The Need for Christian Maturity- 1 John 2:12-17

This is our second study from 1st John  chapter 2:12-17. In these words John is explaining the Christian maturity. And we will learn our lesson from these verses for our spiritual benefit. But we will begin with a true story that happened nearly 4 years ago.

Story:

Once we had an opportunity to visit a family. The husband was a plumber; and it seems he had taken a lot of loan from many people and many banks. This man was a good believer; but eventually the pressure of repayment of loan started increasing. People started coming to his house and threatening him for paying back their money. And this man was under a tremendous pressure. Eventually this man committed suicide because he had no options of repaying the loan and he ended up taking his own life. The family was struggling and so was his pastor as to how he should counsel this family because; according to their understanding if a believer commits suicide he doesn’t enter into heaven but goes to hell. And we were able to encourage this family through the 1^st Epistle of John, that all the sins past, present and future sins of all the believers are forgiven because of Christ’s Sacrifice. And I still remember the glow that came on that family’s face. They were so much comforted by knowing that their father and the husband is not in hell but in heaven. Not that this was something new but it was there in the Bible but they lacked the Christian Maturity to understand it.

And John is doing exactly the same in the passage that we have read; he is making his readers understand the truth of Christian 

“The Need for Christian Maturity.” 

1. The Stages of Christian Maturity: vs. 12-14 

• ·         Childhood: vs. 12, 13b
• ·         Youth : vs. 13a, 14b
• ·         Adulthood : vs. 13a, 14a

2. The Response to Christian Maturity: vs. 15-17 

• ·         The Command not to love the world: vs. 15a 
• ·         The Consequence of loving the world: vs. 15b 
• ·        The Concept of the world: vs. 16 
• ·         The Character of the world: vs. 17 

1. The Stages of Christian Maturity: vs. 12-14 

After establishing the truth that if we obey only then we are walking in the light. Otherwise there is no use of claiming to be walking in the light while disobeying the Lord. Then John outlines the stages of Christian maturity. From vs. 14, “I am writing to you, little children, because your sins are forgiven for his name’s sake.”

I want you to observe these 3 verses carefully. Because John addresses the children, youths and adults each of those two times.

At the same time John is referring back to a particular event that took place in the past in his reader’s lives. In this verse John says, “I am writing to you, little children, because your sins are forgiven for His Name sake.” Now the reason why John mentions the same (I am writing to you, I am writing to you) over and over again and refers to the past event of his reader’s lives; is because he was so certain and confident of their forgiven state of life. 

We are told that John was writing to his spiritual children. And that’s why he refers to them as little children.

This could be a possibility that; these people had recently come to faith in Jesus Christ and they were influenced with these false teachers. And as we have already seen that these people had indulged in various sinful activities.

And they could have been convicted of their sins and after this they thought that their sins could not be forgiven and that they have lost their salvation.

So, through these words John is offering them the assurance of their sins being forgiven and he is also assuring them of their eternal security.  And we find the reason in the end of this verse. John says, “...for His Name’s sake.” 

This means if their Salvation was dependent upon their own works; they could have lost it. But the reason why John adds that important statement is so that; his readers might know that their salvation is dependent on what Christ has done; not on what they had done. Therefore they need not be worried for having lost their salvation.

Secondly, John also exhorts the other group of believers here. Those were the youths in their faith. Notice the next part of Vs. 13, “...I write to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one.” Then you find almost the same statement in vs. 14, “...I have written you young men, because you are strong and the Word of God remains in you and you have overcome the evil one...”

This group of believers seems to be between the children and the fathers/adults. Now the reason why John is addressing these spiritual youths is because; it’s in the youth every person faces tremendous temptations and in the face of this temptation John assured the spiritual youth that they have overcome the evil. But it is interesting to notice in vs. 14 that; before John mentions this statement of overcoming evil he mention the phrase that,  “...the Word of God remains in you. And it is there for a reason. Because though these youths had a tremendous strength. It was not because of their strength they had overcome the evil but because the Word of God that remains in them.

Vs. 13 says, “I write to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning...” Thirdly, John addresses fathers in this verse; in other words he addresses the adults in faith saying that they have known Jesus Who was from the beginning. The reason is because; the false teachers taught that we need to have some sort of a secret knowledge in order to know God. And these adults were confused whether they truly had known God through Jesus or not. Because the false teachers had also taught that we cannot know God through Jesus Christ; because Jesus didn’t come into this world; since God is completely holy and man is completely sinful; therefore God cannot take the help of a sinful human being to come into this world. At the same time John is assuring them that even though they haven’t seen Jesus Christ personally they do have knowledge of Him.

