"Words of Life" by Hiram Kemp - Part 11

This is

This quarter in the auditorium or at least this half of the quarter

We're looking at words of life from John's letters and it's our goal and desire to get all the way through third John

So tonight will be first John 5 and then in the two remaining weeks, we will do second John and third John

So we've been given a major theme to each one of these chapters and in first John chapter 5 tonight

1 John 5 · chapter mention

We will talk about assurance of eternal life now

John in chapter 5 is going to

Basically in the book in a similar way to which he started and if you remember how John started in first John chapter 1

1 John 1 · chapter mention

He began by talking about the person and work of Jesus. So in first John 1

really 1 through 4

he talks about seeing Jesus and being able to touch him and hear him and experience the

physical and flesh and blood person and work of Jesus Christ, but throughout first John one of the things John's been dealing with is

False teachers and John's been responding to these ideas primarily

Surrounding do the person of Jesus that Jesus actually came in the flesh and he talks about that in first John 4 verses 2 and 3

1 John 4:2

but in first John 5

John kind of gets back to the initial thrust of this letter and that is you need to know who Jesus is and

Respond to him properly. Never mind what these false teachers are telling you

Here are some things that are going to build up strengthen and encourage your faith

So think about this from the reader standpoint initially and as a Christian in 2026 in the 21st century

Why do you think it's important or better yet?

What does a person miss out on in their faith if all their attention is only in all ways about?

What we don't believe or in response to false doctrine because John deals with some of that in first John

But then as he ends the book

He doesn't deal so much with directly answering the opposition as much as he's now

Equipping these Christians with here the truths and realities you need to possess and hold to

So you can know you have eternal life in your own good terms with God

So what can happen to a person's faith who's only focused and always focused on? Hey, let's respond to religious error

Here's what we don't believe and here's who we need to straighten out

Why is that probably not the best way to only and always go about faith though?

You do need to be able to resist and stand up for the truth Vivian

You

Will lose the joy of living a good life

Yeah

If your faith is always about what you don't believe you'll lose the joy of living a good life and part of Christianity is joy

In fact, if you flip in your Bible to first John chapter 1 and verse 4, that's one of the reasons why John wrote

1 John 1 · chapter mention

He said we write these things to you so that your joy may be full. So yeah, it's about full joy

Anything else that happens to a person that your faith is only about playing defense and responding to the opposition

Oh

Your faith can become very academic and it can all it can become all about learning the facts and we need the facts because the

Facts are true and they lead us to faith and trust in Jesus

But biblical Christianity is more than just the mental academic exercise and on all the right answers

Karl Barth said it's not just getting the doctrine, right?

You also have to get the doctrine lived and so it matters that you don't just know the right answers

But that in knowing those answers you produce the right kind of life and in chapter 5

John's gonna deal with some of that as he's already been throughout and

That's a problem

Yeah, you can start focusing so much on what everybody else has wrong that you forget what you should be believing

That's actually right

You remember Jesus told the Sadducees you do err not knowing the scriptures nor the power of God in Matthew 22 29

And if your whole Christian life's about here's what we believe here's what they got wrong

And here's what they believe that's false. You can start to forget what you actually believe

anybody else

Lori

Have a totally negative attitude

Yeah, you're like a hammer and everything's a nail

Yeah

You just start seeing like totally negative things all the time and what will happen eventually is you'll forget

You're supposed to be developing your own relationship with God. That's what's really supposed to be happening

What does James say draw near to God?

He will draw near to you and you can forget that Christianity isn't just about saving souls though

It is self-preservation is first though

You need to be trying to make sure you keep your own soul in proper standing and you can forget all of that

So with all that being said in first John chapter 5 John equips us for some of that another major idea that we're gonna see

1 John 5 · chapter mention

Tonight is that John deals a lot with testimony the false teachers have said a lot of things about Jesus

But John will say specifically beginning in about verse 6

Here's the true testimony about Jesus and here's how we know Jesus really and truly is the Son of God

That's important because what John is driving at is it really doesn't matter what everybody says about Jesus

It matters primarily what who says about Jesus

Jesus and what the Father what God says about Jesus but turn that around it also applies to you and me in our lives this

same idea

Your testimony the most important thing about who you are who I am

It doesn't really matter necessarily what we think about ourselves or what other people say about us

Where does God say that we stand and we need his divine?

Testimony to sign off on us and tell us where we are and in what relation do we stand to him?

