Confident Fellowship: Damaging and Restoring Fellowship

So John chapter 3, starting at verse 19 to 21.

John 3 · chapter mention

This is the verdict. Light has come into the world, but men love darkness instead of light, because their deeds are evil.

Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed.

But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God.

And if you turn to 1 John chapter 1, starting at verse 5.

1 John 1 · chapter mention

Oh yeah, that's page 1225.

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

God is light, and in him there is no darkness at all.

If we claim to have fellowship with him, yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by 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 has no place in our lives.

My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin.

But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defence, Jesus Christ, the Righteous One.

He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours, but also for the sins of the whole world.

Thanks very much, Dan.

Please keep your Bibles open at 1 John.

There is a sheet being passed around with pens, which you can follow along to take notes if you want one.

Just indicate to Ethan.

We started a new series just last week.

You can follow them all online if you miss any.

So 1 John, chapter 1, verse 5, and to chapter 2, verse 2.

1 John 1:5

It's a very, very practical letter, helping us to know how to live the Christian life.

Well, let's ask God for his help as we look at his word together.

Our Father God, we thank you for your love.

And we thank you for your word to us, which is an expression of your love to us.

We pray that as we read it together, as we study together,

that you would speak into our lives in such a way that we see what it is to live in right relationship with you.

Help us to identify the things that hinder our relationship with you.

And help us to put into practice the things that will restore our relationship with you.

Be gracious to us, Father, we pray.

In Jesus' name. Amen.

So we start with a very heart-searching question.

How is your fellowship with God?

Would you say it's in the red hot zone?

Or is it in the blue cold zone?

Where would you place yourself on that scale?

Or over the last week or month, would you say you've been taking steps towards the red zone?

Or have you been moving towards the cold zone?

Perhaps, like me, you find that it fluctuates.

It's bouncing from one end to the other.

Hot one week, cold the next.

Well, remember, we have all been invited into fellowship with God.

Look at verse 3 of chapter 1.

This is John writing on behalf of the apostles.

He says,

We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard.

So they saw Jesus and they heard his message.

So we proclaim to you what we've 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.

So here John is inviting people like you and me to share in the deep, intimate relationship and partnership with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ.

So what the Father shares with the Son and what the Son shares with the Father, we too can participate in that love.

He says to us in verse 4, we write all of this.

We write this invitation into this fellowship to make our or your joy complete.

Living in fellowship with God is where we are fully satisfied.

This is where we find our joy.

Now this morning we're going to see how we can enjoy this fellowship every day.

How we can enjoy it the way God intends us to.

So there's two big ideas we're going to look at this morning.

The first is what hinders and damages our fellowship with God.

And the second is this, what restores and renews our fellowship with God.

So the first one is going to be quite hard.

Not hard to understand, but hard because it takes a look at our hearts.

So what is it that hinders and damages our fellowship?

And then secondly, what restores and renews our fellowship?

So let's look at these two big ideas together.

First, sin hinders and damages our fellowship with God.

Look at verse 5.

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

God is light.

In him there is no darkness at all.

Followers of Lord of the Rings, and I'm sure most of you have seen them,

will know that light and darkness are really important themes.

You've got those who represent light, like Gandalf, and he's good and he's pure.

And then there are those who are evil and wicked, like Sauron, and they're described as being on the dark side.

So we've got this light and darkness theme.

And it's the same idea in biblical language.

So in verse 5 we're told that God is light.

That means he's full of goodness.

He's full of justice and purity.

There's no darkness in God.

There's no evil.

There's no hate.

There's no impurity.

In other words, light and darkness are incompatible.

You can't mix light and darkness together.

Psalm 5 tells us that you are not a God who takes pleasure in evil.

With you, the wicked cannot dwell.

The arrogant cannot stand in your presence.

You see, you can't have light and darkness together.

Now, just as light and darkness are incompatible,

so a life of sin and a life of fellowship is incompatible.

In other words, he's building us towards a big theme, which is this.

We can't mess about with sin and at the same time enjoy fellowship with God.

Just as you can't mix light and darkness,

so you can't mix a life of sin and a life of fellowship.

They just don't go together.

Sin is serious.

It hinders and damages our fellowship with God.

That's the big theme of the rest of this chapter and into chapter 2.

We tend to minimise it.

We don't think it really matters.

So we hide it and we excuse it and we ignore it.

But sin drags us out of the red hot zone

and it pulls us into the blue cold zone.

So let's see how this is true.

Two things.

First, claiming to have fellowship.

Look at verse 6.

He says this,

If we claim to have fellowship with him,

yet walk in the darkness,

we lie and do not live by the truth.

So if we say that we have fellowship with God,

but yet we mess about with sin,

then we're just living a lie.

He's saying we don't live by the truth.

Now remember,

he's writing here to people who are Christians.

Have a look at chapter 2, verse 21.

