The Lifestyle of a True Christian

Scripture: Philippians 2:12-13

C.I.: Working Together with God

In I John, John is describing a true N.T. Christian. – He began by talking about our fellowship w/God.
Today we will see him describe our new birth - from the standpoint of the role played in it by God & us!

•  God's Part in Our Salvation, (I John 3a)

A. The Role of the Father, ( vs. 1-3)

1. Two wonderful things God does for us; one in the past and the other in the future…
a. First, He called us children of God, ( v. 1 ), “See how great a love the Father has bestowed upon us, that we should be
called children of God; and such we are.- For this reason the world does not know us, because it did not know Him.”
1) Being His children is His doing, ( Jn. 1:12-13 ), “As many as had received Him, to them He gave the right to
become children of God…who were born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of….”
a) Thus, not of human parentage, our own will/effort, man's teachings/effort, but of God.
b) He revealed His will for us in this manner – in I Peter 1:23 , “You have been born again….”
c) We have Jesus telling us this in Jn. 3:3, 5 , “Truly, truly, I say to you….”

b. Second, He will make us like Jesus, ( v. 2 ), “Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet….”
1) God also will make us like Jesus – at His 2 nd Coming, ( I Cor. 15:51-52 ), “We shall not all sleep, but we
shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of the eye, at the last trumpet…we shall be changed.
2) ( Phil. 3:21 ), “…who will transform the body of our humble state into conformity with the body of His glory.”
3) Thus, by the power & authority of God the Father to work on our behalf – we know we are saved!

B. The Role of the Son, ( vs. 4-5, 8 )

1. ( vs. 4-5 ), “Everyone who practices sin… And you know that He appeared to take away sins.”
a. John focuses on what Jesus does for us in the present…
1) Most important, Jesus came to take away the penalty for our sins – so that we might be saved.
2) ( Rom. 8:1, 3 ), There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus … For what the Law could not
do, weak as it was through the flesh, God did: sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh – and as an
offering for sin, He condemned sin in the flesh.”

b. Not only did Jesus take away our sins, - He has also taken away Satan's power over us.
1) ( v. 8 ), “The Son of God appeared for this purpose, that He might destroy the works of the devil.”
2) The work of Satan = the power to rule & reign in us, ( cf. Jn. 6:28-29 ), “They said to Him, ‘What shall we
do, that we may work the works of God?' – Jesus answered, ‘This is the work of God, that you believe on Him….'”
3) Satan wants to take away people's belief – Jesus' resurrection give us reason to believe, ( Acts 17:31;
Rom. 1:4 ), “…having furnished proof…” – “He was declared the Son of God with power by the Resurr….”

C. The Role of the Spirit, ( v. 24)

1. (v. 24 ), “And we know by this that He abides in us, by the Spirit whom He has given us.”
a. The Spirit of God is the powerhouse we receive from God – that we might successfully do His will.
1) Why we receive the Spirit: ( Quote Rom. 8:26; Eph. 5:18; Acts 4:8, 13 ).
2) How we receive the Spirit: ( Quote Eph. 1:13; Acts 5:32; 2:38 ).

II. Our Part in Our Salvation, (I John 3b)

A. Is Seen by Our Conversion, ( vs. 6-7, 9-10 )

•  The confirmation of our salvation – is seen by the change in a person's life!
a. ( vs. 6-7 ), “No one who abides in Him sins; no one who sins has seen Him or knows Him. – Little children, let no one
deceive you; the one who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous, - the one who practices sin….”
1) “Sins” = present tense (in the Greek language that usually means continuous action ).
2) That's why I have underlined practices . – so that we might know that He means on-going action.

b. ( vs. 9-10 ), “No one who is born of God practices sin, because His seed abides in him; and he cannot sin because he is
born of God. – By this the children of God and the children of the devil are obvious….”
1) As we saw earlier, the “seed” = God's word ( I Pt. 1:23 ).
2) Therefore, the practice of God's will in our lives – is “Confirmation” that we are doing our part – in
regards to our salvation!

B. Is Seen by Our Compassion, ( vs. 11-18 )

1. Love is a theme of this book. – Our love for each other is characterized by three things…
a. Obedience to God's law, ( v. 11 ), For this is the message you have heard from the beginning, that we should love…”
1) The “beginning” = our walk with Jesus – His “Greatest Commandment,” ( Mk. 12:30-31 ).
2) If we are not walking in love – then we are not obedient to God, ( 2:9 ), “The one who says he is in….”

b. Love in spite of another's deeds, ( vs. 12, 15 ), “…not as Cain, who was of the evil one & slew his brother. – And
for what reason did he slay him? – Because his deeds were evil, and his brother's were righteous … everyone who
hates his brother is a murderer; and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.”
1) Even/especially(?) “religious” people may not like you (Cain was angry because of a worship issue)!
2) ( Mt. 5:46 ), “If you love only those who love you, what reward have you? – Do not even the tax-gatherers do…?”

c. A willingness to sacrifice for others, ( vs. 16-18 ), “We know love by this,that He laid down His life for us; and we
ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. – But whoever has the world's goods, and beholds his brother in need –
and closes his heart against him, how does the love of God abide in him? – Little children, let us not love in word….”
1) Instead of becoming angry (as Cain did) – we should be willing to lay down our lives for each other.
2) ( Jn. 15:13 ), “Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends.”
3) Therefore, our “ Compassion ” towards each other – shows that we are saved!


C. Is Seen in Our Confidence, ( vs. 19-24a )

1. Yet we know that we “blow it” from time to time. – How can we reconcile the guilt that we feel?!
a. ( 3:19-20 ), “We shall know by this that we are of the truth, and shall assure our heart before Him, - in whatever our
heart condemns us; for God is greater than our heart, and knows all things.”
1) God knows when we sin…
a) As we saw in lesson #1, - the “Super-Religious” have to lie and say they don't sin.
b) But the true N.T. Christian – knows God sees our lifestyle and forgives, ( I Jn. 1:3a, 5, 7, 9 ).
2) Our “ Confidence ” in God – shows that we are saved!
CONCLUSION:

1. Thus, we can see the work of God (Father, Son, H.S.) & Us (Confirmation, Compassion, Confidence) in our salvation!

2. If you are one of our guests today – and would like to have this same confidence… quote Acts 2:38!