And the last major idea we'll see is eternal life. And what is what have we said in defining eternal life throughout first John?

How does John define eternal life in first John and if you don't know we'll see it explicitly tonight

Especially in verse 20 of chapter 5 or you can just cheat now and look at chapter 20 chapter 5 and verse 20

Give me the answer what?

Already having it but like what is eternal life or a better question is in first John who is eternal life?

Jesus so in first John eternal life isn't a concept

It's not even so much about how long you're gonna live after you die a duration of life in first

John eternal life is a person is Jesus and if you get plugged into Jesus

You're gonna live forever because life is inherent in the person and work of Jesus. And so that's what we'll see tonight. Let's start

Let's go to first John chapter 5 and I'm gonna read the first five verses and throughout first John chapter 5

1 John 5 · chapter mention 1 John 5 · chapter mention

What I want us to see is here's how you can have assurance of eternal life

John says everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God and

Everyone who loves the father loves whoever has been born of him by this

We know that we love the children of God when we love God and obey his commandments

For this is the love of God that we keep his commandments and his commandments are not burdensome and everyone who's been born of God

Overcomes the world and this is the victory that has overcome the world our faith

Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?

Okay assurance of eternal life in first John comes from faith possessed and your faith properly demonstrated

This is the first thing John says in chapter 5 you can have assurance of eternal life

If you possess faith and the faith that you have you demonstrate it or you show it in the proper fashion

And so he says everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God

This idea of belief is a major idea just in John's writings in general

Think the golden text of the Bible John 3 16 for God

So loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son that whoever what?

Whoever believes it's a major idea for John if you believe in Jesus in the biblical way that faith is used trust

Pointed toward obedience because of what God's done

John says you have eternal life and that faith is

Centrally located in a person and that person is Jesus whoever believes that Jesus Christ is the Christ is the Son of God

And so John wrote his gospel go to John 20

Hold your hand in first John 5 and go to John 20 and notice what John said in his gospel and why he wrote it

John 20 the last two verses verses 30 and 31 John says this is why he even wrote his gospel

Truly many other signs did Jesus in the presence of his disciples that are not written in this book

But these are written that you might what?

Believe that Jesus is the Christ the Son of God and in that believing you'll have life in his name

So throughout John John's gospel first John second John and not in third John so much

But there's this idea if you believe in Jesus

Then you're born of God and you enjoy the blessings of eternal life and starting out in chapter 5

He says everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ. What does that mean that Jesus is the Christ?

I know sometimes we put them together like Christ is his last name, but that's not on this birth certificate

Okay, Christ is his job more of his function

So what does John mean when he says everyone that believes that Jesus is the Christ, what is that?

Messiah that's a nice churchy word. Okay, great. Now double down on that Christ the Messiah and what does the Messiah mean?

Chosen messenger Savior

Yes

God's special representative to bring salvation into the world if you believe that about Jesus and the Bible shows us how to evidence that

Belief he says if you believe that look at verse 1 you've been born of God

Okay, this idea about being born of God if you write in your Bible you're gonna see this several times

So let's mark these in verse 1 of chapter 5. He talks about being born of God

He's going to mention it in chapter 5 and verse 4. Let's see if I hit that or if they hit that

PowerPoint shut off we don't need it, but we'll just go on with it

Okay, verse 4 talks about being born of God look at verse 18 first John 5 and verse 18

he'll mention those that are born of God and then

Yeah, whoever is back there working the PowerPoint

I think you want to go to like slide 19 because we're way back at the beginning

But anyway chapter 5 and verse 18 talks about being born of God. What does it mean to be born of God though?

John says whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God. What does it mean to be born of God?

Separated from sin a

Child of his what was that?