But through these words John is attacking these false teachers and assuring the adults of their knowledge of God.

Application:

We all as Christians suffer the same problems devil throws at us. Particularly when we had first come to Christ we all seem to wonder whether our sins are forgiven or not. Whether will I sin or will I not sin; and if I sin will I be forgiven, will I be restored? These are all questions bother many believers to a great extent. After John Wesley had been preaching for some time, some one said to him, "Are you sure, Mr. Wesley, of your salvation?" "Well," he answered, "Jesus Christ died for the whole world." "Yes, we all believe that; but are you sure that you are saved?" Wesley replied that he was sure that provision had been made for his salvation.

"But are you sure, Wesley, that you are saved?" It went like an arrow to his heart, and he had no rest or power until that question was settled. Many men and many women go on month after month, and year after year, without power, because they do not know their standing in Christ; they are not sure of their own footing for eternity. Latimer wrote Ridley once that when he was settled and steadfast about his own salvation he was as bold as a lion, but if that hope became eclipsed he was fearful and afraid and was disqualified for service. Many are disqualified for service because they are continually doubting their own salvation.

Many people long to have some kind of a feeling of being saved, and are not willing to trust the objective word of God for the assurance of their Salvation.

2. Our Response to the Christian Maturity: vs. 15-17

After assuring the believers in vs. 12 -14 about the forgiveness of their sins, about overcoming evil and about knowing God. John calls the believers to a greater task in vs. 15-17. The whole purpose of these verses is that: if you know your sins have been forgiven then you must behave in a certain manner. If you have known God or if you have overcome evil then you must respond to it with a particular manner. And the first command John states in these words is:

• The Command not to love the world: vs. 15a

Notice vs. 15a, “Don't love the world, neither the things that are in the world...” Basically the Bible uses world in 3 different ways. 1. Physical World: it means God’s creation; the material creation of God 2. The World applied to the people living in the universe; the mankind. 3. The evil people living in the world. Those who live without any sense of morality. These people show through their lives their evil way of life.

Now basically what John is saying is: do not be worldly and claim your faith in Christ at the same time. In this verse John is commanding his readers not to love the wickedness or the evil that’s in the world. The reason why John commands this is because: Loving world and loving God at the same time is not possible. You either love God or you love the world. You cannot love both at the same time. Until then many people were living their lives in worldliness and were still calling themselves Christians.

• The Consequence of loving the world: vs. 15b

Notice the next part of the verse, “...If anyone loves the world, the Father's love isn't in him.” Vs. 15b  

In plain words this is what John is saying. If a man loves the world, it shows that he has no true love for God. If he loves the world and lives his life for it; and if the world is the ruling principle of his life it is evident that his heart was never renewed in the first place. Jesus put it very simple for us to understand in Matthew 6:24, "No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other; or else he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You can't serve both God and Mammon.”

• The Concept of the World: vs. 16

The third thing that John does in these verses is, he gives the understanding of what the world is. In other words he gives the concept of the world. Notice vs. 16, “For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, isn't the Father's, but is the world's.”

The word lust in Greek language is: (epithumeo) this word denotes both positively and negatively. In this verse it means negatively. What John is saying is those who have excessive craving for sexual desire . At the same time he is also describing the people who always seeking for such a relationship. 

And finally the pride of life. The word pride here means boasting. Boasting about having the world’s riches and then having arrogance about it.

In summary what John is saying is: all the above things do not come from the Father but they come from the world. and those people who habitually practice them never turn from them are not of the Father but are of the world.

• The Characteristic of the World: vs. 17

Notice vs. 17, “And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.”

In this verse John describes the characteristic of the evil world. And the main characteristic is that: the evil world is passing away with its desires. In other words John is saying this world is temporary in nature; it’s not going to last long. But contrary to that he who does the will of God abides forever. In other words that person lives forever. The question is: what is the will of God? We find the answer to it in 1 John 3:23, “This is his commandment, that we should believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and love one another, even as he commanded.”

Application:

Everything that we have learnt so far teaches us that we should be growing Christians. When we are born again we are like babies but when we think about the babies. The babies don’t remain babies; they grow from childhood to youths and finally adulthood. This is what John is teaching us through these verses. Having said that let me remind you that maturity is not about age. You might be well advanced in age and be still a spiritual baby. Perhaps you are not very well advanced in age but be matured in your faith; this is also possible. The truth is growth is inevitable.

