The Test of Assurance

1 John 5:6–17 ESV

This is he who came by water and blood—Jesus Christ; not by the water only but by the water and the blood. And the Spirit is the one who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. For there are three that testify: the Spirit and the water and the blood; and these three agree. If we receive the testimony of men, the testimony of God is greater, for this is the testimony of God that he has borne concerning his Son. Whoever believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself. Whoever does not believe God has made him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has borne concerning his Son. And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life. I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life. And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him. 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. All wrongdoing is sin, but there is sin that does not lead to death.

and PRAY…

In my first sermon as the Associate Pastor at Heartland, I want to start off telling you a little bit of my story. My dad was a pastor for 40-some years. I was raised in the fear and admonition of the Lord. When I was in my early teens, I understood that God was also calling me to be a pastor. And, frankly, having seen what a pastor’s family and children go through, I didn’t want to answer that call. At age 19, I had a full-time job and my own place. I no longer lived with mom and dad. I also was choosing to not live in the ways of the Lord. I wanted to do my own thing. I wanted to forge my own path. And I really didn’t want to be a pastor. I call that part of my life my “prodigal” years. How many of you have heard the stories about rebellious preacher’s kids? Time keeps me from going into detail, but many of those stories would have applied to me.

Through means that can only be described as God’s hand, I came back to my faith and started to serve as a layman in the church. And then I heard God calling again. He never removed the call to ministry from my life. And now, here I am. But I did go through some times when I doubted my faith. When I just wasn’t sure about it all. My life did not conform to what I knew a Christian should be. And I began to ask if I had ever really been saved at all.

Someone once told me that the way to get through those kind of doubts is to remember the day and the hour when you were saved by Jesus. Then you would be encouraged that it had been real. To be honest, I was saved at a young age and I can’t tell you the day nor the hour. Another person told me to read the book of 1 John. And it was then that I understood. We aren’t encouraged in our faith when we remember a date, but when we start to see more and more evidence of Christ’s work in our lives. Or, as Pastor Gene has been saying, when we see that we are performing favorably in the tests laid out in this book. You see, John told us why he wrote this little book.

1 John 5:13 ESV

I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life.

These tests are how we can know we have eternal life. Pastor Gene has shown us that we need to do well at the Tests of Fellowship, Obedience, Righteousness, Brotherly Love, Truth, and Godly Nature. Each of those tests help us see the hand of God in our lives. We are not saved by passing these tests, but, rather, we can know we are saved when we are doing well at all of these tests. Yet, there remains one test, and, it is not a trivial matter. This last test could be the most pivotal of them all. You see, the Test of Assurance is both the reason for the other tests and the very basis for them.

1 John 5:6–17 ESV

This is he who came by water and blood—Jesus Christ; not by the water only but by the water and the blood. And the Spirit is the one who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. For there are three that testify: the Spirit and the water and the blood; and these three agree. If we receive the testimony of men, the testimony of God is greater, for this is the testimony of God that he has borne concerning his Son. Whoever believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself. Whoever does not believe God has made him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has borne concerning his Son. And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life. I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life. And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him. 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. All wrongdoing is sin, but there is sin that does not lead to death.

Pray

and PRAY…

If I were to ask you what is the most important thing about Christianity, what would you say? I hope you would say Jesus! He is the author and perfecter of our faith. He is the one who paid the price for our sins. He is the one who is seated at the right hand of the Father even now, interceding for us! Unlike the other tests, the Test of Assurance is not about how others see us, it is about examining our own hearts, our own thoughts. It is about what we believe. Being a Christian is not just about acknowledging with our mouths that Jesus is Lord, it also involves knowing in our hearts that Jesus is Lord. And you may be asking, why is that so important? John tells us why beginning in verse 6

Why would I do that? Because I think we have to be very careful about how we describe Jesus. There are plenty of people that want to talk about his leadership skills. About how Jesus resisted the religious establishment of his day. About how He was a dynamic speaker. About how loyal his followers were. Yes, there are plenty of people who want to talk about Jesus, right up until you say Jesus is the Son of God who died to take away the sins of the world. The moment you say that is that moment that a lot of people no longer want to talk to you.