Protected by God. Yes

So you think about becoming a Christian means you're born of God you're born into God's family

You come into your physical family through natural birth. You're born into that family

You enjoy all the rights and privileges the Bible talks about

Spiritual birth is being born of God begotten of God

Oh King James has and that means you enjoy this new spiritual life because God's gifted it to you go to John's gospel

I just want you to see how often John connects these ideas of faith in Christ

Obedience to him trusting him and John uses this terminology of that's produced a different birth than you

So go to John 1 and when we get there somebody read John 1 10 through 13

John 1 10 through 13 to be born of God to be born of the flesh is

Born into a physical family, but John says faith puts you in the family of God and you enjoy a new birth

You're begotten of God you enjoy your spiritual life in existence because God's given it to you

Somebody read nice and loud John 1 10 through 13

Through 13

All right, so John contrasted there

He says you could be born of physical and natural descent

But this birth comes because you put your trust in Jesus and you're born of God

Don't get out of the gospel of John's just yet go to John chapter 3

John 3 · chapter mention

Fast forward to John 3 John's on this same track

If you're going to be in God's family

You have to have a spiritual birth that brings is brought about by God

Nicodemus and John 3 beginning in verse 1 rule of the Pharisees comes to Jesus by night pays him this great compliment rabbi

We know you're a teacher come from God. Nobody can do the miracles you do unless God be with them in verse 3

Jesus says what?

Truly truly I say to you unless a person is what?

born again

can't see the kingdom of God Nicodemus is confused in verse 4 and he's thinking physical birth and Nicodemus says

must the man into into his mother's womb and a second time be born and

Jesus says that's not what we're talking about in verse 5

Truly truly I say to you unless you're born of the water and the Spirit you can't see the kingdom of God

Spiritual birth your spiritual life has to be brought about by God and then you're born into his family

So John says be born in John 1 10 through 13 not of natural

But of spiritual and now in John 3 3 through 5 he says it's a spiritual rebirth. Paul's gonna say the same thing

We're not gonna turn there

You can go back to first John but in Galatians 3 26 and 27

Paul says we're all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus

But as many of us as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ

Christianity we talk about conversion obeying the gospel all biblical terms

But one of John's favorite ways to describe it is you've been born of God

When you're born into your physical family, what do you get from your parents?

Their name is Williams Jones, that'll be your name you get their name what else genetics what kind of genetics

I

Hopefully not all of them, but some yeah, you're gonna get you know, you're gonna get some of them

Yeah, my mom's not here tonight. Yeah, so some of them. Yeah, you're gonna get some of the traits

Here's what you're definitely gonna get though the DN what you're gonna get the DNA you'll get that from your parents

If you're born of God, what do you get?

You're transformed for sure you get God's characteristics primarily

Eternal life if God can't die now, you're born of God guess what can't happen to you

You're plugged in the guy you say well in this life, I'm gonna die. Yeah, but you have eternal life

That's why you have it right now. See once you're born of God you already have this

This is a part of the spiritual makeup and since God has eternal life

That's a part of his makeup in DNA. You're never gonna be unplugged from that if you stay in Christ

You already have eternal life

It's a part of what makes you a child of God is built into who you are and John says

You have it because you're born of God the last part of verse 1 here

He says and whoever loves the father loves whoever has been born of him. What does that mean?

It means if you love God because you've been born of him you have his spiritual DNA

Then you love all of God's other children as well

What is John been driving at throughout first John the major ideas are make sure you love God and keep his commandments

And what are his commandments?

Kelly would you say

Love one another that's one of the major ideas in first John and it's chapter 2 verse 7 through 11

Love one another in chapter 4 7 through 8

Love one another in chapter 4 19 through 21

If you say you love God you haven't seen him

But you hate your brother who you have seen John says you're a liar

So one of the ways, you know

You have eternal life put your faith in God and then demonstrate it by loving each other

Look at first John 5 2 and 3 John says by this

We know that we love the children of God when we love God and obey his commandments

For this is the love of God that we keep his commandments and his commandments are not burdensome

So if you have faith, you'll be born of God and you'll demonstrate it by keeping his commandments

We already talked about the two major commands love God love one another. This is how you demonstrate love for God a

Lot of people claim to love God, but how does God know if anybody really loves him?

if you what

You obey his commandments. You might have to do what he says. That's true in the Old Testament

That's true in the New Testament. That's how you demonstrate you love God. Let me show you an Old Testament example go to 1st Samuel 15

1st Samuel 15 you're probably familiar with this

God tells King Saul to destroy the people of Amalek because of what they did to his people when they were coming out of Egypt

There's that battle in Exodus 17. God says I'm never gonna forget this King Saul comes to the throne

This is time to get vengeance on them. What does King Saul do you might remember?

He's supposed to destroy everything pretty much that breathes in that country and in that nation. And what does King Saul do?

Spares a gag and some of the best of the property, but here's what happens when Samuel confronts him

I'm in 1st Samuel 15. Look at verse 17 Samuel said though you were little in your own eyes

Are you not the head of the tribes of Israel the Lord anointed you king over Israel?

