It's Real

Have your Bibles with you turn with me if you would first John chapter 1 would look at verses 134 that which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which was saying with RIS which we looked upon have touched with our hands concerning the word of life. The life was made manifest, and we have seen it and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life which was with the father was made manifest to us that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you so that you too may have fellowship with us and indeed our fellowship was with the father and with his son Jesus Christ. We are writing these things so that our joy may be complete spray heavenly father, we thank you and praise you for this precious letter that we are beginning to study and we ask heavenly father that you open our minds that we might understand your truth that we might take these principles apply to our hearts. And Lord, that they may have a profound effect on how we live on what we do and of how we reflect the glory of our king Jesus. Heavenly father, thank you Lord for the prayers that were lifted up to you tonight and I thank you Lord for the love that I heard in those prayers tonight for this church and for Jesus Christ. I pray heavenly father that you would bless this church not just Lord that we might physically prosper heavenly father that we might be a church that shows forth your glory, that we might be a church that looks like Jesus got us directors now through this passage. May Jesus be uplifted and glorified his congregation beatified your holy and wonderful and precious name we pray.

Amen. You may be seated. The epistle of John is very fascinating book it says just five short chapters and it takes about 20 minutes to read it, but it is so profound that it would do you wail to study this book for the rest of your life.

It's a book about assurance JC Rao tells us that this book is to help you to be assured of your faith, and it gives us in this book. The distinguishing marks of the of the true believer is a book about joy and fellowship with Christ.

It is a book that over and over again touches on several things we see the theme of of love and life in light one of the problems that John was dealing with back in his day was a problem. Gnosticism and the word Gnosticism comes from the Greek word Gnostic and our gnosis in that particular word means to know the Gnostics believed that you could come to know God by knowing about God.

Now that's a problem because there are a lot of people that still believe that today and one of the reasons that I wanted to jump on first John and go through this great book is because that is such a heresy today that that all we need to do to be saved and I have a relationship with God is to believe right facts about God. If we know the facts about God and that assures us of a relationship with God is John Piper and his great book desiring God. That said, this why not just say believe someone may ask if your aim is conversion. Why don't you just use the straightforward biblical command believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved, as was his answer because we are surrounded by unconverted people who think they do believe in Jesus drugs on the street say they believe unmarried couple sleeping together say they believe elderly people have assault worshiper fellowship for 40 years say they believe all kinds of Luke warm world loving church attenders say they believe the world abounds with millions of unconverted people who say they believe in Jesus. It does no good to tell these people to believe in the Lord Jesus.

The phrase is empty my responsibility as a preacher of the gospel and a teacher in the church is not to preserve and repeat cherished biblical sentences, but to pierce the heart with biblical truth and that is what first John does and Gnosticism was an extremely complicated mystical philosophy but one of the main tenets of Gnosticism was the dichotomy between body and soul. I believe that the body was inherently evil. Soul is inherently good and so when a person died. His body was separated from his soul and they saw that is a very good thing. And the reason for that was they believe that here on this earth in your body. You could live an adulterous life in a drunken life, a life just filled with all kinds of sin. And that wouldn't really matter because when you died then your soul, which is been perfected, will go on the glory and you have to worry about what happened in the body and so this idea of a future bodily resurrection to the Gnostics was just it was it was it didn't make sense what. Why do we need a bodily resurrection.

Why would Jesus actually be physically resurrected from the dead. The body was of it was evil in the Gnostic opinion, many of the Gnostics were called does suggest that they believe that Jesus was a God but he was not truly man that that he just appeared to have a body that it was kind like a phantom or a ghost it and it wasn't real flesh and blood is just the appearance of a man.

