Family Rules for ''Little Children'', Part 2

When he wrote the New Testament book of first John, the writer known as the disciple Jesus loved was in the final season of his life dripping with wisdom's letter reads like a primer written by a wise old man to young children today on Insight for living.

Chuck Swindoll teaches from the second chapter where we read these were my dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin, but if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the father in our defense. Jesus Christ the righteous one line for today's message and as you heard in the reading of this Scripture.

It is to little children so that they were going to be thinking about family rules for little children because when we are really really little. We can even add your notice on the outline said there are five elementary rules to live by. Then I give you six well I'm still learning to add that ought to be six now, we ought to pray, and fount of every blessing, tune our hearts to sing your praises streams of mercy, never failing call for songs of loudest praise to just some melodious sonnet from heaven above, praise the mount were fixed upon it. Upon your redeeming love 02 grace are great at debtor every day were constrained to be because father, we are prone to wonder prone to leave the God we love.

Here's our heart. Take it sealant for your courts above what we believe right, we just don't live right and we are a lot like children. Unfortunately, we've learned to run and hide from the truth or is we were little, we would often just cry and confess it. Help us today to return to our childhood and to sit at your feet as you are. Father instruct us today as we sit before you. May we hear well and may you speak clearly to each one of us saying one thing the one person something altogether different to someone else grateful for the privilege of of earning a living and in this day and at this time. So many are hurting make us all the more grateful for our occupations and all the more joyous as we release from our wages from our savings from our treasure since you own it all. We release back to you. What is rightfully yours be honored in the motive be honored in the way these expenditures are handled and be honored as we sit before you in quietness, hearing your word through musical instrument's speak to us.

Our father as we worship you with our gifts in the Savior's name everyone say amen downloaded searching the Scriptures. Studies by going to Insight world.org/studies and other message called family rules for little children while grazing over the lines of this second and into the third chapter of John's letter to his friends. It began to make better sense to me when I realize that I'm working my way through words written to families. This is for children. This is for children of all ages, but let me show you what I was thinking about family rules when I came into this time of preparation.

You got your Bible open to first John chapter 2 the first line of verse one my little children, sister children, so why would I want to make this complicated or hard to grasp.

This is family talk. Others ought to change the way we see ourselves okay. John sees us as young children in need of instruction. So we need to see ourselves as little children listening to our mentor's counsel or in John's case, an old man's counsel. Let's all see ourselves as little children before I go any further I want to help you relax so don't think John is a killjoy because some of the things he will say are pretty sharp and strong here comes six simple rules for family living verse one. Don't ever mess with stuff and get you into trouble. This is the way John says it my little children, I'm writing these things to you so that you may not sin, not immediately hear some of you sophisticates think taught. We always said stop. John is writing to say I want to help you avoid sin. I want you to stay in a safe neighborhood. I almost use those words don't mess around a dangerous neighborhood. When our kids were little.

We lived in Southern California and we were living in fairly nice section of town in Fullerton, California and we lived up on a hill that everything from us was downhill in you went far enough downhill and let your bike coast far enough across Commonwealth you'd be in a tough section of town, just a few blocks away and we would save the kids on Saturday morning for that hop on their bikes to go down the hill and play over Hillcrest Park or wherever would say to them now don't go in a tough neighborhood. You get into trouble or they'll steal your bike, or even worse if you stay there with them. You will learn their ways you been raised right. We want to protect you, but have fun just stay out of the wrong neighborhood that amazing that I shake our heads we think back then you could say bye kids will see you at lunch and off they go. Today we don't let them out of our sight in the mall. We put a harness on why things were different back then there were tough neighborhoods. When Cynthia and I did the bicentennial tour and we went from Jamestown up all the way to Boston on a bus. Wonderful time with friends from bio University. We got to New York and all of us forget little cabin fever that bus by then. So we decided six or eight of us couples would take a walk around Manhattan looking like we knew her way around the block in the we did a few blocks here and we took a few blocks in that direction. A few blocks here. All of a sudden we run into New York's finest man in blue said hold it, you folks are not from New York. No sir were not. Don't go any further there's danger behind me. Don't go there. That's what John is saying I'm writing these things so you won't go too far. Some of you are playing with sin. And you're right on the AH and you no longer just tolerated you now picking up the habit. And because you got sophisticated you're talking yourself out of the fact that it's sinful John system, you're messing around with something that's going to get you into trouble.

We've all had that experience. Hold your place and look at Psalm one turned back quickly with you.

