Some Simple Absolutes - (Part II) A New World View

Some Simple Absolutes

Part II A New World View

Trinity Bible Church 6/29/08 Pastor Gene Friberg

Introduction: 1 John 5:19 (18-20)

We know that whoever is born of God does not sin; but he who has been born of God keeps himself, and the wicked one does not touch him.

19 We know that we are of God, and the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one.  20 And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us an understanding, that we may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life. NKJV

Last week 1 John 5:18 … (tell).

This week, verse 19, We know that we are of God, and the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one. 

This verse is so important to understand that D. M. Lloyd-Jones declares if you don’t grasp it, you won’t comprehend the entire book of 1 John!

(Sub-title), today’s message may ruin you to be politically correct.  If you accept my teaching on this verse, you won’t be able to look at current events, history, or even the future of your country the same way.  If this verse should control your world view it may be those that are not born again will be frustrated with your narrow mindedness.

*Susan and her young son, Reid, were vacationing in the Twin Cities so they just had to go to the Mega Mall.  As they took in how large the place was they ended up in their favorite type of store, a large bookstore. Engrossed in making a selection, Susan had lost sight of her child.
"Reid!" she called out, racing through the aisles, "Reid!"
Just as she spotted the boy, she bumped into another customer. "Pardon me, ma'am," he said, "but most folks come here because they already like to read. No sense in wasting your time trying to convince them."

John says there’s some things we know, but my role today is to try to convince you!

There are three things John wants to conclude his letter by stating “we know”.

The apostle supposed that true Christians might have so clear evidence on that subject as to leave no doubt on their own minds that they were the children of God. Compare 1 John 3:14; 2 Timothy 1:12. Barnes’ Notes

I. We know believers belong to God. 1 John 5:10-13  He who believes in the Son of God has the witness in himself; he who does not believe God has made Him a liar, because he has not believed the testimony that God has given of His Son. 11 And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. 12 He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. 13 These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life, and that you may continue to believe in the name of the Son of God. NKJV

A. We walk in light, not darkness.

The very definition of “Christian” is “Christ ones” that is “followers of Christ”, people who know who they are and more important, whose they are.  They are not individuals who are groping around in the dark looking for direction but know they are following the very source of light, Jesus Christ Himself.

There have been some that wish we lived in an earlier time when everyone in America went to church and the morals of society were more God honoring.  The problem with that thinking is that many went to church on Sunday morning but never worshipped God again for seven days.  We know now of many homes with alcoholism, spouse and child abuse, things too horrible to speak of yet the veneer of the country seemed to look Christian.

Not so today, there is raw immoral sewage pouring out 24 hours a day in our electric media.  Violence and witchcraft are sold in books and video games without hardly and outcry by the public.  The only time they make a fuss is when Christians speak out against it and then they cry “censorship”.

I want you to know something.  These are great days to be living in.  The lines between Christian and non-Christian is no longer grey but getting more and more black and white! 

Why don’t you let your kids read Harry Potter and engage in fantasy role playing games?  Why don’t you drink and do drugs like you used to?

Why don’t you let your spouse go out with their friend clubbing and why don’t you want to go yourself?

Why?  Because “We know that we are of God” and He owns us and tells us in His word not to be part of darkness any more!

B. Christians are not in a state of uncertainty.

A minister friend of mine once told me how to win an argument with a Jehovah’s Witness and I suppose it would work with a Mormon too.  He said what he likes to do is to bring up their insecurity about eternal things.  They don’t have a rock bed confidence that they will inherit all they hope to.

Are we Christians no better?  Do we wonder if we’ll end up in heaven or not? 

There is a lot of dislike in the theological world about the subject of assurance.  They think somehow it is a license to sin if you allow someone to believe that God will actually be faithful to the end of their life.  They mock and say “Do you believe ‘once saved always saved?’”

Why do we believe we can we have assurance? 

Why can we be secure in our eternal destiny?

