Blessed Assurances
I John • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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"Nothing is certain but death and taxes."
Benjamin Franklin wrote those words in 1789. Of course, a wise man like Franklin knew that many other things are also certain.
The Christian also knows that there are many certainties. Of spiritual truth, Christians are not afraid to say, "We know!" In fact, the word know occurs 39 times in John's brief letter, eight times in this closing chapter.
Man has a deep desire for certainty, and he will even dabble in the occult in his effort to find out something for sure.
The life that is real is built on the divine certainties that are found in Jesus Christ. The world may accuse the Christian of being proud and dogmatic, but this does not keep him from saying, "I know!" In these closing verses of John's letter, we find five Christian certainties on which we can confidently build our lives.
1 The Lord Jesus’ Deity
6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
But how do we know that Jesus Christ is God?
34 But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced his side, and forthwith came there out blood and water.
35 And he that saw it bare record, and his record is true: and he knoweth that he saith true, that ye might believe.
(1 John 5:6-10
6 This is he that came by water and blood, even Jesus Christ; not by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit that beareth witness, because the Spirit is truth.
7 For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one.
8 And there are three that bear witness in earth, the spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one.
9 If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater: for this is the witness of God which he hath testified of his Son.
10 He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself: he that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth not the record that God gave of his Son.
Some of His contemporaries called Him a liar and a deceiver (Matt. 27:63). Others have suggested He was a religious fanatic, a madman, or perhaps a Jewish patriot who was sincere but sadly mistaken.
The people to whom John was writing were exposed to a popular false teaching that Jesus was merely a man on whom "the Christ" had come when Jesus was baptized. On the cross, "the Christ" left Jesus ("My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?") and so He died like any other human being.
John's epistle refutes this false teaching. It presents three infallible witnesses to prove that Jesus is God.
First Witness-The Water. Jesus came "by water and blood." The water refers to His baptism in Jordan, when the Father spoke from heaven and said,
"This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased" (Matt. 3: 13-17). At the same time the Spirit descended like a dove and rested upon Him. This was the Father's attestation of His Son at the beginning of Jesus' ministry.
Second Witness-The Blood. But the Father gave further witness as the time drew near for Jesus to die. He spoke audibly to Jesus from heaven, and said,
"I have both glorified [My name], and will glorify it again" (John 12:28). Furthermore, the Father witnessed in miracle power when Jesus was on the cross: the supernatural darkness, the earthquake, and the rending of the Temple veil (Matt. 27:45, 50-53). No wonder the centurion cried out, "Truly this was the Son of God!" (Matt. 27:54)
Jesus did not receive "the Christ" at His baptism and lose it at the cross. On both occasions, the Father witnessed to the deity of His Son.
Third Witness-The Spirit. The Spirit was given to bear witness to Christ (John 15:26; 16:14). We can trust the Spirit's witness because "the Spirit is truth." We were not present at the baptism of Christ or at His death, but the Holy Spirit was present. The Holy Spirit is the only Person active on earth today who was present when Christ was ministering here. The witness of the Father is past history, but the witness of the Spirit is present experience. The first is external, the second is internal, and both agree.
How does the Spirit witness within the heart of a believer? "For you have not received a spirit of Slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons, by which we cry out,
'Abba! Father!' The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God" (Rom. 8:15, 16, NAS). His witness is our inner confidence that we belong to Christ-not a confidence that we "work up" for ourselves, but a confidence that God gives
The Spirit also witnesses to us through the Word.
As we read God's Word, He speaks to us and teaches us. This is not true of an unsaved man (1 Cor. 2:14); it is true only of a believer.
A Christian feels "at home" with God's people because the Spirit dwells in him. This is another way the Spirit bears witness.
The Law required two or three witnesses for a matter to be settled (Deut. 19:15). The Father witnessed at the baptism and at the Cross, and the Spirit witnesses today within the believer. The Spirit, the water, and the blood settle the matter: Jesus is God.
(Most scholars agree that 1 John 5:7 of the Authorized Version does not belong in the letter, but omitting it does not affect the teaching at all.)