So how should we talk about Jesus? What is it that makes Jesus different from Jim Jones? Why is Jesus worthy of our allegiance and faith? Every Sunday I tell you to confess Jesus as Lord because you believe that God raised Him from the dead. And you have to believe He is alive or there is no reason to confess Him as Lord. But does the fact that God raised Jesus from the dead make Him entirely worthy of our servitude? Once again, I ask, why follow Jesus? In the passage before us this morning John is going to answer the question why Jesus 3 times.

This letter is for those who believe in Jesus so that they may be encouraged to know they have eternal life. There are plenty of naysayers out there. There are plenty of people who would love to steal our confidence as believers. The same was true back in the 1st Century, so John wrote a sermon intended to encourage the church. To give believers confidence in Jesus’ ability to save.

1. Because of the testimonies of the Spirit

John says that Jesus Christ came by water and by blood. This is most likely not a reference to his birth. It is more a definition of Jesus’ earthly ministry years. His earthly ministry began when John the Baptist dunked Him in the Jordan River and it ended when His blood was shed for the sins of the world.

1.1. vv 6-8

1.3. John says that Jesus Christ came by water and by blood. This is most likely not a reference to his birth. It is more a definition of Jesus’ earthly ministry years. His earthly ministry began when John the Baptist dunked Him in the Jordan River and it ended when His blood was shed for the sins of the world. So, let’s go back to the Gospels and look at these 2 events.

1.2. Before I talk about what John writes here, I need to give you the historical context of this particular passage. You see, in the 1st Century, there was a heretic named Cerinthus. He believed and taught that the Son of God would not need to be a baby or a child or a teenager or even a young adult. And that the son of God could not actually die. So, his teaching went like this: There was a boy from Nazareth named Jesus. When He was fully grown, He was baptized by John the Baptist and at that moment, the son of God (or the Christ) came into the human named Jesus. And the son of God (or the Christ) departed the human named Jesus before His arrest and crucifixion and death. And, friends, this heresy is not limited to the 1st Century because there are groups in our world today who teach the very same thing.

1.3. John says that Jesus Christ came by water and by blood. This is most likely not a reference to his birth. It is more a definition of Jesus’ earthly ministry years. His earthly ministry began when John the Baptist dunked Him in the Jordan River and it ended when His blood was shed for the sins of the world. So, let’s go back to the Gospels and look at these 2 events.

1.4. First we’ll look at Jesus’ baptism

1.3. Now, normally I don’t like to stand here and tell you the details about heresy because God’s word is truth and false truth is not something I like to camp on. But, to understand these verse before us, you need to know what was being said in the historical era these words were written. Now, John says that Jesus Christ came by water and by blood. This is most likely not a reference to his birth. It is more a definition of Jesus’ earthly ministry years. His earthly ministry began when John the Baptist dunked Him in the Jordan River and it ended when His blood was shed for the sins of the world. So, let’s go back to the Gospels and look at these 2 events.

a) - Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him. - John would have prevented him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” - But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he consented. - And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; - and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”

1.4. First we’ll look at Jesus’ baptism

b) - In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. - And when he came up out of the water, immediately he saw the heavens being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. - And a voice came from heaven, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.”

c) - the son of Jesse, the son of Obed, the son of Boaz, the son of Sala, the son of Nahshon,-22

a) - Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him. - John would have prevented him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” - But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he consented. - And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; - and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”

d) - The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! - This is he of whom I said, ‘After me comes a man who ranks before me, because he was before me.’ - I myself did not know him, but for this purpose I came baptizing with water, that he might be revealed to Israel.” - And John bore witness: “I saw the Spirit descend from heaven like a dove, and it remained on him. - I myself did not know him, but he who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain, this is he who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ - And I have seen and have borne witness that this is the Son of God.”

b) - In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. - And when he came up out of the water, immediately he saw the heavens being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. - And a voice came from heaven, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.”

In each Gospel is an account of the Spirit descending upon Jesus and the voice of God declaring Jesus to be the Son. And Jesus is declared to be the Son of God. Now, that is not the moment when Jesus became the Son of God, but the moment when His earthly ministry began. It is the declaration of the authority of almighty God that commences Jesus’ ministry.

