1 00:00:09,520 --> 00:00:12,760 John is writing to answer the question in this little New 2 00:00:12,760 --> 00:00:16,000 Testament letter of first John, how do you know? 3 00:00:17,080 --> 00:00:20,280 How do you know that Christianity is true? 4 00:00:21,720 --> 00:00:24,480 How do you know that you're a true Christian? 5 00:00:25,400 --> 00:00:28,720 It's that second question that we actually spent the last three 6 00:00:28,720 --> 00:00:32,680 weeks unpacking as John has LED us through three different 7 00:00:32,680 --> 00:00:35,000 tests. Y'all tired of taking tests and 8 00:00:35,000 --> 00:00:36,840 praise God it's not a test day. Amen. 9 00:00:37,680 --> 00:00:39,920 So John is moving on to 1/3. How do you know? 10 00:00:39,920 --> 00:00:42,800 Question. But we took the the love test 11 00:00:42,880 --> 00:00:45,880 that was most recent. Before that we took the like 12 00:00:45,880 --> 00:00:48,240 test and before that we took the light test, right? 13 00:00:48,240 --> 00:00:51,440 God is light. Or are you walking in the light 14 00:00:52,160 --> 00:00:56,280 and the like test? Does your life look like Jesus? 15 00:00:56,840 --> 00:00:59,920 And then the love test? Are you loving God and one 16 00:00:59,920 --> 00:01:04,800 another the way God has designed us to show and share His love? 17 00:01:04,800 --> 00:01:06,080 How do you know Christianity is true? 18 00:01:06,080 --> 00:01:07,400 How do you know you're a true Christian? 19 00:01:07,880 --> 00:01:11,480 By the time you get through the 3rd test, John is assuming 20 00:01:11,480 --> 00:01:13,640 you've passed his test all right. 21 00:01:14,440 --> 00:01:17,320 And in fact, he is writing that we have assurance that we know 22 00:01:17,320 --> 00:01:20,840 that we know that we know that we're children of God. 23 00:01:21,520 --> 00:01:25,000 And so he's now continuing to write to us as the children of 24 00:01:25,000 --> 00:01:26,480 God. And he's writing now to answer 25 00:01:26,480 --> 00:01:30,200 1/3 how do you know question? And that question would be this, 26 00:01:30,280 --> 00:01:35,600 how do you know what's dangerous to a child of God? 27 00:01:37,080 --> 00:01:40,400 Another way to ask that would be more simply what is what is 28 00:01:40,400 --> 00:01:42,320 dangerous. In fact, what is the most 29 00:01:42,320 --> 00:01:45,720 dangerous thing to a child of God? 30 00:01:47,040 --> 00:01:48,560 That's what John is going to answer. 31 00:01:48,640 --> 00:01:50,520 That's what John's going to warn us about. 32 00:01:50,520 --> 00:01:53,680 Now that we've passed the test, we know that we're in Christ. 33 00:01:53,800 --> 00:01:55,520 We know that we've trusted in Jesus. 34 00:01:55,680 --> 00:01:59,520 But now we need a warning about then what in the world could be 35 00:01:59,520 --> 00:02:03,400 dangerous to us? But before we get the warning, 36 00:02:03,600 --> 00:02:08,320 John here pauses to review just what a child of God is, What is 37 00:02:08,360 --> 00:02:10,680 a Christian? And in fact, he defines it so 38 00:02:10,680 --> 00:02:13,440 simply and straightforwardly. If you're here and wondering or 39 00:02:13,440 --> 00:02:16,360 have questions about the Christian faith, what does it 40 00:02:16,360 --> 00:02:18,560 mean to be a Christian? Whether you're in the room or 41 00:02:18,560 --> 00:02:21,600 watching online, this is a straightforward and clear an 42 00:02:21,600 --> 00:02:23,880 answer as you'll hear in all the Bible. 43 00:02:23,880 --> 00:02:27,800 Listen, as we pick up in chapter 2 beginning through verse 12 44 00:02:27,800 --> 00:02:31,640 through 14, remember this, what is a child of God? 45 00:02:31,640 --> 00:02:33,280 We're going to see 3 characteristics here. 46 00:02:33,600 --> 00:02:36,520 John says I'm writing to you little children. 47 00:02:37,240 --> 00:02:39,680 He's not talking about actual little children, but he loves 48 00:02:39,680 --> 00:02:42,520 that phrase to talk to Christians in Christ. 49 00:02:43,000 --> 00:02:46,000 I'm writing to you, little children, because your sins are 50 00:02:46,000 --> 00:02:49,960 forgiven for his namesake. And I'm writing to you, fathers, 51 00:02:49,960 --> 00:02:52,640 because you know Him who is from the beginning. 52 00:02:53,240 --> 00:02:56,760 And I'm writing to you, young men, because you have overcome 53 00:02:56,760 --> 00:03:00,320 the evil 1 And I write to you, children, because you know the 54 00:03:00,320 --> 00:03:02,560 Father. And I write to you Father, is 55 00:03:02,560 --> 00:03:05,280 because you know him who is from the beginning. 56 00:03:05,800 --> 00:03:09,480 And I write to you, young men, because you are strong and the 57 00:03:09,480 --> 00:03:13,880 word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one. 58 00:03:13,880 --> 00:03:16,480 We're going to start with just a reminder of three 59 00:03:16,480 --> 00:03:18,800 characteristics of a child of God. 60 00:03:19,120 --> 00:03:22,600 And the first one is this. A child of God is 1 whose sins 61 00:03:22,880 --> 00:03:27,320 have been forgiven. A child of God is someone whose 62 00:03:27,320 --> 00:03:30,840 sins have been forgiven. You see, forgiveness is the 63 00:03:30,840 --> 00:03:34,120 fundamental condition, if you will, of the Christian life. 64 00:03:34,120 --> 00:03:36,800 What's the difference between a Christian and a non Christian? 65 00:03:36,800 --> 00:03:40,000 Number one, it's forgiveness. It's the fact the child of God 66 00:03:40,000 --> 00:03:43,280 has received something from God Almighty through His Son Jesus 67 00:03:43,280 --> 00:03:47,240 Christ that no one else has if they've not trusted in Jesus for 68 00:03:47,240 --> 00:03:48,440 it. You say, why do we need 69 00:03:48,440 --> 00:03:49,960 forgiveness of sin? Well, we'll get to that in a 70 00:03:49,960 --> 00:03:53,560 second, but forgiveness is mankind's greatest need. 71 00:03:53,920 --> 00:03:58,840 It's our greatest need because sin is our #1 greatest problem, 72 00:03:59,400 --> 00:04:00,680 he said. Pastor Carl, I don't really even 73 00:04:00,680 --> 00:04:03,480 know what sin means. Sin is anything, anything in our 74 00:04:03,480 --> 00:04:06,880 lives, thought, mind, word, or action that does not honor God, 75 00:04:07,040 --> 00:04:10,240 that is not right, that breaks His law, that breaks His heart. 76 00:04:10,400 --> 00:04:13,000 It's anything in our lives and it's of all types. 77 00:04:13,000 --> 00:04:15,920 We've said it, done it, thought it, including your pastor. 78 00:04:16,040 --> 00:04:19,320 We come out in this world naturally bent towards sin, 79 00:04:19,560 --> 00:04:21,160 causing us the issue. And who? 80 00:04:21,160 --> 00:04:24,360 God is holy, He's righteous, He knows no sin, and then our sin 81 00:04:24,360 --> 00:04:27,280 that separates us from God. Therefore our fundamental need 82 00:04:27,280 --> 00:04:30,360 is forgiveness of that sin, and we instinctively know it. 83 00:04:31,120 --> 00:04:36,520 In fact, a famous atheist was once asked, if there was a God, 84 00:04:38,320 --> 00:04:40,720 what would you want him to say to you? 85 00:04:42,360 --> 00:04:45,520 If there was a God, what would you want him to say to you? 86 00:04:45,520 --> 00:04:50,240 To which the atheist responded, If there was a God, I would want 87 00:04:50,240 --> 00:04:53,800 him to say to me, you are forgiven. 