Chapter 2, verse 21.

He says there,

I do not write to you because you do not know the truth,

but because you do know it

and because no lie comes from the truth.

So he's writing to the people,

he's writing to us,

he's saying you know what the truth is.

You know who the truth is.

You know what it is to love Christ.

You know what it is to love people.

But here's the big problem.

You're claiming to be in fellowship with God

when in reality you're walking about in darkness.

It's the complete opposite of true fellowship.

Look at chapter 1, verse 7.

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.

You see here in verse 7,

we have the picture of one who doesn't hide from the truth.

They're not pretending.

They're not living a lie.

They walk in the light.

In other words,

their desire is to let God shine his spotlight,

to shine his light by the Holy Spirit

into their lives,

to show them where their sin is

so that they can deal with it

and put things right

so that fellowship with God is restored.

Here's the people who walk in the light.

They crave openness and honesty before God.

But he's saying,

what you're doing is walking in the darkness.

You're hiding.

You see, our fellowship with God works on two levels.

I want us to get this clear in our minds.

There's a legal aspect and a personal aspect.

So when we trust in Christ,

we enter into a legal relationship or fellowship with God.

That means it can't be broken by our sin.

So if I mess up, if I fail,

my relationship with God is intact.

It's legally binding.

There's a contract on that relationship

that can't be broken because God is committed to it.

However, when I sin or when we sin,

the personal aspect of the relationship is damaged.

So let me try and illustrate this for us

to get it into our minds.

When Kirsty and I got married,

we entered into a legal relationship.

So no matter what we say,

no matter what we do,

we remain legally married.

We can fall out,

we can have an argument,

but we've got a contract that says,

we're married.

We're still in that relationship.

But here's the point.

If I'm unkind,

if I say something that upsets her,

it deeply affects the personal relationship.

And the relationship is damaged.

The joy and the intimacy of that relationship is removed.

It's broken.

And so it is in the same way.

God still legally loves us.

He is committed to us.

He is bound to us even when we sin.

But here's the problem.

The personal joy of that relationship is damaged.

Every time I fail and fall,

every time I walk in darkness,

the relationship with God,

that personal, deep, intimate relationship,

is damaged.

You see, messing about with sin

damages our fellowship with God.

It is serious.

Of course, it's not just claiming to have fellowship.

There's another problem.

There's claiming to be without sin.

Look at verse 8.

If we claim to be without sin,

we deceive ourselves,

and the truth is not in us.

Messing about with sin

ultimately leads to self-deception.

Do you see what it says in verse 8?

It says we deceive ourselves.

The tragedy is

we can get to the point in our life

where we can't even see the damage

sin is causing to our own lives.

We're so much in the darkness

that we cannot see

what it is doing

to our relationship with God.

We used to joke when we were younger

about our granny

that she had asbestos hands.

Basically, she could just take anything

that was roasting hot out of the oven

with her bare hands.

She never used a cloth.

She could handle hot plates.

Not a problem.

But there was a problem.

Because her hands were very marked and scarred.

There were burns all over them.

And over time,

her hands had become insensitive

to the heat.

And it caused terrible damage.

And in the same way,

we can mess about with sin so much

that it gets to the point

where we become insensitive to it.

We're not even aware

of the effects that it has.

But over time,

it's causing untold damage

to our lives

in our relationship with God.

One of the ways it can affect us

is our relationship

with other people.

Look back at verse 7.

Do you see what it says there

at the beginning?

It says,

if we walk in the light

as he is in the light,

we have fellowship

with one another.

You see,

fellowship with God

can't be separated

from fellowship

with other people.

If our fellowship

with God is damaged,

then our fellowship

with other people

is damaged.

So,

let me ask us all

another question.

What is our relationship

with each other

actually like?

If you're married here

this morning,

how is your relationship

to your wife

or your husband?

Is it cold?

Is it broken?

How are you relating

to one another?

Or how are your relationships

with people in the church?

Are they on healthy terms?

Are you getting on

with people?

Because broken

and damaged relationships

can be a clear sign

of claiming to be

without sin.

We've got to the point

where we've deceived ourselves,

where we become

completely insensitive

to what's going on.

We're not even aware

of damaged relationships.

Look at verse 10.

If we claim

we have not sinned,

we make him,

that is God,

out to be a liar

and his word

has no place

in our lives.

Instead of owning up

to our sin,

we excuse it,

we ignore it

and we hide it.

We brush it

underneath the carpet.

We push back

against God's

gentle conviction

through his word

and we refuse

the diagnosis

of our hearts.

Claiming to be

in fellowship

with God

and at the same time

messing about

with sin

ultimately damages

and hinders

our fellowship

with God.

It robs us

of our joy.

That is the danger.

That is the seriousness

of what it can do

to us.

So how can

our joy

be made complete?