Psalm number one. How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, nor stand in the path of sinners or sit in the seat of scoffers. The word blessed use all the way through the Psalms is always in the plural in its original form in Hebrew, we could render it how happy many times over. How multiple joyful life would be for you if you don't hang around people that are bad for you and that would be the counsel of the wicked.

The path of the sinners are sitting alongside the seat of the scoffers noticed the journey slows down first or on a path you're on your own attorney and then second, you are standing in the path and finally you are sitting alongside the even the verb slow you down. That's what happens when you get in the wrong territory run with the wrong crowd. One more on our way back to first John is first Corinthians 1533 stop off.

They are on your way back. I don't have many pages turning first Corinthians 3rd of 15 verse 33. Some of you were going to cheat and go right away to first John, let me quote this verse I want you to do that. I want you to see the verse in the Bible right here in the context of the resurrection. Paul drops in a little practical comment that I find people forgetting all of the time 1533 do not be deceived. Bad company corrupts good morals that the implication of first John chapter 2 verse one I'm writing these things to you, little children, so you won't mess around with others who live in trouble and want to get you in trouble as well. Okay back to first John verse two ends with verse one ends with an sliding on a diverse two when you foul up. Here's the second rule. Remember you have somebody always in your corner.

That's what this is teaching. Remember you have somebody who is always in your corner, capitalize the word somebody before writing this down and how he puts it. I love John's realism I'm writing these things to you so that you won't get into trouble so that you will stay away from sin and if anyone sins, he goes right to the reality of the fact that most of us will fall into some kind of trouble will make a mess out of something so he says if anyone sins, it's 1/3 class condition, meaning maybe you will.

And maybe you won't. But you have a choice every sin represents a fork in the road of mental fork and you know before you do it if it's wrong unless you live in this blurred generation where there is no right and wrong line. Most of us have lived to know right from wrong and when you get to the four pieces hold it, hold it, wait, wait, don't go to the left.

Go right but when you do go to the left and you make a mess of things you got someone in your corner and how was he described him big-time words in the text.

We have an advocate if anyone sins, we have an advocate with the father, Jesus Christ the righteous will of the Lord advocate. The Greek term is directly tossed it's from all raw, PA already meaning beside if I put this paper here on this pulpit beside me. I put it all raw power. It is beside me and clicked on us is from Collette okay eight LEO meaning to call to call out to call alongside.

When you put all raw and Colette were together correctly tossed it's translated comforter in John's Gospel it's translated advocate here, it means if you will define a divine defense attorney. That's a way to think of it, if anyone sins, we have a divine defense attorney. He has been called alongside meaning he is in our corner.

You never have to whistle you never have to make an appointment and unlike every other attorney on the planet. These free and you what else he's never lost a case and best of all, he couldn't stand before God not to declare your innocence, but to declare your guilt and to say, but my death has acquitted him of the penalty create great truth. We have an advocate we have someone in our corner who hung on the cross on our behalf, and now he stands in our deep saying I paid the price for it and you know what happens as a result, next verse big word. He himself is the propitiation just right in the margin of your Bible satisfaction. He is the satisfaction for our sins. The father hears the plea and says I'm satisfied. Case dismissed that wonderful the finished work of Christ satisfies the right.

The father's righteous demands to tell you story this prompts in my mind.

Number of years ago that a former church. I was looking for a an intern for the summer and I went to a seminary campus. It wasn't Dallas seminary. In that case one another and while there I met a young man. We didn't choose them as our intern, but I love meeting him and hearing his story that's called him Erin, not his real name, Erin was between the second and third year at at the seminary and at the time.

Is he tells me a story he had by then just about entered his third year but he said earlier this summer at an experience I'll never forget that I needed a job that was going to get back into school and make the money to take her tuition and I couldn't find a ministry job, so I finally applied and got got on with the transit Company of Chicago.

I found out after getting on transit Company that the reason I'm writing driving this bus is because it's in the south side of Chicago. When you are laughing or smiling know that's a tough section of the city is and I drove a bus for several days in Southside Chicago same route as soon as I learn to handle this big bus. My trainer got all and I'm on my own about the third day on this route, handful of thugs got on there were probably five of them five or six. They didn't pay they cursed me as they walked by swaggered back to his seat and set around the yelled obscenities and offensive things to people who were on the bus and yelled out the window and kept yelling at me. I didn't do anything about it. Next day they got back on the bus and there were too many of them for me to stop, so I let them get on again. They didn't pay third day, the same thing.

