Lesson 6

Lesson #6:  Identification of False Spirits, pp. 40-46

Text:  1 John 4:1-6

Introduction

The context of 1 John 4:1-6 centers on the source of true and false teaching.  Notice the phrase “of God” is used by John six times in these verses.  The source of true Christian teaching/preaching is God working through the Holy Spirit.  Please note, as well, John’s use of the word “Spirit”/”spirit”.  When capitalized it is in reference to the Holy Spirit, while in the lowercase use is referring to demonic spirits.  This perhaps brings up something we don’t like to acknowledge.  The supernatural is real, but not always sent from God.  Satan and his demons are just as real as God, and they are the source of all false teaching/preaching.  The Bible is the absolute final authority on what is truth and what is not.  When read, studied, meditated upon and interpreted correctly, a Christian can know and understand the truth of God.  This is absolutely critical because it is the truth that shall make you free.  (John 8:32)

I.  Try the Spirits (1 John 4:1)

As we examine this section of scripture, I would encourage you, if you missed Bro. Holland’s Wednesday night lesson, to go back and watch it.  He, while teaching on Romans 16:17 (mark them which cause division and offences), covers some ground that is very applicable to his lesson.

                John begins with the word “Beloved”.  This is the adjective form of loved.  John truly “loved” those to which he was addressing, and this is why he warns them so strictly.  John was concerned.  He did not want to see these people get hurt or to be lead astray by false teachings.  When any pastor loves the flock they are shepherding, he will always sound the alarm to warn of impending dangers.  No doubt there will always be some who think it unloving if a pastor is critical of their teaching error.  However, I would submit to us that such thinking fits right into Satan’s plan.  Satan would love to have free reign, convincing people that pointing out error is unkind, unloving, and unchristian.  The exact opposite is true.  Giving warning is in fact a sign of love.  It would be unloving for any pastor to fail to warn the flock of dangerous untruthful doctrines and allow the wolves in sheep’s clothing to devour the sheep.

                Next John writes “believe not”.  This is an injunction against an ongoing action.  In other words, if anyone was listening to these false teachers, or being tempted to do so, John writes for them, as well as us, to stop that action immediately.  We as Christians are not to be moved or persuaded by every passing teaching of the day.  Only teachings confirmed by and through the Word of God are to be believed.

 So we are to believe not “every spirit”.  This phrase translated as “every spirit” refers to the spirit behind the person or persons who are espousing false doctrine.  Before the Bible was completed, God communicated His word at times through prophetic utterances. (Hebrews 1:1, 1 Cor. 12:28)  Even then Paul says, “Let the prophets speak two or three, and let the other judge”. (1 Cor. 14:29)  It looks to me as if when a prophet did speak, there were others who would confirm or deny their validity.  We find this same type of problem within the church at Thessalonica.  “Be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us.” (1 Thess. 2:2)  Apparently there have always been those who claim to be lead by the Holy Spirit who are actually being lead by demonic spirits.  This is why John writes expressly “but try the spirits whether they are of God:”.  The word “try” means to put to the test.  The idea here is as in the use of testing metals for purity to see if they are alloyed or genuine.

So what does it look like for a Christian to “try the spirits”?  When we hear a sermon, read an article or book, or go to a seminar, we are not to automatically believe everything that person says just because he/she has preacher, pastor or Christian attached to their name.  What John is warning us about here are those counterfeit/false teachers that appear as angels of light or as ministers of righteousness. (2 Cor. 11:13-15)  Either a preacher/teacher is operating from the Holy Spirit of God or from some demonic spirit.  Trying or testing is how we go about determining if something is genuine or counterfeit.  The idea is to determine if God is the source of this teaching or is it a demon spirit behind it.  Why?  Because many false prophets are gone out into the world.  Throughout the Bible as well as church history, there have always been false prophets.  God gives us very specific and strict standard for dealing with false prophets in the Old Testament. (Reference Bro. Holland’s Wednesday night study in Romans)  Bottom line is that Israel was to stone to death such prophets.  Today, however, false prophets are to be discerned, their teaching condemned, the individuals marked, and we are to avoid them.  The purpose of trying or testing is not even to discern whether their motivation is from God, but rather is the message they speak from God.  Is it true based upon the written Word of God, or is it false.  This is one of the reasons Bro. Blake always encourages us to follow him in the scriptures.  We need to test what he’s saying against the Word of God and see if the message he is teaching is according to God’s truth.

