PM 1 John 3:1-4 Amazing Love

[0:00] Verse 11 to verse 22. 11 to 22. It's got the title in the ESV, One in Christ.

[0:15] ! So we're going to read it now.

[0:33] One in Christ. This is the word of God. Therefore remember that at one time you Gentiles in the flesh called the uncircumcision by what is called the circumcision which is made in the flesh by hands.

[0:49] Remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenant of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.

[1:04] But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For he himself is our peace who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances.

[1:26] That he might create in himself one new man in place of two. So making peace, I might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross therefore killing the hostility.

[1:40] And he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near. For through him we both have access by one spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers and aliens but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God.

[2:02] Built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets. Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone. In whom the whole structure being joined together grows into a holy temple in the Lord.

[2:16] In whom you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit. Amen.

[2:28] May God bless his word to all our hearts this evening. Let's read together again from God's word as we find it in 1 John.

[2:42] 1 John chapter 3. 1 John chapter 3. And reading the first four verses.

[2:56] 1 John 3 and verse 1 to 4. 1 John 3 and verse 1 to 4.

[3:14] 1 John 3 and verse 1. See what kind of love the Father has given to us that we should be called children of God. And so we are.

[3:25] The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Beloved, we are God's children now. And what we will be has not yet appeared.

[3:38] But we know that when he appears. We shall be like him. Because we shall see him as he is. And everyone who has this hope in him.

[3:51] Purifies himself. As he is pure. We will stop there. Reading from verses 1 to 3.

[4:03] May God bless his word to our hearts this evening. Now this passage in John.

[4:15] This short passage that we read together. Is a great expression of the wonder of the Christian life. John Stock in his commentary calls it an outburst of wonder.

[4:32] See what kind of love the Father has lavished on us. His children. Is the way the NIV translates that first line.

[4:45] The kind of love the Father has lavished on us. The Amplified Bible says. See what an incredible quality of love.

[4:57] The Father has shown us. That we should be permitted to be named. And counted children of God. Stop and contemplate.

[5:10] What a wonderful thing. It is to be a child of God. The wording here implies astonishment. Astonishment. Astonishment.

[5:25] In 1 Timothy 1 verse 11. Paul writes about the gospel of the glory of the blessed God. And the gospel is the explanation of how a totally happy God.

[5:44] Delights in sharing his joy with his creatures. With us.

[5:58] Creatures of yesterday. men and women who have sinned and have been far from him.

[6:08] what a marvel that God has done so much for us who know him and I want to think about this passage with you this evening under three headings what we were what we are and what we shall be what we were and what we are and what we shall be I'm going to make quite a lot of reference to the passage we read in Ephesians chapter 2 when we're thinking about what we were Ephesians 2 verse 12 tells us that we were separated from Christ without hope and without God in the world tells us that we are strangers and aliens far from God we didn't know him as our father we left him out of our lives as we saw this morning we were spiritually blind we couldn't even see him but God there's a couple of times in that passage where there's a but God wonderful buts in verse 13 having told us that we were strangers from God and alienated verse 13 says but now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ for he himself is our peace but God we were far away we were strangers and aliens and God stepped in and brought us back to himself in verse 2 of that chapter we read that we were dead in trespasses and sins it's verse 1 in which he once walked following the course of the world following the prince of the power of the air the spirit that is not work in the sons of disobedience among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh carrying out the desires of our body and mind and were by nature children of wrath like the rest of mankind we were rebels rebels against God no time for him in our lives at all but verse 4 says but God but God again who being rich in mercy because of that great love that amazing love which he loved us even when we were dead has made us alive together with Christ by grace you have been saved we were rebels dead in our sins lost in our rebellion and our alienation and as the psalmist says we were in a fearful pit and mirey clay of sin and since we were dead in our trespasses as verse 1 tells us we couldn't do anything to help ourselves we couldn't lift a finger to help ourselves because dead men can't help themselves can they they just can't do anything and we were spiritually dead but God raises the spiritually dead and lavishes lavishes love on us not because

[10:11] of anything lovely in us not because of anything good that we have done not because we were lovable but he reached down and reached us because he is love he is love the hymn writer wrote that he that is Jesus left his father's throne above so free so infinite his grace emptied himself of all but love and bled for Adam's helpless race amazing love how can it be that thou my God shouldst die for me isn't that amazing that my God should die for me you can see how he's lavished his love on us he hasn't measured it out by the spoonful!

