Obedience and Love

Well, good morning, church. Let me invite you to turn with me to the book of 1 John.

Our sermon text today is 1 John, chapter 2, verses 3 through 11.

1 John 2:3–11

1 John, chapter 2, verses 3 through 11.

1 John 2:3–11

I'm going to read that first, and then I'll pray for us.

1 John, chapter 2, verses 3 through 11.

1 John 2:3–11

Whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.

Beloved, I am writing to you no new commandment, but an old commandment that you had from the beginning.

The old commandment is the word that you have heard.

At the same time, it is a new commandment that I am writing to you, which is true in him and in you,

because the darkness is passing away and the true light is already shining.

Whoever says he is in the light and hates his brother is still in darkness.

Whoever loves his brother abides in the light, and in him there is no cause for stumbling.

But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in darkness and does not know where he is going,

because the darkness has blinded his eyes.

All right, let's pray together.

Father, we just sang that our soul might be satisfied in you alone.

Lord, that is a mighty prayer.

And we ask now that as we come to your word, your Holy Spirit would give us clarity and understanding and grace

as we come to understand what the Apostle John has written here,

not just for his time, but for the church of all time.

And Lord, we pray that as a result, our obedience to you would grow,

and our soul would indeed be satisfied in you alone.

We pray this in Jesus' name.

Amen.

Amen.

So what is the great evidence or sign that someone truly knows God?

That's what John is getting at in this section,

and really that's what he's getting at in this whole book.

How can we tell if we genuinely know God?

Notice John has a few ways of talking about what it means to know God,

and we see right away that we're not talking about merely intellectual knowledge about God.

No, John has in mind an intimate, saving relationship with God.

In verse 5, he speaks of the love of God,

which in this context means the love that believers have for God.

And in verse 6, he talks about abiding in God,

abiding like the roots of a tree, abiding in the rich soil of a garden.

And in verse 9, he talks about being in the light,

basking in the warmth of God's presence.

So John's talking about an intimate relationship with God, knowing God.

Friends, this is the heart of Christianity,

that humans, you and I, can have this sort of relationship with God, our Creator.

A relationship that at the start of the book, John describes as fellowship.

And what is fellowship in the Bible?

Fellowship is sharing something in common,

that we can actually share something in common with God.

But the message of Christianity is not just that humans as creatures can have this sort of

intimate relationship with God, their Creator,

but even that humans as sinners can have this sort of intimate relationship with God.

Remember the passage that we looked at last week?

John says,

If anyone says they have no sin, they deceive themselves.

We've all disobeyed God's perfect and good commands.

And we all stand condemned before God's perfect justice.

Yet the heart of Christianity is that sinners like you and me,

who deserve condemnation, can be welcomed into intimate, loving fellowship with God.

We can know God.

But how can that be?

Well, you know, it's easy to think that surely the way into this kind of relationship with God is that we have to reform our lives

and work hard to be moral and good,

and then perhaps God will turn around and accept us.

But that's not how it's done.

It couldn't be that way, because our good works could never be good enough.

And besides, how could our good works cover over the wrongs that we've done?

You know, imagine that I were to rob a bank.

I'd probably be a really bad bank robber,

but just imagine that I were to go and rob a bank,

and there I go, I head running out of the doors,

and as I escape the scene of the crime,

I see an elderly person crossing the street,

and they look like they're having a tough time.

So I pause, and I let them cross, you know,

because I'm that kind of guy after robbing a bank.

Well, a few blocks later, the police catch up with me,

and they arrest me, and they bring me before the judge.

And imagine my defense.

Judge, I know I've committed this great crime robbing this bank,

and you've caught me, but you see, I did some good deeds, actually.

I even helped an elderly person cross the street

right outside the bank that I robbed.

Surely that should cover over my crimes, right?

And you'll let me go.

Well, obviously, this is a silly illustration, right?

But you get the point.

Good deeds, no matter how good,

don't erase the very real wrong that's been done.

And that's true for us before God.

Thinking that we can simply reform our lives,

and that that will get us into a relationship with God

is like thinking that helping the elderly person cross the street

will cancel out our crimes of robbery.