Let’s think about a dehydrated baby. This baby has all its body very weak and lean; but its head is very big. All I want to say to you this morning. Is the Bible teaching in the Church making you spiritually healthy people? Or are you just happy being in the chair for two hours? Are you craving for more spiritual food from the Word of God? Do you have the desire to know God deeply? Do have the desire to love Him the way He deserved to be loved?

When we are born again we are born into the family of God. We crave for pure milk as Peter tells us. But my question is have we stop growing in our spiritual lives?

A story is told about how an eagle builds the nest.

Though many of us have seen pictures of a huge eagle's nest high in the branches of a tree or in the crag of a cliff, few of us have gotten a glimpse inside. When a mother eagle builds her nest she starts with thorns, broken branches, sharp rocks, and a number of other items that seem entirely unsuitable for the project. But then she lines the nest with a thick padding of wool, feathers, and fur from animals she has killed, making it soft and comfortable for the eggs. By the time the growing birds reach flying age, the comfort of the nest and the luxury of free meals make them quite reluctant to leave. That's when the mother eagle begins "stirring up the nest." With her strong talons she begins pulling up the thick carpet of fur and feathers, bringing the sharp rocks and branches to the surface. As more of the bedding gets plucked up, the nest becomes more uncomfortable for the young eagles. Eventually, this and other urgings prompt the growing eagles to leave their once-comfortable abode and move on to more mature behaviour.

The simple test of our maturity is; if once coming to faith are we loving the world more or loving Christ more? You don’t need to tell me the answer. Let this be between you and God.

Another simple truth is: you will become mature if you are born into God’s family. If you are not born into God’s family; then you cannot become matured. Then only way to become matured is if we are born again. Have you been born again? Have you been born from above? Have you repented of your sins? If not today is the day and now is the time.

The Test of a True Believer - 1 John 2:1-2

Welcome to my very first blogg. This article is based from a sermon I preached that deals with the work that Christ accomplished on the Cross and the work that He is doing at present. I would be happy to hear all comments.

Let me begin with a story in order for us to understand Jesus’ work on the Cross and how we should respond to it.

Story:

A story is told about the founder of the Persian Empire. It is told that Cyrus once had captured a prince and his family. When they came before him, Cyrus asked the prisoner, "What will you give me if I release you?" "The half of my wealth," was his reply. "And if I release your children?" "Everything I possess." "And if I release your wife?" "Your Majesty, I will give myself." Cyrus was so moved by his devotion that he freed them all. As they returned home, the prince said to his wife, "Wasn't Cyrus a handsome man!" With a look of deep love for her husband, she said to him, "I didn't notice. I could only keep my eyes on you- -the one who was willing to give himself for me."

Like that wife of the Prince we also need to be looking at Christ our Redeemer with gratitude; who gave Himself up for the Church. Because the Bible tells us that we were by nature children of God’s wrath (Eph 2:3); that means we deserved death and hell. And only because of Christ’s atoning sacrifice we became the children of God (John 1:12).

So we will be looking at mainly 2 verses of 1 John 2:1-2.

The title for the sermon this morning is: “The Test of a True Believer.”  

The Basis of the Test: vs. 1-2

• Christ our Advocate 
• Christ our Atonement

1. The Basis of the Test: vs. 1-2

The subject we are deal with is so great that we cannot leave out anything. I believe anything that comes to our mind in order to exalt the doctrine of the Atonement of Christ is lesser compare to what He has accomplished on the Cross for us.

Last week we looked at the test of a true Christian fellowship. In that message we saw the foundation of that Christian fellowship; the application of the foundation and the clarification of that foundation.

This morning we are going to look at the basis on which a true believer can be tested. In other words we will look at the basis which determines if a person is a believer or not.

The verses we have read through, John gives us the basis of that test in the first 2 verses of the 2^nd chapter. So the first basis is:

1. Christ our Advocate: vs. 1

Notice vs. 1, John begins the second chapter by stating the purpose of his writing. “My little children, I am writing this to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.

It is important for us to notice how John addresses his readers. He addresses them as my little children. And he does that because he was the oldest apostle living during that time. And as an age old pastor he addresses his readers like that. The second reason could be; that even though knowing that his readers were not in a very good company he addresses them in a loving manner. They were not in a very good spiritual state. They were indulging in sinful activities; and still calling themselves as Christians. John had all the reasons to get angry at them; but he deliberately chooses to call them as ‘my little children.’ This is exactly how Jesus had treated Peter after he had denied and turned back from the Lord; and John was a witness to it.

