Latest / Cumberland Trace Church of Christ (Formerly Lehman Ave Church of Christ) / "Words of Life" by Hiram Kemp - Part 11

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"Words of Life" by Hiram Kemp - Part 11 · Cumberland Trace Church of Christ (Formerly Lehman Ave Church of Christ)

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This is
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This quarter in the auditorium or at least this half of the quarter
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We're looking at words of life from John's letters and it's our goal and desire to get all the way through third John
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So tonight will be first John 5 and then in the two remaining weeks, we will do second John and third John
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So we've been given a major theme to each one of these chapters and in first John chapter 5 tonight
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We will talk about assurance of eternal life now
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John in chapter 5 is going to
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Basically in the book in a similar way to which he started and if you remember how John started in first John chapter 1
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He began by talking about the person and work of Jesus. So in first John 1
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really 1 through 4
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he talks about seeing Jesus and being able to touch him and hear him and experience the
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physical and flesh and blood person and work of Jesus Christ, but throughout first John one of the things John's been dealing with is
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False teachers and John's been responding to these ideas primarily
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Surrounding do the person of Jesus that Jesus actually came in the flesh and he talks about that in first John 4 verses 2 and 3
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but in first John 5
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John kind of gets back to the initial thrust of this letter and that is you need to know who Jesus is and
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Respond to him properly. Never mind what these false teachers are telling you
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Here are some things that are going to build up strengthen and encourage your faith
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So think about this from the reader standpoint initially and as a Christian in 2026 in the 21st century
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Why do you think it's important or better yet?
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What does a person miss out on in their faith if all their attention is only in all ways about?
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What we don't believe or in response to false doctrine because John deals with some of that in first John
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But then as he ends the book
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He doesn't deal so much with directly answering the opposition as much as he's now
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Equipping these Christians with here the truths and realities you need to possess and hold to
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So you can know you have eternal life in your own good terms with God
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So what can happen to a person's faith who's only focused and always focused on? Hey, let's respond to religious error
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Here's what we don't believe and here's who we need to straighten out
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Why is that probably not the best way to only and always go about faith though?
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You do need to be able to resist and stand up for the truth Vivian
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You
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Will lose the joy of living a good life
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Yeah
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If your faith is always about what you don't believe you'll lose the joy of living a good life and part of Christianity is joy
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In fact, if you flip in your Bible to first John chapter 1 and verse 4, that's one of the reasons why John wrote
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He said we write these things to you so that your joy may be full. So yeah, it's about full joy
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Anything else that happens to a person that your faith is only about playing defense and responding to the opposition
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Oh
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Your faith can become very academic and it can all it can become all about learning the facts and we need the facts because the
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Facts are true and they lead us to faith and trust in Jesus
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But biblical Christianity is more than just the mental academic exercise and on all the right answers
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Karl Barth said it's not just getting the doctrine, right?
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You also have to get the doctrine lived and so it matters that you don't just know the right answers
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But that in knowing those answers you produce the right kind of life and in chapter 5
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John's gonna deal with some of that as he's already been throughout and
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That's a problem
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Yeah, you can start focusing so much on what everybody else has wrong that you forget what you should be believing
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That's actually right
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You remember Jesus told the Sadducees you do err not knowing the scriptures nor the power of God in Matthew 22 29
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And if your whole Christian life's about here's what we believe here's what they got wrong
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And here's what they believe that's false. You can start to forget what you actually believe
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anybody else
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Lori
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Have a totally negative attitude
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Yeah, you're like a hammer and everything's a nail
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Yeah
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You just start seeing like totally negative things all the time and what will happen eventually is you'll forget
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You're supposed to be developing your own relationship with God. That's what's really supposed to be happening
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What does James say draw near to God?
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He will draw near to you and you can forget that Christianity isn't just about saving souls though
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It is self-preservation is first though
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You need to be trying to make sure you keep your own soul in proper standing and you can forget all of that
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So with all that being said in first John chapter 5 John equips us for some of that another major idea that we're gonna see
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Tonight is that John deals a lot with testimony the false teachers have said a lot of things about Jesus
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But John will say specifically beginning in about verse 6
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Here's the true testimony about Jesus and here's how we know Jesus really and truly is the Son of God
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That's important because what John is driving at is it really doesn't matter what everybody says about Jesus
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It matters primarily what who says about Jesus
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Jesus and what the Father what God says about Jesus but turn that around it also applies to you and me in our lives this
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same idea
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Your testimony the most important thing about who you are who I am
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It doesn't really matter necessarily what we think about ourselves or what other people say about us
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Where does God say that we stand and we need his divine?