Look with me at 1 Tim. 4:1.  This passage makes a very important statement about the source of all false doctrine.  Examine the last part of this verse—“giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils;”.  The source of truth is God, and the source of false doctrine is Satan and his demons.  Satan’s plan is to distort true doctrine by way of false teachers.  We need to consider this source, Satan, but also consider the danger.  The real problem is the souls of men and women.  False doctrines ultimately deny truth, distort truth, and eventually deceive.  Jesus warns us in Matt. 24:4-5, “Take heed that no man deceive you.  For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.”  Eternity in hell and a lake of fire is what is at stake.  We, the church, must discern both the false teachers and their false doctrines.  We must try the spirits from which they come.  This is not optional.  It is a command to the church.

                As we continue in the rest of this passage, John gives us three tests to help us know truth from error.  He uses a question form to convey his thought.

·         Do they confess Jesus as the divine Lord?

·         Do they possess divine life?

·         Do they profess divine truth?

II.  How to Identify False Spirits  (1 John 4:2-3) [Do they confess Jesus as Lord?]

                “Hereby” means in this or this is how.  What follows is the test whereby we are to determine whether a teacher is of the spirit of devils or of the Holy Spirit of God.  “Know” is to gain knowledge through intelligent comprehension and deliberate understanding.  We are to give careful consideration to what the Bible says as compared to what the teacher says.  So, it is by intelligent comprehension that we are to make our determination concerning the individual teacher, but a genuine knowledge of God’s saving grace does not come from within (our own knowledge), but is rather a gift from God to the believer.  This off-sets the Gnostics false teaching that they had a secret, superior knowledge as a way of salvation.

                When John says that “every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God:” he is emphasizing the idea of source and origin.  This phrase “Jesus Christ is come” is speaking to another realm completely (heavenly).  By putting it that way, John is emphasizing the truth of Christ’s unique deity and eternal sonship, both of which were largely denied by the populous of his day.  “Confesseth” basically means to agree with or consent to.  This is more than mere mental acknowledgment of the birth of Jesus.  To confess is to agree with every aspect of Jesus as the Bible reveals.  To biblically confess Jesus is to acknowledge and accept His being eternal, the second person of the God head who came by way of the miraculous virgin birth.  It is to believe and accept Jesus as creator God and sustainer of this present world (John 1:1-3, Col. 1:16-17), to believe in the sinless humanity of His life, His substitutionary supreme death as sacrifice for the sins of the whole world.  That no man killed Him, but rather He gave of Himself.  That he was buried and rose again on the third day.  That He is alive and sitting at the right hand of God the Father fulfilling His role as advocate and mediator.  To profess this complete truth concerning the man Jesus is the proof that the prophet, preacher, teacher, is truly of God. 

Conversely, to deny any part is to be of that spirit of anti-Christ.  Consider for a moment some of our modern teaching about who Jesus is by some who many believe to be “Christian”.  The Jehovah Witnesses acknowledge Jesus to be A god not THE God.  Their official doctrine teaches that Jesus was the first creation of God.  Their founder described Jesus as having been Michael the Archangel prior to His divesting Himself of His angelic nature.  They are explicit in their denial of the deity of Jesus.

The Mormons teach that there is a pantheon of gods and that God was once a man.  Jesus, before His incarnation, was a created being and the brother of Lucifer.  They teach Jesus to have been born of Mary but not conceived by either Joseph or the Holy Spirit, but rather that a “heavenly father”, a god of flesh and bones, had relations with Mary and Jesus was conceived.  They teach Jesus to be the husband of both Mary and Martha and have fathered children by all His many wives.  He was thus rewarded for his faithfulness by becoming ruler of this current earth.

Consider Islam.  No Muslim considers Jesus to be divine and certainly not the Son of God.  Literally written on the side of the Dome of the Rock, the mosque on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem, are the words in Arabic, “God has no son”.

The veneration of the Virgin Mary in Roman Catholicism is an example of how false doctrine detracts from the all-sufficiency of Jesus. Inside the famous cathedral in Mexico City (Basilica de Guadalupe) held by many to be the holiest place in the Americas, paintings and statuary of Mary permeate the building. Many of these depictions include Mary holding the dead body of Jesus. Even their Crucifixion shows Jesus still on the cross. Their message seems to be that of a living Mary with a dead Jesus, rather than a Risen Lord with a dead Mary.  

Let me wrap up this section by saying there is a big difference between criticizing an individual and criticizing the doctrinal position of their false religion.  We live in a current world that wants tolerance (P.C.).  They don’t want anybody to criticize anyone.  When a Christian takes a stand on the principles found in the Word of God, they are characterized as bigoted and intolerant.  Let me remind you of Jude 3.  “Earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.” We, as children of God, have an obligation to the lost of this world to preach/teach the Truth in it’s integrity without fear of what man might say or do.