88 00:04:55,840 --> 00:04:57,720 Now that's quite a fascinating answer, is it not? 89 00:04:58,800 --> 00:05:01,760 Because here's a man who claims not to believe in God, and yet 90 00:05:01,760 --> 00:05:04,840 he knows himself well enough that if there was one, he'd be 91 00:05:04,840 --> 00:05:07,480 in big trouble. Because he knows he's got a 92 00:05:07,480 --> 00:05:10,840 problem called sin. He knows he's done things, said 93 00:05:10,840 --> 00:05:14,040 things and thought things that if there was a God would put him 94 00:05:14,040 --> 00:05:16,680 at outs with that God. And if unless there was 95 00:05:16,680 --> 00:05:21,600 forgiveness, he'd have no hope. This is the fundamental need of 96 00:05:21,760 --> 00:05:26,120 every single man, woman, boy and girl is forgiveness from God. 97 00:05:26,240 --> 00:05:29,560 That's, by the way, only offered through His Son, Jesus Christ. 98 00:05:30,280 --> 00:05:34,120 Forgiveness happens when we believe on Jesus realizing what 99 00:05:34,120 --> 00:05:35,840 he's done for us. And let me just give you that 100 00:05:35,840 --> 00:05:37,880 reminder. I hope you could say the gospel 101 00:05:37,880 --> 00:05:40,880 in 30 seconds or three seconds or 30 minutes, because it's 102 00:05:40,880 --> 00:05:43,360 three simple things. Jesus lived a sinless life for 103 00:05:43,360 --> 00:05:48,280 you #2 Jesus died on the cross for your sin, and #3 he overcame 104 00:05:48,320 --> 00:05:51,880 the grave by walking out alive. Jesus lived, died, and rose 105 00:05:51,880 --> 00:05:53,040 again. You can say that in three 106 00:05:53,040 --> 00:05:55,640 seconds or 30 minutes if you want to, but that's the good 107 00:05:55,640 --> 00:05:59,400 news of the gospel of what Jesus has done about your sin problem 108 00:05:59,400 --> 00:06:01,440 and mine. So the Bible says if anyone 109 00:06:01,440 --> 00:06:05,880 calls on the name of the Lord, they will be what saved, rescued 110 00:06:05,880 --> 00:06:10,720 from their sin and forgiven. Do you know that you know your 111 00:06:10,720 --> 00:06:14,480 sins have been forgiven? Psalm 103 verse 12 says as far 112 00:06:14,480 --> 00:06:20,200 as the East is from the West. So far has he separated, removed 113 00:06:20,200 --> 00:06:22,800 our sins from us. A child of God. 114 00:06:22,960 --> 00:06:25,680 If you trusted in Jesus Christ and called out to him. 115 00:06:25,680 --> 00:06:27,640 You may be hearing about Kyle. I don't know how to get that 116 00:06:27,640 --> 00:06:29,040 forgiveness. What does that mean that I do? 117 00:06:29,040 --> 00:06:32,600 The Bible says you call out from your heart talking to God, his 118 00:06:32,600 --> 00:06:36,400 Son Jesus Christ and asking, literally asking, just ask in 119 00:06:36,400 --> 00:06:40,520 faith for forgiveness of your sin, trusting Jesus as your 120 00:06:40,520 --> 00:06:42,000 Lord, the only one who can provide it. 121 00:06:42,280 --> 00:06:45,040 Do you know that you've experienced forgiveness of sin? 122 00:06:45,040 --> 00:06:46,520 That's what a child of God, number one. 123 00:06:46,520 --> 00:06:48,080 But a second characteristic is this. 124 00:06:48,800 --> 00:06:53,960 A child of God is one who knows the Father and his Son Jesus 125 00:06:53,960 --> 00:06:55,880 Christ. This is verses 13 and 14. 126 00:06:56,280 --> 00:06:58,720 You see, not only does the Christian experience forgiveness 127 00:06:58,720 --> 00:07:03,120 of sin, y'all, but that person comes into a personal 128 00:07:03,280 --> 00:07:06,480 relationship with God. They come to know God. 129 00:07:06,760 --> 00:07:11,160 This person no longer knows about God, but they know God 130 00:07:11,320 --> 00:07:15,480 personally. In fact, John 17 three defines 131 00:07:15,520 --> 00:07:19,480 eternal life like this, and this is eternal life that they know 132 00:07:19,480 --> 00:07:23,680 you, the only true God and Jesus Christ whom you've sent. 133 00:07:23,960 --> 00:07:27,680 The definition of eternal life is a personal relationship with 134 00:07:27,680 --> 00:07:30,800 God the Father through his Son Jesus Christ. 135 00:07:30,920 --> 00:07:32,240 Let me just try to make things clear. 136 00:07:32,520 --> 00:07:35,400 God made every single man, woman, boy and girl to live 137 00:07:35,400 --> 00:07:38,280 forever. Our souls deliver. 138 00:07:38,280 --> 00:07:41,480 Our bodies will wear out, but when our souls enter eternity, 139 00:07:41,960 --> 00:07:47,000 they are headed towards eternal life or eternal death and life. 140 00:07:47,000 --> 00:07:50,280 Eternal life is eternal togetherness with God. 141 00:07:50,880 --> 00:07:53,760 Eternal death is eternal separation from God. 142 00:07:53,760 --> 00:07:56,680 Like physical death is the separation of body and soul, but 143 00:07:56,680 --> 00:07:59,760 spiritual eternal death is separation from God and the 144 00:07:59,760 --> 00:08:01,800 soul. So eternal life or eternal 145 00:08:01,800 --> 00:08:03,520 death. And the difference is, do you 146 00:08:03,520 --> 00:08:06,280 know God personally through a relationship with Him through 147 00:08:06,280 --> 00:08:09,120 his Son Jesus Christ? Because your sins have been 148 00:08:09,280 --> 00:08:11,800 forgiven. If they have, then you've come 149 00:08:11,800 --> 00:08:14,680 to know not just about God, but to know him personally. 150 00:08:15,120 --> 00:08:18,920 And you're now one as a child of God who can walk and talk with 151 00:08:18,960 --> 00:08:21,000 God in a personal relationship with him. 152 00:08:21,000 --> 00:08:23,040 Now you may be thinking, Kyle, what in the world does that 153 00:08:23,040 --> 00:08:24,760 mean? Walk and talk with God? 154 00:08:26,360 --> 00:08:30,400 That sounds ridiculous to me. Listen, I can't necessarily 155 00:08:30,400 --> 00:08:34,720 physically show you because we are not yet to the point where 156 00:08:34,720 --> 00:08:39,039 we're seeing Jesus face to face. But here's what happens when you 157 00:08:39,039 --> 00:08:42,640 call on Jesus to save you and he forgives you of your sin. 158 00:08:43,799 --> 00:08:47,560 He gives you the Holy Spirit on the inside to dwell within you, 159 00:08:48,480 --> 00:08:51,240 and He's given you the Word of God that you heard when you were 160 00:08:51,240 --> 00:08:53,320 saved. We'll talk about that in a 161 00:08:53,320 --> 00:08:55,800 second too. And with the word of God, 162 00:08:55,800 --> 00:08:59,120 hearing the voice of God, inspired by God for us, for you 163 00:08:59,120 --> 00:09:01,800 and for me, for his children, having the word of God to listen 164 00:09:01,800 --> 00:09:03,600 to him. And the Holy Spirit of God on 165 00:09:03,600 --> 00:09:05,920 the inside that no, I've never heard his audible voice. 166 00:09:06,120 --> 00:09:08,880 But my goodness, I've certainly heard and, and sensed his 167 00:09:08,880 --> 00:09:10,960 conviction. And I've sensed his guiding and 168 00:09:10,960 --> 00:09:13,680 I've sensed him challenging me and pushing me and impressing 169 00:09:13,680 --> 00:09:16,400 upon me and leading me and comforting me and strengthening 170 00:09:16,400 --> 00:09:18,880 me and providing for me. And I've sensed on the inside 171 00:09:18,880 --> 00:09:20,920 when I've sought to listen and listen to the Word and I've 172 00:09:20,920 --> 00:09:24,000 heard him bring The Word Alive and I can walk and talk with 173 00:09:24,000 --> 00:09:25,520 God. And so in you with the Word of 174 00:09:25,520 --> 00:09:28,320 God and the Spirit of God on the inside, and though you can't 175 00:09:28,320 --> 00:09:31,520 explain it all, it's this mystery of God living in you, 176 00:09:31,520 --> 00:09:34,480 guiding you primarily through the light of this word for his 177 00:09:34,480 --> 00:09:36,720 plan for your life. As you walk and talk, as you 178 00:09:36,720 --> 00:09:39,360 listen to the Word and as you read it and internalize it and 179 00:09:39,360 --> 00:09:42,480 listen and ask the Holy Spirit to guide you, you're walking and 180 00:09:42,480 --> 00:09:47,760 talking with God to the day that we get to see Him face to face. 181 00:09:48,960 --> 00:09:53,040 This is what I mean by you come to know God personally, God the 182 00:09:53,040 --> 00:09:56,680 Father through his Son, Jesus Christ. 