1 John 5:6-13 (#13)

Posted on December 12, 2011 by Gregg A Caruso

I. INTRO – Assurance of Eternal Life

Review:

Where we are as a church – and where we’re headed. We’ll start at 30,000 feet and then land in our 1 John passage for today.

As a church we are “rebooting” theologically. What does that mean?

First of all, it does NOT mean we are changing our doctrinal statement.

What it DOES mean is that we intend to be Christ-centered, or gospel-centered, in all our preaching and teaching.[1] There are two basic reasons for this:

Not only is the gospel of Jesus Christ necessary for our salvation, but the gospel is also essential for our growth (or sanctification) in Christ.[2]
(How does that happen?) A Christ-centered, or gospel-centered approach will focus more on what Christ has done, than on what we should do.

We believe that the Westminster Assembly got it right in 1646 with the Westminster Shorter Confession of Faith when they determined the “chief end of [humankind] is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.” Or, as John Piper has said, “to glorify God BY enjoying Him forever.”

Where we’re headed (See the bulletin insert):

3 Summits scheduled 6-weeks apart to reaffirm values, mission, and vision in preparation for calling a permanent pastor.

The first one is Sat, Jan 14^th from 9am-1pm. A working lunch and childcare will be provided.

If you’re 13+, we’d like for you to be there. Sign-ups start today.

Sign-up sheet – or email Beth in the office.

**The more we accomplish in the next 6-7 months, the higher caliber pastor we will attract to SBF.

Next week in the bulletin we will provide you with a calendar of the significant events for Jan-Jun of 2012. This will include:

The 3 Summits
At least 3 Concerts of Prayer where we will gather as a congregation – both to learn more about prayer and to pray. These will also include extended times of worship.
And regular Sunday morning updates to keep everyone informed on what is happening (twice a month).

In Sept we embarked on a study of 1 John. Today marks our 13^th week.

Why study 1^st John? As we have been saying – the gospel of John was written that we might believe while 1 John we written that we might know.

Assurance is the key theme of 1 John. There are two parts to this assurance:

1. The first is an objective assurance that Jesus (and Christianity) are true. Jesus claimed to be God.

Jn 14:9 – Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father.
Jn 10:33 – We’re stoning you “for blasphemy, because you, a mere man, claim to be God.”
Mark 14:61b-62 [61b] – “Again the high priest asked him, ‘Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed One?’ [62] ‘I am,’ said Jesus.”
Luke 22:66-70 [66] – “At daybreak the council of the elders of the people, both the chief priests and teachers of the law, met together, and Jesus was led before them…[70] They all asked, ‘Are you then the Son of God?’ He replied, ‘You are right in saying I am.’”
In 1 John 1:1 he reminds his readers that he was an eye-witness of Jesus – he beheld Him with his eyes and touched Him with his hands and refers to Jesus as “the Word of Life.”
Jesus was either a liar, a lunatic, or He was telling the truth (trillema). John is asserting in this letter that Jesus and Christianity are true (objective assurance).

2. The second aspect of assurance John is speaking to is the subjective assurance of our own standing in Christ.

To use John’s language of what it means to be a Christian…

To have been born of God
To know God
To live in God
To enjoy an intimate personal communion with Him – which John says, is eternal life.

On Thur we sent out an eNEWS that quoted 19^th century British theologian and pastor J.C. Ryle, who said:

Another way to describe assurance is assured hope.

A person may have saving faith in Christ, and yet never enjoy an assured hope.
To believe and have a glimmering hope of acceptance is one thing, to have delight and joy and peace in our believing — and to abound in hope, is quite another!
S/He that has faith does well. But s/he that has assurance does far better — sees more, feels more, knows more, enjoys more.[3]

Last week (Gene) taught from 1 Jn 4:17-5:5 and made three excellent points:

(vs. 4:17-18) Being perfected in love is a process.
(vs. 4:19-21) People are in your life for a purpose (i.e., conflict can be redemptive).
(vs. 5:1-5) Passion for God’s presence prepares the heart to obey.