False Christ’s and false doctrines concerning Christ are prevalent throughout the world today.  Even Judaism denies the person and work of Jesus.  These teachings are entrenched in today’s world and stand ready to fight against any attempt to bring the light of the glorious gospel into their lives.  The sad part is that Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life.  No man comes to the Father but through Him.  (John 14:6) yet the overwhelming majority fail to realize this and will find their solace in these false religions that lead to destruction.

III.  Overcoming the Sinful World (1 John 4:4-6)  [Do they possess divine life?]

Please do not underestimate your foe Satan, his deceptions, advanced by his demonically controlled fallen angels are hard to resist.  Jesus, speaking about false Christ’s and false prophets warns us in Mark 13:22 that if it were possible they would seduce even the elect.  However, John tells us that as children of God we have overcome them.  That word “overcome” speaks to victory or superiority.  John has written it in the perfect tense which emphasizes the ongoing, continuing result of a past completed action.  In other words, because you are a child of God, and Jesus has already overcome the world (John 16:33), through the Holy Spirit of God we too are overcomers, thus we are resting secure in that victory.  Be very careful here as we did not overcome because of anything about ourselves, but rather because greater is He that is in you, than he that is in the world.  The overall war has already been won by Jesus, but the individual conflicts remain as long as we are in this flesh. John’s point is that we as believers, because of the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit, when yielded, will overcome false teachers and false doctrines.  In chapter 5 verses 4-5, John tells us “For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world:  and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.  Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?”  The indwelling Holy Spirit is far greater than the spirit of anti-Christ which permeates this present world.  This spiritual battle is real between the forces off Satan and the Holy Spirit.  John later writes in The Book of the Revelation of Jesus Christ about the source of our victory over Satan. (Rev. 12:11) “And they overcome him by the blood of the lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.”

                While John does not specifically say this here, the Bible makes clear that we must be students of God’s word to learn to discern false teaching.  There is no substitute for a working knowledge of God’s word to combat Satan’s tactics. 

Look at Eph. 6:10-17.  First let it be made perfectly clear, our enemy is not fellow people, but rather the dominion of darkness.  Verse 12 says, “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, and against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.”  In this passage Paul gives us several defensive weapons to use (truth, righteousness, the gospel, faith, and salvation) and then he gives us an offensive weapon, the Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God.  Our Bible is jam packed full of swords.  Recall how Jesus wielded them in His stand.  His reply was always “It is written”.  If we have no idea what is written, there is no way we can ever do battle and be victorious.  We must know what God has spoken to us that we too might say in our day of battle, “It is written”.

In verse 5-6 we now get to John’s third test.  Do they profess the divine truth.  The “they” of this passage refers to the false teachers, and the “world” refers to the world system as organized under Satan which stands in opposition to God.  Therefore they speak as those who are from this world, and the world hears or listens to them.  As a Christian we should always scrutinize the message of all who claim to speak on behalf of God.  We need to look at things like:

• Do they declare the Bible and it alone as the final authoritative Word of God?
• Do they interpret it within the framework of orthodox Christianity?
• Is their message skewed, twisted and distorted?

                As John says here in verses 5-6, those who know God will hear and adhere to the message of the truth, while those who know not God will not hear and adhere to the truth but rather as Paul wrote, they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears, and they shall turn away their ears from truth and shall be turned to fables:”. (2 Tim. 4:3-4)

                John says for us to test the teaching that is before us.  Does the message align with God’s revealed will through His word, or does it follow the way of the world through cunningly devised fables.  It is our personal responsibility to hold ourselves accountable to God to hear only good reliable teachers/preachers who hold fast to the Word of God as divine truth.

Lesson 5 continued

Lesson #5 Cont. Assurance of Our Salvation (Pages 35-37A)

Lesson Text: 1 John 3: 11-24 [Love through Actions “Charity” Actions speak louder than Words]

2: Loving in Deed (Verses 11-15)

            Here once again John writes in the present active participle in the word “hateth”.  I.E. 1John 3:6 “sinneth”. He is describing someone who is continually  hating, thus John is equating someone with an ongoing, continual, day to day hatred with a murder. To this, most people think wait a minute, I’ve never killed anyone but I have hated a few; I’m not a murder! That is the exact mindset to which Jesus taught on in Matt. Chapter 5. So lets take a few moments to explore His teachings there. (Please read Matthew Chapter 5 before proceeding.)