183 00:09:57,680 --> 00:10:01,560 Do you know God personally? Do you know your sins have been 184 00:10:01,560 --> 00:10:03,840 forgiven? Do you know that you know God 185 00:10:03,840 --> 00:10:06,840 personally? That's the two characteristics. 186 00:10:06,840 --> 00:10:10,680 There's a third of the child of God, and it's that it's one who 187 00:10:10,680 --> 00:10:14,520 has overcome the evil one. This is verse 13 and 14. 188 00:10:14,520 --> 00:10:16,920 I love this one. Like my team didn't win 189 00:10:16,920 --> 00:10:18,920 yesterday, but I've still overcome the evil one through 190 00:10:18,920 --> 00:10:20,960 Jesus Christ. Amen. 191 00:10:22,560 --> 00:10:25,520 God's good, right? Even when Saturday's not I mean, 192 00:10:25,520 --> 00:10:28,360 I'm serious, right? This is this is the this is one 193 00:10:28,360 --> 00:10:32,080 of the most amazing things about the Christian life that we have 194 00:10:32,080 --> 00:10:35,960 the victory over sin and over death and over the enemy, the 195 00:10:35,960 --> 00:10:37,800 devil himself because of Jesus, right? 196 00:10:38,000 --> 00:10:40,560 It says we have been over, we have overcome the enemy, we've 197 00:10:40,560 --> 00:10:42,080 been saved. And again, I just want to be 198 00:10:42,080 --> 00:10:43,760 real clear what in the world to be what does it mean to be 199 00:10:43,760 --> 00:10:46,040 saved? It means to be rescued. 200 00:10:46,880 --> 00:10:48,080 You know what being rescued means? 201 00:10:48,240 --> 00:10:51,240 You're facing death. Unless someone intervenes and 202 00:10:51,240 --> 00:10:53,000 snatches you out of that situation. 203 00:10:53,440 --> 00:10:55,080 Spiritually, this is what's going on. 204 00:10:55,080 --> 00:10:58,080 We're facing eternal life or eternal death, and then our sin 205 00:10:58,280 --> 00:11:00,440 separates us from God. Guess where we're headed? 206 00:11:00,440 --> 00:11:04,280 Eternal life or eternal death? Eternal death until the Son of 207 00:11:04,280 --> 00:11:06,960 God intervened. Jesus Christ took on human flesh 208 00:11:07,120 --> 00:11:08,560 and lived a sinless life. Why? 209 00:11:08,800 --> 00:11:12,040 So that living for us, dying for us, being raised from the dead 210 00:11:12,040 --> 00:11:14,960 for us, offering us eternal life and forgiveness of sin. 211 00:11:15,080 --> 00:11:19,680 If we call out on Him, He in that moment rescues you from 212 00:11:19,680 --> 00:11:22,920 your sin and eternal death and snatches you out of the Kingdom 213 00:11:22,920 --> 00:11:26,440 of darkness, the wrong team, and into the Kingdom of His beloved 214 00:11:26,440 --> 00:11:28,880 Son, the right team headed towards eternal life. 215 00:11:29,800 --> 00:11:32,440 We're talking about a total transition from your total 216 00:11:32,440 --> 00:11:34,720 eternal destination. We're talking about being dead 217 00:11:34,720 --> 00:11:36,440 in sin to being made alive in Jesus. 218 00:11:36,560 --> 00:11:40,200 This is what we mean. We say saved, rescued from what 219 00:11:40,200 --> 00:11:43,360 you rightly deserve for your sin and given everything we don't 220 00:11:43,360 --> 00:11:45,360 deserve because of God's mercy in Jesus. 221 00:11:46,960 --> 00:11:49,640 You've overcome. You've been snatched away from 222 00:11:49,640 --> 00:11:52,480 the devil's grip. You've been snatched out of his 223 00:11:52,480 --> 00:11:55,400 hand, and no one can snatch you out of Jesus's hand. 224 00:11:56,440 --> 00:12:02,880 Bible says here Colossians 113, Christ has delivered us from the 225 00:12:02,880 --> 00:12:05,960 domain of darkness, transferred us to the Kingdom of his beloved 226 00:12:05,960 --> 00:12:08,840 Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. 227 00:12:09,200 --> 00:12:11,760 How did the victory come in our lives? 228 00:12:11,760 --> 00:12:14,160 Did you notice? It says because you're strong 229 00:12:14,400 --> 00:12:16,440 and the word of God abides in you. 230 00:12:16,800 --> 00:12:22,000 The way of rescue came to us when we heard the word of God 231 00:12:22,560 --> 00:12:25,600 and that rescued us from Satan's grass when we by faith believed 232 00:12:25,600 --> 00:12:27,920 it and acted on faith to call on Jesus. 233 00:12:28,160 --> 00:12:31,120 And by the way, it's the Word of God that continues to give us 234 00:12:31,120 --> 00:12:34,520 the victory as children of God against the enemy and against 235 00:12:34,520 --> 00:12:38,400 temptations, against his seek seeking to get a foothold in our 236 00:12:38,400 --> 00:12:41,600 lives and to try to reclaim areas that now belong to Jesus. 237 00:12:41,760 --> 00:12:43,600 It's the word of God, right? When you read about the armor of 238 00:12:43,600 --> 00:12:45,280 God, what's the only offensive weapon? 239 00:12:46,320 --> 00:12:49,040 The sword of the Spirit. How did Jesus in the wilderness 240 00:12:49,040 --> 00:12:52,240 when he was tempted by the devil three times, how did he respond 241 00:12:52,240 --> 00:12:57,320 every time with the word of God? He knew the truth, he stood on 242 00:12:57,320 --> 00:13:00,200 it and by that overcame the attacks of the enemy. 243 00:13:00,200 --> 00:13:04,680 You've overcome as a child of God by the word of God. 244 00:13:05,480 --> 00:13:08,880 So a child of God is 1. Whose sins have been forgiven? 245 00:13:09,760 --> 00:13:11,960 Who knows the Father and the Son Jesus Christ, and who has 246 00:13:11,960 --> 00:13:14,120 overcome the evil one? Let me just give you one other 247 00:13:14,120 --> 00:13:18,200 quote I love about our overcoming of the evil 1 man by 248 00:13:18,200 --> 00:13:20,280 the name of David Allen. I studied under in my ministry 249 00:13:20,280 --> 00:13:24,880 training said this knowledge of the word of God takes the fangs 250 00:13:24,880 --> 00:13:28,200 out of the serpent the devil. It takes the teeth out of the 251 00:13:28,200 --> 00:13:32,360 lion, the devil who walks around seeking whom he may devour and 252 00:13:32,360 --> 00:13:36,560 he says a fangless snake in a toothless lion can't do much 253 00:13:36,560 --> 00:13:38,560 damage. The the the picture I want you 254 00:13:38,560 --> 00:13:41,040 to think about is that, yeah, Satan that feels might get you 255 00:13:41,040 --> 00:13:43,560 in his mouth and maybe gnawing on you has a roaring lion, but 256 00:13:43,560 --> 00:13:45,880 he's got no teeth because Jesus Christ has ripped him out when 257 00:13:45,880 --> 00:13:49,000 he rose from the dead, paid for your sin and walked out alive. 258 00:13:49,920 --> 00:13:53,920 You have the victory in Jesus. Is this who you are? 259 00:13:55,480 --> 00:14:00,120 Do you know that you know your sins have been forgiven, that 260 00:14:00,120 --> 00:14:03,960 you know God personally like you walk and talk with him through 261 00:14:03,960 --> 00:14:07,960 his word and by the spirit and that you've overcome the enemy? 262 00:14:09,720 --> 00:14:12,360 Isn't it amazing what being a Christian is all about? 263 00:14:13,160 --> 00:14:16,240 Like I mean, when you wake up to those realities, yes, you can 264 00:14:16,240 --> 00:14:22,040 have a bad day, but listen, any bad day is still a grace filled 265 00:14:22,600 --> 00:14:27,840 amazing day for a child of God because of who you are, what 266 00:14:27,840 --> 00:14:30,400 God's done, what he's doing in your life. 267 00:14:31,640 --> 00:14:36,320 So if that's who you are, then the question is what in the 268 00:14:36,320 --> 00:14:42,440 world could be dangerous to you? What in the world does John need 269 00:14:42,440 --> 00:14:48,280 to warn us about? Well, before we before we read, 270 00:14:50,600 --> 00:14:52,640 let me just show you some things that you might think about when 271 00:14:52,640 --> 00:14:55,280 you think of danger. All right, this is not Bible. 