WEBVTT 00:00:00.360 --> 00:00:05.520 Good afternoon everyone. Can I repeat the welcome Johnny gave at the start, particularly if you're visiting our great city. 00:00:05.600 --> 00:00:11.300 Hope you have a wonderful time here with us seeing the sights and that God will really bless you as you relax here. 00:00:12.460 --> 00:00:17.839 We've been going for the last month and a half through the first letter by John in the New Testament. 00:00:18.519 --> 00:00:22.640 And I thought since we're more or less halfway through the book at the moment, 00:00:22.719 --> 00:00:26.359 and there's a slight change of emphasis over the next chapter or two, 00:00:26.359 --> 00:00:28.879 it might be worth just taking stock very quickly. 00:00:30.000 --> 00:00:36.420 John and Graham have explained very clearly to us that 1 John is a book that was written into a particular situation. 00:00:37.320 --> 00:00:41.539 There are people who had gotten to the church who said, we have superior knowledge, 00:00:42.120 --> 00:00:48.039 we are more spiritual than everybody else, we have no sin, we put all that behind us, 00:00:48.379 --> 00:00:51.079 and we are really just a bit better than everybody. 00:00:51.079 --> 00:00:53.879 And they cause a lot of trouble, eventually it appears they had left, 00:00:54.140 --> 00:00:57.359 but not without causing a great deal of disruption in the church, 00:00:57.359 --> 00:01:01.780 and perhaps unsettling church members that may be thinking, well, have we really got the truth? 00:01:02.019 --> 00:01:03.479 Are we really Christians? 00:01:03.560 --> 00:01:08.920 And John is writing to assure people that the test of Christianity, of Christian faith, 00:01:09.120 --> 00:01:13.159 is that we believe in the Lord Jesus and that we are obedient to him, 00:01:13.539 --> 00:01:19.340 and it's not all about having knowledge, it's much more about having love for one another. 00:01:19.340 --> 00:01:25.659 Now that continues to be a large part of the theme of the remaining chapters in the book, 00:01:25.900 --> 00:01:28.219 but as I said, I think there is a bit of a change. 00:01:28.840 --> 00:01:34.320 In the last two and a half chapters, John is not so much thinking about the people who have come into the church 00:01:34.320 --> 00:01:38.159 and the damage they've done, he's thinking about the people who are still there, 00:01:38.159 --> 00:01:43.920 and how they should deal with one another as brothers and sisters in the Lord Jesus. 00:01:44.040 --> 00:01:46.600 When we read the passage in a few minutes, you may notice again and again, 00:01:46.599 --> 00:01:48.879 John talks about the brothers. 00:01:49.939 --> 00:01:52.459 I think particularly in the second half of the book as well, 00:01:52.719 --> 00:01:57.079 we can see the close link between John's first letter and John's gospel. 00:01:57.199 --> 00:02:00.819 Now see it throughout the book, right at the start of the book he talks about in the beginning, 00:02:01.219 --> 00:02:03.399 as he talks about in his gospel. 00:02:04.079 --> 00:02:05.899 But from the middle of chapter 3 onwards, 00:02:05.899 --> 00:02:10.919 there's a very close parallel between what John writes to his readers of his letter, 00:02:10.919 --> 00:02:17.459 and particularly the teaching of the Lord Jesus in the upper room to his disciples in John's gospel. 00:02:18.639 --> 00:02:23.560 Now when you read John's gospel, there is a very clear message in it. 00:02:24.279 --> 00:02:28.419 The message of John's gospel is believe and live, 00:02:28.799 --> 00:02:31.759 or maybe more accurately believe and have life. 00:02:32.479 --> 00:02:34.699 He explains at the end of his book in chapter 20, 00:02:34.699 --> 00:02:40.159 These things are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, 00:02:40.419 --> 00:02:44.619 and that by believing, you may have life in his name. 00:02:45.159 --> 00:02:49.000 If we take the most famous verse in John's gospel, chapter 3 and verse 16, 00:02:49.060 --> 00:02:49.359 it says, 00:02:49.459 --> 00:02:53.560 Whoever believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. 00:02:53.579 --> 00:02:57.319 We go through lots and lots of verses in John's gospel that bring us this theme, 00:02:57.319 --> 00:03:04.699 if you believe in Jesus, then you will have life, life not of yourself, but life given to you by God. 00:03:05.159 --> 00:03:10.479 And that's very much also in John's letter, and we'll see that as we read our passage this morning. 00:03:11.120 --> 00:03:14.500 But John's letter has a slightly different emphasis at points. 00:03:14.560 --> 00:03:19.599 So not just believe and live, he says know and love. 00:03:20.579 --> 00:03:26.120 In John's first epistle, the word know is used 42 times, mostly in chapters 2 and 3, 00:03:26.120 --> 00:03:31.960 and the word love is used 45 times, mostly in chapters 3 and 4. 00:03:32.620 --> 00:03:36.159 So he's saying once you've believed in the Lord Jesus and have life through him, 00:03:36.580 --> 00:03:40.960 you will love and you will then have assurance you will know that you belong to him. 00:03:40.960 --> 00:03:42.180 And that's the sequence, I think. 00:03:42.719 --> 00:03:47.000 You believe in Jesus, that is the only way to have salvation through him. 00:03:47.000 --> 00:03:50.040 You believe that he lived, that he died for you, that he rose again, 00:03:50.319 --> 00:03:53.340 and that he can bring forgiveness for your sins. 00:03:53.340 --> 00:03:57.500 When you do that, you're given life by God, you're given eternal life, 00:03:57.900 --> 00:04:00.500 and that life leads you to love others. 00:04:00.599 --> 00:04:03.560 And we'll see in a few minutes just how critical that is. 00:04:03.599 --> 00:04:09.480 As you have life through the Lord Jesus, so that brings a love for him and for others. 00:04:10.219 --> 00:04:14.219 And that love you have for others is one of the key evidences when you're thinking, 00:04:14.379 --> 00:04:16.079 well, do I really belong to Jesus? 00:04:16.199 --> 00:04:18.459 Am I really a Christian or not? 00:04:18.459 --> 00:04:22.979 John says one of the key ways in which you can identify that you do belong to Christ, 00:04:22.979 --> 00:04:28.759 that you can know that you are saved, is by the love you have for others. 