The house that Jesus builds

So if you have a Bible, perhaps you can turn with me to 1 John chapter 1.

1 John 1 · chapter mention

So the first letter written by the Apostle John, page 1225 if you're using a church Bible.

For the next few months, we're going to think about the house that Jesus builds.

We're going to think about the life.

We'll look at that for the next few months.

And to help us to lay the foundations, we come to this section.

We're going to read the whole chapter, but we're going to focus on 1 John 1 verses 1 to 4.

1 John 1:1–4

And we're going to see spiritual fellowship.

And we're going to see the joy that that produces.

So let's hear God's words together.

That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes,

which we have looked at and our hands have touched, this we proclaim concerning the word of life.

The life appeared.

We have seen it and testified to it.

And we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us.

We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us.

And our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son, Jesus Christ.

We write this to make our joy complete.

This is the message we have heard from Him and declare to you.

God is light.

In Him there is no darkness at all.

If we claim to have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth.

But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another,

and the blood of Jesus, His Son, purifies us from all sin.

If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

If we claim we have not sinned, we make Him out to be a liar and His word is not in us.

Amen.

Let's begin here.

We have two different family members doing house extensions at the same time.

So there are in two different cities, similar processes happening and probably similar stages of progress.

So we have watched the deep foundations be dug in a garden.

We have seen steel support beams go into each.

And now we've seen a wooden timber frame arrive.

So similar processes, similar progress.

But at the same time, there are differences.

Design features that differ.

So they've made different choices for doors and windows.

They have had the joys of choosing taps and cupboards and handles and all the fine points that go along with extensions.

But each house extension, like every building project, it has its own foundation, its own strength, and it has its own particular features, its own style.

Why do we begin with house extensions?

Well, the Bible uses an image for the church.

It has that idea of God's people being built together as living stones.

They're joined together by the Spirit, united in and upon the Lord Jesus to become a house, a living house, where God Himself can dwell.

So the idea of a house that God builds is one that we find in the Bible.

So then the question becomes, well, what kind of house is Jesus building?

What is the foundation of a local church that Jesus builds?

And what kind of features can we expect to find in this house that Jesus is building?

And that's what we're going to be looking at for the next few weeks and months.

But what's John's message here?

Well, it's mostly about the foundation.

And the foundation that we find in these opening three verses of his first chapter, of his first letter, is spiritual fellowship.

The reality that we share and we enjoy life with God together.

And from that foundation, there is one particular feature that John then focuses our attention on.

That as Christians believe the truth about Jesus, and as we share life with Jesus, it creates a particular joy in the people of God.

So we're going to look at spiritual fellowship and we're going to look at joy together.

So spiritual fellowship.

What is spiritual fellowship?

Fellowship is one of those, I guess it's a very Christian word.

We don't hear it too often in other contexts.

Let's say, first of all, what spiritual fellowship is not.

So it's not merely a set of church activities.

So having a church activity does not mean fellowship, though it might very well provide the opportunity for fellowship.

Fellowship is not, let's put on some programs and have particular places.

That doesn't guarantee it, though those programs, places, may very well help.

So it's not simply about being in the same place and doing the same thing.

So what do we mean when we talk about spiritual fellowship?

Well, the idea of fellowship, as we have it in the Bible, is the idea of a participation in something.

A sharing in something.

A communion with someone.

Look with me at verse 3.

We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us.

So there's a participation, a sharing life with the apostles.

So to be a Christian is to share communion with God the Father and God the Son through God the Spirit and to share life with one another in God's church.

It's one of those big ideas that perhaps even change the way that we think about life in a local church as we begin to work that out.

Well, John gives us, I think, three helpful truths about spiritual fellowship.

And here's the first.

It is a personal experience.

So look at verse 1.

That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched, this we proclaim concerning the word of life.

And so the writer is John the Apostle, probably the closest friend of Jesus while on the earth.

And he is presenting himself here, isn't he, as a personal eyewitness based on three years spent together sharing in the ministry of Jesus.

And he says he is writing about Jesus as, look at the words he uses for Jesus, the word of life in verse 1, verse 2, the life, and also in verse 2, the eternal life.

And what John is making here is a staggering claim.

He is saying, I have seen, I have touched, I have handled life.

And the word choice he uses is interesting.

It's the idea of a blind person carefully handling a face or an object to examine it in order to fully understand, to appreciate what is in front of him.

And John is saying, this is what I have done with the eternal Son of God.

And so he begins his letter saying, the one who is from the beginning, the one who is uncreated, the one who is eternal, he entered time and space.

And he entered into John's frame of reference.

John spent time with the one who is eternal life from the beginning.

