Brotherly Love (3)
Notes
Transcript
Handout
Please turn in your Bible to 1 John 3:11-18 as we consider Brotherly Love.
Last month, my brother, Darryl, and his wife and grandson came to visit us all the way from Wichita, Kansas. Though there is a great distance between us, my brother and I love each other very much. We never really had a strong sense of sibling rivalry, to the best of my knowledge. Certainly there were times when we didn’t always get along. But it has always been amicable between us.
After my mom passed away in January of 2001, our father remarried in October of that same year. And the woman he married we had known all of our lives as Aunt Ruby. Ruby was the widow of my mom’s brother, our Uncle Bob. So, that means that our first cousins, Dave, Sarah, Martha, Frank, and Jon, became our step siblings as well. I always referred to them as my brocos or siscos (short for brother/cousin or sister/cousin). Our dad passed away in 2016, and Ruby passed away in 2018. It was then that I learned that there was a lot of sibling rivalry amongst our step siblings/cousins. In settling the estates of our deceased parents, between my brother and I there was complete unity. But between our cousins there was chaotic contention.
In our passage for today John provides us with two examples of love. The first is a negative example — one in which we should not emulate. The other is the ultimate positive example — the one which we should emulate in our relationships with one another. As we work through this passage we will consider John’s thematic statement about love, the negative example of love, the warning about hatred, the positive example of love, and the practical applications of love.
First, let’s read our text together.
For this is the message that you have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another.
We should not be like Cain, who was of the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own deeds were evil and his brother’s righteous.
Do not be surprised, brothers, that the world hates you.
We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers. Whoever does not love abides in death.
Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.
By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers.
But if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him?
Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.
Let’s begin by looking at
The Thematic Statement
The Thematic Statement
Note that,
Love for our Spiritual Siblings is both a Reoccurring Theme and the Overall Theme of this Epistle
Look at verse 11.
For this is the message that you have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another.
I would think that since John is talking about brotherly love that he would use the Greek term, phileo to describe it, after all phileo is the word for brotherly love. It is the root of the word Philadelphia which is the city of brotherly love. Both types of love are important. Perhaps we could say that agape is the supernatural love which is given to the believers by the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit. While phileo is the natural love which is common to man.
Whatever the case, John uses the verb form of agape — agapao — to describe the love believers are to have for one another. This is not original to John, but is taken from the command of Christ to love one another as He loved us.
The message that these folks had heard from the beginning was that those who belong to Christ were to love one another in an unconditional way. They were to express their love without ever expecting their love to be reciprocated. Of course, if all believers are putting this into practice then each will be the recipient of this love — but in a nonreciprocal way.
What happens when we as a body of Christ love one another in this way? The world around will see that we belong to Christ. And they will either want to be a part of us or they will hate us. Those are the two most basic responses to love.
After John states his theme he moves quickly to give us a negative example of love. Let’s turn to
The Negative Example
The Negative Example
Note that,
Jealousy Breeds Hatred
Look at verse 12.
We should not be like Cain, who was of the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own deeds were evil and his brother’s righteous.
Just as it didn’t take very long before sin entered into the world, so it didn’t take long before sibling rivalry occurred. Remember when God confronted Adam, Eve, and the serpent for their roles in bringing sin into the world? God gave the promise of a redeemer at that time. Speaking to Satan, God said:
I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.”
God promised that a child would be born who would crush Satan and redeem mankind from their sin. It seems that Eve thought and hope that Cain would be this child.
Now Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bore Cain, saying, “I have gotten a man with the help of the Lord.”
Shortly thereafter a second son was born. His name was Abel. Moses tells us that Cain grew up to be a vegetable farmer, while Abel grew up to be a shepherd. Both are fine trades, and God certainly did not give preference to their chosen occupations. But He did give preference to their chosen offerings.
