Discoveries We Can Make
Introduction
The Victoria Water Falls in Africa capture the attention of countless visitors every year. Those waterfalls are one mile wide and the Zambezi River water tumbles down 420 feet which makes them the highest water falls in the world. David Livingstone, a missionary doctor from England, discovered those water falls on the Zambia and Rhodesia border in 1855 and named them after Queen Victoria.
Most of us would like to make some exciting discovery. We have that opportunity today. The text in 1 John 3 introduces us to some grand spiritual truths which we need to know. We'll be changed by the truths in this chapter of First John if we let the reality of these truths sink deep into our minds. Let's consider five of these spiritual gems which John wanted the early Christians to understand. One, we can discover God's love. Two, Jesus is going to do a miraculous work in our lives when He comes again. Three, we learn from this text a few terrible facts about sin. Four, we learn that we can know that we are saved. Fifth, we can have confidence and boldness in God's presence. Let's look at these five facts briefly, and each one can read the chapter later and claim these spiritual discoveries as your own.
I. The Christian Discovers The Love Of God
Everyone hears about love. However, the text speaks of God's love that is different from the world's love. God's love is noble and true. That which is called "love" by most people today is a passing attraction, a shallow and short-lived emotion. Divine love is different, it's "agapn."
God's love is attention-getting. The first word in the text shouts for our attention. That word is "Behold." If we see a house on fire, we scream, "Look!" If we see a football team make a touchdown, many yell, "Look!" John says, "Look! Let me show you the love of God."
The text says, "What manner of love." One translation has, "From what country of love." That is, God's love comes from heaven, from "another world." It has a special quality about it.
God's love is that which He bestows upon us. That is, God's love comes from the heart of God, from His grace. We do not earn it, nor deserve it. God "pours out" His love upon us through our faith in Jesus Christ.
God's love when accepted makes us the sons and daughters of God. The text says we are called "sons of God." When one is the son in a family, that one becomes an heir to the family estate. The Christian belongs to God. We can sing, "I'm a child of the King, a child of the King; with Jesus my Savior, I'm a child of the King." God calls us His sons and His daughters. What a title belongs God gives us!
When we become God's children, we have a conflict with the world. We discover that the world has different standards from God's standards. The text states, "Therefore the world does not know us, because it did not know Jesus" (v. 1). We are strangers in the world. The unbelieving people around us can never understand the hopes, the joys, the blessings, and all other possessions that belong to the Christian. The world can not understand why we don't use God's name in vain, why we don't get high on alcohol and drugs. The world doesn't understand why we give money to God's cause, why we love His Church, and pray and work to see His Church grow and prosper.
Dr. Marion "Bud" Fray served as a missionary in Africa for 30 years. He also taught at Southwestern Baptist Seminary for several years. He visited a used furniture store before the family left for Africa. The owner of the store followed Bud Fray around in the store. He asked, "Are you a teacher?" A negative answer was given. Then the owner asked Dr. Fray if he was in the military. Again, a no answer was given. Then the furniture man asked, "Why are you going to Africa?" Bud Fray answered, "We're going as missionaries." The startled man said, "A missionary? Man, why are you going to Africa as a missionary? You look intelligent to me!" The world doesn't understand us, just as the people didn't comprehend Jesus when He walked on planet earth.
When Jesus came to earth, the religious leaders rejected Him. They took up stones and wanted to kill Him, they tried to throw Him off a hill in Nazareth, they called Him ugly names and finally crucified Him. Paul preached the good news of salvation. The world ran him out of town after town. Don't be surprised at the attacks that come upon God's people today. The world does not comprehend us because we accept God's love.
God's love makes us His children now. This is not a "sweet by and by" relationship. Note that verse two states, "Now are we the sons of God." "Now" is an adverb of time. This little word means "at this present moment" we belong to God. We don't wait until death to become a part of God's great family. The simple verb "are"helps us understand that we have already come into a relationship with God. The pronoun "we" includes all the Christian community. We are the "we" of the text. We can discover God's love which discovers us! Let's get our eyes open to the love of God. We can truly sing, "O love of God, How rich and pure, How measureless and strong; It shall forevermore endure, the saints and angels song." Let's make a second discovery.
II. We Discover A Big Reward For Us When Jesus Comes Again
We Discover that God has a big reward for us when Jesus comes again. We now have salvation. God has redeemed us because of our faith in the crucified, resurrected Savior. We have a relationship with God. And yet, God says that He has another reward that is astounding. That stupendous gift can't be ours until Jesus comes again. John knew that Jesus would come again. He heard Jesus say those words in John 14. He heard those words in Matthew 24 and 25 about His return. The Bible affirms that Christ will come again. When He does return, we're going to be blessed in a measure that's beyond description.