John addresses that at first John chapter 4 verses one and three says this beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world by this you know the Spirit of God. Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flash is from God, and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already. Now find that interesting because the same man who wrote the they of this epistle also wrote the gospel of John. And if you go to read John's Gospel. Out of all the four Gospel writers the one who most emphasizes the deity of Christ is John, and yet here we see something different than the gospel. The deity of of Jesus is is is emphasized. And then, in the epistles, the humanity of Christ is emphasized. But that's why we need the whole counsel of God is why you don't need to just stay with one book in the Bible we need the whole Bible, but this epistle was written by the apostle John, the beloved apostle. He was a theologian, but he was much more than that. He was also a pastor, a pastor at a pastor's heart. A pastor. He loved his people. A pastor who wanted to to help his people. John had several spiritual gifts, but think one of his primary spiritual gifts was a gift of exhortation and a pastor is a gift of exhortation. It is a pastor who desires for his people to grow in their faith.

He wants to build them up.

He wants them growing in their faith week after week after week. I think that's exactly what John wanted. If you want to grow in your faith. If you want a progress as a faithful Christian learning the principles of first John is a great way to do it. The ancient historian Jerome tells us that when the aged apostle got so weak that he couldn't even walk into the pulpit that his deacons would pick them up.

They were taking and putting in a chair in front of the congregation and he would stand there look at our sit, sit there and look at it is congregation and he would say to them, my dear children love one another. People in first Johnny scratches where people are itching. He answers the questions which ordinary people are asking. He does not sidestep the thorny issues he faces every problem head on. Jesus knows how to get John knows how to get his point across. Martin Luther said this about first John says I've never read a book.

In simpler words than this one.

And yet the words are absolutely inexpressible when compared to the other epistles in the New Testament.

First John is not the normal traditional kind of book. It's not a race is more like Hebrews is, like a circular letter is not like an apostolic letter to a church like Paul would write to the Ephesians or to the Philippians. It is not a letter from an apostle to a man like Philemon or or the book of Titus is a circular book and it's a AA it's a book that was written as an affectionate is an affectionate heart to his people. John started his or would say to his congregation dear beloved children.

John doesn't ever sign his name to this letter is interesting to me, but it's so Johannine that is you restart reading it immediately. You know exactly who it is that wrote it kind of a fun thing to read John's writings together. You read the Gospel of John. You read for second, third John you read the book of Revelation and and it's interesting to look at the different emphases and will number one, the emphasis, it is a in the Gospel of John is what it is, salvation that the emphasis in the epistles of John, is a sanctification, the emphasis in the book of Revelation is glorification. John's Gospel deals with past history. The epistles deal with with present experience and the book of Revelation deals with future hope the message of the Gospel of John was that Jesus died for us message in the epistles is that Jesus lives in us message of of the book of Revelation is that Jesus is coming for us in the gospel we have the word made flesh in the epistles we have the word made real in us in the Revelation we have a picture of the word conquering Swiss given the text. First John 11. That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and touched with our hands concerning the word of life's kinda surprising that John begins this letter with the with absolutely no word of introduction it until us, who years.

AA doesn't give us some kind of a salutation.

He then say hey how's it going, has your mama at nothing like that. They just a just immediately jumps in to the subject. I mislike I'm not gonna waste time here. I'm not going just pattycake around. I'm going to get right into the message because this is what you need to hear and it is extremely extremely important. Why does John do that the Holy Spirit seems to have spoken to John's heart with the message and it's a message concerning Revelation and not talk about the book of Revelation here. I'm talking about God revealing himself and his truth, and it seems to me that John is more excited about that topic than any of the other writers of Scripture. One of the words that is predominant in first John, it is the word manifest that word means to reveal or to make known.

I think of that concept in the gospel of John. The word was made flesh and dwelt among us. Jesus said I am the light of the world of Philip said to Jesus, show me the father and Jesus said if you see me you have seen the father. Think about the Holy Spirit is described in the Gospel of John.