Back in the Garden of Eden, after sin entered into the world God made clothing for Adam & Eve out of animal skin. He must have taught them at that time that something had to die as a result of their sin, and he must have instructed them about substitutionary animal sacrifices. So, they understood that the only way to make atonement was through the death of a living being.
But Cain decided to rebel against God’s directive and bring an offering of vegetables instead of an animal.
In the course of time Cain brought to the Lord an offering of the fruit of the ground,
and Abel also brought of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat portions. And the Lord had regard for Abel and his offering,
but for Cain and his offering he had no regard. So Cain was very angry, and his face fell.
Cain felt that his way was just as good as God’s way. And you know what, most people today would agree with him. But that is pure rebellion against God. Look again at verse 12 of our text.
We should not be like Cain, who was of the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own deeds were evil and his brother’s righteous.
“The word translated evil one (ponēros) denotes determined, aggressive, and fervent evil that actively opposes what is good (cf. Matt. 4:3–10; 2 Cor. 2:11; 1 Peter 5:8).” (John MacArthur, 1, 2, 3 John, MacArthur New Testament Commentary (Chicago, IL: Moody Publishers, 2007), 132–133.)
Cain was totally given over to evil, and in so doing he murdered his brother. What a fine example of brotherly love!
MacArthur pointed out that “The verb in John’s phrase that Cain murdered his brother is a form of sphazō, which is a vivid term that means to butcher or slaughter. It was used of animals killed in sacrifice (cf. Lev. 1:5, lxx) and implies a violent death. (John MacArthur, 1, 2, 3 John, MacArthur New Testament Commentary (Chicago, IL: Moody Publishers, 2007), 133.)
It is like Cain drew up behind his brother grabbed him, and said to God “You want a blood sacrifice? Well here it is!” And he slit his brother’s throat. He was the original Mack the Knife.
Abel was murdered because he had obeyed God’s directive to offer a blood sacrifice for the atoning of sin. Those who belong to this world’s system which is ruled by Satan do not like the righteous actions of those who belong to Christ. Even in grade school believing children get teased for being a goody-two shoes or teachers pet, when they are merely trying to do the right thing.
This brings us to consider
The Warning
The Warning
In the following verses John gives three distinct warning. First,
John Warns about the Present Reality for Those who Lack Love for their Brothers
Warned about External Hatred
Warned about External Hatred
John Warns about the Hostile Conditions of the World’s System
Look at verse 13.
Do not be surprised, brothers, that the world hates you.
Cain is an example of the world’s hostility toward those who belong to Christ. It shouldn’t surprise us that world hates us because it hates everyone and everything that is different. Satan, who is the ruler of this world’s system has been hating God ever since (if not before) God kicked him out of heaven for his attempted mutiny. And now, Satan goes about trying to devour those who belong to God. He cannot take away their salvation which is eternally secure, but he can inflict them with all sorts of pain.
It was Satan who convinced Adam & Eve that his way was just as legitimate as God’s way. And it was probably Satan who convinced Cain that his way was just as legitimate as God’s way. And it is Satan who convinces the world to bring hostility against those who belong to Christ.
We see next that John
Warned about a Lack of Love
Warned about a Lack of Love
Look at verse 14.
We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers. Whoever does not love abides in death.
When John states that “we have passed out of death into life” he is referring to regeneration or the new birth. The sacrificial love which believers have for one another is a demonstration of this new birth.
When Joh says that the one who does not love “remains in death” he indicates that they have not been born again. They are still in a state of being spiritual zombies.
On the one hand John gives a comforting assurance to believers that their love for their brothers and sisters in Christ demonstrates that they belong to Christ. On the other hand, the lack of love means that the are presently abiding in death. They have either made a false profession of faith, or they have not yet come to saving faith in Christ.
Warned about Internal Hatred
Warned about Internal Hatred
Note that,
John Followed the Example of Jesus in Equating Hatred with Murder
The Positive Example of Love
The Positive Example of Love
The Practical Applications of Love
The Practical Applications of Love