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Testimony to sign off on us and tell us where we are and in what relation do we stand to him?
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And the last major idea we'll see is eternal life. And what is what have we said in defining eternal life throughout first John?
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How does John define eternal life in first John and if you don't know we'll see it explicitly tonight
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Especially in verse 20 of chapter 5 or you can just cheat now and look at chapter 20 chapter 5 and verse 20
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Give me the answer what?
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Already having it but like what is eternal life or a better question is in first John who is eternal life?
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Jesus so in first John eternal life isn't a concept
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It's not even so much about how long you're gonna live after you die a duration of life in first
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John eternal life is a person is Jesus and if you get plugged into Jesus
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You're gonna live forever because life is inherent in the person and work of Jesus. And so that's what we'll see tonight. Let's start
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Let's go to first John chapter 5 and I'm gonna read the first five verses and throughout first John chapter 5
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What I want us to see is here's how you can have assurance of eternal life
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John says everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God and
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Everyone who loves the father loves whoever has been born of him by this
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We know that we love the children of God when we love God and obey his commandments
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For this is the love of God that we keep his commandments and his commandments are not burdensome and everyone who's been born of God
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Overcomes the world and this is the victory that has overcome the world our faith
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Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?
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Okay assurance of eternal life in first John comes from faith possessed and your faith properly demonstrated
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This is the first thing John says in chapter 5 you can have assurance of eternal life
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If you possess faith and the faith that you have you demonstrate it or you show it in the proper fashion
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And so he says everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God
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This idea of belief is a major idea just in John's writings in general
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Think the golden text of the Bible John 3 16 for God
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So loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son that whoever what?
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Whoever believes it's a major idea for John if you believe in Jesus in the biblical way that faith is used trust
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Pointed toward obedience because of what God's done
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John says you have eternal life and that faith is
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Centrally located in a person and that person is Jesus whoever believes that Jesus Christ is the Christ is the Son of God
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And so John wrote his gospel go to John 20
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Hold your hand in first John 5 and go to John 20 and notice what John said in his gospel and why he wrote it
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John 20 the last two verses verses 30 and 31 John says this is why he even wrote his gospel
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Truly many other signs did Jesus in the presence of his disciples that are not written in this book
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But these are written that you might what?
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Believe that Jesus is the Christ the Son of God and in that believing you'll have life in his name
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So throughout John John's gospel first John second John and not in third John so much
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But there's this idea if you believe in Jesus
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Then you're born of God and you enjoy the blessings of eternal life and starting out in chapter 5
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He says everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ. What does that mean that Jesus is the Christ?
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I know sometimes we put them together like Christ is his last name, but that's not on this birth certificate
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Okay, Christ is his job more of his function
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So what does John mean when he says everyone that believes that Jesus is the Christ, what is that?
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Messiah that's a nice churchy word. Okay, great. Now double down on that Christ the Messiah and what does the Messiah mean?
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Chosen messenger Savior
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Yes
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God's special representative to bring salvation into the world if you believe that about Jesus and the Bible shows us how to evidence that
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Belief he says if you believe that look at verse 1 you've been born of God
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Okay, this idea about being born of God if you write in your Bible you're gonna see this several times
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So let's mark these in verse 1 of chapter 5. He talks about being born of God
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He's going to mention it in chapter 5 and verse 4. Let's see if I hit that or if they hit that
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PowerPoint shut off we don't need it, but we'll just go on with it
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Okay, verse 4 talks about being born of God look at verse 18 first John 5 and verse 18
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he'll mention those that are born of God and then
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Yeah, whoever is back there working the PowerPoint
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I think you want to go to like slide 19 because we're way back at the beginning
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But anyway chapter 5 and verse 18 talks about being born of God. What does it mean to be born of God though?
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John says whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God. What does it mean to be born of God?
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Separated from sin a
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Child of his what was that?
