1 / 15

Christ, or Sin

Christ, or Sin. 1 John 3:1-12 April 24 , 2011. As We Read . Remember that we have one side of what was probably a dialog Even though this does not appear to be a personal letter, as such

golda
Download Presentation

Christ, or Sin

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Christ, or Sin 1 John 3:1-12 April 24, 2011

  2. As We Read ... • Remember that we have one side of what was probably a dialog • Even though this does not appear to be a personal letter, as such • When the writer addresses a specific issue or makes a specific statement or poses a specific question, he is likely dealing with a specific problem • John had probably become aware of problems within a church and was writing to address them

  3. God’s Great Love • 1 John 3:1a • 1See how great a love the Father has bestowed on us, that we would be called children of God; and such we are. • What does it mean to you to be a “child of God”? • Paul expressed a similar thought in 1 Cor 2:9 • 9but just as it is written, “Things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard, And which have not entered the heart of man, All that God has prepared for those who love Him.” • The Creator of All has chosen us!

  4. Unknown to the World • 1 John 3:1b • For this reason the world does not know us, because it did not know Him.  • What does John mean when he says that the “world does not know us”? • How did the world not know Jesus? • Why does our being a child of God contribute to the world not knowing us? • How does this relate to the world today? • Does the world know us?

  5. Purify Yourself • 1 John 3:2-3 • 2Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is. 3And everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure. • We will see Him as he is ... • How and why are we to “purify ourselves”? • Is this something that we can accomplish on our own? • If not, then how?

  6. An Admonition from Paul • Romans 6:13 • 12Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its lusts, 13and do not go on presenting the members of your body to sin as instruments of unrighteousness; but present yourselves to God as those alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. 14For sin shall not be master over you, for you are not under law but under grace. • Sin shall not/should not be our master

  7. Live Righteously • Titus 2:11-14 • 11For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, 12instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age, 13looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus, 14who gave Himself for us to redeem us from every lawless deed, and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds.

  8. The Lawlessness of Sin • 1 John 3:4-6 • 4Everyone who practices sin also practices lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness.5You know that He appeared in order to take away sins; and in Him there is no sin. 6No one who abides in Him sins; no one who sins has seen Him or knows Him. • Define “sin” ... • How did Christ take away sin? • Does John really mean that we do not sin if we abide in Him? • Or that if we sin – even once – that we do not know Him?

  9. The Litmus Test • 1 John 3:7-8a • 7Little children, make sure no one deceives you; the one who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous; 8the one who practices sin is of the devil; for the devil has sinned from the beginning. • John was apparently confronting some who claimed to be in a relationship with God, but were living unrighteous lives • There are only two games in town • Righteousness vs. Sin • Good vs. Evil • God vs. Satan

  10. Christ’s Purpose • 1 John 3:8b-9 • The Son of God appeared for this purpose, to destroy the works of the devil. 9No one who is born of God practices sin, because His seed abides in him; and he cannot sin, because he is born of God.  • Compare with John 18:37 • John says that those born of God don’t practice sin, but then goes on to repeat the idea that those born of God cannot sin • Does this fit with your view of Christian theology? • How does “His seed” abide in believers?

  11. It’s Obvious • 1 John 3:10 • 10By this the children of God and the children of the devil are obvious: anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor the one who does not love his brother. • Whichever camp we choose to side with, it will be obvious • HOW WE BEHAVE SHOWS TO WHOM WE BELONG! • Once again, John makes a statement that hints at a problem in the ranks • Those who claim to be of God but do not love ...

  12. An Example from History • John 3:11-12 • 11For this is the message which you have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another; 12not as Cain, who was of the evil one and slew his brother. And for what reason did he slay him? Because his deeds were evil, and his brother’s were righteous. • Why the reference to Cain and Abel? • What does this have to do with the current subject? • Abel’s righteousness put the spotlight on Cain’s unrighteousness • Is the same true of us today?

  13. Bringing It Home • If those who belong to Him do not sin, then how do we eliminate sin from our lives so that we can ne numbered among His? • Is this even possible? • Remember, there are only two games in town • Righteousness • Sin • Based on what John writes, it possible for us to ever be “good” enough to know God?

  14. The Divine Nature • Do I have the divine nature within me or am I merely pretending to be a Christian? • Do I cultivate this divine nature by daily Bible reading and prayer? • Has any unconfessed sin defiled my inner man? Am I willing to confess and forsake it? • Do I allow my old nature to control my thoughts and desires, or does the divine nature rule me? • When temptation comes, do I “play with it” or do I flee from it? Do I immediately yield to the divine nature within me?

  15. Questions? • Next week • “Loving Christ: Hating Each Other”(John 3:14-24)

More Related