Today we will look at the most difficult passage in 1 John – 5:6-13…

II. BODY

John draws some very clear lines in this passage (as he has throughout the letter): v.12 – “S/He who has the Son has the life; s/he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life.” John is saying that it is infinitely important for us to know if we have the Son. (We would do well to remember Ryle’s point: A person may have saving faith in Christ, and yet never enjoy assurance.)

Then in v.13 John writes, “These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, in order that you may know that you have eternal life.” (2-fold assurance)

There are two words I’d like to look at more closely today from v.13, asking the questions, 1) What does it mean to believe? And 2) What does it mean to know?

1. What does it mean to believe?

The Greek word is the verb pisteuō (from the same root as the word for faith) and occurs about 250 times in the NT. Matthew uses the word 10 times, Mark 10, Luke 9, John’s Gospel 99 times – and 9 times in 1 John.
Now I have both bad news and good news for you…

The bad news is that not all belief is saving belief.
Look with me at John 2:23-25: Now when He was in Jerusalem at the Passover, during the feast, many believed in His name, observing His signs which He was doing. ²⁴ But Jesus, on His part, was not entrusting Himself to them, for He knew all men, ²⁵ and because He did not need anyone to testify concerning man, for He Himself knew what was in man.
There is evidently a belief that does not save us.
James 2:19 – …the demons also believe…
Paul exhorts the church in Corinth to, “Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith” (2 Cor 13:5).
This is the kind of examination that John is referring to in 1 John 5:12-13.

In 1859 a French tightrope walker named Charles Blondin, became the first person to cross 160 feet above Niagara Falls on a tightrope. He walked several times – back and forth. The large crowd gathered and a buzz of excitement ran along both sides of the riverbank. The crowd “Oooohed!” and “Aaaaahed!” as Blondin carefully walked across one dangerous step after another. One trip across he was blindfolded and pushing a wheel-barrow. Upon reaching the other side, it’s said that the crowd’s applause was louder than the roar of the falls! Blondin suddenly stopped and addressed his audience: “Do you believe I can carry a person across in this wheelbarrow?” The crowd enthusiastically shouted, “Yes, yes, yes. You are the greatest tightrope walker in the world. You can do anything!” “Okay,” said Blondin, “Who will get in the wheelbarrow??” No-one did!

To merely give intellectual assent does NOT save us.

So, what’s the good news? The good news is that there is a belief that does save.

To “believe” means the active acceptance of the message about Jesus.
This means there is a surrender, or active ongoing submission to Jesus…
This is the kind of belief, or faith, that 1 Jn 5:5 is speaking about: “Who is the one who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?” (He who gets in the wheelbarrow.)

2. What does it mean to know? (1 Jn 5:13 John writes, “These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, in order that you may know that you have eternal life.”)

The Greek word is echō. It speaks of a joining – like a marriage.
This question takes us back to 1 Jn 5:7-8: “For there are three that testify: ⁸ the Spirit and the water and the blood; and the three are in agreement.”
These are the verses that have confounded biblical scholars… Theologians refer to this verse as the “Johannine Comma.” And most commentators agree that it is some form of Trinitarian reference. Matthew Henry, the 18^th century devotional commentator, simply refers to this verse as, “a trinity of heavenly witnesses.”

Let’s consider each one:

The (Holy) Spirit testifies.

Turn to Roms 8. This chapter is about life in the power of the HS.
Let’s begin in v.¹⁵ For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, “Abba! Father!” ¹⁶ The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God, ¹⁷ and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him.
Here’s a test/quiz to see if you know…

What grip does fear have on your life?
When you suffer, do you turn TO God, or AWAY from God? Do you turn TO God’s people, or turn AWAY from God’s people?
Prov 18:1 – “S/He who separates himself seeks his own desire, he quarrels against all sound wisdom.”

2. What is the “water and the blood”?

Some scholars think the water is a reference to the birth of Jesus and the blood is a reference to His death on the cross.
Look at John 19:34-35: “But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out. ³⁵ And he [John] who has seen has testified, and his testimony is true; and he knows that he is telling the truth, so that you also may believe.”

