SERMON GM14-014
SERIES: Christian Living in a World of Chaos &
Contradiction
SCRIPTURE: 1 John 1:8-2:2
SUBJ: Fellowship with God
SUBTITLE: The Test of Fellowship (Part 5)
SUMMARY: The Christian life is viewed as a life of fellowship
SCHEME: To desire fellowship with fellow believers
1A THE CHRISTIAN LIFE VIEWED AS FELLOWSHIP (1:5-2:28)
1B Fellowship is
tested on practical grounds (1:5-2:11)
1C Practical
grounds of moral like-ness (1:5-7)
2C Practical
grounds of confession of sin (1:8-2:2)
3C Practical
grounds of obedience (2:3-6)
4C Practical
grounds of love for God (2:7-11)
2B Fellowship is
tested on relational grounds (2:12-17)
1C The
Positive Relationship (2:12-14)
2C The
Negative Relationship (2:15-17)
3B Fellowship is
tested on Christological grounds (2:18-28)
1C The
Contrast (2:18-21)
2C The
Christological (2:22-23)
INTRODUCTION
This first section of John’s
letter that deals with the fact that the Christian life is to be viewed as a
life of fellowship. We have clearly seen that the Christian life is a life of
fellowship with all other believers and with God through the Lord Jesus Christ.
We have also clearly seen
that our claim to this life of fellowship can be tested, and should be tested. Once
again we seen from our passage that our claim of fellowship can be tested at
least three (3) ways. It can be tested by:
·
Practical grounds
·
Relational
grounds
·
Christological
grounds
A.
REVIEW
So, John
charged his readers with the truth that fellowship can be tested on practical
grounds.
What are those practical grounds?
John
identified the essential elements necessary when we claim to have fellowship
with God the Father through the Lord Jesus Christ on practical grounds. Those
four essential elements are:
·
The presence of a
moral likeness to God
·
The habitual
confessing of sin
·
The habitual practice of obedience
·
The existence of
a love for God
B.
Introductory Device
A Russian, a Cuban, an American businessman and
an American lawyer were on a train traveling across Europe. The Russian took
out a large bottle of vodka, poured each of his companions a drink and then
hurled the semi-full bottle out the window.
"Why did you do that?" asked the
American businessman.
"Vodka is plentiful in my country,"
said the Russian. "In fact, we have more than we will ever use."
A little later, the Cuban passed around fine
Havana cigars. He took a couple of puffs of his and then tossed it out the
window.
"I thought the Cuban economy was suffering,"
the businessman said. "Yet you threw that perfectly good cigar away."
"Cigars," the Cuban replied, "are
a dime a dozen in Cuba. We have more of them than we know what to do
with."
The American businessman sat in silence for a
moment. Then he got up, grabbed the lawyer and threw him out the window.
C.
We all need a
lawyer or an advocate. You see, we all sin. We all need to confess our sins to
God and seek forgiveness from God.
Unconfessed
sin “breaks” or impedes our fellowship with each other and with our God.
Unconfessed sin creates guilt and emotional turmoil inside of us. We all need
the assurance that our sins are forgiven by our heavenly father. Or assurance
comes from the truth that we have a lawyer, or an advocate on our side.
D.
Our theme
this morning continues to be that our claim of fellowship with God can be
tested on practical grounds.
E.
Once again
this is a good reminder for us all that as we claim to have fellowship with God
that our claim can be tested by determining if our character contains a moral
likeness to God’s character, and that we practice or maintain a habitual
practice of the confession of our sins.
F.
I propose to you this morning that there is a second
essential element of testing our claim of having fellowship with God by the means
of practical grounds.
What is the second essential element by which we can
test our claim of fellowship with God? The second essential element is…
2C The Habitual confession of sin (1:8-2:2)
[Read 1 John 1:8-2:2]
[Our text supplies four (4)
principles that enables a habitual practice of the confession of sin.]