I decided enough is enough. As he looked up ahead in the next corner was was a police officer, so I just pulled over and I asked him to get on the bus and I said appointed amount see these fellows right here the last three days they've gotten on the not paid their not only broken that wall, but they're making everyone around the miserable and the officer met right back and got their money and had them pay so they paid that they paid for the last two days as well, and unfortunately he said the officer got off and they stayed on the door closed and he said about 1/2 a block later. The lights went out.

I woke up a bottle of my shirt. These two teeth missing the money box was gone. The bus was empty, and both of my eyes were swollen and not gotta real pain in my jaw. Obviously they had beaten him mercilessly and left him sitting behind the wheel of the bus. Still idling he said. I drove the bus back to the terminal and turned it in. Told him I was going home that I was sick and briefly mention what happens. I lay there on my single bed, looked up at the ceiling and I thought why world is this happen to me for all the right reasons. I got this job I was doing it well and I try to make this thing right try to take care of the people on the bus and this is what happened. He decides to press charges goes to the police precinct any happens to find the same policeman from that area tells them what happened shows them the result they, with the help of others rounded up about 45 of the fellows who were guilty within a matter of days. They were brought they were put in jail. They were brought into into a court is and I walked in with my attorney and I'm sitting there there glaring at me. I know if they can get their hands on me than finish the job they started. So I began to shake. He said the charges were read and everyone I was accurate exactly what happened is that as I was sitting there looking at them there by now. Some of her looking down, realizing her do jail time. I thought this isn't going where I wanted to go so I stood up and I got a whole new idea is that you're on course.

My attorney is like going to grab them if shirt coattail had me sit on these in your honor, I would like for you to add up all the time that they would spend behind bars and I want to go in their place to serve time for them and course the judges and the weather's been aligned his watch. He looks at him and and says what you mean and he said well sir he said I want to forgive them for what they've done and I want to prove my forgiveness by doing time for them. Judge says you're out of order.

Please be seated. He said Your Honor. The judge added. This is never been done before.

He said, Your Honor, it was done 20 centuries ago. If I could have a few more minutes of your time.

I like to explain it judge a book. Okay, so he gives him the gospel.

Christ took our sins on his behalf, and he bore the result of our sins in his body on the cross and he died in about the time he got to the punch line. The judge that you may be seated attorneys in Turkey might scoot, sit down, sit down so we didn't get his wish. But the boys were put behind bars, and he said for the next several days I went to visit a and most of them have come to Christ on got one more to go pretty hard and he's my project. I let the mold lead to mold to Christ. What that's called being in someone's corner being an advocate that's exactly what Christ is on our behalf, not only for our sins, but for the sins of the whole world. Remember, you have someone who is always in your corner and advocate in our corner representing us to the father you're listening to Insight for living Chuck Swindoll's message family rules for little children of a stay with us. You'll hear a closing comment from Chuck in just a moment to learn more about Shakur this ministry. Visit us online@insightworld.org because of the constraints caused by covert, 19, we know that these are challenging times for most households. All of us are learning to accept a new rhythm in life. That's not of our own choosing but has certainly open new doors of learning finding extra hours in our day has afforded opportunities to read more than usual. In that spirit, like to suggest that you join us throughout this summer time study in first John and to guide you. We recommend that you secure a hardbound copy of Chuck Swindoll's commentary as well.

We believe when you dig deeper into first John God will give you brand-new insights that you can deploy even in these trying times when the coronavirus is altered our normal routines is the kind of book you can lay down right next your open Bible checks refreshing and easy to understand. Commentary will shed light on the beauty, depth and meaning of John's love letter to purchase a hardbound copy of Swindoll's living insights New Testament commentary on first John. Call us if you're listening in the United States dial 1-800-772-8888 or go to Insight.org/offer. You'll be pleased to learn that this particular book contains commentary on first, second and third John and the book of Jude as well for generations that follow. Families will speak about the massive pandemic of the year 2020 were living in historic times about which books will someday be written. Movies will be filmed and songs will be composed and performed at Insight for living ministries. We believe this accelerates our God-given mission to proclaim to the world but God is life as we read in the letter of first John earlier this year as we began to hear reports that a virus was encircling our globe. Cynthia and I decided it was time to present a study in the timeless New Testament letter of first John, his radical message is countercultural because John unapologetically warned us about the destructive nature of sin. John, who was a close disciple of Jesus also declared an unpopular truth that Jesus is the one and only solution for our sin fall.

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