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Protected by God. Yes
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So you think about becoming a Christian means you're born of God you're born into God's family
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You come into your physical family through natural birth. You're born into that family
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You enjoy all the rights and privileges the Bible talks about
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Spiritual birth is being born of God begotten of God
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Oh King James has and that means you enjoy this new spiritual life because God's gifted it to you go to John's gospel
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I just want you to see how often John connects these ideas of faith in Christ
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Obedience to him trusting him and John uses this terminology of that's produced a different birth than you
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So go to John 1 and when we get there somebody read John 1 10 through 13
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John 1 10 through 13 to be born of God to be born of the flesh is
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Born into a physical family, but John says faith puts you in the family of God and you enjoy a new birth
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You're begotten of God you enjoy your spiritual life in existence because God's given it to you
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Somebody read nice and loud John 1 10 through 13
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Through 13
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All right, so John contrasted there
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He says you could be born of physical and natural descent
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But this birth comes because you put your trust in Jesus and you're born of God
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Don't get out of the gospel of John's just yet go to John chapter 3
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Fast forward to John 3 John's on this same track
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If you're going to be in God's family
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You have to have a spiritual birth that brings is brought about by God
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Nicodemus and John 3 beginning in verse 1 rule of the Pharisees comes to Jesus by night pays him this great compliment rabbi
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We know you're a teacher come from God. Nobody can do the miracles you do unless God be with them in verse 3
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Jesus says what?
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Truly truly I say to you unless a person is what?
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born again
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can't see the kingdom of God Nicodemus is confused in verse 4 and he's thinking physical birth and Nicodemus says
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must the man into into his mother's womb and a second time be born and
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Jesus says that's not what we're talking about in verse 5
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Truly truly I say to you unless you're born of the water and the Spirit you can't see the kingdom of God
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Spiritual birth your spiritual life has to be brought about by God and then you're born into his family
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So John says be born in John 1 10 through 13 not of natural
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But of spiritual and now in John 3 3 through 5 he says it's a spiritual rebirth. Paul's gonna say the same thing
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We're not gonna turn there
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You can go back to first John but in Galatians 3 26 and 27
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Paul says we're all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus
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But as many of us as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ
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Christianity we talk about conversion obeying the gospel all biblical terms
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But one of John's favorite ways to describe it is you've been born of God
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When you're born into your physical family, what do you get from your parents?
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Their name is Williams Jones, that'll be your name you get their name what else genetics what kind of genetics
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I
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Hopefully not all of them, but some yeah, you're gonna get you know, you're gonna get some of them
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Yeah, my mom's not here tonight. Yeah, so some of them. Yeah, you're gonna get some of the traits
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Here's what you're definitely gonna get though the DN what you're gonna get the DNA you'll get that from your parents
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If you're born of God, what do you get?
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You're transformed for sure you get God's characteristics primarily
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Eternal life if God can't die now, you're born of God guess what can't happen to you
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You're plugged in the guy you say well in this life, I'm gonna die. Yeah, but you have eternal life
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That's why you have it right now. See once you're born of God you already have this
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This is a part of the spiritual makeup and since God has eternal life
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That's a part of his makeup in DNA. You're never gonna be unplugged from that if you stay in Christ
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You already have eternal life
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It's a part of what makes you a child of God is built into who you are and John says
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You have it because you're born of God the last part of verse 1 here
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He says and whoever loves the father loves whoever has been born of him. What does that mean?
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It means if you love God because you've been born of him you have his spiritual DNA
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Then you love all of God's other children as well
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What is John been driving at throughout first John the major ideas are make sure you love God and keep his commandments
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And what are his commandments?
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Kelly would you say
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Love one another that's one of the major ideas in first John and it's chapter 2 verse 7 through 11
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Love one another in chapter 4 7 through 8
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Love one another in chapter 4 19 through 21
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If you say you love God you haven't seen him
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But you hate your brother who you have seen John says you're a liar
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So one of the ways, you know
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You have eternal life put your faith in God and then demonstrate it by loving each other
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Look at first John 5 2 and 3 John says by this
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We know that we love the children of God when we love God and obey his commandments
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For this is the love of God that we keep his commandments and his commandments are not burdensome
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So if you have faith, you'll be born of God and you'll demonstrate it by keeping his commandments
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We already talked about the two major commands love God love one another. This is how you demonstrate love for God a
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Lot of people claim to love God, but how does God know if anybody really loves him?
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if you what
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You obey his commandments. You might have to do what he says. That's true in the Old Testament
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That's true in the New Testament. That's how you demonstrate you love God. Let me show you an Old Testament example go to 1st Samuel 15
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1st Samuel 15 you're probably familiar with this
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God tells King Saul to destroy the people of Amalek because of what they did to his people when they were coming out of Egypt
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There's that battle in Exodus 17. God says I'm never gonna forget this King Saul comes to the throne
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This is time to get vengeance on them. What does King Saul do you might remember?
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He's supposed to destroy everything pretty much that breathes in that country and in that nation. And what does King Saul do?
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Spares a gag and some of the best of the property, but here's what happens when Samuel confronts him
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I'm in 1st Samuel 15. Look at verse 17 Samuel said though you were little in your own eyes
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Are you not the head of the tribes of Israel the Lord anointed you king over Israel?
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The Lord sent you on a mission and said go devote to destruction the sinners the Amalekites that fight against them and fight against them
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Until they are consumed. Why then did you not obey the voice of the Lord?
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Why did you pounce on the spoil and do what was evil in the sight of the Lord and Saul said to Samuel?
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I have obeyed the voice of the Lord. I've gone on the mission on which the Lord sent me
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I brought back a gag the king of Amalek and I've devoted the Amalekites to destruction
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But the people took of the spoil the sheep the oxen the best of the things devoted to destruction to sacrifice
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To the Lord your God and Gilgal how is Saul reasoning?
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He's reasoning this way. God gave me a command, but I really love God and I'm gonna show God how much I love him
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Because I'm actually gonna perform a sacrifice for him
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look at Samuel's response in verse 22 has the Lord as great a delight in burnt offerings and
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Sacrifices as in obeying the voice of the Lord
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Behold to obey is better than sacrifice and to listen
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than the fat of rams for rebellion is as the sin of divination or witchcraft and
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Presumption is as iniquity and idolatry because you've rejected the word of the Lord
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He's also rejected you from being King
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God basically tells Saul if I wanted extra animals if I wanted to sacrifice I would have commanded it
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But you show me that you love me
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when you submit to my words and when you obey and when you get all the way to the end of the Bible first John
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Chapter 5 one of the last books in the New Testament
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Guess what? God is still saying about how people show him. They love him when we do what?
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Obey him and keep his commandments. I
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Think this needs to be emphasized in the New Testament because we're sometimes quick to say and rightfully so
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Salvation is by grace through faith. We don't earn salvation when we obey that's true
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But we show we appreciate salvation when we obey and do what God says and in every covenant that's ever existed with God and humanity
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The only way to show God you love him is by doing what God tells you to do
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But here's the last part of first John 5 we'll make some headway in a minute
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But in first John 5 in verse 3, he says this is the love of God that we keep his commandments
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So God knows you love him if you do what he says, what's the last part of verse 3 though?
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And his commandments are not what?
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How do most people in the world view the commandments of God and why is it a problem based on what John says in first?
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John 5 in verse 3. How do most people in the world view God's commands as?
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Burdensome irksome. They're gonna shackle me. What does John say about God's commands?
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They're not burdensome, what does that tell you about the things in the Bible?
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Mm-hmm
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Yeah, so our yoke is he Jesus is yoke is easy his burden is light for sure Old Testament sacrifice on top of sacrifice
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What is first John 5 in verse 3 at the very end where he says and his commandments are not burdensome
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Tell you about your relationship with God as a Christian because the first thing John says we just read this from 1st
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Samuel you can't please God unless you obey him your initial response to that might be well
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I'm in big trouble because I can't do everything perfectly John doubles down right after that though and says and by the way his commands
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Are not a burden. What does that tell you about your relationship with God though?
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It's doable you can keep the commandments you can't please him just think about this just zoom out from 1st
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John think about your life think about the Christian life
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Think about people, you know that are Christians now and maybe some that have quit what happens to a person's faith
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If you think you're serving a God that no matter what you do, you can't please him
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I hear us talk like this. Sometimes people say well our righteousness is as filthy rags. God never says that
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Oh, that's in Isaiah 64, but that's not about faithful people of God
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That's about rebellious Israel and their righteousness because they were double-dipping
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Trying to please God and yet living rebellious lives behind closed doors their righteousness was filthy rags
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But what happens to a person's life and spirituality if you think no matter what I do
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No matter how hard I try I can never please my God what's gonna happen to you
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There's two options either you're gonna give up
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Rebellion and reckless or
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Self-righteousness will be the result and you'll think hi if I don't dot every I and cross every T and do everything just perfectly my way
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Then I'll just never be able to please God and that also chokes faith
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And that's a different type of giving up if you don't think you can ever please God
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But first John 5 3 says his commands are not burdensome. God's serious about faith, but he's also sensible about faith
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He's serious and sensible what does that mean God knows we're frail people and he says here's what I want you to do
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Love me keep my commands. Somebody says I'm not perfect John already dealt with that if you sin and mess up, which you will
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What do you do?
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You confess you acknowledge it you walk in the light first John 1 7 through 9 and you can have his forgiveness
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You can you can do this. You can keep his commands. God's commands aren't burdensome
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And you read Romans 8 1 and a host of other passages that talk about security that we have in Christ
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No condemnation and what God wants to do for us
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How do we get this across to ourselves and other people that God's commands are?