[11:03] like a medicine he's poured it out poured it out and has brought us into his family and because of that great love and what we were we can see that what we now are what we now are in Christ we're a people loved by God God has lavished his love on us not just a bit as I said our ration of love but he's lavished it generously upon us he's forgiven us raised us to new life brought us near who were far away adopted us into his family given us a seat at his table as sons and daughters of God that's a wonderful thing to be given a seat at the table as sons and daughters of God our redemption for us it is free nothing to pay because it's all been done by Jesus but what it cost

[12:19] Jesus I give you out of him and I do believe I haven't kept one for myself can I come down and have one thank you very much when I was thinking about this hymn number 517 on this sheet you've got two hymns for the price of one here came to me as a wonderful expression of the cost the cost to us to God of bringing us back into God's family or into God's family I'm going to read it to you when you can follow along oh teach me what it meaneth that cross uplifted high with one the man of sorrows condemned to bleed and die oh teach me what it cost thee to make a sinner whole and teach me saviour teach me the value of a soul oh teach me what it meaneth that sacred crimson tide the blood and water flowing from thine own wounded side teach me that if no other had sinned but I alone yet still thy blood

[13:53] Lord Jesus thine only must atone oh teach me what it meaneth thy love beyond compare the love that reaches deeper than depths of self despair yes teach me till there gloweth in this cold heart of mine some feeble pale reflection of that pure love of thine oh teach me what it meaneth for I am full of sin and grace alone can reach me and love alone can win oh teach me for I need thee I have no hope beside the chief of all the sinners for whom the saviour died oh infinite redeemer I bring no other plea because thou dost invite me

[14:54] I cast myself on thee because thou dost accept me I love and I adore because thy love constraineth I'll praise thee evermore teach me what it meaneth what it meant what it cost our Lord Jesus to bring sinners back to God and what a wonderful change there is in our state when we come to Jesus and receive him as our Lord the change is so great that Paul in Ephesians 2 verse 6 says that he's raised us up and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus we who once were far away already seated with Jesus in heavenly places

[15:54] Calvin said given a seat among the angels you know he said how can we here in Scotland see ourselves as seated among the angels and yet we're reminded of one of the great truths of the Christian life we are united to our risen exalted and enthroned Lord Jesus we are in union with him all he achieved by his death is ours if you got your bible I'm going to read a couple of verses from Romans 6 Romans 6 reading a couple of verses verse 5 Romans 6 verse 5 for if we have been united with him that is with

[16:56] Jesus in a death like his we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his we know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing so we no longer be enslaved to sin for one who has died has been set free from sin now if we have died with Christ we believe we shall also live with him we shall also live with him and in verse 11 says so you must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus we're united with Christ in him his death is our death we have died as it were with him when he died on the cross that death is for us and we gain we have participated in it and now we live in him and one day we will be with him we have union with him he paid our debt he paid the debt of sin he paid the debt of our sin his new life in him and we are united with him and we share already in that resurrection life and he's exalted crowned in heaven and we in union with him are also spiritually there and

[18:30] God who sees the beginning from the end or the end from the beginning! Christ what a wonderful thing we are sons and daughters of King Jesus as we read in 1 John we are not that we shall be we shall be but we already are we already are now the world does not see us returning to 1 John 3 verse 2 beloved we are God's children now and what we will be has not yet appeared sorry verse 1 is what I wanted to read the reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him did not know him so the world looks at

