Lawlessness vs. Love
1 John • Sermon • Submitted
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· 7 viewsThere is a undeniable difference between a child of the devil and a child of God. A child of God will obey His law, which can be summed up as loving, versus being a child of the devil who will practice lawlessness and sinfulness.
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1 See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him.
2 Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is.
3 And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.
4 Everyone who makes a practice of sinning also practices lawlessness; sin is lawlessness.
5 You know that he appeared in order to take away sins, and in him there is no sin.
6 No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him.
7 Little children, let no one deceive you. Whoever practices righteousness is righteous, as he is righteous.
8 Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil.
9 No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God’s seed abides in him; and he cannot keep on sinning, because he has been born of God.
10 By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother.
11 For this is the message that you have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another.
12 We should not be like Cain, who was of the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own deeds were evil and his brother’s righteous.
13 Do not be surprised, brothers, that the world hates you.
14 We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers. Whoever does not love abides in death.
15 Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.
We are called the children of God, but let us consider why John begins to speak about lawlessness. Remember it is in chapter 3 that John shifted gears, from the focus being on mere fellowship with God through Christ, to a legal relationship, the adoption of sons & daughters by God the Father, which is the result of God’s Incredible love, which also means we are co-heirs with Jesus.
1 Jn 3:1-1
Thabiti Anyabwile, pastor and author, suggested in one of his messages, that John was addressing four different groups of people in this letter.
1.) Those who are genuinely Christian and fully convinced of their salvation.
2.) Those who are genuinely Christian and struggling with assurance of their salvation.
3.) Those who are wrongly assured of their salvation.
4.) Those who are known non-christians.
The section in John’s letter that we just read, particularly the section from verse 3 through verse 15 are written to the third category. Those who were wrongly assured of their salvation.
These are the antinomians (those who believed they were saved/adopted into the family of God, but went on to live their lives in utter rebellion to God.
What I hope you are able to see very easily from this text is that. . .
Lawlessness is Incompatible with being a child of God.
Lawlessness is Incompatible with being a child of God.
Lawlessness Defined-
Lawlessness is evidence that someone is a son of the devil.
Righteousness is evidence that someone is a child of God.
Lawlessness Defined-
Lawlessness Defined-
21 “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.’
22 But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire.
43 And if your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than with two hands to go to hell, to the unquenchable fire.
45 And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life lame than with two feet to be thrown into hell.
47 And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into hell,
48 ‘where their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched.’
Lawlessness Defined-
Lawlessness Defined-
4 Everyone who makes a practice of sinning also practices lawlessness; sin is lawlessness.
6 No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him.
7 Little children, let no one deceive you. Whoever practices righteousness is righteous, as he is righteous.
8 Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil.
9 No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God’s seed abides in him; and he cannot keep on sinning, because he has been born of God.
1 Jn 3:6-
6 No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him.
6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
Lawlessness Defined-
Lawlessness Defined-
Open defiance toward the law of God. Outward acts of lawlessness and inward corruption of the heart. Persistent practice of rebellion against God and His ordained authority.
One child was asked by his Sunday School teacher to explain what sin was, he answered, “I think it is anything you like to do.” This is very true, because our hearts are evil, our hearts are wicked and opposed to God. We are born, sons of Adam, spiritually dead, with a sin nature, as enemies of God.
Righteousness is evidence that someone is a child of God.
10 By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother.
Lawlessness is evidence that someone is a son of the devil.
Righteousness is evidence that someone is a child of God.
Lawlessness - like a sheep who has gone its own way.
Lawlessness - like a sheep who has gone its own way.
Living like a sheep who has gone astray from the Shepherd.
6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.
To be lawless is to live like Cain, who murdered his brother out of spirit of pride and jealousy.
(1 Jn 3:12)
12 We should not be like Cain, who was of the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own deeds were evil and his brother’s righteous.
Lawlessness was displayed in the life of the Prodigal Son, before he chose to humble himself and return to his father’s home, wishing to simply be a servant. Up to that moment, he prodigal was a wayward child, who wanted to do life his own way, calling his own shots, dong what he wanted, when he wanted, how he wanted.
Horatius Bonar
Horatius Bonar
I Was a Wondering Sheep
(verse 1)
“I was a wandering sheep,
I did not love the fold,
I did not love my Shepherd’s voice,
I would not be controlled:
I was a wayward child,
I did not love my home,
I did not love my Father’s voice,
I loved afar to roam.”
“No more a wandering sheep,
“I love to be controlled;
I love my tender Shepherd's voice,
I love the peaceful fold:
No more a wayward child,
I seek no more to roam;
I love my heavenly Father's voice;
I love, I love His home.”