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Burdensome in a world where people sometimes think they are and that you can please God. How do you get this across to people?
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How do you get it across to yourself so that you know your salvation isn't hanging on the thread and you can have this assurance?
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Of eternal life. What do you need to do?
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Read first John. Yes every week if you can write read first John number one read the Bible. I think that's true
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Here's another thing though. If if you want to get people to see that God is reasonable
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You need to be reasonable
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Especially like if you have kids or people in your influence your spouse if you serve a reasonable God
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You'll be a reasonable person if God can be pleased then that means you can be pleased
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But if your standards can never be met and if you think God's like that
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You'll be like that if you don't think God can be pleased no matter how perfect you are
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No matter how hard you try and God's perfect
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But if God's saying listen people that are imperfect can actually please me and I'm perfect
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Then what should that say about us? We're imperfect
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We should be communicating to other people in our congregational life and in our family
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I'm not demanding perfection of you. God hadn't demanded that of me. I want to be reasonable because the God I serve is reasonable
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That's why when you read throughout the New Testament letters Paul's right in the churches with a lot of problems
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But he can always lead off praising them and acknowledging the good because Paul serves a reasonable God and Paul knows
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God's not demanding perfection and sinless perfection of me and he's reasonable and John's saying here's how you know
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You have eternal life faith exercise it properly and then four through five. The next sections are bigger than this
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Let me just get through four through five
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You overcome the world for everyone who's been born of God overcomes the world and this is the victory that overcomes the world
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Our faith, who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?
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So John says the way you overcome the world is through your what?
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faith and who primarily
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This makes sense. Look at John 16 33 and if you write in your Bible, this is a cross-reference for you
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John says if you have faith in Jesus, you'll overcome the world and that makes sense because Jesus did what?
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Overcame the world if you go to John 16 33
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This is near the end of Jesus's discourse with the disciples right before the cross and he says I've spoken these words to you
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That in me you might have peace in the world. You'll have tribulation but be of good cheer because I've what?
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Overcome the world everything in him gets transferred you because you've been born of God
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So he is overcoming because becomes your overcoming and you can overcome the world because Jesus did
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So faith possessed and properly demonstrated means you have eternal life if your faith is in Christ
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You can keep his commands and you can overcome the world
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Before we move on. Let me say a quick thing about first John 5 4 and 5 that's important
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When John says this is the victory that has overcome the world our faith
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John is saying two very important things. Number one. John is saying whatever is going on in your life
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The only true and real answer to overcome the world is your faith in Christ
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Whatever it is more money is not going to solve it more time more luxury more things
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The only key to overcome the world is faith in Jesus Christ
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That's why we've got to keep preaching the gospel to ourselves
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The thing that's going to fix the things wrong in my life is the reality that Jesus died for my sins
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He was buried and he rose the third day. That's the only answer. That's not a Christian eyes Wednesday night answer
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That's the real answer and to the degree that we get away from that the world overcome us this idea of overcoming the world means
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You beat the world. How do you make sure the world doesn't beat you keep coming back to this reality?
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My faith is the only thing my faith and trust in what Jesus did is the only true key
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That's where the ultimate victory lies. Even my faith. The second thing is this if you're in Christ
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You're a winner whether it feels like it or not. This is the victory that overcomes the world even our faith
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That means whatever Giants you're facing right now
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They are going to fall and if they don't in this life
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They definitely will in the world to come because John says you are winner. You are an overcomer
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Christianity is the victorious way to live and first Corinthians 1557 Paul says thanks be unto God who gives us the victory
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Through our Lord Jesus Christ you have eternal life right now if you're a Christian and your faith is presently overcoming the world
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I don't care what your bank account says
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I don't care what the doctor told you this week what the news says what's going on at work if you have faith in Jesus
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And you're linked and united with him. You're already a winner and maybe we can't see it yet
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But John says that doesn't make it any less true
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All right, first John 5 6 through 8 6 through 12 is the next section assurance of eternal life comes from receiving the testimony concerned in
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Jesus and 6 through 12. John says this is he who came by water and blood
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Jesus Christ
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Not by water only but by water and blood and the Spirit is the one who testifies
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Because the Spirit is the truth
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There are three that testify the Spirit the water and the blood and these three agree
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If we receive the testimony of men the testimony of God is greater for this is the testimony of God that he is born concerning
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His son whoever believes in the Son has the testimony in himself
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whoever does not believe God has made him a liar because he has not believed in the testimony that God is born concerning his son and
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This is the testimony that God gave us eternal life and this life is in his son. Whoever has the son has life
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Whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life
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Alright, how do you know you have eternal life? You have faith you demonstrate it rightly
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How do you know you have eternal life? Secondly, you receive the testimony about Jesus Christ the true testimony properly
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How do we know Jesus is the Son of God?