[The first principle supplied
by our text is…]
1D There must be an Acknowledgment of
sin (8)
“If
we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.” (1 John 1:8, NKJV)
[The second principle
supplied by our text is…]
2D There must be an Agreement about sin
(9-10)
“If
we confess our sins…” omalegew ”to say the same thing God says”
[Having finished examining
these two principles supplied by our text, this morning we move to the third
principle supplied by our text…]
TRUTH FOR
TODAY
[The third principle supplied
by our text is…]
3D There must be an Abatement to sin
(2:1-2)
“My
little children, these things I write to you, so that you many not sin…” (1 John 2:1a, NKJV)
By
this John means that there must be a stop to our sinning. Before we consider
this statement let’s look at…
1E The
Passion of John
Let
me give you a very literal rendering of this first phrase.
“My
dearest darling little children...”
Do
you see John’s passion for his readers?
John
is an old man when he writes this letter. He is probably 85-99 years old, probably
around 90. John loves these believers in these various churches in Asia Minor.
John
regards his readers as dear little children whom he loves dearly.
Our
Greek word teknia expresses deep or passionate affection for little or
small children.
Just
how loving and passionate John was is recorded in a story about when one of his
converts became a robber.
John
went to the convert turned robber’s house to confront him about his sin. When
he saw John coming, he began to run away.
John,
although an old man, tried to run after him. Of course he couldn’t, so he
yelled:
“O,
my Son!” “Why do you flee from me, your Father? You are armed, I am old and
defenseless! Have pity on me. My son there is still hope of life (eternal) for
you. I wish myself to take the burden of all before Christ.
If
it is necessary I will die for you as Christ died for us. Stop! Believe! It is
Christ who sends me!” [1]
[So, John is very passionate
about his readers. He loves them deeply. He thinks of them as you would think
of dear little children. Now let’s look @…]
2E The Purpose of John
“…I
am writing these things to you so that you may not sin…”
A
very literal translation reads:
“…the
things that I wrote to you in vss. 5-10, I am writing to you in order that, or
for this purpose, you might not commit specific or individual acts of sin…”
First – The use of the ingressive aorist tense of the verb tells us that
John does not want his readers to commit even one act of sin against God.
It
seems that John wasn’t just looking for the cessation of sin, but the actual
eradication or extinction of every act of sin. His goal is actually nothing
less than perfection.
John
doesn’t want his readers to sin. Of
course this by way of application is directed at us. John would not want any
one of us to sin.
Secondly – although John has a very high standard and a lofty
purpose for writing what we wrote, John is realistic.
John
does understand the weakness of the flesh. John knows that his readers will
sin.
(Augustine) “Sin comes when we take a perfectly natural
desire or longing or ambition and try desperately to fulfill it without God.
Not only is it sin, it is a perverse distortion of the image of the Creator in
us. All these good things, and all our security, are rightly found only and
completely in him.” [2]
[This reality that we will
sin leads us to our fourth and final principle.]
[The fourth principle
supplied by our text is…]
4D There must be an Advocate for sin (2:1b-2)
“And
if anyone sins…”
John knows sin will get us.
I couldn’t
help including this illustration of the certainty that we will sin when I came a
crossed it in my study and research. I liked it when I read it and I like it
now.
It
comes from a "No trespassing" sign seen in west Texas. It says:
STOP. I know you're thinking about crossing this gate.
What you should know is that if the Coyotes, Cactus, Mesquite, Heat, Dust or
Rattlers don't get you, I will.
If
we were to put up such a sign it might read like this:
Stop sinning. I now you’re thinking about crossing the line into
sin. What you should know is that if your flesh, lusts, desires, appetites,
whims, fancies aren’t checked by the HS, the Word, accountability partners,
prayer, and your devotional life sin will get you.
[So,
being realistic John says…]
“But
if anyone does sin…”
“…we
have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.”
What does it mean “we have an advocate?
First of all – a
more literal rendering of this verse would read:
“…and
if anyone does commit individual acts of sin, we have a helper, a counselor for
our defense to plead our case, Jesus Christ, righteous,”
-the
Greek word for advocate is the word paraklntos.
--it
is used only 5 times in the NT.
