Pay Attention
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Title- Pay Attention
Passage- 1 John 3:1
Attention-
There was a phrase I remember hearing a lot growing up
“Pay attention”
I was one of those distracted kids
It is interesting how God works
You are at home
Only your family around you to keep you accountable for how you view this message
So many things to distract you
Yet that is the driving point John will begin with…PAY ATTENTION
So, I understand that this virtual set-up is not the norm and is far from perfect and far from easy…please, I am appealing to you and the apostle John is appealing to you
PAY ATTENTION
Introduction-
John has labored over sharing the importance of Jesus, His earthly life, His death burial and resurrection
He has shared the truths of not only the antichrist but that many antichrists are coming
And Now he is appealing for our attention
Maybe the words of Paul in Romans 13 would be more fitting for this morning
King James Version Chapter 13
And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep
All this to say, I understand yet bear with us this morning
Transition #1-
What is being taught here
What is being taught? (Explain the passage and draw out the 1st century truth)
The first word here, “behold”, is easy to pass over but I want to pause and spend just a minute on this word.
It is important to notice first of all that this is an imperitave…a command
It doesn’t show up in the English so much but the verb in the Greek is a command
And that leads to secondly, “to behold” is a strange command
As I have read this in the English it never struck me as a command
It is not only in the way the verb is presented but also in the usage of the word but that in the New Testament this word was used of not just seeing but for perceiving and understanding as well
It was more than the light going through your eyes and traveling the optic nerve to your brain and then you see
It was more the sense that because you saw you were able to understand.
So maybe a better understnading of this simple word would be:
“Because you have understood the truths of these first two chapters…pay attention!!
Preachers and teachers will do this
I remember teaching younger children in Sunday School and when they were distracted there were several ways to get their attention
Call on them with a question
Pause, look at all of them and wait for them to look at you
Or make a statement like “All of you look up here and pay attention”
This is, in a sense what John is doing
And because John wants to be sure he has the readers attention, what is so important?
Often we relate this beholding to God’s love…and we should…but the beholding is associated with tis whole verse not just God’s love
When we place our faith in the person and work of Jesus Christ we have a new Father
We still have our earthly fathers but we gain a heavenly Father
This new relationship…John says that we are to pay attention to it because of the type of love it is....He doesn’t say to behold God’s love but to behold the manner, or “what type of” love God has loved us with
It is not an earthly love that is fickle and transient
It is a divine love…the purest of loves
It is a love that comes from a perfect and holy God
Human love will fail us but God’s love never will
There are several words John could have used to express love
One expresses an emotional love
One is like a reciprocal love
One is sensual
John uses another, that I am sure we are familiar with, agape
A self-sacrificing love
A love that we ought to be striving to give but that quite honestly we will fall short of
This is a divine love
An example, and a goal for the Christian
But yet a divine love
The Fathers divine love and our faith in Jesus places us into a new family
Again, it’s not that we lose or leave our earthly families but we gain a spiritual family
These individuals John is writing to, they would often lose much more than we could imagine when the placed their faith in Jesus.
They could lose their jobs, their families, or even their lives
There are missionaries that are going to groups like the Muslims and bringing the good news of the Gospel
For many of the recipients the results are the same
Loss of family, loss of income, loss of life
So when we look into the book of Acts we see a picture of how the church functioned in light of the loss.
And they continued stedfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers. And fear came upon every soul: and many wonders and signs were done by the apostles. And all that believed were together, and had all things common; And sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had need. And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart, Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.
Notice specifically verse 45…those that had sold their possessions and used what they had to help others in need
In spite of the loss some of them suffered they had a new family to support them
To encourage them
To walk alongside them
The need for understanding God’s divine love and understanding the reality of our new family is also because the believer now has a new foe
Our faith in the person and work of Jesus puts us in the midst of a new foe
Before we came to the understanding of the Fathers divine love and the person and work of Jesus Christ we were enemies of God
Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.
(For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ:
For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.
These are verses that show us the reality of the unsaved…they are an enemy of God and if an enemy of God we could say they are allies of Satan
Do you remember the name Benedict Arnold
The hatred those soldiers must have had for them
He went from being soldiers along side them to being their....enemy
We may not have been what we would refer to as Satanists but we were allies of Satan
Now the believer goes from ally of Satan and enemy of God to enemies of Satan and children of the King of Kings
Transition #2-
How do we understand this in our context? (Bridge 1st century truth to today)
And if you have started walking with Jesus and expecting it to be like frolicking in a field of flowers and not having a care in the world you need to snap out of it and pay attention
If you have spent your life serving and loving Him and now feel like you deserve to shift into neutral and coast…you need to snap out of it and pay attention
*We are going to face conflict
These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.
We are in a war…the enemy is not concerned with how long you have been battling
Whether you are new and not sure what to do
Or whether you have been battling for decades
YOU ARE STILL THEIR ENEMY
Jesus never promised a life of ease
He never promised a retirement from the battle
Luke says in Acts 14:22
Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God.
There will be many other difficulties along the way
-Financially
-Relationally
-Health problems
-In culture
-In the church
*But we have a community of support
Remember Acts chapter 2
*Christians caring for other Christians
-The focus is often on the financial aspect
But there was breaking of bread and fellowship
In other words, they gathered together and they struggled together
Not jsut financially
-Relationally
-In their families
-With sin
-With temptation
That is what the church is for
2 Corinthians 1
We face difficulties so that we can support and encourage others facing those same difficulties
And we not only have the church community but we have a Father that loves us with divine love
*We also have a Father that is there to give wisdom and direction
If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.
Psalm 23
Trust in the Lord with all thine heart;
And lean not unto thine own understanding.
In all thy ways acknowledge him,
And he shall direct thy paths.
When we are overwhelmed with the things of this life is to go to the Father
He wants to guide and direct us
He wants to empower us Ephesians 1:19
And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power,
He not only has the power to work in our lives He want to empower us
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.
If you have placed your faith in Jesus you already have that power
It is Him
Read the previous 12 verses and notice that in each situation Israels way of escape was to focus on Jahweh
For the church age believer the way out is the person and work of Jesus
Transition #3-
How do we live this out in our context? (Application of the biblical truth to us personally)
My appeal to you is this….
*Know your enemy
Understand Satan
Understand this world
Don’t be ignorant
But more importantly
*Know the Father
His love
His power
His wisdom
*Lean on your local church
Humble yourself
Go to others
Allow them to use what God has done in their lives to encourage and direct you
In order know the enemy, to know the love of God, to know the power of the church
We need to snap out of it and pay attention
Closing song-