Jesus suffered from hypovolemic shock (low blood volume) during his beatings – and when he fell while carrying the cross…
This hypovolemic shock causes fluid to gather in the sack around the heart and around the lungs.

Others have speculated that the water and blood are references to the sacraments of baptism and communion.

III. CONCLUSION

What’s the bottom line? Is your belief a saving belief? Have you gotten in the wheelbarrow? This is the objective response that John is looking for.
To use Paul’s language from Romans 8:15-16, is there a “spirit of adoption” resident in your heart? Has, “the Spirit Himself testified with your spirit that you are a child of God”? This is the subjective response that John is looking for.

This is how the gospel works for our sanctification…We are well aware of our depravity AND we have a growing witness and testimony of our Heavenly Father’s sovereign call ON our lives and transforming presence IN our lives.

[1] Someone has said, “The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing.”

[2] Justification (declared righteousness) and Sanctification (growing in righteousness), the process of sanctification must flow out of the reality of justification.

[3] Adapted from the essay Faith and Assurance by J. C. Ryle.

Believing the Gospel Is the Work of Sanctification

Posted on August 1, 2011 by Gregg A Caruso

by Tullian Tchividjian

When it comes to measuring spiritual growth and progress, our natural instincts revolve almost exclusively around behavioral improvement.

“Only the ‘toxin’ of God’s grace can reverse the way we typically think about Christian growth.”

For example, when we read passages like Colossians 3:5–17, where Paul exhorts the Colossian church to “put on the new self” he uses many behavioral examples: put to death “sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.” He goes on and exhorts them to put away “anger, wrath, malice, slander” and so on. In v.12 he switches gears and lists a whole lot of things for us to put on: “kindness, humility, meekness, and patience,” just to name a few.

But what’s at the root of this good and bad fruit? What produces both the bad and good behavior Paul addresses here?

A Matter of Belief

Every temptation to sin is a temptation, in the moment, to disbelieve the gospel–the temptation to secure for ourselves in that moment something we think we need in order to be happy, something we don’t yet have: meaning freedom, validation, and so on. Bad behavior happens when we fail to believe that everything we need, in Christ we already have; it happens when we fail to believe in the rich provisional resources that are already ours in the gospel. Conversely, good behavior happens when we daily rest in and receive Christ’s “It is finished” into new and deeper parts of our being every day.

Colossians 3:5–17 provides an illustration of what takes place on the outside when something deeper happens (or doesn’t happen) on the inside.

Going Backward for Progress

In Philippians 2:12, when Paul tells us to “Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling,” he’s making it clear we’ve got work to do—but what exactly is the work? Get better? Try harder? Clean up your act? Pray more? Get more involved in church? Read the Bible longer? Clearly, it’s not a matter of whether or not effort is needed. The real issue is: Where are we focusing our efforts? Are we working hard to perform? Or are we working hard to rest in Christ’s performance for us?

He goes on to explain: “For it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure” (2:13). God works his work in you—which is the work already accomplished by Christ. Our hard work, therefore, means coming to a greater understanding of his work. In his Lectures on Romans, Martin Luther wrote, “To progress is always to begin again.” Real spiritual progress, in other words, requires a daily going backwards.

The Work of Belief

Christian growth does not happen by working hard to get something you don’t have. Rather, Christian growth happens by working hard to daily swim in the reality of what you do have. Believing again and again the gospel of God’s free, justifying grace every day is the hard work we’re called to.

This means that real change happens only as we continuously rediscover the gospel. The progress of the Christian life is “not our movement toward the goal; it’s the movement of the goal on us.”

Sanctification involves God’s attack on our unbelief—our self-centered refusal to believe that God’s approval of us in Christ is full and final. It happens as we daily receive and rest in our unconditional justification. As G. C. Berkouwer said, “The heart of sanctification is the life which feeds on justification.”