We receive the witness of men, so why should we reject the witness of God?
People often say, "I wish I could have faith!" But everybody lives by faith! All day long, people trust one another. They trust the doctor and the pharmacist; they trust the cook in the restaurant; they even trust the fellow driving in the other lane on the highway. If we can trust men, why can we not trust God? And not to trust Him is to make Him a liar!
Jesus is God: this is the first Christian certainty, and it is foundational to everything else.
2 Eternal Life By Grace and Through Faith (1 John 5:11-13)
31 But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name.
The key word is witness or NAS).
This gift is received by faith. God has gone on record in His Word as offering eternal life to those who will believe on Jesus Christ. Millions of Christians have proved that God's record is true. Not to believe it is to make God a liar. And if God is a liar, nothing is certain.
God wants His children to know that they belong to Him. The Spirit inspired John to write his Gospel to assure us that "Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God" (He wrote this epistle so that we may be sure that we are the children of God (I John 5:13).
It would be helpful at this point to review the characteristics of God's children:
• "Everyone also who practices righteousness is born of Him" (2:29, NAS).
• "No one who is born of God practices sin" (3:9, NAS).
• "We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brethren" (3:14, NAS).
• "Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God" (4:7, NAS).
• "For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world" (5:4).
If you bear these "birthmarks," you can confidently say that you are a child of God.
When Sir James Simpson, the discoverer of chloroform, was on his deathbed, a friend asked him, "Sir, what are your speculations?"
Simpson replied: "Speculations! I have no speculations! 'For I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that He can keep that which I have committed unto Him against that day.'"
3 The Believer’s Access To God (1 John 5:14, 15)
31 But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name.
It is one thing to know that Jesus is God and that we are God's children, but what about the needs and problems of daily life? Jesus helped people when He was here on earth; does He still help them? Earthly fathers care for their children; does the heavenly Father respond when His children call on Him?
Christians have confidence in prayer; just as they have confidence as they await judgment (2:28; 4:17). As we have seen, the word confidence means "freedom of speech." We can come to the Father freely and tell Him our needs.
Of course, there are conditions we must meet.
First, we must have a heart that does not condemn us (3:21, 22). Unconfessed sin is a serious obstacle to answered prayer (Ps. 66:18). It is worth noting that differences between a Christian husband and his wife can hinder their prayers (1 Peter 3:1-7). If there is anything between us and any other Christian, we must settle it (Matt. 5:23-25). And unless a believer is abiding in Christ, in love and obedience, his prayers will not be answered (
Second, we must pray in God's will. "Thy will be done" (Matt. 6:10). "Prayer is a mighty instrument, not for getting man's will done in heaven, but for getting God's will done on earth," wrote Robert Law.
George Mueller, who fed thousands of orphans with food provided in answer to prayer, said: "Prayer is not overcoming God's reluctance. It is laying hold of God's willingness."
There are times when we can only pray, "Not my will but Thine be done," because we simply do not know God's will in a matter. But most of the time we can determine God's will by reading the Word, listening to the Spirit (Rom. 8:26, 27), and discerning our circumstances. Our very faith to ask God for something is often proof that He wants to give it (Heb. 11:1).
There are many promises in the Bible that we can claim in prayer. God has promised to supply our needs (Phil. 4:19)-not our greeds! If we obey His will and really need something, He will supply it in His way and in His time.
"But if it is God's will for me to have a thing, then why should I pray about it?" Because prayer is the way God wants His children to get what they need. God not only ordains the end, but He also ordains the means to the end-prayer. And the more you think about it, the more wonderful this arrange. ment becomes. Prayer is really the thermometer of the spiritual life. God has ordained that I maintain a close walk with Him if I expect Him to meet my needs.
John does not write, "We shall have the requests," but, "We know that we have the requests" (cf. 1 John
5:15). The verb is present tense. We may not see the answer to prayer immediately, but we have an inner confidence that God has answered. This confidence, or faith, is "the evidence of things not seen" (Heb. 11: 1). It is God witnessing to us that He has heard and answered.