            Early in the chapter Jesus teaches the Beatitudes or the identification of the things that will really make someone happy and then in verse 17 He tells then that it is He who is the fulfillment of the law and the prophets.  That is to say (to carry into effect, bring to realization, to realize).  Strongs G4737

·         1^st of matters of duty: to perform, execute

·         2^nd of sayings, promises, prophecies, to bring to pass, ratify, accomplish

·         3^rd to fulfill, i.e. to cause God’s will (as made known in the Law) to be obeyed as it should be, and God’s promise (given through the prophets) to receive fulfillment

            Christ did not come to change (not to add to or take away from, either one)  what God had given His people through the writings of the law or the prophets.  Christ came so that we might better understand not just the letter of the law, but the Spirit of the law as well.

            After confirming that His intent was not to change or destroy their God given scriptures, but rather to live them out before them, He now begins to expose the unlawfulness of the scribes and Pharisees interpretation of the Law.  Look carefully at verses 21-22, 27-28, 31-32, 33-34, 38-39, and 43-44.  Six times Jesus repeats “Ye have heard that it hath been said by them of old—But I say unto you!  Notice how He is addressing a Old Testament command each time yet He does not say “It is written” or “thus saith the Lord”.  Here the emphasis is not one reading what is written, but rather on hearing what has been said.  Why?  Because Jesus is addressing their oral traditions, the man-made additions to or subtractions from the written word.

            We will not take the time to flesh out these six commandments, but rather only examine verse 21-22, teachings about murder/judgment.  Here the sixth commandment is in view.  “Thou shalt not kill.” (Ex. 20:13, Deut. 5:17) and to this tradition has added “whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment”.  So what’s the problem?  This addition sounds very much like what is written in Numbers 35:30, “Whoso killeth any person, the murderer shall be put to death by the mouth of witnesses:  but one witness shall not testify against any person to cause him to die.”  The problem is that the Jewish tradition of judgment had in view only the civil courts, not the judgment of God.  This is based only upon what man can see. 

So let’s look at Christ’s response. (vs. 22)  First He says “I say” “unto you”.  “I say” reflects His divine authority, His being the living word (John 1:1-14) (Matt. 7:29), and “unto you” being that of kingdom ethics to subjects.  If Jesus is Lord of Lords and King of Kings, then what He says is to be our kingdom behavior as His subjects.  So as we look at Christ’s correction of the scribes and Pharisees’ understanding (vs. 22) we find that there are more fitting implications to this sixth commandment.  Yes, we should consider the consequences of civil law and their verdict, but we had better concern ourselves with God’s view as well.  (“in danger of Hell fire”)

According to Romans 2:16, we serve a God who looks deep into the heart and sees all its secret intentions.  The root of the crime of murder is the human heart, but physical murder is not the only bad fruit that the human heart produces.  The words that proceed out of our mouth can kill just as well as our hands.  James 3:8, “But the tongue can no man tame:  it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison.”

Saying what we ought not to say and doing what we ought not to do are both damnable offenses, maybe not in the worlds’ courts, but certainly in the final judgment before Jesus Christ.  (Matt. 12:36-37 “But I say unto you, that every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment.  For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.”)

Next Jesus takes the negative command, “Thou shalt not kill” and gives it a positive twist. (verses 23-26)  The idea is how dare on come to a loving, merciful, forgiving God in an act of worship and yet know that there is hate in your heart towards a brother.  If you can’t forgive a brother, don’t think God will forgive you. (Matt. 6:14-15).  “For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you:  But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”

The problem with most of us is rather than ask how far I can extend the reach of the commandments of God into my life, we ask what can I get away with, what’s the absolute minimum requirement of the command.  Just how close can I get to sin without actually sinning.

So we go back to John’s writings. (vs. 15) “whoso hateth his brother is a murderer:”  Hatred is an intense emotion from the heart.  This person who hates is no different than the murderer in attitude.  The example of Cain shows us how hatred leads to the potential of murder given opportunity.  John continues this logic—hatred is attitudinally the same as murder and no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.  So this leads us to this conclusion—it is not so much what we did, but rather what did we want to do and why.  What would you have done if you had been at liberty to do as you pleased without consequences?  That’s what James is talking about in 2:12.  He’s speaking of being judged by the Law of liberty.  This why Jesus and John equate hatred with murder and lust with adultery.  Motive is a very important issue.  When Jesus judges our actions, rest assured the motive (both good and bad) are considered at great length.  If our heart is right, He is long-suffering and merciful even when our deeds and actions are flawed.  If our heart is wrong, even the best of deeds and actions can never be pleasing to Him.

