"The Sufficient Anointing"

Go ahead and open your Bibles, please, to 1 John 2.

1 John 2 is where we're at today.

Do you know the feeling that when you set out to accomplish something

and then you find yourself in way over your head?

This frequently happens to me,

especially when I'm doing some kind of house project.

But fortunately, I have a very helpful neighbor.

My neighbor, Bill, is a retired engineer,

and not only does he have every tool known to man in his garage,

and not only does he know the best way to use those tools,

but he also has lots of spare time to help his very helpless neighbor

whenever I am in need.

Usually I'm outside working on a project.

I find myself, I've bitten off more than I can chew,

and without fail, Bill shows up with the right tool and the right technique,

and he helps me do the job properly, and he stays to help me out.

He likes to come and just help me.

So I'm very thankful for my very helpful neighbor.

I think when the State Farm Insurance people made their little lingo

of like a good neighbor, they were thinking of my neighbor, Bill.

If you've been a Christian for any period of time,

I'm guessing you have found yourself feeling in over your head

when it comes to following Jesus.

It is difficult to shake certain sins.

It is difficult to love other people.

Sometimes it seems impossible,

since sometimes you find yourself surrounded by competing voices,

both outside you and inside you,

that play on your hopes and your confidence.

And when hardship and troubles come,

that gets even more shaken.

Your determination to follow Jesus gets deflated or muddled,

and you find yourself in over your head.

You find yourself in need of help.

Maybe you find yourself there right now.

That's certainly where the Christians in the Roman province of Asia

found themselves at the end of the first century.

And that's why the Apostle John sat down to write this letter of 1 John.

These Christians were struggling.

They found themselves in over their heads,

knowing just who Jesus was,

who they were as Christians,

and how they were to go forward.

Our text for this morning is in 1 John 2,

1 John 2:26

verses 26 and 27,

just two verses this morning,

but it's a close follow-up to what Caleb preached

several weeks ago before Advent.

And I'd like to go back and read,

starting with verse 18 of 1 John 2.

1 John 2, starting with verse 18.

Children, it is the last hour.

And as you have heard that Antichrist is coming,

so now many Antichrists have come.

Therefore we know that it is the last hour.

They went out from us, but they were not of us,

for if they had been of us,

they would have continued with us.

But they went out,

that it might become plain that they are all not of us.

But you have been anointed by the Holy One.

Keep that word anointed in the back of your mind.

And you all have knowledge.

I write to you,

not because you do not know the truth,

but because you know it,

and because no lie is of the truth.

Who is the liar but he who denies

that Jesus is the Christ?

This is the Antichrist,

he who denies the Father and the Son.

No one who denies the Son has the Father.

Whoever confesses the Son has the Father also.

Let what you heard from the beginning abide in you.

If what you heard from the beginning abides in you,

then you too will abide in the Son and in the Father.

And this is the promise that he made to us,

eternal life.

I write these things to you

about those who are trying to deceive you.

But the anointing that you receive from him

abides in you,

and you have no need that anyone should teach you.

But as his anointing teaches you about everything

and is true and is no lie,

just as it has taught you,

abide in him.

Several weeks ago,

Caleb preached on these verses

and helped us see that these ancient Christians

were being assaulted,

as the Apostle put it,

by antichrists.

Plural.

These antichrists,

as John called them,

were trying to derail the faith

of those believers

in these churches in Asia

that John was writing to

by shifting their focus

away from the clear,

true,

good news of Jesus.

And although they were feeling

in over their head,

the Apostle John knew

they had a sufficient helper

to help them stand firm

and hold fast to Jesus.

And that helper's name,

although he goes by the name of anointing

in this passage,

is the Holy Spirit.

We'll unpack why he's called that

in a little later,

but that's the big idea

of this passage

here in verses 26 and 27.

God was and is telling his people

to hold fast to Jesus

with the Spirit's sufficient help.