272 00:14:55,360 --> 00:14:57,960 This is more Kyle here and some statistics, but this is kind of 273 00:14:57,960 --> 00:15:00,400 just for for extra. All right, when you think of 274 00:15:00,400 --> 00:15:02,000 danger, you might think of animals. 275 00:15:03,480 --> 00:15:05,800 These are the number of human beings killed per year per 276 00:15:05,800 --> 00:15:06,880 animal. Don't know if this is 277 00:15:06,880 --> 00:15:09,480 interesting to you or not. I find this fascinating. 278 00:15:10,200 --> 00:15:12,600 I would never have put lions as less dangerous than the 279 00:15:12,600 --> 00:15:14,840 mosquitoes in my backyard, but there you go, right? 280 00:15:15,160 --> 00:15:17,320 Lions kill a couple 100 people a year. 281 00:15:17,320 --> 00:15:19,760 Hippos 500. That'd be a bad way to go. 282 00:15:20,440 --> 00:15:24,200 Elephant 600, Crocodiles 1000, Scorpions 3300. 283 00:15:24,320 --> 00:15:26,040 I don't even know what an assassin bug is. 284 00:15:26,040 --> 00:15:27,400 I just pray I never run into one. 285 00:15:27,640 --> 00:15:32,840 That sounds pretty vicious. Dogs bites from rabies is where 286 00:15:32,840 --> 00:15:34,360 that number comes from. Snakes. 287 00:15:34,440 --> 00:15:37,560 Human beings are pretty dangerous and mosquitoes top the 288 00:15:37,560 --> 00:15:41,000 chart. All right. 289 00:15:41,000 --> 00:15:42,880 You might think of like maybe a different category. 290 00:15:42,880 --> 00:15:44,760 You may just think, well, what are just the top hazards? 291 00:15:44,760 --> 00:15:46,160 I'm stressing some of y'all out right now. 292 00:15:46,400 --> 00:15:50,360 I'm sorry about that. Top hazards to your health. 293 00:15:50,840 --> 00:15:53,240 This is what they say. All right, again, this is not 294 00:15:53,240 --> 00:15:54,680 Bible. It's just a free extra, all 295 00:15:54,680 --> 00:15:57,200 right. Having no regular check UPS, 296 00:15:58,360 --> 00:16:03,560 leading a sedentary lifestyle, eating too much, staying sleep 297 00:16:03,560 --> 00:16:08,600 deprived, texting and driving. Uh oh, shipping the sunblock, 298 00:16:08,600 --> 00:16:13,000 not washing your hands. All right, we got one more 299 00:16:13,000 --> 00:16:15,000 category. These are just the leading 300 00:16:15,000 --> 00:16:18,080 causes of death that's reported in 2021. 301 00:16:18,080 --> 00:16:20,320 All right, here you go. Heart disease. 302 00:16:20,320 --> 00:16:23,560 They say someone dies from heart disease every 34 seconds. 303 00:16:24,040 --> 00:16:27,320 Stroke, lower respiratory infections, chronic obstructive 304 00:16:27,320 --> 00:16:31,760 pulmonary disease, neonatal disorders, diabetes, Alzheimer's 305 00:16:31,760 --> 00:16:36,960 and other dementias, cancer, kidney disease and other bodily 306 00:16:37,360 --> 00:16:40,960 injuries. Amazing all the dangers that are 307 00:16:40,960 --> 00:16:45,120 out there in our world. I hope you still take your nap 308 00:16:45,120 --> 00:16:46,320 this afternoon without any problem. 309 00:16:47,440 --> 00:16:50,120 But none of these things is what John is warning us about. 310 00:16:51,600 --> 00:16:53,960 None of those things are the most dangerous thing in the 311 00:16:53,960 --> 00:16:56,400 world to a Christian. So what is? 312 00:16:56,400 --> 00:16:57,640 Well, here's what the Bible says. 313 00:16:57,880 --> 00:17:03,560 Let's pick up in verse 15. Do not love the world or the 314 00:17:03,560 --> 00:17:07,920 things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the 315 00:17:07,920 --> 00:17:11,839 love of the Father is not in him, For all that is in the 316 00:17:11,839 --> 00:17:15,960 world, the desires of the flesh, the desires of the eyes, and the 317 00:17:15,960 --> 00:17:19,480 pride of life is not from the Father, but it is from the 318 00:17:19,480 --> 00:17:22,359 world. And the world is passing away 319 00:17:22,359 --> 00:17:27,599 along with its desires. But whoever does the will of God 320 00:17:28,520 --> 00:17:33,640 abides forever. What is the most dangerous thing 321 00:17:33,640 --> 00:17:40,080 in the world for a child of God? The most dangerous thing in the 322 00:17:40,080 --> 00:17:46,920 world for a child of God is loving the world. 323 00:17:48,800 --> 00:17:53,880 The most dangerous thing in the world for a child of God is 324 00:17:53,880 --> 00:17:58,680 loving the world. Now, John doesn't actually say 325 00:17:58,680 --> 00:18:02,960 exactly that, does he? What he does is, is he gives us 326 00:18:02,960 --> 00:18:05,080 a command. Now, by the way, I don't know if 327 00:18:05,080 --> 00:18:07,840 you printed out first, John, on 8 1/2 by 11 sheets of paper, so 328 00:18:07,840 --> 00:18:09,480 you can read it on your own and mark it up. 329 00:18:09,680 --> 00:18:11,440 If you still haven't done that, we're only in Chapter 2. 330 00:18:11,440 --> 00:18:14,360 It's not too late, all right? I encourage you to get in this 331 00:18:14,360 --> 00:18:17,760 book and stay in it daily, weekly, Let it marinate in your 332 00:18:17,760 --> 00:18:19,840 own heart and life. And one of the things you might 333 00:18:19,840 --> 00:18:21,560 do, here's a little Bible study insight. 334 00:18:21,760 --> 00:18:24,400 If while reading the New Testament letters, if you will 335 00:18:24,400 --> 00:18:27,400 mark all the commands, if you get to a verb and it's an 336 00:18:27,400 --> 00:18:31,280 instruction, if it's A to do, if it's an imperative, underline it 337 00:18:31,360 --> 00:18:34,200 or circle it. As someone has said, those 338 00:18:34,200 --> 00:18:38,480 commands, those verbs are the load bearing walls of language 339 00:18:38,480 --> 00:18:40,440 when it comes to the letters of the New Testament. 340 00:18:40,560 --> 00:18:42,560 That's where the meaning, so much of the meaning is. 341 00:18:42,800 --> 00:18:45,840 And if you are marking your 8 1/2 by 11 printed out sheets of 342 00:18:45,840 --> 00:18:49,600 first John, this would be you would notice you would not mark 343 00:18:49,600 --> 00:18:53,440 a command in this letter until verse 15 of chapter 2. 344 00:18:53,920 --> 00:18:58,120 There is no instruction and 1st John 2 not in the form of a 345 00:18:58,120 --> 00:18:59,760 command until this one right here. 346 00:18:59,920 --> 00:19:05,680 And it's a -1 do not one do not what love the world John says. 347 00:19:08,120 --> 00:19:13,680 John is actually giving us a command as our warning and 348 00:19:13,680 --> 00:19:16,840 commands are not very popular. Let's be honest, at least in our 349 00:19:16,840 --> 00:19:19,520 culture, right? No one really likes being told 350 00:19:19,520 --> 00:19:23,240 what to do, but commands can actually be some of the 351 00:19:23,240 --> 00:19:27,880 strongest expressions of love. Can you imagine never telling 352 00:19:27,880 --> 00:19:31,400 your children not to run across the street without looking? 353 00:19:33,240 --> 00:19:36,240 Can you imagine never telling your child don't touch that hot 354 00:19:36,240 --> 00:19:39,920 iron? Can you imagine never telling 355 00:19:39,920 --> 00:19:43,280 your children to buckle up when they get in the car? 356 00:19:44,560 --> 00:19:47,360 Right. Commands can actually be some of 357 00:19:47,360 --> 00:19:50,720 the deepest expressions of love, and John is giving us a 358 00:19:50,960 --> 00:19:54,480 expression of love, a command in the form of that's taking a 359 00:19:54,480 --> 00:19:59,760 warning in our lives here. So what John is saying, is this 360 00:20:00,600 --> 00:20:02,200 the most dangerous thing in the world? 