It won't.

And the sad reality, as friends,

is that we've robbed God of His glory.

We've disobeyed Him.

We've ignored Him.

We've lived our lives without any reference to Him,

even though we depend on God for everything, every second.

What could possibly cancel that debt?

And the truth is, it can't come from our side.

There's nothing we can offer as humans to get back into God's favor.

But here is the stunning message of Christianity,

that in love, God makes a way.

He sees us in our sin, buried under a debt we can't pay,

and in mercy, He comes to pay it.

And since death is the punishment for sin,

Christ dies willingly in our place

to deliver us from the penalty of sin

and bring us back to God.

He's the propitiation for our sins,

as John has just written a couple verses ago in verse 2.

And if you understand that word, propitiation,

you are staring right at the heart of the most glorious thing

that has ever happened in human history,

that Christ has died to turn away

the just wrath of God against human sin

and bring us back into God's favor.

And this is how Christianity is so different

than all the old pagan religions of John's day

and even every other religion down to our day.

Because you see, Christ, the sacrifice,

is God the Son, one with the Father.

So that means Christ is not some helpless victim,

unwillingly sacrificed to appease a capricious God,

like, you know, the Greeks sacrificing

before they go storm Troy, you know,

trying to appease the capricious gods.

No, Christ is fully God.

In Christ, God himself makes the payment.

God himself provides the sacrifice.

God himself bears the penalty

and bears it away once and for all,

for everyone who admits their sin and trusts in Christ.

And because of what Christ has done,

it's as if the doors of heaven have been flung open wide

for all to enter.

Come to me, Christ says,

and I will give you rest.

Sinners can now come into an intimate relationship

with the holy God, their creator,

on the basis of sheer grace

and live in fellowship with him forever,

starting right now.

But how do you know?

How do you know that you really know God?

Is there any sign that this grace of God in Jesus Christ

is alive in a person's heart,

really uniting them to Father and Son and fellowship?

Because you know it's possible, of course,

to say you know God,

but not really know him.

It's possible to have these things up here in your head,

but not really possess them in your heart.

It's possible to know about God.

It's possible to know about the good news of Jesus Christ,

to know about the gospel.

It's possible to know about God,

but not really know God.

So what is it?

What's the sign, or at least one good sign,

that we really have come to know God in Christ?

Well, for John, the answer is simple and profound.

And in fact, it might even seem a little mundane at first,

a little too simple.

But for John, here it is.

Verse 3,

By this we know that we have come to know him.

How?

If we keep his commandments.

If we keep his commandments.

Not if we have mountaintop spiritual experiences, right?

Although there's nothing wrong with those when they come.

Not if we experience miraculous gifts in our life,

although God certainly does miraculous things.

Not if we have a deep knowledge of systematic theology,

although every Christian should seek a deep grasp of biblical truths.

No, the criteria, the evidence,

that someone really knows God through the gospel of grace

is that they keep his commandments.

Now, John unpacks this in three ways in the rest of this section.

Notice there are three times where the phrase,

whoever says, appears in our text.

Whoever says.

You find that in verse 4, and in verse 6, and in verse 9.

And we'll take those as the markers of the outline of the passage.

And basically what John says in summary is that

keeping God's commands is the evidence of really knowing God.

Because one, it's the natural overflow of loving the Father,

and two, of abiding in God the Son,

and three, of walking in the light.

Keeping God's commands really is the evidence of knowing God.

Because it's the natural overflow of loving God the Father,

and abiding in God the Son,

and of walking in the light.

So let's look at the first of those together.

Loving God the Father.

Look again at verse 4 and 5.

Whoever says, I know him, but does not keep his commandments,

is a liar, and the truth is not in him.

But whoever keeps his word in him,

truly the love of God is perfected.

Now, John's pretty blunt, isn't he?

He's maybe a little more blunt than some of us care to be.

If you say you know God, but you don't keep his commandments,

you're a liar, and the truth is not in you.

Ouch.

Now, let's be sure we understand what John means here.

Let's be precise.