That's our big idea,

hold fast to Jesus

with the Spirit's sufficient help.

Help.

Let me unpack that big idea

with three C's

we find in this passage.

Three C's.

The first is this,

the Apostle John's command

to hold fast to Jesus.

The command is to hold fast to Jesus.

Let me reread verses 26 and 27.

And as I do,

I want you to feel

a building momentum

to the last three words.

Listen.

I write these things to you

about those who are trying

to deceive you.

But the anointing

that you receive from him

abides in you.

And you have no need

that anyone should teach you.

But as his anointing

teaches you about everything

and is true and is no lie,

just as it has taught you,

abide in him.

Abide in him.

That's the command.

That's the thrust

of this passage.

We could also say it this way.

Hold fast.

I believe Caleb summarized it

a few weeks ago

as to stick with Jesus.

We must remain steadfastly

connected to Jesus.

We must hold fast to him,

stick with him,

follow him,

abide with him.

And that,

this is what 1 John is all about.

That command.

The Apostle wants

these struggling Christians

to be firmly connected

to Jesus

for the rest of their days.

And he wants to help them

see that they're doing it

and he wants them

to keep on doing it.

He wants them to have

and maintain

a dynamic,

experiential,

growing relationship

with the Lord Jesus Christ.

And John talks about

this dynamic relationship

all through the letter.

He uses different language

to describe it sometimes.

Sometimes he uses

the language of abiding here.

In chapter 1,

he talks about

having fellowship with God

or being born of God

as Pastor Mike's

going to preach next week.

The famous image

for this relationship

Jesus uses in John 15.

He says,

I am the vine

and you are the branches.

Whoever abides in me

and I in him,

he it is that bears much fruit.

For apart from me,

you can do nothing.

So this relationship

is this organic connection.

It's something that

is already in place

for every Christian

and yet it also

at the same time

must be maintained.

It's this fruitful,

life-giving,

mutual connection

between the vine of Jesus

and the branches

of Christians

in which we depend

on Jesus

in every aspect

of our life.

And here in this letter,

John describes

different ways

that we can maintain

and nurture

this abiding relationship.

First,

we must believe

the truth

of who he is

and what he has done

to save you.

There's this truth

dimension to it.

And second is

we must obey

his commands.

And the third

is we must love

our fellow Christians.

And John uses

these three dimensions,

the truth,

the obedience,

and the love

to kind of,

he constantly cycles

back and forth

with these

throughout the whole letter.

And if any one

of these isn't functioning,

then you're not

abiding in Christ.

Something's off.

The relationship

isn't right.

For example,

if you believe

all the right things

about Jesus,

but,

and maybe you're

really moral,

you keep his commands,

but you're not very loving,

then something's off.

The abiding connection

is not there.

Or you might be

a very nice,

loving,

accepting,

tolerant person,

but if your Jesus

is not the Jesus

of the Bible

and you're living

your life without

regard with

what God tells you

to do,

then you're not

really abiding

in Jesus either.

All three have

to be in place.

And in this particular

part of the letter,

here in John 2,

John's very concerned

about the truth

dimension

of abiding in Jesus.

Look at verse 24.

Let what you heard

from the beginning

abide in you.

That's the teaching

of the truth

of the gospel.

Let what you heard

from the beginning

abides in you,

then you too

will abide

in the Son

and in the Father.

And what was it

that these Christians

heard in the beginning?

It was the truth

of the gospel,

that Jesus is the Christ,

verse 22,

the Messiah.

It's what the Antichrists

were denying.

And so,

according to

verse 24,

the Christians

who are convinced

of this truth

in their hearts

and they hold fast

to it,

they have an abiding

relationship

with God himself.

We must have

this truth

of the gospel

abiding

and functioning

in us

from his word

in order for us

to abide in Christ.

It's essential.

And that's what

John's commanding

in verse 27

at the very end.