361 00:20:03,160 --> 00:20:06,560 That is loving the world do not love the world. 362 00:20:06,560 --> 00:20:08,840 What is the world? The world is anything and 363 00:20:08,840 --> 00:20:12,040 everything that's part of this earthly life that's under the 364 00:20:12,040 --> 00:20:13,360 curse of sin. I want to make another 365 00:20:13,360 --> 00:20:16,160 clarification for you because what I don't want you to think 366 00:20:16,160 --> 00:20:19,160 is the wrong definition of this world, of this word world. 367 00:20:19,400 --> 00:20:23,800 And John 316 it says for God so love the by which he means all 368 00:20:23,800 --> 00:20:27,280 the people of the world. When John says don't love the 369 00:20:27,280 --> 00:20:30,200 world, he's not talking about the people of the world. 370 00:20:30,360 --> 00:20:33,400 He's talking about all the physical or the things that are 371 00:20:33,400 --> 00:20:37,680 of the here and the now, not the people that will not last to be 372 00:20:37,680 --> 00:20:41,280 part of the Kingdom of God. Don't love this system, don't 373 00:20:41,280 --> 00:20:44,040 love the things, don't love the pursuits, don't love all the 374 00:20:44,040 --> 00:20:48,120 stuff that's under the cursive sin now that will not last to be 375 00:20:48,120 --> 00:20:51,200 part of the Kingdom of God. What does it mean to love? 376 00:20:51,200 --> 00:20:55,320 It means to value, it means to be loyal to it means to give 377 00:20:55,320 --> 00:20:58,120 your affection or your allegiance to it means to 378 00:20:58,200 --> 00:21:01,320 sacrificially pursue with your efforts and your energy. 379 00:21:01,480 --> 00:21:03,240 John is saying don't value y'all. 380 00:21:03,240 --> 00:21:06,480 Don't be loyal to don't give yourself sacrificially to what's 381 00:21:06,480 --> 00:21:10,520 of the here and now that will not last to be part of the 382 00:21:10,520 --> 00:21:14,640 Kingdom of God. Why? 383 00:21:16,240 --> 00:21:19,200 Why John? Why? 384 00:21:19,200 --> 00:21:21,000 Why? What's so dangerous about loving 385 00:21:21,000 --> 00:21:23,240 the world? Two reasons. 386 00:21:23,240 --> 00:21:24,960 That first one is the end of verse 15. 387 00:21:25,760 --> 00:21:30,160 He says if anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is 388 00:21:30,160 --> 00:21:34,320 not in him. Reason #1 Loving the world is so 389 00:21:34,320 --> 00:21:38,920 dangerous, it is impossible to love God and the world at the 390 00:21:38,920 --> 00:21:43,360 same time. Johnson's reason number one, you 391 00:21:43,360 --> 00:21:46,680 all not love the world as it is impossible to love God and the 392 00:21:46,680 --> 00:21:49,040 world at the same time. You can't do it right? 393 00:21:49,280 --> 00:21:52,880 If A you're loving the world, then B, you're not loving God. 394 00:21:53,160 --> 00:21:55,840 And if we were in a debate with John, we might say John, OK, we, 395 00:21:55,840 --> 00:21:57,400 we hear you. But why is that? 396 00:21:57,400 --> 00:22:01,240 Why really can't we love God and the world at the same time? 397 00:22:01,440 --> 00:22:04,400 He says verse in verse 16, because the things of the world 398 00:22:04,400 --> 00:22:08,600 are not the things of God, they're polar opposite and he 399 00:22:08,600 --> 00:22:12,880 names 3 categories of things in this world that we ought not 400 00:22:12,880 --> 00:22:15,360 love. You notice them here, the lust 401 00:22:15,360 --> 00:22:19,480 or desires of the flesh, the lust or desires of the eyes, and 402 00:22:19,480 --> 00:22:22,360 then the boastful pride of life. Let's talk about these just for 403 00:22:22,360 --> 00:22:24,680 a moment. What does he mean by the lust or 404 00:22:24,680 --> 00:22:28,600 desires of the flesh, Right. Our bodies and the desires of 405 00:22:28,600 --> 00:22:30,800 our bodies are not inherently bad. 406 00:22:30,800 --> 00:22:34,320 God made us as physical beings, more than just physical beings, 407 00:22:34,920 --> 00:22:37,800 but God as he made us and gave us physical bodies, designed us 408 00:22:37,800 --> 00:22:40,160 with physical desires for our good, right? 409 00:22:40,520 --> 00:22:42,440 And just a little bit, If I preach too long, you're going to 410 00:22:42,440 --> 00:22:45,280 get what you're going to get hungry. 411 00:22:45,280 --> 00:22:49,840 You might be hungry now, right? That's a good desire. 412 00:22:50,080 --> 00:22:53,160 God gave you that desire. But that desire, any bodily 413 00:22:53,160 --> 00:22:57,760 desire you have perverted or distorted by sin can be turned 414 00:22:57,760 --> 00:23:00,560 into a lust of the flesh. It can be turned into overeating 415 00:23:00,680 --> 00:23:02,400 or it can be turned into under eating. 416 00:23:03,040 --> 00:23:04,920 And you can misuse that desire, right? 417 00:23:05,160 --> 00:23:07,120 What about the desire for thirst? 418 00:23:07,120 --> 00:23:09,360 We would desire naturally to quench our thirst. 419 00:23:09,360 --> 00:23:11,200 You're not going to live if you don't stay hydrated. 420 00:23:11,200 --> 00:23:13,920 And yet that desire can be perverted and twisted and 421 00:23:13,920 --> 00:23:17,480 distorted and into drunkenness. Guess what? 422 00:23:17,480 --> 00:23:20,920 You have a desire for pleasure. You have a desire for intimacy, 423 00:23:22,160 --> 00:23:26,760 maybe a desire for offspring. That desire can be perverted and 424 00:23:26,760 --> 00:23:29,040 distorted into sexual immorality. 425 00:23:30,200 --> 00:23:34,960 You have a desire for rest. You have a desire for sleep. 426 00:23:35,880 --> 00:23:39,560 You have a desire for comfort. That desire can be distorted 427 00:23:39,560 --> 00:23:43,880 into laziness, but you can take any good. 428 00:23:43,880 --> 00:23:45,880 This is what sin is. It's when the good things that 429 00:23:45,880 --> 00:23:48,960 God designed and made, that he called good at creation, are 430 00:23:48,960 --> 00:23:52,040 taken and distorted or twisted and used for things other than 431 00:23:52,040 --> 00:23:55,440 the glory and goodness of God at which God designed them. 432 00:23:55,440 --> 00:23:57,760 These are the the lust of the flesh. 433 00:23:57,760 --> 00:23:59,480 Then there's the lust or desires of the eyes. 434 00:24:00,120 --> 00:24:03,800 These are the cravings produced in US based on what we see. 435 00:24:03,920 --> 00:24:07,480 By the way, much of these things aren't inherently bad either. 436 00:24:07,480 --> 00:24:10,520 These can be good things, things God designed for us to enjoy. 437 00:24:10,720 --> 00:24:14,360 But anything that our eyes see that caused our hearts to long 438 00:24:14,360 --> 00:24:18,520 for more than God can produce a lust of the eyes, right? 