After addressing his readers in a loving manner John states the purpose of his writing: that, ‘...I am writing these things to you so that...’ it means; everything that John has so far written; the call for fellowship with Christ and the test of true Christian fellowship, all these things John wrote so that ‘...you may not sin...’ this is a very important statement John is making here. Because John’s overflow of love does not stop in the first sentence but continues in these words also. Now before we could see what these words mean; we must first see what they do not mean.

John is not suggesting that once they had come to faith in Jesus they have become perfect. He is not suggesting them that once they had believed in the Sacrifice of Jesus they would not sin. But he is suggesting here that once they came to faith in Jesus they will sin because of the sin nature that is in them. Paul said the same thing in line with that. Galatians 5:16-17, “But I say to you walk by the Spirit and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh, for the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh for these are opposed to each other.”  

E.g.: one month back we gave Jonathan (my new born son) the BCG dose. And before a couple of days we realized that on his left hand where the dose was given; pus had formed. When we asked the Doctor about that he said that after the dose pus formation in that particular part is normal. The puss formation will subside and it will be clear. When he said that I was surprised.

The point is: if once any person comes in the fellowship with Christ; that person’s battle with sin is NORMAL. It’s as simple as a baby cries when he is born; and if the baby does not cry then there is some problem with the baby.

No normal Christian on this planet earth can claim that they don’t have struggle with sin. This is what John is saying here. He does not say, that: I am writing these things to you so that you CANNOT sin or you MUST NOT sin or you SHOULD NOT sin; but he says you MAY NOT sin. He does mean of course that John’s readers must not sin.

At the same time we need to understand that John is not giving his readers a license to live in gross sin; but he urged them that they must deliberately forsake sin. And this was exactly in line with what Paul said in Romans 6:1-4, “What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? May it never be! We who died to sin, how could we live in it any longer? Or don't you know that all we who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him through baptism to death that just like Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we also might walk in newness of life.”

Even Paul’s point was: falling into sin doesn’t condemn anybody but living in it does.

And thirdly, notice the last Part of the verse 1. John says, ‘....But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father Jesus Christ the righteous.’

John tells his believer readers that even if anybody sins; they have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. Another word for advocate is ‘comforter.’  In this verse John is using legal language. It implies that; we all stand condemned before God (the judge) and John says Jesus Christ is our Advocate He is our defender; He is our comforter. It’s as if there is a court room argument going on; and in this argument Jesus is the advocate for the criminal and Satan is the Public Prosecutor accusing the believer of his past sins and God is the Judge. The reason why John reminds his readers of Jesus’ ministry as an Advocate is; so that his readers would understand that forgiveness of sins is available for repentant sinners. And that is what he says it in vs. 9 of the 1^st chapter. “If we confess our sins; He is just and faithful to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” John gives this assurance to the repentant sinners of his day; because most of the Christians of his day believed that their immoral actions were not sinful.

Application:

The fact that Jesus is interceding for us; tells us that; no matter whatever kind of sin happens from me I am not going to lose my salvation. That’s true you will not lose your salvation; IF YOU ARE SAVED. Because if you are saved you will not live in sin but will flee from it. Separating oneself from sin is the first sign of a Christian believer. This is the first test to know if a person is a true Christian believer. He does not like to indulge in sin. That’s the first sign of a believer.

Jesus’ ministry of intercession for believers must not give a license to sin but give hatred towards sin. And the reason is; OUR sin killed Jesus; even though we were not present there. Each time we choose to sin we violate God’s moral law.

For Example:

The 10 commandments. We all know we are not saved by obeying the Moral Law of God but once we come to know Jesus as our Savior and Lord we obey those 10 commandments as a fruit of our salvation. But if we examine ourselves; can we always obey them? No! Even when we have become believers we do sin; and therefore what a great comfort it is to know that Jesus is interceding He is advocating on our behalf with the Father for our forgiveness. I believe we should be always grateful to Jesus our Advocate/ our comforter.

2. Christ our Atonement: vs. 2

Secondly, John gives another basis of the test of a true believer. To put it in simple words: a believer is forgiven on the basis of Christ’s Atonement.

Notice vs. 2, “And he is the atoning sacrifice for our sins and not for ours only, but also for the whole world.” In plain words Jesus’ atoning Sacrifice is the basis of the forgiveness of believer. The word ‘Atonement’ is a legal word. I looked in the dictionary for definition of this word and I found out that atonement means; Reconciliation of man with God through the life, suffering and sacrificial death of Jesus Christ. The word Atonement also means: to satisfy or to appease, or to calm. So, in the light of the meaning of the word; Jesus Christ appeased, He calmed or satisfied the wrath of God by bearing the punishment of our sins on the Cross. God’s anger was hurling against us He would have been right in pouring down that wrath upon us; but in His mercy He provided the atonement in Jesus Christ; and poured His Holy Wrath on Him so that we might be forgiven.