--all
five times it is used by John, once here in our passage before us and 4 times
in the Gospel of John. (14:6, 26, 15:26, 16:7)
--this
word is applied to Jesus Christ just once and it is applied to the HS 4 times.
[To get a better
understanding of this word let’s take a close look at it]
First – It was used outside
of the NT long before John used it in his gospel and this letter.
Second – it is a noun and it
was used of a person who was called upon to help someone, it was a person who
was summoned for the purpose of giving help or assistance. It was used of a
person who was a helper to someone involved in court proceedings. Its usage was
clearly legal.
So we have to ask ourselves how did John use it and
what did he intend for us to understand?
Here in verse 1 John tells
his readers that they have a paraklntos. John’s reference of
course is to Jesus. Jesus is referred to as the helper of sinning Christians.
The translators translated it as advocate. Right or wrong we are left with the
idea or the image of a trial before God’s court.
Having said that you must
keep in mind that the HS is not the defender of Christians before God – the HS
is a helper to believers in a number of other ways – teaching, convicting,
comforting, counseling, and much more.
The legal aspect or flavor
was never applied to the HS. He is a helper and the NKJV and the ESV are right
in translating paraklntos
as helper and not comforter. Nowhere in the
NT do we get the idea that Jesus or the HS are comforters.
The Greek church fathers on
the basis of 1 John 2:1 understood Jesus in the sense of an advocate or a legal
helper.
What does Jesus do for us in this capacity?
First of all
– John changes his language from “that you don’t sin,” to “if a man does sin.”
Second –
even if the sin is not thought of as inevitable, but as possible, John did not
say when you, he said if you sin.
Third – the
use of the Greek word kai
points to a clear contrast between
inevitable sin and if you possibly sin
Fourth – the
tense of the verb is not speaking of a continuous repetition of sinning, but
John is speaking of single act of sin. John does not expect believers to live a
life of regular sinning. They are to grow, mature and as they do put sin away.
Fifth – John
did not say if any man repents or feels bad that causes Christ to act as an
advocate. Contrition and confession are fruits of Christ’s helping or advocacy.
Take note of a few things
right here:
·
God makes no
allowances for sin – not a single sin
·
God will always
judge and condemn sin
·
God has made a
provision for his children when they do sin
o
Christ helps
believers & pleads their cause before God
o
Christ is not an
advocate for sin but for sinning believers
What does he advocate for?
First of all
– he does not excuse sin or extenuate sin
·
He is an advocate
for the non-imputation of sin to the believer
·
He pleads that
the sin has already been judged and laid upon himself
·
He pleads that he
has already borne the penalty for that individual sin
·
He pleads that
his blood has been shed for the remission of that sin
·
He pleads that he
has made full satisfaction to God for that sin and that forgiveness should be
applied to the believer
Why does he do this?
Rev 12:10 says, “And
I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, ‘Now the salvation and power and the
kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser
of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our
God.’” (Rev 12:10, ESV)
Satan accuses Christians of
sin and unworthiness and treason and all sorts of heinous crimes against God.
·
Christ is at
God’s right hand
·
Christ defends us
·
Christ maintains
our rights as ransomed people
·
Christ is not
begging for favors
·
He is arguing out
a right, our right for grace and mercy and forgiveness
·
Christ silences
the devil who accuses of sin before God
The idea that man be can be
represented before God by a “superior” and holy helper, who comes forward as a
helper – a defender and advocate and speaks for you or me when we commit an
individual act of sin is based on references in God’s dealing with Israel in
the OT.
There we are introduced to
the dominant idea of the judgment of God before which sinners are arraigned and
where they need an advocate.
So, the living Christ
intercedes @ the right hand of God in intercession. He places His incorruptible
life and death before God on our behalf.
This truth is captured in Hebrews
7:25, “Consequently, he is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near
to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them.” (Hebrews
7:25, ESV)
So Chris is the defender of
those who confess him.
Do you see just how serious
sin is and how serious God and Christ take it? If only we took sin as
seriously.
Remember, John is not talking about someone
who practices sin regularly or commits multiple and on-going sins.
He is talking about believers who have put sin
away and yet may sin in an individual act.