He is telling us that the immortal and invisible God at a point in time took on flesh and bone and ate food and drank with John.

That John's best friend, Jesus, is life itself.

The source of all life.

The one who came so that we could enjoy the life of God in our lives.

And so what he has witnessed, he proclaims.

And that's the second thing about spiritual fellowship as John talks.

He says it's a personal experience.

And then he moves immediately to say it's a personal experience that he is proclaiming to others.

End of verse 1, this we proclaim concerning the word of life.

The life appeared.

We have seen it and testify to it.

And we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us.

We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard.

So the idea of proclaiming is the idea of being a herald.

This is a task that John has been commissioned to by Jesus.

An eyewitness who's now commissioned, go and tell others.

Having personally met the source of life and the source of joy,

what we discover now is that John finds his joy in sharing Jesus with others.

He has found for himself that the power source spiritually,

and now he wants to pass it on that others, including us, who read this letter,

that we might find it too.

And it's all tied up with a personal experience of the living God.

Francis Schaeffer, he spoke about Christian joy as communion with God,

something that was a day-by-day reality, a personal living relationship.

That's our source of spiritual power.

You know, it's like an electrical socket.

We need to be plugged in in order to draw on God's power.

We need to stay close to this one who is the life if we are to enjoy the life of God in our lives.

Because if we don't, like our phone or any other device, we will lose power.

And with that, our spiritual joy will stop.

And so John, who has this personal experience of knowing the one who is life and the source of joy,

he proclaims it to others so that they and we might have it too.

Because here's the third thing that becomes clear.

This is to be a shared experience.

Look at verse 3.

We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard so that, purpose, you also may have fellowship with us

and our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son, Jesus Christ.

I imagine all of us were watching in the last couple of weeks the unfolding tragedy of the Nepal floods.

And in all the bad news and all the horrible news, there was one good news story that hit the headlines.

You may have seen it.

There was the school teacher who, 10 minutes before the water was due to hit the school, got a report.

And so immediately, he sounded the alarms and he evacuated pupils and teachers to higher ground

with the effect that 900 lives were saved.

A life-saving message came.

It created a sense of purpose.

And he shared that message so others could have life too.

That's the pattern we see in 1 John.

And it's the pattern of the local church.

It's why we preach the gospel.

That in Jesus, we come to know the God who is life,

the one who gives eternal life through His death and resurrection.

He shares life with us.

And because this news is so good and so life-transforming,

that we proclaim also so that others may share fellowship with God and within the church.

John is reminding his first readers and us by extension of this massive privilege

that our standing is not less than the apostles.

We too share in the life of God that by God's Holy Spirit, we are united to Jesus.

Our Savior is our brother.

And we have God as our Father.

And we have the certain hope of true life, eternal life,

because the source of life has now come to live within us.

And this spiritual fellowship that John talks about,

it's the strength and the foundation of the church.

We are cemented together with a new identity,

which at the same time gives us a new purpose.

We are a worshiping people because we have come to know God.

And we are also a people on mission to make God known so that others might share it.

In John 17, this is what Jesus prays for.

Jesus prays for a people who hadn't yet heard the good news about Him,

people yet to be born, people like us,

but that they would be a people united in knowing the love of the Father and the Son,

sharing the life of the Father and the Son,

and that unity being made visible.

That's why Jesus came, so that we could share life with God.

That's a concrete reality in God's plan for His church.

And because Jesus prayed in John 17 for it,

and because Jesus, now risen and ascended and glorified, continues to pray,

we get to enjoy this breathtaking privilege together,

real relationship with the living God.

So that's the foundation that John wants to present for us about our life together,

that we share fellowship together as we share fellowship with God, Father and Son.

And that then produces something.

And the feature that produces, it's there in verse 4, is joy.

We write this to make our joy, or we write this to make your joy complete.

Again, just to go back to the picture of family extensions for a moment,

even when those extensions are not yet complete,

you can tell very quickly, either by looking at the plans,

or just by looking at what's on the ground at the moment,

why they're being built.

More space to cook and to eat with others,

more living space for a growing family.

There's always a goal for a building project.

The goal for Jesus' building project is joy.

What he's looking to cultivate in the family of God is joy.

Jesus came to give us life with God

so that you and I could share what John calls complete joy.

That's a bold claim.

In his message, and the one that he speaks about,

John is saying there is a capacity for a joy that has no limit.

Now, there's a question, who is this joy for?

So you can see there's a little footnote in verse 4.

Or we write this to make our joy complete.

Some manuscripts say your.

Is it the delight of the apostles to know Jesus and to share Jesus?

Or is it the delight of the church who receive the good news message of Jesus?