00:04:29.139 --> 00:04:31.459 So you believe, and that brings you life. 00:04:32.180 --> 00:04:34.500 You then love, and that brings you assurance. 00:04:34.620 --> 00:04:37.799 It brings you the knowledge that you are God's child. 00:04:38.399 --> 00:04:40.659 Look out for these as we go through the passage. 00:04:40.779 --> 00:04:42.399 We're looking at 1 John chapter 3. 00:04:42.500 --> 00:04:44.479 I'm going to steal a couple of verses from last week's passage, 00:04:44.819 --> 00:04:46.579 and we're going to start at verse 11. 00:04:46.579 --> 00:04:50.120 1 John chapter 3 and verse 11. 00:04:50.319 --> 00:04:50.959 John writes, 00:04:51.099 --> 00:04:53.859 This is the message you heard from the beginning. 00:04:54.759 --> 00:04:56.279 We should love one another. 00:04:57.279 --> 00:05:01.419 Do not be like Cain who belonged to the evil one and murdered his brother. 00:05:02.300 --> 00:05:03.539 And why did he murder him? 00:05:04.139 --> 00:05:08.419 Because his own actions were evil and his brothers were righteous. 00:05:09.379 --> 00:05:13.039 Do not be surprised, my brothers, if the world hates you. 00:05:13.040 --> 00:05:18.540 We know that we have passed from death to life because we love our brothers. 00:05:19.540 --> 00:05:22.800 Anyone who does not love remains in death. 00:05:23.860 --> 00:05:26.060 Anyone who hates his brother is a murderer, 00:05:26.680 --> 00:05:30.259 and you know that no murderer has eternal life in him. 00:05:31.500 --> 00:05:33.700 This is how we know what love is. 00:05:34.600 --> 00:05:37.280 Jesus Christ laid down his life for us, 00:05:37.720 --> 00:05:41.080 and we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers. 00:05:41.079 --> 00:05:46.800 If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, 00:05:47.279 --> 00:05:49.740 how can the love of God be in him? 00:05:50.959 --> 00:05:51.939 Dear children, 00:05:52.859 --> 00:05:55.279 let us not love with words or tongue, 00:05:55.899 --> 00:05:58.659 but with actions and in truth. 00:06:00.019 --> 00:06:02.779 This then is how we know that we belong to the truth, 00:06:03.219 --> 00:06:06.519 and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence, 00:06:07.120 --> 00:06:09.039 whenever our hearts condemn us. 00:06:09.040 --> 00:06:11.480 For God is greater than our hearts, 00:06:11.800 --> 00:06:13.400 and he knows everything. 00:06:14.540 --> 00:06:15.240 Dear friends, 00:06:15.840 --> 00:06:17.720 if our hearts do not condemn us, 00:06:18.000 --> 00:06:19.960 we have confidence before God, 00:06:20.439 --> 00:06:21.439 and ask from him, 00:06:21.560 --> 00:06:23.379 and receive from him anything we ask, 00:06:23.740 --> 00:06:25.280 because we obey his commands, 00:06:25.600 --> 00:06:26.960 and do what pleases him. 00:06:27.980 --> 00:06:29.080 And this is his command, 00:06:29.439 --> 00:06:31.400 to believe in the name of his son, 00:06:31.520 --> 00:06:32.300 Jesus Christ, 00:06:32.700 --> 00:06:34.280 and to love one another 00:06:34.280 --> 00:06:36.200 as he commanded us. 00:06:36.199 --> 00:06:39.560 Those who obey his commands live in him, 00:06:39.639 --> 00:06:40.459 and he in them. 00:06:41.259 --> 00:06:43.279 And this is how we know that he lives in us. 00:06:43.860 --> 00:06:46.719 We know it by the spirit he gave us. 00:06:47.360 --> 00:06:51.959 We pray God will help us to understand what he has to say to us from his word this morning, 00:06:52.019 --> 00:06:52.560 this afternoon. 00:06:53.439 --> 00:06:56.159 This gentleman on the screen here is Dr. Bill Franklin. 00:06:56.860 --> 00:06:59.319 Dr. Franklin is 103 years old, 00:06:59.319 --> 00:07:03.319 and he received an MBE in June for his services to medicine. 00:07:04.099 --> 00:07:07.500 He was involved with Alexander Fleming in the development of penicillin. 00:07:08.159 --> 00:07:10.719 He was one of the first people to promote the pollen count 00:07:10.719 --> 00:07:13.860 as being a good warning for hay fever sufferers 00:07:13.860 --> 00:07:15.659 that they needed to get their pills out. 00:07:16.259 --> 00:07:17.860 He also developed a theory 00:07:17.860 --> 00:07:21.519 that people are subject much more to allergies these days 00:07:21.519 --> 00:07:23.279 because we're too keen on hygiene, 00:07:23.279 --> 00:07:27.159 and we don't build up enough resistance to infection. 00:07:27.160 --> 00:07:29.680 He was a leading doctor. 00:07:31.220 --> 00:07:34.280 Dr. Franklin has had his 15 minutes of fame, perhaps, 00:07:34.380 --> 00:07:36.000 in the last two or three weeks. 00:07:36.680 --> 00:07:38.360 He was on Desert Island Discs, 00:07:38.780 --> 00:07:41.220 and perhaps the oldest person who had ever done that. 00:07:41.300 --> 00:07:42.860 And I came across him, I first heard him, 00:07:43.100 --> 00:07:47.320 when he was part of the VJ Day commemorations on the BBC. 00:07:48.320 --> 00:07:50.820 Dr. Franklin, at the start of the war, was in Singapore. 00:07:51.580 --> 00:07:53.280 He got captured by the Japanese, 00:07:53.279 --> 00:07:59.579 and for three and a half years he suffered along with many, many other British and Commonwealth servicemen 00:07:59.579 --> 00:08:01.859 at the hands of the Japanese captors. 00:08:01.959 --> 00:08:02.719 He was beaten up. 00:08:02.799 --> 00:08:05.239 He saw terrible things in his work as a doctor. 00:08:05.679 --> 00:08:07.500 He emerged from it, emaciated, 00:08:07.919 --> 00:08:10.819 and looking in very poor shape. 00:08:11.919 --> 00:08:16.299 The BBC did two interviews consecutively with ex-prisoners of war. 00:08:16.300 --> 00:08:18.060 One of them said, 00:08:18.560 --> 00:08:20.020 I can't forgive the Japanese. 00:08:20.680 --> 00:08:23.800 I wouldn't be true to myself if I forgave them. 00:08:23.840 --> 00:08:28.960 And who am I to criticise someone who'd been through so much and felt that way? 00:08:30.100 --> 00:08:32.580 But Dr. Franklin, when he was interviewed, said, 00:08:33.019 --> 00:08:35.399 I can't hate the Japanese. 00:08:35.519 --> 00:08:36.899 I don't hate them. 00:08:37.899 --> 00:08:41.399 If I hated them, it wouldn't do them any harm. 00:08:42.039 --> 00:08:44.039 Hate only harms you. 00:08:45.000 --> 00:08:46.679 And Kirsty Young, who was presenting, said to him, 00:08:46.779 --> 00:08:48.039 have you always had this attitude? 