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2nd in a series of lessons on 1 John.
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1 JohnBible Study
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2nd in a series of lessons on 1 John.
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In this transcription, the speaker discusses the background and introduction to the Epistles of 1 John. They explain that these books were written by the same individuals and discuss the false teaching of the Gnostics, who denied that Christ was manifested in the flesh. The speaker emphasizes that fellowship with God is determined by how one lives and walks, and that actions speak louder than words. They reference Bible verses that describe God as light and darkness as representing evil and sin. The speaker also addresses the inconsistency of saying one thing and doing another, and the importance of living a righteous life. They conclude by discussing the forgiveness of sins based on the condition of righteous living. We want to continue our study over in the Epistles of 1 John. And last night, we understood the background. We kind of got off into the introduction, and we looked at some parallel passages from the Gospels of John and also 1 John. And that helped us to understand that these books were written by the same individuals. We can tell by the internal evidence, okay? And we also see how the Christ in both books is referred to as the Word who became flesh and dwelt among mankind, okay? And this Word is the same One who became the historical Jesus. So we've seen at the opening of 1 John that John answered the false teaching that the Gnostics proclaimed, okay? And John gave his witness that the Word of Life came in the flesh, which they denied. The Gnostics denied that Christ was manifested in the flesh, okay? And so we read down from 1 John chapter 1, and we made it all the way to verse 4 last night, and we completed verse 4. So if somebody would, could they pick up and read 1 John chapter 1, verses 1 through 4 for us? Yeah, if you would. ...which we have seen and heard, we proclaim also to you, so that you, too, may have fellowship with us. And indeed, our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son, Jesus Christ. And we are writing these things so that our joy may be complete. This is the message we have heard from Him, and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all. Alright, so we see here in verse 5, it's stated, ...this then is the message which we have heard of Him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all. Alright, so what John starts to talk about here is fellowship with God. And we see that it's determined by how one walks, okay? So, the way that we walk, which is the way that we live on the daily, it determines if we have fellowship with God. Why? Because that's because actions speak louder than words. Could somebody go on and read verse 6 and 7 for us, in 1 John chapter 1? If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice 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 Christ, His Son, cleanses us from all sin. Alright, so in verse 5, we see the nature of God determines the condition on which fellowship with Him is possible. And it lets us know that God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all. So, when you look at the Bible, light describes God's essence, and it sums up His character, okay? Somebody read James chapter 1 verse 17 for us, for a cross-reference. Sarah? Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of light. With whom there is no variation or shadows of turning. Amen. Alright, so God is unchangeable, and He's described as the Father of light, okay? And we see that light represents His essence, okay? And it sums up His character. And if you read throughout the Bible, light represents truth, purity, and holiness, whereas darkness represents evil, ignorance, and sin. And when you look at the gospel accounts in your Bible, like we read Ephesians, and we studied the book of Ephesians, Ephesians chapter 6 verse 12 refers to the devil and his angels as rulers of the darkness of this world, okay? And their domain is called the power of darkness. And all who obey the gospel are called out of darkness and to God's marvelous light, as the Bible tells us, okay? So, as we look at 1 John chapter 1 verse 6, it states, if we say that we have fellowship with Him and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. So, if we're walking in evil and ignorance and sin, then we can't say that we have fellowship. You have one minute remaining. We can't say that we have fellowship with God if we walk in evil, ignorance, and sin, because God is light, okay? And that's the only way that fellowship with Him is possible, is by walking in the light. In the light of what? The light of the gospel, okay? Because it is the gospel that calls us out of darkness and to God's marvelous light, okay? And a person is lying if he claims to have fellowship with God, but walks in darkness. Not only did John begin this epistle in the middle of his purpose by affirming that Jesus Christ came in the flesh, but he proceeded next to answer the false proposition espoused by the Gnostic that the spirit of man was not affected by what the body did. So, John here lets us know that actions do speak louder than words. And it's seven times in this short letter John says one's integrity by showing the inconsistency of saying one thing but doing another, which is what a hypocrite does. And we're going to look at just a few verses that John... Thank you for using Global Telling. Let's go back to James 117. Sarah, if