Confirmed By Love | 1 John 3:11–24

Intro:

Transition:

Contrasting Love and Hate 1 John 3:11-15

1 John 3:11–15 ESV

For this is the message that you have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another. 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. Do not be surprised, brothers, that the world hates you. We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers. Whoever does not love abides in death. Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.

Verse 11

Remember, we talked about just a few weeks ago how the message that had been heard since the beginning is that we should love one another. It was found as far back as the book of Leviticus.

Verse 12

John says we should not be like Cain

What Cain did

John says Cain killed Able because of their actions

Instead of committing to living a righteous life, Cain killed his own brother out of anger

We need to make sure that we do not envy the good will that obedience brings others.

Verse 13

We will experience this in our own lives. We should not be surprised when the world hates us because of our message

"The fellowship of Jesus has no promse that it will ever be in the majority; we must indeed guard against thinking that there can ever be any kind of human security or assurance against he world's hatred. All parleys, all truces, all peace treaties are unreal, for the world cannot hate, it must suffer at the hands of the world.: Martin Niemoller

We should not try and make common cause with the world thinking that it will earn us points. If we ever think that there is a worldly force that we can partner with, we are going down a dangerous road.

Verse 14

The metaphor of going from being dead in our sins to being alive in Christ. This is made evident in how we care for one another.

We cannot just be a part of youth group, going to church is a crucial part of being a believer in Jesus Christ because it is here that we become a family and love for one another.

Jesus said in John’s gospel that people will know we are his disciples by our love.

If we live each day only looking out for ourselves and not having a genuine love for one another, then we need to examine our salvation

Verse 15

Jesus taught the same thing on the SOTM

Sin is ultimately a heart problem. Just because we don’t act on something doesn’t mean that our hearts are honoring God.

If every time we see a person we express disdain for them in our hearts, we are not viewing that person as Christ does. We have made ourselves opposites of Christ.

Transition:John ends the section by talking about going from death to life. But when referring to this love, what is our example. Well, our example is Christ.

1 John 3:16–18 (ESV)

By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. 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? Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.

Verse 16

This verse is really closely related to John 3:16

It tells us that God so loved the world that whosoever believes in him shall not perish, but have everlasting life.

John is telling us that Christ’s death on the cross is the ultimate example of love. Not only is it an example to note, it’s an example to follow.

This is a really easy thing to say we would do right. We can live in a hypothetical world where we say, “The Bible says to die for others, but I would do that.”

Verses 17-18

But Jesus gives us a way to test that theory practically.

This no longer becomes a hypothetical, it becomes a gut punch of a reality check for us.

John isn’t referring to the wealty, he is saying anybody with material thigns.

We cannot claim to care for those in the family of God if we are do not provide for needs that we can meet.

If Jesus is our example

It doesn’t matter if it is hard, the cross was hard

It doesn’t matter if it costs us something, the cross costs Jesus something

It does not matter if the person hasn’t been good to us, Christ died for us while we were enemies of God.

We have to be about a lot more than just words. We have to be a people that demonstrate for those around us how good the love of God is

How many of you know somebody that talks a big game, but doesn’t back it up?

Transition: Sometimes those of us in Christ can begin to doubt our salvation. We can begin to grow weary. John gave us ways to find our assurance.

Assurance of Salvation 1 John 3:19-24

1 John 3:19–24 ESV

By this we shall know that we are of the truth and reassure our heart before him; for whenever our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and he knows everything. Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence before God; and whatever we ask we receive from him, because we keep his commandments and do what pleases him. 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. 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.

Verse 19

Humble service to one another that comes naturally to us is a sign of being made new in Christ.

Verses 20-21

There are gong to be times where we only begin to see the negative things in our lives. We may begin to think that because we have allowed a sin to creep into our lives that maybe we aren’t saved or maybe we aren’t useful to God.

I am extremely hard on myself. I have a hard time letting things go

Trip to the mountains

When the guilt from sin we have repented from begins to dominate our lives, we must remember we are not the highest judge, that is God.

While at times we will doubt, disobey and hate, the fact that that bothers us is proof of our salvation. God’s lack of condemnation has authority over the condemnation of ourselves. This gives us confidence before God.

Verse 22

When we are obedient to God and have confidence before Him, we can pray and receive what we ask for because we are better aligned with God’s will

Not a guarantee everything we desire is in God’s will. But the more our hearts are molded to be like God’s the more our prayers will reflect His will.

Verse 23

The greatest commandments.

Believe in the one he has sent

The ultimate thing we have been called to do is believe that Jesus is God’s Son. This will lead to us being made new in Christ and being obedient towards Him,

To live apart from Christ is by the very nature to be disobedient

Love one another

If we are not showing love towards one another, how can we claim to be a part of God’s family

Verse 24

To believe in the name of Jesus is to have a new life in Christ. We are joined with Christ. The Holy Spirit comes and dwells within us. We have the very presence of God in us.

We can feel the spirit at work in our lives

Story of my salvation.

Conclusion: Have you trusted Christ.

Transition:

Conclusion: