Sunday
Morning Bible Study
September
23, 2012
Introduction
Do people see Jesus? Is the gospel
preached? Does it speak to the broken hearted? Does it build up the church? Milk
– Meat – Manna Preach for a decision Is the church loved?
This is a book
about Real Issues
What’s real? What’s
the truth? Questions like:
Who is God? What
is He really like?
What is a Christian?
What is a Christian really like?
2:3-11 He who says
:3 Now by this we know that we know Him, if we
keep His commandments.
:3 we know – ginosko – to learn to know, knowledge grounded
on personal experience
Christians
often talk about having a “relationship” with God. We don’t just know “about”
God, but we have come to “know Him”, we have experienced God.
John uses two different “tenses” when he writes, “we know”. A better
translation:
First “we know” is present tense.
Second “we know” is perfect tense.
“By this we now
presently know that we have in the past come to know, and continue to know Him,
if we keep His commandments”
:3 commandments – entole
– an order, command, charge, precept, injunction; a commandment
:3 we keep – tereo
– to attend to carefully, take care of; to observe
This word is in the “subjunctive”
mood, which expresses the idea of possibility and potentiality.
One of the things that leads us to a certainty that we have come to know
God is when we learn to obey Him.
:4 He who says, “I know
Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in
him.
:4 He who says – ho legon – present
participle (“He who is saying right now …”)
This is the first
time that John uses the phrase, and he will use it two more times in the
letter, all three times in the same paragraph.
John is
challenging the reality of what people say about themselves.
We saw something similar back in 1:6-10, when John was challenging us as
the readers, using the phrase “If we say…” three times.
(1 Jn 1:6 NKJV) If we say that we
have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the
truth.
(1 Jn 1:8 NKJV) If we say that we
have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
(1 Jn 1:10 NKJV) If we say that we
have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us.
Now John is challenging the reader not in how they view themselves, but how
they view others.
Again, John is bringing us back to reality – what is a “real” Christian?
:4 I know – ginosko – to learn to know, come to know, get a
knowledge of; knowledge grounded on personal experience
Perfect tense
:4 does not keep –
present participle (“is not presently keeping”)
:4 liar – pseustes – a liar; one who breaks faith
:4 truth – aletheia – truth; what is true in any matter under
consideration; in reality, in fact
The root idea of aletheia
is to be “not covered”. The truth is not
something that’s hidden, but something uncovered, something that is exactly
what it seems to be.
Lesson
Real Actions
If a person “really” knows God, then you will be able to tell by their
actions, not just their words.
A person’s “walk”
ought to match their “talk”.
What they “do” ought to match up with what they “say”.
Sometimes we get pretty easily swayed with people’s words, and don’t often
take the time to look at what they actually “do”.
Jesus warned us about “false prophets”, people who claim spirituality, but
who are really just “fakes”. Watch the emphasis Jesus places on actions verses
words:
(Mt 7:21–23 NKJV) 21 “Not
everyone who says
to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of
heaven, but he who does
the will of My Father in heaven. 22 Many will say to Me in that
day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your
name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ 23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never
knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’
The key to spotting a “false prophet” is not necessarily
with the words they say (though a false prophet may also say some pretty screwy
things), but is even more about what they “do”, what kinds of lives they live.
Be careful not
to confuse “obedience” with “sinlessness”
We saw last week that real Christians still sin (1:8-10)
Illustration
Obedience
is like riding your bike up Acacia hill against the pull of gravity.
The
concept of not having “sin” would be as if we had no “weight” at all,
and simply “floated” up the hill. Which isn’t going to
happen.
The
concept of not living in obedience is the person who never heads “up”
the hill, but who only goes “down”.
The
concept of keeping His commandments, and yet having sin, is like working
your way up the hill, little
by little, even though you have to strive, and if you stop for too long, gravity takes over and
pulls you down the hill, so you keep moving forward.
You can’t say that you have come to know God if you never
progress up the hill at all.
:5 But whoever keeps His
word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in
Him.
:5 keeps –
Present subjunctive
The “subjunctive” mood expresses the idea of possibility and
potentiality.
If you “should” obey God, then something is going to happen.
:5 truly – alethos – truly, of a truth, in reality,
most certainly
An adverb based on the word for “truth”
:5 love – agape – God’s kind of love, based on the
decision to choose to value someone.
:5 the love of God is perfected in
him
perfected
– teleioo – to make perfect, complete
I like the idea of this word describing “maturity” or “growing up”.
(Jas 1:2–4 NKJV) —2 My
brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, 3 knowing
that the testing of your faith produces patience. 4 But let patience
have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.
We can be glad about our difficulties because they help us
to grow in “patience”, and patience
is what growing up is all about.
Here, the word is in the “perfect” tense – something that’s happened in
the past with the results that carry into the present.
Obedience moves the work of God’s love in our lives forward, and that
result continues on with us.
Lesson
Mature Love
Our obedience to the Lord results in a mature loving relationship with God:
(Jn 14:21–23 NKJV) —21 He who has My
commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and
manifest Myself to him.” 22 Judas (not
Iscariot) said to Him, “Lord, how is it that You will
manifest Yourself to us, and not to the world?” 23 Jesus answered and said to him, “If
anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father
will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.
Don’t think that this makes God’s love somehow “conditional”, as if God is
saying, “I won’t love you until you start obeying me”.
The idea is that God’s love becomes more real when you get in line with
what God is wanting for your life. It’s getting on the same page as God.
A husband and wife may “love” each
other, but if neither of them does anything that the other asks, it’s hard to
cultivate that love. Being on the same
page with each other deepens and strengthens your love.
It works that way in our families. Sometimes
you have to simply “do” the right thing, even when it’s inconvenient, because
you love them.
Play
“Hockey”
clip
You
can bet that a dad like that is going to develop a healthy, strong, loving
relationship with his daughter.
When we learn
to put obedience to God as our priority, we will experience God’s love in a
deeper, more mature way.
Illustration
I’ve been reading the autobiography of the missionary Hudson Taylor,
who God used to reach many thousands for Christ in the 1850s.
On one of his journeys he records a walking trip he made where
everything went wrong. He got separated
from his luggage and belongings, he lost his money, he ran out of food, he was
threatened by thieves, his feet were so sore it was hard to walk, and he was
miserable and complaining the entire time.
On the last leg of his journey back to his home base he writes …
On the way I was led to reflect on the goodness of God, and recollected
that I had not made it a matter of prayer that I might be provided with
lodgings last night. I felt condemned, too, that I should have been so anxious
for my few things, while the many precious souls around me had caused so little
emotion. I came as a sinner and pleaded the blood of Jesus, realizing that I
was accepted in Him—pardoned, cleansed, sanctified—and oh the love of Jesus,
how great I felt it to be! I knew something more than I had ever previously
known of what it was to be despised and rejected, and to have nowhere to lay
one's head; and I felt more than ever I had done before the greatness of that
love which induced Him to leave His home in glory and suffer thus for me; nay,
to lay down His very life upon the Cross. I thought of Him as "despised
and rejected of men, a Man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief"; I
thought of Him at Jacob's well, weary, hungry, and thirsty, yet finding it His
meat and drink to do His Father's will; and contrasted this with my littleness
of love. I looked to Him for pardon for the past, and for grace and strength to
do His will in the future, to tread more closely in His footsteps, and be more
than ever wholly His. I prayed for myself, for friends in England, and for my
brethren in the work. Sweet tears of mingled joy and sorrow flowed freely, the
road was almost forgotten, and before I was aware of it I had reached my
destination. Outside the South Gate I took a cup of tea, asked about my lost
luggage, and spoke of the love of Jesus.
Taylor,
J. Hudson (2011-09-04). The Autobiography of Hudson Taylor: Missionary to China
(Kindle Locations 1059-1071). GLH Publishing. Kindle Edition.
Mr. Taylor’s “obedience” came when he realized how bad his attitude
was, and began to reflect on who God was.
And he became very, very aware of the love of God.
:6 He who says he abides in
Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.
:9 He who says – ho legon – This is the second time that John
uses the phrase.
:6 abides – meno – to remain, abide
This is the relationship
we have with Jesus. We have been put “into” Jesus, and it’s “in” Jesus that we
remain.
Jesus used this same word to paint a picture of the relationship of the
believer with Jesus. Jesus
used the example of a branch that was a part of a grape vine:
The word “abide” simply means “staying connected”
(Jn 15:5 NKJV) “I am the
vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me,
and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.
Abiding is a big deal. How do we know if we are “abiding” in Him?
His life as the “vine” will flow through us as the branches and produce
“fruit” or “results”.
Because Jesus walked in obedience to God, then His obedient life will flow
through us to help us walk in obedience to God.
That doesn’t mean that it won’t sometimes be a struggle to obey God.
Don’t forget that we all still have “sin” (1John 1:8,10)
:6 walk – peripateo
– to walk; to live; to conduct one’s self
It’s how you live your life.
It’s about the decisions you choose to make, the “steps” you take in
life.
:6 ought – opheilo –
to owe; to owe money, be in debt for; that which is due, the debt
If you say you are connected to God, you owe it to God, to yourself,
and to the world to live your life like Jesus lived.
(Jn 8:29 NKJV) …for I always do those
things that please Him.”
Jesus walked in obedience to the Father
:6 just as He walked
Lesson
Loving portrait
When we act
like Jesus, it’s like we’re painting a picture for people of what Jesus looks
like
The problem is, sometimes we give the world the wrong idea about Jesus. Sometimes
we do a bad job of “painting” a picture of Jesus.
Illustration
In Spain, an
elderly woman decided to take on the restoration of a famous painting in her
church. The original
painting was called “Ecce Homo” (“Behold the Man”) and was painted in 1930. Let’s
just say that she didn’t do a very good job …
The botched restoration has jokingly earned the name, “Ecce Mono,” or “Behold
the Monkey” thanks to the fresco’s new look, which the BBC describes as “a
crayon sketch of a very hairy monkey in an ill-fitting tunic.”
What’s
even odder, is that since the video has hit the internet, now the botched
painting has become a tourist draw, the church is now making money off it, and
they can’t decide now whether to allow the professional restorers to correct
the painting or not.
Meanwhile, people are paying to see the “wrong” image of
Jesus.
We are
“painting” a picture of Jesus to the world by the way we live our lives.
So what do people see in us? Do they get a good glimpse of Jesus, or does
our picture look more like a monkey than Jesus.
What’s at issue is how we “love” people.
The kind of “love” we display is what makes up the colors
and lines in this portrait of Jesus.
Do we only love those who are easy to love?
That’s more like “monkey” love than “Jesus” love.
:7 Brethren, I write no new
commandment to you, but an old commandment which you have had from the
beginning. The old commandment is the word which you heard from the beginning.
:7 old commandment
The old “commandment” that John is talking about is the commandment to love.
(2 Jn 5 NKJV) And now I
plead with you, lady, not as though I wrote a new commandment to you, but that
which we have had from the beginning: that we love one another.
As believers, John’s readers have heard from the very beginning of their
walk with the Lord that they are to love one another.
:8 Again, a new commandment
I write to you, which thing is true in Him and in you, because the darkness is
passing away, and the true light is already shining.
:8 a new commandment
We’ll see that the “new commandment” is the same as what he called the “old” commandment – to
love one another.
Even though the commandment to “love” is “old” because the believers have
been hearing this for years, Jesus called it a “new” or “fresh” commandment.
(Jn 13:34 NKJV) A new
commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.
Jesus demonstrated
His love for us by laying down His life for us, dying to pay for our sins.
:8 new – kainos –
new; fresh, unused
:8 true – alethes –
true; loving the truth, speaking the truth, truthful
Adjective. This is the root word
for the other words for “true” or “truth”.
:8 which thing is true in Him and in you
The principle about love is true in God, and it is supposed to be true
in us as well.
:8 darkness – skotia
– darkness; the darkness due to want of light
:8 is passing away – parago
– pass by; to depart, go away
:8 true – alethinos
– that which has not only the name and resemblance, but the real nature
corresponding to the name, in every respect corresponding to the idea signified
by the name, real, true genuine
Adjective
:8 shining – phaino –
to bring forth into the light, cause to shine, shed light; shine
:8 the true light is already shining
The “light” takes on an expanded meaning here, in that it is not just
about purity, right, and goodness, but also includes the concept of love.
Because of Jesus having been in the world, the “true light” of love has
been seen and experienced.
:9 He who says he is in the
light, and hates his brother, is in darkness until now.
:9 He who says – ho legon – This is the third time now that John
uses this phrase.
John is again challenging what people “say” about themselves.
:9 and hates his brother
Now John gives us another “rubber meets the road” example of what it means
to say you are in the light, when you’re really in the dark.
John was kind of vague a little
earlier when he said:
(1 Jn 1:5–6 NKJV) —5 This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare
to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. 6 If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in
darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.
We walked back then about “light”
being a picture of what is good and right.
You can’t claim to be walking in God’s “light” if your life is full of
darkness.
Now John gives us a more specific
application about being in the “light”.
It’s also about loving our fellow Christians.
If you “hate” people, you are walking in darkness.
:10 He who loves his brother
abides in the light, and there is no cause for stumbling in him.