Growth in Grace

2 Peter 3:18 succinctly describes growth by saying, “But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” Growth always happens “in grace.” The truest measure of our growth is not our behavior, it’s our grasp of grace — a grasp which involves coming to deeper and deeper terms with the unconditionality of God’s love.

It’s also growth in “the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” This doesn’t simply mean learning facts about Jesus. It means growing in our love for Christ because of what he has already earned and secured for us and then living in a more vital awareness of that grace. Our main problem in the Christian life is not that we don’t try hard enough to be good, but that we haven’t believed the gospel and received its finished reality into all parts of our life.

Take the Focus Away from You

Gerhard Forde insightfully (and transparently) calls into question the ways in which we typically think about sanctification and spiritual progress when he writes:

Am I making progress? If I am really honest, it seems to me that the question is odd, even a little ridiculous. As I get older and death draws nearer, I don’t seem to be getting better. I get a little more impatient, a little more anxious about having perhaps missed what this life has to offer, a little slower, harder to move, a little more sedentary and set in my ways. Am I making progress? Well, maybe it seems as though I sin less, but that may only be because I’m getting tired! It’s just too hard to keep indulging the lusts of youth. Is that sanctification? I wouldn’t think so! One should not, I expect, mistake encroaching senility for sanctification! But can it be, perhaps, that it is precisely the unconditional gift of grace that helps me to see and admit all that? I hope so. The grace of God should lead us to see the truth about ourselves, and to gain a certain lucidity, a certain humor, a certain down-to-earthness.

Remember, the Apostle Paul referred to himself as the chief of sinners at the end of his life. It was his ability to freely admit that which demonstrated his spiritual maturity—he had nothing to prove or protect because it wasn’t about him!

“Our main problem in the Christian life is not that we don’t try hard enough to be good, but that we haven’t believed the gospel and received its finished reality into all parts of our life.”

The more I focus on my need to get better, the worse I actually get. I become neurotic and self-absorbed. Preoccupation with my performance over Christ’s performance for me makes me increasingly self-centered and morbidly introspective. After all, Peter only began to sink when he took his eyes off Jesus and focused on how he was doing. As my friend Rod Rosenbladt wrote to me recently, “Anytime our natural incurvitas (fixture on self) is rattled, shaken, turned from itself to that man’s blood, to that man’s cross, then the devil take the hindmost!”

It Truly Is Finished

By all means work! But the hard work is not what you think it is; the hard work is washing your hands of you and resting in Christ’s finished work for you. Progress in obedience happens when our hearts realize God’s love for us does not depend on our progress in obedience.

This is a partial repost from Tullian Tchividjian’s blog Rethinking Progress. To read it in full click here.

The Great Commandment Pt 2 – Matthew 22:39

Posted on July 27, 2011 by Gregg A Caruso

Love Your Neighbor as Yourself

I. INTRO/REVIEW

A. We have been looking at what the Bible refers to as the Great Commandment, which is for us, important preliminary vision passage because it synthesizes so much of the Scripture into two VERY straightforward commands.

B. (It is quite important for us to understand that when the NT authors declare God’s commands for us to be holy and to love our neighbor, etc. These commands are not there to show our ability, but to reveal our inability – and to remind us of our continual dependence on the grace of God to do in us and through us what we cannot do on our own.)

C. Matthew 22:33-40 (NAS): “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” And He said to him, “ ‘YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND.’ This is the great and foremost commandment. The second is like it, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.’ On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets.” (Notice the order – and notice that Jesus was asked to answer with one commandment, but He gave them two…)

D. We have multiplied this passage into two messages…

Last week: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind – this is the great and foremost commandment.” (Click here to read that post.)
Review of last week: How do we love God?

Come alive to God.
Find your true joy and delight in the message of the Gospel – and the Person of Jesus Christ.
Come to grips with the idolatry that grips ALL of our lives.

(i) Idolatry is not just a failure to obey God; it is setting our heart and affections on something, or someone other than God.