I can recall a time in my life when I did not love my father’s voice. I did not love his home, I did not want to be controlled. But by God’s grace, He changed that for me. He allowed me to see, as the prodigal child, that His ways were good. His ways are a blessing. A child of God seeks to honor the heavenly Father and obey His commands and the principles that are taught in Scripture.
Jesus came to take away lawlessness.
Jesus came to take away lawlessness.
5 You know that he appeared in order to take away sins, and in him there is no sin.
1 John 3:5
8 Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil.
1 John 3:
Remember the words spoken by John the Baptist in John 1:29.
29 The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!
Earlier I referred to , listen to the preceeding verse.
Isaiah 5
5 But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed.
Christ died, not just in order that we could have freedom from the guilt of sin, but so that we can have freedom from the power of sin.
This came up in last week’s sermon. There is a positional innocence and purity that we have as Children of God by faith in Christ and there is also a progressive purity, which is accomplished by the work of the Holy Spirit through the ministry of the word.
Listen to what Paul says in Romans 6
12 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions.
13 Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness.
14 For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.
19 I am speaking in human terms, because of your natural limitations. For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification.
Romans
We present ourselves as slaves to righteousness by agreeing with the voice of the Shepherd. By saying, God’s ways are my ways. By saying, I am more concerned about the Father’s will than I care about my will.
Unfortunately, as I stated earlier, John, in my opinion is here writing to those who are wrongly convinced of their salvation.
These are antinomianists. We are living in a time when antinomianism is the most prevalent of any time in history. We are constantly being told, truth is relative.
IN the words of Dwight Schrute “FALSE”: Truth is not relative! It is absolute. God’s Law is absolute!
Warning: Lawlessness leads to death and hell.
Warning: Lawlessness leads to death and hell.
Righteousness by the blood bought grace of Jesus Christ, leads to life.
Righteousness by the blood bought grace of Jesus Christ, leads to life.
21 “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.’
22 But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire.
43 And if your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than with two hands to go to hell, to the unquenchable fire.
45 And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life lame than with two feet to be thrown into hell.
47 And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into hell,
48 ‘where their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched.’
Righteousness is hereditary for a child of God.
Righteousness is hereditary for a child of God.
Warning: Lawlessness leads to death and hell, but righteousness by the blood bought grace of Jesus Christ, leads to life.
21 “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.’
22 But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire.
21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.
22 On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’
43 And if your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than with two hands to go to hell, to the unquenchable fire.
45 And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life lame than with two feet to be thrown into hell.
47 And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into hell,
48 ‘where their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched.’
For. . . we should love one another . . .not in word or talk but in deed and truth.
For. . . we should love one another . . .not in word or talk but in deed and truth.
1 John 3:
11 For this is the message that you have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another.
18 Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.
1 Jn 3:
We cannot be whitewashed tombs- as the Scribes and Pharisees were accused of being by Jesus.
27 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within are full of dead people’s bones and all uncleanness.
28 So you also outwardly appear righteous to others, but within you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.
WARNING: DANGER AHEAD!
WARNING: DANGER AHEAD!
To love God is to love others, and to love others is to love God. The two are inseparable.
If we love God and therefore love everyone created in His image, we will warn people of the dangers of lawlessness. We will lovingly and gently but also urgently, passionately and faithfully warn them of the danger ahead.
1.) Those who are genuinely Christian and fully convinced of their salvation.
2.) Those who are genuinely Christian and struggling with assurance of their salvation.
3.) Those who are not genuinely Christian but are wrongly assured of their salvation.
4.) Those who are known non-christians.
Thabiti Anyabwile
Maybe you’ve heard different news stories over the years of traffic accidents where 50 to 100 vehicles are involved due to fog, snow, smoke or dust creating extreme visibility issues. One such accident occurred in Great Britain, where over 50 vehicles were involved and 10 people were killed due to fog. It is said that emergency responders were trying to warn motorists, including the use of an emergency flashing light system. One police officer even reported that at one point out of desperation and panic, he was hurling traffic cones at windshields to convince drivers to stop.
I don’t suggest that we begin throwing traffic cones at the vehicles driving down the NYS Thruway, or even along Rt 19, but we need to love people enough to warn them against the dangers of lawlessness.
Lawlessness leads to death Love leads to life. Which road are you on? Who do you know that needs to be loved enough, to be WARNED of the path they are on? Will you be the one, that send out a warning message and helps some to place faith in Jesus Christ, to assist some soul to be adopted into the family of God. If not you, then who? For the glory of God, lead some to know the God of love, not lawlessness.