All 4 Gospels talk about the blood of the Son of God. Matthew, Mark, and Luke record the utterances of the Centurion declaring Jesus to be the Son of God. And John records how Jesus’ blood fulfilled the Scripture.

c) - the son of Jesse, the son of Obed, the son of Boaz, the son of Sala, the son of Nahshon,-22

a) - When the centurion and those who were with him, keeping watch over Jesus, saw the earthquake and what took place, they were filled with awe and said, “Truly this was the Son of God!”

d) - The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! - This is he of whom I said, ‘After me comes a man who ranks before me, because he was before me.’ - I myself did not know him, but for this purpose I came baptizing with water, that he might be revealed to Israel.” - And John bore witness: “I saw the Spirit descend from heaven like a dove, and it remained on him. - I myself did not know him, but he who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain, this is he who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ - And I have seen and have borne witness that this is the Son of God.”

b) - And when the centurion, who stood facing him, saw that in this way he breathed his last, he said, “Truly this man was the Son of God!”

c) - Now when the centurion saw what had taken place, he praised God, saying, “Certainly this man was innocent!”

1.5. In each Gospel is an account of the Spirit descending upon Jesus and the voice of God declaring Jesus to be the Son. Here, in all 4 accounts we have the fullness of God, all 3 persons, present. And Jesus is declared to be the Son of God. Now, that is not the moment when Jesus became the Son of God, but the moment when His earthly ministry began. It is the declaration of the authority of almighty God that commences Jesus’ ministry.

d) John’s account is a little bit different, but the point is still the same. - So the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first, and of the other who had been crucified with him. - But when they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. - But one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and at once there came out blood and water. - He who saw it has borne witness—his testimony is true, and he knows that he is telling the truth—that you also may believe. - For these things took place that the Scripture might be fulfilled: “Not one of his bones will be broken.” - And again another Scripture says, “They will look on him whom they have pierced.”

1.6. Now, let’s look at the blood.

1.7. All 4 Gospels talk about the blood of the Son of God. Matthew, Mark, and Luke record the utterances of the Centurion declaring Jesus to be the Son of God. And John records how Jesus’ blood fulfilled the Scripture.

a) - When the centurion and those who were with him, keeping watch over Jesus, saw the earthquake and what took place, they were filled with awe and said, “Truly this was the Son of God!”

Now, coming back to . The Spirit is the one who descended in the form of a dove at Jesus’ baptism. And who do you think was in the heart of the Centurion that he praised God and declared Jesus to be the Son of God? And don’t you know that all Scripture is God-breathed? The Scriptures that Jesus fulfilled were authored by the inspiration of the Spirit of God. Friends, the Spirit testifies along with the water and the blood that Jesus IS the Son of God. And that should be reason enough for us to follow Him. But John tells us more.

Now, we know the Old Testament Scripture that says everything should be confirmed by 2 or 3 witnesses. But those witnesses are assumed to be human witnesses. What if God Himself were to take the witness stand? Would we need any other witnesses? Jesus said that His Father was bearing witness that Jesus is the Christ! Look at - If I alone bear witness about myself, my testimony is not true. - There is another who bears witness about me, and I know that the testimony that he bears about me is true. - You sent to John, and he has borne witness to the truth. - Not that the testimony that I receive is from man, but I say these things so that you may be saved. - He was a burning and shining lamp, and you were willing to rejoice for a while in his light. - But the testimony that I have is greater than that of John. For the works that the Father has given me to accomplish, the very works that I am doing, bear witness about me that the Father has sent me. - And the Father who sent me has himself borne witness about me. His voice you have never heard, his form you have never seen, - and you do not have his word abiding in you, for you do not believe the one whom he has sent. - You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, - yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life.

b) - And when the centurion, who stood facing him, saw that in this way he breathed his last, he said, “Truly this man was the Son of God!”

2.1. Vv 9-10

c) - Now when the centurion saw what had taken place, he praised God, saying, “Certainly this man was innocent!”

2.2. Now, we know the Old Testament Scripture that says everything should be confirmed by 2 or 3 witnesses. But those witnesses are assumed to be human witnesses. What if God Himself were to take the witness stand? Would we need any other witnesses? Jesus said that His Father was bearing witness that Jesus is the Christ! Look at - If I alone bear witness about myself, my testimony is not true. - There is another who bears witness about me, and I know that the testimony that he bears about me is true. - You sent to John, and he has borne witness to the truth. - Not that the testimony that I receive is from man, but I say these things so that you may be saved. - He was a burning and shining lamp, and you were willing to rejoice for a while in his light. - But the testimony that I have is greater than that of John. For the works that the Father has given me to accomplish, the very works that I am doing, bear witness about me that the Father has sent me. - And the Father who sent me has himself borne witness about me. His voice you have never heard, his form you have never seen, - and you do not have his word abiding in you, for you do not believe the one whom he has sent. - You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, - yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life.