(ii) This cannot be remedied by repenting that you have an idol – or by engaging willpower to try and live differently.

(iii) If we uproot our idols (through repentance) but fail to plant the love of God (or, delight in God) in its place, the idol will grow back – like mowing a weed. Repentance and rejoicing must go together.

E. This week: (v. 39)“You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” And here’s the questions we’re asking as we unpack these verses…

What is God’s heart/vision for Southside Bible Fellowship?
And for you?

II. BODY

A. The life-changing context of this commandment:

‘YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.’ ⁴⁰ On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets.”

The overwhelming commandment to “neighbor love.” Who is my neighbor? This passage retold in Luke 10 – and is followed by Jesus unpacking the Good Samaritan and Mary and Martha.
John Piper: This is a staggering commandment. If this is what it means, then something unbelievably powerful and reconstructing will have to happen in our souls. It seems to demand that I tear the skin off my body and wrap it around another person so that I feel that I am that other person; and all the longings that I have for my own safety, health, success, and happiness I now feel for that other person as though s/he were me.

B. Loving God is invisible. It is an internal passion of the soul. But it comes to expression when we love others. (Similar to James 2:18: “I will show you my faith by my works.”)

Idolatry and pride are at the root of our sinfulness. Pride is the desire for our own happiness apart from God and apart from the happiness of others in God.
Pride is the pursuit of happiness anywhere but in the glory of God and the good of other people.

C. So, Jesus says, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” How do we get there from here? Four points (adapted from John Piper):

1. Understand that our self-love is a creation of God.

Jesus says in effect: I start with your inborn, deep, defining human trait—your love for yourself. It’s a given. Jesus is saying, I don’t command it — I assume it.
We all have a powerful instinct of self-preservation and self-fulfillment. We all want to be happy, to live and love with satisfaction, we want enough food, we want enough clothes, we want a place to live, we want protection from violence, we want meaningful or important work, we want sincere and meaningful friendships, and we want our lives to count! All this is self-love.
Self-love is the deep longing to diminish pain and to increase joy. That’s what Jesus starts with when he says, “as yourself.”
This is common to all people. We don’t have to learn it, it comes with our humanity. Our Father created it. These longings are natural…

2. Make your self-seeking the measure of your self-giving.

When Jesus says, “Love your neighbor as yourself,” the word “as” is very radical: That’s a BIG word: It means: If you are energetic in pursing your own happiness, be AS energetic in pursuing the happiness of your neighbor. If you are creative in pursuing your own happiness, be AS creative in pursuing the happiness of your neighbor. If you are persevering in pursuing your own happiness, be AS persevering in pursuing the happiness of your neighbor.
In other words, Jesus is not just saying: seek for your neighbor the same things you seek for yourself, but also seek them in the same way—with the same zeal, energy, creativity, and perseverance. The same life and death commitment when you are in danger. Make your own self-seeking the measure of your self-giving.
Here’s where this gets difficult: We feel that if we take Jesus seriously, we will not just have to love others “as we love ourselves,” but we will have to love others “instead of loving ourselves.”
See the handout: “Developing Practical Skills to Love Well”… (This handout should be in the foyer at SBF.)

3. It’s the first commandment that makes the second doable.

This is why the first commandment is the first commandment.
If we try to accomplish the 2^nd Commandment without FULLY engaging the 1^st it will become the suicide of our own happiness.
The 1st commandment is the basis of the 2nd commandment. The 2nd commandment is a visible expression of the 1st commandment.

4. Make God the focus of your self-seeking.

Take all your self-love—all your longing for joy, hope, love, security, fulfillment, and significance—take all that, and take it to God, until He satisfies your heart, soul, and mind.
What you will find is that this is not a canceling out of self-love. This is a fulfillment and transformation of self-love. Self-love is the desire for life and satisfaction rather than frustration and death.
God says, “Come to me, and I will give you fullness of joy. I will satisfy your heart, soul, and mind with My glory. This is the first and great commandment…
And with that great discovery—that God is the never-ending fountain of our joy—the way we love others will be forever changed.
Our quest for joy and happiness becomes a life-long quest for God. And He can be be found [only] in the Person Jesus Christ. (I wish “all paths” led to God, but they do not…)

III. CONCLUSION

A. As we bring this to a close, we can say that our ultimate GOAL is to love God with all of our heart, soul, and strength – and the FRUIT is that we will splash His love onto people.