The Lord sent you on a mission and said go devote to destruction the sinners the Amalekites that fight against them and fight against them

Until they are consumed. Why then did you not obey the voice of the Lord?

Why did you pounce on the spoil and do what was evil in the sight of the Lord and Saul said to Samuel?

I have obeyed the voice of the Lord. I've gone on the mission on which the Lord sent me

I brought back a gag the king of Amalek and I've devoted the Amalekites to destruction

But the people took of the spoil the sheep the oxen the best of the things devoted to destruction to sacrifice

To the Lord your God and Gilgal how is Saul reasoning?

He's reasoning this way. God gave me a command, but I really love God and I'm gonna show God how much I love him

Because I'm actually gonna perform a sacrifice for him

look at Samuel's response in verse 22 has the Lord as great a delight in burnt offerings and

Sacrifices as in obeying the voice of the Lord

Behold to obey is better than sacrifice and to listen

than the fat of rams for rebellion is as the sin of divination or witchcraft and

Presumption is as iniquity and idolatry because you've rejected the word of the Lord

He's also rejected you from being King

God basically tells Saul if I wanted extra animals if I wanted to sacrifice I would have commanded it

But you show me that you love me

when you submit to my words and when you obey and when you get all the way to the end of the Bible first John

1 John 5 · chapter mention

Chapter 5 one of the last books in the New Testament

Guess what? God is still saying about how people show him. They love him when we do what?

Obey him and keep his commandments. I

Think this needs to be emphasized in the New Testament because we're sometimes quick to say and rightfully so

Salvation is by grace through faith. We don't earn salvation when we obey that's true

But we show we appreciate salvation when we obey and do what God says and in every covenant that's ever existed with God and humanity

The only way to show God you love him is by doing what God tells you to do

But here's the last part of first John 5 we'll make some headway in a minute

But in first John 5 in verse 3, he says this is the love of God that we keep his commandments

So God knows you love him if you do what he says, what's the last part of verse 3 though?

And his commandments are not what?

How do most people in the world view the commandments of God and why is it a problem based on what John says in first?

John 5 in verse 3. How do most people in the world view God's commands as?

Burdensome irksome. They're gonna shackle me. What does John say about God's commands?

They're not burdensome, what does that tell you about the things in the Bible?

Mm-hmm

Yeah, so our yoke is he Jesus is yoke is easy his burden is light for sure Old Testament sacrifice on top of sacrifice

What is first John 5 in verse 3 at the very end where he says and his commandments are not burdensome

Tell you about your relationship with God as a Christian because the first thing John says we just read this from 1st

Samuel you can't please God unless you obey him your initial response to that might be well

I'm in big trouble because I can't do everything perfectly John doubles down right after that though and says and by the way his commands

Are not a burden. What does that tell you about your relationship with God though?

It's doable you can keep the commandments you can't please him just think about this just zoom out from 1st

John think about your life think about the Christian life

Think about people, you know that are Christians now and maybe some that have quit what happens to a person's faith

If you think you're serving a God that no matter what you do, you can't please him

I hear us talk like this. Sometimes people say well our righteousness is as filthy rags. God never says that

Oh, that's in Isaiah 64, but that's not about faithful people of God

That's about rebellious Israel and their righteousness because they were double-dipping

Trying to please God and yet living rebellious lives behind closed doors their righteousness was filthy rags

But what happens to a person's life and spirituality if you think no matter what I do

No matter how hard I try I can never please my God what's gonna happen to you

There's two options either you're gonna give up

Rebellion and reckless or

Self-righteousness will be the result and you'll think hi if I don't dot every I and cross every T and do everything just perfectly my way

Then I'll just never be able to please God and that also chokes faith

And that's a different type of giving up if you don't think you can ever please God

But first John 5 3 says his commands are not burdensome. God's serious about faith, but he's also sensible about faith

He's serious and sensible what does that mean God knows we're frail people and he says here's what I want you to do

Love me keep my commands. Somebody says I'm not perfect John already dealt with that if you sin and mess up, which you will

What do you do?

You confess you acknowledge it you walk in the light first John 1 7 through 9 and you can have his forgiveness

You can you can do this. You can keep his commands. God's commands aren't burdensome

And you read Romans 8 1 and a host of other passages that talk about security that we have in Christ

No condemnation and what God wants to do for us

How do we get this across to ourselves and other people that God's commands are?