God Himself is testifying as to the truth of who Jesus is. And John says here in 1 John that if God testifies, we have no need to hear from anyone else. We should believe simply because God has testified that it is true. Through His Spirit, God has testified in many ways. But the primary way God has testified about Jesus is right here in our hands. Through the written Word of God, the Bible. This is not just a collection of stories or an ancient book of good morals. This is the very Word of God. It is His testimony that His only Son, Jesus, came to take away the sin of the world. - For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

d) John’s account is a little bit different, but the point is still the same. - So the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first, and of the other who had been crucified with him. - But when they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. - But one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and at once there came out blood and water. - He who saw it has borne witness—his testimony is true, and he knows that he is telling the truth—that you also may believe. - For these things took place that the Scripture might be fulfilled: “Not one of his bones will be broken.” - And again another Scripture says, “They will look on him whom they have pierced.”

And John gives a very stern warning to us if we refuse to believe God’s own testimony regarding Jesus. He says that if we refuse to believe the testimony we consider God to be a liar. Now, you may balk at that at first, but let me unpack it a little bit. If we are watching a trial and the witness for the prosecution has given very convincing testimony that the defendant has done it, what does the defense attorney do next? They try to find just 1 instance in the life of the witness where the witness was not truthful. Because they know that we all believe liars lie. In other words, if we can prove someone has lied, we consider them to be a liar and therefore there words are not trustworthy. When we decide that God’s word is a lie, we are calling God a liar and we deem that He is not trustworthy. Now, I’m sure that are very few people who would out and out call God a liar, but John says to doubt God’s testimony about Jesus IS to call God a liar. You can believe, or you can call God a liar, those are the only options. So, the testimony of the Spirit is the testimony of God.

1.7. All 4 Gospels talk about the blood of the Son of God. Matthew, Mark, and Luke record the utterances of the Centurion declaring Jesus to be the Son of God. And John records how Jesus’ blood fulfilled the Scripture.

And here John makes the same exclusive claim about Jesus that Jesus made about Himself. John says that it is only through Jesus, the Son of God that we can have eternal life. Which leads us to the Gospel of John - Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. There are not many roads to God. God has said there is only one road. There are not many ways to be saved. God says there is only one way to be saved. Jesus is not one way, He is the only way. A good life, good intentions, good works will not save. Only Jesus saves. Jesus said so and here in verse 11 John says so. But it goes even further. The fact of eternal life is a testimony that what God says is true.

3.1. Vv 11-12

1.8. Now, coming back to . The Spirit is the once who descended in the form of a dove at Jesus’ baptism. And who do you think was in the heart of the Centurion that he praised God and declared Jesus to be the Son of God? And don’t you know that all Scripture is God-breathed? The Scriptures that Jesus fulfilled were authored by the inspiration of the Spirit of God. Friends, the Spirit testifies along with the water and the blood that Jesus IS the Son of God. And that should be reason enough for us to follow Him. But John tells us more.

3.2. And here John makes the same exclusive claim about Jesus that Jesus made about Himself. John says that it is only through Jesus, the Son of God that we can have eternal life. Which leads us to the Gospel of John - Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. There are not many roads to God. God has said there is only one road. There are not many ways to be saved. God says there is only one way to be saved. Jesus is not one way, He is the only way. A good life, good intentions, good works will not save. Only Jesus saves. Jesus said so and here in verse 11 John says so. But it goes even further. The fact of eternal life is a testimony that what God says is true.

2. Because of the testimonies of the Spirit who is God.

If God is all that the Bible says He is. And if we are the sinners that the Bibles says we are. Then there is a great gulf between us and God. And it is only through Jesus that the gulf is spanned. It is only through Jesus that we can be forgiven and enjoy the gift of God called eternal life. For you see, - For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. God’s gift of life is only available when we are in Christ Jesus and He is our Lord.