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Resurrection from the dead is one proof Paul says that at the beginning of Romans right Romans 1 3 through 4
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He says he's declared to be the Son of God
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According to the Spirit of Holiness by the resurrection from the dead
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So the resurrection from the dead for sure, but I mean people that were living at the time during his earthly ministry
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How would they have known that Jesus was the Son of God just throw out some of the proofs. How would you know?
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Miracles for sure, so it wasn't just because Jesus said it right. It's not what Jesus says. He's the Son of God
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So he is well, how do we know to trust Jesus because he's the Son of God?
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Well, why should we trust him because he says he is that circular reasoning doesn't work
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Even Jesus for the sake of trying to prove it to humanity or make the claim says I've got to have works that testify
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Go to John 5 quickly. The quicker y'all turn the more progress we'll make y'all are moving a little slow tonight
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Art already took up 30 of my minutes man. So, you know, we got to do we got I'm joking
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John 5 look at John 5 and Jesus in this section is talking about his testimony
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He's in a heated controversy with the Jews about who he is and notice the testimony
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Jesus gives and why they should believe that he is who he's claiming to be John 5 drop down to about verse 31
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He says if I alone bear witness about myself, my testimony is not true. Just claiming to be the Messiah isn't enough
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So what are your proofs testimony number one in John 5?
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He says John the Baptist said this about me in verse 32. He says there's another who bears witness about me
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I know the testimony he bears about me is true. You sent to John and he bore witness to the truth
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So he says there's John the Baptist
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Second line of evidence for Jesus being the Son of God are the works that he did if you look at John 5 in verse 36
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But the testimony that I have is greater than that of John for the works that the father has given me to accomplish
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the very works I'm doing bear witness, so we know Jesus is the Son of God because of the
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Works he did but Jesus isn't done. He says there's another testimony or another witness
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It's God the father look at verse 37 the father who has sent me
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He bore witness about me his voice you never heard his form
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You've never seen but God says Jesus is the Son of God, but Jesus still isn't done
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There's a fourth the scriptures look at verse 39
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You search the scriptures because in them you think you have eternal life and they are the ones that do what?
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They testify about me. Jesus says I've got proof
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John
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My own miracles and works the father and even the scriptures you're studying
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They tell you I'm the Son of God fast forward to first John and John's making this claim
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You can have eternal life if you accept the right testimony about Jesus and he says there's proof
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John gives three lines of reasoning in first John 5 6 through 7 somebody point them out to me. What are the three?
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Test the testifiers are the three witnesses that John says point to Jesus being the Son of God
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What are they in first John 5 6 through 8?
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Spirit water and
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The blood yes, so John says the spirit
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That's the Holy Spirit the Holy Spirit
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Descended on Jesus like a dove and that's when John the Baptist knew according to John 1
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32 through 34 John was out baptizing everybody in all of Jerusalem all of Judea
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John says I didn't know who he was
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But the one that sent me to baptize says whoever you see the spirit come on and remain that's the one Jesus says the spirit testifies
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Secondly the water what's the water?
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When Jesus was
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the heavens opened and God said this is my
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That's pretty direct. If you get baptized in the heavens open and God speaks and says hey
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This is somebody's where we'll believe you be in the Son of God to Jesus the water testified the third one the blood
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When Jesus was crucified
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And the blood came out his death and what was mentioned a moment ago tied to that the resurrection
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Those three testified you have eternal life if you faithfully receive that testimony about Jesus
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And that's what John says in verses 10 through 12
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Whoever believes in the Son has the testimony in himself and then in verse 11 and 12
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This is the testimony that God gave us eternal life and this life is in his Son
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Whoever has the Son has life. Whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life again. This section is important
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Sometimes people say this to me. I'm sure people have said it to you
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So you mean to tell me that if I'm what do you think like if I'm not a member of the Church of Christ?
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I'm not going to heaven
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You think I've got to be baptized in your building or?
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Believe what you say and we start going down this track with people and I think John helps us not to do that
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I think those are bad questions. I think the first question and most important question is this
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Do you have the Son?
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Have you done what Jesus said you need to do in a faithful response to him in order to be saved if you've done that?
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He'd put you in his family
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You'd be of Christ in his group to save people but John's explicit here if you have the Son you have what?