Just a few verses earlier at the end of chapter 1,

John said,

If we say we have no sin,

we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.

In other words, everyone, even Christians,

will continue to sin.

We will break God's commands.

We'll never reach sinless perfection in this life.

Though all our sins have been forgiven through the cross of Christ,

sin still remains.

And this indwelling sin will at times get the upper hand,

and we will fall.

And when we do, we run back to the cross

and find God's mercy to be fresh and new.

Right after John says,

If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves,

and the truth is not in us,

he says,

If we confess our sins,

he's faithful and just to forgive us our sins

and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Now, John isn't saying that we lose our salvation

when we sin as Christians.

God's sovereign grace that made you a child of God

cannot be overturned.

But we certainly can lose our assurance

and our sense of peace before God.

And many of us who have followed Christ for a long time

know what that feels like when we fall into sin.

And so we continue to confess our sins,

and we continue to be amazed by God's abundant grace.

So when John writes,

Whoever says I know him

but does not keep his commandments is a liar,

he's not talking about a Christian

who fights against indwelling sin

and at times loses the fight

and who gets back up and keeps fighting.

No, he's talking about a person who says

they know God,

but they don't care about keeping his commandments.

Or they pick or choose which commandments

they want to abide by.

Or maybe they even actively reject

some of the clear commandments of Scripture.

If someone says they know God

but actively rejects what God's Word says about

generosity and money, for example,

or sex and marriage,

or truthfulness and integrity,

or forgiveness and reconciliation,

if someone actively rejects

or just doesn't care about God's clear commands,

then John says their profession to know God

is empty and hollow.

Now, of course, people who profess to know God

but reject or ignore his commands

can be very nice

and very knowledgeable

and very socially concerned and aware.

That's true.

But friends, niceness

and knowledge

and social awareness

are not

sure and certain criteria

of genuinely knowing

the God of the Bible.

It's keeping his commands.

But why?

Why that one?

Well, look at verse 5.

Whoever keeps his word,

in him truly,

the love of God is perfected.

Now, it's not immediately clear

when John says the love of God

if he's talking about

God's love for us

or our love for God.

That phrase,

the love of God,

grammatically could mean either.

Either God's love for us

or our love for God.

And either could make sense.

If John means God's love for us

is perfect or completed

when we obey his commands,

then it would seem that John

is reminding us of a beautiful truth

about God's love and grace.

Which is this.

That God accepts us

as we are.

But he doesn't leave us

as we are.

His love accepts us

and immediately begins

to transform and change us.

Change us more and more

into people who delight

to keep his commands

even when it's costly

or unpopular.

The love of God, you see,

is like a swift river.

When you step into it,

you don't stay in the same place.

It picks you up

and it carries you downstream.

It's a love that changes you

and transports you

and transforms you.

It's a love that picks you up

in its current

and sweeps you along

and it makes the hard-hearted

and unforgiving,

it makes them soft

and compassionate.

It makes the heart

that's desperate for approval

safe and secure.

And it makes the heart

that clings to worldly goods

for control and for power

generous and open-handed.

This is God the Father's love

for us in Christ.

Changes us.

But in verse 5,

John could also mean

our love for God.

And that's probably

what he means.

A little later in this letter,

John will write

pretty much the same thing

in chapter 5, verse 3.

For this is the love of God,

meaning our love for God,

this is the love of God,

that we keep his commandments.

And his commandments

are not burdensome.

In other words,

what it means,

this is what it means

for us to love God.

That our love for God

naturally leads

to keeping his commands.

Jesus said the same thing

in John chapter 14

John 14 · chapter mention

that Nick read for us

earlier in the service.

If anyone loves me,

Jesus says,

he will keep my word.

Pretty straightforward.

You see, friends,

here's the secret

of Christian obedience.

It's not done begrudgingly

or out of sheer duty

as if we just sort of

white-knuckle it

and begrudgingly obey.

No, it's done

because we love

the one who tells us

these things.

True obedience

doesn't flow

from a heart

that's afraid

we'll lose God's favor

and acceptance

if we fail.

