Reasons for Righteousness

Introduction

Tonight we’re speaking on this subject: “Reasons for Righteousness”

1 John 3:1–3 ESV

See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him. 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. And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.

1 John 3:4–7 ESV

Everyone who makes a practice of sinning also practices lawlessness; sin is lawlessness. You know that he appeared in order to take away sins, and in him there is no sin. No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him. Little children, let no one deceive you. Whoever practices righteousness is righteous, as he is righteous.

1 John 3:8–9 ESV

Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil. No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God’s seed abides in him; and he cannot keep on sinning, because he has been born of God.

And here in the Scripture that I give you tonight, there are three reasons for righteousness—reasons why we ought to “behave the gospel.” not just believing but behaving. Man, I heard that word alot growing up. Behave! Will ya’ll behave!?

Now it is one thing to believe the gospel, but it is another thing to behave the gospel. And what you believe really determines how you behave. And if a person says that he believes the gospel and he doesn’t behave the gospel, he doesn’t really believe the gospel.

We get our word believe from an old English word “by live.” And what a man believes, he lives by, and the rest is just religious talk.

So the scripture give us reasons for our righteousness, and not only are they reasons for righteousness, but they are also the secret of our strength that causes us to live the way we profess. I want to give you three reasons why you ought to live a righteous life.

I used to think being righteous was kind of a insult, oh you’re so righteous or self-righteous, lah dee dah. But it’s not it’s just living right and behaving in the way we should behave. How do I live? Do I live what I read or believe or do I just talk?

I. The Father’s Love for Us

Now let’s talk about the first one, and the first one is because of the Father’s love for you, the Father’s love for me. Notice how verse 1 begins. It begins with “see” or KJV- “behold.” “Behold, what manner of love the Father has given us.” Now when John says, “Behold,/see” he means, “Would you look at that?” That is, this is such a wonderful love—it’s such an amazing love—that when John sees it, he just says, “look at that would you”

And in the light of that amazing love, John mentions a few things that are the result of that love.

vs.1- “that we should be called the sons of God.” God’s love makes me His son, and that’s a wonderful thing. And then verse 2 speaks of what we will be. “we will be like him; for we shall see him as he is.” God loves us so much that not only did He make us His sons, but furthermore, He’s going to make us like the Lord Jesus Christ.

And then verse 3-what we should be. Look in verse 3, “And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.” What is the hope? That “now are we the sons of God”; one day we’re going to be like the very Son of God. And it’s all because of God’s amazing love. And when a person knows this and understands this, he wants to live a pure life. Anybody who understands that he’s a child of God and anybody who understands that one day he’s going to be like the Lord Jesus Christ has a mighty motivation to live right.

You see, there’s a difference between the sins of the unsaved and the sins of the saved. An unsaved man sins against his Creator, and that’s bad enough. But you see, a child of God sins against love. He sins against his Father. The unsaved man sins against law. But the Christian sins against more than law; the Christian sins against God's love. That’s the difference, really, between a slave and a son. A slave is under his master's law, and so when a slave sins, he fears his master’s lash. But when a son sins, he doesn’t fear his father’s lash nearly so much as he fears his father’s displeasure.

(Did you ever get in trouble, and your parents didn’t spank you but just gave you that crushing look of disappointment. You wanted to say, oh just spank me please, it’s worse.)

Love so amazing, so divine, Demands my soul, my life, my all.

I know that when I sin against God, the One who loves me so much, not only do I break God’s law; I break God’s heart. Have you ever thought about your sins as breaking God’s heart? Have you ever thought about your sins as not just simply hurting you but hurting God?

II. The Savior’s Liberation of Us

All right, so reason number one for righteousness is because of the Father’s love for me. Reason number two is because of the Savior’s liberation of me. He has set me free.

from what?

A. From the Penalty of Sin

He has liberated me from the penalty of sin.

1 John 3:4–5 ESV

Everyone who makes a practice of sinning also practices lawlessness; sin is lawlessness. You know that he appeared in order to take away sins, and in him there is no sin.

The sinless One became sin for me that I might be removed from the penalty of sin. And Jesus Christ has liberated me—praise His holy name—from the penalty of sin.

Now John tells us that sin is “lawlessness”- it’s like many cities in America now. Now what is that? Sin is breaking God’s law. God says, “Thou shalt not.” And man says, “I will so.” God says, “Thou shalt.” And man says, “I will not.” And actually, sin is a clenched fist raised in the face of God. And therefore, sin is rebellion because sin is the transgression of the law. And law without penalty is only advice. And God is not giving advice when He gave His holy law. And sin is the transgression of the law. And all of us are guilty, for the Bible says, “All have sinned and have come short of the glory of God.” And one-half of one sin is enough to damn us forever. But Jesus Christ became sin for us, and He liberated us. He set us free from the penalty of sin.