What we've just

looked at

is hard and difficult

but it does

because it requires

an inward looking

at our own hearts.

So how can it

be restored?

How can we know

deep,

intimate joy

with the Father?

Well second,

Christ restores

and renews

our fellowship

with God.

We often think

of repentance

and faith

as something

we do

before we

become a Christian.

So I repent

of my sins

and I put

my faith

in Jesus.

That's true.

We all need

to do that.

But just as we

start the Christian

life with repentance

and faith,

we must continue

with repentance

and faith.

We don't just do it

once and then

leave it there

and tick that box.

We continue

with repentance

and faith

every single day.

So let's look

at each of those

aspects

in these remaining

verses.

First,

repentance,

which is ongoing

dealing with sin.

Look at verse 9.

If we confess

our sins,

he is faithful

and just

and will forgive

us our sins

and purify

us from

all unrighteousness.

You see,

confession

or repentance

is vital

if we are to

enjoy

fellowship

with God.

But we've got

to be clear

what true

repentance

is.

Sometimes

we can be

remorseful,

but that's

not repentance.

Remorseful

means we regret

that we've done

something wrong

because of the

consequences it

has to my life.

So the thief

will be remorseful

because he's

been caught.

He's got money

in his pocket

that he shouldn't

do and he ends

up in prison

and he's saying

I wish I hadn't

done that.

He's only sorry

because he's been

caught and he's

being punished.

That's remorseful.

Being repentant

is completely

different.

Repentant means

we seek a

genuine heart

change

regardless

of the

consequences

to my life.

So the thief

who is repentant

will face up

to the seriousness

of his crime.

He will accept

the consequences.

He will accept

what's going to

happen because

he wants to

change his life

and change the

ways.

He confesses

because he doesn't

want to do the

same thing again.

Now there's two

people who are

very helpful

examples for this

and you know

them very well.

Judas and Peter.

Both Judas

and Peter

acted in

denial and

betrayal.

Both of them

had sinned.

Judas though

was remorseful.

He was remorseful

because he was

found out

and he ran away

and what did he do?

He hung himself

because remorse

leads to despair.

There's no way

out.

Peter on the

other hand

was repentant

because he knew

he had done

something wrong.

He knew he had

to go back to

Jesus and that

relationship was

restored and it

led to a joyful

relationship again.

So we've got to

be right about

being remorseful

or being repentant.

And look what

happens when we

are genuinely

repentant.

Again look at

verse 9.

He will forgive

us our sins

and purify us

from all

unrighteousness.

Here's the

result.

We are forgiven.

That means God

will no longer

hold that sin

against us.

It's not going

to be thrown

back in our

face.

It's cancelled.

It's paid for.

It's dealt

with.

But not only

is there

forgiveness,

he also

purifies us.

That means God

will make us

clean.

He will make us

pure.

What defiled us

in the first

place has been

removed.

It's washed

away.

It's wiped

clean.

It's all

gone.

And it all

leads to

restored

fellowship.

Genuine

repentance

means

restored

fellowship.

Because I

own my

sin.

Because I

seek genuine

heart change.

Because I'm

willing to

deal with my

sinful behaviour.

Because I want

to walk in the

light and let

God show me

up for what I

am and what I

need to get

right.

I can now

enjoy

fellowship with

God.

We come to

a Father

who longs

to forgive

us.

Who longs

to purify

us so that

we can

enjoy him.

So there

must be

repentance.

And there

must also

be faith.

Faith which

is ongoing

trust in

Jesus Christ.

Look at

chapter 2

verse 1.

My dear

children,

this is the

heartache

of a writer

who longs

for his

people to

be in

right

relationship

with God.

My dear

children,

I write

this to

you so

that you

will not

sin.

I want

you to

experience a

life that

is not

damaged or

hindered by

your sinful

behaviour.

I want

you to

enjoy this

deep,

intimate

relationship

with God.

I want

you to

experience it

in its

fullness.

So he

says I

write this

to you so

that you

will not

sin.

But if

anybody

does

sin,

because he

knows we

all do

and we

all mess

up and

fail.

So he's

saying to

us,

look,

as you

go along

your life,

your

relationship

with God,

when you

sin,

here's what

I want you

to see.

This is

where I

want you

to look.

I want

you to

look at

two

things.

First,

Jesus

is our

defence.

I

write this

to you

so that

you will

not

sin.

But if

anybody

does

sin,

we have

one who

speaks to

the Father

in our

defence,

Jesus

Christ,

the

righteous

one.

Have

you got

the picture

that we

have there?

It's an

amazing

picture.

Because when

we sin

and our

fellowship is

damaged,

Jesus

immediately

steps in

to speak

up on

our

behalf.

Jesus

as our

defender,

and we've

got to get

this picture

right again,

he's not

pleading

with a

reluctant

father who

is unwilling

to forgive.