So John tells us that the
Christian life is a life of fellowship with God through Jesus Christ and with
other believers.
John tells us that this claim
of fellowship with God can be tested. It can be tested on:
·
Practical grounds
Thus far we have seen that
these practical grounds include
·
A moral likeness
to the character of God
·
A habitual
practice of the confession of sin
John has made it clear that
in order to practice the confession of sin there must be:
·
An acknowledgment
of sin
·
An agreement
about sin
·
An abatement to
sin
·
An Advocate for
sin
2E By means of a propitiation
The
atoning work of Jesus Christ on the cross is the grounds on which salvation is
offered by a holy God to undeserving sinners.
The
atoning work of Jesus Christ actually, effectively, and eternally secures the
salvation of those people whom God has given to Christ.
Propitiation:
“a sacrifice that bears God’s wrath to the end.” God forgave sin at the cross.
It was at the cross where God hurled the wrath he had stored up since the first
sin by Adam and Eve in the Garden.
It
means to make propitiation as a sacrifice of propitiation.
Christ’s
actions was a sacrifice that turned away the wrath of God making God favorable
toward sinners.
This
is how the NT understands these words this is how the pagan and Greek religions
understood His word.
Jesus
bore the wrath of God against sin. This is an eternal, immutable requirement in
the holiness and justice of God that sin be paid for.
Christ’s
death on the cross accomplished four things:
·
It was a bloody
sacrifice that appeased God
·
It removed the
wrath of God from his people
·
It reconciled or
restored us to God
·
It redeemed us
out of the bondage to sin
“...for
our sins…” – who is the “our”?
John is referring to and means Jewish Christians. John is writing to Christians
to deter them from sin.
“…but
also for the sins of the whole world.” -
John is referring to and
means also Gentile Christians. People from all tribes, ethnic groups, colors,
races, and kinds of men.
John has shown us in verse 1
that in regards to an abatement of sin we have and advocate. Next week we will
see that John says we have a propitiation for our sins.
[Let’s wrap this up!]
CONCLUSION
Let
me close with this. When Stephen, the great first martyr… you can read about
him in Acts 6&7. When he was preaching and was brought into courts. And the
religious authorities were upset that Christianity was spreading as it was.
They looked at him and said we are going to execute you. Especially after he
explained the gospel to them and told them they were wicked sinners. And it
didn’t go over very well. You know the first part of the
Sermon
tonight fortunately most of you probably will not try to execute me but some of
you will probably be unhappy. In this case, Stephen was preaching to people who
had the power to execute him so they did. And they took him out to stone him
but just before they began to kill him God gave him something. He looked to the
heavens and said “I see Jesus Christ, the Son of Man, standing at the right hand
of God.” What did he see? He saw his advocate. And the thing that is so amazing
is when on earth he was getting condemned - he was being called a loser, he was
getting called a traitor, he was being called a cult leader and a liar.
Everything he would want to claim. He would want popularity. He would want a
good name. He would want success. He would want a good reputation. It was all
being stripped away from him. What did he do in response? When he saw Jesus
Christ as advocate standing up there, his face God radiant, it said. He says I
see the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.” In other words, to know
that his advocate in Heaven, and his Father in Heaven loved him, commended him,
acclaimed him and accepted him meant that all of the rejection and even an execution
here on earth. - He got so excited he seemed to forget, if you read the text,
that he was about to be executed – to the degree that you grasp the fact that
you have an advocate with the Father you will be able to take criticism. This
guy could take an execution. You will be able to take criticism. You will be
able to take rejection. You will be able to take sin and guilt. You will be
able to take the things that right now weigh you down. You will have the
fullness of the Spirit to the degree that you grasp that when we sin we have
one who speaks to the father in our defense: Jesus Christ the righteous one. He
is the atoning sacrifice for our sins.
Exhortation: Pray
for a tender heart and conscience that is wounded and agitated each time you
sin so that you would confess your sin by name immediately so as to never
interrupt your fellowship with God your Father.
1 comment:
As always something to think over. which I will do tonight,
Yvonne.
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