Abide in him

through the resting

and the treasuring

of the truth

of the gospel.

And do you see

what's at stake?

Look at verse 25.

This is the promise

he made to us,

eternal life.

When we have

the truth

of the gospel

abiding in us,

we are enjoying

fellowship

with the living God.

And do you know

what that is?

That's eternal life.

What Jesus says

in John 17,

3,

backs this up.

And this is

eternal life,

that they may know

you,

the only true God,

and Jesus Christ

whom you have sent.

So this abiding

relationship is crucial.

We must have it

as Christians

if we're going to have

eternal life.

And one of the ways

we have it

is through a treasuring

and believing

and trusting

in the truth

of the gospel.

So,

dear brother and sister,

is this important to you?

Is this a priority for you?

Do you come to church?

Do you go to life group

with the thought,

I need God's word

abiding in me

so that I can abide

in Jesus?

and have eternal life.

Is this on your mind

as you think about

your own personal habits

of Bible reading

and meditating

on God's word?

I need God's word

abiding in me

so I can abide

in Jesus

and have eternal life.

This is vital

because

there is something

lurking

all around us

that would steer us

away

from this essential command

to abide in Jesus.

And that brings us

to our second C,

John's concern.

John's concern.

The concern is

the danger

of deception.

The danger

of deception.

Take a look

at verse 26.

I write these things

to you

about those

who are trying

to deceive you.

The reason the apostle

is writing to these Christians

is because

they are still

holding fast

to Jesus

but they are being

assaulted

by deceivers.

As Caleb pointed out

a few weeks ago

these deceivers

were called

the antichrist

because they were

denying the truth

of the gospel

and trying to influence

these faithful Christians

to do the same.

And the particular

deception

that was being

kind of put

forward

in these churches

was a heresy

called Gnosticism

or an early form

of that heresy.

Gnosticism

was kind of

a loosey goosey

spiritualism

that said

that all material

things are bad

and all spiritual

things are good

and the way

that you become good

is by kind of

getting this special

spiritual knowledge.

It kind of looked

like Christianity

on the outside

but once you lifted

the hood

it flatly denied

the teaching

of the Bible

especially the central

truth of who

Jesus is

as the God-man

or Redeemer.

Thankfully

these faithful people

that John's writing to

seem to not have

been influenced

by these deceivers

because by the time

John wrote

these deceivers

had been kicked

out of the church

but at the same time

they were obviously

in need of encouragement

and exhortation

to hold fast.

Church we should share

John's concern.

We should not think

that we are so firm

in our stance

that we become proud

and we fall.

In America

we face grave deceptions.

There are untruths

abounding all around us

and some of them

masquerade

in Christian dress.

Ultimately

deceptive doctrines

kind of boil down

to two basic

kinds of errors.

The first

are the kinds

that take away

from the truth

of the gospel.

That's kind of

what Gnosticism

was doing.

It denies

certain aspects

of the good news message.

They either deny

the problem

that the good news

message addresses

or the solution

to that problem.

They either deny

that sin

is a real issue

and our guilt

before God

is a real issue

and that Jesus

came as a man

and the God-man

to die

in the place

of sinners

to solve that problem.

And so

that's one

of the kinds

of errors

that we face

those that take away

the truth

of the gospel.

For example

Oprah

Disney

other kinds

of pop

American

self-help-ness

is

basically says

our biggest problem

is not

our guilt

before a holy God

but our lack

of individual

fulfillment.

And the biggest

the solution

to that problem

is ourselves.

If we look

deep enough

if we look

inside hard enough

we get to know

our true selves

then we can

truly find

what makes us

fulfilled

and happy.

Or here's one

that's maybe

a little more

closer to home.

This is what

I call

kind of a

good old boy

American theology.

theology.

It's a doctrine

that is kind

of a pop doctrine

that kind

of surrounds us.

We kind

of hear about

it all the time.

This doctrine

says yeah

God exists.