Burdensome in a world where people sometimes think they are and that you can please God. How do you get this across to people?

How do you get it across to yourself so that you know your salvation isn't hanging on the thread and you can have this assurance?

Of eternal life. What do you need to do?

Read first John. Yes every week if you can write read first John number one read the Bible. I think that's true

Here's another thing though. If if you want to get people to see that God is reasonable

You need to be reasonable

Especially like if you have kids or people in your influence your spouse if you serve a reasonable God

You'll be a reasonable person if God can be pleased then that means you can be pleased

But if your standards can never be met and if you think God's like that

You'll be like that if you don't think God can be pleased no matter how perfect you are

No matter how hard you try and God's perfect

But if God's saying listen people that are imperfect can actually please me and I'm perfect

Then what should that say about us? We're imperfect

We should be communicating to other people in our congregational life and in our family

I'm not demanding perfection of you. God hadn't demanded that of me. I want to be reasonable because the God I serve is reasonable

That's why when you read throughout the New Testament letters Paul's right in the churches with a lot of problems

But he can always lead off praising them and acknowledging the good because Paul serves a reasonable God and Paul knows

God's not demanding perfection and sinless perfection of me and he's reasonable and John's saying here's how you know

You have eternal life faith exercise it properly and then four through five. The next sections are bigger than this

Let me just get through four through five

You overcome the world for everyone who's been born of God overcomes the world and this is the victory that overcomes the world

Our faith, who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?

So John says the way you overcome the world is through your what?

faith and who primarily

This makes sense. Look at John 16 33 and if you write in your Bible, this is a cross-reference for you

John says if you have faith in Jesus, you'll overcome the world and that makes sense because Jesus did what?

Overcame the world if you go to John 16 33

This is near the end of Jesus's discourse with the disciples right before the cross and he says I've spoken these words to you

That in me you might have peace in the world. You'll have tribulation but be of good cheer because I've what?

Overcome the world everything in him gets transferred you because you've been born of God

So he is overcoming because becomes your overcoming and you can overcome the world because Jesus did

So faith possessed and properly demonstrated means you have eternal life if your faith is in Christ

You can keep his commands and you can overcome the world

Before we move on. Let me say a quick thing about first John 5 4 and 5 that's important

When John says this is the victory that has overcome the world our faith

John is saying two very important things. Number one. John is saying whatever is going on in your life

The only true and real answer to overcome the world is your faith in Christ

Whatever it is more money is not going to solve it more time more luxury more things

The only key to overcome the world is faith in Jesus Christ

That's why we've got to keep preaching the gospel to ourselves

The thing that's going to fix the things wrong in my life is the reality that Jesus died for my sins

He was buried and he rose the third day. That's the only answer. That's not a Christian eyes Wednesday night answer

That's the real answer and to the degree that we get away from that the world overcome us this idea of overcoming the world means

You beat the world. How do you make sure the world doesn't beat you keep coming back to this reality?

My faith is the only thing my faith and trust in what Jesus did is the only true key

That's where the ultimate victory lies. Even my faith. The second thing is this if you're in Christ

You're a winner whether it feels like it or not. This is the victory that overcomes the world even our faith

That means whatever Giants you're facing right now

They are going to fall and if they don't in this life

They definitely will in the world to come because John says you are winner. You are an overcomer

Christianity is the victorious way to live and first Corinthians 1557 Paul says thanks be unto God who gives us the victory

Through our Lord Jesus Christ you have eternal life right now if you're a Christian and your faith is presently overcoming the world

I don't care what your bank account says

I don't care what the doctor told you this week what the news says what's going on at work if you have faith in Jesus

And you're linked and united with him. You're already a winner and maybe we can't see it yet

But John says that doesn't make it any less true

All right, first John 5 6 through 8 6 through 12 is the next section assurance of eternal life comes from receiving the testimony concerned in

Jesus and 6 through 12. John says this is he who came by water and blood

Jesus Christ

Not by water only but by water and blood and the Spirit is the one who testifies

Because the Spirit is the truth

There are three that testify the Spirit the water and the blood and these three agree

If we receive the testimony of men the testimony of God is greater for this is the testimony of God that he is born concerning

His son whoever believes in the Son has the testimony in himself

whoever does not believe God has made him a liar because he has not believed in the testimony that God is born concerning his son and

This is the testimony that God gave us eternal life and this life is in his son. Whoever has the son has life

Whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life

Alright, how do you know you have eternal life? You have faith you demonstrate it rightly

How do you know you have eternal life? Secondly, you receive the testimony about Jesus Christ the true testimony properly

How do we know Jesus is the Son of God?