[19:32] Dumfries Free Church and sees a small group of people insignificant in the grand scheme of things it thinks just a small little group and the world that does not know our Jesus does not know us other it didn't recognize Jesus when he came he was just a carpenter's son his mother and brothers lived down the street nothing special about him his glory was veiled no form or comeliness that they should desire him and people didn't they rejected him and they crucified him and they still cannot understand why a Galilean carpenter why his death 2000 years ago can make any difference to you and me today but we can can't we because we know his death was in our place he was and is the lamb of

[20:40] God that takes away our sin and the sin of the whole world and he has redeemed us by his blood and we are the apple of his eye isn't that amazing the apple of God's eye already he sees us as we really are part of the church in every nation throughout all generations rooted in eternity described as terrible as an army with banners and that's what we are now God and God is building his church through us and around us we are the apple of his eye we became that not by our own works not by nature because we were naturally rebels and sinners not by membership of a church we become that by grace through faith in our

[21:53] Lord Jesus Christ who died that we might be forgiven well my John Newton that old slave trader write amazing grace how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me I once was lost but now I'm found was blind that was but now I see what are we we are loved by God God has lavished his love on us and adopted us into his family and what we will be what we will be everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself for that we know that when he appears we shall be like him because we will see him as he is one day he's coming back one day he's coming back and we shall be like him we notice the the order firstly

[22:54] Jesus appears with the sound of the trumpet and the great multitude of angels and we see him in the sky some with fear and trembling calling on the rocks and the mountains to hide them but we as God's adopted sons and daughters we see our saviour on that day we see our elder brother we see the one who has shown us such wonderful love we see the good shepherd of our souls appear and he knows us he knows us each by name and he'll look at us and say this one is mine this one is mine and we on that day we shall be like him we shall be like him for we shall see him as he is now we're already new creatures in Christ we're already a new creation and God is making us through the process of sanctification he's making us more and more like

[24:10] Jesus conforming us into the image of his son but on that day on that day when we see him as he is we will be like him we will be like him we see him in all his glory and we will be transformed into his image that's what we will be and finally in our verses we have that great incentive to live as his people are everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure verse 3 we are God's children now dressed in the righteousness of Christ when God looks at us he sees the righteousness of Christ not our own feeble righteousness but Jesus righteousness which is perfect and complete and we must live as our condition deserves you know we're not beggars on the street we're princes and princesses of the king and if you're the prince of of

[25:29] Wales if you're Prince William and you visit Australia you'll act like Prince Wales like the Prince of Wales you will want to live to the honour of your country and so we must or should want to live for the honour of our king the honour of our king St.

[25:53] Claude Ferguson talks about living below the level of our privileges in Christ living below the level of our privileges in Christ so many of us do that you know we are new creatures in Christ we are seated already in the heavenly places with the apple of God's eye but we we don't live that way we don't live that way we're made alive with Christ we're forgiven we're in union with Christ let's live up to the level of our privileges since this is true our lives should reflect his glory to put off the old things put on the new put on the things of the spirit as the children were learning in their memory verse the fruit of the spirit is love joy peace kindness and all the other things in that verses which some of the children probably could quote to me put them on and let people see

[27:02] Jesus in us live up to the level of our privileges amazing love that has been lavished on us what a wonderful thing it is to know Jesus as your saviour and to have be the recipient of that love that God has lavished upon us we praise him for his mercy and his love this evening let's pray together father what a wonderful love is your love to us a love that is no beginning and shall never ever cease and you have lavished it on poor sinners like us and brought us into your family and surrounded us with your love given us a seat among the angels oh father we thank you lord grant indeed that we will as we go from church this evening into another week that you will enable us lord to live up to the level of our privileges to live conscious that we are sons and daughters of the king and that we might be salt and light where we are among all those that we meet during this week bless your word to our hearts lord and write it on our minds we pray in jesus name amen