B. From the Principle of Self

But not only have I been liberated from the penalty of sin; I have also—by that same Savior who took away the penalty— I have been liberated from the principle of self, which is the practice of sin.

1 John 3:6 ESV

No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him.

Notice in verse 6: “Who abides in him keeps on sinning” You see, here’s the wonderful thing, friend: Not only did Jesus remove the penalty of sin, but Jesus removed that principle of self that used to be on the throne of my life. And He allows me now to abide in Him that He might abide in me. I don’t have that old self nature that caused me to sin. Now, the self nature is there, but I don’t have to yield to it anymore. But I have been set free from that principle of self. I used to have a rebellious nature, and it's still there. But the Lord Jesus is overcoming it now. And we all, by nature, have a rebellious nature. Sometimes we openly rebel and sometimes we secretly rebel.

I read about a little boy who misbehaved, and his mother thought of a unique punishment. She thought she’d put him in the clothes closet and lock the door behind him and make him stay in there in the dark for awhile. And maybe that would be a fitting punishment. And after a while, she got concerned because he was so quiet in there. She said, “What are you doing in there?” He said, “Well, I have spit on your dress, and I have spit on your shoes, and I’ve spit on your coat. And I’m waiting on more spit.”

Now there are people like that who just have a rebellious nature. You put them in jail, but they still have a rebellious nature. (My brother worked in counseling in a prison for a while, and he would get so frustrated counseling some guys, now you know the condition of your parole is no alcohol and no firearms. They would say, I’d like to see someone stop me, if i’m in my house and I want blah blah blah, by golly no ones gonna stop me! Well ok, but if you get caught you’ll be back in here, well so be it!) They just were gonna do the opposite of what you wanted them to. Now the Lord, not only does He remove that penalty of sin—and I thank God for that, in verses 4 and 5—but He also removes the principle of self, that old rebellious self that’s in us.

C. From the Power of Satan

Look in verses 7 and 8:

1 John 3:7–8 ESV

Little children, let no one deceive you. Whoever practices righteousness is righteous, as he is righteous. Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil.

You know, you might see some men sitting around talking, and there will be several dogs sitting on the ground while these men are in a conversation. And then the men get up and they walk off. And one dog will get up and follow that man. Another man will get up and walk off, and the other dog will get up and follow him. Now who do those dogs follow? Well, they follow their master. They follow their master. My wife’s dog follows her every move. She’s just going to the bathroom, sit down!

You tell me who you are following, and I'll show you who your master is. If you are following Satan and going after Satan, it is because you are of the devil.

John says, “Quit kidding yourself! You’re living like the devil; it’s because you are of the devil. Don't tell me you are saved,” You see, Jesus Christ didn’t come to save us in our sins; He came to save us from our sins. He liberated us from the penalty of sin, from the principle of self, and from the power of Satan. And therefore, praise God, I don’t have to sin, because Jesus Christ has set me free.

Now the Bible goes on to say here that He appeared that He might destroy the works of the devil. Look at the end of verse 8:

1 John 3:8 ESV

Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil.

Now the word destroy does not mean “annihilate”; the devil certainly is not annihilated. But the word here, destroy, is a Greek word which means “to render inoperative.” (did you know some cars, that have OnStar or similar, they can push a button and turn off your car, if it’s an emergency or if it’s a kidnapping or carjacking, it’s rendered useless), the car is not destroyed but it don’t work! It means “to put out of commission; to make ineffective”—to bind the power of Satan! And Satan has no power over the child of God anymore, except what power the child of God allows him to have. Now the unsaved man is still like a puppet on a string. And the unsaved man says, “Well, I’m free to do as I want.” He talks about freedom. (by golly I’ll do as I please) That’s true; he is free to do as he wants. He’s just not free to do as he ought. He always does what he wants, but he never wants to do what he ought. And if he ever did, he couldn’t until he has the power of the Holy Spirit within him.

III. The Spirit’s Life Within Us

The third reason to live a righteous life, is the Spirit’s life within him. Look in verse 9 now:

1 John 3:9 ESV

No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God’s seed abides in him; and he cannot keep on sinning, because he has been born of God.

Now Christians are not just nice characters; Christians are new creatures. And because we are new creatures, we have three new things,

A. We have a new dynamic

We are born again. We are born of God. Now we call the new birth “regeneration.” Re means “again”; generate means “to be born.” We are regenerated. We are born again. And therefore, because of our new birth, we can be set free from that old life because we have a new life within us. Notice how verse 9 beings with a new birth: Notice how it ends with a new birth: “because he is born of God.” And that new birth is a dynamic within us. A Christian is not somebody who just has a set of standards out there that he is trying to keep outwardly, but he has a power within him. He has been born again. You see, I had a physical birth and that gave me only physical life. And in order for me to have spiritual life, I needed another birth. John 3, verse 6 says, “That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.”

