, Israel had no king. So, God is promising a king-less people that a king is coming, and this king is going to be righteous. He is going to bring salvation. He is going to be humble. He was going to usher in peace to both his people and the nations. His rule was going to stretch to the ends of the earth.

John— along with Matthew, Mark, and Luke— declare that the King prophesied about through the prophet Zechariah was Jesus. Jesus is the one to celebrate! Jesus is the righteous one. He never sinned. He is blameless. And he came to bring salvation. He is our only hope for saving— “Whoever believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.” Jesus is the one who came to bring peace through his death on the cross. He is our only hope for peace with God, and he is our only hope for peace with one another. The hostility present between us and God and us and one another was dealt with viciously on the cross. Jesus is the one seated at the Father's right hand right now, reigning and ruling over his people. He is the one who possesses the power over life and death, and he is the one who will rule from sea to sea to the ends of the earth. Yet, he is the humble, meek, and loving King who came to bring peace to the world through his death on the cross.

No one possessed more power than Jesus, as demonstrated by his ability to resurrect Lazarus from the dead. Yet, when all eyes were on him, he intentionally lowered himself by riding in on a donkey. Rather than reach for swagger, he goes for humility. Jesus’ entrance into Jerusalem doesn’t just stand in stark contrast to every other king. It stands in stark contrast to you and me. Rather than grab for power or swagger or fame, Jesus, the King of Kings, chose humble service. He decided to empty himself and become a servant. As he’s preparing to bring peace to the world through his death on the cross, he chooses to ride in on a donkey.

Jesus demonstrates to us the truth that the Kingdom of God is not a place where you can seek selfish gain. Instead, it is a place where we humbly serve one another, laying down our lives for the well-being of others.

If you are a Christian, your actions will be marked by humble service. We are called to be humble servants, just like our king, Jesus. We are to be strong and courageous and bold and brave, but we are also to be gentle, kind, and selfless servants. Whenever you walk into a room, your prayer and goal should always be to reflect the humility of Christ in your service and care for others. We should acknowledge our propensity toward self-centeredness and pray, “Lord, give me humility and help me serve those around me in a way that reflects you, Jesus.”

Whatever we do, our goal should be to reflect Christ's humility. If serving others never crosses our minds, then the gospel has not transformed our hearts. As Christians, we now get to imitate the service that Christ has displayed for us. You no longer get to consume yourself with questions surrounding how you can be served; you get to consume yourself with questions surrounding how you can serve.

So, as you engage the lost with the gospel, do so humbly. When someone combats your faith with hostility (and acts like another word for a donkey), it’s easy to want to declare war against that individual to win an argument. But, put to death your pride and ride the truth into that conversation on a donkey.

As you do life with one another in the church, do so humbly. Scripture constantly calls us to be patient with one another and to love one another, telling us that we will be wronged by others in the church. Therefore, may we be humble peace bearers within the church.

Serve your family humbly. As a husband, as a wife, as a father, as a mother, as a son, as a daughter, as a brother, as a sister, you are called to humbly and selflessly place the wants and desires of one another above your own.

As Christians, every aspect of our lives should reflect the peace and humility demonstrated by Jesus in this passage. If I were to interview everyone in your life (boss, family members, coworkers, friends, kids, etc.), would they say that the humble King, Jesus, has transformed your heart? May every aspect of our lives reflect the humble service Christ has displayed by laying his life down for us. The way of the Kingdom of God is one of imitating Christ.

1 John 3:4-10

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

1. How should the truth that Jesus came to “take away sins” and “destroy the works of the devil” change the way we fight sin?

2. How would you explain the difference between falling into sin and practicing sin?

3. What does it mean to “know” Jesus in both an intellectual and relational sense? Do you tend to lean more toward one than the other?

4. We want to be a people who are obedient to the Holy Spirit’s leading. How can we discern the voice of the Holy Spirit in our day to day lives?

5. How can we tell if someone (or ourselves) is being deceived about the seriousness of sin? What are some signs of deception vs. signs of genuine faith?

6. How can we encourage each other to fight sin and walk in righteousness without falling into legalism or shame?

REFLECTION QUESTIONS:

1. Are there any sins in your life that you have been practicing instead of fighting?

2. Do you view sin as “lawlessness”— as rebellion against God’s will— or as something more casual or minor?

3. In what ways do you find yourself justifying sin rather than repenting of it?

SERMON MANUSCRIPT:

“4 Everyone who makes a practice of sinning also practices lawlessness; sin is lawlessness. 5 You know that he appeared in order to take away sins, and in him there is no sin. 6 No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him. 7 Little children, let no one deceive you. Whoever practices righteousness is righteous, as he is righteous. 8 Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil. 9 No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God’s seed abides in him; and he cannot keep on sinning, because he has been born of God. 10 By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother.”

In verse 4, John continues the argument he’s been making by highlighting the nature of sin. He says, “Everyone who makes a practice of sinning also practices lawlessness; sin is lawlessness.”

The word “practice” is used six times in this pericope and five times in our upcoming verses. It means to do or make something. It’s a term that highlights a central activity of someone’s life. It’s a habitual activity that maintains one's life.

