The foundation of assurance

Introduction

Plato’s cave - Mumford and Sons

God, the eternal life (1.5, 1.1-4).

How do you conceive of God?

God can be likened to a loving parent who continuously cares for their children, providing for their needs and guiding them through life's challenges.

God’s nature: light, love (1 John 4.8), spirit (John 4.24)

What is light? - Exodus 3.1-6 (burning bush)

Psalm 104:1–2 “Bless the Lord, O my soul! O Lord my God, you are very great! You are clothed with splendor and majesty, covering yourself with light as with a garment, stretching out the heavens like a tent.”

God’s moral perfection: holiness, purity, righteousness

What humanity has learned.

If one detail of our nature mismatches His, we can’t be with Him.

Say you ask your 15 year old to take out the trash and he ignores you:

Would you kick him out, strip him of life, and impose death on his offspring?

Adam and Eve took a bite of a fruit:

Death passed on all humanity by that one bite. Adam suffers, enslaved to work, and dies (Romans 5.12).

Much of humanity ignores reality and treats God as grandfather, or ignores God all together.

His light is revealed to us through the Word

Psalm 119:105 “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.”

John 8:12 “Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.””

What breaks our relationship with God (1.6-10).

Three IFs (false assertions) in these verses.

We must ask, since God is light, how do we keep a relationship with Him?

One who enjoys the things that God despises does not have a relationship with God (1.6).

1 John 2:15–17 “Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.”

“Walk in darkness” - peripateo - not a lapse

Jesus’ life is the light, showing us how to act and think.

One who lives as though sin has no consequence for them does not have a relationship with God (1.8)

“To have” - a state of existence

John 9:41 “Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no guilt; but now that you say, ‘We see,’ your guilt remains.”

Regardless of their conduct, the false asserted no consequence of sin.

They deceived themselves.

We humanize God. Do I care what my dog is thinking? I just want it to flourish. God is so advanced, beyond us...

One who sees the Bible as a help, and the concept of sin an artifact, does not have a relationship with God (1.10).

“We can’t sin.” - similar to previous point.

They make God a liar (Romans 3.23)

God is holy, holy, holy. He is light.

The foundation for our relationship with God (1.7-2.2).

Three IFs (positive assertions) in these verses.

One who loves the things God loves, has the blood of Jesus (1.7).

“Walk in light” - peripateo - this defines them

Fellowship with God is always paired with fellowship with those like him (“Bless those who bless you”)

Not synonymous with perfection - cleansed from every sin.

One who keeps an eye on their walk and exposes their sin, has the blood of Jesus (1.9).

God is working this in you, against your will it feels.

Based on two things:

Forgiven for God is faithful

1 Corinthians 1:8–9“who will sustain you to the end, guiltless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.”

Jeremiah 31:34 “[of the Messiah’s time]... for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.””

God promised to forgive based on the blood that Jesus shed.

Forgiven for God is righteous

How can God act as though sin didn’t happen if he is righteous?

The sacrifice of Jesus demands forgiveness be given.

Forgives the sins and cleanses us of the desires.

A Christian, when sin occurs, has Jesus speaking on their behalf (2.1-2).

The sin of 1 John 2.1 is in the aorist, the focus is not on lifestyle but simply a failure.

John makes clear he is not giving permission to sin.

We have an advocate (parakletos), a sponsor.

“In John’s teaching, when a Christian has sinned the Father observes that the sinner is sponsored by Christ, and is persuaded not to reject him and withdraw his truth.” (Grayston)

Jesus is the only one capable of pleading on our behalf.

He is the propitiation - the one who turns back the anger of God.

If we need a sponsor, then we need propitiation.

Romans 1:18 “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth.”

Conclusion

How can sinful people have anything in common with the God who is light?

2 Corinthians 5:14–15 “For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.”

Acts 18:5 “When Silas and Timothy arrived from Macedonia, Paul was occupied with the word, testifying to the Jews that the Christ was Jesus.”

Fully absorbed, attention consumed

Everything God has ever done was for Christ.

All things were by him, through him and for him.

When you come to the end of your life, it will have been wasted if it was not about knowing him.

The one reason to be alive was to know Christ.

Eternal life, all power, the perfection of goodness, nothing is worthy of Him, the entirety of the universe is not worthy of Him...

He lowered Himself to us and suffered for you while you were against Him.

He wants to stand by your side before God.

You can’t come into the light of God.

Jesus wants to bring you and keep you there.