He does

not have to

try and

convince

God or

cajole

God to

be merciful

or try

and trick

God to

be nice

towards

us.

No,

Jesus

simply

reminds

the

father of

what they

have

achieved

together,

that the

sin has

been paid

for,

that they

are forgiven,

that they

are clean,

that they

belong to

the father

and the

son and

they share

in fellowship

and Jesus

brings all

of that

before the

father and

says,

we can

forgive.

I am the

one who

stands in

defence of

you.

Jesus

guarantees

and assures

us of

our acceptance

so in

faith,

when we

fall,

we look

to Jesus

as our

defender.

But not

only that,

we look

to Jesus

as our

sacrifice.

Verse 2,

he is the

atoning

sacrifice

for our

sins and

not only

for ours

but also

for the

sins of

the whole

world.

God.

You see,

God doesn't

just ignore

our sin.

He doesn't

go, oh,

we'll just

forgive that

and it

doesn't

matter

anymore.

He can

forgive it

because he

has taken

it seriously.

He has

dealt with

our sin

through his

son,

Jesus Christ.

When Jesus

died on the

cross, as we

were singing

about earlier,

atonement

took place.

That's the

word that we

have here in

verse 2, a

sacrifice of

atonement.

And that

simply means

two things.

First, Jesus

takes our

guilt on

himself.

He becomes

our sin

for us.

So all of

my guilt,

all of my

shame, all

of my sin

is removed

from me

and placed

upon Jesus.

That's the

first step.

And the

second step

is this,

Jesus now

absorbs God's

wrath on

himself for

me.

He bears

the punishment

for me.

So he

removes my

guilt and

he removes

or deflects

the wrath of

God from

me onto

his own

son.

And that's

what we

mean when

we say

Jesus is

our atoning

sacrifice.

So each

day, every

time we

fail and

fall, we

look in

trust to

Jesus Christ.

We depend

not on our

own performance,

but on the

perfect performance

of Jesus

Christ, our

defence and

our sacrifice.

And all of

that leads

to renewed

fellowship.

The results

of genuine

faith is

renewed

fellowship

with God.

Because I

look to

Jesus,

because I

dare not

trust in

myself,

because I

turn to

Christ when I

see my

sin.

Fellowship

with God

is renewed.

Faith is

the means

by which I

can enjoy

God.

I can

enjoy his

presence.

I can

enjoy

fellowship

without any

fear of

judgment or

punishment

whatsoever.

So where

are you

in your

fellowship with

God?

Are you in

the red

hot zone?

or are you

in the

cold blue

zone?

Which

direction are

you travelling?

Are you

walking in

darkness and

avoiding sin?

Or are you

walking in the

light and

letting God

deal with it

as it should

be?

As we

finish, let

me just

close with an

illustration.

fellowship with

God is

like horse

riding.

Have any

of you ever

gone horse

riding?

I remember

my very first

experience.

The horse

went that

way, turned

a corner and

I kept

going.

The question

is, it's

not if you

fall off, but

when you

fall off.

And when

we fall

off the

horse, we

don't just

stay down, we

get up again and

we get back on and

we keep on

going.

Now when we

fall and fail in

our fellowship with

God, when it's

hindered and

broken and we

sense that lack

of joy, we

don't just stay

down, we get

back up again.

And here's how

we get back up

again.

We do it by

repenting of

our sin.

forgive me

Father, for I

have fallen

again, but I

do not want to

fall again.

Forgive me, I

do not want to

fall again.

We do it by

repenting and

we do it by

faith in Jesus

Christ.

We look to

him and say, I

cannot do this

alone.

I dare not

trust in my

own self, but

I trust in

you, my

defender, my

sacrifice,

to hold me

and keep me.

So let me

say this to

us all.

Get up,

fallen

Christian.

Ride again

and enjoy

your fellowship

with God.

Let's pray.

Let's pray.

Let's pray.

Let's pray.

Let's pray.

Father, it is

our desire

always

to be in

that place

where

we enjoy

fellowship with

you,

unhindered,

undamaged,

to delight in

you,

to have no

fear.

And yet,

Father, we

confess

there are

things we

do and

say.

There are

actions that

we get

involved in

that hinder

and break

and damage

that relationship.

so, Father,

we repent

of them.

We come to

you afresh

and we

say,

I've done

it again,

but help me

not to do

it again.

Lord Jesus,

we thank you

that you

are our

defender,

speaking to

the Father

in our

defence.

Thank you

that you

are our

perfect,

sufficient,

and complete

sacrifice,

taking the

blame for

all that we

have done

wrong,

so that

we can

enjoy you

and know

you.

So,

Father,

wherever we

are today,

help us to

get back

up again.

Help us

to keep

on going

as we

look only

to you.

Bless us

and fill us

with your

joy, we

pray, in

Jesus' name.

Amen.