I’ve wrestled with articulating this term in light of our sport-ridden society. Here’s what I’ve come up with. No one accidentally shows up at a practice. To practice baseball is to intentionally show up at the baseball field with your glove and a bat. So, to practice sin is to give your life to sin. It’s the opposite of fighting against sin.

And John is saying that sin is lawlessness. If the law was God’s revealed will for his creation (his standard for how life should be for his people), then lawlessness is living without concern for God’s law. It’s living as if your ideas are better than God’s ideas. It’s you living as though your will is greater than God’s will. As John Piper so candidly puts it, “Lawlessness says, ‘God may demand it, but I don’t prefer it.’ Lawlessness says, ‘God may promise it, but I don’t want it.’ Lawlessness replaces God’s law with my contrary desires. I become a law to myself. Lawlessness is rebellion against the right of God to make laws and govern his creatures.” Sin is me replacing God’s law with my own desires. At the heart of all sin is a middle finger held up to God.

But John says that Jesus appeared “to take away sins.” In other words, he came to remove sins. This is one of two instances in this passage where John tells us the purpose of Jesus’ coming. Jesus came to “take away sins” (v.5)and to “destroy the works of the devil” (v.8).

We’re going to find that the works of the devil is sin. So, if Christ came to destroy the works of the devil, he came to destroy sin, and if he came to destroy sin, he came to destroy the works of the devil. They’re two sides of the same coin.

It’s easy to misconstrue the purpose of Jesus's coming into the world sometimes. But John tells us that Jesus came into the world to deal with sin. He didn’t come to free us from physical captors or provide us with financial wealth. He didn’t come to give us bodily health. He came to deal with our greatest problem, which is sin. Jesus came into the world to take away our sins by dying for our sins.

He came into the world to live the life we could not live. We see this at the end of verse 5– “in him, there is no sin.” Jesus was the spotless sacrifice for sin. He was tempted in every way we were, yet he remained without sin.

But Jesus didn’t simply defeat sin by resisting sin. He defeated sin by crushing it on the cross. The full wrath of God against sin was poured out on Jesus on the cross. The instrument God chose to use to take away sin was the cross.

1 Corinthians 15:56 says, “The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.” So, Jesus walked in perfect obedience to the law and took upon himself the condemnation the law demanded for sin, and in doing so, he destroyed sin’s power. Christ came to destroy Satan’s greatest weapon, sin, and in so doing, he destroyed Satan.

We stand in an already-not-yet place right now because sin is still present as we look around in this life and survey our hearts. So what do we do with this tension?

We do what John tells us to do: we look backward, forward, and inward. As we look backward to the cross, we are reminded that Jesus died to take away the penalty of sin— in Christ, we are justified because sin’s penalty has been taken away. As we look inward, we are reminded that Jesus died to take away the power of sin— as we abide in Christ, we are being made more and more like Jesus because sin has no power over us. As we look forward, we are reminded that he died to remove the presence of sin one day— so we confidently look ahead to the day when we will be glorified in Christ. As we look confidently ahead to our future glorification, we look back in awe at our justification at the cross, which empowers us to put sin to death today. All who have been justified by grace through faith are being sanctified by grace through faith and will one day be glorified by grace through faith.

John is saying that those whose faith resides in Jesus will begin to walk like Jesus by the power of Jesus. He’s linking the work of the cross to the lives of God’s people. Jesus came to take away sins, and in him is no sin. Therefore, to embrace Jesus is to forsake sin. To embrace the atoning work of the cross is to embrace the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit. Faith and repentance go hand in hand— “No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him.”

As I was tucking my daughter into bed last week, she asked me, “What does it mean to come to know Jesus?” I told her we would talk about that this Sunday, and she said, “Well, I’m going to pay attention then!”

The word "know" is interesting, and John often uses it in this letter. It’s a term that highlights obtaining knowledge (I know that 2+2=4). So, I know that Jesus died for my sins. I know that Jesus rose from the dead. I know that my sins can be forgiven through Jesus. However, it can also be used within a relational context. As a husband knows his wife in a way that no one else in this world knows her, we can intimately know God. So, to know Jesus is to intellectually know about Jesus and relationally know Jesus. Knowing Jesus means understanding who he is and what he came to do for you on the cross. But it is also to embrace him as your Lord and Savior. It’s knowledge that seeps from the mind into the heart; it’s knowledge that impacts your affections and desires. Knowing Jesus means I understand what He did on the cross for me and give my life to Him.

So, John says that if you truly understand the magnitude of God’s love extended to you in Christ (if you have seen and know him), you will not continue sinning. John’s not saying you're not a Christian if you ever sin again. He’s saying that if you are a Christian, your desires change, which leads to life transformation. The conviction of the Holy Spirit leads you away from the sin you once did. The Holy Spirit will never lead us toward sin. He will never lead you to do something the Bible expressly prohibits. If the eyes of your heart have been opened, if you’ve come to know Jesus, then you’ve begun a life of war against sin. To know Jesus is to forsake sin. Indifference toward sin reflects the life of one who doesn’t know Jesus. We may “fall into sin, but we no longer walk in sin… Sin will no longer be my habit… I no longer love sin; I hate sin. I no longer delight in sin; I despise sin (Akin).”