And truly, the answer is both.

Because every Christian shares in the life of God.

And so every Christian gets this joy.

And what John is saying to us

is that there is within the good news message of Jesus,

his forgiveness,

the reality of peace with God,

a restored relationship with God,

the renewal of all things, including us,

the prospect of eternal joy.

There is something within the gospel message

that can inflate and overflow and expand our capacity for joy.

In Hebrews chapter 12, verse 2,

Hebrews 12:2

we come upon a very striking idea.

Because the author there says,

Jesus, who for the joy set before him,

endured the cross,

scorned its shame.

Think about what the author of Hebrews is saying there.

That Jesus faced the agony of Calvary,

physical and spiritual.

Jesus went under the wrath of God

against sin as the sin bearer.

Jesus became a curse for his people.

Jesus went to his death

with joy.

With joy.

Because he knew death was not the end.

He knew he would return

to the glory of his father.

But joy too,

because he knew in those actions,

he was achieving the redemption of his people.

Jesus has joy

in saving a people for himself,

inviting us into the joy of God.

Why is joy so important?

Where does it come from?

We'll think about that for a few moments.

Sometimes preachers are really clever

and they have nice mnemonics.

I would have loved to have given you the ABCs.

I'm not that clever.

You're getting the FGHs of Christian joy.

Make of that what you will.

But let's begin with faith and joy.

So what's the connection between faith and joy?

If you use the Solid Joys devotional,

you might have seen this a few days ago.

John Piper uses the image of a house,

very timely.

He says this,

Picture salvation as a house you live in.

And this house offers perfect protection

and shelter

and it's fully provided for.

Every cupboard is well stocked.

It's got beauty

and it's got strength.

And wherever you look,

whichever window you look out of,

if you're sitting in the garden,

it's just perfect,

it's beautiful.

Everything is what you would want.

God built you that house.

That house of salvation.

And it comes to us free of charge.

And there is a contract to guarantee that.

It's called the New Covenant.

In Jesus' blood.

We have forgiveness.

We have peace with God.

We have fellowship with God

because of Jesus' death

and resurrection

and the New Covenant.

And Christian joy

comes as we receive

the gospel of God's free grace.

As we come to discover

that we are saved

not because of anything we have done

but because of what Jesus has done.

And there is joy for us

as we live in that reality

day after day.

It fuels our faith

and that fuels our joy.

And just to extend his image.

So we're in this wonderful house

where everywhere you turn,

on every wall,

every picture that you look at,

you are surrounded by

happy facts about God

to strengthen our own happiness and joy.

So you turn one way

and you remember

that God is all wise.

And we find joy

in knowing that God,

God,

He knows us

and He knows all that we need.

We turn this way

and remember God is all powerful.

And we find joy

as we recognize

that He can meet

all our needs

according to His sufficiency

in Christ.

God is in control.

And so we find joy

even in hardships

knowing everything

somehow

works for His glory

and our good.

We remind ourselves

that God is love.

And He sent Jesus

to forgive

and to purify

and to bring us home.

God is life.

And in Jesus,

He shares life with me

now and forever.

For John,

it's the gospel,

it's the good news of Jesus.

That's where complete joy

is found.

And that's why

He has joy in sharing it.

And as we live by faith,

as we grow into the gospel,

as we stay close

to the gospel,

through faith,

that's where our joy

is found too.

So our faith in Jesus

and the good news

of the gospel,

that helps to cultivate

Christian joy.

G,

let's think about

God and joy.

So we have heard John.

He is saying,

here is my joy.

Here is your joy

to enjoy

living,

personal relationship

with God the Father

and God the Son

through God the Spirit.

We heard Paul

at the beginning

in Philippians chapter 3.

Philippians 3 · chapter mention

I consider everything

a loss compared to

surpassing greatness

of knowing

Christ Jesus,

my Lord.

There is nothing

greater,

says Paul,

than knowing God,

than knowing Jesus.

I want to know Christ,

he said.

And then we read

Jesus' words

in John 14.

And he said,

anyone who loves me

will obey my teaching.

My Father will love them

and we will come to them

and make our home

with them.

So the joy

of the apostles,

knowing God

and his love,

is the joy

that Jesus

came to bring.

the joy

of sharing

life and love

from the Father

and the Son,

shared with us

by the Spirit.

In God's house,

joyful love

is a mark

of God's people.

It's the promise

of Psalm 16.

We'll sing it.

You will fill me

with joy

in your presence,

with eternal pleasures

at your right hand.

Psalmist understands

our eternal future

is perfect pleasure

in the perfect presence

of our perfect God

and Savior.

Jesus will be

our complete joy.