We are going to be like Jesus when He comes again. We look pretty good on Sunday morning when we come to Church. We "dress up" because we enter into God's House and we expect Jesus to be wherever God's people meet. We want to look good when we approach the Lord of the universe. But the text states that "It does not yet appear what we shall be." The future is one of great change. A renovation, a remaking, a renewal, a restructuring is going to take place that's beyond human calculation.
Inside, we are going to be like Him. We're going to have His holiness and moral purity in full measure. Outwardly, and this is the message of the text, we are going to be like the resurrected Jesus. We'll not be like Jesus when He walked the roads of Palestine. At that time Jesus became thirsty, tired, lonely, and hungry. We are going to be like Jesus after His resurrection.
When Christ came out of the grave after His crucifixion, He lived in His same body, but the body had been changed. It had been glorified. It was brilliant and glorious. We are going to have a body like that body of Jesus that never gets tired again, that never grows old, that never knows pain nor disease, nor heartache. We'll have a perfect body.
Gypsy Smith was born and grew up in England. The Lord saved and called Mr. Smith as an evangelist after he moved to the United States. Gypsy (Gitano) Smith preached in a conversational tone. Often as he preached tears flowed down his face.
One time the Gitano was preaching to a large Church of Black Baptists in Dallas, Texas. At the close of the service, someone asked Gitano Smith, "When we get to heaven what color are we going to be?" The Evangelist answered, "My friend, when we get to heaven, we are going to be like Jesus." All the congregation applauded. Yes, we are going to be like the glorified Jesus one day.
We will see Jesus when He comes again. Not only are we to be like Him, but we will see Him. The text says in verse two, "We shall see Him as He is." We will be among the saints of all ages who look upon Jesus. He is coming in great power and glory. We don't want to be ashamed of Him when He comes again. We want to be ready for Him.
John had told the Christians in the area of Ephesus about Jesus many, many times. He told them of the three years that he had spent with Jesus. They longed to see the Christ. The apostle told them clearly, "We shall see Him."
We get excited when we see family members or friends who have been away for a long time. Grandchildren sometimes jump up and down when they see their grand parents. Jesus is the One who ought to cause us to jump up and down with joy with the thought that one day we will be like Him and we will see Him.
III. We Discover The Truth About Sin
We know about all we want to know of sin in our day. We learn a lot about sin by watching news reports and by being alert to what's going on around us. And yet, a true insight into the sin problem comes from God's Word. John gives us in this chapter, verses 4-10, a true, up-to-date analysis of sin.
Sin is doing what is wrong. Sin is transgression of the law, according to John. It is lawlessness. That is, one decides that he or she will do whatever that person wants to do. Some think that each person may do whatever that one wishes to do without suffering the consequences of his or her actions.
This idea is a replay of an Old Testament experience stated in Judges 21:25, "Everyone did that which was right in his own eyes." The people then, as many people do today, disregarded God's directions about life. That philosophy is "If it feels good, do it." It is the Epicurean philosophy to squeeze out of life all the pleasure that one can and then throw away whatever is left. This philosophy is one that throws out God's Word. It is a brash defiance of God as though one says to Him, "Shut up God, and get out of my life. I'll do whatever I want to do whenever I wish with anyone that I want." Sin is running against God and is a denial and defiance of everything that God is and all that God says. But God warns. "Sow the wind and reap the whirlwind." The bitter fruit of sin is death, and people need to learn this truth.
Sin has an antidote in Christ. The Scripture in 1 John 3:5 states that "Christ was manifested to take away sin." We can't really handle sin by laughing at it, by pushing it back into some dark corner of our minds. The Hindus have the idea that they can handle sin by washing themselves in the Ganges River and their sins will go away. Even the ancient "blood of bulls and goats" referred to in Hebrews 10:4 does not take away sin. Jesus is the "sin remover." He alone has paid the price for our redemption. We learn that sin may be dealt with in an effective way as we come to God and ask His forgiveness through the blood of Jesus Christ, His eternal Son (1 John 1:7). Jesus is the only antidote or remedy for the sin problem. We must take our sordid lives to Calvary or bear the terrible results of sin for ourselves.
We learn that the ruling and domineering power of sin is broken for a Christian through the new life that we receive from God. Verse 6 states that if one is born of God, then that Christian has a life that can't keep on with the sinful way of life. God makes us miserable with our sins. We can't enjoy nor tolerate them. We can't "keep on sinning." We can't continue with an unbroken sin habit. We are "a new creation in Christ Jesus" (2 Cor. 5:17). A person is not a Christian who continues on drugs, alcohol, in a life of impure sexual relationships, and all other ungodly acts, even though one might say he belongs to the Lord. We cannot "go on sinning." This does not mean that a person will not stumble or deviate in life. But the saved person has a new direction. He may "fall" many times, but God will lift him up (Ps. 37:34; 145:14).