John then says, “Little children, let no one deceive you. Whoever practices righteousness is righteous, as he is righteous. Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning.”

John here gently corrects the church by saying that our actions reveal our identity, our practice reveals our allegiance. One of the most detrimental lies we could ever believe is that God doesn’t care about how we live in this life. You have been greatly deceived if you think you’re free to live however you want, that grace is an endorsement of sin.

If Jesus came to destroy sin, those who confess him as Lord cannot continue to walk in sin. You cannot belong to Jesus and the one Jesus came to destroy. Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. But “the reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil.”

You can go all the way back to the garden and find the devil tempting and deceiving. Since the beginning, he has hated God and loved lawlessness. Since the beginning, he has wanted to destroy God. But, in going back to the garden, we see God make a promise to Satan to destroy Satan. He promised to send a seed of Eve to crush him one day in the future— “He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.”

In taking away sins, Jesus has “destroyed the works of the devil.” The very instrument Satan thought was killing God was the very instrument that destroyed himself. In striking at Jesus’ heel, his head was crushed. Jesus destroyed the one who has the power of death (Heb. 2:14). Through faith in Jesus, we have been delivered from the bondage of the evil one. Satan has already been destroyed. Battles still take place, sure, but the war has already been won. Arrows are still shot, sure, but the war has already been won.

So, John says, “No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God’s seed abides in him; and he cannot keep on sinning, because he has been born of God.”

When you give your heart and life to Jesus, something miraculous occurs within you. You experience a new birth, and you are adopted into God’s family. You are a new creation; your heart of stone has been replaced with a heart of flesh, and you are no longer a child of Satan, but you are a child of God.

In John 3, we see Jesus privately conversing with a religious leader named Nicodemus. In this conversation, Jesus says, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” This leads Nicodemus to be confused. He doesn’t understand what Jesus is saying. Therefore, he asked, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” Jesus responds, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God… As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”

In the same way a child does not will himself to live, you cannot will yourself to live. Your identity in Christ is a byproduct of grace, a work of the Holy Spirit. God called you to himself. He breathed life into your dry bones. His seed abides in you, meaning the Holy Spirit now resides in your heart, and you have been brought to life in Him. You are a new creation, created in Christ Jesus for good works. And John is saying that the fruit of the Holy Spirit’s presence in your life is actively putting sin to death. No one born of God makes a practice of sinning.

John then says, “By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother.”

About a year ago, whenever we were studying the book of Ephesians, I had someone express frustration over something I said while preaching through Ephesians 2. The exact words they were frustrated with were, “Before we trusted in Jesus, we were following Satan.”

To this person, those words were triggering. They were harsh and insensitive.

Now, I will be the first to admit that I’m not perfect with my words, and I want you to know that I strive to be careful with them. I never want to misrepresent the Bible with my words or my tone, so I give careful thought to the words I use each week. So, please hear me: if my words or even my tone have misrepresented the Bible, please forgive me! But, with my whole heart, I do not believe this to be one of those instances.

Ephesians 2:1-3 says, “[1] And you were dead in the trespasses and sins [2] in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience—[3] among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.”

So, I think this individual's frustrations didn’t reside with my words; they reside with God’s words. The Bible says that Satan is the prince of the power of the air; he is the leader of this world. He drives the current of this world. And the master plan of Satan is to lure and entice us into carrying out the desires of our flesh. Put simply, Satan wants us to do what we want to do instead of what God wants us to do. He wants us to carry out our desires, not God's desires. And before we came to life in Christ, we were following him. We were, by nature, children of wrath.

John adds another layer to Paul’s teaching about man's depravity. Before we came to know Christ, when we were dead in our sins, children of wrath. So, Satan wasn’t simply our leader; he was our father. Before Christ intervened, we were children of the devil. There are a lot of last names in this world, but we all belong to one of two families: the family of God or the family of the Devil. We are either children of God or children of Satan, and our life reveals which family we belong to. And these two families begin to take on the character of their father. Children of God will begin to walk like God. Children of Satan will walk like Satan.

In summary, Christ came to take away sins and destroy the works of the devil. And all whose faith resides in Jesus have experienced a miraculous transformation, a new birth in Christ. And all who have been born of God have repented of their sins. Repentance and faith go hand in hand. So, a tangible way to know we have been born of God is our willingness to forsake sin.

“Whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother.” You cannot have righteousness without love, and love without righteousness. All who belong to Jesus will love like Jesus. All who love like Jesus will be patient with one another. All who love like Jesus will be kind to one another. All who love like Jesus will not envy their brother. All who love like Jesus will not boast. All who love like Jesus will not be arrogant. All who love like Jesus will not be rude. All who love like Jesus will not insist on their own way. All who love like Jesus will not be irritable with one another. All who love like Jesus will not rejoice at wrongdoing. All who love like Jesus will rejoice with truth.