3.4. Christ Jesus our Lord. God’s gift of life is only available when we are in Christ Jesus and He is our Lord.

2.1. Vv 9-10

John says here in verse 12 that if you have the Son, you have life. And if you don’t have the son, you don’t have life. Listen folks, this stuff I’ve heard about believing in God, but not the whole Jesus thing is simply a lie from the pit of hell. The Bible is clear. You do not actually believe in the God of the Bible and all that HE claims to be unless you are born into new life by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. There is no other way to receive God’s gift of life. John confirms this in His Gospel. - Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.

2.2. Now, we know the Old Testament Scripture that says everything should be confirmed by 2 or 3 witnesses. But those witnesses are assumed to be human witnesses. What if God Himself were to take the witness stand? Would we need any other witnesses? Jesus said that His Father was bearing witness that Jesus is the Christ! Look at - If I alone bear witness about myself, my testimony is not true. - There is another who bears witness about me, and I know that the testimony that he bears about me is true. - You sent to John, and he has borne witness to the truth. - Not that the testimony that I receive is from man, but I say these things so that you may be saved. - He was a burning and shining lamp, and you were willing to rejoice for a while in his light. - But the testimony that I have is greater than that of John. For the works that the Father has given me to accomplish, the very works that I am doing, bear witness about me that the Father has sent me. - And the Father who sent me has himself borne witness about me. His voice you have never heard, his form you have never seen, - and you do not have his word abiding in you, for you do not believe the one whom he has sent. - You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, - yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life.

And Paul confirms this in his letter to the church at Ephesus. - And you were dead in the trespasses and sins - in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— - among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. - But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, - even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— - and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, - so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.

When we try to take Jesus out of the equation, we remain dead in our trespasses and sins. By trusting in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, you are brought from death to life. And this life never ends. It is eternal life. Oh, don’t you see, I am not trying to push you away from the truth of Jesus. I am trying to get to understand that without Jesus you already are as far away from God as you can be. There is no hope for the future without Jesus. Won’t you follow Him today?

2.3. God Himself is testifying as to the truth of who Jesus is. And John says here in 1 John that if God testifies, we have no need to hear from anyone else. We should believe simply because God has testified that it is true. Through His Spirit, God has testified in many ways. But the primary way God has testified about Jesus is right here in our hands. Through the written Word of God, the Bible. This is not just a collection of stories or an ancient book of good morals. This is the very Word of God. It is His testimony that His only Son, Jesus, came to take away the sin of the world. - For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

2.4. And John gives a very stern warning to us if we refuse to believe God’s own testimony regarding Jesus. He says that if we refuse to believe the testimony we consider God to be a liar. Now, you may balk at that at first, but let me unpack it a little bit. If we are watching a trial and the witness for the prosecution has given very convincing testimony that the defendant has done it, what does the defense attorney do next? They try to find just 1 instance in the life of the witness where the witness was not truthful. Because they know that we all believe liars lie. In other words, if we can prove someone has lied, we consider them to be a liar and therefore there words are not trustworthy. When we decide that God’s word is a lie, we are calling God a liar and we deem that He is not trustworthy. Now, I’m sure that are very few people who would out and out call God a liar, but John says to doubt God’s testimony about Jesus IS to call God a liar. You can believe, or you can call God a liar, those are the only options. So, the testimony of the Spirit is the testimony of God.

Vv 13 – 15

3. Because of the testimonies of the Spirit who is God who gives eternal life.

Again, John is writing these things to those who believe in the name of the Son of God. So, if you don’t believe in Jesus, this whole book is not for you. But if you do believe, this whole book is for you. And it is for you to know that you have eternal life.

And to have eternal life through Jesus means that we can confidently ask Him anything and if it is in His will, He hears us. And verse 15 says that He will grant our request. Now, these verses have given rise to some really funky ideas over the years. People have said that if they pray and God doesn’t grant their request it is because they are “outside His will.” And, to be fair, that is one interpretation of these verses, but I don’t think it is accurate. We need to stop and ask ourselves, “How can I know that what I want to ask of God is in keeping with His will?” And I would say that you can know it is keeping with God’s will, if you know it will bring God the glory.

3.1. Vv 11-12

So, when we pray, we need to think of our motives for asking. - You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions. - You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. John says we can ask with confidence and receive our requests from God. Obviously, that doesn’t mean every single request. What does it mean? It means our prayer requests must be more about others than ourselves. It means we have to ask on behalf of others, and especially those who are also in the faith. We ask that God will meet their needs. We ask that God will direct their lives. And we ask that God will rescue them from any sin that is tripping them up, which brings me to the second way to pray in this passage.

