There Is No Fear In Love
Notes
Transcript
Opening Illustration
Opening Illustration
The story is told of a time, many years ago, when a father and his daughter were walking through the grass on the Canadian prairie.
In the distance they saw a prairie fire, which would soon engulf them.
The father knew there was only one way of escape: they must quickly build a fire right where they were and burn a large patch of grass.
When the huge prairie fire drew near, they could stand on the section that had already burned.
When the flames did approach them, the girl was terrified, but her father assured her, “The flames can’t get to us.
We are standing where the fire has already been.”
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So it is with the forgiven when they see the judgment of God approaching.
They are where the flames have already been and therefore are safe.
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So, please turn your Bibles to 1 John.
We will be conducting our study in Chapter 4 and focusing on verses 17 and 18.
Our message this morning is called, “There Is No Fear In Love”
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As you are finding your place in God’s Word, I want to share that we will be focusing on the attitude of the believer in regards to the Day of Judgement.
We will discuss the subject of fear...
And see how fear stands up to the power of true and godly love.
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Opening Prayer
Opening Prayer
Before we consider our text, please join me in prayer...
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Let’s turn to our text for today:
Reading of the Text
Reading of the Text
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.
So, let’s look at our first point...
1) Assurance of Salvation
1) Assurance of Salvation
Verse 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.
As we said before in our study of 1 John...
The word “perfected”that is being used here is better translated as “completed.”
So, any thoughts of Christians reaching some kind of status of sinless perfection in this world can be ruled out.
Only Christ is perfect as in sinless.
What this verse is talking about is a mature love.
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Consider for example this comment by John MacArthur regarding this verse:
“[John] is not suggesting sinless perfection, but rather mature love marked by confidence in the face of judgment.
Confidence is a sign that love is mature.
Jesus was God’s Son in whom He was well pleased on earth;
We also are God’s children and the objects of His gracious goodness.
If Jesus called God Father, so may we, since we are accepted in the Beloved.”
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Before we dive any deeper in our study...
We must understand the truth about the Day of Judgement that is referred to in our verse.
On that day...
All will appear before the judgement seat of Christ.
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Every.
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Single.
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Person.
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That ever existed!
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So, that means no one can avoid it.
No one can escape it.
You have no undo button.
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Just one life...
Filled with decisions...
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But one decision stands out above all...
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Did you surrender to Christ as your personal Lord and Savior?
For every sin will be paid for...
Either by the one who commited the sin or by Christ if He took your punishment for Himself.
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Don’t take verses like 2 Corinthians 5:10 lightly that say:
10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.
And see the truth spoken in Matthew 16:27 that says:
27 For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay each person according to what he has done.
If you surrendered your life to the Lord then that means God had mercy on you, opened your eyes to His truth, and you would have recieved the Holy Spirit.
It means your mind has been renewed and that you are a new creation.
And as John had clearly said time and time again in this letter...
One born from above will live a righteous life...
But one who never sees the light is in darkness...
They are a slave to sin...
And their life is characterized by wickedness.
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So, although what you do in regards to works in this life does not save you...
They do reveal your heart.
They reveal the team you play on.
They reveal whether you are a child of Satan or a child of God.
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So. although all come to the judgment seat of Christ...
We as believers come with confidence...
For we are God’s children.
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Remember what John said previously in this letter in 1 John 3:2–3:
2 Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is.
3 And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.
The second half of verse 17 of our main passage says that we have “confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is so also are we in this world.”
This echos what not just John says but all of Scripture.
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God’s children are molded into the image and character of Christ...
Looking more and like Him over time.
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God’s children are to realize that they may currently live in the world but like their Master and Savior they are not of the world.
Church, our citizenship is in heaven!
And when we make it to our home we will have new renewed bodies to go with our renewed minds.
So, hold on to the truth found in Philippians 3:20–21 that says:
20 But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ,
21 who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself.
As the world around you loathes and fears the Day of Judgement....
Remember, the promises of God for His children...
Have confidence not in your own abilities but in the perfectly completed work of Christ that was done nearly 2,000 years ago on the cross.
Be confident in our Lord Jesus who intercedes for us to the Father.
Be confident that you not looking like the world is evidence that you are like Christ.
Jesus said in John 17:16:
16 They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.
Consider this note from the ESV Study Bible which says:
“Just as the Son was and is present in the world in a loving fashion that in no way attracted divine displeasure, so are the Son’s followers.
