1 John

Reality Check: The One Prayer That God Doesn’t Answer

As we conclude our series on 1 John, we examine 1 John 5:16–21. One thing you can “be sure of is that your sins will find you out.” you can hide sin for a season, but it will always find you. It reminds me of the young couple about to get married. The young man went to his dad and said, “I’m a bit apprehensive about getting married, Dad”. “why, son”, said the dad. “well, I’ve got terribly smelly feet dad and it’ll be so embarrassing when my wife finds out”. “don’t worry about it, son, just be sure to go to bed with your socks on and she’ll never notice the smell. You’ll be fine”. Meanwhile, the young lady goes to her mother and tells her, “I’m a bit worried about getting married, mom, because I’ve got terrible bad breath in the mornings and it’ll be so embarrassing when my husband finds out”. Mom says to her daughter, “don’t worry, dear. All you need to do is, be sure not to open your mouth first thing in the morning. Don’t say a single word until you’ve been to the bathroom and brushed your teeth.” The wedding goes off fine and for six months they each manage to keep their secrets safe. Then one morning at about 5.00 am, the young husband wakes up and suddenly realizes one of his socks has come off in bed. He frantically rummages around under the bed clothes trying to find this elusive smelly sock when suddenly his young wife wakes up. As he pops his head out from under the blankets she says to him, “what on earth are you doing”? He replies, “oh no, you’ve eaten one of my socks”! You can hide something for a while, but when you least expect it you will be exposed. Read More
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Reality Check: How to Abide And Conquer Fear

The text we will study this morning was the favorite text of one of my spiritual heroes William Tyndale, the first man to translate the New Testament into english from the Greek. At the age of 30, Tyndale was the private tutor of a six-year-old named Harry Walsh, son of a Knight of Gloucestershire, in Sodbury. Later in life Harry Walsh recounted with perfect clarity the evening Tyndale informed him that he was leaving the town of Sodbury. Turning in his Greek New Testament to 1 John 4, Tyndale began to read, translating into English, for young Harry. When he came to 1 John 4:19, Tyndale reminded Harry that these words were the reason he was certain he would enter the Kingdom of God. “why must you go?” asked Harry sadly. “because it is time the people have the Bible in their own language,” Tyndale responded. Tyndale was about to embark on the work that changed the world: the translation of the New Testament into English, along with the Torah and Jonah. Years later, on an October morning in 1536, Harry Walsh sat by the dining room fire staring out the window. He had just heard the news that his dear childhood tutor, William Tyndale, had been strangled and burned for translating the Bible into English. Taking his wife by her arm, he led her across the room where they both stood in reverent silence before the scripture that was hanging on their wall: “we love him because He first loved us.” Read More
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Reality Check: You Can’t Show What You Don’t Know

Rig, our 5 year old son, loves to play with his super hero action figures. He lines them up all the good guys, and the bad guys. He props up his bat cave in one corner, and the batmobile in the other. Dinosaurs perch from the bed overlooking the floor, while stuffed animals take their place around the dresser. I have come to realize that there is no rhyme or reason to the order. It changes daily. Ryder, his 3 year old little brother, mimics every move Rig makes. When Rig makes a noise, so does Ryder. When Rig launches a frontal attack, so does Ryder. Unfortunately, Ryder has 2 figures that join the battle every night: Buzz Lightyear and Woody. I don’t have the heart to tell him that woody doesn’t stand a chance against Superman, Batman, or the Green Lantern. I don’t participate in the super hero battle much. I just spend my time watching, listening, and engaging in the conversation. “Daddy , did you know that Robin can jump really far without getting hurt. Daddy, daddy watch Buzz fly from the bed.” I’ve learned a lot about love over the past 5 ½ years of being a dad. The one thing I’ve learned thus far is this: for a 5 year old and a 3 year old boy, there is no better way to show them I love them than to spend time with them. Walking up to their room to play with them is better than any gift I could purchase or anything I could do for them. Being present and participating in their lives is the primary expression of your love for them. How has God the father shown his love for us? I want to show you the greatest expression of Gods so that you will be compelled to extend that love to other people around you. Read More
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Reality Check: Jesus Loves Me, This I Know

The message of the gospel is simple: God so loved the world that He gave his only Son. The emphasis is His love. 1 John 3:11–24, For this is the message that you have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another. 12 we should not be like Cain, who was of the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own deeds were evil and his brother’s righteous. 13 do not be surprised, brothers, that the world hates you. 14 we know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers. Whoever does not love abides in death. 15 everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him. Read More
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Reality Check: Ready or Not, Here He Comes

We are continuing our series on 1 John called Reality Check. Did you know that there is a difference between these terms waiting for Christ and watching for Christ? Let me illustrate this with the story of a fishing vessel returning home after many days at sea. As the crew neared the shore, the sailors gazed eagerly toward the dock where a group of their loved ones had gathered. The skipper looked through his binoculars began identifying some of them: “I see Bill’s wife Mary, and there is Tom’s wife Margaret and David’s wife Anne. Mike became concerned because his wife was not there. After gathering his belonging, he left the boat with a heavy heart and hurried home. As he opened the door, his wife ran to meet him, saying, “I have been waiting for you!” He replied with a gentle rebuke, “yes, but the other men’s wives were watching for them!” It’s one thing to know that Christ is coming back. It’s another thing to watch for His coming. I want to show what we as believers need to be doing until Christ comes back. We must abide in Christ so that you will have confidence when He returns. Read More
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Reality Check: How To Shipwreck Your Fellowship With God

On Sunday, I continued our sermon series on 1 John that we are calling Reality Check. < p>Many of the polls today suggest that one-third of Americans claim to be born again believers. Church attendance may cause you to celebrate thinking that Christianity is alive and well in our country. But if you probe a little further, you realize that the numbers are partly right. David Wells in his booklet, The Bleeding of the Evangelical Church, took the poll and added a few questions to the question “Are you born again?” for Clarification. He also asked, “Do you go to church with some regularity, do you pray with some regularity, and do you have some minimal structure of formal Christian belief?” The Number of people claiming to be born again Christians Dropped from 32 percent to 8 percent. Wells speculated, based on research, that if you added a few more basic questions (such as, “Are you regenerate?”) the numbers would drop to 1 or 2 percent. Read More
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Reality Check: Seeing Is Believing

On Sunday, I began a new sermon series on 1 John that we are calling "Reality Check".  We start with verse 1-4. That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life— the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us— that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. And we are writing these things so that our joy may be complete. (ESV) Read More
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