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John writes with direct revelation of God about the testimony of where eternal life is found. Because this life comes from God, it follows that we must experience it according to His design and purpose.
Observations:
- Being “born” of God means experiencing life as belonging to God
A. Orthodoxy: Means Jesus as “Christ” is your personal Lord
The 3 dangers with getting Jesus wrong in John are:
#1 – Denial by heresy
#2 – Denial by abandonment
#3 – Denial by disobedience
B. Orthopraxy: Means loving the church as belonging to God - Being “born” of God defines our living faith for the identity, strength, and perseverance of the church
- The grounding of our living faith is God’s testimony of His Son
Conclusions:
- The most important content of your faith is Jesus as your Lord
- The most important expression of your faith is your love for God’s children
– If you do not find a love for God in loving His family you do not have life in the Son
Application:
- Step #1 – Trust the testimony of the Holy Spirit about the Son
- Step #2 – Confess with your mouth that Jesus is your Lord
- Step #3 – Practice the Christian faith by loving your church family
Matthew 16:13-16
“When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” “But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
Matthew 28:19-20
“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
1 Corinthians 15:1-2
“Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain.”
1 John 4:2-3
“This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world.”
2 Peter 2:1
“But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves.”
1 Timothy 5:8
“Anyone who does not provide for their relatives, and especially for their own household, has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.”
1 John 2:19-23
“They went out from us, but they did not really belong to us. For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us; but their going showed that none of them belonged to us. But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth. I do not write to you because you do not know the truth, but because you do know it and because no lie comes from the truth. Who is the liar? It is whoever denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a person is the antichrist—denying the Father and the Son. No one who denies the Son has the Father; whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also.”
Titus 1:16
“They claim to know God, but by their actions they deny him. They are detestable, disobedient and unfit for doing anything good.”
2 Corinthians 13:1
“Every matter must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.”
John 13:34-35
“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”
Romans 10:9
“If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”
2 Corinthians 13:5
“Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test?”