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Aug 18, 2024

Knowing We Know God

Knowing We Know God

Passage: 1 John 2:3-14

Speaker: Andrew Kerhoulas

Series: 2024 Practicing the Way of Jesus

Keywords: know, abide, overcome, a new commandment, know him, know the father, know him who is from the beginning

After sounding the initial notes of fellowship with God and others as the song for practicing the way of Jesus, a new theme emerges in the second chapter of 1 John: How we know we know God. The call to obedience, the call to love all others as Christ loved us, is the telltale sign we know our Master.

Readings & Scripture

PRE SERVICE TEXT: 1 John 2:3
And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments.

PRAYER: Westminster Shorter Catechism #86
What is faith in Jesus Christ?
Faith in Jesus Christ is a saving grace, whereby we receive and rest upon him alone for salvation, as he is offered to us in the gospel.

CENTRAL TEXT: 1 John 2:3-14
And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments. 4 Whoever says “I know him” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, 5 but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him: 6 whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.

7 Beloved, I am writing you no new commandment, but an old commandment that you had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word that you have heard. 8 At the same time, it is a new commandment that I am writing to you, which is true in him and in you, because the darkness is passing away and the true light is already shining. 9 Whoever says he is in the light and hates his brother is still in darkness. 10 Whoever loves his brother abides in the light, and in him there is no cause for stumbling. 11 But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.

12 I am writing to you, little children,
    because your sins are forgiven for his name's sake.
13 I am writing to you, fathers,
    because you know him who is from the beginning.
I am writing to you, young men,
    because you have overcome the evil one.
I write to you, children,
    because you know the Father.
14 I write to you, fathers,
    because you know him who is from the beginning.
I write to you, young men,
    because you are strong,
    and the word of God abides in you,
    and you have overcome the evil one.

 

BENEDICTION: 2 Corinthians 13:13
LEADER: May the God who made heaven and earth, whom death could not contain, who lives to renew and heal us, bless you with power to go forth and proclaim his gospel in word and deed. 
The grace of God be with you all, now and always.

ALL: Amen

POST SERVICE: 1 John 1:3
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.

RELATED SCRIPTURES:

  • Leviticus 19:18 - You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Lord.
  • Deuteronomy 6:5 - “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.”
  • Matthew 22:36-40 - “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” 37 Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself. 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
  • Matthew 24:31-40 -  “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. 34 Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, 36 I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ 37 Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? 38 And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? 39 And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ 40 And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’
  • John 14:6-9 - “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. 7 If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.”  8 Philip said to him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.” 9 Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?
  • James 2:14-20 - “What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? 15 Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. 16 If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? 17 In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. 18 But someone will say, “You have faith; I have deeds.” Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds. 19 You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.20 You foolish person, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless?”
  • 1 John 3:23 -  “And this is his commandment, that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he has commanded us.”

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS: 

  1. Discuss what John says about how we know we know God (see 1 John 2:3). In light of this verse, what does it mean to know God? 
  2. What false teaching was John addressing in verses 3-6? How does this continue to rear its head in the church today? 
  3. Richard Beck, a current theologian, says oftentimes “whenever robust calls for spiritual formation are made in Protestant spaces some alarm bells can start to go off. We worry about ‘legalism,’ a creeping ‘works-based righteousness…”’ He goes on to say it has much to do with a reductionist view of faith, which moves beyond merely mental assent. “Faith” instead means “fidelity, trust, fealty, reliability, loyalty, faithfulness, and allegiance.” How does that sit with you?
  4.  In 1 John 2:7-11, John argues against the apparent false teaching that John's commandment was new. In what ways is the commandment not new and new at the same time? (See Matthew 22:36-40). Who does the commandment have in mind for us to love? 
  5. Read 1 John 2:12-14. How does this encourage you wherever you are in your spiritual journey? What soil, as it were, has Jesus supplied for us to grow in Jesus? Discuss and then spend some time in prayer.

ILLUSTRATIONS:  

 

 

QUOTES:  

  • We have created a cultural milieu where you can be a Christian but not an apprentice of Jesus…In the Gospels you have two recurring groups, the apprentices and the crowds. Are you a face in the crowd or an apprentice of Jesus?  
    -     John Mark Comer
  • Whenever robust calls for spiritual formation are made in Protestant spaces some alarm bells can start to go off. We worry about "legalism," a creeping "works-based righteousness. A lot of this tension is due to thin understandings of the Greek word pistis or faith. Pistis doesn't simply mean "belief." Faith means fidelity, trust, fealty, reliability, loyalty, faithfulness, and allegiance.  
    - Richard Beck
  • We cannot will ourselves into the deep obedience that God requires. We can’t obey until we ourselves have received this grace and picked up our cross. We can’t obey until we have laid down our life, with all our false and worldly identities and idols. We can’t obey until we face the facts: the gospel comes in exchange for the life we once loved. But when we die to ourselves, we find the liberty to obey….the Christian life is not democratic: some have one cross to bear and another ten.
    - Rosaria Butterfield
  • All my knowledge of him depends on his sustained initiative in knowing me.
    - J.I. Packer
  • In commanding us to glorify Him, God is inviting us to enjoy Him.
    - C.S. Lewis

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