Resurrection from the dead is one proof Paul says that at the beginning of Romans right Romans 1 3 through 4

He says he's declared to be the Son of God

According to the Spirit of Holiness by the resurrection from the dead

So the resurrection from the dead for sure, but I mean people that were living at the time during his earthly ministry

How would they have known that Jesus was the Son of God just throw out some of the proofs. How would you know?

Miracles for sure, so it wasn't just because Jesus said it right. It's not what Jesus says. He's the Son of God

So he is well, how do we know to trust Jesus because he's the Son of God?

Well, why should we trust him because he says he is that circular reasoning doesn't work

Even Jesus for the sake of trying to prove it to humanity or make the claim says I've got to have works that testify

Go to John 5 quickly. The quicker y'all turn the more progress we'll make y'all are moving a little slow tonight

Art already took up 30 of my minutes man. So, you know, we got to do we got I'm joking

John 5 look at John 5 and Jesus in this section is talking about his testimony

He's in a heated controversy with the Jews about who he is and notice the testimony

Jesus gives and why they should believe that he is who he's claiming to be John 5 drop down to about verse 31

He says if I alone bear witness about myself, my testimony is not true. Just claiming to be the Messiah isn't enough

So what are your proofs testimony number one in John 5?

He says John the Baptist said this about me in verse 32. He says there's another who bears witness about me

I know the testimony he bears about me is true. You sent to John and he bore witness to the truth

So he says there's John the Baptist

Second line of evidence for Jesus being the Son of God are the works that he did if you look at John 5 in verse 36

But the testimony that I have is greater than that of John for the works that the father has given me to accomplish

the very works I'm doing bear witness, so we know Jesus is the Son of God because of the

Works he did but Jesus isn't done. He says there's another testimony or another witness

It's God the father look at verse 37 the father who has sent me

He bore witness about me his voice you never heard his form

You've never seen but God says Jesus is the Son of God, but Jesus still isn't done

There's a fourth the scriptures look at verse 39

You search the scriptures because in them you think you have eternal life and they are the ones that do what?

They testify about me. Jesus says I've got proof

John

My own miracles and works the father and even the scriptures you're studying

They tell you I'm the Son of God fast forward to first John and John's making this claim

You can have eternal life if you accept the right testimony about Jesus and he says there's proof

John gives three lines of reasoning in first John 5 6 through 7 somebody point them out to me. What are the three?

Test the testifiers are the three witnesses that John says point to Jesus being the Son of God

What are they in first John 5 6 through 8?

Spirit water and

The blood yes, so John says the spirit

That's the Holy Spirit the Holy Spirit

Descended on Jesus like a dove and that's when John the Baptist knew according to John 1

32 through 34 John was out baptizing everybody in all of Jerusalem all of Judea

John says I didn't know who he was

But the one that sent me to baptize says whoever you see the spirit come on and remain that's the one Jesus says the spirit testifies

Secondly the water what's the water?

When Jesus was

the heavens opened and God said this is my

That's pretty direct. If you get baptized in the heavens open and God speaks and says hey

This is somebody's where we'll believe you be in the Son of God to Jesus the water testified the third one the blood

When Jesus was crucified

And the blood came out his death and what was mentioned a moment ago tied to that the resurrection

Those three testified you have eternal life if you faithfully receive that testimony about Jesus

And that's what John says in verses 10 through 12

Whoever believes in the Son has the testimony in himself and then in verse 11 and 12

This is the testimony that God gave us eternal life and this life is in his Son

Whoever has the Son has life. Whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life again. This section is important

Sometimes people say this to me. I'm sure people have said it to you

So you mean to tell me that if I'm what do you think like if I'm not a member of the Church of Christ?

I'm not going to heaven

You think I've got to be baptized in your building or?

Believe what you say and we start going down this track with people and I think John helps us not to do that

I think those are bad questions. I think the first question and most important question is this

Do you have the Son?

Have you done what Jesus said you need to do in a faithful response to him in order to be saved if you've done that?

He'd put you in his family

You'd be of Christ in his group to save people but John's explicit here if you have the Son you have what?

