The Next Level

 

 

 

 

^"12 I am writing to you, little children, because your sins have been forgiven you for His name’s sake. ¹³ I am writing to you, fathers, because you know Him who has been from the beginning. I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one. I have written to you, children, because you know the Father. ¹⁴ I have written to you, fathers, because you know Him who has been from the beginning. I have written to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one." 

I John 2:12-14

 

 

Good Morning my beloved,

 

Welcome to worship this Lord's day! We're so thankful to have you here with us today. Let's give God the glory! As we continue to lift all of you up in our prayers, we ask that you would pray for this ministry to continue to reach the lost, the broken and the hopeless in the world. And for us. We are so grateful for those of you who have been sharing the ministry website with all of your family and friends. Your faithfulness to share God's Word with others has brought about tremendous results. Where will God's Word be heard today? With your help, and God's blessing, it will reach those that need it most. May God richly bless you for helping spread His Word. We believe that God is going to use each of us, to do a mighty work.

 

In our broken, sin-filled world, difficult people are literally everywhere. In fact, I imagine that it  probably isn’t too difficult for you to think of at least one difficult person in your own life. Perhaps a parent or in-law, who is always critiquing your parenting skills. Maybe its a co-worker, who is always taking credit for your ideas, trying to get ahead. Or perhaps, it's even your own child, who knows exactly how to push your buttons, always with a sharp and biting tongue. 

 

Let's be honest, our natural tendency is to want to run the other way, to avoid them as much as possible. I submit, that God uses difficult people in our lives, to help us to grow and move forward. When you think about spiritual life, you have to think about growth. Growth is evidence of life. You have a baby  and, eventually, it grows to be an adult. That's just the way life works, we understand that. So is true in spiritual life, it is about growth. God, Who gave us spiritual life in Christ, intends for that life to grow to maturity. I believe that the failure to grow spiritually is tragic.

 

And, by God’s grace, we can keep loving the difficult people that God has placed in our lives. In order to grow, we must be reassured and encouraged about what God has already done and is presently doing in our lives.

 

Moses was no stranger to difficult people, even after he lead them out of slavery from Egypt. Rather than being grateful for their new freedom and provision from God, they were grumbling and complaining, wishing they had died in Egypt and could choose another leader. What amazes me about Moses is that he didn’t retaliate against these ungrateful, difficult people. Instead, he demonstrated humility and compassion on them, and was repeatedly interceding for them. 

 

Wherever you’re at in your Christian walk, God wants you to be encouraged by His grace so that you will grow more. Spiritual growth is not only a responsibility, it is a privilege. It is an obligation to become like Christ. Therefore, when you think about spiritual growth and maturity, think about Christ.

 

Let us pray

 

Heavenly Father,

 

Father, we thank You for Your Word as we always do. We understand that to become like Christ is the goal, we are thankful that Your Word has much to say about the process of spiritual growth. Thank You for Your amazing grace while we journey toward that growth.  We realize that that growth isn't going happen, unless we consistently pursue it, by the reading and studying of Your Word and applying it to our lives. May we be filled by wonder, that we might enjoy the fullness of spiritual blessing that only comes to those who are strong in the Word. It is our prayer to know You as Christ Himself knows You.

It is in His name we pray

Amen

 

Today's Message: The Next Level

 

When you put your trust in Jesus Christ, the righteousness of Christ covered you. There is a declared sanctification by which you were set apart from sin in the eyes of God by being covered with the righteousness of Christ. We can think about the process of sanctification then as a synonym for spiritual development. As we become more like Christ, there is an increasing separation from sin as you move more into spiritual maturity.

 

Just to be clear, wherever you are in your spiritual growth, that doesn’t change your standing before God. I want that to be clear. As far as God is concerned, that’s been settled.

 

In Colossians 2:10, Paul tells us "and in Him you have been made complete, and He is the head over all rule and authority."

 

The next thing that I want you to understand, is that spiritual growth has nothing to do with God’s love for you. The Lord loves all of His own to perfection. In the case of the disciples, they were immature, they were doubters and they were proud. Yet, He loved them unto perfection. In fact, even while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

 

There is another thing that you need to understand, spiritual growth has nothing to do with time. There are people, sadly to say, who have been Christians for a very, very long time and are still very immature.

They should have matured, yet they remain in spiritual infancy. 

 

Peter says in I Peter 2:2, "Long for the pure milk of the word, so that by it you may grow in respect to salvation."

 

In I Corinthians 3, Paul wrote "And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual men, but as to men of flesh, as to infants in Christ. I gave you milk to drink, not solid food; for you were not yet able to receive it. Indeed, even now you are not yet able, for you are still fleshly. For since there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not fleshly, and are you not walking like mere men?" 

 

It has been said that our text today, in many ways this is a difficult text to understand, because it raises a number of questions. Such as "Why does he use the sequence: children, fathers, young men, rather than 

 a chronological one?" "Why does he use different terms for “children?"  And, "Why does John use "write" in the present tense three times and then shift to the aorist three times?" The odd order may be explained as his taking both ends of the spectrum first, and then showing the means of getting from the one end to the other.

 

In these verses John wants to reach out to the church with affection and encouragement. So he begins by calling them all "little children," which has often done. Those these truths that are valid for the entire church, John addresses the venerable fathers who have knowledge, and the virile young men who have conquered. Because if you are a spiritual child, whether you are a spiritual young man or a spiritual father, wherever you are on the process of development, it does not have any impact in your standing before God in Christ. 