He's a nice

guy.

He's good.

He takes care

of my problems

whenever I need

him.

He wants me

to be happy

and since

I'm basically

not a jerk

I'll go to

heaven when I

die.

It's got some

Christian flavor

to it

but it's missing

the core

of the gospel.

It's not

what the Bible

teaches.

God did not

become a man

and die

on the cross

for basically

good people

who only need

him every once

in a while.

We must be

on our guard

against deceptive

doctrines that

take away

elements of

the truth

of the gospel.

The second

kind of error

is that which

not takes away

but adds

to the gospel.

The truth

of God's word

says that Jesus

alone saves us

from our

greatest problem

but Christians

in particular

can be tempted

to embrace

a kind of

self-righteous

legalism

that kind of

smuggles in

certain things

that says

it's our

trust in Jesus

plus these things

that makes us

truly good Christians.

So for example

those who

say well

it's a certain

kind of lifestyle

that you need

to have

or

a certain

set of doctrines

you must believe

that are outside

the necessary

gospel of Christ

or a certain

political affiliation.

This is what got

the Galatians

in trouble

when we had

our series

in Galatians

a while ago.

That's why Paul

was so adamant

about the need

to keep the good

news of the gospel

squarely in view.

There's been

something I've been

hearing among

Christians from

both sides

lately

that kind of

smacks of this

add to the gospel

flavor.

I've heard Christians

on both the right

and the left

say that

whoever they voted

for, whoever you

voted for in the

presidential election

is a sign of

whether you are

a true or a

false Christian.

That the only

true Christians

voted for Trump

or only true

Christians voted

for Biden.

I've heard it

on both sides.

But if we're

putting it that

way, that's an

important decision

of who to vote

for, but if we're

putting it that

way, then we're

adding to the

gospel.

We're saying it's

Jesus plus a vote

for someone.

But that's, we're

deceiving ourselves

and we're deceiving

others.

That's not what the

gospel says.

What determines

whether we truly

have a relationship

with the living

God is whether we

trust in the good

news of Jesus.

Whether we trust in

his death and

resurrection to

rescue us from our

greatest problem of

guilt before a holy

God.

And we must guard

against taking away

or adding to

this good news

so that we can

continue abiding in

a life-giving

relationship with

Jesus.

Jesus, do you

believe, do you

personally trust in

the sufficient message

of the gospel to

save?

Do you recognize

that you have real

guilt before a real

God that only the

real God-man Jesus

Christ can take away?

That is the truth of

the gospel.

That is the truth we

must hold to and

treasure more than

anything else because

we ought to be

concerned about

deceptive doctrines

because they are

nearer than we

think and we are

not as clever as we

think and because

the stakes are really

high.

But although we

should be concerned

we also must have

great confidence

and that is our

third C.

We must have

great confidence.

John had great

confidence in

something for

these Christians

because like my

neighbor Bill we

have a helper

very close at

hand as we

seek to hold

fast to the

truth that is

in Jesus.

And that confidence

is the sufficient

anointing of the

Holy Spirit.

The sufficient

anointing of the

Holy Spirit.

Take a look at

verse 27.

But the anointing

that you receive

from him abides

in you and you

have no need that

anyone should teach

you.

But as his

anointing teaches

you about everything

and is true and

is no lie just as

it has taught you

abide in him.

So it's obvious

that although John

is writing out of

concern that there

are wolves among

his flock he's

confident that

these Christians

have what it

takes to hold

fast to Jesus.

And why is he so

confident?

It's because of

this anointing.

It's mentioned

twice in this verse

it's also mentioned

back in verse 20.

Now there's a

little bit of

debate about what

this anointing is.

Scholars debate

about whether it's

one thing or

another but the

most probable

explanation is that

it is a reference

to the Holy Spirit.

I think that will

become clearer as I

keep going.

But why wouldn't

John just say

the Holy Spirit?

