878. God Dwells In Us

Welcome to The Daily Platform from Bob Jones University in Greenville, South Carolina. The school was founded in 1927 by the evangelist Dr. Bob Jones Senior's intent was to make a school where Christ would be the center of everything, so he established daily chapel services today. That tradition continues with fervent biblical preaching from the University Chapel platform today on The Daily Platform. Dr. Steve Pettit, president of Bob Jones University is continuing a study series entitled truth and love which is a study of the book of first John, there's a study booklet available that Dr. Pettit has written for this series. If you would like to follow along.

You can order a printed copy from the website. The Daily Platform.com. Let's now listen to today's message from first John 413 through 16 entitled God dwells in us. Could you please take your Bibles this morning and turn with me to first John chapter 4, and I'd like us to finish up very strong on our study of truth in love, and in particular today. This message is really setting up for next week, which is what I think is the driving point of John for the life of the believer, you know, when Paul speaks about our spiritual maturity. He says we need to be Christlike when James speaks about spiritual maturity.

He talks about being a wise person when John speaks about being mature as a believer.

He talks about one who is perfected in love or perfect love and that's what were going to talk about next week but this week is very important and very foundational for your spiritual growth and maturity into perfect love and that's found in first John chapter 4 will begin reading in verse 13 down to verse 16 John says.

Hereby know we that we dwell in him and he in us because he had given us of his spirit. We have seen and testify that the father sent the son to be the Savior of the world. Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the son of God. God dwells in him and he and God we have known and believed the love that God hath to us.

God's love and he that dwell within love dwell within God and God in him. How do you know that you truly are a Christian, how do you really know that well according to the Scriptures.

A Christian is one who has God residing within his own heart. Paul writes in Colossians 1 Christ in you the hope of glory.

He writes in Galatians 2 in verse 20 Christ liveth in me this morning.

We read in first John four verses 13 in verse six to verse 16 where John tells us three times that God dwells in the true believer in verse 13 he says we dwell in him and he in us. Verse 15 God dwells in him and he and God. In verse 16 dwell up in God and God in him.

The point John is making is very simple that a Christian is one who has God residing with his within his own heart. That's a Christian so here's the question how can you be absolutely certain that God is living in you.

I have no idea how many we have here this morning I want to guess you know we probably have 3000+3000 people. Your 3000 souls. The question is, is God living in the heart of every person in this room. If so, how would you know that and that's what first John 413 through 16 is all about, because John elaborates on this truth by presenting three tasks that confirms the indwelling presence of God in the life of a true believer someone is written. This is the best summary in the entire New Testament of how a person can truly know that he is say. So let's look at and let's take these three test test number one.

The first is this. Do you possess the Holy Spirit, but verse 13. Hereby know we that we dwell in him and he in us. How do we know that because he has given us of his spirit.

The internal witness that the someone is a child of God is that the Holy Spirit lives within their heart. First Corinthians 619 the body.

The human body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you the spirit of God is given to the believer at the very moment of his salvation and he continues to operate and work within his heart throughout his entire life. That's what John means what he says that God hath given us of his spirit were given there is in the perfect as that means something takes place at a point in time, and it continues own God's spirit comes to live in your heart at a direct moment a point in time in your life. And then he continues to live in you and work in you until the day of redemption. When you enter to heaven. God is given out of his spirit, his spirit to us. So how can you know that you possess the spirit of what would be the evidences of his indwelling presence in your life when you say first of all, that the Spirit's presence is not determined.

For example, by you living a moral lifestyle or you conforming to a religious code of behavior. We have a code of conduct. Bob Jones University. I believe it's the right thing. I really do. I think we all have a mutual responsibility to one another, as Christians, not just in what we believe but in the way that we live.

But you know anybody can follow this code of conduct is not that hard.

It's not that big of a deal and you can easily do that and still not really have the spirit of God living inside of you. The Spirit's presence is not determined by being engaged in religious activity or worship this past week and we had all kinds of activity going out on Saturday as many of you went out into the community of Grable to spread the gospel.

We have groups all over the United States of America right now from Bob Jones going out doing all kinds of things it has a religious activity to it in Sunday. We were in services and worshiping God.

We can do all those things. And yet that is not a guarantee that the spirit of God is dwelling in your heart.

So what is that, well, when the spirit indwells the soul of a believer. That believer possesses something that no religious person has and what is that it is the power of a new life.

