Holiness, Sin, and Deception
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The book of 1 John is one of the five books in the New Testament that was written by John the Apostle, brother of James. They were known as the sons of thunder. This letter was written between A.D. 85 to A.D. 100. First John was written to a church or group of churches in crisis—churches who were being attacked by false teaching. Some individuals who had once been associated with the church had accepted heresy and had left the church. After they left they continued to spread their false teaching to the church. They went so far as to organize and send out itinerant preachers to various churches with the goal of converting those in the churches to their beliefs. This created confusion and plunged the churches into crisis. In response to this situation, John wrote 1 John, following that up with 2 and 3 John. His goal was to stop this false teaching and to bring comfort to the Christians in these churches.
Biblical Text -
Biblical Text -
Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God! Therefore the world does not know us, because it did not know Him.
Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.
And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.
Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness.
And you know that He was manifested to take away our sins, and in Him there is no sin.
Whoever abides in Him does not sin. Whoever sins has neither seen Him nor known Him.
Little children, let no one deceive you. He who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous.
He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil.
Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God.
-[Prayer]-
-[Prayer]-
Life Principle - Believers Walk In God’s Holiness, Will Not Remain In Sin, And Need To Be Careful Of Deceivers.
Life Principle - Believers Walk In God’s Holiness, Will Not Remain In Sin, And Need To Be Careful Of Deceivers.
Life Point- Believers Walk In God’s Provided Holiness
Life Point- Believers Walk In God’s Provided Holiness
Exegetical -
Exegetical -
1 John 3:1–3 (NKJV)
Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God! Therefore the world does not know us, because it did not know Him.
Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.
And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.
Homiletical -
Homiletical -
There is something that makes absolutely no sense to the world. That is the miracle of a regenerate person before God who is now just not a new creation, but being called a child of God.
To be called a child of someone means that person walks with the authority and the responsibility of the father or family from which they come.
To be called a child of God means that we walk with both authority and the responsibility that God has given us.
What kind of authority, you ask? Well here are two examples:
1) over demons
Now it happened, as we went to prayer, that a certain slave girl possessed with a spirit of divination met us, who brought her masters much profit by fortune-telling.
This girl followed Paul and us, and cried out, saying, “These men are the servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to us the way of salvation.”
And this she did for many days. But Paul, greatly annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.” And he came out that very hour.
Now here is an example of some people who were not saved by grace, trying to use that authority:
Now God worked unusual miracles by the hands of Paul,
so that even handkerchiefs or aprons were brought from his body to the sick, and the diseases left them and the evil spirits went out of them.
Then some of the itinerant Jewish exorcists took it upon themselves to call the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, “We exorcise you by the Jesus whom Paul preaches.”
Also there were seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, who did so.
And the evil spirit answered and said, “Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?”
Then the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, overpowered them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded.
This became known both to all Jews and Greeks dwelling in Ephesus; and fear fell on them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified.
2) The most important authority. The authority to share the Gospel and see a new life born into God’s family.
There was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews.
This man came to Jesus by night and said to Him, “Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher come from God; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him.”
Jesus answered and said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”
Nicodemus said to Him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?”
Jesus answered, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.
That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’
The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit.”
Nicodemus answered and said to Him, “How can these things be?”
Jesus answered and said to him, “Are you the teacher of Israel, and do not know these things?
Most assuredly, I say to you, We speak what We know and testify what We have seen, and you do not receive Our witness.
If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things?
No one has ascended to heaven but He who came down from heaven, that is, the Son of Man who is in heaven.
And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up,
that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.
For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.
“He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.
For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed.
But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God.”
And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.
Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.
Going back to our main text in 1 John, which says, “Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.
Here is the responsibility, one of many, but they can all flow out of this concept.
For I am the Lord your God. You shall therefore consecrate yourselves, and you shall be holy; for I am holy. Neither shall you defile yourselves with any creeping thing that creeps on the earth.
Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;
as obedient children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts, as in your ignorance;
but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct,
because it is written, “Be holy, for I am holy.”
And if you call on the Father, who without partiality judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves throughout the time of your stay here in fear;
knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers,
but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.
He indeed was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you
Illustration -
Illustration -
Seeing as how we are talking about holiness and one’s behavior should be:
Little John had been misbehaving again and was sent to his room. After a while he emerged and informed his mother that he had thought about what he did and then prayed to God about it.
"Fine", said mom who was both pleased and proud. "If you ask God to help you not misbehave, I am sure He will help you."
"Oh, I didn't ask Him to help me not misbehave," said John. "I asked Him to help you put up with me."
Life Point - Believers Will Not Live In Sin Indefinitely
Life Point - Believers Will Not Live In Sin Indefinitely
Exegetical -
Exegetical -
Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness.
And you know that He was manifested to take away our sins, and in Him there is no sin.
Whoever abides in Him does not sin. Whoever sins has neither seen Him nor known Him.
Homiletical -
Homiletical -
Lawlessness - This is an interesting word choice by John. It reflects what will happen to the unrepentant, unbelievers.
In the Original language it means ‘to live as though there were no laws,’ ‘to refuse completely to obey the laws,’ or ‘to live as one who despises all laws.’
Here this isn’t talking about the laws of society but the command, or laws of God.
What did John just say?
And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.