After equating hate to murder, John reminds us that “no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him”.  Once again, John is not speaking about the occasional thought of hate, but rather is concerned about those with hate as a settle habit of life.  Remember an assurance of being a believer is the practice of loving not hating.

 Now just as a side note, we are not told that a murderer cannot be saved.  Certainly there are plenty of people in the Biblical accounts that acted out in murder yet believed God and were used of Him.  So the issue here is not whether a murderer can become a Christian, but whether a murderer can continually be a murderer or hater and still be a Christian.  John emphatically says No!  That individual who lives a life of hate and murder didn’t once have eternal life and then give it up.  He never had it at all.

In verse 16 the word “hereby” is to be understood as in this or by this while the word “perceive” means to have an intelligent comprehension, a knowledge gained from experience.  Thus by Jesus’ crucifixion we personally comprehend the love of God, and based on this knowledge, we should be willing to do the same.  Make no mistake about it, no man killed Jesus.  He willingly gave His life as a substitute for mine. (John 10:11-18)  Verse 18 of that passage says “No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself.  I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it up again.  This commandment have I received of my Father.”

What a contradiction to how we live.  Self preservation is the first law of physical life, but self sacrifice is the first law of spiritual life.  We do everything we can to make sure we live as long as we can, but if we are not doing it to be a sacrifice, what’s the point?  (Romans 12:2 “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.”  John’s use of the word “ought” implies that there is a moral obligation for us to be that living sacrifice.  John shows us in the following verses that there is much more involved than dying in mind when he says we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.

Consider what Jesus taught in Luke 10:25-37 (the Good Samaritan).  The question was asked “Who is my neighbor?  Jesus showed us this principle when he placed the focus on the one in need and changed the question to “To whom can I be a neighbor?”  Certainly it is possible and does happen all too often that Christians will be called upon to give their physical lives for others.  But more often we are called to demonstrate love in less drastic ways.  Take note how John goes from plural “the brethren” in verse 16 to the singular “Brother” in verse 17.  It can be easy for us to talk about loving the brethren, yet neglect to help a single other believer.  Perhaps too many of us are like a little boy in a crowded elevator that was overheard to say, “Mommy, I love mankind, it’s the people I can’t stand.”  Christian love is to be personal and active.  Charity is love in action.

Here’s kind of what I think John is saying.  One doesn’t have to murder in order to sin; hatred is equal to murder in their heart.  A man doesn’t have to hate his brother to be guilty of sin.  All they have to do is have means and opportunity to help but rather they feel indifferent towards that need and ignore them, thus closing the door of their heart.  Perhaps this too is a kind of murder.

So John’s instruction to us is simple.  We know we are of the truth (Jesus speaks “I am the way, the truth, and the life” in John 14:6) [assurance of our salvation] if:

·         we have the means necessary to meet the need

·         we have a knowledge of that need

·         be loving enough to meet the actual need

            In verse 18, John says it’s not okay to just talk about a need (love in word, neither in tongue).  That is to say when we just discuss the problem, even pray about it but never act on the problem, our love is insincere.  Genuine Biblical love does what it can.  It moves people into action. (James 2:14-16.  Here John is encouraging us to walk the walk and stop just talking the talk.  Bottom line—empty words reveal an empty heart.

On to verses 19-20.  A condemning heart is one that robs a believer of their peace.  This is equivalent to an accusing conscience.  The prophet Jeremiah makes an insightful observation concerning the human heart and then asks a riveting question.  (Jer. 17:19 “The heart is deceitful above all thins, and desperately wicked:  who can know it?”).  The Lord answered that question in verse 10, “I the Lord search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings”.  Aren’t you glad God knows us better than we know ourselves.

            The word “hereby” that John uses is to be understood in the light of what he just taught (lay down your life for a brother, living in truth and deed not just empty platitudes).  Because of these actions w know we are of the “truth”.  When we truly love our brothers in Christ, we know the “truth” is in us.  The only reason we can love is because Christ first loved us.  It is only by these means that we assure our hearts before Him.  The word “assure” means to persuade or convince.  Whenever we put the love of God into action and demonstrate His love towards our brothers, we have the evidence we need to assure or persuade ourselves of God’s salvation.  These good deeds and generosity provide evidence of the love of God dwelling within us.  So then is our heart or conscience condemns us (that is to say to blame or find fault), God is greater than our heart.  He truly knows the truth.  Rest assured there will be time in which we find fault with what or how we did something.  There will be times when the Holy Spirit will correct the believer for things like quenching or grieving Him.  There will also be times when the accuser of the brethren will make an attempt to rob you of your assurance.  Whatever or whenever any of these arise, don’t worry.  God is greater than our hearts.  He absolutely knows the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.  He knows who belongs to Him and who doesn’t and He assures us that when we demonstrate love through actions, it is strong evidence that you belong to God.  Even if you have judged yourself harder than necessary, thank God that He will never make that mistake.  God never judges wrongly because He and He alone knows all things.