We must ask a question as to why did Christ paid for our sins? The answer is. Jesus paid the price of our sins in order to serve the justice of God and to demonstrate the love of God. 2 verses should come in our mind when we think of Christ’s atonement. John 3:16, “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”

Rom 3:25, “whom God set forth to be an atoning sacrifice through faith in his blood, for a demonstration of his righteousness through the passing over of prior sins, in God's forbearance.” Through this verse Paul explains to us that God could not accept us into His fellowship with himself unless the penalty of our sin was paid. That is God’s justice. Jesus paid that penalty for us so that we could be accepted by God in his fellowship.

But the problem comes when we read the next half of the verse.

Notice the next half of the verse, “...and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.”

The simple meaning of this verse says that Jesus’ atonement was not only for the believers but for unbelievers as well. But that is not what this verse means. In order to understand the meaning of this verse we need to understand the meaning of the word ‘world.’ The Greek word for World is ‘cosmos.’  Similarly the world in John 3:16 also means ‘cosmos.’  And the word ‘cosmos’ means cultural groups. It means people of different tongues and tribes. It doesn’t mean for all individuals all persons. This verse does not teach that the atonement of Jesus is automatically applicable to all individuals; repentant and unrepentant sinners alike. However, it means that the blood of Jesus is capable of saving all men of all tongues and all individuals. But His blood is only profitable for repentant sinners; not for unrepentant sinners.

Application:

Let me bring this point to conclusion. The atonement of Christ teaches us that all sins (past, present & future) of all the believers are forgiven because of Christ’s sacrifice on the Cross.

How should we respond to the atonement of Christ? I heard John Piper in one of his messages, he said: “Do we prize the grace of God in the Atonement of Christ, or do we prostitute the grace of God because of the Atonement of Christ?”

What a comfort it is to know that our sins are already paid for; they have already been forgiven, and that we don’t have to pay for it at all. I feel this is important to say because we live in an idolatrous culture; wherein people do have the idea of our sins being paid for. They are willing to go to a great extent in order to pay for their own sins. They trust their own works in order for their sins to be forgiven.

One such story is told of a woman by the name of Alila. Alila stood on the beach holding her tiny infant son close to her heart. Tears welled in her eyes as she began slowly walking toward the river's edge. She stepped into the water, silently making her way out until she was waist deep, the water gently lapping at the sleeping baby's feet. She stood there for a long time holding the child tightly as she stared out across the river. Then all of a sudden in one quick movement she threw the six month old baby to his watery death. Native missionary M.V. Varghese often witnesses among the crowds who gather at the River Ganga. It was he who came upon Alila that day kneeling in the sand crying uncontrollably and beating her breast. With compassion he knelt down next to her and asked her what was wrong.

Through her sobs she told him, "The problems in my home are too many and my sins are heavy on my heart, so I offered the best I have to the goddess Ganges, my first born son." Brother Varghese's heart ached for the desperate woman. As she wept he gently began to tell her about the love of Jesus and that through Him her sins could be forgiven. She looked at him strangely. "I have never heard that before," she replied through her tears. "Why couldn't you have come thirty minutes earlier? If you did, my child would not have had to die."

Each year millions of people come to the holy Indian city of Hardwar to bathe in the River Ganges. These multitudes come believing this Hindu ritual will wash their sins away. For many people like Alila, many Christians are arriving too late, simply because there aren't enough of these faithful brothers and sisters on the mission field.

How do we respond to the atonement of Christ? Are we just happy to keep this glorious truth to ourselves or like John we are making this a subject of our daily conversation? What is it that charms us the most? Does the gospel of Christ charm you or does it put you off? You see, you will always speak about that which is very close to your heart. Is the gospel of Christ dear to your heart? Have you embraced Him as your Lord and Savior? Have your repented of your sins? Have you been born again?

No one who enjoys the forgiveness of Jesus can be content to keep it for himself. He is not the propitiation for our sins only. There are other sheep that are scattered throughout the whole world. Their sins, too, are covered. And the last commandment of Jesus was, "Go make disciples out of them from every people."

In summary, John's message to us today is: Don't sin! It is tremendously and terribly serious. But if you do sin, don't despair because your attorney is the Son of the Judge. He is righteous and he makes his case for you not on the basis of your perfection but his propitiation. Be of good courage, don't keep Jesus for yourself alone, go and make disciples.