Confident in God’s Love

1 John 2:28–3:3 ESV

28 And now, little children, abide in him, so that when he appears we may have confidence and not shrink from him in shame at his coming. 29 If you know that he is righteous, you may be sure that everyone who practices righteousness has been born of him. 1 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. 2 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. 3 And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.

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Have you ever had someone show up at your house unexpectedly? I remember when I was younger my Dad used to take me to run errands with him. Back then you would never just let your kids stay home, there was nothing for them to do… No xbox, no internet, no cell phones... So I would go with Dad to pay bills, stop at the bank, grab a bite to eat… And almost every-time visit someone in the family.

“Oh hey” Dad would say, “We are near your uncle’s house… Let’s see if he is home.”

In Italian families back in the day, ewe could always stop by Uncle nick and Aunt Mar’s, Uncle David and Carol’s house, and they would have a coffee cake and some other goodies to eat. They were always ready if company stopped by to hang out. I would play with one of my cousins, my dad and his brothers would start playing cards or go work on a car, and before long my mother was calling around to find out where we were...

It was a different culture at a different time… But it seemed as though we were always ready if someone was to stop over at the house. The house had to be clean, and if someone stopped over we all had to come out of our rooms and visit. It really didn’t matter if it was family of friends, we were always expected to be good hosts and visit. For certain people, we knew they would stop by at some point and the house required a little more cleaning, because nana and papa were gonna come over, and no one wants to hear them make a comment about things not being nice and clean...

It seems like nowadays if someone knocks on your door or rings your doorbell, people hide and look out the window, or act like, “Who could that be? Why would someone be here now?”

We live in a culture that is increasingly connected by social media and technology, but is less competent to actually be social and hospitable. People don’t just stop by to see how you are doing because they were in your neighborhood. And they usually don’t call first, they send an email or a text message, or a private message on whatever social media platform they use. People don’t do the pop over anymore...

How odd would it be if the elders of your church appeared at your door one day… Would it be viewed as rude because they didn’t schedule a time beforehand to come by and check on you? Would you have something to feel ashamed of in your house? Why am I asking that?

The text we have before us today admonishes us to live in such a way that we will have nothing to be ashamed of at Christ’s return. John points out that knowledge Christ’s righteousness should bring out our practice of righteousness since we have been adopted by God. And all of this is because of the Love God has for us as his children.

John wants to promote holiness in God’s children by pointing us to Christ’s return.

1 John 2:28 ESV

28 And now, little children, abide in him, so that when he appears we may have confidence and not shrink from him in shame at his coming.

The encouragement here is to ABIDE IN HIM… We have talked a lot about this idea of abiding in Him.

To Abide in Christ means more than to believe the Gospel or to just believe you are forgiven of sins, it speaks of a continued relationship with him that is characterized by Love, Faith, Godliness and righteousness. To abide means to be found IN, it is a living condition. The actual greek word here means to “KEEP ON” in Him… It expresses a thought of continued activity in Him…

“And now, little children, KEEP ON in Him, or CONTINUE TO STAY ACTIVE in HIM… WHY???

Why is there this continued active state of our lives now in Him?

Because He is coming again! WHEN HE APPEARS we can have confidence that we belong to him!

Confidence in God’s Love comes from abiding in Him

Those who abide in him will welcome his return, they will long for it and expect it to come. They will be confident in it.

In contrast those who will shrink back and will be ashamed at his coming will be the ones who are aware that their sin has no been covered… Like Adam and Eve in the garden they will want to hide, but at his next coming there will be nowhere to hide from Christ because he will be coming as the Judge. And there will be a difference between those who await his return and those who are ashamed and shrink back at his coming… What a difference between those who belong to him and those who don’t.

Revelation 19:11–16 ESV

11 Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. 12 His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, and he has a name written that no one knows but himself. 13 He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God. 14 And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses. 15 From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. 16 On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords.

Jesus is coming again and it will be a terror to those who have rejected him and his Gospel… yet there is a difference in how that day will be recieved for God’s children...

John 3:16–18 ESV

16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.

Do you see the difference in those who believe in him and those who do not? Did you notice the confidence that we can have in God’s love as we abide in him until that Day… Because we know that he did not come to condemn us but to save us… So we KEEP ON in Him!

But remember that this was written to the church at a time when many were trying to infiltrate the church who actually did not belong to the church. Theirs was a problem of understand ing how to live for him if they have really believed in him and how to tell the difference between those who are true believers and those who are not.

1 John 2:29 ESV

29 If you know that he is righteous, you may be sure that everyone who practices righteousness has been born of him.

So it was simple for them to see who belonged to God and who did not… Look at their life and see if they practice righteousness. A practice of righteousness is different from a work of righteousness...

Works righteousness is people who are “DOING” certain good things to earn a position from God.

However, practicing righteousness speaks of a lifestyle that flows from a position that God gives you first. We practice righteousness because we know he is Righteous, and we know we are in HIM!