Why does he say

anointing?

Well it's hard to

be sure but what

is associated most

with someone who

is anointed by God

both in the Old

and the New

Testament is that

they are specially

chosen and

sufficiently equipped

to accomplish

God's purpose.

They're specially

chosen and

sufficiently equipped

to accomplish

God's purpose.

The kings and

priests in the

Old Testament who

were anointed with

oil to signify that

they were set apart

and chosen by God

had a purpose that

God was designated

them for.

And more than

once when those

individuals were

anointed with oil

the Spirit of God

came upon them and

equipped them

sufficiently with

God's own strength

and ability to

accomplish that

purpose.

So when David was

anointed by Samuel

the Spirit of God

came upon him as a

seal of God's

special choosing of

David and the

sufficient equipping

with the ability to

accomplish the

purpose.

Interestingly enough

when Jesus came

around he was never

taken aside by John

the Baptist or a

prophet and anointed

with oil.

And yet he's called

the anointed one

the Messiah.

And yet the

gospels take special

pains to show how

the Spirit of God

visibly came upon

Jesus in full measure

at his baptism.

And that's how his

anointing is explained

in Acts 10 38.

He's described as being

anointed by God with

the Holy Spirit.

Specially chosen

sufficiently equipped

for his role as our

Messiah.

And guess what?

The moment that you

put your faith in

Christ for the

forgiveness of your

sins and you became

united with Christ

you share in his

anointing.

You are given the

gift of the Holy

Spirit who was also

on your Savior.

And this therefore

shows that you are

specially chosen and

sufficiently equipped

to do what God

asked you to do.

Which is what?

To abide in Christ.

To hold fast to him.

Even when you're

surrounded by deceitful

doctrines around us.

Even with deceitful

heart within us.

We are sufficiently

equipped and

particularly chosen

to abide in Jesus.

And we have a helper

to help us do that.

The Holy Spirit.

Look at how this

anointing is described

in verse 27.

There are four things

I want to point out.

First, this anointing

is received.

The anointing that you

received from him.

Jesus said in John 14,

15, 16, I am sending

the Spirit to you.

The Father is going

to send the Spirit

to you in my name.

And so this anointing,

this helper, is a gift

to be received.

We just unpacked

Christmas gifts

from around the tree.

We don't earn them.

We haven't kind of

done certain things

to deserve them.

They're just given.

And that's the Holy Spirit.

He is a gift to be

received with much

gratitude because of

what a gift he is

to us in Christ.

Secondly, notice that

John says this anointing

abides in you.

This very sufficient helper

is continuously available,

always present,

and always active.

A little later in his letter,

John's going to

kind of unpack more

about this Spirit

abiding in us.

Look at 1 John 3, 24.

Whoever keeps his commandments

abides in God

and God in him.

And by this we know

that he abides in us

by the Spirit

whom he has given us.

Do you hear what

John is saying here?

We're not the only ones

who abide.

If we abide in God,

if we hold fast to him

in faith,

he's doing the same

with us.

He's abiding in us.

The abiding is mutual.

A relationship with God

is not this one-way street

where he's demanding

that we come 100% to him.

He also comes 100% to us.

He abides with us

as we abide in him.

But how does that happen?

God the Father is in heaven.

Jesus his Son

is at his right side.

How can the eternal

transcendent God

who cannot be seen

with our eyes

abide with us

and even in us?

The answer is in the Spirit.

The anointing.

By this we know

that he abides in us

by the Spirit

whom he has given us.

The Holy Spirit

is God's personal agent

of God's presence

and power

in the life

of a believer.

We are able to experience

the presence of God

and his power

to live the Christian life

only through the Spirit

whom he sent to be with us

and to abide with us

forever.

Friends, the Holy Spirit

has to be one of the most

overlooked treasures

you possess.

God's very presence

is with you.

In you.

Always accessible.

Always working.

Always attending

to your greatest need.