B. God’s word for us this morning is that we embrace these commandments with tremendous focus and authenticity during this season of learning to express the redemptive love of God in and through SBF.

C. Let these verses deeply touch and challenge your soul – and remake your priorities.

D. Get alone with God and deal with Him about these things. Let’s not assume that we fully know what love is – or that love has the proper centrality in our lives.

E. God is saying: All of Scripture, all God’s plans for history, hang on these two great purposes: that 1) he be loved with all our heart, and 2) that we love each other as we love ourselves.

F. A closing verse: Gal 6:10 – “So then, while we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, and especially to those who are of the household of the faith.”

“Seeking the welfare” of the city of Manchester…

Posted on July 26, 2011 by Gregg A Caruso

Below is an excellent quote from Howard Snyder that helps us to distinguish between church and kingdom. We have started to learn the difference at Southside…

Basically kingdom ministry is the goal and and church becomes the fruit, or receptacle, of kingdom ministry. What is kingdom ministry? One of the most basic of definitions is: speaking the words and doing the works of Jesus. Jesus spoke truth at all times, and His words emanated from a heart filled with of deep compassion, empathy, and unconditional love. The works of Jesus include loving, serving, feeding, prayer for healing, washing feet, speaking the truth in love, a sensitivity to the heart of the Father, etc. Someone has humorously stated that, “Jesus came to comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable.”

Here’s what Paul told the Corinthians:

“For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Do you not judge those who are within the church?” 1 Corinthians 5:12

Our goal and motivation with outsiders is to speak and act in such a way as to point them to a loving Creator God who is alive and available for an intimate relationship. (Who wouldn’t want that!?!?) Notice there is judgement for those of us inside the church. The Greek word is krinō and it basically means “to call into question” (see also Acts 23:6, 24:21). There is accountability for our actions as members of God’s Church.

Kingdom is a gospel word — along with grace and cross. It’s when we hold these three gospel words in appropriate tension that we engage the appropriate biblical expression of the Gospel (e.g. kingdom and grace without the cross will lead us into pluralistic liberalism, kingdom and cross without grace will lead us into moralistic legalism).

With all this in mind consider Snyder’s words:

“The church gets in trouble whenever it thinks it is in the church business rather than the kingdom business. In the church business, people are concerned with church activities, religious behavior in spiritual things. In the kingdom business, people are concerned with kingdom activities, all human behavior and everything God has made, visible and invisible. Kingdom people see human affairs as saturated with scriptural meaning and kingdom significance. Kingdom people seek first the kingdom of God and its justice; church people often put church work above concerns of justice, mercy and truth. Church people think about how to get people into the church; Kingdom people think about how to get the church into the world. Church people worry that the world might change the church; Kingdom people work to see the church change the world… If the church has one great need, it is this: to be set free for the kingdom of God, to be liberated from itself as it has become in order to be itself as God intends.”[1]

Southside: Lets “go ye…” to Manchester.

If you haven’t already, grab one of those Missional Prayer Guides in the foyer and fill it out (it’s pretty self-explanatory), place it in your Bible, and pull it out a few times a week to pray acquaintances, friends, and family across the page (right to left). And don’t forget to use a pencil…

[1] Howard A. Snyder. Liberating the Church, The Ecology of Church and Kingdom, Inter-Varsity Press 1983:11.

Gregg A. Caruso

Refractions on Life and Leadership

Tag Archives: Jesus

1 John 5:6-13 (#13)

Believing the Gospel Is the Work of Sanctification

The Great Commandment Pt 2 – Matthew 22:39

“Seeking the welfare” of the city of Manchester…