Family Resemblance

The Father

Introduction

Opening - Where’s the evidence? - We live in a naturally suspicious culture, full of scammers

Relevance - beloved hearts weighed down by sin and shame, assurance is found in the work of the triune God

Purpose: to comfort the challenged and to challenge the comfortable

Main Idea: The fruit of righteousness and love give believers assurance of the triune God’s work of salvation on their behalf.

Reading of the text

Prayer

Father - Righteousness and love give assurance that we are the Father’s children

Family resemblance illustration

John only mentions two families!

Jesus’ words in John 8:44

The child does the Father’s ‘works’ - Abraham (faith), the devil (hatred, murder, lies), God (righteousness and love)

Eph. 5:1; 1 John 2:29; 3:7 - God’s righteousness

1 John 4:9-11 - God’s love

Application

Believers - you bear the family resemblance!

Do not be deceived: unrighteousness does not befit a child of God

Not meant to be judge/jury (God knows hearts) but we can use discernment based on the fruit we see

Our response: lovingly and courageously call to repentance and pray

Apple tree illustration - fruit is borne from an internal transformation

Spirit - Righteousness and love give assurance that we are born again by the Spirit

God does not leave us on our own to strength to obey and love

The tension of vv. 6,9

Contradiction with 1:8,10?

Defining sin (lawlessness) - open rebellion against God and rejection of his moral authority

The chiastic structure of v. 9

The heart of Christian obedience is the new birth

John 3:3; Ezek. 36:26-27

Our heart’s desires are changed when we are born again!

Righteousness and love are evidence that our nature has been changed - apple trees bear apples!

This is the work of the Spirit - John 3:8; Ezek. 37 (dry bones [lost people of Israel] come to life when the breath [Spirit of God] enters them)

Transition - how does this promise of the new covenant come to fulfillment?

Son - Righteousness and love give assurance that we are saved by the work of the Son

Christ came to fulfill the new covenant and save his people from their sins

Why did Jesus come to earth?

To take away our sins - 1 John 3:5

To destroy the works of the devil - 1 John 3:8

To make us become the righteousness of God - 2 Corinthians 5:21

To save his people from their sins - Matthew 1:21

To bear our sins so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness - 1 Peter 2:24

Who did he come for?

To seek and save the lost - Luke 19:10

Find assurance in this: Christ came to bear away your sin and remove it as far as the east is from the west

Romans 8:1

Invitation to repentance and faith

Application

Wage war against sin - “truceless antagonism to sin” (Robert Law)

“If Christ appeared first both to ‘take away our sins’ and to ‘destroy the devil’s work’, and if, when he appears a second time…’we shall be like him’, how can we possibly go on living in sin? To do so would be to deny the purposes of both his appearings.” (John Stott)

“Be killing sin or it will be killing you.” (John Owen)

Snake illustration - our sin, evil thoughts/inclinations, addictions, etc. are dangerous!

“The best defense against spiritual disaster is aggressive pursuit of Christ.” (Robert Yarbrough)

Enslaved to sin? - Christ came to destroy the works of the devil and he is mighty to save

Mighty to save - Isaiah 63:1 NIV

“Who is this coming from Edom,

from Bozrah, with his garments stained crimson?

Who is this, robed in splendor,

striding forward in the greatness of his strength?

“It is I, proclaiming victory,

mighty to save.”

Come to set the prisoner free - Luke 4:18-19; John 8:34,36

You’re no longer a slave to sin, you’re a child of God!

Titus 3:3-7

Conclusion

The triune God has purposed and acted to save you, because of his steadfast love.

Grow in holiness, grow in love, and grow in assurance that you are a child of the Father, born again by the Spirit, because of the saving work of Jesus Christ