Corporate Priority 1 John 4:7-21

-There are characteristics that ought to define us as the people of God and guide our life together

Henry Martyn, a Cambridge University student, was honored at only 20 years of age for his achievements in mathematics. In fact, he was given the highest recognition possible in that field. And yet he felt an emptiness inside. He said that instead of finding fulfillment in his achievements, he had, “Only grasped a shadow.”

After evaluating his life’s goals, Martyn sailed to India as a missionary at the age of 24. When he arrived, he prayed, “Lord, let me burn out for You.” In the next 7 years that preceded his death, he translated the New Testament into three difficult Eastern languages.

What does it look like when we prioritize the Kingdom?

The Church Must Be Marked By:

I. Love vv. 7-12

John writes this letter to a church that had endured hardship

He is writing this letter as a pastor, attempting to shepherd people forward into the future that God had for them

I don’t want us to overlook the title that John uses for these people: Beloved

Beloved matters because John is not a CEO pushing people to achieve organizational goals; He is a shepherd guiding His people to God’s best

The first characteristic that John calls us to is love:

Love matters in the life of the people of God because it is evidence of our new life in Christ

When the love of God dwells in us, it overflows to others v. 7

Likewise, lovelessness is profound testimony to ignorance of God v. 8

Love has been manifested through the life of Christ

He was incarnated and walked among us, so that we could live through Him v. 9

Further, that love was demonstrated through the sacrifice of Christ; He offered Himself as the satisfaction for our sin’s debt against God v. 10

Love is completed as the love of God is expressed through us vv. 11-12

His example ought to guide us and His power enables us to do it!

His intent has always been that people live in love; in Christ, He has provided the way for us to love each other

What might it look like if we were a loving church?

II. Expectancy vv. 13-16

Next, John gives another characteristic of the people of God: expectancy

This passage is marked by 3 evidences of salvation

The presence of the Spirit

Confession of Christ

Love for God and Man

Each of these is a certainty in the life of a believer, yet we often fail to expect them to be true!

He begins with a reminder of the presence of the Holy Spirit in us who is both a:

Deposit- the promise that He will fulfill His work in us

Seal- the evidence that we belong to the Lord

The Spirit is present in us; we will experience His power as we pursue His purpose and person

As a result of this promise we are called out!

To proclaim good news, knowing that it will not return void v. 14

To believe that it has the power to bring people into communion with God through Christ v. 15

To love others as Christ has loved us v. 16

We must expect our hearts to be transformed

We must expect this from ourselves and to impact the world!

Each of these actions seems to carry a bit of uncertainty with it, yet we must live with the expectation that God is going to fulfill His Word and that our trust will not be betrayed

Show me a church that has no expectation of God’s faithfulness and I will show you a church without power or vitality; it will become a church that exists without any meaningful function in the Kingdom

What might it look like if we were an expectant church?

A young psychology student serving in the Army decided to test a theory. Drawing kitchen duty, he was given the job of passing out apricots at the end of the chow line. He asked the first few soldiers that came by, "You don't want any apricots, do you?" Ninety percent said "No." Then he tried the positive approach: "You do want apricots, don't you?" About half answered, "Uh, yeah. I'll take some." Then he tried a third test, based on the fundamental either/or selling technique. This time he asked, "One dish of apricots or two?" And in spite of the fact that soldiers don't like Army apricots, 40 percent took two dishes and 50 percent took one!

III. Boldness vv. 17-19

The third characteristic that John describes is boldness

The boldness that he describes is multifaceted, growing out of our expectation of the faithfulness of God

It is a confidence to face the day of judgment; like Jesus we are now beloved children of God v. 17

It is marked by a fearless love; we dedicate ourselves to love each other and to love the world as Christ loved the world v. 18

There are a thousand reasons to fear loving others; none of them are rooted in the character of God

Instead, we find that it is the love that has come from God that compels us to love others v. 19

What does our boldness say about what we believe about God? It says everything!

When we are most settled in the love of God we will have the boldness to trust Him and His instruction

A timid church that lives in fear of disappointing God is in many ways antithetical to the Gospel; we ought to be a bold people moved by the love of God to glorify Him in all things, in spite of the risks involved!

What might it look like if we were a bold church?

IV. Humility vv. 20-21

The final characteristic that I believe we see from this passage is humility

John addresses a very real issue in the life of the church

There are those who say they love God, but they hate their brothers

John makes his stance clear; such a one is a liar

My love for the invisible God is easily manufactured and manipulated

My genuine love for others cannot be hidden

Humility and love are interconnected

Humility enables you to love those who have not loved you, who have hurt you, and who are undeserving of love

Humility recognizes that God loves others, just as He loves us

Humility recognizes that we do not deserve the love that God has given to us

Humility recognizes that love for others is a genuine act of submission to God

What might it look like if we demonstrated more humility towards each other?

1500 Illustrations for Biblical Preaching Humility, Test Of

“The true way to be humble is not to stoop until you are smaller than yourself, but to stand at your real height against some higher nature that will show you what the real smallness of your greatness is” (Phillips Brooks).699

We are each one small part in the work of the Lord; we are not the whole thing or the main thing, but we get our part to share. We must recognize this and embrace our portion wholeheartedly!