Second Corinthians 517 therefore if any man be in Christ he is a new creation and this newness. This transformation is so radical that your entire interbeing is transformed so that God gives you brand-new desire is a desires for what well if the Holy Spirit comes to live inside of you than what desires would he give you he would give you desires for that which is holy that we know is a center. Our desires are for sinful things or temptation.

We know that when the spirit comes the live inside of us.

Then he puts with in our innermost being a desire a first for that which is holy and that includes two things. Number one, a true believer possesses an appetite for spiritual thing. Peter writes, and as a newborn babe desire the sincere milk of the word that you may grow thereby when a baby is born a baby has natural appetites.

You don't have to learn this. It just is what it is a desire for milk so it is true in the life of a believer that when you are say you actually have a desire for spiritual thing. Peter writes in verse three says, if so be you have tasted that the Lord is gracious somehow God gives us a taste for him. A desire for him.

There is an appetite for God's word not seen it many times when people come to Christ. You don't really have to force them to learn the Bible they want to learn the Bible going to church to them is not boring, going to church is a blessing. Hearing God's word proclaimed does something in your life.

It feeds your soul it satisfies. It nurtures you the interchange that is affected is as he has worked in your heart is so affected you that now you have a different focus is now eternal and spiritual as opposed to secular and materialistic. Paul says, and be not conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind that you may prove what is that good, acceptable and perfect will of God. There's a new appetite a new life gives you a new interest in the new passion for spiritual things. For me personally when I got saved.

I couldn't get enough of God's word is like the more I read the Bible, the more I read the Bible, the more I study the word. The more I wanted to study the word why because it was an appetite when you should question you have an appetite for that I want to be honest when you come to Bob Jones.

We have chapel four days a week and let's be frankly honest, there's a lot of chapel services you get a whole bunch and not all chapel services are created equal and some speakers are more engaging. Some are better than others.

I ask you think we have pretty good speakers here like this, we have really good speakers are but sometimes you come in the chapel and because of various things. What's going on in your life you're tired, you just had attached got take it that you got a bad phone call.

You had a breakup, something happened this way. I don't know what it was. So sometimes you come to chapel. You're not is mentally and is emotionally engaged. Okay I got that. That is no one talking about I'm talking about whether or not you come here to chapel and you really in your heart of hearts really have a hunger for the word of God and you go away from chapel and there's a satisfaction. Something is happening in you that's an evident sign the spirit of God is living within you. But then there's a second characteristic of someone in whom the Spirit dwells and that is a true believer possesses unawareness of sin. That is, you have a new sense about sin. That is far greater after your conversion then ever before your conversion. Paul said it this way. I know that in me that is about my flesh. Well, if no good thing he just you could almost say this way as a Christian you have like this spiritual sixth sense about sin.

We give you an illustration I would say my freshman year of college began to grow spiritually got in the word of God and by the end of my sophomore year I I of college I was. I felt like is a really growing Christian. I remember going home that summer and of course having all kinds of different time and I watch some television shows and I watched you know old school stuff like Gilligan's Island Green Acres Beverly hillbillies. The old Star Trek and to be honest with you I mean like these are like the most benign television shows ever created. Okay, these are like the oldie goal B shows, and yet even as may be you note not offensive as Gilligan's Island. There were still elements in the show that were sensual and bothersome. If I could say to my new life just being honest.

I wasn't trying to be that way. I wasn't trying to be super pious. It just was what it was because as I feed my new nature in my new life. Then I'm going to have a sensitivity toward Sam like I've never had before.

Do you have that is that within you realize their highs and lows based on if you yield to temptation or not, but a true believer has a note appetite for God's word and he has an awareness of the presence and the reality of sin and temptation within his heart and within the world that he is living in, and therefore is this new presence inside of you that is working to seek the help you to avoid that which is evil so the first test is very simple.

Do you possess the Holy Spirit. Have you passed this test that leads me to the second test and that is this. Have you made a confession of faith in Jesus Christ. Notice what he says in verse 14 and we have seen and to testify that the father sent the son to be the Savior of the world. Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the son of God. God dwells in him and he and God.

God lives in the one who confesses that Jesus is the son of God, now think with me a moment. The apostle John had a unique privilege that very few people in human history of every experience and what was that he had.