3.2. And here John makes the same exclusive claim about Jesus that Jesus made about Himself. John says that it is only through Jesus, the Son of God that we can have eternal life. Which leads us to the Gospel of John - Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. There are not many roads to God. God has said there is only one road. There are not many ways to be saved. God says there is only one way to be saved. Jesus is not one way, He is the only way. A good life, good intentions, good works will not save. Only Jesus saves. Jesus said so and here in verse 11 John says so. But it goes even further. The fact of eternal life is a testimony that what God says is true.

4.5. If I were to pray, “Lord, I want a new sports car.” Do you think He would provide it for me? How would God be glorified by me tooling around town in a brand new sports car? And, I’ll be honest, God can save people no matter what kind of car I am driving, but why would He use a brand new sports car to save someone? Who is getting the silent glory? If asked, I would answer, “God gave me this car.” But if I’m just driving down the road, all people see is another overweight, middle-aged man driving a brand new sports car. And there is absolutely nothing uniquely God-glorifying in that. In fact, it is all too common in our world today.

4.6. So, when we pray, we need to think of our motives for asking. - You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions. - You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. Me wanting a brand new sports car is me loving this world. Once again, God is not glorified by that request. But John says we can ask with confidence and receive our requests from God. Obviously, that doesn’t mean every single request. What does it mean? It means our prayer requests must be more about others than ourselves. It means we have to ask on behalf of others, and especially those who are also in the faith. We ask that God will meet their needs. We ask that God will direct their lives. And we ask that God will rescue them from any sin that is tripping them up, which brings me to the second way to pray in this passage.

3.3. If God is all that the Bible says He is. And if we are the sinners that the Bibles says we are. Then there is a great gulf between us and God. And it is only through Jesus that the gulf is spanned. It is only through Jesus that we can be forgiven and enjoy the gift of God called eternal life. For you see, - For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in

An example prayer

3.4. Christ Jesus our Lord. God’s gift of life is only available when we are in Christ Jesus and He is our Lord.

5.1. Vv 16 – 18

Vv 16 – 18

John says when we see our brothers or sisters in the church caught up in sin, we need to pray for them to be delivered. As long as the sin is not the sin which leads to death. I’ll talk more about the sin leading to death in a moment, but right now, let’s talk about seeing someone in the body committing sin. This is uncomfortable for us. We have the message of not “judging” others beat into our skulls. So, we will say to ourselves, “Who am I to judge if this is sin for that person or not?” But let me ask you a question about that attitude. If you see a child that you know running down our parking lot out here towards 19th Street, are you going to just say, “I hope someone is watching.” Or are you going to try and stop that child before they get out on the road and possibly get hurt?

3.5. John says here in verse 12 that if you have the Son, you have life. And if you don’t have the son, you don’t have life. Listen folks, this stuff I’ve heard about believing in God, but not the whole Jesus thing is simply a lie from the pit of hell. The Bible is clear. You do not actually believe in the God of the Bible and all that HE claims to be unless you are born into new life by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. There is no other way to receive God’s gift of life. John confirms this in His Gospel. - Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.

Of course you are going to try to stop them. You know the danger of running into the traffic of that road. Folks, John says if someone continually practices sin, the truth is not in them. Should we just let them go and do what they want? They are showing evidence that the truth is not even in them. They are heading full speed into what the Bible says is disaster. At the very least we need to pray for them! But, I submit, that when we pray for a brother, we will be called by our Father it intervene. And we should intervene in the way that Jesus taught us to intervene in

3.6. And Paul confirms this in his letter to the church at Ephesus. - And you were dead in the trespasses and sins - in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— - among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. - But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, - even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— - and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, - so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.

When we confront folks with sin, our prayer should be to see sorrow and repentance for that sin. This process that Jesus describes is not a hurry up process. This is a pleading process. So, when you see sin in a brother, you pray (according to John) and you speak to them (according to Jesus). If they have no sorrow for the sin you point out to them, you take a couple more people with you and try again. If there is still no sorrow for the sin, you bring it to the church. And if there is still no sorrow, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. In other words, someone who is outside the church. And here is the key to the whole process. This is human beings trying to discern if this person has truly been saved by God. When you get to that last step, the church is telling this person that there is no evidence of repentance or sorrow for sin in them. That they are not truly saved.