you're still up in there, just start reading that until the dogs get back home. Okay. "...Of his own will he draw up for us by the word of truth that we might be a kind of first fruit of his creation. So then, my beloved brother, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath, for the wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God. Therefore, lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save out your soul. But be doers of the word." Okay. So, we see here in 1 John 1 verse 6 that John proceeds to answer the next false teaching expired by the Gnostics. Okay. And they had stated that the spirit of man was not affected by what the body did. But John lets us know that actions speak louder than words. And we're going to see this seven times in this short letter how John tests one's character by showing the inconsistency of saying one thing but doing another. And we understand that a hypocrite does this. Because we see in verse 6 alone in 1 John 1 that John stated, if we say we have fellowship with him and walk in darkness, we lie. And then verse 8, John states, if we say we have no sin, then verse 10, John states, if we say we have not sin. But even as you look at 1 John 2 verse 4, John states, he that saith I know him and keepeth not his commandments. Okay. So, we see that in verse 6 it states, he that saith he abides in him ought to walk. There's a certain type of walk that the Christian must have, which means a certain type of lifestyle must characterize the Christian. A daily living. How are you consistently living? Are you living righteously by the light of the gospel, constantly confessing sin and praying to God and practicing his righteousness? Or are you saying one thing but doing another? Are you being a hypocrite? Okay. And John 2 verse 9 states, he that saith he is in the light and hateth his brother is in darkness. And then 1 John chapter 4 verse 20, John states, if a man say I love God and hate his brother. So, saying one thing and doing another is not consistent. Okay. You've got to have integrity about your faith in Christ. You've got to love your brothers and sisters in Christ. You've got to constantly deny yourself. You've got to repent of your sins and lay down the old Charles, the old Zecivia, the old Charles. This ain't something that you just do in baptism, but this is something that you do on an everyday basis. No, you don't get baptized every day, but what you did, the meaning of what you did in baptism, you have to apply that to your everyday walk in order to reach the promised land. The Israelites, a fleshly nation who had a fleshly king, they walked through a fleshly, a worldly wilderness called Sinai. And they was on the way to the promised land. Okay. It was physical. It was material. But transferred to the New Testament, we are a spiritual nation led by a spiritual king, which is Christ Jesus. And we are on the way to the promised land. But we ain't walking through the wilderness of Sinai, but we are walking and fighting through the wilderness of sin. Every day is a constant fight to sin and Satan and darkness. Every day you wake up, you got an option to choose death or life. And that life is in Christ that you must choose. You have to walk in the light. You have to do what you say as far as obeying the gospel goes. And this is what John is dealing with in 1 John 1 verse 6. He say, if we say that we have fellowship with him and walk in darkness, we lie and do not the truth. And when he say we do not the truth, that means we do not practice the truth. And when he say do, this is something that we do. This is something that we do consistently on a daily. Okay. Do you do your work on a daily? Which means this is what you do consistently. Do you do athletics? Are you very athletic? Or are you spiritually minded? Or are you worldly minded? Okay. Because saying one thing and doing another, well, it leads you to not having fellowship with God. Okay. And then 1 John chapter 1 verse 7 states, but if we walk in the light. So now he tell you how to walk. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another. And the blood of Jesus Christ, his son, cleanses us from all sin. Now, I don't want y'all to get this verse twisted because this verse does not describe an umbrella covering of sin. Nor automatic forgiveness eliminates the Christian's responsibility for his actions. But it does, however, assure forgiveness based on the condition of righteous living. Let me rephrase this. For those who say, well, I'm going to just wait on God, and I'm going to answer to God, and he's going to deal with me. You can't judge me. Well, no, maybe I'm not judging you or your brother or your sister in Christ. I'm not judging you. We're trying to help you to see how God does set the law. You don't have to wait to judgment day for an answer that God already gives you in his word. That he don't forgive apart from repentance. Any sin unforgiven will condemn in the end. Let me rephrase this. Any sin unforgiving will condemn in the end. So what does this mean? You've got to lay down the sin that possesses you so much. Even though you've been baptized, you've become a Christian. If you still practice sin, then you don't have fellowship with God. Because if you have fellowship with God, John said in verse 7, but if we walk in the light. So, Charles, if you walk in the light, this is how your life will be. If you walk in the light, Charles, if he is in the light, you will have fellowship one with another. And the blood of Jesus Christ, his son, will cleanse you from all sin. So we see here, walking in the light describes one's continued course