The Holy Spirit is the one who reveals truth and he reveals truth primarily about Jesus. John 1613 says when the spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth, and he will glorify me. The word glorify means to reveal to shed light on to manifest the Holy Spirit will show us who Jesus is. So what happens when a child of God is feel the Holy Spirit of God is, he immediately began worshiping the Holy Spirit is immediately get talking about the Holy Spirit. None what happens here he immediately begins to worship Jesus. The immediately begins to talk about Jesus, the immediately begins to think with a mind saturated with that spiritual wisdom about who Jesus is what Jesus does what Jesus will do. He comes to know Jesus better. He has a desire to glorify Jesus in his life. Why because he's filled with the Holy Spirit and that is the ministry the Holy Spirit. That's what Jesus does. So John starts off his epistle by referring to Jesus is what is the word is the word logos in the Greek the image of God, the revelation of God. In other words, if you want to know what God is like. Then look at Jesus only just throw this in the name for for Jesus Lord God's is a same name that the Scripture gives us for the Bible low cost. Jesus is the living word, the Bible is the written word and they will not be separated. That's very very important for us to understand their churches galore today that say we love Jesus we serve Jesus, but we are not going to be dictated to by paper Pope call the Bible effects that could not be further from the stance that a church to take because the living word of God, Jesus and the written word of God. The Scriptures will never be separated will never be separated. The written word of God should be treated with the same respect in which we treat the living word of God we should fear the written word. We should love the written word. We should adore the written word as we do. Jesus. And when you read a command or a promise from the word of God. You want to look at that, just like Jesus was standing right before you, and if he were speaking that right out of his lips will here in verse one John is attacking the heresy of Gnosticism.

He is proving that Jesus is real how does he do that will first it. It states that Jesus is eternally real when he refers to Jesus as the word of God. The readers immediately begin to think back to the prologue of the gospel of John member in the prologue and the gospel of John, Jesus kinda parallels the first chapter of Genesis in Genesis chapter 1 verse one in the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. What did John say in the prologue AAA said this in the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God the same was in the beginning with God all things were made by him and without him was not anything made that was made.

The Jesus who died on the cross is Jehovah God and the Jesus who'd died on the cross is the creator of heaven and earth. That's what John's Gospel is out to prove but remember, the pistol has a different purpose. The epistle is teaching us that not only was Jesus fully God, that he was also fully man. He was not half God, half man. He was fully God and he was fully man, not some phony disguises a phantom or a ghost like the Gnostics would have us to believe, but a real human being, a human being that got hungry and thirsty and tired sleepy head pain would bleed when he got cut as the local shepherds in Bethlehem. They saw in the night of his birth, they bow down before him, the hurting, cry, they they saw his tears they probably caressed his little fingers asked the wise man the wise men who bow down before Jesus and worshiped him. They knew him to be a man, a person asked Joseph and Mary rest assured they had no doubts about humanity of Christ.

She's the one who delivered the baby.

She's the one who cradled Jesus in her arm. She notes she knew he was a human being, as Simeon God told Simeon that he would not die until he had seen the Lord's Christ and they are at it right outside the temple.

He was able to take the little baby Jesus in his arms and hold him. He knew that this was genuine truly flesh and blood. Ask Anna, the friend of Simeon was 84 years old and she was there at the temple as whale and I'll guarantee you she got the whole that baby and I'll guarantee you she knew this was a human being, asked John and the other apostles, you should listen to the intensity with John is is speaking this is hot at the Gnostics he say look, don't call my Lord, a phantom. Don't call my Lord, a ghost EE you're making all this up. It's a fairytale what you're saying you can't testify this because you weren't player and John is saying I was there I was there I heard him speak with my with my ears. I saw him with my eyes. I was able to touch him with my hands not given you secondhand information. John says I am testifying to you that I was there I saw them turn water into wine.

I saw him raise a little girl from the dead. I saw him bleed from the wounds, when they put him on the cross, hurting preach unbelievably convicting sermons. I listened as he told me what was in my heart I heard him shout into the tomb of Lazarus.

Lazarus come forth. I heard you cry out from the cross, my God, my God, why is there forsaken me. I heard him say to me from the cross. Behold your mother speaking of Mary and say to Mary behold your son speaking of me. Oh, and then of texting. I hugged him when he raised Lazarus from the dead, and I held his hands as we prayed when he was feeding the 5000 and's we were praying for him to take those five loaves and two fish and use it to feed that entire multitude, and then I was the one who came up to him and said I want to sit with you at your right hand in your kingdom. Jesus reached over and he put his hand on my shoulder and he said can you drink of the cup in which I drink of it since I was they are the cross and I saw him die and and then the night before the crucifixion. I watched Izzy took his holy hands and he washed my dirty nasty feet. I touched him after the resurrection.