439 00:24:18,760 --> 00:24:21,480 I mean, it could be down to the clothes you wish you had. 440 00:24:21,480 --> 00:24:23,480 Clothes are a good thing. I'm so glad you got dressed this 441 00:24:23,480 --> 00:24:24,120 morning. Amen. 442 00:24:25,640 --> 00:24:27,440 But what if you wanted certain clothes more than you really 443 00:24:27,440 --> 00:24:29,880 wanted God? What if you wanted a car really 444 00:24:29,880 --> 00:24:32,040 more than you? A certain car you wish you drove 445 00:24:32,040 --> 00:24:33,800 more than you want God? What if there was a house you 446 00:24:33,800 --> 00:24:36,200 wish you had and you lived in more than you really want to go? 447 00:24:36,200 --> 00:24:38,960 Whether if there was an office you really wish you had, a job 448 00:24:38,960 --> 00:24:40,960 you really wish you had more than you wanted God? 449 00:24:41,040 --> 00:24:43,360 What if it was vacations you wish you could take more than 450 00:24:43,360 --> 00:24:45,440 you wanted God, right? You could go down the list. 451 00:24:45,600 --> 00:24:47,760 None of these things are necessarily bad, but if your 452 00:24:47,760 --> 00:24:50,080 eyes see them and your heart desires them more than they, 453 00:24:50,240 --> 00:24:51,640 your heart longs for God, guess what? 454 00:24:51,640 --> 00:24:56,600 This is a lust of the the eyes. And by the way, I had even named 455 00:24:56,600 --> 00:25:00,560 one of the most dangerous ones in our culture and time today. 456 00:25:01,120 --> 00:25:03,960 But they're the images that are pervasive in our culture. 457 00:25:03,960 --> 00:25:07,600 Any time you get on a screen or you can see off a screen. 458 00:25:07,600 --> 00:25:11,120 But in our day, most of the time through media and the Internet. 459 00:25:11,920 --> 00:25:15,200 I'm not going to use the full terminology just because I love 460 00:25:15,600 --> 00:25:17,800 for you guys to be able to handle whatever age you brought 461 00:25:17,800 --> 00:25:19,400 into the worship service at your timing. 462 00:25:19,400 --> 00:25:21,360 But you know what I'm talking about when I talk to the graphic 463 00:25:22,080 --> 00:25:32,240 of these images I'm Speaking of, I just, it is parents, listen to 464 00:25:32,240 --> 00:25:35,680 me close. Kids are seeing this stuff now 465 00:25:35,680 --> 00:25:37,960 between the ages of eight and 11 on average. 466 00:25:39,080 --> 00:25:43,040 OK. If you think your kid hasn't 467 00:25:43,040 --> 00:25:47,640 seen it and they're beyond the age of 11 or 12, you're probably 468 00:25:47,640 --> 00:25:50,560 wrong. I just need to tell you that as 469 00:25:50,560 --> 00:25:54,000 your pastor, you're probably wrong if you think they haven't 470 00:25:54,000 --> 00:25:57,880 seen it and they're at least 12 years old because on average 471 00:25:57,880 --> 00:25:59,160 they're seeing it between 8:00 and 11:00. 472 00:26:00,040 --> 00:26:02,440 OK. You've got to have conversations 473 00:26:02,440 --> 00:26:06,280 with your kids at that age and a little bit before and especially 474 00:26:06,280 --> 00:26:08,600 through that age so they can come to you and tell you and you 475 00:26:08,600 --> 00:26:11,520 use age appropriate terminology to know if they've been exposed 476 00:26:11,520 --> 00:26:13,480 to something, if they've seen something, they can come talk to 477 00:26:13,480 --> 00:26:15,360 you. And it's not just little boys, 478 00:26:15,360 --> 00:26:17,480 it's little girls and, and it's both genders. 479 00:26:17,480 --> 00:26:19,320 It is, it is, it is, it is pervasive. 480 00:26:21,000 --> 00:26:24,960 It is almost impossible for someone to make it to adulthood 481 00:26:24,960 --> 00:26:27,240 and not see this stuff at some point, somehow, somewhere. 482 00:26:30,080 --> 00:26:31,960 So what happens when they're exposed to it? 483 00:26:32,280 --> 00:26:34,120 And if they're not, if they don't have someone to talk to 484 00:26:34,120 --> 00:26:37,320 about it and can guide them through those dangerous waters, 485 00:26:37,800 --> 00:26:40,280 that almost always they're going to want to look again somehow. 486 00:26:40,280 --> 00:26:45,160 And what happens is, is that this becomes an addiction. 487 00:26:46,080 --> 00:26:48,960 And the way this works is that it's almost like a shark hook 488 00:26:48,960 --> 00:26:51,360 that gets in their soul and their mind and their heart with 489 00:26:51,360 --> 00:26:53,640 the Barb so big it's almost impossible to pull out. 490 00:26:53,800 --> 00:26:55,280 They can't overcome it themselves. 491 00:26:56,120 --> 00:26:58,600 By the way, just pastorally, I work with lots of people that 492 00:26:58,600 --> 00:27:01,120 deal with this very issue. And it's more people than you 493 00:27:01,120 --> 00:27:02,720 would realize. And if you're in it and you 494 00:27:02,720 --> 00:27:07,320 think you're alone, you're not. Almost weekly I'm working with 495 00:27:07,320 --> 00:27:11,440 someone in this issue. Psychologists talk about the 496 00:27:11,440 --> 00:27:14,120 fact that it's actually destroying the way our brains 497 00:27:14,120 --> 00:27:15,520 and our minds were meant to work. 498 00:27:15,960 --> 00:27:18,960 It is rewiring the synapse structure in the way that the 499 00:27:18,960 --> 00:27:20,840 brain connects things. So much so I this may. 500 00:27:20,840 --> 00:27:22,440 I don't want to get TMI, but I just want to. 501 00:27:22,520 --> 00:27:25,520 I want you to understand the destructiveness of this sin 502 00:27:25,720 --> 00:27:28,920 where often times someone that's been so artificially exposed to 503 00:27:28,920 --> 00:27:32,520 this cannot even physically function in the normal God 504 00:27:32,520 --> 00:27:35,520 design way because they've been so distorted according to 505 00:27:35,520 --> 00:27:38,680 exposure to the distortion of the desire, the lust of the 506 00:27:38,680 --> 00:27:41,440 flesh, that life doesn't even work for them in the normal way 507 00:27:41,440 --> 00:27:47,520 anymore. Listen parents, you've got to 508 00:27:47,520 --> 00:27:49,000 have this conversation with your kids. 509 00:27:49,480 --> 00:27:51,880 They've got to know you're a safe place they can go to say, 510 00:27:51,880 --> 00:27:53,640 hey, I saw something I need to talk about. 511 00:27:55,080 --> 00:27:58,680 You cannot give a screen to your kids that's unprotected and 512 00:27:58,680 --> 00:28:00,960 expect them not to see it at some point. 513 00:28:00,960 --> 00:28:05,680 I'm going to say that again, you cannot give a screen to your 514 00:28:05,680 --> 00:28:09,760 children with unfiltered Internet access and not expect 515 00:28:09,760 --> 00:28:11,000 them to see it. At some point. 516 00:28:11,000 --> 00:28:14,440 Mark it down, they will. They will see it. 517 00:28:15,120 --> 00:28:18,720 It's on the games they play, it's on the phones. 518 00:28:18,720 --> 00:28:21,200 If they're unfiltered, it's coming through your Internet 519 00:28:21,200 --> 00:28:22,480 router. If it doesn't have something 520 00:28:22,480 --> 00:28:25,480 that blocks and if it doesn't come on the devices, it'll come 521 00:28:25,480 --> 00:28:27,600 on the friends devices that come over that get on your router. 522 00:28:27,600 --> 00:28:32,600 That's unfiltered, they're going to see it and it will silently 523 00:28:32,600 --> 00:28:34,040 destroy them from the inside out. 524 00:28:34,720 --> 00:28:38,560 It'll destroy the marriage unless something and you've got 525 00:28:38,560 --> 00:28:41,160 to get help. I need you to come talk to me. 526 00:28:41,160 --> 00:28:43,000 I need you to come talk to someone on our staff. 527 00:28:43,120 --> 00:28:44,600 You've got to come talk to someone. 528 00:28:44,720 --> 00:28:47,480 If this is, if this is anything anywhere in your life, you've 529 00:28:47,480 --> 00:28:48,880 got to get help. All right. 530 00:28:51,280 --> 00:28:53,640 The victory is possible, but you're not going to defeat it by 531 00:28:53,640 --> 00:28:57,320 yourself. And then there's thirdly, the 532 00:28:57,360 --> 00:29:00,680 boastful pride of life. These are, you know, this is 533 00:29:00,680 --> 00:29:02,040 anything. Again, this doesn't have to be 534 00:29:02,040 --> 00:29:04,280 bad things. It can just be things that we 535 00:29:04,280 --> 00:29:08,800 like, feel good about, and like about more than we take our 536 00:29:08,800 --> 00:29:11,520 pride, take our identity and our purpose in God. 537 00:29:12,120 --> 00:29:14,720 This is the thing the world loves to have and boast in, like 538 00:29:14,720 --> 00:29:18,080 money, money, money, toys and possessions and stuff. 