No one can do this apart from the power of God and his free gift. You can’t become a new creation on your own. Nor can you become pure on your own. You need Holy Spirit to work and cleanse you and make you into the image of the Son of God. This process is called Sanctification and it is by the blood of Jesus and the power of the Holy Spirit to make it happen. You cannot work that up in and of yourself.
But we are all like an unclean thing, And all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags; We all fade as a leaf, And our iniquities, like the wind, Have taken us away.
By the way the word filthy here is literally from the Hebrew word meaning “the bodily fluids from a woman’s menstrual cycle.” Old disregarded hygiene products.
That is how God sees you in His eyes apart from His saving work.
Jesus came into the world to deal with sin. Those things that fall short of God’s holiness. We have a hole in our lives, in our innermost being. That hole can only be filled by Jesus! That is why He came into the world.
Remember John 3:16?
For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.
How does one come to Him?
For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,
not of works, lest anyone should boast.
For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.
We may sin and fall, but that is not our natural state of being. The regenerate man. The one who has been made new in Christ can never be taken away from Christ.
does that mean you are perfect? NOPE!
It does mean when you sin, you ask for forgiveness from God and from everyone involved and then move on in God’s cleansing power and victory over sin.
For a righteous man may fall seven times And rise again, But the wicked shall fall by calamity.
Illustration -
Illustration -
In one of his meetings, D.L. Moody was explaining to his audience the truth that we cannot bring about spiritual changes in our lives by our own strength. He demonstrated the principal like this: “Tell me,” he said to his audience, “how can I get the air out of the tumbler I have in my hand?” One man said, “Suck it out with a pump.” But Moody replied, “That would create a vacuum and shatter it.” Finally after many suggestions, he picked up a pitcher and quietly filled the glass with water. “There,” he said, “all the air is now removed.” He then explained that victory for the child of God does not come by working hard to eliminate sinful habits, but rather by allowing Christ to take full possession. (Today in the Word, September, 1991, p. 30).
Life Point - Believers Need To Watch For Deceivers
Life Point - Believers Need To Watch For Deceivers
Exegetical -
Exegetical -
Little children, let no one deceive you. He who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous.
He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil.
Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God.
Homiletical -
Homiletical -
John says to not let anyone deceive you. This means there are people in the church, speaking universally, not in this church. Who will have a guise of righteousness but inwardly the unregenerate, unrepentant sinners. These people like to pretend they are of God, but aren’t.
“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.
You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles?
Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit.
A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit.
Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.
Therefore by their fruits you will know them.
So what does this mean?
This means there are false teachers or people who call themselves prophets who aren’t, and they are amongst the people of God. When you look into their lives there is no fruit that shows righteousness. What kind of fruit is this?
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.
And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.
If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.
There are even people in the church who deceive themselves and think they are Christ’s, but they aren’t.
“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.
Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’
And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’
There is that word again, lawlessness.
Back to our main text:
He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil.
What is the Devil’s main work?
He brought temptation to the children of God, so that they may sin against God.
What does it mean to sin against God?
It means to rebel against God
You know that little white lie?
That’ll send you to hell just as much as murder
why?
Because it is rebellion against God!
Every sin is in actuality a rebellion against God
But you see when Jesus came He reversed that sin. He took it on Himself and displayed God’s Justice, His mercy, and His righteousness. In so doing he destroyed the kingdom of the Devil and then handed that authority over to His church, His children.
So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.”
“O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?”
The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law.
But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.
Folks in Christ we have the victory over sin, death, hell and the grave.
We have received the down-payment with the regeneration of our spirit and the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit.
In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise,
who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory.
So when this is complete, we will no longer have to worry about our struggle with sin. The mud of sin will be washed and the last vestiges of sin will be removed and we will be given glorified bodies and then we will come to a complete understanding of 1 corinthians 15:54
Not only that, but he gave us command over the last vestiges of the enemy of our souls. The Devil and his minions.
Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.
Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.
Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
“Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father.
Back in our main text:
Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God.
This does not mean you will be perfect.
John is using a spiritual truth here. Think of the new man, that which is saved and regenerate as the true essence of who you are, but you are covered in mud.
The mud represents the sin from your old life still on you. That sin that you commit or omit, is not who you really are. You are the born again believer. You are righteous because Jesus’ righteousness has been imputed to you.
This is where the analogy breaks down. You still committed the sin, you still need to repent. However, that does not change the core of whose you now are.
You will always struggle with sin, but to stay in sin indefinitely will not happen to the believer.
Why?
Because it is way too uncomfortable for the believer. The believer will always want to please God, because the believer loves God beyond all things.
Because your conscience is no longer seared and dead to God, but alive and His laws are written on your heart.
But this Man, after He had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of God,
from that time waiting till His enemies are made His footstool.
For by one offering He has perfected forever those who are being sanctified.
But the Holy Spirit also witnesses to us; for after He had said before,
“This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, says the Lord: I will put My laws into their hearts, and in their minds I will write them,”
then He adds, “Their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.”
Praise God He has made us new! Praise God He had mercy and me and you! Praise God that you and I have been saved from death, hell, and the grave.
Praise God you and I are being saved, a continuing process of sanctification
Praise God you and I will be saved, when He comes again and gives us a new glorified body where I will no longer have to deal with sin and death.
Life Principle– Believers Walk In God’s Holiness, Will Not Remain In Sin, And Need To Be Careful Of Deceivers.
Life Principle– Believers Walk In God’s Holiness, Will Not Remain In Sin, And Need To Be Careful Of Deceivers.
Call to Action – altar call….
Call to Action – altar call….