He was a personal friend of Jesus. He actually spent three years with Jesus. He he saw Annie, he heard him he touched him he lived with him and you know what John never forgot it. He changed his life forever. But just as John had three years with Jesus. He also had 60 years without Jesus goes after Jesus died and rose from the dead. John never saw Jesus again until we get to the book of Revelation, far before he died, and the rest of his life. John constantly testified to what he had seen and heard. So what did John say what was his main message, and he tells us in verse 14 and we have seen and do testify.

This is the father sent the son to be the Savior of the world that wanted John give that message him and he could've said of the things about Jesus, but we know that by the time John wrote this letter. The question had already arisen among even the believers of whether or not man actually needed to Savior because there was a denial going known that man is actually lost in the sin and by the way, let me just say this for most unbelievers. They don't see themselves as lost and they don't see themselves as going to hell.

The work of the Holy Spirit is to convince people of their sinfulness and their need of a righteous Savior, and the fact that they don't get saved to face the judgment of God. Only God can convince people of those true and John knew that they were drifting from that message. False teachers denied their own sinfulness, confessing that they didn't read really need the sacrifice, the atonement of Christ.

At the very centrality of the Christian message is the atoning sacrifice. The blood of Jesus Christ that takes away our sin.

So therefore John's message established the absolute necessity of the Savior basically said four things. Number one. He said the entire world is under the dominion of sin. First John 519 and we know that we are of God in the whole world lies in wickedness are literally in the wicked one.

Just like a believer is in Christ, an unbeliever is in Satan. And when one is saved is brought out of the kingdom of darkness and brought in the kingdom of God's dear son. He is dead and he's resurrected so we preach that message and then secondly Johnson.

The preexistence divines pre-existing divine son of God was sent to fulfill God's sovereign plan we read here in this verse it says God sent his son. The word sent means the word apostle Jesus was the first apostle to come into the world with God's message and he came into the world to fulfill God's plan and what was that plan and that's the third point that Christ atoning sacrifice is the only means of salvation. There's only one way I can get in the heaven, and that is to the sacrifice of Jesus. The blood of Jesus his blood being shed.

His death is the way in which God forgives me because Christ took my sins on his own body and then he rose from the dead. Victoria then thirdly eternal life is reportedly eternal life is provided for all those who confess their faith in Christ. God calls and invites all people in all places the common believe in what must they do they must make a confession. So what is a confession. What's more than just a verbal statement as we all know we can say things with our mouth but it doesn't mean that our mind and our heart and our will is engaged in that truth.

What is a confession a confession is a verbal or a public acknowledgment of one's own sinful and one's own personal belief and commitment to Jesus Christ and by commitment. It is a commitment to believe his word for I know know whom I have believed and persuaded.

He's able to keep that which I committed on the him against that day is the engagement of the heart, the mind and the will all trusting Christ and receiving him for all that he accomplish by the way, that he live in by the sacrifice that he gave in his death. The moment of your confession. What happens, God unites you to his son, and God comes to dwell in your hearts on as you question. Have you made a confession of faith.

All of you every one of do you know that in your life that you not just acknowledge the existence of Jesus. And you not exotic just acknowledged that you actually believe he came in the world and these God son and he died on the cross and he rose from the dead. I'm asking you. Have you verbally acknowledge your own sinfulness and your need of his blood he sacrifice to pay for your sin. Your heart has been moved your Will has been broken and you have come in bad before him and acknowledged him for who he is. So the second test is this if you made a confession of Jesus. Have you pass this test and that leads me to the third and final thing the third test is this, do you know that God's love is actually in you, but whatever. 16 and we have known and believed the love that God has to us God's love and in and he that dwells in love relevant God and God in him. John concludes this section as he began the section in verse seven said beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God, and every one that loveth is born of God, and know with God. Here he says we have known and believed the love that God has to us. God is love and he that dwells in love dwells in God and God in him.

John is not just saying that we know God loves us. He is saying, rather, that the love which God has is in us. Paul writes in this way. In Romans five the spirit of God is shed abroad in our hearts, the love of God is been poured forth in our heart. There is a presence of God's love in you. So how do you know the God's love is in you and as I finish this morning. I'd like to give you.

From the writings of one of my favorite writers and speakers.D Martin Lloyd Jones in his book on assurance from first John, he gets 10 tests to know that God's love is actually in you and these are not things that you can produce or things that you can work up you can't make it you can nurture it, but you can't produce it. These are all things that come because of God's gracious gift in here they are, because of God's love being in you number one. Here's the here's the question. Have you lost the sense that God is against you. You know when you know God loves you. You know God is for you. Therefore being justified by faith we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Romans 51 God commended his love towards us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us, much more than being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. Do you know you sense that God is no longer against you has the burden been lifted.