We should be overwhelmed

with gratitude

for this incredible gift.

Third,

is that this anointing teaches.

This anointing teaches.

Look at verse 27 again.

Listen for the teach word.

You have no need

that anyone should teach you

but as his anointing

teaches you about everything

and is true

and is no lie

just as it has taught you

abide in him.

Now by saying this

John isn't denying

the need for teachers

in the local church.

If he believed that

he wouldn't be writing

to this church

instructing them

and admonishing them.

Rather,

John's emphasizing

that one of the Spirit's

main responsibilities

is to teach us

and his teaching

is effective

and it is sufficient

for us.

And the way he teaches us

is through

the faithful instruction

of God's word

in the local church.

The Spirit's teaching

is sufficient.

He teaches us about,

notice he says,

everything.

Now it doesn't mean

about physics

or chemistry.

He's talking about

everything necessary

for us to abide

in Christ.

Given the threat

of deceptive doctrines

around us,

that is a huge comfort.

That is a great

source of confidence.

The Spirit is our

ever-present guide

leading us

into all that we need

to know and believe

about Jesus

in order to hold fast

to him

for eternal life.

But how does he do that?

How does the Spirit

teach us?

Listen to what Jesus says

in John 14, 26.

But the Helper,

the Holy Spirit,

whom the Father

will send in my name,

he will teach you

all things

and bring to your

remembrance

all that I have said

to you.

Bring to our remembrance

what Jesus

has already said to us.

When we think of the Holy Spirit

as our teacher,

we don't need to think about

like some professor

doing an info dump

on ignorant students.

Rather,

we should think of

our Holy Spirit teacher

as a guide

on a long hiking trip.

He's not only knowledgeable

of the trail,

but he is with us

on the journey

right in step

with us,

helping us know

what we need to know

and how we need to know it

at the right time,

at the right moment,

because we often forget

what we already know.

Or we don't realize

how important

and how applicable

it really is.

How real,

how true

and certain

it is.

He applies

the truth of Jesus

to our hearts

at just the right time

and in just the right way

to make Jesus

real

and beautiful

and delightful

to us.

There are different

kinds of knowing.

There's lots of things

that we know

that's stored in our brains.

Lots of bits of data

and knowledge,

but there's a difference.

I think everyone

probably recognizes

the difference

between kind of a,

okay,

nod my head

and a,

oh,

yeah.

I think I see that

for the first time

even though I've known it

for a long time.

And that's the Spirit's job.

It's to bring us

from a,

uh-huh,

to a,

oh.

That's His job.

So when we are

disoriented on the path,

He teaches us

by fixing our gaze

on our true identity

as God's children

in Christ.

When we are feeling

the sting of condemnation,

He teaches us

by fixing our eyes

on Jesus' finished work

on the cross

and making it real

and beautiful

to us.

And we have,

when we wonder

on our way

from the,

from the path,

He teaches us

by convincing us

that God's way

is indeed better

and helps us

forsake our sin.

When we're apathetic,

when our faith

feels like

zero percent,

He teaches us

by blowing back

into flame

our faith

and our desire

to abide

in Christ again.

So the Holy Spirit

teaches us.

But lastly,

not only does He teach us,

but what He teaches

is true.

Did you notice that?

and His anointing

teaches you

about everything

and is true

and is no lie.

The Spirit's ministry

is all about

the truth.

He is called

the Spirit of truth.

We can be utterly

confident

in our guide

because He communicates

only what He hears

from the Father

and from the Son

and declares it

effectively

to our hearts

and our minds.

When I was in college,

I took a philosophy course.

I was about 20 years old

and I had to read

some writings

of some philosophers

that were definitely

denied

vehemently

the truth

of the gospel.

And I remember

wrestling with these

for a long time

in my room

and trying to figure out

what I believed

about all this

and I decided

to take a walk.

And so I was walking

through the campus.