What breathing is to a physical man, prayer is to a spiritual man. If we do not pray, we "faint" (Luke 18:1). Prayer is the utterance of the lips and the heart's desire. "Pray without ceasing" (1 Thes. 5:17) does not mean that a Christian always says an audible prayer. We are not heard for our much speaking (Matt. 6:7). No, "Pray without ceasing" suggests the attitude of the heart and the words of the lips. A Christian who has his heart fixed on Christ and is trying to glorify Him is praying constantly even when he is not conscious of it.
So with prayer: if we are abiding in Christ, the very desires of our heart are heard by God whether we voice them or not.
The pages of the Bible and the pages of history are filled with reports of answered prayer. Prayer is not spiritual self-hypnosis. Nor do we pray because it makes us feel better. We pray because God has commanded us to pray and because prayer is the God-appointed means for a believer to receive what God wants to give him. Prayer keeps a Christian in the will of God and living in the will of God keeps a Christian in the place of blessing and service. We are not beggars; we are children coming to a wealthy Father who loves to give His children what they need.
Though He was God in the flesh, Jesus depended on prayer. He lived on earth, as we must, in dependence on the Father. He arose early in the morning to pray (Mark 1:35), though He had been up late the night before healing the multitudes. He sometimes spent all night in prayer (Luke 6:12). In the Garden of Gethsemane, He prayed with "strong crying and tears" (Heb. 5:7). On the cross He prayed three times.
If the sinless Son of God needed to pray, how much more do we?
The most important thing about prayer is the will of God. We must take time to ascertain what God's will is in a matter, especially searching in the Bible for promises or principles that apply to our situation.
Once we know the will of God, we can pray with confidence, and then we wait for him to reveal the answer.
4 A Christian’s Power Over Sin (1 John 5:16-19)
"We know that no one who is born of God sins"
(v. 18, NAS). "No one born of God practices sin" (3:9, NAS). Occasional sins are not here in view, but habitual sins, the practice of sin. Because a believer has a new nature ("God's seed," 3:9), he has new desires and appetites and is not interested in Sin.
A Christian faces three enemies, all of which want to lead him into sin: the world, the flesh, and the devil.
The world "lies in the power of the evil one" (5:19, NAS), Satan-the god of this age (2 Cor. 4:3, 4, lit.) and the prince of this world (John 14:30). He is the spirit who works in the children of disobedience (Eph. 2:2).
Satan has many devices for leading a believer into sin. He tells lies, as he did to Eve (2 Cor. 11:1-3;
Gen. 3), and when men believe his lies they turn away from and disobey God's truth. Or, Satan may inflict physical suffering, as he did with Job and Paul
(2 Cor. 12:7-9). In David's case, Satan used pride as his weapon and urged David to number the people and in this way defy God (1 Chron. 21). Satan is like a serpent who deceives (Rev. 12:9) and a lion who devours (1 Peter 5:8, 9). He is a formidable enemy.
Then there is the problem of the flesh, the old nature with which we were born and still with us. True, we have a new nature (the divine seed, 1 John 3:9) within us, but we do not always yield
The world is our third enemy (2:15, 17). It is easy for us to yield to the desires of the flesh, the desires of the eyes, and the pride of life! The atmosphere around us makes it hard for us to keep our minds pure and our hearts true to God.
Then how does a believer keep from sinning?
Verse 18 of chapter 5 answers: Jesus Christ keeps the believer so that the enemy cannot get his hands on him. "He [Christ] who was born of God keeps him [the believer] and the evil one does not touch him" (NAS). The Authorized Version here gives the impression that a believer keeps himself from sin, but this is not what the verse says. Of course, a Christian must indeed keep himself in the love of God (Jude 21); but it is not true that a Christian must depend on himself to overcome Satan.
Peter's experience with Satan helps us to understand this truth.
31 And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat:
32 But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.
To begin with, Satan cannot touch any believer without God's permission. Satan wanted to sift all the disciples, and Jesus permitted him. But Jesus prayed especially for Peter, and His prayer was answered. Peter's faith did not ultimately fail, even though his courage failed. Peter was restored and became a mighty and effective soul-winner.