The love that Christ embodied and lived out among believers is their confidence in the day of judgment.”
So, fear not the Day of Judgement if you are a true follower of Christ...
And look with me at our second point we can extract from our passage of the day.
2) The Power of True Love
2) The Power of True Love
Verse 18 (a): There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear.
The ancient Greek word for fear is “phobos.”
This is where we get our word phobia from.
So, arachnophobia is the fear of spiders...
And claustrophobia is the fear of tight and enclosed spaces.
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“Phobos” can mean either a good fear or respect...
Or it can mean a bad fear or dread.
It is the second type of fear or dread of something that John is referring to in this verse.
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So, John is saying that as believers we are not to have a spirit of fear.
God’s perfect love removes that fear that we previously had within us.
In fact, by looking at this verse we can conclude that fear and love cannot exist at the same time.
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If God poured out His overwhelming love on us...
And we love Him...
Then we have no reason to fear.
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If we trust in the Lord...
We know that as Romans 8:28 says:
28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.
The followers of Jesus Christ have no reason to fear the end!
If Christ won’t condemn us then who will?
Who can bring a charge against God’s people?
Or as Romans 8:33-34 says:
33 Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies.
34 Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us.
John MacArthur again has some helpful comments on this verse.
He says:
“The same truth [as in verse 17] is stated negatively [here].
The love that builds confidence also banishes fears.
We love God and reverence Him, but we do not love God and come to Him in love, and at the same time, hide from Him in terror.
Fear involves torment or punishment, a reality the sons of God will never experience, because they are forgiven.”
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For those of you who are truly born from above...
For those of you who are born again...
Do not hide from Him in terror!
You are now part of the royal family of God!
And as such...
God did not leave you in your sinful and wicked state.
He put His Spirit in you.
And as 2 Timothy 1:7 says:
7 for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.
You do not have a spirit of fear living in you!
You are free from the slavery of shame and despair of your past sinful life!
You are free, Church!
The chains of bondage have been broken.
Your old self who rightly feared God’s judgement...
That person is dead!
Hope and shame cannot coexist!
Romans 5:5 says:
5 and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.
The reality of the matter...
The simple truth of it is this...
If He abides in you and you in Him...
You know how your story will end.
For the Christian...
Because we know it is not by our works that save us...
Because we know we can’t contribute to our salvation...
Because the only thing we can boast about is Jesus and the work He did on the cross...
For the Christian...
To say we will join our Lord in heaven is not an arrogant statement or confidence in ourselves.
We are confident in the authority of the truth found in God’s Word.
As 1 John 2:28 says:
28 And now, little children, abide in him, so that when he appears we may have confidence and not shrink from him in shame at his coming.
Remember who is the head of our family...
Remember who chose to adopt you....
Even when none of us deserved it...
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Remember the depth of amazing grace...
How the we the notorious criminal and enemies of God with the death sentence...
Get to be pardoned and then invited to join the King’s family and treated like the King’s very own Son.
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Remember the truth found in Romans 8:14-15:
14 For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.
15 For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!”
With that, let’s look at our third and final point.
3) What Fear Reveals
3) What Fear Reveals
Verse 18 (b): For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love.
Theologian Glenn Barker says:
“Love and fear are incompatible.
They cannot coexist.
For the Christian love is first an experience of the Father’s love for us.
That ‘love’ is so powerful and life changing that when we know it we are forever removed from the ‘fear’ of God.
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The fear spoken of here is not to be confused with reverence for God.
Reverence will only deepen through the experience of God’s love.
The experience of the holiness of God’s love makes us desire to be even more obedient to his commands.
But it also removes us from the power of fear.
Whatever may take place in this world cannot nullify the power of his love nor separate us from it.
Similarly, if we experience fear in any portion of our life, to that extent we deny God’s love and fail to trust him.”
I want you to consider something, Beloved.
Just because one often hears a phrase in Christian circles does not make it biblical or true.
Last Sunday when Jim and Tammy were visiting us we had a conversation about one of those sayings.
Many Christians say that one of the roles of the Holy Spirit is to convict us of our sin.
That phrase does not usually raise up many red flags.
Many see that it is based on John 16:8 which says:
8 And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment:
But, I can’t stress this enough...
Context…Context…Context.
Look at the whole passage and we come to an accurate and proper understanding of the Holy Spirit’s role in our lives.
The following verses...