Question number two.

Have you lost the feeling of a fearing of God while at the same time having a sense of a reverence for him. We put it this way when you have a relationship with somebody you can respect them. You can a reverence towards them. When you fear somebody you're fearful of their rejecting you what I think the question is saying is this that we no longer fear God's resentment rejection but we still reverence God for who he is. Galatians 6 verse six and because you are sons skewed in Galatians 4 verse six because your sons, God is sent the Spirit of his son into your hearts, crying, Abba father. What we call God. We call him our reverently daddy so you're no longer a slave but a son in the façade that an air through God. I don't fear God's rejection. Perhaps I fear his frown and his disappointment, but I reverence God. And I don't live with the fear any longer of him. The number three do you feel that God is for you and that he loves you. Paul writes, if God is for us who can be against us that great passage in Romans chapter 8 we says nothing shall separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus we are his his salvation plan is so clear. God is light it out and God is done all of this because God loves us. If you're in Christ if you're chosen in him. If you're called. If you justified it is all a part of the fact that God did that out of love. God loves you. Do you have a sense of that.

The number four to you since your sins are forgiven. The Bible says in Ephesians 1. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace. You know, Satan is the great accuser. He comes in he focuses his attention on what you do and how you fail and then he yells in your ear, and he tells you that your loser and you must not be a book believer and so you begin to question your relationship with God but God comes to you and God does not do that. God comes to you and he shows you his promises and he testifies of his blood. The blood of Jesus Christ will cleanse you from all sin.

Do you have a sense that your weight has been lifted in your burden is now gone and all of your sins are gone and they been washed away in there in the depths of the deepest sea and God's throne as far as East is to West the number five is there gratitude and thanksgiving in your heart towards God. You know when you get saved. God puts that thanksgiving in you and you begin to praise him number six is there an increasing hatreds for sin.

Paul said this when Romans seven for I do not do what I want but I do the very thing I hate. Now I do what I don't want to do. I agree with the law. The law is good is no longer I do it, then do it, but sin that dwells within me and Paul was in a growing relationship in his life with God that he began to hate things he started hating sin. He started hating not only what he did we start hating some of the ways he thinks his attitudes in the way he reacts in the way. Sometimes he will use words improperly and so there's this growing internal hatred for sin and evil. The number seven is their desire to please God and to live a righteous life because of what he is done. Do you know God puts his law within your heart so you actually want to obey it as a sign of salvation and God's love in you, the number eight you have a desire to know him better draw close to as the deer pants for the water, so pants my soul after God I love God and I want to know them better.

You know, when you love somebody you want to be with him is like a friend when you're with somebody that's a friend. Three hours seems like three minutes if you're with somebody you don't want to be with three hours think things seems like three years. Do you have a lot love for him and want to know him better than number nine the of a conscious regret that your love for him is so poor, but you have a desire to love them even more. Oh, that my love would be greater, but I would love a more with all of my heart. I regret that I don't but I want to love and more. Finally, do you delight in hearing about him. I was glad when they said in the me let us go into the house of the Lord.

I delight to hear about Christ to sing to listen to his word to listen to him being preached and uplifted.

So my question is this. Do you have God's love dwelling and you have you pass the test.

Now why is this so important as we finish because the next couple of verses. He talks about being perfected in love.

And you can't be perfected in love.

If you're not secure that God's love is inside of you. You cannot grow as a Christian. If you're still in doubt about being a Christian.

So if you were here today as a student and you really don't know that your say I have prayed for you already this morning.

Would you seek somebody out somebody that you could go to that you're comfortable in talking with and saying please help me. I don't know where I am or if you know where you are and you know you're not safe that you will go to God now and confess him and cry out to him. Father, we thank you for your word that gives us the confidence that we are children, bless these that have heard this message. Help them to know that there saved in Jesus name, amen.

You been listening to a sermon from the book of first John by Dr. Steve Pettit, president of Bob Jones University. If you would like to order the study booklet titled truth in love written for the series, visit our website@thedailyplatform.com. Thanks again for listening.

Join us again tomorrow as we continue the study and first John on the daily plan