It was kind of a cold night

and I remember

looking up at the stars

and as I was gazing

at the stars,

kind of praying

and my mind

was fuzzy,

it's like this certainty

just dropped

into my mind

of what I know

about Christ

is true.

It has to be true.

And it wasn't

necessarily words

or logical arguments,

it was just

this certainty.

It was this conviction

and settledness

about what I knew

to be true.

Looking back on that,

I know it was

the Holy Spirit

because I've had

that kind of clarity

happen so many

different times

in different ways

before where

Jesus is all of a sudden

clear and real to me

because of the Spirit's

work in my heart.

It is the Spirit's

marvelous ministry

to make Christ

real,

certain to us.

It causes us to

not just believe

things intellectually

but a kind of joyful

resolve to trust

and obey Him

because we realize

how real and true

He is.

So this wonderful helper

is perhaps even better

than a good neighbor.

He's a source

of much confidence

for us

as we seek

to hold fast

with Jesus.

As the Spirit

has already

taught you,

church,

continue

abiding

in Jesus.

Find ways

to partner

with the Spirit

of God

to strengthen

that abiding

relationship.

That happens

through our

spiritual disciplines,

through our reading

of God's Word,

through our praying.

If we are not

intentionally partnering

with the Spirit

by abiding

in God's Word,

then He doesn't

have much

to work with.

So,

whatever you need

to do in 2021,

whatever resolution,

whatever decision,

whatever habit

you need to form,

take steps

to partner

with the Holy Spirit

to abide

in God's Word

so that you may

abide in Christ

and the Spirit

can be at work

in you,

strengthening that.

But that also

happens not just

in our spiritual

disciplines.

It happens

through a daily,

moment by moment,

acknowledgement

and understanding,

recognizing

of God's presence,

recognizing,

Brother Lawrence

called it the practicing

the presence of God,

recognizing that

in every step

throughout the day,

I am with God

and He is with me

because the Spirit's

presence is at work

and He is sufficient.

He is there

to help,

to reorient my gaze

so when I'm sitting

in my office

and I'm working

or if I'm home

or I'm driving,

there are ways

for me to abide

in Christ

even in those

small moments

throughout the day,

recognizing that

He is there.

Brothers and sisters,

do you find yourself

in need of help?

Do you find yourself

shaky or weary?

Are you letting go

of Jesus?

Do you even care

about abiding in Him?

Remember,

this passage

is calling us

to remember

the call

and the command

to abide

in Christ,

to hold fast to Him

because it is

eternal life.

There is no life

outside of Jesus.

Hear that command

to hold fast.

And the enemy

of your soul

wants nothing less

for you to be deceived

into thinking

that there is life

outside of Jesus.

that there is

a more desirable

source of rest

or peace

than Jesus Christ.

So hear the concern

for your soul

in this passage.

But also,

most of all,

remember

that your sufficient

helper,

the Holy Spirit,

is with you.

Remember the confidence

that you have

in Him

as your guide

whose consistent

purpose

is to make Christ

tangibly real

and delightful

to your soul.

He is better

than a good neighbor.

He dwells

in you,

with you,

and is constantly,

tirelessly working

for your good.

So,

church,

let's abide in Him.

Let's hold fast

to Him.

We are often

in over our heads,

but we have

a sufficient helper

who is with us.

Let's hold fast

to Him together

with the Spirit's help.

Let's pray.

Amen.

Lord,

apart from

your Holy Spirit's work,

we are in

over our heads.

We are sunk.

We are so thankful

for your Spirit

who makes

Jesus

real

and certain

and beautiful

and delightful

to us.

God,

we ask for

more and more

and more

of that

in 2021.

God,

strengthen our faith

by your Spirit.

Lord,

would you

uphold our resolve

to trust

and to obey you

more and more.

Lord,

cause us to delight

in Jesus

and to abide in Him

that we might have

eternal life.

In Jesus' name we pray.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.