It flows from a heart

that's so enraptured

and in awe

of the one

who would love us

so much

that he sent

his only son

to die for our sins.

We see how good

and how trustworthy

this God is

in the gospel

and we delight then

to listen to his words

and obey

because they must be

for our good.

How could they not

be for our good?

How could this God,

the God who gave

his only son,

not want

our absolute best?

So in love,

we keep his commands

and they aren't burdensome.

If you've ever been in love,

you know exactly

what John's talking about,

don't you?

When you're madly

in love with someone,

they could tell you

to drive to Milwaukee

for their favorite sandwich

and you'd start Googling

the best route, right?

How do I get there?

You like the sandwich

from Milwaukee?

Let's go.

Let's do it.

Why?

Because that's just

what love does.

It delights to do

the will of the beloved.

In fact,

if love doesn't result

in that sort of action,

then we'd question

if it's really love,

wouldn't we?

If your spouse

asks you to do something,

hey, do this thing for me.

It's really important.

And you say,

you know,

I'm busy right now

playing some video games.

I've got to find

the next geoglyph

to make sure Zelda's okay.

You know,

you switch players,

you know what I'm talking about.

Well,

anyone would begin

to question your love

after a time, right?

Do you really love this person

if you're not eager

to listen and keep their word?

John's making the same point

about our relationship

with God.

The reason why

keeping his commands

is a surefire evidence

that we've really come

to know God

in the gospel of grace

is because it's

the natural result

of genuinely loving God

who loves us so much.

love is perfected,

John writes.

That is,

it's brought to completion

in delighting

to do his will.

It doesn't just stay

in the conceptual,

emotional,

feeling realm.

It expresses itself

in action.

Now, before we go

to John's next point,

there's a practical

application here.

If you're a Christian

and you're struggling

to obey

in a certain area,

one of the best things

you can do

is work to rekindle

your love for God.

And really,

the most certain way

to do that

is to return

to the gospel itself,

Christ crucified for you,

to set your mind

on those things

until it gets down

into your heart.

And begins to kindle

your love for God again.

Perhaps, for example,

you're struggling

with what God says

about marriage

and sexuality, perhaps.

Maybe you can't understand

why God would limit

something like sex

to marriage

or why God would limit

marriage to a man

and a woman.

It all seems so confusing

and so hard

and you're just struggling.

And friend, I get it.

We all wrestle

with those questions.

And you know,

there are really good

theological answers

to those questions

and there are really good

practical answers

to those questions too.

But the place to start

is with God Himself.

Do you see that this God

is good

and trustworthy?

Do you see how

He took on flesh

to become your true lover,

your true spouse,

faithful to the end?

That He came

and He loved you

at the greatest cost

to Himself

so that He might

take you to Himself

and make you

His eternal bride.

And He even bled

and died

to make sure

that you'd never be alone,

never be rejected

for all eternity.

And when your heart

starts to kindle

in love

for this God

who loved you

so well,

then you can begin

to trust Him.

Trust Him

that His limits,

for example,

around marriage

and sexuality

might be confusing,

might be countercultural,

but they're good.

They're good

because He is good.

And so the path

of obedience

is walked

along the path

of love.

Kindle a heart

of love for God

through worship,

through meditation

on Scripture,

through prayer

and communion

with God,

through fellowship

with other believers.

The road of obedience

will still be hard

at times,

it's true,

but underneath

you'll feel

that swift current

that river

of God's love

that carries you along

even when it's hard.

Now,

for the sake of time,

we're going to move quickly

through John's

next two points,

but, you know,

the good news is

is that John

weaves his themes

throughout this book,

so we'll be returning

to these themes

again and again

and we'll be able

to go much deeper,

but let's see

how John finishes up

here in our passage.

In our next verse,

we have John's

second point,

that keeping God's commands

is evidence

of truly knowing God

because it's the natural

overflow,

not just of love

for God the Father,

but of abiding

in God the Son.

Let's pick up

at the end of verse 5.

By this we know

that we are in Him.

Whoever says

he abides in Him

ought to walk

in the same way

in which He walked.

Now,

John is talking

about Jesus here.