When Jesus is your identity your lifestyle, or practice changes. But this comes from knowledge of him first… IF YOU KNOW HE IS RIGHTEOUS…

Knowledge of Christ’s righteousness help us practice righteousness

When we find ourselves in Him, when Jesus is our identity, when we no longer identify ourselves with the sinful ways our hearts used to go but now we know him and his righteousness, then we practice righteousness. Meaning we live in an ongoing way of righteousness.

The key is that our identity has to be wrapped up in the truth of Christ...

2 Corinthians 5:21 ESV

21 For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

This is an awesome memory verse… If you struggle with identity and identifying with your sinful ways, you need to remind yourself of this truth. In Christ you are the righteousness of God because Jesus became sin for you… he was judged in your place for your sin, even though he didn’t commit even one sin… Why would he do that??? Because he is actually the one who is Righteous… And if you know that he is righteous, then you will practice righteousness because you are in him and he is yours!

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And going back to what John said earlier, those who appear to have him but do not continue in him but depart from him, they were never really in Him… those who are his Practice righteousness… meaning it is continual and ongoing in their life.

He finishes the thought by saying, “…we may be sure that everyone who practices righteousness, HAS BEEN BORN OF HIM!!!!”

Why is it that John favors this word to explain salvation… BORN.

What did you do to become born??? In what ways were you able to coax your parents into having you? Likewise, how did you get God to agree to giving you new life? There is nothing you could’ve done to prevail upon God almighty, to be born of him...

So John is teaching us about Abiding and practicing, or living in an ongoing manner, a life that has been given to us by God. But not because we are so great that we in ourselves can just do the right thing and so be righteous… He tells us exactly why this is possible...

1 John 3:1 ESV

1 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.

I love what Charles Spurgeon said about this verse and this word “SEE”

It invites us “to ponder, to study”, Spurgeon said, “to Pry into this secret!”

Behold, What kind of Love the Father HAS given to us!!!!

How do we gain entrance into God’s family??? John tells us in verse 1 that it is because of the Love of God for us. And notice where God is positioned in this family? The Father! This is the key position to emphasize the family relationship.

If you are adopted into a family you take the Fathers last name, you are now of his line!

John goes on here to make it clear that we have recieved Love from God… And notice that this love is not earned but it is given to us… John is saying that this gift cannot be earned, bought or withdrawn. It is a love that we do not deserve yet God stoops down and gives it to us… Behold that… pry into that secret… Ponder and study that kind of Love that no one can earn or buy, yet is freely given.

God’s Love is deep, wide, it is marvelous, unimaginable, incomprehensible, boundless, endless and measureless… Paul struggled to out it into words...

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Ephesians 3:18–19 ESV

18 may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, 19 and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

One theologian put it this way… To try to understand the Love of God is like measuring the ocean with a teacup. It is impossibly exhaustive and a futile effort to try and quench it!

And our Father, God, has given us this Love, and has “called” each of us his child!

Do you understand that? Are you confident in that… because as John says, “AND SO WE ARE!!!!”

We can be confident of God’s Love because we know we belong to him

Just like you belong to an earthly family, one that even if you would bring shame upon them, you would still carry their name, and if they would disown you, you would still biologically be part of them. You did nothing to make yourself be born to that family and you can do nothing to get out of that family as you share their DNA…

Likewise, you had nothing to do with your spiritual birth into God’s family...

John 1:12–13 ESV

12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, 13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.

God has adopted you because he wanted to do so, not because you did anything to convince him to do so. By the means of God’s forgiveness of our sins and the new birth, we are in the family of God! And we can be confident of his love for us because we are in his family!

Yet this world may not recognize us as his children, and this is because they do not know him as their Father. This is not something that should surprise us, because the world did not recognize Jesus either.

1 John 3:2 ESV

2 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.

Again we hear from John that Jesus will appear again! But this time something will be different. And in this is some of the most encouraging truths of the Christian faith in a world that is full of tension and heartbreak.

First another assurance that we are God’s children. But John tells us that the implications of being God’s child cannot be fully realized in this life. What we will be, has not yet appeared… Child of God listen to me… there is so much more! We know very little about that day but we do know this...

When he does appear, we shall be like him! That means the way we are now is going to change. No more stress, no more sickness, no more anger, no more lust, no more fighting the temptations of the flesh… We shall be like him, we shall be changed!

Richard Baxter the old reformed pastor from the 1600’s said it best,

“My knowledge of that life is small,

the eye of faith is dim;

But ‘tis enough that Christ knows all,

and I shall be like him!”

You see we are children of God who have not yet come into our full inheritance, yet when we see him we will be as he is.

In David Allen’s commentary on 1 John he tells a story from the old African American preacher E.V.Hill, who once hired a young girl to be his secretary. He did know who she was other than her name. One day one of his friends came by and said, “Do you know who your secretary is?”

Hill responded, “Of course. That’s Natalie Cole.” He said, “But do you know who Natalie Cole is?” Hill said, “Of course. She is a nice young lady who works very well, and I pay her $2 an hour.”

The friend said, “That’s Nat King Cole’s daughter.” Hill was stunned. He asked Natalie to come into his office and he asked her if she was indeed Nat King Cole’s daughter.