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Life if you don't have the Son you what?
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That's the same thing as saying you're saved or you're lost. How do you receive the Son?
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You've got to believe in him trust repent and be baptized and John says that's how this works
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and so this testimony about Jesus matters because then it's transferred to
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How do we receive Jesus in order to be saved and trying to direct people toward this in?
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Salvation is for people that are in Christ
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And if you are in Christ, then you have life you have the Son if you're not in Christ
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Then you don't have life and you're lost and we need to be able to tell people that directly. That's not us choosing
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That's not us deciding that's not us saying well
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We think you got to do it our way
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Everybody has to do it Jesus's way and everybody who does it Jesus's way is
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Saved biblically according to what the New Testament says now
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We just got to figure out who's doing that and the people that are doing that
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Belong to Jesus Christ or another way to say that would be
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They're the assembly. They're the Church of God
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They're the Church of Jesus Christ and John says if you have that then that's how you know that you have life
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All right, let's go to 1st John chapter 5 and notice verses 13 through 15
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John says another way that you know, you have eternal life is confidence in your standing with God
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So verse 13 down through verse 15
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John says I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know you have eternal
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Life and this is the confidence we have toward him if we ask anything according to his will he hears us and if we know
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He hears us and whatever we ask we know we have the request that we have asked of him
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So this has already been hinted at tonight. John says what about eternal life in 1st John 5 13 we already what?
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Already possess it
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What do you think though?
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What do you think about your Christian life and how you view it and just in general how Christians talk?
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Do we talk and behave as if we believe that's a reality in 1st John 5 13
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Do you think most Christians have this confidence that I already possess eternal life because eternal life is tied to Christ
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I'm in Christ. So I have it
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Shake or not or blink twice if you're alive. Okay. Yeah, how do you think most people respond?
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Would you say yes positively confident about eternal life or no, what would y'all say?
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You say no. Why is that the case?
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Okay
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So sometimes we're attempting to be humble
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But here's a question direct not directed towards you
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But more toward the class in line with that if God says something like hey you have eternal life and then somebody doubles back
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It's hey, do you have eternal life and you say not me?
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Is it humble to be shy about something that God's emphatic about
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No, it's not if God says this is for sure your spiritual destiny and then you come back around and say
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I'm not so sure about that. What have you just done?
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You undermine God or John would say you've made God a liar
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Yes a fact for sure
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I mean
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For sure, but I think we're still not moving toward why do we struggle with these facts and these realities my question
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We know this this is great
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But my question is why do we struggle to everybody said to me John said in 1st John 5 13
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We know it and then I asked you do we typically behave as if that is if that's true and you said what?
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Yes, or no typically
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No, and my question is why is that the case Brady?
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Mm-hmm
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Yeah, yeah, I think we do like to be in control but again salvation is one of those things that
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God hasn't necessarily put in our control. We have a response
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Yes, but salvation comes as a gift from God and we need to trust that anything else
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Robert
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If you keep looking at your works you'll keep having doubts
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Are you really doing enough? Here's the thing the Bible go ahead
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The
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Bible isn't just inspired in his words
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I believe the Bible is also inspired in his order
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And so I think it's interesting that right before John says you can know you have eternal life
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What does he just say it the testimony about who Jesus is is tied to his death his burial his resurrection
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The spirit the water and the blood and the first thing we tend to think about is have I done enough to get in have?
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I that's not the question
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The question is do you have Jesus or not?
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Because if you have the Sun then you have what according to John you have life. Yes, you're gonna do works
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Yes, you need to obey but do you have the Sun if you have the Sun then you have what?