00:08:48.679 --> 00:08:53.099 Is this something that's just grown on you as the memories of the war have got a little bit more distant? 00:08:53.559 --> 00:08:54.500 And he said, no. 00:08:54.860 --> 00:08:57.579 When I was a child, I said to my brother, I hate you. 00:08:57.860 --> 00:09:01.000 And my father pulled me up, and he taught me never to hate. 00:09:01.480 --> 00:09:04.779 You only harm yourself if you hate. 00:09:04.919 --> 00:09:08.179 I looked on the internet and came across a longer quote from him. 00:09:08.939 --> 00:09:11.240 He said, you must not go on hating people. 00:09:11.240 --> 00:09:15.860 It does you harm, but it does not do them any harm. 00:09:16.560 --> 00:09:21.399 Also, I am a Christian who was taught to love, not hate. 00:09:21.960 --> 00:09:24.419 That's how I live my life. 00:09:25.180 --> 00:09:30.620 And that's very much the message of the first part of the passage we're looking at this afternoon. 00:09:31.139 --> 00:09:35.379 That the responsibility of the Christian and the sign of life in the Christian 00:09:35.379 --> 00:09:39.679 is that we love others, that we don't hate them. 00:09:40.580 --> 00:09:43.139 And John uses two examples to illustrate that. 00:09:43.220 --> 00:09:47.820 The example of Cain, and then the example of the Lord Jesus. 00:09:49.100 --> 00:09:52.759 So first of all, we have the example of hate in action. 00:09:54.120 --> 00:09:56.980 Now, as he does quite a lot in his gospel and his epistle, 00:09:57.340 --> 00:09:59.399 John goes back to the beginning. 00:09:59.399 --> 00:10:04.860 Cain was right at the beginning the son of Adam and Eve. 00:10:05.720 --> 00:10:12.740 And John says, Cain gives us an example of just how bad it is to hate others. 00:10:13.319 --> 00:10:14.740 Now, remember the story of Cain and Abel. 00:10:14.959 --> 00:10:17.100 They both brought sacrifices to God. 00:10:17.720 --> 00:10:19.279 Cain brought sacrifice of fruit. 00:10:19.779 --> 00:10:21.899 Abel brought sacrifice of livestock. 00:10:22.139 --> 00:10:23.919 And God was pleased with Abel's sacrifice. 00:10:24.460 --> 00:10:26.319 He wasn't pleased with Cain's sacrifice. 00:10:26.320 --> 00:10:31.020 And Cain got really jealous and he killed his brother. 00:10:31.520 --> 00:10:33.080 That is the example of Cain. 00:10:33.920 --> 00:10:39.160 And John says, anyone who hates their brother or sister or hates others, 00:10:39.560 --> 00:10:41.060 they are like Cain. 00:10:41.660 --> 00:10:49.440 And in particular, Cain hated Abel because Cain had done something that wasn't so pleasing to God. 00:10:49.820 --> 00:10:51.600 Abel had done something that pleased God. 00:10:51.600 --> 00:10:58.680 And it was Abel's righteousness and Abel's superior spiritual sacrifice that really got to Cain 00:10:58.680 --> 00:11:03.340 and that made him hate and ultimately kill his brother. 00:11:04.820 --> 00:11:08.840 So in that case, good provoked evil. 00:11:08.980 --> 00:11:16.080 The good of Abel and Cain, looking at it, provoked Cain to hate him and to do what was wrong. 00:11:16.080 --> 00:11:21.200 And John says, it's like that in our world today. 00:11:21.960 --> 00:11:26.540 If we live lives of service for the Lord Jesus, 00:11:27.240 --> 00:11:29.460 if we talk to others about our faith, 00:11:29.920 --> 00:11:33.180 if we present them their needs of the Savior, 00:11:33.360 --> 00:11:36.620 some by the grace of God will come to love and to trust him. 00:11:37.200 --> 00:11:43.720 Many will reject us and perhaps will hate or despise us for what we do. 00:11:43.720 --> 00:11:47.500 And John says, don't be surprised when that happens. 00:11:47.960 --> 00:11:50.360 That's the work of the evil one in our world, 00:11:50.700 --> 00:11:56.700 getting into people's hearts and minds and turning them against what is good. 00:11:57.940 --> 00:12:02.940 And then John says, and he's echoing here the words of the Lord Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount. 00:12:03.360 --> 00:12:07.160 He says, it's not just the action that counts. 00:12:07.279 --> 00:12:09.560 Cain went all the way and murdered his brother. 00:12:09.559 --> 00:12:13.039 But John says, it's not the actual action that's important. 00:12:13.619 --> 00:12:14.659 The thought counts. 00:12:14.779 --> 00:12:17.139 Anyone who hates a brother or sister is a murderer. 00:12:17.679 --> 00:12:22.639 And you know that no murderer has eternal life residing in him. 00:12:23.299 --> 00:12:25.059 That's terribly strong words, isn't it? 00:12:25.439 --> 00:12:30.399 That if we hate someone, it's almost as if we had physically murdered them. 00:12:30.459 --> 00:12:37.279 That is how serious it is when we hold these feelings of resentment and hate against others. 00:12:37.279 --> 00:12:43.779 And we might say, well, that's very true and very interesting, but it's not really very practical for us. 00:12:43.860 --> 00:12:44.879 We don't hate others. 00:12:44.959 --> 00:12:45.600 We are Christians. 00:12:46.159 --> 00:12:47.480 We love others. 00:12:48.019 --> 00:12:51.620 Well, if only that was always evident in our churches. 00:12:52.339 --> 00:12:55.399 How often in our church, and this church is not exempt by any means, 00:12:55.679 --> 00:12:57.259 do we find people who fall out? 00:12:57.639 --> 00:13:02.759 There's been some kind of historical incident or apparent slight or something like that. 00:13:02.759 --> 00:13:07.059 And people say, no, I'm not going to get on with this person anymore. 00:13:07.179 --> 00:13:08.039 They avoid each other. 00:13:08.100 --> 00:13:09.759 There's as little as possible to do with each other. 00:13:10.159 --> 00:13:14.840 Sometimes it leads to churches being divided and being split. 00:13:15.939 --> 00:13:19.980 And John would say to us, have nothing to do with that. 00:13:20.539 --> 00:13:23.939 If you hate somebody, if you resent something about them, 00:13:24.299 --> 00:13:27.200 the person you harm most is yourself. 00:13:27.200 --> 00:13:31.400 You will do much more damage to yourself than you do to them. 00:13:32.379 --> 00:13:36.300 And you will not be displaying the character that we should have 00:13:36.300 --> 00:13:40.480 if we are followers of the Lord Jesus, if we love him. 00:13:41.280 --> 00:13:44.820 So let's not just see this as something for some other people out there in the world. 00:13:45.259 --> 00:13:47.379 Let's apply it practically to ourselves. 00:13:47.700 --> 00:13:49.620 Is there anyone, a Christian brother or sister, 00:13:49.759 --> 00:13:54.720 that you need to sort things out with and to restore a relationship with? 00:13:55.320 --> 00:13:56.400 That's hate in action. 00:13:57.200 --> 00:13:58.500 We then have love in action. 00:13:58.580 --> 00:14:00.600 This fantastic verse, verse 16. 00:14:00.720 --> 00:14:02.960 This is how we know what love is. 00:14:03.420 --> 00:14:07.259 Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. 00:14:07.800 --> 00:14:09.379 So we've had the example of Cain, 00:14:09.960 --> 00:14:13.520 the one who hated his brother and who murdered him. 00:14:14.020 --> 00:14:16.259 And then we have the example of the Lord Jesus, 00:14:16.840 --> 00:14:19.420 the one who loved us when we were unlovely, 00:14:19.620 --> 00:14:20.660 when we were sinful, 00:14:20.960 --> 00:14:24.100 when we had nothing that would make him want to love us. 00:14:24.100 --> 00:14:28.580 Yet he did love us and he laid down his life for us. 00:14:29.000 --> 00:14:31.639 And that is the example that we are called to follow. 00:14:31.700 --> 00:14:32.899 As in so many things, 00:14:33.139 --> 00:14:34.820 our example as Christians, 00:14:34.940 --> 00:14:36.820 if we are believers in the Lord Jesus, 00:14:37.240 --> 00:14:40.800 is to look at what Jesus did and to imitate it 00:14:40.800 --> 00:14:44.840 and to become as much as possible like him. 00:14:44.840 --> 00:14:46.399 And in this case, 00:14:46.519 --> 00:14:49.040 good doesn't provoke evil as it did with Cain. 00:14:49.500 --> 00:14:53.500 The good of the Lord Jesus provokes good in us. 00:14:54.100 --> 00:14:56.259 As we see the outrageous love he had, 00:14:56.340 --> 00:14:58.740 which Paul presented so clearly to us last week, 00:14:58.740 --> 00:15:02.820 as we see the outrageous love of God and of the Lord Jesus for us, 00:15:03.360 --> 00:15:06.740 that should stir up in our hearts feelings of love for him, 00:15:07.100 --> 00:15:09.400 a desire to serve him and to live for him, 00:15:09.399 --> 00:15:13.179 and also to show the love that he had to others. 00:15:13.799 --> 00:15:15.159 As he has loved us, 00:15:15.480 --> 00:15:17.100 as he has set us an example, 00:15:17.659 --> 00:15:20.740 so we should imitate him and his good to us 00:15:20.740 --> 00:15:25.480 should be reflected in the good that we do for others. 00:15:26.600 --> 00:15:29.240 But there's one other point I think is really important in these verses. 00:15:29.319 --> 00:15:32.360 I've summed it up as actions speak louder than words. 00:15:33.100 --> 00:15:34.600 We might just read verse 16. 00:15:35.299 --> 00:15:35.579 We say, 00:15:35.579 --> 00:15:37.220 This is how we know what love is. 00:15:37.220 --> 00:15:39.940 Jesus Christ laid down his life for us, 00:15:40.300 --> 00:15:44.240 and we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. 00:15:44.840 --> 00:15:45.440 And we might say, 00:15:45.540 --> 00:15:46.920 I'd be willing to do that. 00:15:47.480 --> 00:15:48.920 If it came to the crunch, 00:15:49.220 --> 00:15:51.060 and a brother or sister was in need, 00:15:51.120 --> 00:15:53.120 and I could do something to help them, 00:15:53.180 --> 00:15:54.740 even if it cost me my life, 00:15:55.000 --> 00:15:56.680 I would do that. 00:15:57.560 --> 00:15:58.980 But for most of us, 00:15:59.160 --> 00:16:00.980 that would just be words. 00:16:01.700 --> 00:16:04.440 It's unlikely that we'll be asked to lay down our lives 00:16:04.440 --> 00:16:05.340 for our brothers and sisters. 00:16:05.340 --> 00:16:05.899 It's just possible, 00:16:05.899 --> 00:16:09.120 but probably unlikely for most of us. 00:16:10.019 --> 00:16:11.819 And so John goes on in verse 17 00:16:11.819 --> 00:16:13.519 to bring it home to us. 00:16:14.120 --> 00:16:16.299 Here is what it means in day-to-day life 00:16:16.299 --> 00:16:19.159 to lay down your life for your brothers and sisters. 00:16:19.299 --> 00:16:19.459 He says, 00:16:19.519 --> 00:16:20.939 If anyone has material possessions 00:16:20.939 --> 00:16:23.340 and sees a brother or sister in need, 00:16:23.399 --> 00:16:24.740 but has no pity on them, 00:16:25.179 --> 00:16:27.740 how can the love of Christ be in that person? 00:16:27.899 --> 00:16:28.620 Dear children, 00:16:28.620 --> 00:16:31.799 let us not love with words or speech, 00:16:31.799 --> 00:16:35.399 but with actions and in truth. 00:16:36.000 --> 00:16:38.139 See, it's not enough to think the heroic. 00:16:38.679 --> 00:16:39.039 To think, 00:16:39.179 --> 00:16:40.560 yes, if it came to the crunch, 00:16:40.720 --> 00:16:43.600 I would be willing to lay down my life for the Lord Jesus. 00:16:43.960 --> 00:16:45.759 I'd be willing to lay down my life 00:16:45.759 --> 00:16:48.379 for my Christian brothers and sisters. 00:16:48.379 --> 00:16:51.460 If there's no evidence of us being willing 00:16:51.460 --> 00:16:54.899 to make small sacrifices in our everyday life, 00:16:55.399 --> 00:16:56.659 then John would say to us, 00:16:56.720 --> 00:16:59.439 well, there's no evidence that you have that kind of love 00:16:59.439 --> 00:17:02.139 that you might make the big sacrifice. 00:17:03.439 --> 00:17:05.160 A few of us were involved last week 00:17:05.160 --> 00:17:07.359 in the Polar Explorers holiday club. 00:17:07.920 --> 00:17:10.700 And one of the characters we looked at there was Stephen. 00:17:11.079 --> 00:17:13.900 Stephen who became the first Christian martyr. 00:17:13.900 --> 00:17:16.320 And the key lesson with Stephen 00:17:16.320 --> 00:17:20.540 was that nothing is too ordinary for God. 00:17:21.220 --> 00:17:23.600 Because before he became the first Christian martyr, 00:17:24.060 --> 00:17:25.720 Stephen was one of seven deacons 00:17:25.720 --> 00:17:27.560 who was chosen by the church, 00:17:28.019 --> 00:17:29.440 by the apostles in the church, 00:17:29.800 --> 00:17:32.120 to serve those who were in need. 00:17:32.200 --> 00:17:35.320 The widows who had no means to support in their day 00:17:35.320 --> 00:17:37.500 from the state or anything like that, 00:17:37.700 --> 00:17:40.160 the church was supporting them by providing food. 00:17:40.220 --> 00:17:42.860 It was a very early form of food bank. 00:17:42.859 --> 00:17:45.359 And Stephen was happy to do the, 00:17:46.019 --> 00:17:47.779 in many ways, quite menial task 00:17:47.779 --> 00:17:49.479 of managing the food bank, 00:17:49.819 --> 00:17:53.719 of distributing the food to those who needed it. 00:17:54.619 --> 00:17:57.679 He was willing to do the ordinary things for God 00:17:57.679 --> 00:18:00.459 as evidence of the love that he had for others. 00:18:00.779 --> 00:18:03.779 And then he was called on to make the ultimate sacrifice 00:18:03.779 --> 00:18:06.359 as he was stoned to death for his witness 00:18:06.359 --> 00:18:08.599 about the Lord Jesus. 00:18:09.879 --> 00:18:12.699 They were not willing to do the everyday thing, 00:18:12.700 --> 00:18:15.880 to show our practical love to others in the everyday. 00:18:16.759 --> 00:18:17.900 Then we have to question 00:18:17.900 --> 00:18:20.340 whether we do have a real love for others at all 00:18:20.340 --> 00:18:23.500 and whether actually we would make that big sacrifice 00:18:23.500 --> 00:18:25.160 if it came to the peace. 00:18:26.160 --> 00:18:27.059 Can I challenge you? 00:18:27.700 --> 00:18:29.580 Let's all of us in the next week 00:18:29.580 --> 00:18:31.460 try to find an opportunity 00:18:31.460 --> 00:18:33.480 to show practical love 00:18:33.480 --> 00:18:36.059 in a sacrificial way to somebody else. 00:18:36.420 --> 00:18:38.240 It might be someone who's in need 00:18:38.240 --> 00:18:41.019 and you give them some food or some clothing 00:18:41.019 --> 00:18:42.059 or something like that. 00:18:42.859 --> 00:18:45.019 It might be someone needs something practical done. 00:18:45.079 --> 00:18:46.259 One of your Christian brothers and sisters 00:18:46.259 --> 00:18:47.599 struggling with something practically 00:18:47.599 --> 00:18:48.799 and you can help. 00:18:48.880 --> 00:18:50.500 It might be visiting someone who's lonely 00:18:50.500 --> 00:18:52.420 and would welcome a visit 00:18:52.420 --> 00:18:54.579 and a time spent reading God's word 00:18:54.579 --> 00:18:55.859 and praying together. 00:18:56.259 --> 00:18:58.120 It might be someone who's going through a difficult time 00:18:58.120 --> 00:18:59.420 and you can sit alongside them 00:18:59.420 --> 00:19:01.460 and talk to them and pray with them. 00:19:01.460 --> 00:19:03.480 Look for a practical thing 00:19:03.480 --> 00:19:05.100 that you wouldn't normally do 00:19:05.100 --> 00:19:07.400 that will show the love of Christ 00:19:07.400 --> 00:19:10.160 to your Christian brothers and sisters. 00:19:10.259 --> 00:19:12.279 That is how God calls us to be 00:19:12.279 --> 00:19:13.840 in our Christian communities. 00:19:14.420 --> 00:19:17.140 That is how we take the example of the Lord Jesus 00:19:17.140 --> 00:19:18.720 in everyday life 00:19:18.720 --> 00:19:23.140 and apply it to our church situation. 00:19:24.160 --> 00:19:26.840 No good having high thoughts of love 00:19:26.840 --> 00:19:29.120 and of devotion to the Lord Jesus 00:19:29.119 --> 00:19:31.099 if it's not seen in the practical, 00:19:31.599 --> 00:19:34.219 the everyday side of our Christian living. 00:19:35.459 --> 00:19:38.339 Let's move on to the second half of our passage. 00:19:38.899 --> 00:19:40.379 In the second half of our passage, 00:19:40.759 --> 00:19:42.379 John is addressing a problem 00:19:42.379 --> 00:19:44.859 that many of us will have experienced. 00:19:45.579 --> 00:19:48.259 And that problem is that we do something 00:19:48.259 --> 00:19:49.859 or there's something in our lives 00:19:49.859 --> 00:19:51.339 that we feel isn't quite right 00:19:51.339 --> 00:19:54.319 and we think, am I really a Christian? 00:19:55.159 --> 00:19:57.339 Do I really have salvation 00:19:57.339 --> 00:19:59.579 through the Lord Jesus Christ? 00:19:59.759 --> 00:20:01.480 That is what the false teachers 00:20:01.480 --> 00:20:02.779 were probably questioning 00:20:02.779 --> 00:20:05.139 about some people in the church in John's day 00:20:05.139 --> 00:20:07.000 and John dresses it head on. 00:20:08.019 --> 00:20:08.599 And he says, 00:20:08.839 --> 00:20:10.379 when your heart condemns you, 00:20:10.799 --> 00:20:11.959 when there's something about you 00:20:11.959 --> 00:20:13.159 you know is not right 00:20:13.159 --> 00:20:14.879 and you haven't shown the character 00:20:14.879 --> 00:20:16.379 of the Lord Jesus, 00:20:17.119 --> 00:20:18.879 don't listen to your heart. 00:20:19.299 --> 00:20:21.459 Remember that God is greater 00:20:21.459 --> 00:20:23.459 than your heart. 00:20:23.460 --> 00:20:25.900 And he says there are a number of things 00:20:25.900 --> 00:20:27.880 that would be evidences to you 00:20:27.880 --> 00:20:29.620 that you can have the assurance 00:20:29.620 --> 00:20:32.500 that you can know that you belong to Jesus, 00:20:32.840 --> 00:20:36.819 you can know that you have eternal life. 00:20:37.819 --> 00:20:39.460 Three key evidences, I think, 00:20:39.620 --> 00:20:40.779 he presents to us. 00:20:41.259 --> 00:20:42.180 And the first is the one 00:20:42.180 --> 00:20:43.200 we've been thinking about. 00:20:43.900 --> 00:20:45.640 It is strong evidence 00:20:45.640 --> 00:20:47.600 that we belong to Jesus 00:20:47.600 --> 00:20:50.259 if we have a real love for him 00:20:50.259 --> 00:20:52.700 and if that love is shown 00:20:52.700 --> 00:20:54.940 in our relations with others. 00:20:55.559 --> 00:20:57.220 That is what John's been writing about 00:20:57.220 --> 00:20:57.759 and he says, 00:20:58.119 --> 00:21:00.559 you can know that you belong to Christ 00:21:00.559 --> 00:21:04.319 if you have the love of Christ in you. 00:21:05.059 --> 00:21:07.099 If you doubt your salvation, 00:21:07.200 --> 00:21:07.700 if you think, 00:21:07.920 --> 00:21:09.440 well, am I really someone 00:21:09.440 --> 00:21:11.440 who belongs to the Lord Jesus? 00:21:12.680 --> 00:21:13.819 Examine your heart. 00:21:14.539 --> 00:21:15.960 Think when I think of the cross 00:21:15.960 --> 00:21:17.440 and the death of the Lord Jesus 00:21:17.440 --> 00:21:18.920 and all that he's done for me, 00:21:18.920 --> 00:21:21.240 does that fill me with love for him, 00:21:21.539 --> 00:21:23.279 with a desire to live for him 00:21:23.279 --> 00:21:24.320 and to serve him? 00:21:24.580 --> 00:21:25.539 And does it fill me 00:21:25.539 --> 00:21:27.279 with a practical love for others 00:21:27.279 --> 00:21:29.300 that I may show out in my life 00:21:29.300 --> 00:21:32.700 the love that the Lord Jesus showed to me? 00:21:33.380 --> 00:21:35.100 If you can find in yourselves 00:21:35.100 --> 00:21:37.160 that the love that you have for Christ 00:21:37.160 --> 00:21:38.480 reflecting his love for you 00:21:38.480 --> 00:21:40.940 and the love that you have for others, 00:21:41.519 --> 00:21:43.600 that is a very strong indicator 00:21:43.600 --> 00:21:45.460 that you belong to him, 00:21:45.460 --> 00:21:48.779 that you have eternal life. 00:21:49.740 --> 00:21:51.680 If we love others, 00:21:52.039 --> 00:21:52.700 says John, 00:21:53.000 --> 00:21:54.060 we can be confident 00:21:54.060 --> 00:21:56.420 that we have salvation through Jesus. 00:21:56.539 --> 00:21:58.340 Not that our love is what saves us. 00:21:58.519 --> 00:21:58.960 We're saved. 00:21:59.060 --> 00:21:59.600 It's not beginning. 00:21:59.700 --> 00:22:01.720 We're saved by believing in Jesus 00:22:01.720 --> 00:22:03.000 and that brings us to life. 00:22:03.279 --> 00:22:04.680 But the fact that we have love, 00:22:05.060 --> 00:22:07.100 that is an evidence of life 00:22:07.100 --> 00:22:08.400 in the Lord Jesus. 00:22:08.460 --> 00:22:09.759 And if your heart condemns you, 00:22:10.100 --> 00:22:11.660 look at the love that you have for him 00:22:11.660 --> 00:22:13.300 and the love that you show to others 00:22:13.299 --> 00:22:16.159 and that hopefully will give you confidence 00:22:16.159 --> 00:22:17.500 before him. 00:22:19.119 --> 00:22:20.619 Second evidence, says John, 00:22:20.680 --> 00:22:21.539 is in prayer. 00:22:22.440 --> 00:22:24.879 If we come to God with confidence, 00:22:25.500 --> 00:22:27.379 believing that he cares for us 00:22:27.379 --> 00:22:30.079 and believing that he wants to give us 00:22:30.079 --> 00:22:31.919 what we desire, 00:22:32.559 --> 00:22:33.440 then, says John, 00:22:33.440 --> 00:22:34.960 we have confidence for God 00:22:34.960 --> 00:22:37.740 and receive from him anything we ask 00:22:37.740 --> 00:22:39.460 because we keep his commands 00:22:39.460 --> 00:22:41.359 and do what pleases him. 00:22:41.480 --> 00:22:41.680 Now, don't, 00:22:41.920 --> 00:22:43.759 let's just skip over that last passage of the verse. 00:22:43.859 --> 00:22:44.940 It is about keeping commands 00:22:44.940 --> 00:22:45.819 which we'll come back to. 00:22:46.120 --> 00:22:47.319 It is about pleasing God 00:22:47.319 --> 00:22:48.599 and walking with him. 00:22:49.140 --> 00:22:50.259 But if we're doing that 00:22:50.259 --> 00:22:51.839 and we come to God in prayer, 00:22:52.059 --> 00:22:54.240 as we see answers to our prayer, 00:22:54.519 --> 00:22:56.579 we have greater confidence in our God 00:22:56.579 --> 00:22:58.579 and we can have greater confidence too 00:22:58.579 --> 00:22:59.940 in our salvation 00:22:59.940 --> 00:23:01.380 and the fact that we know him, 00:23:01.779 --> 00:23:03.740 that we have life through him. 00:23:04.460 --> 00:23:05.859 Again, we'd have to challenge ourselves. 00:23:05.859 --> 00:23:08.339 What is our prayer life like? 00:23:09.039 --> 00:23:11.059 Do we ask great things from God? 00:23:11.419 --> 00:23:14.419 Do we receive great things from God? 00:23:14.659 --> 00:23:16.919 Or do we actually come fairly tentatively 00:23:16.919 --> 00:23:19.079 and not with the kind of confidence 00:23:19.079 --> 00:23:21.639 that John suggests we should have? 00:23:22.019 --> 00:23:23.500 And then perhaps we don't see 00:23:23.500 --> 00:23:24.779 the great answers to prayer 00:23:24.779 --> 00:23:26.500 that we would like to, 00:23:26.819 --> 00:23:29.119 that God would want to give to us. 00:23:29.699 --> 00:23:31.059 But confidence before God, 00:23:31.219 --> 00:23:32.299 confidence in God 00:23:32.299 --> 00:23:34.679 and in our salvation through him 00:23:34.680 --> 00:23:37.039 comes as we pray to him, 00:23:37.080 --> 00:23:38.240 as we ask from him, 00:23:38.380 --> 00:23:40.759 as we seek to do his will 00:23:40.759 --> 00:23:42.060 in the way we ask 00:23:42.060 --> 00:23:44.060 and for his name to be glorified 00:23:44.060 --> 00:23:45.220 and as we see the answers, 00:23:45.580 --> 00:23:48.039 that increases our confidence in him. 00:23:50.519 --> 00:23:52.060 And then finally, John says 00:23:52.060 --> 00:23:53.060 we can have confidence 00:23:53.060 --> 00:23:54.799 in our salvation 00:23:54.799 --> 00:23:56.259 and the eternal life we have 00:23:56.259 --> 00:23:59.000 because of the indwelling spirit 00:23:59.000 --> 00:24:01.799 that Christ, that God gives us. 00:24:01.799 --> 00:24:03.339 Verse 24, 00:24:03.480 --> 00:24:04.940 the one who keeps God's commands 00:24:04.940 --> 00:24:05.819 lives in him 00:24:05.819 --> 00:24:07.240 and he in them 00:24:07.240 --> 00:24:08.879 and this is how we know 00:24:08.879 --> 00:24:09.960 that he lives in us. 00:24:10.379 --> 00:24:12.440 We know it by the spirit 00:24:12.440 --> 00:24:14.279 he gave us. 00:24:15.059 --> 00:24:16.180 And part of the purpose, 00:24:16.319 --> 00:24:17.619 the work of the spirit of God 00:24:17.619 --> 00:24:19.240 is to give us that assurance 00:24:19.240 --> 00:24:21.700 that we belong to the Lord Jesus, 00:24:21.839 --> 00:24:23.779 that we are God's children. 00:24:24.819 --> 00:24:26.059 We can also look at the work 00:24:26.059 --> 00:24:27.419 of the spirit in our lives 00:24:27.419 --> 00:24:28.579 and we can say that 00:24:28.579 --> 00:24:30.119 must have come from God. 00:24:30.119 --> 00:24:32.779 As we are able to do things 00:24:32.779 --> 00:24:33.879 in Christian service 00:24:33.879 --> 00:24:35.199 that perhaps we would find 00:24:35.199 --> 00:24:35.799 really difficult 00:24:35.799 --> 00:24:36.859 and maybe thought we couldn't do 00:24:36.859 --> 00:24:37.959 as we exercise the gifts 00:24:37.959 --> 00:24:39.159 of the spirit. 