539 00:29:18,080 --> 00:29:21,960 And all the clout and popularity and success and status and 540 00:29:21,960 --> 00:29:24,280 getting higher in the pecking order based on this or that or 541 00:29:24,280 --> 00:29:27,600 whatever it is from who you are and who you know to how you look 542 00:29:27,600 --> 00:29:29,320 or what you have or what you can do. 543 00:29:29,600 --> 00:29:33,240 And anything that gives you status and standing and self 544 00:29:33,240 --> 00:29:35,880 esteem based on the stuff of the world that's under the curse of 545 00:29:35,880 --> 00:29:36,920 sin. That won't last. 546 00:29:37,040 --> 00:29:41,880 That's not God and boasting in or identifying in or finding 547 00:29:41,880 --> 00:29:45,480 purpose and meaning in that more than you do God, God, John is 548 00:29:45,480 --> 00:29:49,120 saying y'all these things, the things of the flesh, the desires 549 00:29:49,120 --> 00:29:51,120 of the eyes and the pride of life. 550 00:29:51,120 --> 00:29:53,720 These things are of the world. It's impossible to love God and 551 00:29:53,720 --> 00:29:55,840 them at the same time. Why? 552 00:29:55,840 --> 00:29:58,680 Because they don't share anything in common. 553 00:29:59,880 --> 00:30:02,080 Reason number one, you can't love God and the world at the 554 00:30:02,080 --> 00:30:03,920 same time. Do not love the world. 555 00:30:03,920 --> 00:30:07,680 But there's a second reason John also gives us in December 17. 556 00:30:07,680 --> 00:30:12,960 Listen to verse 17 again and the world is passing away along with 557 00:30:12,960 --> 00:30:17,200 its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever. 558 00:30:17,200 --> 00:30:21,400 Reason #2 Loving the world is so dangerous is because the things 559 00:30:21,400 --> 00:30:25,000 of the world are temporary, but the things of God are forever. 560 00:30:26,480 --> 00:30:27,840 The things of the world are temporary. 561 00:30:28,600 --> 00:30:32,200 What do I mean by that? I mean the things of the world 562 00:30:32,200 --> 00:30:35,080 are literally awaiting ultimate destruction. 563 00:30:36,040 --> 00:30:39,000 Say whoa, do what? Listen to what the Bible says. 564 00:30:39,520 --> 00:30:41,720 Listen second Peter 3 verse 4 through 7. 565 00:30:41,960 --> 00:30:45,160 They will say where is the promise of his coming? 566 00:30:45,360 --> 00:30:49,360 Hey, it's been 2000 years, where's Jesus forever since the 567 00:30:49,360 --> 00:30:52,000 Father's fell asleep? All things are continuing as 568 00:30:52,000 --> 00:30:53,600 they were from the beginning of creation. 569 00:30:53,760 --> 00:30:56,240 For they deliberately overlooked this fact that the heavens 570 00:30:56,240 --> 00:30:59,360 existed long ago and the earth was formed out of water and 571 00:30:59,360 --> 00:31:00,880 through water by the word of God. 572 00:31:01,160 --> 00:31:04,320 And that by means of these, the world that then existed was 573 00:31:04,320 --> 00:31:07,800 deluged with water and perished. Noah and the flood, Hello. 574 00:31:09,960 --> 00:31:13,280 But by the same word, the heavens and the earth that now 575 00:31:13,280 --> 00:31:19,840 exist are stored up for fire, being kept until the day of 576 00:31:19,840 --> 00:31:22,600 judgment and destruction of the ungodly in verse 10. 577 00:31:22,800 --> 00:31:25,040 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, That is when 578 00:31:25,040 --> 00:31:29,160 no one's expecting it. And then the heavens will pass 579 00:31:29,160 --> 00:31:31,840 away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned 580 00:31:31,840 --> 00:31:35,480 up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on 581 00:31:35,480 --> 00:31:39,760 it will be exposed. So guess what happens to those 582 00:31:39,760 --> 00:31:45,560 who love the world? God gives them what they want. 583 00:31:47,160 --> 00:31:52,240 They get the world and they go to destruction with it. 584 00:31:53,000 --> 00:31:54,920 This is why loving the world is so dangerous. 585 00:31:55,320 --> 00:31:58,680 The things of the world are temporary, the things of God are 586 00:31:58,920 --> 00:32:00,920 forever. Notice he says in verse end of 587 00:32:00,920 --> 00:32:05,200 verse 17. But the one who does the will of 588 00:32:05,200 --> 00:32:08,680 God abides forever. Now, if you're paying close 589 00:32:08,680 --> 00:32:11,480 attention at all, something ought to strike you as off. 590 00:32:11,480 --> 00:32:13,520 When I just read that right there, you're like, wait a 591 00:32:13,520 --> 00:32:15,280 second. It says the one who does the 592 00:32:15,280 --> 00:32:16,800 will of God. I thought we were talking about 593 00:32:16,840 --> 00:32:19,200 either loving God or loving the world. 594 00:32:19,280 --> 00:32:23,240 Why doesn't he say there? But whoever loves God abides 595 00:32:23,240 --> 00:32:24,520 forever. Did you notice that's not what 596 00:32:24,520 --> 00:32:27,440 he said. Why does he say, But whoever 597 00:32:27,440 --> 00:32:31,840 does the will of God abides forever Because do you remember 598 00:32:31,840 --> 00:32:34,600 the words of Jesus? If you love me, you will what 599 00:32:36,560 --> 00:32:41,920 you'll obey me. Jesus is not looking for love 600 00:32:41,960 --> 00:32:50,160 verbally professed he's looking for love live live lived out 601 00:32:51,240 --> 00:32:53,560 because Jesus says if you love me it's going to be lived out. 602 00:32:54,480 --> 00:32:56,560 The one who lives it out demonstrates that they really 603 00:32:56,560 --> 00:33:03,520 love me escapes the danger of loving the world and loves God 604 00:33:03,520 --> 00:33:08,960 first Father, heart, mind, soul and strength for a child of God, 605 00:33:09,800 --> 00:33:12,760 the most dangerous thing in the world is loving the world. 606 00:33:15,120 --> 00:33:18,000 Many of y'all know this. I grew up in South Georgia 607 00:33:18,320 --> 00:33:21,360 little town called Americas Sumter County. 608 00:33:21,760 --> 00:33:27,240 If you're familiar with the South part of the state and we 609 00:33:27,240 --> 00:33:30,760 lived in a, in a, in a, a little neighborhood when I was very 610 00:33:30,760 --> 00:33:33,600 young. But as a child we moved out to 611 00:33:33,600 --> 00:33:36,360 more of a rural area of the county several miles outside of 612 00:33:36,360 --> 00:33:38,800 town. So that's really where I 613 00:33:38,800 --> 00:33:40,320 remember growing up. It was kind of out in the 614 00:33:40,320 --> 00:33:43,840 country. And my best friend, his name is 615 00:33:43,840 --> 00:33:46,360 Matthew Green, still lives in Americas, Georgia to this day 616 00:33:46,600 --> 00:33:50,120 lived 3 miles from me. That sounds like a long way, but 617 00:33:50,120 --> 00:33:52,320 that wasn't a problem with a four Wheeler. 618 00:33:52,320 --> 00:33:54,520 We caught them in ATVs if you want to be all proper. 619 00:33:55,800 --> 00:33:57,680 And so Matthew and I spent a ton of time together. 620 00:33:57,680 --> 00:34:00,120 I mean, through farm fields and back roads and login roads. 621 00:34:00,120 --> 00:34:02,800 We'd meet up and have a great time. 622 00:34:04,280 --> 00:34:07,840 We had a mutual friend that lived halfway in between us, 623 00:34:08,199 --> 00:34:10,719 about a mile and 1/2 from me, across a couple fields and 624 00:34:11,320 --> 00:34:14,280 through some woods. And we'll just call this 625 00:34:14,320 --> 00:34:16,320 friend's name Ben. That's not his real name, but 626 00:34:17,000 --> 00:34:20,080 we'll say Ben lived there and and Ben's family just happened 627 00:34:20,080 --> 00:34:24,600 to be extremely wealthy. And so Ben had just about 628 00:34:24,760 --> 00:34:28,840 everything a 10 year old boy could imagine having. 