 

Open your Bibles with me if you will please, to I John chapter 2, today we will be looking at verses 12 through 14. 

 

 

As I mentioned earlier, the first thing that kind of jumps out at you in this passage is there’s a odd sequence here, children, young men, fathers. In verse 12, he begins with the mention of little children, and then in verses 13 and 14, references are made to young men, children and fathers.  There are some who argue that John addresses the entire church under the terms, "little children" and "children," and then divides them up into "fathers" and "young men."

 

This would certainly help to explain why John does not follow a chronological order from youngest to oldest. Even the most mature believers need to remember that our sins have been forgiven and that we know God as our Father. And, all of God's children need to be prepared for the battles against the enemy that they must win in order to grow to maturity. The more you walk in the Spirit, the more you’re going to grow. It is a process of taking in the truth of God and growing on the basis of believing and responding to that truth. There's really no other way to grow spiritually.

I invite you to follow along with me as I read to set the text in our minds while we prepare our hearts for what the Holy Spirit is saying to each of us. Listen for the voice of our Lord. I John 2:12-14.

"I am writing to you, little children, because your sins have been forgiven you for His name’s sake. I am writing to you, fathers, because you know Him who has been from the beginning. I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one. I have written to you, children, because you know the Father. I have written to you, fathers, because you know Him who has been from the beginning. I have written to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one."

 

John is saying there is room in the kingdom for spiritual children, spiritual young men and spiritual fathers. He's saying that I want you also to understand that because you’re not a spiritual father or even a spiritual young man in the process of spiritual growth, doesn’t mean you’re not a Christian. In other words, there is room for all stages of spiritual growth. 

 

In verse 12, "I am writing to you, little children, because your sins have been forgiven you for His name’s sake." 

John uses the Greek word "teknia," this is a common biblical term for God's children. We could then say that John is saying "I’m writing to all of you who are the children of God." He knows the people to whom he is writing. He knows they’re believers, and he knows they’re forgiven. 

 

Your are already fully and completely loved by God, your sins are forgiven because Christ has paid in full the penalty for those sins. He lavished His grace upon us in a complete forgiveness.

 

In Ephesians 4:32, Paul writes that "Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you."

 

In Luke 24, Jesus said "Thus it is written, that the Christ would suffer and rise again from the dead the third day, and that repentance for forgiveness of sins would be proclaimed in His name to all the nations."

 

It’s about your sanctification.  Not because you’re worthy, not because you deserve it, but for His name’s sake. It is to the glory of God that He forgave you, it's about His glory, in fact, that's the reason for everything. This is the heart of Jeremiah 14:7, "Although our iniquities testify against us,
O Lord, act for Your name’s sake! Truly our apostasies have been many, We have sinned against You."

 

I’m convinced that God’s grace shown to us on the cross, is the greatest motivator for us to keep growing. 

 

God said in Isaiah chapter 48 verse 9 says "For the sake of My name I delay My wrath, And for My praise I restrain it for you, In order not to cut you off." 

 

Now, we come to verses 13-14, "I am writing to you, fathers, because you know Him who has been from the beginning. I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one. I have written to you, children, because you know the Father.  I have written to you, fathers, because you know Him who has been from the beginning. I have written to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one."  

 

I do not pretend to know what John's motive was in repeating this, other than for emphasis. I believe that he's saying  "I want to make sure that you to understand this, so I’m just going to repeat it." He wanted to make it clear. I'd like you to notice that he doesn’t even tell them they need to progress, he just acknowledges the reality.

 

It's as David exclaimed in Psalms 32, "How blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, Whose sin is covered!"

 

John's purpose isn't to exhort them toward spiritual development, although that certainly woven into the fabric of what he says. There is certainly a measure of grace here. You’re a child of God, who’s been forgiven. Regardless of how long we've been a Christian, no matter where we are in our spiritual growth, we’re all the children of God. 

 

At the end of verse 13, John uses another word for children, the word "paidia," it refers to a child who is still under parental instruction. There is a defining element of spiritual ignorance and immaturity, one who needs to be taught.

 

There is a wonderful familiarity, in our relationship with God. Little children are lead more by their emotions, their feelings, than by information. They don't analyze you, they just love you, unconditionally. They find their security and protection in the love of a parent.

 

In Closing..

 

There is a great joy in my heart, that God is my Father, that loves me deeply and wonderfully cares for me. That He protects me, and provides for me and supplies all of my needs. A relationship with Jesus Christ is not about theology. It’s about relationship. I am so grateful that Jesus Christ is my Savior, my Rock and my Redeemer. There is a tremendous joy in knowing that all of sins, past, present and future are forgiven. It is a fuller and richer love than I've ever experienced. 

 

I encourage you to know God, personally and intimately, this is the path in life that you want to be on.So that you too can know and experience the fullness of joy and the unconditional love of Jesus Christ.

It's one thing to know the Word of God, it's something quite different to personally know the God Who is behind it. There is a depth of love that cannot be explained, it can only be experienced! 

It is my prayer that you would come join me, in knowing God the Father, and His Son, Jesus Christ and that your sins too would be forgiven, and that you may experience a love, like the world has never seen.

May it be so..

And now may the Lord bless you and keep you;

the Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;

The Lord lift up His countenance upon you,
And give you peace.

Now and forever, in Jesus' name
Amen

 

 

 

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