of action in life. And the verb tis literally means keep on walking in the light with God, Charles. So a single sin or step in darkness is not equivalent to the habitual course of life. And this is very important to understand because this is what Romans 6, verses 3-14 broke down to us. That context is discussing the lifestyle of righteousness versus the lifestyle of sinfulness. And any sin unforgiving will condemn eternally. Let's read 1 John 5, verse 16. If anyone sees his brother committing a sin, not leading to death, he shall ask and God will give him life. To those who commit sins that do not lead to death, there is sin that leads to death. I do not say that one should pray for that. Alright, so any sin unforgiving will condemn eternally. There is a sin that leads to death. And I want y'all to know that any sin unforgiving will condemn eternally. So we have to repent. That's what Jesus means by taking up your cross daily and following him. You have to deny yourself for the sake of Christ and the gospel or you will die in your sins. And those who die in sin cannot go to heaven. So we've got to understand and not beat ourselves up about one sin. Because one sin is not necessarily walking in darkness. Nor is it apostasy or falling from grace, you know, with the total desertion. Desertion of faith and fellowship in God. No, that is not what I'm describing here, okay? But it is the blood of Jesus Christ, his son, that cleanses us from all sin. His atoning blood is continually available to all who confess their sins. So we see that we have to confess our sins and pray and repent, okay? And God does not forgive apart from this. In 1 John 1 verse 9 it says, If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Just because God forgives us of our sins, that don't remove the consequences of sin. Let me say this again. When you become a Christian, you may still suffer for some sins that you have committed or been committed. Or even when you become a Christian, you go commit adultery on your husband or your wife. And you may repent of that sin. But the person you committed adultery with causes you further problems. This is the consequences for your sins. Does this mean that God didn't forgive you and you confess your sins and you repent? No, that doesn't mean God didn't forgive you. God promises you that he will forgive you if you will confess your sins and repent. And this confession of sin, it literally means keep on confessing. So one who walks in the light should be continually with pent hearts, just like David. That's why David was referred to as a man after God's own heart. Even though he committed sin, he understood that sin was against the nature and essence of God. And it was a direct attack on God. Let's read Psalms chapter 51 verses 16 and 17. And we got two more scriptures after this. Okay, Psalms 51. Can you say 15 and 17? Yes, ma'am. Okay. 15 says, All right. So we see that a Christian who walks in the light should be continually with pent hearts. And he must be of a prayerful spirit. Let's read Colossians chapter 4 verse 2. Colossians chapter 4 verse 2, the next reading. Debbie, are you there? Yes. Colossians 2... Colossians chapter 4 verse 2. Colossians 4 verse 2. Yes, ma'am. All right. So we ought to continue in prayer, watching and saying with thanksgiving. Okay? Continue in prayer. This is something that you do consistently. First Thessalonians 5 verse 17. Okay. Oh, my God. Pray without ceasing. All right, ma'am. So it says pray without ceasing. But what about when you say, Charles, look, I've been going through it, and I've been praying, and, God, I did nothing, and my situation is still the same. And I'm going to say, look, the Bible says pray without ceasing. So let's have a prayer. Keep on praying. And don't get me wrong. I'm no spiritual superman. Sometimes my faith goes away. And there'll be others who have to encourage me and remind me of the scriptures. And I have to continue in prayer. But what John is discussing here is the lifestyle of one who walks in the light. And one who walks in the light receives continual cleansing from sin by the blood of Christ. All right? This continually is available to all who confess their sins. And one who walks in the light shall be continually with Kenzie Hall in a proper spirit. And by reason of his lifestyle, he obtains continual cleansing by the blood of Jesus. So how do you know if you're pleasing God right now? You can read 1 John, chapter 1, alone. They compare your daily walk to the walk that John describes as the walk of one that walks in the light and has fellowship with God. If you are not walking in that manner, then you don't have fellowship with God. I don't care how many verses you know. I don't care how much you go to church, how much you get on vows. If your walk contradicts the walk that John describes in 1 John, chapter 1, then you do not have fellowship with God and your joy shall not be full. You need to be of a penitent heart because a broken and a contrite spirit God would not despise. And you need to pray continually with thanksgiving. But you also need to pray without ceasing, which means you need to be persistent in prayer. And you need to keep on confessing, keep on praying. And God promises you that he'll forgive you. So we see how John is better answering the Gnostics' false teaching that threatened the early Christians. And he's answering it with an apostatic message of truth we see here. And this is the same truth that we have to stand in and abide by. Because if we don't abide in this truth, then we have not God the Father nor the Son. And that concludes our lesson for tonight.