1. First of all, the Bible is full of promises, our text is one and the verses right before it testify this wonderful truth. (See 1 John 5:12-13) 

2. Is a Christian just a member of a church, a person who prays and reads the Bible?  They are that and much more!  When Jesus said, “You must be born again” He was referring to all of us; each of us must be born from above.  We have assurance only when

God has caused this to happen inside of us, when we have been partakers of the divine nature born by the power of the Holy Spirit.

We are not hoping and trying hard to be Christians, it has happened to us and we rejoice in His gracious work.

3. Is there arrogance and pride to insist you know you are going to heaven?

On the contrary, we know it is by grace we have been saved, not of our own works.  A Christian is humble and thankful to God and wanting to tell all who will listen about what God has done in forgiving their sins, and the promise is for others as well.

II. We know unbelievers belong to the devil. Ephesians 6:11-12

Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.  NKJV

A. Why is the world in such a mess?

What is the reason for wars, economic hardships, relationship breakdowns, starvation, aids, etc…?  When one considers the great strides forward of the last century, one would think all the worlds problems could have been solved by now.

What is holding us back from world peace and harmony?

• Sociological?
• Economics?
• Political?
• Intellect?
• Moral?
• Spiritual?

Which do you think is the Bible’s view of what is the problem in the world today?

1. Can we help make up the lack?

It is not that the world lacks goodness and things ought to be better than it is, but that world system is controlled by entirely and absolutely by an evil power.

Lieth in the wicked one-is embraced in the arms of the Devil, where it lies fast asleep and carnally secure, deriving its heat and power from its infernal fosterer. What a truly awful state! And do not the actions, tempers, propensities, opinions, and maxims of all worldly men prove and illustrate this! "In this short expression," says Mr. Wesley, "the horrible state of the world is painted in the most lively colours; a comment on which we have in the actions, conversations, contracts, quarrels and friendships of worldly men."  Adam Clarke

2. Is it only here that we see this teaching?

No, Jesus confronted the devil often He called him “the prince of this world” John 12:31 and Paul referred to him as the “prince of the power of the air” Eph. 2:2

3. What caused this problem?

To answer that we need to recover is the Biblical message of creation, sin, and redemption.

You may have been asked recently, “If God created everything, why is the world in such a mess?  There must not be a God or else He is extremely weak and if He is why should anyone trust Him?”

What did you answer?  What would you answer if someone asked you that question this week?  You could answer by saying, “The Gospel on one hand”.

·        God, the God of the Bible, created all things and they were good.

·        He created man and woman in His image with only one prohibition, “don’t eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil”.

·        They disobeyed Him, listening instead to the devil’s deception, and ate of the tree’s fruit thereby incurring the just wrath of God.  Because of that act of disobedience the whole world fell into the sin and misery that we have seen throughout history.

·        Jesus came and took our sins on Himself and suffered the wrath of God when He died on the cross.

·        All who look to Him and believe on Him will be saved.

B. We ought not to be surprised.

If we know 1 John 5:19 to be true, why do so many Christian get shocked at the headlines?

* Middle school girls have a pregnancy pact.

* Bikini clad and topless servers are bringing in more customers at a local coffee shop in Washington state.

* Same sex marriages pronounced legal in California.

Does this shock us?  Why shouldn’t it?  Don’t we believe the whole world is under the devil’s power?

* Accused triple-murderer Jeffrey Gilham earned a hung-jury verdict in April in Sydney, Australia, by relentlessly denying that he had stabbed to death his mother and father. They and Gilham's brother all died by the same knife, at about the same time, stabbed from 13 to 16 times each in the heart, by a murderer kneeling over the victims. Nevertheless, Gilham said he killed only his brother and not the parents. [Sydney Morning Herald, 3-19-08]

*Jessica Vasquez, 19, was arrested in Indianapolis in April for a road-rage assault, but swore she was only exercising self-defense. Her victim, an 81-year-old woman whom Vasquez said was driving too slow, had been punched in the face, yanked from her car and thrown to the ground, suffering leg fractures in 14 places. [Indianapolis Star, 5-1-08]

*Among the items on the menu for world leaders who met in June in Rome to discuss the crisis in world hunger: pasta with a sauce of pumpkin and shrimp, veal rolls, pastry puffs with corn and mozzarella, cheese mousse, Parmesan risotto, ragout of veal with legumes and zucchini pie, washed down with fine Italian wines. [Washington Post-AP, 6-4-08]

(Source of last three - http://www.newsoftheweird.com/archive/index.html )

What is the reason behind all the madness we see in our world today? We know that we are of God, and the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one. 