When Satan attacks us, we can be sure that God permitted him. And if God permits him, He will also give us the power to overcome because God will never permit us to be tested above our strength (1 Cor. 10:13
13 There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.
One of the characteristics of "spiritual young men" is their ability to overcome the evil one (1 John 2:13,14). Their secret? "The word of God abides in you"
(2:14, NAS). Part of the armor of God is the sword of the Spirit (Eph. 6:17), and this sword overcomes Satan.
When a believer sins, he can confess his sin and be forgiven (1 John 1:9). But a believer dares not play with sin because sin is lawlessness (3:4, where "transgression of the Law" means "lawlessness"). A person who practices sin proves that he belongs to Satan
(3:7-10). Furthermore, God warns that sin can lead to physical death!
"All unrighteousness is sin," but some sin is worse than other sin. All sin is hateful to God, and should be hateful to a believer; but some sin is punished with death. John tells us (5:16, 17) about the case of a brother (a believer) whose life was taken because of sin.
The Bible mentions people who died because of their sin. Nadab and Abihu, the two sons of Aaron the priest, died because they deliberately disobeyed God (Lev. 10:1-7). Korah and his clan opposed God and died (Num. 16). Achan was stoned because he disobeyed Joshua's orders from God at Jericho (Josh.6-7). A man named Uzzah touched the ark and God killed him (2 Sam. 6).
"But those are Old Testament examples!" someone may argue. "John is writing to New Testament believers who live under grace!"
To whom much is given, much shall be required.
A believer today has a far greater responsibility to obey God than did the Old Testament saints. We have a complete Bible, the full revelation of God's grace, and the Holy Spirit living within us to help us obey God. But there are cases in the New Testament of believers who lost their lives because they disobeyed God.
Ananias and Sapphira lied to God about their offering and died (Acts 5:1-11). Some believers at Corinth died because of the way they had acted at the Lord's Supper (1 Cor. 11:30). And
1 Corinthians 5:1-5 suggests that a certain offender would have died had he not repented and confessed his sin (2 Cor. 2:6-8).
If a believer does not judge, confess, and forsake sin, God must chasten him. This process is described in Hebrews 12: 1-13, which suggests that a person who does not subject himself to the Father will not live
(v. 9). In other words, first God "spanks" his rebellious children, and if they do not yield to His will, He may remove them from the world lest their disobedience lead others astray and bring further disgrace to His name.
"The sin unto death" is not someone’s specific sin.
Instead, it is a kind of sin-it is the sort of sin that leads to death. With Nadab and Abihu, they presumed to take the priest's office and enter the holy of holies. In the case of Achan, it was covetousness. Ananias and Sapphira were guilty of hypocrisy and lying to the Holy Spirit. if a Christian sees a brother sinning, he should pray for him (1 John 5:16), asking that he confess his sin and return to fellowship with the Father. But if in his praying, he does not sense that he is asking in God's will (as instructed in vv. 14,
15), then he should not pray for the brother. "Therefore, pray not thou for this people, neither lift up cry nor prayer for them, neither make intercession to Me; for I will not hear thee" (Jer. 7:16). James 5: 14-20 somewhat parallels 1 John 5:16, 17.
James describes a believer who is sick, possibly because of his sin. He sends for the elders, who come to him and pray for him. The prayer of faith heals him and if he has sinned his sins are forgiven. "The prayer of faith" is prayer in the will of God, as described in 1 John 5:14, 15. It is "praying in the Holy Spirit" (Jude 20).
Christians do not deliberately practice sin. They have the divine nature within; Jesus Christ guards them, and they do not want God's discipline.
5 The Christian Life Is the Real Life (1 John 5:20, 21)
This is the secret of the life that is real. We are in contact with reality because we have met the true God through His Son Jesus Christ. Our fellowship is with a God who is genuine. As we have seen, the word "real" means "the original as opposed to a copy" and "the authentic as opposed to an imitation." Jesus Christ is the true Light (John 1:9 and true Bread (6:32), and true Vine (15:1), and Truth itself (14:6). He is the Original; everything else is a copy. He is authentic; everything else is only an imitation.