Look at verses two and three. The life was made manifest, and we have seen it and testify to it and proclaim to the eternal to you the eternal life which was with the father and was made manifest to us that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you that you too may have fellowship with us and indeed our fellowship is with the father and with his son Jesus Christ. Verse two teaches us that Jesus is not only real eternally. But he is also real relationally.

In verse two it says that eternal life was with the father. That's interesting way to put it in it he is saying that that Jesus is eternal life. Not that Jesus just has eternal life. Not that Jesus just gives eternal life, but Sadie is eternal life. I don't know about you, but it blows my mind when I think of eternity future when I think that you and I and every other person is Everly of Oregon live forever. We may live in heaven. We may live in hail, depending on whether we need Christ or not, but that that life will never end. It is everlasting life for both the saved and the unsafe and it goes on and on and on. They will never in that blows my mind. What blows my mind even more is eternity past that Jesus lived has been here forever that there was never a time when he was not there that he and he along with God the father had no beginning, there was no starting point for them. They have been here forever is too much for my little mind to comprehend the verse two says that in history in the space of time. The eternal God appeared alike what Sam Gordon said about this. He said here's someone unique someone who shared eternity with God in a most extraordinary way. Yet, says John without even pausing to catch his breath. He appeared, he stepped out onto the stage of history like a lightbulb being switched on. After being concealed in the darkness we can put it like this, the one he was invisible and eternal became visible and touchable and John says we have seen him. Jesus was no ghost.

He was no zombie from another planet. This was flesh and blood again. Verse three that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you so that you too may have fellowship with us and indeed our fellowship is with the father and with his son Jesus Christ. John says I'm declaring to you this for a purpose, declaring what declaring that the Gnostics or did wrong that Jesus is fully God and fully man wise he declaring that that you may have fellowship with us and then he goes on to say it's more just that in our fellowship is with God the father and his son Jesus Christ.

Of all the churches on the face of the earth. I love this one best. I love this one best because I love the people here so much I love being able to minister. You will love the way you minister to me.

I love this church and this church is a is kind of stranger are deacons here get frustrated sometimes because they're the ones responsible for locking up and that they want to go in lock up sometimes and people won't leave their they're here, fellowship and you know that's a great problem to have one of the people here in the church want to do. We want to talk. We want to share about what Jesus is doing our lives, we would encourage each other. We want to help each other persevere in our faith. Una spent time with each other and love each other and in and and just be together, they, the psalmist said this in Psalm 133 verse one how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity.

Yet, our fellowship is not just with each other. Our fellowship is with the father and his son Jesus Christ work for fellowship as a record corn and the means to commune with.

I fellowship with it with you guys and and and we talk together and I enjoy that. But I commune with Cindy and us different. I can talk to my wife Cindy about things that I can't talk to anybody else in the world about I can express to her my love I can talk to her about what Jesus is doing down in my heart things that he's convicted me of things that he is encouraging me in. I can talk about all those things.

I don't feel like I have to hold back it and that that fellowship in that communion that I have with Cindy is just is just sweet. It is not just friendship. It's not just physical love. It is like taking a cold drink of water. After running a 6 mile race, refreshing, soothing, satisfying, and, and it leaves you content but I want you know is not better than fellowship with Christ fellowship with Christ is even sweeter. It's much greater heard about a little girl one time that was lying in bed at night. Had a bad dream and she started screaming after having that bad dream and scream and for mom and dad to come in hail so mom and dad came running in and they said you just had a bad dream. It's okay everything's gonna be all right exegete when this happened, you just need to pray and God will take the fear from your heart. The little girl said what where is God I can't seem and is will God is always with you can't see but he's always there and she said will I need a God with the face. That's what I need I need a God with the face she saying she was saying she needs a God that she could relate to folks we needed Jesus because we needed a God that we could relate to a God with the face of God that understood what was to be a human God that understood what it means. What what it felt like to be hurt a God who understood who it felt like to have people turn on you, a God that understands the problem of humanity as well.

That little girl was crying for.