Remember John 15

where Jesus talks

about abiding in Him

like a branch

abides in the vine.

Well,

John says,

if we say

we abide in Jesus,

then surely

we ought to walk

in the same way

in which He walked.

And how was that?

How did Jesus walk?

Well,

if you read

the four Gospels,

especially the Gospel of John,

you see that Jesus' life

was animated

by one central,

overriding desire.

The thing that drove Him

and guided Him,

His aim

and His mission

was to fulfill

His Father's will.

There's lots of verses

we could cite,

but perhaps the most poignant

is when Jesus is praying

in the Garden of Gethsemane.

And there in the Garden,

Jesus says

in His hour

of greatest trial

and distress,

Father,

not my will,

but Your will be done.

And John's point

in verse 6

of our text

is very simple.

If you say

you're a follower

of Jesus,

then you should have

that same attitude

as well.

not my will,

but Your will be done.

A desire to delight

and to fulfill

the commands of the Father.

That's the evidence

that Christ is dwelling

in your heart through faith.

That's the evidence

that you're united

to Christ by the Spirit.

That more and more

you walk

in the same way

Christ walked,

keeping the Father's commands.

Friends,

this is a sad state of affairs

that there are many churches

with the name of Christ

on their sign,

but they seem

to have little interest

in keeping God's commands

the way Christ did.

Is that not a great tragedy?

But friends,

may it not be so with us.

As a church,

may we not fall

into the same trap

of talking about Christ,

but never actually living

like Christ.

don't think that we aren't

immune

from the same danger.

Let us not be so proud

that we don't think

that we too could slip

and turn a deaf ear

to God's Word.

We must humble ourselves

before God,

ask for His mercy,

and ask for His help,

and continue to pray,

not our will,

but Yours be done.

And in that pursuit,

friend,

are we willing

to be confronted

or challenged even?

You know,

one of the great gifts

of being involved

in a small group,

for example,

is that you'll

begin to be known

by a group

of fellow Christians

who can encourage you

and support you

and rejoice with you,

but who can also

lovingly hold

a mirror up to you

when your life

doesn't match

your profession.

Oh,

how we need

brothers and sisters

in Christ

who are humble

and gentle

and courageous enough

to hold up that mirror

when the time is right

and show us

our shortcomings.

Do you have

that sort of fellowship

with other Christians?

If not,

you need it.

Seek it out.

Join a small group

if you're not involved

in one.

This is one of the means

whereby you can continue

to walk in the same way

as Jesus walked.

None of us can do it alone.

We need each other

to go on abiding in Him.

Now,

John's third and last point

takes us from

loving God the Father

and abiding in Christ the Son

to walking in the light.

If we walk in the light,

we will keep God's commands.

But in these last verses,

picking up in verse 7,

John pinpoints

one particular aspect

of keeping God's commands,

loving our fellow Christians.

Loving our fellow Christians.

As John begins this part

of this section

in verses 7 and 8,

John seems to be

contradicting himself,

doesn't he?

He says,

I'm not writing to you

a new command,

but an old command,

and yet it is a new command.

Well, what does he mean by that?

Well, he's referencing here

the command

to love one another.

And for Christians,

that's not a new command, right?

It's something

that Jesus himself taught.

Remember the Gospel of John,

John 15:12–13

chapter 15,

verses 12 through 13.

Jesus said,

This is my commandment,

that you love one another

as I have loved you.

Greater love

has no one than this,

that someone lay down

his life for his friends.

So John here

is kind of reminding

his readers

that he's not adding

anything new

to the message

when he says

that obedience

and loving one another

is essential

to knowing

whether you're truly a Christian.

In fact, he's saying

this is the command

Jesus gave us

from the very beginning,

and it's the command

you receive

from the very beginning

of your walk with Christ.

And yet,

lest this command

lose its wonder

and power,

John reminds us

that in a manner of speaking,

it is a new command.

And it will always be new.

Why?

Well, when Jesus gave

this command

to his disciples,

do you remember

what he said?

In John 13,

he says,

A new command I give you

that you love one another

just as I have loved you.

You also are to love

one another.