            Never allow Satan to rob you.  Once you have confessed your sin, God is faithful and just to forgive.  Don’t allow that to accuse you any longer.  The Holy Spirit of God will lead us unto the right paths, but we must remain in fellowship and allow Him His rightful place in our hearts.

            One last thought, back in Matt. 5 and the six lessons based on commandments.  We already talked somewhat about Christ exposing the unlawfulness of the scribes and Pharisees interpretation of the Law.  I would like for us to consider one last aspect of these teachings.  In verse 3, Jesus says “Blessed are the poor in spirit; for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”  What exactly that means is hard to find words to explain, but the best way I understand this is to allow the school master of the Law, the weight and magnitude of my sinfulness to make me realize how holy God is and to completely and wholly humble me in light of the extent He went to, and continues to go to express His undying love for me.  In His teachings on these six commandments, Christ is bringing too light that the law truly guides us to a deep understanding of ourselves so that we might actually recognize the extreme depth of our sins and then contrast that with the depth of God’s love that He offers to sinners through Jesus despite our natural hate for all that He stands for.  This idea of the complete holiness of God and His perfect law ought to make us completely humbled and dependent upon God for every single second of every single day.

Lesson #5 cont. Assurance of Our Salvation (Page 37-39)

3.  Confidence in Prayer         1 John 3:21-29

Verses 21-22

            As we’ve already discussed, the heart (conscience) is deceitful and desperately wicked.  It can and will lie to us, yet the same passage reassures us that the Lord searches the heart.  He knows the truth about all of us.  After John confirms for us in verse 20 that God is greater than our heart, he now reminds us how a clear conscience provides confidence to approach God at any time in prayer and worship.  This word “heart” refers to mind and conscience, the seat of our affections as well as our emotions and will.  Part of being a new creation upon salvation is the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit which often times works in us through our heart.  In light of this our conscience must be properly schooled in the truth of God’s word in order to function as God has intended.  As Christians, our conscience now has a new set of standards as to right and wrong, acceptable or rejectable.  We should now have a greater sense of sin, seeing wrong in things that were once alright.  In all this, conscience, left to itself is not an adequate guide.  We must turn to God and His word, for He knows everything.  He is omniscient.  Since God is greater than our accusing conscience in the sense that He has greater knowledge of it than we do, we can have confidence that He understands our weaknesses and loves us in spite of them.  Our conscience is not the last word on the subject, God is.  He is the final judge.

            Scripture gives us a glimpse of this in John chapter 21 beginning in verse 14-18.  After Peter’s denial of Christ, Jesus asks Peter the third time “Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me?”  Look at Peter’s response.  There is no doubt that Peter had regrets about his denial.  No doubt his conscience bothered him, yet with great confidence, Peter says, “Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love thee.”  We can rest in God’s love and forgiveness for the worst of our actions.  Our conscience can be at ease.  We have “confidence towards God”.  We can speak freely, open up to God about anything, and ask Him for whatever it is we stand in need of.

            Next John tells us that we have confidence that we will receive what we ask for based on two things.  First, keep His commandments.  In vs. 23 John describes for us what He is talking about.  First one must be born again to expect God to honor their requests.  But being saved is not all God requires.  John also says to love one another as He gave us commandment.  When the commandments of God are mentioned most of us automatically go in our minds to the Ten Commandments, however, there are numerous commandments found throughout both the Old and New Testaments in addition to the Ten Commandments.  In fact there are so many commandments within the books of the law that the Rabbis had divided them into classifications and argued as to which were the greatest.  When asked, Jesus gives us the answer to this dilemma.  In Matt. 22:37-40 Jesus answers “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all they soul, and with all thy mind.  This is the first and great commandment.  And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.  On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.”  So to fulfill the requirements as John gives pertaining to confidence in answered prayer, we must conclude that one must first be saved (John 6:40) and second we must be that loving people John has been encouraging us to be.  This makes me think about something.  When I examine who I am and who God is, what I’ve done to Him and what He’s done for me, I can’t help but have a sense of duty towards God.  The idea is that I must obey, but here John reaffirms what the word of God teaches throughout, that love rather than duty is our real motivation to obey Gods commands.

            Faith toward God and love toward man is a good summary of a Christian’s obligation.  According to Gal. 5:6, Christianity is faith which worketh by love.  Faith towards God and love towards men are the two sides of the same coin.  We can’t be guilty of emphasizing faith yet neglecting love.  Nor can we love but be doctrinally incorrect.  There must be a proper balance.  Both are of the utmost importance for the Christian to maintain proper fellowship between both God and man.

            As we look at this statement from John, “Whatsoever we ask, we receive of Him”, it, like all scripture must be understood in light of its context.  This is not saying we have carte blanche to get anything we want, just simply by making requests through prayer.  James rebuked his readers for this type of mindset in James 4:3.  “Ye ask, and receive not because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.”  John’s point is that as we live in obedience to the will and word of God, our prayers will be reflections of His will from His Word and this will be readily answered.  This same truth is found in Psalm 37:4.  “Delight thyself also in the Lord; and He shall give thee the desires of thine heart.”

            In verse 24, the last verse of chapter 3, we find two means by which we can be assured of God’s salvation.  First John reminds us that our obedience is proof of our being saved.  (And he that keepeth His commandments dwelleth in Him).  In John 14:23, Jesus speaking says “If a man love me, he will keep my words: (commandments) and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.”

Second, only the saved have the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit. (Hereby we know that He abideth in us, by the Spirit which He hath given us.) “Abiding” in Christ is key for any believer who wants confidence or assurance toward God. 

            Romans 8:9b says “Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he in none of His.”  Christ in the upper room (John 15:1-14) illustrates for us what it is to abide in Christ.  In that teaching Jesus compares the believers to branches on a vine.  As long as the branches are attached to the vine, they draw life from that vine and the vine produces fruit which the branches bear.  But if and when the branch is separated, it withers and dies.  Don’t miss Christ’s point.  He is not talking about your salvation, but rather fellowship and fruit bearing.  The very moment a sinner trusts Christ, that person enters into communion with Christ, but maintaining that communion is a moment-to-moment responsibility.  Our abiding depends on our obeying His word.

The benefits of a clear conscience are confidence before God and confidence that our prayers will be answered.  Every one of us faces the challenge of a condemning conscience from time to time as well as the challenge of imperfect obedience.  We also are aware that our love for the brethern at times is far from perfect.  Bottom line is that without the abiding presence of the Holy Spirit, this Christian life is impossible.  It is the Holy Spirit of God indwelling every believer that turns the impossible into the dream come true.  Remember, your conscience knows things about you that others don’t’, but none of those are unknown to your heavenly Father.  Let John’s words be a comfort to you.  God knows the depth and sincerity of our love and obedience we have for Him and others, even imperfect as it is, God still welcomes us to fellowship with Him, which is evidence of His saving grace giving us eternal life.

Welcome

Happy Easter everyone!!!
     Welcome to our first post for Sunday School at Bethel Hill.  Hope you enjoy the lesson.
Bro. PJ

Lesson #5: Assurance of Our Salvation   (Page 33)

Lesson Text: 1 John 3:11-24 [Christ like love for the brethren is

 evidence that we have been born again]

Introduction

                As John writes this letter he wants his readers to have no doubt about their salvation. He begins in Chapter 1 with an introduction to Christ as “That which was from the beginning… the Word of Life:”. Then in verse 3 John says the things that he saw and heard from Christ he is now going to share so that they too can have fellowship with (1^st) “Us” {Like minded people who have placed their faith in the finished work of Jesus as what God the Father required for salvation.} (2^nd) “with the Father” {The idea here is that sin separates man from God. God is Holy and is offended by sin – He cannot indulge in it nor condone it. By the authority of God’s Word all mankind are sinners thus separated from God.

                Romans 3:10 “As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:”

                Romans 3:12  “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;”

                Romans 5:12 “Wherefore, as by one man(Adam) sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned.”

Because ALL HAVE SINNED, and because THERE IS NONE RIGHTEOUS something must be done about sin in order for any person to have the fellowship John was writing about. The way God has chosen to deal with man’s sin is through His Son Jesus Christ, thus Christ had to die in our place for “the wages of sin is death”.} (3^rd) “with His Son, Jesus Christ” {Fellowship means communion, or a close association- intimacy. Jesus as God in the flesh gives us something to look at and desire to be like. Ephesians 4:13, speaking  of the Spiritual gifting of believers, tell us what we ought to be looking for in ourselves – “Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect (spiritually complete) man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ:”

                So what does it mean to have fellowship with Christ? We must partner with Him, go into business with Him if you will. His enterprises are to be our enterprises. We are to share mutual interests, devotion and activities. His mission should be our mission, His goals and plans our goals and plans. We should love what He loves, desire what He desires. The idea is for us to become just like Jesus that we would have the mind of Christ to lead and guide us through this life.