“Yes” she said. “Why didn’t you tell me?” asked Hill. She said, “I didn’t know it was required. I just wanted a job. My daddy left me something, but I haven’t come into it yet. It won’t be mine until I am 21.”

That is the way it is for all of us who are Christians. We are children of King Jesus, but we have not yet come into our full inheritance. It is ours now, but we don’t come into it until we get to heaven or Christ returns. We may do a lot of different things in this life, and we may have some humble jobs, but we are children of the King!

When he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is!!!

Hope in his appearing fills us with confidence

Are you confident that you will see him, does it give you Hope! Do you recognize that you will be changed? Do you understand that you will see him as he is!

Is the thought of heaven of greatest treasure because you will see Jesus as he is? Your Savior will be sight in your eyes and all the beholding you have done your whole life will be realized?!

Do your modest circumstance now really need to define you? Do you know that there is something that you have not come into yet?

We will be like him as we see him… and this does not mean that we become little gods, but rather we will be one with him in a more realized way, not in an equality way but in a unity way that is fully realized righteousness! Oh how I cannot wait for that day!

1 John 3:3 ESV

3 And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.

And just like that, John doesn’t let us float off into dreaming of how blissful it will be like without regard for the present. John reminds us that our future destiny helps us to know our present duty!

If we have Hope, then we live differently and engage in purifying ourselves just as he is pure.

This is not some sort of work that is a difficult thing to do, because it stems from “prying into the secret” of pondering and studying the Love that God has given us, because we are his children!

We do not attempt to purify ourselves because of anything lovely about us… notice where our Hope is to be...

“everyone who thus Hopes IN HIM!” Hopes in Christ! Hopes in his appearing, hopes in being united with him and becoming like him is substance and righteousness.

Hope is a settled fact for Christians provided for by Jesus who is our Hope!

Hebrews 6:19 ESV

19 We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain,

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Hope in Christ motivates us to live a pure life

Someday we will come into something so much more than what we are currently are, but until them we hope in Christ and live this life as pure because he is pure and we are in Him.

the best analogy I can give you for this comes from Baseball.

How many people know what a home-run is? When a baseball player hits a home run he cannot be put out. Yet he also has to run the bases and touch every bag including home plate. He is no longer in danger of being thrown or tagged out or even called out by the Umpires, but he still has to run the bases. And they are even more of a victory lap for him as he calmly runs with no fear of opposition. He runs with Joy and freedom… He can take his time or run as fast as he can… he could stumble and fall, and yet he would just keep running the bases. No one on the field, no one in the bleachers, no one watching on TV can throw him out!

When Jesus lived a perfect life, died an innocent death on the cross, then rose from the dead, ascended into heaven and sent his Spirit… He knocked it out of the park for us! As Christians we are children of God, but we still have to run the bases of the Christian life.

We are not in danger of losing our salvation, we cannot be thrown out!

Philippians 1:6 ESV

6 And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.

We are saved, we are Sanctified, we are safe… for all of eternity… Yet we still run the bases and purify ourselves as he is pure because we Hope in HIM!

Question 1 - Are you confident in the appearance of Christ?

Twice in this section John mentions that Christ will appear? Do you Abide in him so that when he does appear you will not be ashamed? Do you recognize that his righteousness is what helps you practice righteousness… this practiced lifestyle is what gives you confidence and it points you to a future hope.

Question 2 - Are you confident in God’s love for you?

Realizing that you are born of Him not because you did anything special but because of the Loving nature of our Father. Are you convinced of your adoption in God’s family? Do you realize that it is nothing but Pure Grace that would make you acceptable to receive the Love of God? Do you ponder this love, do you study it, do you pry into the secret nature of it desiring to gain understanding to depths of this love? Have you become Confident of the Father’s love for you?

Question 3 - Do you long to see Christ and become like him?

What do you think makes heaven, HEAVEN? Not that your grandmother or grandfather are there. Not that you mom or dad is there. Not that your dearly loved friends are there. Not that there are Angels or a street of Gold. The only thing that makes heaven heaven is the fact that when we see Jesus we will be like him and share in his fullness forever!

Does the reality of heaven help you focus on the temporary nature of this life and give you hope in Him! Is Christ the greatest joy in your heart?

I want to leave you with the lyrics of the song, “I am a Child of the King”

My Father is rich in houses and lands;

he holdeth the wealth of the world in his hands!

Of Rubies and diamonds, silver and Gold,

His coffers are full - He has riches untold.

My Father’s own Son, the Savior of Men,

Once wandered o’er earth as the poorest of them;

But now he is reigning forever on high,

And will give me a home in heaven by and by.

I once was an outcast stranger on earth,

A sinner by choice and an alien by birth;

But I’ve been adopted; my names written down--

An heir to a mansion, a robe, and a crown

A tent or a cottage, why should I care?

They’re building a palace for me over there!

Though exiled from home, yet still I may sing:

All Glory to God, I am a Child of the King!

I am a child of the King, a child of the King!

With Jesus my Savior, I am a child of the King!