:10 loves – agapao –
to love, to feel and exhibit esteem and goodwill to a person, to prize and
delight in a thing; love based on choosing to value another
Present participle
:10 abides – meno –
to remain, abide
:10 there is no cause for stumbling
in him
cause for stumbling – skandalon
– the movable stick or trigger of a trap, a trap stick
It’s doing something that causes another to be “caught” in a trap.
Lesson
Loving Restraint
In Romans 14,
Paul talks about what we might call a “gray” issue.
It’s an issue where there are two sides to a problem, and people could
argue doing either and in a sense still be right.
The issue in Paul’s day had to do with eating meat that had been part of an animal
sacrifice in a pagan temple.
There were some Christians who had grown up worshipping these pagan gods, and to them, meat
that had been sacrificed to pagan gods was a reminder of their past, and they
felt that no good Christian would ever touch such a thing.
There were others who were smart enough to know that there is no such thing as
a “god” other than the True and Living God, and if these pagan people were
stupid enough to sacrifice animals to make-believe “gods”, and then sell the
meat for a discount in the store behind the Temple, that they would be foolish
not to buy meat at such a discount.
Yet when a “meat eater” ate their cheap hamburger in front of a veggie-only
believer, it would cause the veggie believer to struggle with their faith.
Paul’s point
was that as believers, our actions ought to be tied to love, and that sometimes
we will need to sacrifice some of our freedoms for the sake of loving other
people and not causing them to stumble.
(Ro 14:15 NKJV) Yet if your brother is grieved because of your food, you are
no longer walking in love.
Do not destroy with your food the one for whom Christ died.
If I truly love other people, then I won’t be purposely choosing to do
things that would cause another person to stumble.
Example: You could make a case from the Bible that it is okay for a
Christian to drink alcoholic beverages.
The Bible doesn’t prohibit drinking wine, but the Bible
only prohibits getting drunk or being addicted to wine.
We have in our church quite a few people who have a
background of alcoholism.
If
you are at Olive Garden with another person from church with this kind
of background, are you going to order wine with your chicken parmesan? If you do order wine, and
you insist that you have the freedom to drink wine, is this a loving thing when
your friend might be tempted to start drinking again because of your example?
Love causes you
to restrain some of your actions so others won’t stumble.
:11 But he who hates his
brother is in darkness and walks in darkness, and does not know where he is
going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.
:11 he who hates his brother
The sad thing is that often this is what many unbelievers see Christians
doing – hating other people.
I’ve got an interesting video about what people search for when they are asking questions
about Christians. To be honest, the video doesn’t actually show you all the
responses in each instance, but it does give a pretty accurate idea…
Jesus said that
the world ought to see something else in us:
(Jn 13:35 NKJV) By this
all will know that you are My disciples, if you have
love for one another.”
The identifying “mark” of a real Christian is “love”
:11 does not know where he is going
Lesson
Loving Guidance
The one who holds on to hate has “lost his way”. They don’t have a true
sense of direction in their life, or at least not a good sense of direction.
A very common question I get asked all the time as a pastor is, “What is God’s will for my
life?” Or, “What is God’s will in this circumstance I’m in?”
Here is one of the things you can add to your decision making process: Am I acting out of love?
If I am responding out of hate – then I’m stumbling in the darkness, and I very well may be
heading in the wrong direction.
If I am responding out of love – I may have a little clearer advantage in trying to
discern God’s will.
Sometimes people have the wrong idea of what “light” can do in your life.
Illustration
‘Twas
a dark night in the Irish woods, and a woman had gone into labor. The
doctor was called
out to assist with the delivery. To keep the nervous father-to-be busy, the
doctor handed him a lantern and said: “’Ere, laddie, hold
this high so I can see what I’m about”. Soon a wee baby boy was brought into the world. As the
father started to put down the lantern, the doctor said, “’Old the lantern high, laddie, I think there is yet another wee bairn to come!” Sure enough, within minutes he had
delivered a bonnie lass. “Na, doon’t be inna great hurry to be puttin’ down the lantern, lad.... it seems there’s yet
another one besides!” cried the doctor. The nervous father scratched his head
in bewilderment and asked the doctor, “Sir, do ye think ‘tis the light tha’s attractin’ them?”
Sometimes we
get to thinking that God’s “light” in our lives causes us nothing but trouble. Sometimes all we can think about is all that
we’re doing wrong.
Yet God’s “light” in our lives henlps
us see what we’re doing. It helps us
figure out where we’re going.
One of the kinds of “light” God uses in our lives is the
“light” of love.