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Life and if you don't have the Sun you don't have life. It's pretty simple with John, but I think we complicate it
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Yes, anybody else who hasn't had a chance to speak about why we might struggle to connect this
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And
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We know our own failings and we just find it difficult to understand it
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God to be so forgiving and have so much grace. He can just overlook that. Yeah, we know it's true intellectually
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But we have trouble
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Miss Kim and yes, I agree with you
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Yeah
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Yeah, for sure, I mean there are people in the Bible they did terrible things and yet they tried yet they persisted Joe did you have
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But the more that we don't have that confidence in him
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It's all
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We're saying our salvation even though we know it's through Jesus about him. I think it's whenever we think about all the things we do
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It's as if we think our salvation is strictly based on us
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I
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Think we really do need to do that center our faith and our trust on what Jesus has done and focus on that if
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God is who he says he is and God doesn't collect on the same debt twice because he's just and if God says
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Jesus already paid your bill
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You're not gonna walk up to the judgment with any kind of credit or debit. That's not gonna happen there
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Okay, there won't be any of that because Jesus really did fully fulfill it and the Bible has a host of passages that talk about
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assurance Romans 8 1 John 5 24 John 6 37
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And I think sometimes we may be reacting to people on one extreme that believe once you're saved
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You're always saved
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But the truth is you can be once saved and forever saved your salvation doesn't have to daily be in doubt in order for you
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To be a faithful Christian
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God says you can know that you have eternal life and believe on the name of the Son of God
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Let's read the rest of this
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I'm gonna just do 16 down through 21 before the class ends and then we'll we'll quit there verse 16 if anyone sees his brother
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Committing a sin leading to death he will ask God and God will give him life
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To those who commit sins that do not lead to death. There is a sin that leads to death
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I do not say one should pray for that all wrongdoing is sin, but there is a sin that does not lead to death
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We know that everyone who's been born of God does not keep on sinning
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But he who has been born of God protects him protects him and the evil one does not touch him
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We know that we are from God and the whole world lies in the power of the evil one and we know that the Son of
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God has come and given us
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Understanding so that we may know him who is true and we are in him who is true in his son Jesus Christ
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He is the true God and eternal life little children. Keep yourselves from idols
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So John says confidence in your standing in verse 13
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Then he says the power and the privilege of prayer
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That's in 14 and 15 if you have confidence in God, you can ask anything according to his will he hears you and you know
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You're hurt by him. How do you know you have eternal life is God hearing and answering your prayers?
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Maybe not all of them the way you want but have you had prayers answered before?
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John says this is the confidence we have if we ask anything according to his will he hears us and then
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The way John ends this book is by saying
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You'll know you have eternal life if you have the proper relationship towards sin
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And he says there are sins that lead to death and there are sins that don't lead to death
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And we don't have time to unpack all of that
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But here's what I'll tell you John says there are certain sins that don't result in death
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And if a person's in that situation, you can pray for them and God will give them life
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What are sins that don't lead to death?
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I believe that's every sin in the world in any category that a person's willing to repent of and do the right thing
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What are the sins that lead to death and John says don't worry about praying for those that would be a sin that a person
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Persistent doesn't have any interest in repenting of John says don't pray for that and he's not the first one
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Jeremiah 11 14 and Jeremiah 14 11
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God told Jeremiah don't pray for these people in Judah because they don't want to do the right thing
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They don't want to repent but eternal life is tied to having the right relationship towards sin
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Also, it'll keep you safe from the devil's grasp and verse 18 he says
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Those who are born of God do not keep on sinning
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Whoever's born of God God protects him and the evil one doesn't touch him
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But the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one. You have the right relationship towards sin do Christian sin. Yes, or yes
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yes, but
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We don't live a lifestyle of sin. That's what John's saying
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You know, you have eternal life because you don't live a lifestyle of sin one that just sins without being penitent
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Not wanting to change and go in the other direction and then he says you're already a possessor of eternal life
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Because according to John eternal life isn't an idea or feeling it's a person and then last in verse 21
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Little children keep yourselves from idols
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First John is a book about confidence and throughout first John what John's been trying to assure these Christians of is this
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Don't worry about everything
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The false teachers are saying about the person in work of Jesus and how you can have a good relationship with them
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You believe in the true risen biblical Jesus and because of that you can know you currently possess eternal life
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You can have confidence in him
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You've been born of God and eternal life isn't just something you're going to get at the end of life that you're heading to is
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Something you currently possess I meant to say this earlier
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But just 30 seconds to say this and why this is important why this is gonna matter for you when you wake up tomorrow
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And you're not thinking about three witnesses water blood and spirit. Here's why this matters if
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You don't believe you're going to heaven if you don't believe you currently possess eternal life
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It'll stop you don't have time. You couldn't possibly be interested in trying to win other people
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You couldn't possibly be a soul winner evangelist evangelistic to any degree because you're trying to invite people to something you're unsure about yourself
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But if you knew for a fact, I'm in Christ Christ is in me. I already possess eternal life
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You can get over yourself and get outside of yourself and invite people into that joy into eternal salvation and into that relationship
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And that's why the message of first John matters John saying your eternal life is secure
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you currently possess it it'll continue when this life is over and
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take that knowledge and
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Share that with everybody in the world because that is the good news of the gospel and you possess it right now
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However imperfect if you're in the light the blood continues to cleanse you and you already have eternal life share it with somebody else
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All right. Thanks for a good Bible class. Thanks for your participation tonight