Verses 9 through 11 interpret for us verse 8.
Look with me at John 16:8-11:
8 And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment:
9 concerning sin, because they do not believe in me;
10 concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer;
11 concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.
So, the Holy Spirit convicts three different groups of people on three different things.
The ones that the Holy Spirit convicts of sin are non-believers.
The ones that He convicts of righteousness are true believers.
And the one He convicts of judgement is Satan.
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So, it is true that the Holy Spirit convicts believers...
But it is not of sin and punishment.
He convicts us instead to be righteous because we are children of God.
For a conviction always has to do with punishment.
We are convicted criminals no more!
Before you and I believed...
Yes, the Holy Spirit convicted us of sin for we were on the highway to Hell.
However, after being born again...
We are now motivated by living a righteous life out of love for God who first loved us.
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This proper understanding of the Holy Spirit’s role as you would expect perfectly lines up with the rest of the teachings in Scripture.
John himself wrote in 1 John 3:21:
21 Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence before God;
Do you feel condemned?
Do you fear God’s judgement?
The reality is that you may not be in right standing with God.
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But if you understand that your future has no condemnation.
If you have a sense of confidence to stand in front of God on Judgement Day because of what He did for you.
Then the reality is that there is strong evidence that you belong to Christ and are one of His precious sheep.
Romans 8:1 is one of the most beloved verses in all of Scripture.
Paul wrote to the church in Rome:
1 There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
Church, how much condemnation is there for those in Christ?
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Exactly...
None!
There is no condemnation for those in Christ.
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David, the psalmist and king who was a man after God’s own heart understood that truth.
That is seen in the beauty of Psalm 23 and specifically the line in verse 4 that reads:
4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
God has been telling His followers to fear not since the Old Covenant.
Look at what truth is found in Isaiah 41:10 as the Word of God says:
10 fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
Memorize these verses...
When any fear and dread pops up in your thoughts take it captive...
Listen instead to the Holy Spirit in you that is convicting you of righteousness.
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Hold on to the promises of God...
Hold on to the words of our Lord and Savior when He said in John 5:24:
24 Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.
The moment your eyes are open you pass from death to life.
There is no going back.
We may still have work to do in tis world...
And the Lord will discipline us when we do sin...
But it is done out of love.
Just take a look at 1 Corinthians 11:32:
32 But when we are judged by the Lord, we are disciplined so that we may not be condemned along with the world.
The Lord disciplines us to protect us from condemnation.
So, don’t get this confused with Him abandoning you.
We have a loving Master that once He saves us will never let us go and never condemn us.
So, fear not the Day of Judgment my brothers and sisters.
Closing Illustration
Closing Illustration
As this message comes to a close, I want to share this:
There once was a lawyer who was a wicked man.
Once he hired a horse and, either through accident or ill-usage, killed the animal.
Naturally the owner insisted on being paid its value, together with some compensation for the loss of its use.
The lawyer acknowledged his liability, and said he was perfectly willing to pay, but at the moment he was a little short on ready cash.
Would the owner of the animal accept a IOU note?
“Certainly,” he said.
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Whereupon the lawyer further said that he must be allowed a long date.
“You can fix your own time,” said the owner of the horse.
The wicked man then drew the note, making it payable at the Day of Judgment.
Eventually the owner of the horse took the matter to court, and there, in defense, the lawyer asked the judge to look at the note.
He did so, and then replied:
“The note is perfectly good sir and as this is day of judgment, I decree that you pay tomorrow.”
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None of us know the exact Day of Judgement.
For the believer.
The Day of Judgement can be today or another 1,000 years from now.
When have confidence either way.
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However, for the ones who do not really know the Lord...
For the ones that have never really surrendered to the Lord...
The Day of Judgement is a day they fear.
Sometimes out of that fear they convince themselves that the day is far away and they will live a long life.
But, at any moment our life comes to an end and our fate will be sealed.
There is no divine undo button you can press.
There is no life line you can call in.
There are no exceptions that will be made.
It is a false notion to think that we will have tomorrow to get right with God.
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If the Day of Judgement is a day you fear...
Then stop doing things your way and follow the King of Kings and Lord of Lords!
And then you too will be counted amount those that joyfully and anxiously look forward to our Savior’s return.
For the followers of Christ, the Day of Judgment is just the beginning of eternity with our precious Master.
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To God be all the glory.
Amen.
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Please join us for one more song from the Praise Band.