And that brings me back to what John says about the sin that leads to death. It is my understanding that this sin that leads to death is the sin of unbelief. It is someone adamantly opposed to Jesus Christ. And what John says here is to stop praying for someone like that. Why would he say that? Because they don’t need your prayers as much as they need to hear the Gospel of Jesus Christ. That they are sinners who need a savior, just like you, just like me. But unless they believe, their sin will remain unforgiven and their destiny is certain. The sin that leads to death is the unrepentant sinner who refuses to accept Jesus’ gift of eternal life.

3.7. When we try to take Jesus out of the equation, we remain dead in our trespasses and sins. By trusting in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, you are brought from death to life. And this life never ends. It is eternal life. Oh, don’t you see, I am not trying to push you away from the truth of Jesus. I am trying to get to understand that without Jesus you already are as far away from God as you can be. There is no hope for the future without Jesus. Won’t you follow Him today?

I believe that is what John is saying because of what he says there in verse 18. Anyone born of God does not keep on sinning because God protects them from that continual sin. The evil one cannot make a true saint back into a constant sinner. Jesus died to make the sinner a saint.

I need to wrap up my time this morning. So, let me remind you of what John has declared in this written sermon before us today. He has answered the question, “Why Jesus?” by telling us that the testimony of the Spirit who is God is that there is no life without Jesus. But let me just give you one more picture before I’m done.

So we must pray for our brothers who are sinning. We must pray for them and gently remind them of what John says here. It is not loving to turn a blind eye to sin. It is, I believe, actually hate to allow someone to continually sin who has claimed to believe in Jesus.

I need to wrap up my time this morning. So, let me remind you of what John has declared in this written sermon before us today. When the storms of life assail you and the enemy tries to convince you God doesn’t love you, think about the test of assurance. The source of our assurance is Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith. And the fruit of our assurance is answered prayer that results in repentance of sin.

There are times when we are parents that we just don’t have the time to tell our children why we need them to do something. And when they ask us, “Why?” we will answer with something like, “Because I said so, that’s why.” Now, when I was a child, I thought this was the laziest phrase a parent could utter. I thought it was a cop out since they didn’t have a good reason for asking me whatever it was they were asking me to do. But, then, as a parent, I realized that it was rarely out of a sense of ignorance that I would say those words to my children. It was because there was not time, or the issue was simply too complex to explain. I should have been obedient to my parents because I trusted them. And they were due my trust because they were my parents.

Friends, this book comes down to a simple matter of faith that God is who He claims to be. If you truly believe in God. The God of the whole Bible, then you need to take Him at His Word. In 1 John, we see tests to know we have eternal life. So when you are doubting your faith, look at how you are doing in the test of fellowship and the test of obedience and the test of righteousness and the test of brotherly love and the test of truth and the test of Godly nature and, finally, the test of assurance. When we examine our lives with these tests, there are only 2 outcomes. We can be assured that we are indeed saved, or we can see evidence that we have never been saved.

If you know you have been saved, then I would ask you to start praying right now for those who are here who aren’t saved. And if you know your life doesn’t measure up to the tests laid out in this book of the Bible, won’t you trust God’s words? Won’t you follow Jesus starting right now? Let me remind you again of those words of Paul to the church at Rome.

- for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

- but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

- For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

- because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

Jesus is God’s only Son. And He died to purchase our pardon from sin. He deserves our unflinching devotion and allegiance. Won’t you commit your life to Him today?

Let’s PRAY….

We’re going to have a time of invitation. We invite you to come and make public what God has been speaking to your heart.

Whatever God has been saying to you, won’t you respond to Him this morning? This is the time. We will sing. You come as the Spirit of God leads.

Recommit

Join Immanuel

Whatever God has been saying to you, won’t you respond to Him this morning? This is the time. We will sing. You come as the Spirit of God leads.

We’re going to close our service, but God never closes His invitation. Be reconciled to Him today.

The Test of Assurance

The Source of Assurance

The Fruit of Assurance

Takeaway: We can be assured of our faith when we know that Jesus is the source of our salvation and when our prayers are answered.