                Then in verse 4 John ties our fellowship with Christ to our joy. (1 John 1:4) “And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full.”) The idea here is that it is impossible to have full joy in life without having a full assurance of your salvation. If one never knows they are resting fully in Christ there will always be a longing, a void, that will hinder their ability to feel secure; stealing their peace and joy. Near the end of this letter John writes “These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may KNOW that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.” Keep in mind from our previous lessons some of the “tests” of our salvation John has already written about.

                Do we walk in the light? 1 John 1:7

                Do we confess our sin? Vs 9

                Do we keep His commandments?  2:3

                Do we love our brother? Vs 10

                Do we love this present world? Vs 15

                Do we practice righteousness? Vs 29

                Do we purify ourselves? 3:3

                Do we abide in Him? Vs 6

In this lesson we will attempt to examine three more ways by which our salvation is confirmed  (1^st) Our Love for the brethren (2^nd) answered prayer (3^rd) the Holy Spirits work in our hearts.

1: The Assurance of Love (Verses 11 – 14)

                Here John begins providing the ground work for his concluding statement found in verse 10.  “In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil:  whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother.”  Thus is the reverse is those who do righteousness and loveth his brother are evidences that they are children of God.  He reminds us that this idea of brotherly love is not something new but rather is from the very beginning.  He illustrates this by way of Cain’s murder of Abel as an example of the different behaviors of evil and righteousness.  Hebrews 11:4 tells us that “By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous.”  God called Abel righteous because of his actions.  Don’t let this turn your mind towards “works” for salvation.  Salvation has always been by grace through faith not of works. (Eph. 2:8-9).  Look again at Hebrews 11:4.  “By faith”, Abel took the word of God at face value.  He did what God asked of him because he believed Him.  Abel’s righteousness is only demonstrated through obedience.  Cain on the other hand according to John “was of that wicked one”.

                Let’s take just a moment and look at the account of Cain and Abel and their sacrifice. (Gen. 4:1-16)  Within this account there are several points that need to be considered.  Both were brothers of the same parents thus we can conclude they had received the same instructions pertaining to acceptable sacrifices.  Both came to God in acts of worship with a sacrifice.  The problem lay in what was offered.  Apparently Cain’s sacrifice was contrary to God’s specified rules for the type or kind of sacrifice to be offered.  Now consider their offerings:  Cain “of the fruit of the ground” (vs. 3) and Abel “of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof”. (vs. 4)  For some insight on this, look at Hebrews 9:22.  “And almost all things are by law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission”.

                God in His mercy gave Cain an opportunity to go back and offer according to His specifications, yet Cain chose to get mad rather than get right. (vs. 5-7).  When Cain saw that God accepted Abel’s sacrifice but rejected his, he became angry, and killed his bother. Reality is that Cain was mad at God but acted out on Gods representative. Cain demonstrated his spiritual and ethical relationship to Satan when he did that.  So back to John chapter 3, in verse 8 John wrote “He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning.”  Then verse 12, speaking of Cain’s sinful actions, it says that he was of that wicked one” connecting Cain’s evil heart and actions to its ultimate source, Satan.

                From this portion of scripture, we can see these things about Cain.

·         who is his spiritual father—the evil one

·         what were his actions—he slew his brother

·         why did he do it—because his own works were evil.

                Bottom line is Cain failed his brotherly love test.  Had Cain loved Abel as God loves us, the thought of killing his brother would have never entered his mind.  Then in verse 13 John says in light of Cain’s action, don’t be surprised that the world hates you.  The world hated Jesus and hate Christians for the same reason Cain hated Abel,  our righteous acts expose the disobedience and unrighteousness of unbelievers.

                By looking at actions and behaviors, we learn a lot about the spiritual condition of a person.  In verse 14, John tells us that we know that we have passed from death into life.  Once again, according to the authority of the Word of God, we can know with absolute certainty that we are saved.  The idea of this word “passed” means to pass from one state or condition to another.  Our natural state is that of being spiritually dead in our trespasses and sin (Eph. 2:1)  In light of this, mans greatest need is to pass from this natural state of death into the state or condition of the living.  This can only happen when that person is reborn in spirit and receives life from God.  Here John is viewing life and death as opposite spiritual conditions that we refer to as saved and lost.  John’s conclusion is that we know that we are saved because we habitually practice love for our fellow believers, but the flip side of that coin is that if you do not have that constant love for your brother, that person remains in the state or condition of death.