9 That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.
Jesus Christ is the true God. We know Him who is true, and we are in Him who is true. We have
"the real thing"!
"We know that our real life is in the true One, and in His Son, Jesus Christ. This is the real God and this is real, eternal life" (v. 20, PH). Reality has been the theme throughout John's letter, and now we are reminded of it again.
John was probably writing to believers in the city of Ephesus, a city given over to the worship of idols.
The temple of Diana, one of the wonders of the ancient world, was located in Ephesus, and the making and selling of idols was one of the chief occupations of the people there (Acts 19:21-41). Surrounded by idolatry, Christians there were under tremendous pressure to conform.
But "we know that there is no such thing as an idol in the world and that there is no God but one"
(1 Cor. 8:4, NAS). "an idol has no real existence" (NAS, marg.). The tragedy of idolatry is that a dead image can do a worshiper no good because it is not genuine. Hebrew writers in the Old Testament called idols "nothings, vain things, vapors, emptiness." An idol is a lifeless, useless substitute for the real thing.
The Psalms contain caustic indictments of idolatry (Pss. 115:1-8; 135:15-18). To human vision. an idol looks with real eyes. ears. mouth. nose, hands, and feet are but useless imitations of the real thing. The eyes are blind, the ears are deaf, the mouth is silent. the hands and feet are paralyzed. But the real tragedy is that "those who make them will become like them: everyone who trusts in them" (Ps. 115:8, NAS). We become like what we worship!
Christians live in an atmosphere of reality. Most unsaved people live in an atmosphere of pretense and sham. Christians have been given spiritual discernment to know the true from the false, but the unsaved do not have this understanding. Christians do not simply choose between good and bad; they choose between true and false. An idol represents that which is false and empty; and a person who lives for idols will himself become false and empty.
Few people today bow to idols of wood and metal.
Nevertheless, other idols capture their attention and affection. Covetousness, for example, is idolatry (Col.
3:5). A man may worship his bankbook or his portfolio just as fervently as a so-called heathen worships his ugly idol. "Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and Him only shalt thou serve" (Matt. 4:10). The thing we serve is the thing we worship! Whatever controls our lives and "calls the signals" is our god.
This explains why God warns us against the sin of idolatry. Not only is it a violation of His commandment (Ex. 20:1-6), but it is a subtle way for Satan to take control of us. We are guilty of idolatry when "things" take God's place in our lives. This means we are living for the unreal instead of for the real.
To a man of the world, the Christian life is unreal and the worldly life is real. This is because a man of the world lives by what he sees and feels (things) and not by what God says in His Word. An idol is a temporal thing; Jesus Christ is eternal God. "For the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal" (2 Cor. 4:18, NAS).
Like Moses, a Christian endures "as seeing Him Who is invisible" (Heb. 11:27). Faith is "the evidence of things not seen" (Heb. 11:1). Noah had never seen a flood, yet by faith he "saw" it coming and did what God told him to do. Abraham "saw" a heavenly city and country by faith, and was willing to forsake his own earthly home to follow God. All of the great heroes of faith named in Hebrews 11 accomplished what they did because they "saw the invisible" by faith. In other words, they were in contact with reality.
The world boasts of its enlightenment, but a Christian walks in the real light, because God is light. The world talks about love, but it knows nothing of the real love that a Christian experiences because "God is love." The world displays its wisdom and learning, but a Christian lives in truth because "the Spirit is truth." God is light, love, and truth; these together make a real life.
"But it makes no difference what a man believes so long as he is sincere!"
This popular excuse hardly needs refutation. Does what the pharmacist, surgeon, or chemist believes make any difference? It makes all the difference in the world!
A Christian has turned from idols to serve the living and true God" (1 Thes. 1:9). Idols are dead, but Christ is the living God. Idols are false, but Christ is the true God. This is the secret of the life that is real!
So John's admonition, "Keep yourselves from idols," can be paraphrased, "Watch out for the imitation and the artificial and BE REAL!"