Life if you don't have the Son you what?

That's the same thing as saying you're saved or you're lost. How do you receive the Son?

You've got to believe in him trust repent and be baptized and John says that's how this works

and so this testimony about Jesus matters because then it's transferred to

How do we receive Jesus in order to be saved and trying to direct people toward this in?

Salvation is for people that are in Christ

And if you are in Christ, then you have life you have the Son if you're not in Christ

Then you don't have life and you're lost and we need to be able to tell people that directly. That's not us choosing

That's not us deciding that's not us saying well

We think you got to do it our way

Everybody has to do it Jesus's way and everybody who does it Jesus's way is

Saved biblically according to what the New Testament says now

We just got to figure out who's doing that and the people that are doing that

Belong to Jesus Christ or another way to say that would be

They're the assembly. They're the Church of God

They're the Church of Jesus Christ and John says if you have that then that's how you know that you have life

All right, let's go to 1st John chapter 5 and notice verses 13 through 15

John 5 · chapter mention

John says another way that you know, you have eternal life is confidence in your standing with God

So verse 13 down through verse 15

John says I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know you have eternal

Life and this is the confidence we have toward him if we ask anything according to his will he hears us and if we know

He hears us and whatever we ask we know we have the request that we have asked of him

So this has already been hinted at tonight. John says what about eternal life in 1st John 5 13 we already what?

Already possess it

What do you think though?

What do you think about your Christian life and how you view it and just in general how Christians talk?

Do we talk and behave as if we believe that's a reality in 1st John 5 13

Do you think most Christians have this confidence that I already possess eternal life because eternal life is tied to Christ

I'm in Christ. So I have it

Shake or not or blink twice if you're alive. Okay. Yeah, how do you think most people respond?

Would you say yes positively confident about eternal life or no, what would y'all say?

You say no. Why is that the case?

Okay

So sometimes we're attempting to be humble

But here's a question direct not directed towards you

But more toward the class in line with that if God says something like hey you have eternal life and then somebody doubles back

It's hey, do you have eternal life and you say not me?

Is it humble to be shy about something that God's emphatic about

No, it's not if God says this is for sure your spiritual destiny and then you come back around and say

I'm not so sure about that. What have you just done?

You undermine God or John would say you've made God a liar

Yes a fact for sure

I mean

For sure, but I think we're still not moving toward why do we struggle with these facts and these realities my question

We know this this is great

But my question is why do we struggle to everybody said to me John said in 1st John 5 13

We know it and then I asked you do we typically behave as if that is if that's true and you said what?

Yes, or no typically

No, and my question is why is that the case Brady?

Mm-hmm

Yeah, yeah, I think we do like to be in control but again salvation is one of those things that

God hasn't necessarily put in our control. We have a response

Yes, but salvation comes as a gift from God and we need to trust that anything else

Robert

If you keep looking at your works you'll keep having doubts

Are you really doing enough? Here's the thing the Bible go ahead

The

Bible isn't just inspired in his words

I believe the Bible is also inspired in his order

And so I think it's interesting that right before John says you can know you have eternal life

What does he just say it the testimony about who Jesus is is tied to his death his burial his resurrection

The spirit the water and the blood and the first thing we tend to think about is have I done enough to get in have?

I that's not the question

The question is do you have Jesus or not?

Because if you have the Sun then you have what according to John you have life. Yes, you're gonna do works

Yes, you need to obey but do you have the Sun if you have the Sun then you have what?

Life and if you don't have the Sun you don't have life. It's pretty simple with John, but I think we complicate it

Yes, anybody else who hasn't had a chance to speak about why we might struggle to connect this

And

We know our own failings and we just find it difficult to understand it

God to be so forgiving and have so much grace. He can just overlook that. Yeah, we know it's true intellectually

But we have trouble

Miss Kim and yes, I agree with you

Yeah

Yeah, for sure, I mean there are people in the Bible they did terrible things and yet they tried yet they persisted Joe did you have

But the more that we don't have that confidence in him

It's all

We're saying our salvation even though we know it's through Jesus about him. I think it's whenever we think about all the things we do

It's as if we think our salvation is strictly based on us

I

Think we really do need to do that center our faith and our trust on what Jesus has done and focus on that if

God is who he says he is and God doesn't collect on the same debt twice because he's just and if God says