By this,

all people will know

that you are my disciples

if you have love

for one another.

It's a new command

because Jesus made it new.

And he made it new

when he defined love

by his own life and actions.

Just as I have loved you,

you also are to love one another.

The self-giving love of Jesus,

that's what love is.

And that's how our lives

as Christians

are meant to be lived.

And as we do so,

we aren't just following

a new command.

John even says,

We're living in a new age.

It's a new commandment

that I'm writing to you

which is true in him

and in you

because the darkness

is passing away

and the true light

is already shining.

Jesus,

the light of the world

is shining,

John says.

The risen Lord Jesus

sits at the Father's right hand,

ascended in glory.

The church gathers in his name,

filled with his spirit.

The gospel message

is proclaimed,

the power of God

for salvation

to all who believe.

And as the church

gathers in the power

of the spirit

of the risen Lord

and as the gospel

is proclaimed,

as this new age

breaks in upon us,

John says,

the darkness is passing away.

That old age of sin

and death

and decay,

the old age

of self-centeredness

and the desires

of the world

is passing away

and the true light

is shining.

And what does it mean

to walk

in this heavenly light

of the risen Lord Jesus?

John says,

it means to love

those whom

the Father loves.

It means to love

those for whom

Christ laid down

his life.

The genuine mark

of obedience

for the true Christian

will be love

for the church.

Love

for the brothers,

John says,

by which he means

the brothers and sisters

in the spiritual family

of the church.

It's almost as if

John is saying,

okay,

how do you know

you know God

through the gospel?

What's the sign

that that's really

taking place?

Well,

if you keep

his commandments.

And what's the key way

to know

if you're keeping

the commandments?

If you love

your brothers and sisters

in Christ.

A loveless Christian

is no Christian

at all.

Such a person

is still stumbling

about in the darkness,

John says.

Friends,

when the world

looks at our church,

what do they see

if they care to look?

Let's pray

that they see

a community

that loves one another.

And let's pray

that they see

a community

that loves one another

not because

we all share

the same socioeconomic

background.

We don't.

Not because we all

share the same

ethnic or racial background.

We don't.

Not because we all

share the same hobbies

or interests

or taste in music

or vocational pursuits.

We don't.

None of these things

are why we love each other.

We love each other.

because we share

a common Savior.

When I look at you,

fellow Christian,

I see someone

loved by the Lord Jesus

just as I have been loved.

He shed His blood

for you.

He rose again

for your justification.

The same Spirit

that lives in me

lives in you.

And if I don't see that,

if I don't live

like that's true,

then I'm still

in darkness

stumbling about.

But friends,

as John says here,

there's good reason

for hope

and assurance.

As John writes,

this commandment

to love one another

is true.

It's true in Him

and it's true in you.

So let's live

what's true.

let's live this love

for one another

that is true in Christ

and yes,

is true in us.

And let's do so

more and more

because the true light

is shining.

The kingdom

has dawned.

And let us know

we are Christians

by our love.

Love for God

and love for one another.

Let's pray.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Father,

as we pause

in light of what

the Apostle John

is saying in this passage,

God,

perhaps

there are some of us

who have realized

that

we've not really

been taking

your commandments

as seriously

as we ought.

And Father,

if that is true,

we thank you

for the conviction

of your Holy Spirit

who shows us

these things

so that we might

turn and be saved.

So, Father,

if there are any here

who are sensing

that perhaps

I don't really know God

because I don't

really care

about His commandments,

that they would not

stay there,

but, Father,

you would open

their eyes

to see Christ

crucified for them,

loved by Him,

and would they

trust in you.

And, God,

as we think

about this passage

about keeping

your commands

and loving

one another,

Lord,

how much

we know

we need your help.

Jesus,

you promised

you would send

another helper,

the Holy Spirit,

who would allow us

to live these things

out in community.

Oh,

help us

to keep in step

with Him.

Would His love

be shed abroad

in our hearts?

Would His power

be at work

in our lives

and in our relationships

so that what John

writes about here

might be true

of us today

and that we might

live in the light?

We pray this

in Jesus' name.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.