C. What does it mean, under the sway?

It means under his power, control, and rule.

*I was sitting at an old fashioned drive-in yesterday in Taylors Falls.  I asked the person with me, “If you had a Holly-wood director come into this town and set up the scene from this Bible verse, what would it look like?”

If a movie studio was going to depict for us what it looks like to see something under the power, control, and rule of the devil what would it look like?  What will Taylors Falls look like under the devil’s power?  We know what they would do; there would be fires, raping, murdering, looting, general mayhem in the streets.  Why do we think that?  Because that’s what we think of when we think of the devil’s power unleashed on men.

What if I was to tell you “Not so”?

Whatever town you live in, this verse is true yet you don’t see that kind of chaos everyday do you?  What then does it mean that he has control or power?

It does mean all the misery and woe on the earth is a direct result of his nature of deceptiveness and his intense hatred of God but that is not what you see as you sit in a drive in with a bunch of other people enjoying a summer day in Minnesota.

I then asked, “What if we went to each of these people in their cars and sitting at the other picnic tables and told them that God wants to forgive their sins and they just need to look to Jesus right now to be saved”.  What do you think would happen?

They would either get mad and say something rude or they would be indignant and mock me to scorn.

Why is that?  Why would they take something that has given me such hope and joy and throw it back in my face?

We know… the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one. 

Yes, the devil is involved in much ugliness in the world today.  But the most ugly thing happening anywhere is the rejection of Jesus Christ by the very people He came to save.  This is how we know the devil is alive and well on planet earth.

Conclusion: We know we have a purpose.

We know that we are children of God, and that the whole world is under the control of the evil one. NIV

A woman told this story.

*There was an unexpected knock on my door, and like I always do I first opened the peephole and asked, "Who's there?"
"Parcel post, ma'am. I have a package that needs a signature."
"Where's the package?" I asked suspiciously. The deliveryman held it up.
"Could I see some ID?" I said, still not convinced.
"Lady," he replied wearily, "if I wanted to break into your house, I'd probably just use these." And he pulled out the keys I had left in the door.

In some things we hold out for more information before we act, we don’t need to do that when the keys are given to us by God!  If we believe the text, what should we do?

A. First of all, be sure of your own self.  Do you know today that you are a child of God?

If not, you can, remember the “The Gospel on one hand”?

1. God, the God of the Bible, created all things and they were good.

2. He created man and woman in His image with only one prohibition, “don’t eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil”.

3. They disobeyed Him, listening instead to the devil’s deception, and ate of the tree’s fruit thereby incurring the just wrath of God.  Because of that act of disobedience the whole world fell into the sin and misery we have seen throughout history.

4. Jesus came and took our sins on Himself when He died on the cross.

5. All who look to Him and believe on Him will be saved.

B. We are not to run away from the world and the devil, but we are to stand. 

1. First of all, pray.  Pray for the people you can influence then pray for those in positions of influence on others; like business, education, local and national security, and government.

2. Guard your heart.  Make sure the deception of the devil doesn’t cloud your mind and heart towards God.  Don’t let the world pollute your soul.

3. Work to relieve suffering and restrain evil wherever you can.  Have compassion on the afflicted and be ready to help whenever needed.

 C. Look at your church purpose statement again, take time to realize it has an abbreviated “take home” message for you to apply.

(Much of the material for this message came from D. M. Lloyd-Jones, Life in Christ.)

*Thanks to Pastor Tim for these joke!*
http://www.cybersalt.org/cleanlaugh