And there is a new nature now in me; it's called the seed of God in vs. 9.

There is something supernatural that took place in me when I was saved: I was born again. It took place in you, and that seed is there, and it gives you a new nature. Now, therefore, I have two natures. There is the first birth and I have that old Adam nature that came from my first birth. And then I had a second birth, and I have that new nature that came from that new birth. There is that old seed, and there is that new seed.

Now I need to nurture the new nature. Just as I take care of the physical body that I received from my first birth, I need to nurture the nature that I received from my second birth. My physical body needs food, and so my new nature needs food. And the food, of course, is the Word of God. “As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby.” (1 Peter 2:2)

Not only does my new nature need food; my new nature needs cleanliness. I know that if you don’t keep your body clean, then you are just open to invasion from germs. First of all, that germ comes in. And after that germ comes in, then that infection comes in. And after that infection comes in, that debilitation comes in. And after that debilitation comes in, collapse comes in. and it happens spiritually- First of all, that germ of uncleanliness comes in. And then that spiritual infection comes in, and then that spiritual debilitation comes in, and then that collapse comes in.

You see, as my body needs food, my spirit needs food. As my body needs to be clean physically, so my spirit needs to be clean. And as my body needs exercise, so does my spirit need exercise. Now if I feed my body and don’t exercise it, I’ll become flabby. But if I exercise and don’t feed myself, I’ll die. But I am to feed myself and exercise myself.

B. We Have a New Desire

And because of that new dynamic, I have a new desire. Look again, if you will, please, at verse 9.

1 John 3:9 ESV

No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God’s seed abides in him; and he cannot keep on sinning, because he has been born of God.

That’s the new desire. Now the seed is that part of you that is the nature of God. And what is the nature of God? The nature of God is that He doesn’t want to sin. you want to find out whether you are saved or not? We’ll take a little test. Do you want to sin? If you do, you’re not saved. Pfft! Pfft! That’s it. You want to sin? You’re not saved.

Now you say, “Wait a minute; that’s pretty tough.” There are times I sin all right. Of course! I tell you that nothing would make me happier than to know I would never sin again. Listen. Friend, I have a new dynamic: That’s the new birth. And because I have a new dynamic, I have a new desire. God’s seed, God’s nature, is in me. And God’s nature is a nature that hates and abhors sin. And if you still have that old desire to sin, I'm not talking about the cravings of your fleshly appetite; I’m not talking about the fact that you cannot be tempted. Jesus was tempted “in all points like as we are, yet without sin.” (Hebrews 4:15) But I’m just talking about this fact that, if there is within you a deep-seated desire to sin, you don’t have the nature of God within you. All right, I’m not talking now about temptation, but I'm talking about a basic planned desire to sin is not of the Father.

C. We Have a New Deterrent

Now, let me give you a third thing here, and we are still talking about the spiritual life within us. The third reason for righteousness is that I have a new deterrent. 1 John 3:9

1 John 3:9 ESV

No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God’s seed abides in him; and he cannot keep on sinning, because he has been born of God.

Now right away your mind is just really going just like this. You are saying, “Now, wait a minute. You said, that you sin, and that it grieves you when you do. And here the Bible says that if a man is born of God, he cannot sin!” Well, does the Bible teach sinless perfection? It does not! And does this verse teach sinless perfection? It does not!

So what does this passage mean here? And we’re talking about a new deterrent that we get when we’re saved. Well, we have to learn a little bit here about the Greek tenses. And this is in the perfect tense, and it literally means that if a person is born of God he cannot habitually practice sin. He cannot make a practice of sin. Sin cannot be his way of life. That is, it’s not his way of life; it is not his nature. He does not live that way. He does not settle down in sin. It does not mean that it is impossible for him to slip into sin, or else I John 1:8–10 would be contradictory with this verse.

Conclusion

Here are three reasons for righteousness.

Number one: the Father’s love for us. Number two: the Savior’s liberation of us. And the third reason for righteousness is the Spirit’s life within me.

And the Spirit’s life within me gives me a new dynamic, which is the new birth. It gives me, a new desire, which is the nature of God in me. And it gives me a new deterrent; I cannot habitually practice sin, because it is just contrary to everything that is within me.

Are you behaving the gospel that you say that you are believing? Are you? If so, you can have that blessed assurance that Jesus is yours.