We often read verses of Scripture that that challenge us to seek the Lord don't like what's it mean to seek the Lord had a we do that. Was it mean what should we expect from God when we are seeking the Lord wheezed have a black cocker spaniel when I was a kid's name is Butch and Butch love to chase cars love to chase cars and I want not seem running on the street facing an evil out of the car was more. He wanted chase it at NAB running on the street as fast as he could try the trunk chase that car and I wondered with that car just stopped and right in the middle of the road just turned ran looked at Butch and said all right you got me. We'll do with me and I wonder Butch wouldn't just come a step back and say yeah when I'm I going to do with this is just kinda weird what with forsaking God what we expect. What would await what we really doing seeking God means seeking his will is one of the things it means seeking his will find trying to find out what he is. He desires from us from his heart and then being obedient to what he's called us to do, but it also means this it means seeking his face. When you see God's face what you doing your warning.

His presence your warning communion with him you wanting fellowship with him you wanting to experience his love.

You want to experience his wisdom you wanted experience heart that's important. The old Puritan Thomas Goodwin describes the difference in being indwelt by the Spirit and been field by the spirit a set picture this way so there's a there's a father walking down the road with his son showing him the good the different things in the area where they are and the. The son knows that as the father is God in human direct and insight. This is his father because this is what Father's Day fathers direct. They guy the point at which road to go in and what to do and so this is, the way fathers act is what father should do. Then all of a sudden the father stops in the middle of the road and he picks that little boy up and he hugs into his chest and he holds the Mrs. son you are my son and I love you so much I can't even tell you how much I love you and kisses him on top of the head any sensing back down what's the difference in those two things. The first one was relationship. The second one is fellowship John is saying that's what we have in Jesus.

Listen how Martin Lloyd Jones puts it, I am writing says John in effect, not because I'm looking are seeking for truth, but because I have found it.

I would not be writing if I'd not found it and I want you to experience the same thing. He is not seeking or striving, nor is he just hoping the position of John when he wrote this letter was not here.

I am an old man, I'm drawing to the end and I'd hoped that sometime this side of death, the heavens would be rent and I would suddenly have a clear understanding of these things perhaps.

However, I may have to wait until I've gone through death and awakened in another world, then I shall begin to see and understand these things, not at all. Here's a man who tells us that he knows and is not because he knows and because of what he's experience that is riding. Christians are not men and women who were hoping for salvation but are those who have experienced it they have it. There is no uncertainty.

They know in whom they have believed in it is because John has possess this that he writes about it. Heart wise John so concerned about declaring this truth so that others can have what he has is what this is all about. Will God be glorified when people are brought from darkness to light from death to life when they experience real fellowship with God.

Will that bring glory to God, you better believe that it will. John is writing this out of deep compassion over the lost. He wants others to worship and fellowship with his great God, then the key verse here is in verse four it says this and we are writing these things so that our joy may be complete. Our joy can be full. Why, because Jesus is for real well well do I remember how I doubt it day by day brought did not know for certain that my sins were washed away. The preacher tried to tell me I would not the truth receive I endeavor to be happy in the make myself believe went. When the truth came close in searching I all my Joyce would disappear if I did not have the witness of the Spirit bright and clear times are coming judgment would appear before my mind it made me so uneasy for the Lord smile I could not find. Then I prayed I prayed to God in earnest, not caring what folks said I was hungry for the blessing. My poor soul must be fed. When at last, by grace, he touched me like sparks from smitten steel just so quick.

Salvation reached me and praised God.

Now I know it's real bugs. It's real, it's real.

Jesus Christ is real is what John is telling us that's what John knows in his own heart.

And that's what John is so hungry for us tonight to spray heavenly father, we thank you for the heart of the apostle John. We thank you Lord for your guidance and direction, and inspiring him to write down the right words that he is written down for us that we might know Jesus better heavenly father's we go through this book of John. Help us, that we might understand the principles here that would guide and direct our lives and make us like Christ. We love you, not Jesus, we thank you Lord that you are not just a fan or a ghost or an apparition, but that you are truly God fully God and fully man. May we bow before you and worship you with everything that sent us and it's in Jesus precious, holy name we pray. Amen