00:24:39.919 --> 00:24:40.739 As we see, 00:24:40.799 --> 00:24:42.279 or more likely perhaps others see, 00:24:42.579 --> 00:24:43.679 changes in our character 00:24:43.679 --> 00:24:45.019 that we demonstrate 00:24:45.019 --> 00:24:45.979 the fruit of the spirit, 00:24:46.079 --> 00:24:48.599 love, joy, peace, and so on. 00:24:49.159 --> 00:24:51.239 And the indwelling spirit within us 00:24:51.239 --> 00:24:53.259 is something that can give us confidence, 00:24:53.899 --> 00:24:55.219 that can give us the knowledge 00:24:55.219 --> 00:24:58.419 that we belong to the Lord Jesus. 00:24:58.420 --> 00:25:00.820 So if this morning 00:25:00.820 --> 00:25:02.279 you're trusting in the Lord Jesus 00:25:02.279 --> 00:25:03.660 and perhaps you're having doubts 00:25:03.660 --> 00:25:05.420 about your salvation, 00:25:06.019 --> 00:25:08.900 take this from what John writes to us, 00:25:09.560 --> 00:25:11.140 that we shouldn't be listening 00:25:11.140 --> 00:25:12.620 just to the guilty thoughts 00:25:12.620 --> 00:25:13.800 that come from conscience. 00:25:13.860 --> 00:25:14.920 Now, conscience is a good thing 00:25:14.920 --> 00:25:16.259 to recognize that we've done wrong 00:25:16.259 --> 00:25:17.400 and to be able to confess it 00:25:17.400 --> 00:25:18.539 before God. 00:25:18.960 --> 00:25:20.240 But we shouldn't be listening to that 00:25:20.240 --> 00:25:20.500 and saying, 00:25:20.580 --> 00:25:21.539 well, perhaps that means 00:25:21.539 --> 00:25:23.360 I'm not really a Christian. 00:25:24.180 --> 00:25:25.440 Look at the evidences 00:25:25.440 --> 00:25:27.000 that there are in your life, 00:25:27.059 --> 00:25:28.480 that you love the Lord Jesus, 00:25:28.600 --> 00:25:29.460 you love others, 00:25:29.840 --> 00:25:31.480 you can give answers 00:25:31.480 --> 00:25:32.799 to prayer from the past, 00:25:33.100 --> 00:25:34.440 that the spirit is in you 00:25:34.440 --> 00:25:35.720 and have confidence 00:25:35.720 --> 00:25:37.160 that you belong 00:25:37.160 --> 00:25:38.539 to the Lord Jesus. 00:25:40.380 --> 00:25:42.019 And then just to bring it together, 00:25:42.340 --> 00:25:43.200 verse 23. 00:25:44.160 --> 00:25:46.420 What is it that defines us 00:25:46.420 --> 00:25:48.840 as Christians if we are? 00:25:49.440 --> 00:25:51.320 It is obeying the command 00:25:51.320 --> 00:25:52.640 of the Lord Jesus. 00:25:52.640 --> 00:25:53.280 And John says, 00:25:53.340 --> 00:25:53.940 this is his command. 00:25:54.020 --> 00:25:55.040 He says it's one command, 00:25:55.160 --> 00:25:57.020 so it's two parts to one command. 00:25:57.460 --> 00:25:58.720 The command is to believe 00:25:58.720 --> 00:26:00.160 in the name of his son, 00:26:00.520 --> 00:26:01.259 Jesus Christ. 00:26:01.340 --> 00:26:02.360 That's very much the message 00:26:02.360 --> 00:26:03.300 of John's gospel, 00:26:03.700 --> 00:26:05.860 repeated here in John's epistle. 00:26:06.480 --> 00:26:09.000 And also it is to love one another 00:26:09.000 --> 00:26:11.340 as he commanded us. 00:26:12.640 --> 00:26:14.140 So challenges take away this morning. 00:26:14.300 --> 00:26:14.880 First is, 00:26:15.040 --> 00:26:17.420 do you believe in the name of Jesus? 00:26:18.180 --> 00:26:19.840 Do you believe that Jesus 00:26:19.840 --> 00:26:21.020 is the son of God 00:26:21.019 --> 00:26:22.319 who came into the world 00:26:22.319 --> 00:26:23.740 to live the perfect life, 00:26:23.900 --> 00:26:25.079 who died on the cross 00:26:25.079 --> 00:26:26.839 to take punishment for your sin, 00:26:27.319 --> 00:26:29.379 and that through repenting of sin 00:26:29.379 --> 00:26:30.420 and trusting in him, 00:26:30.700 --> 00:26:33.299 you can have eternal life. 00:26:33.960 --> 00:26:34.980 That is the beginning 00:26:34.980 --> 00:26:36.420 of Christian life. 00:26:36.480 --> 00:26:37.599 It is the only way 00:26:37.599 --> 00:26:39.420 to begin in Christian life, 00:26:39.559 --> 00:26:41.180 to believe in the Lord Jesus 00:26:41.180 --> 00:26:43.599 and to trust in him. 00:26:44.319 --> 00:26:45.359 And if you have done that, 00:26:45.759 --> 00:26:46.799 take the second part 00:26:46.799 --> 00:26:47.420 of the command 00:26:47.420 --> 00:26:48.560 and say, 00:26:48.900 --> 00:26:50.519 are you loving one another? 00:26:50.680 --> 00:26:51.320 Are you loving 00:26:51.320 --> 00:26:52.300 your Christian brothers 00:26:52.300 --> 00:26:52.980 and sisters 00:26:52.980 --> 00:26:54.460 as the Lord Jesus 00:26:54.460 --> 00:26:55.560 has commanded you 00:26:55.560 --> 00:26:58.680 and as he loved you? 00:26:59.340 --> 00:26:59.920 If you are, 00:26:59.980 --> 00:27:00.779 have that assurance 00:27:00.779 --> 00:27:03.580 that you belong to him. 00:27:05.019 --> 00:27:05.759 Let me finish 00:27:05.759 --> 00:27:06.320 with some words 00:27:06.320 --> 00:27:07.100 by Bob Dylan. 00:27:07.600 --> 00:27:08.100 Bob Dylan, 00:27:08.220 --> 00:27:08.860 you may know, 00:27:08.980 --> 00:27:09.640 came to faith 00:27:09.640 --> 00:27:10.380 in the Lord Jesus 00:27:10.380 --> 00:27:11.440 in the late 70s, 00:27:11.500 --> 00:27:13.000 recorded several gospel albums. 00:27:13.220 --> 00:27:13.860 I think he may have 00:27:13.860 --> 00:27:15.120 slipped back a bit since then, 00:27:15.119 --> 00:27:17.199 but he wrote some tremendous songs 00:27:17.199 --> 00:27:19.219 of salvation. 00:27:19.939 --> 00:27:21.599 And the second gospel album 00:27:21.599 --> 00:27:23.479 is the one that's 00:27:23.479 --> 00:27:24.479 on the screen 00:27:24.479 --> 00:27:26.379 up here just now. 00:27:27.139 --> 00:27:28.159 And I want to just finish 00:27:28.159 --> 00:27:29.099 with some words from that. 00:27:29.179 --> 00:27:29.899 Forget Bob Dylan, 00:27:30.019 --> 00:27:31.299 forget who wrote it. 00:27:31.659 --> 00:27:33.339 Just think about the words 00:27:33.339 --> 00:27:34.559 and think about 00:27:34.559 --> 00:27:35.879 how they could apply to you. 00:27:35.919 --> 00:27:36.399 Whether it is 00:27:36.399 --> 00:27:37.179 that you need to come 00:27:37.179 --> 00:27:37.819 to put your faith 00:27:37.819 --> 00:27:38.599 in the Lord Jesus 00:27:38.599 --> 00:27:39.939 or whether you need 00:27:39.939 --> 00:27:41.139 to have greater confidence 00:27:41.139 --> 00:27:42.579 in what you have 00:27:42.579 --> 00:27:43.500 through him. 00:27:43.500 --> 00:27:45.339 This is what Bob Dylan 00:27:45.339 --> 00:27:46.460 wrote in the song 00:27:46.460 --> 00:27:47.859 called Saved. 