We discover that sin has been brought about by Satan. He's the original sinner. He led astray a large host of angelic beings who rebelled with Satan against God. Satan brought about man's moral fall in the Garden of Eden. The devil was the first sinner in the universe. Leave the "d" off the devil's name and you have "evil." And all evil has come because of that wicked deceiver. And yet, the devil doesn't have dominance over our lives when we go to Jesus. Jesus came, as verse 8 declares, to destroy or undo the evil works of Satan. Satan "is not alive and well on planet earth." He's been mortally wounded by the death of Jesus. Thus we learn that the Christian has victory over Satan because Christ has come to destroy the power of the devil.
IV. We Discover That We Can Know That We Have Eternal Life
Most of us like to know, to have assurance. We like to have a doctor say to us that we are healthy, that we don't have any serious illness. In verse 14 John states that we know that we have passed from death unto life. We have the assurance. How does one know that he is going to heaven and not to hell? How can we have the certain knowledge that everything is all right between us and God? We don't know this because of going to Church, by praying, or by a mere profession. John tells us the secret of knowing. And this is simple, but profound.
We know that we have eternal life because we love fellow Christians. The text states, "Because we love the brethren." John says, "we should love one another" (v. 11). That's an old message that must be put into practice. We are not to act like Cain did toward his brother. Cain killed Abel. If we hate as Cain did then we live in death. We are not God's children if we do not love God nor His people. The one who loves God's people loves God and has this deep down knowledge that He belong to God.
We know that we have eternal life because we want to help others. Vs. 16 and 17 state that when we see others in need that we have a heart of compassion toward them. We have seen this truth demonstrated in many ways. We open our hearts to the needy, the hurting, the lonely, the sad. We have seen this experience happen many, many times as our Churches send people to other nations and to people around us to relieve their suffering. We go to cities which have undergone earthquakes, floods, and other disasters. We show compassion today. This act of kindness shows that we belong to God.
We remember the conversion story of the Philippian jailer that's related in Acts 16. When the jailer was saved, he prepared a special meal for Paul and Silas. He turned into a "physician's assistant" and a "Licensed Vocational Nurse. "He bathed their wounds that he had recently caused on Paul and Silas. We know that the man was genuinely saved because he wanted to help those he earlier had punished. One of the hymns of our faith has the words, "Help Somebody today, Somebody along life's way." We lend a helping hand like the "Good Samaritan." We endeavor to make life more pleasant and easier for others. That's how we know that we are Christians.
We know and have assurance because we have the witness of our own hearts. John wrote in verses 19-20 that our own heart gives us assurance and does not condemn us. Thus assurance comes as an "inner heart-knowledge" because we are related to God.
V. We Discover Confidence In God's Presence
The final discovery that we make in 1 John 3 is that we have confidence in God's presence. Most of us admit that we have "stage fright." We don't like the idea of speaking before a crowd of 25 people or 100, much less before a football stadium filled with people in a large crusade. And yet, we can have confidence and not be fearful when we come into God's presence.
We have confidence that we may pray to God in boldness. The text states in verse 22, "And whatsoever we ask we receive of Him." We make those prayers with full confidence and assurance because we keep His Word about believing in Jesus and keeping the commandment of love. The words almost frighten or startle us, "And we get from God what we ask." Boldly we ask and boldly we receive.
Perhaps we need to make a priority prayer list. What do you and I really need? What are we asking for? For love, for strength, for wholeness and health, for new jobs, for a heart for missions? Let's pray and receive from God what we ask because we keep His Word and we love His people. An entire bundle of blessings rests on this Scripture about prayer which says that we may "boldly ask."
We have confidence that we may keep the Commandments. What are those words which we are to obey? Listen carefully to what we find in this verse of Scripture. 1 John 3:23 is a summary of all of God's commandments. Here it is again: "And this is His commandment, That we should believe on the name of His Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as He gave us commandment." What a discovery for us to make!
We have confidence that we are abiding in God. That is, we have a "mutual dwelling experience." We abide in Jesus and He abides in us. We know this is true. The last verse of this third chapter in First John states this remarkable fact. We base our experience upon truth, upon fact, not upon fancy or a wish. We know that we are living in God and that God lives in us because He has given us the Holy Spirit. Jesus said this truth in another way, "I am the vine, ye are the branches: He abides in me, and I in him...." (John 15:5). We have boldness and confidence because of this wonderful relationship with Jesus.
Archimedes was a Greek who was born nearly 300 years before Jesus. His name stands out in the field of science and math. One day he discovered the secret of telling when he had pure gold. He yelled, "Eureka" or "I have found it."
You have found "pure gold" when you go through the third chapter of First John and discover these truths. Here is the truth of God's love, the big reward which belongs to us when Christ comes again, the truth about sin, the assurance of eternal life, and the confidence we may have in God's presence. We receive these "gold nuggets" when we yield our lives to Christ. What rich discoveries await us as we look into God's Word!
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