But in everyday life,

we're invited

to experience

the joy

of God,

joy in God

today.

God's people

are in the perfect

house.

We've seen some

perfect pictures.

Now let's imagine

the kitchen table

and on that kitchen table

there is a glorious meal.

I don't know

what would be

your glorious meal.

Perhaps it would be

a nice piece of steak

or a piece of salmon.

Perhaps it would just be

a nice pizza,

whatever it might be.

But imagine

a perfect meal

laid out

on that table.

What is our

normal reaction

to seeing something

good and delicious?

We don't want to take

the museum

or art gallery

critic approach.

Some nice shapes

and shades there.

I appreciate the composition

that the chef

has put on the table.

there comes a point

where we want

to tuck in.

Where we want

to taste

and to see

how good it is.

God wants us

to take that approach

to life with Him.

To find

our deepest

joy

in God.

To be greedy

as it were

for more

joy

in

Jesus.

Knowing that

He gladly gives it.

united to Jesus.

We never want

to settle.

There are

infinite supplies

of blessing

and life

and love

on offer.

So we always

want more.

That we would

delight in Him

more completely

as individuals

and as a church.

Jesus invites us

come to the feast.

He says to us

choose to find

your joy

in me

and my love.

So we thought

about faith

and joy.

We thought

about God

and joy.

The one last

thing to think

about is holiness

and joy.

Because that's

where John

goes next

in the rest

of the chapter.

Look with me

at verse 5.

This is the message

we've heard from

Him and declared

to you.

God is light.

In Him

there is no

darkness at all.

That's a metaphor

for holiness.

God is holy

and pure.

He is untouched

by the darkness

of sin

and evil.

If we claim

to have fellowship

with Him

and yet walk

in the darkness

we lie

and do not

live out the truth.

But if we walk

in the light

as He is in the light

we have fellowship

with one another

and the blood

of Jesus His Son

purifies us

from all sin.

So He's saying

to us

to share fellowship

with God.

To enjoy life

with God.

To enjoy

the full measure

of joy

that Jesus

came to bring

we need to walk

in the light.

There is a particular

path that we need

to choose

and it's the path

of holiness

wanting to be set

apart for God.

And so He goes on

to talk about

the importance

of not covering

up our sin.

Of not deceiving

ourselves and saying

we don't have

a sin problem

rather part of

being holy

involves when we

mess up

when we sin

we confess

quickly

and we return

to the light

rather than

keeping our sin

in the darkness.

One of the marks

of church life

is a desire

to walk the path

of holy joy

together.

That growing

closer to Jesus

we would become

more like

Jesus together.

That we'd be

growing in

everyday holiness.

And when we do

we'd find that

to be our true

joy

as we understand

who Jesus is

and the life

that He offers.

God is all

light.

God is all

holiness.

And all that

is eternally

joyful

comes from

Him

and when we

walk in the

light

we are drawn

towards

Him

as the source

of eternal joy.

We're drawn

together

and that creates

a holy

fellowship

sharing the

love of the

Father and

the Son.

A church

life

positively

overflowing

with our

appreciation,

our experience

of God's

love.

A love that

overflows from

us to the

people

around.

So what kind

of house is

Jesus building

here and in

us?

John reminds us

that there is a

foundation

and that foundation

is spiritual

fellowship.

It's a sharing

in the life

of God.

It's personal

relationship with

the risen Lord

Jesus and that's

something that we

share with one

another.

To put our

faith in Jesus

is to be stacked

and cemented

and joined

and raised

together as a

house that God

lives in.

A house in which

God's glory

is put on

display.

And a key

feature of this

house that Jesus,

the architect,

architect,

builds what

Jesus wants in

our lives

together.

Well, it's

nothing less than

a deep joy in

God himself that

we would love and

delight in God

the Father and

God the Son

together.

Let's pray to

that end.

Let's pray.

Our God and

our Father, we

thank you for

this wonderful

reality that John

reminds us of,

that there is in

Jesus, the way

into life with

God the Father

and the Son

through God the

Spirit.

And we thank you

that Jesus came,

that we might have

this complete joy,

the joy of being

restored to

personal living

relationship, the

joy of being part

of the people of

God and the

family of God.

And so we pray

that you would

cultivate within

our hearts that

sense of gratitude

and joy for

what you have

done for us in

the Lord Jesus.

And we pray that

our faith would

expand and that

our joy would

expand at the

same time.

And we pray that

you would enable

us to walk in

the light as we

come to recognize

that what you

offer is so much

greater than what

this world offers.

And so help us

and teach us and

build us together

together upon

Jesus and

his word.

And we pray in

his name.

Amen.