Jesus already paid your bill

You're not gonna walk up to the judgment with any kind of credit or debit. That's not gonna happen there

Okay, there won't be any of that because Jesus really did fully fulfill it and the Bible has a host of passages that talk about

assurance Romans 8 1 John 5 24 John 6 37

And I think sometimes we may be reacting to people on one extreme that believe once you're saved

You're always saved

But the truth is you can be once saved and forever saved your salvation doesn't have to daily be in doubt in order for you

To be a faithful Christian

God says you can know that you have eternal life and believe on the name of the Son of God

Let's read the rest of this

I'm gonna just do 16 down through 21 before the class ends and then we'll we'll quit there verse 16 if anyone sees his brother

Committing a sin leading to death he will ask God and God will give him life

To those who commit sins that do not lead to death. There is a sin that leads to death

I do not say one should pray for that all wrongdoing is sin, but there is a sin that does not lead to death

We know that everyone who's been born of God does not keep on sinning

But he who has been born of God protects him protects him and the evil one does not touch him

We know that we are from God and the whole world lies in the power of the evil one and we know that the Son of

God has come and given us

Understanding so that we may know him who is true and we are in him who is true in his son Jesus Christ

He is the true God and eternal life little children. Keep yourselves from idols

So John says confidence in your standing in verse 13

Then he says the power and the privilege of prayer

That's in 14 and 15 if you have confidence in God, you can ask anything according to his will he hears you and you know

You're hurt by him. How do you know you have eternal life is God hearing and answering your prayers?

Maybe not all of them the way you want but have you had prayers answered before?

John says this is the confidence we have if we ask anything according to his will he hears us and then

The way John ends this book is by saying

You'll know you have eternal life if you have the proper relationship towards sin

And he says there are sins that lead to death and there are sins that don't lead to death

And we don't have time to unpack all of that

But here's what I'll tell you John says there are certain sins that don't result in death

And if a person's in that situation, you can pray for them and God will give them life

What are sins that don't lead to death?

I believe that's every sin in the world in any category that a person's willing to repent of and do the right thing

What are the sins that lead to death and John says don't worry about praying for those that would be a sin that a person

Persistent doesn't have any interest in repenting of John says don't pray for that and he's not the first one

Jeremiah 11 14 and Jeremiah 14 11

God told Jeremiah don't pray for these people in Judah because they don't want to do the right thing

They don't want to repent but eternal life is tied to having the right relationship towards sin

Also, it'll keep you safe from the devil's grasp and verse 18 he says

Those who are born of God do not keep on sinning

Whoever's born of God God protects him and the evil one doesn't touch him

But the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one. You have the right relationship towards sin do Christian sin. Yes, or yes

yes, but

We don't live a lifestyle of sin. That's what John's saying

You know, you have eternal life because you don't live a lifestyle of sin one that just sins without being penitent

Not wanting to change and go in the other direction and then he says you're already a possessor of eternal life

Because according to John eternal life isn't an idea or feeling it's a person and then last in verse 21

Little children keep yourselves from idols

First John is a book about confidence and throughout first John what John's been trying to assure these Christians of is this

Don't worry about everything

The false teachers are saying about the person in work of Jesus and how you can have a good relationship with them

You believe in the true risen biblical Jesus and because of that you can know you currently possess eternal life

You can have confidence in him

You've been born of God and eternal life isn't just something you're going to get at the end of life that you're heading to is

Something you currently possess I meant to say this earlier

But just 30 seconds to say this and why this is important why this is gonna matter for you when you wake up tomorrow

And you're not thinking about three witnesses water blood and spirit. Here's why this matters if

You don't believe you're going to heaven if you don't believe you currently possess eternal life

It'll stop you don't have time. You couldn't possibly be interested in trying to win other people

You couldn't possibly be a soul winner evangelist evangelistic to any degree because you're trying to invite people to something you're unsure about yourself

But if you knew for a fact, I'm in Christ Christ is in me. I already possess eternal life

You can get over yourself and get outside of yourself and invite people into that joy into eternal salvation and into that relationship

And that's why the message of first John matters John saying your eternal life is secure

you currently possess it it'll continue when this life is over and

take that knowledge and

Share that with everybody in the world because that is the good news of the gospel and you possess it right now

However imperfect if you're in the light the blood continues to cleanse you and you already have eternal life share it with somebody else

All right. Thanks for a good Bible class. Thanks for your participation tonight