00:27:48.500 --> 00:27:49.940 By his grace, 00:27:50.059 --> 00:27:51.099 I have been touched. 00:27:51.779 --> 00:27:53.079 By his word, 00:27:53.200 --> 00:27:54.200 I have been healed. 00:27:55.259 --> 00:27:56.240 By his hand, 00:27:56.299 --> 00:27:57.160 I've been delivered. 00:27:58.180 --> 00:27:59.279 By his spirit, 00:27:59.700 --> 00:28:00.819 I've been sealed. 00:28:01.980 --> 00:28:02.960 By his truth, 00:28:03.000 --> 00:28:03.980 I can be upright. 00:28:04.940 --> 00:28:05.980 By his strength, 00:28:06.039 --> 00:28:07.000 I do endure. 00:28:08.160 --> 00:28:09.299 By his power, 00:28:09.740 --> 00:28:10.720 I've been lifted. 00:28:10.720 --> 00:28:12.799 In his love, 00:28:13.360 --> 00:28:15.420 I am secure. 00:28:15.880 --> 00:28:16.759 Let's pray together. 00:28:20.920 --> 00:28:21.539 Our Father, 00:28:21.600 --> 00:28:21.980 we thank you 00:28:21.980 --> 00:28:22.900 for your word to us. 00:28:23.660 --> 00:28:24.299 We thank you 00:28:24.299 --> 00:28:25.559 for the priority 00:28:25.559 --> 00:28:27.420 that we must give to love. 00:28:27.500 --> 00:28:27.920 We thank you 00:28:27.920 --> 00:28:29.460 for the tremendous love 00:28:29.460 --> 00:28:30.319 that the Lord Jesus 00:28:30.319 --> 00:28:31.220 had for us 00:28:31.220 --> 00:28:31.980 to lay down 00:28:31.980 --> 00:28:33.259 his life for us. 00:28:33.299 --> 00:28:34.440 And we can hardly imagine 00:28:34.440 --> 00:28:35.779 what that means. 00:28:35.839 --> 00:28:36.920 We are just so thankful 00:28:36.920 --> 00:28:38.940 that he took our place, 00:28:38.940 --> 00:28:40.920 that he died our death, 00:28:41.360 --> 00:28:42.840 that he took our sins 00:28:42.840 --> 00:28:44.140 on himself. 00:28:44.720 --> 00:28:45.299 And we thank you 00:28:45.299 --> 00:28:46.580 that in some small measure, 00:28:47.000 --> 00:28:47.700 we can reflect 00:28:47.700 --> 00:28:49.000 the love of the Lord Jesus 00:28:49.000 --> 00:28:50.840 in our love for one another. 00:28:51.400 --> 00:28:52.059 And we pray that 00:28:52.059 --> 00:28:52.680 those of us 00:28:52.680 --> 00:28:53.259 who know him, 00:28:53.340 --> 00:28:53.900 that that may be 00:28:53.900 --> 00:28:54.600 very evident 00:28:54.600 --> 00:28:55.559 in the way 00:28:55.559 --> 00:28:56.759 we live together. 00:28:56.980 --> 00:28:58.080 There may be no sign 00:28:58.080 --> 00:28:58.820 of hate, 00:28:58.940 --> 00:28:59.620 of resentment, 00:29:00.259 --> 00:29:01.320 of not getting on 00:29:01.320 --> 00:29:02.420 as brothers and sisters. 00:29:03.059 --> 00:29:03.640 That our lives 00:29:03.640 --> 00:29:04.500 may be characterized 00:29:04.500 --> 00:29:06.160 by that self-sacrifice 00:29:06.160 --> 00:29:07.860 that the Lord Jesus had. 00:29:07.859 --> 00:29:09.579 And that that may be seen 00:29:09.579 --> 00:29:10.919 in the everyday things 00:29:10.919 --> 00:29:11.439 of life, 00:29:11.859 --> 00:29:12.899 as we are willing 00:29:12.899 --> 00:29:14.099 to put ourselves out, 00:29:14.479 --> 00:29:15.779 often in relatively 00:29:15.779 --> 00:29:16.979 small things, 00:29:17.299 --> 00:29:18.159 to show our love 00:29:18.159 --> 00:29:18.879 for one another 00:29:18.879 --> 00:29:20.559 and how that reflects 00:29:20.559 --> 00:29:21.500 our love 00:29:21.500 --> 00:29:22.839 for the Lord Jesus. 00:29:23.899 --> 00:29:24.679 We thank you too 00:29:24.679 --> 00:29:25.719 for the verses 00:29:25.719 --> 00:29:26.439 at the end 00:29:26.439 --> 00:29:27.500 which tell us 00:29:27.500 --> 00:29:28.319 that we can have 00:29:28.319 --> 00:29:29.000 assurance 00:29:29.000 --> 00:29:30.579 that we know 00:29:30.579 --> 00:29:31.359 and belong 00:29:31.359 --> 00:29:32.259 to the Lord Jesus 00:29:32.259 --> 00:29:34.119 and have eternal life. 00:29:34.699 --> 00:29:35.099 We thank you 00:29:35.099 --> 00:29:36.139 that that comes first 00:29:36.140 --> 00:29:37.340 from believing in him 00:29:37.340 --> 00:29:38.320 and if there are any 00:29:38.320 --> 00:29:39.020 who don't yet 00:29:39.020 --> 00:29:40.759 believe in the Lord Jesus 00:29:40.759 --> 00:29:42.020 haven't yet come to that point, 00:29:42.100 --> 00:29:42.800 we pray that you will 00:29:42.800 --> 00:29:43.720 draw them to him 00:29:43.720 --> 00:29:44.720 and that they may 00:29:44.720 --> 00:29:46.400 find life in him. 00:29:47.300 --> 00:29:47.920 And we thank you 00:29:47.920 --> 00:29:48.860 that we can have 00:29:48.860 --> 00:29:50.040 assurance of salvation 00:29:50.040 --> 00:29:51.259 as we look at the love 00:29:51.259 --> 00:29:52.360 that the Lord 00:29:52.360 --> 00:29:52.980 has planted 00:29:52.980 --> 00:29:53.840 in our hearts, 00:29:54.420 --> 00:29:55.560 as we look at the way 00:29:55.560 --> 00:29:56.340 we can come to you 00:29:56.340 --> 00:29:57.520 with our prayer requests 00:29:57.520 --> 00:29:58.620 and see them 00:29:58.620 --> 00:29:59.580 wonderfully answered, 00:30:00.180 --> 00:30:01.280 as we think of the work 00:30:01.280 --> 00:30:01.880 of the Spirit 00:30:01.880 --> 00:30:02.760 in our lives 00:30:02.760 --> 00:30:04.180 and the daily assurance 00:30:04.180 --> 00:30:05.360 that he gives us 00:30:05.360 --> 00:30:07.400 about our faith. 00:30:07.740 --> 00:30:08.580 Help us to have 00:30:08.580 --> 00:30:09.460 that assurance 00:30:09.460 --> 00:30:12.020 and to demonstrate it again 00:30:12.020 --> 00:30:13.000 through love 00:30:13.000 --> 00:30:13.960 for others. 00:30:14.500 --> 00:30:14.860 We thank you 00:30:14.860 --> 00:30:15.420 for your presence 00:30:15.420 --> 00:30:16.720 as we've looked at 00:30:16.720 --> 00:30:17.480 your word this morning. 00:30:17.580 --> 00:30:17.960 We thank you 00:30:17.960 --> 00:30:18.620 for the opportunity 00:30:18.620 --> 00:30:19.620 we've had to worship 00:30:19.620 --> 00:30:21.320 and to learn from you 00:30:21.320 --> 00:30:22.460 and we commit ourselves 00:30:22.460 --> 00:30:23.120 to you now 00:30:23.120 --> 00:30:23.940 in the name 00:30:23.940 --> 00:30:25.220 of the Lord Jesus Christ. 00:30:25.940 --> 00:30:26.260 Amen. 00:30:26.260 --> 00:30:26.360 Amen.