629 00:34:30,239 --> 00:34:32,480 In fact, Ben didn't just have one full with it a ride. 630 00:34:32,480 --> 00:34:34,239 He had about two or three he could pick from. 631 00:34:35,239 --> 00:34:37,280 He had a couple go karts. He had a dirt bike. 632 00:34:38,080 --> 00:34:42,920 I had a basketball goal, but but Ben had a full scale basketball 633 00:34:42,920 --> 00:34:44,960 court. Ben in his backyard. 634 00:34:45,760 --> 00:34:48,480 Ben would love that. I mean, we played full court 635 00:34:48,480 --> 00:34:51,199 when we went over to his house, he had a batting cage. 636 00:34:51,199 --> 00:34:54,360 I had a batting cage, but but Ben had a professional baseball 637 00:34:54,360 --> 00:34:55,960 coach that showed up at his right. 638 00:34:56,760 --> 00:34:58,840 My dad's shoulder was kind of rough, but I praise God that he 639 00:34:58,840 --> 00:35:00,840 threw all the pitches he could through my batting gauge. 640 00:35:03,400 --> 00:35:05,600 Ben had model airplanes. I don't mean the kind of like 641 00:35:05,600 --> 00:35:07,240 you buy Walmart that fly with batteries. 642 00:35:07,240 --> 00:35:09,200 I'm talking about the ones you put gas in and I'm talking about 643 00:35:09,200 --> 00:35:13,280 really fly. Ben had a big screen TV in his 644 00:35:13,280 --> 00:35:14,320 room. That doesn't sound like a big 645 00:35:14,320 --> 00:35:15,800 deal now that they're flat and cheap. 646 00:35:16,000 --> 00:35:18,200 But you know when there were monstrosities back in the day, 647 00:35:18,800 --> 00:35:20,280 he had one upstairs in his bedroom. 648 00:35:21,920 --> 00:35:24,840 Ben had a couple of different horses he loved to ride. 649 00:35:25,760 --> 00:35:27,960 Ben had all the name brand clothes. 650 00:35:28,800 --> 00:35:30,840 Ben was the most popular kid in school. 651 00:35:33,200 --> 00:35:34,880 I love spending time at Ben's house. 652 00:35:39,680 --> 00:35:41,560 I was saved as a nine year old boy. 653 00:35:42,960 --> 00:35:46,080 I was 9 when I trusted Jesus to forgive me of my sin. 654 00:35:47,080 --> 00:35:48,840 That's when I came to know God personally. 655 00:35:49,280 --> 00:35:52,280 That's when I overcame the evil 1 by the blood of Jesus Christ 656 00:35:52,280 --> 00:35:55,840 and my faith, faith in Him. Nine years old. 657 00:35:56,800 --> 00:36:01,400 When I was about 10 years old, my mother came to me one day 658 00:36:01,920 --> 00:36:03,480 said Kyle, I need to talk to you. 659 00:36:05,040 --> 00:36:10,080 I was like, OK. And she said I had a dream last 660 00:36:10,080 --> 00:36:15,720 night. Now, I was really listening and 661 00:36:15,720 --> 00:36:17,520 this has never happened before or since. 662 00:36:17,520 --> 00:36:19,200 I'm not telling you. You may think a lot of different 663 00:36:19,200 --> 00:36:20,560 things about this. I'm just telling you the way it 664 00:36:20,560 --> 00:36:24,400 happened in my life. And she said, yeah, the Kyle, 665 00:36:24,400 --> 00:36:28,240 the dream was quite unusual. And she said you were over at 666 00:36:28,240 --> 00:36:35,880 Ben's house and all of Ben's stuff was in this giant pile, 667 00:36:36,720 --> 00:36:41,760 like mounded up the AT VS the basketball stuff, baseball 668 00:36:41,760 --> 00:36:47,040 stuff, the TV model, airplanes, horses, all the stuff in this 669 00:36:47,040 --> 00:36:51,480 huge pile. And, and Ben was in the middle 670 00:36:51,480 --> 00:36:53,640 of the pile playing with all his stuff. 671 00:36:55,880 --> 00:36:59,280 But she said what was really unusual was that all the stuff, 672 00:36:59,280 --> 00:37:04,760 the whole pile was on fire. But obviously Ben did not know 673 00:37:04,760 --> 00:37:06,320 it was on fire. He was in the middle of it 674 00:37:06,320 --> 00:37:11,480 having a great time enjoying all the stuff and she said then I 675 00:37:11,480 --> 00:37:14,400 looked and you were not in the pile, you were not in the fire, 676 00:37:14,400 --> 00:37:18,760 but you were off to the side looking on watching Ben enjoy 677 00:37:18,760 --> 00:37:23,520 all his stuff and you obviously didn't know it was on fire 678 00:37:23,520 --> 00:37:26,440 either. So you just kept getting closer 679 00:37:26,720 --> 00:37:30,440 and closer, one step at a time, eyes locked in, mesmerized by 680 00:37:30,440 --> 00:37:33,240 all the stuff in the fire and the fun he was having and 681 00:37:33,240 --> 00:37:35,720 getting closer and closer. She said you got to the point 682 00:37:35,720 --> 00:37:38,640 you got so close to the fire you could reach in and pick up a 683 00:37:38,640 --> 00:37:41,600 piece of what was in the fire to enjoy, to do something, whatever 684 00:37:41,600 --> 00:37:43,720 toy that was. She said as soon as you leaned 685 00:37:43,720 --> 00:37:46,400 in and reached him, your fingertips caught on fire. 686 00:37:46,400 --> 00:37:54,000 And I woke up. I mean, I was, I was a 10 year 687 00:37:54,000 --> 00:38:00,960 old boy, but I knew exactly what God was trying to tell me 688 00:38:03,000 --> 00:38:07,800 exactly. I knew I had been falling in 689 00:38:07,800 --> 00:38:12,920 love with all of that stuff. Nothing wrong with any of that 690 00:38:12,920 --> 00:38:16,480 stuff. But loving that stuff instead of 691 00:38:16,480 --> 00:38:22,440 loving God was incredibly dangerous to me growing as a 692 00:38:22,440 --> 00:38:27,680 child of God. The world and all the stuff of 693 00:38:27,680 --> 00:38:31,720 the world is not yet on fire. But mark it down. 694 00:38:31,720 --> 00:38:35,960 It is being prepared, along with all those who love the world for 695 00:38:35,960 --> 00:38:40,240 a fire. Do not hear me. 696 00:38:40,240 --> 00:38:44,680 Do not love the world. Don't give your allegiance. 697 00:38:45,080 --> 00:38:46,840 Don't give your affection and your loyalty. 698 00:38:47,280 --> 00:38:49,920 Don't sacrifice your energy and effort to run after that which 699 00:38:49,920 --> 00:38:53,160 will not last. Jesus says, what will it gain a 700 00:38:53,160 --> 00:38:55,200 man? What will it profit a man if he 701 00:38:55,200 --> 00:38:59,760 gains the whole and yet forfeits his soul? 702 00:39:00,840 --> 00:39:03,080 Don't love the world. For that matter, don't even 703 00:39:03,080 --> 00:39:06,800 flirt with it. Don't give your heart. 704 00:39:06,800 --> 00:39:08,480 Don't give your love to the things of the world that won't 705 00:39:08,480 --> 00:39:12,800 last. Listen, here's the deal. 706 00:39:14,600 --> 00:39:17,280 Some of you in the room may be in this situation. 707 00:39:18,360 --> 00:39:22,880 The situation that I was in as a 10 year old boy, I was saved, 708 00:39:23,760 --> 00:39:28,880 was a child of God, but I was falling in love with the stuff 709 00:39:28,920 --> 00:39:33,480 of the world. Now here's the deal, when God 710 00:39:33,480 --> 00:39:36,320 saves you and transfers you from the Kingdom of darkness to the 711 00:39:36,320 --> 00:39:39,160 Kingdom of His beloved Son, He doesn't haul you back. 712 00:39:40,760 --> 00:39:42,040 Y'all should say Amen to that right there. 713 00:39:43,040 --> 00:39:45,200 He doesn't take you back. He never just owns you. 714 00:39:45,360 --> 00:39:47,760 He doesn't undo what only He could do in your life. 715 00:39:47,880 --> 00:39:50,440 If you've been saved, if you've been rescued, God's not going to 716 00:39:50,440 --> 00:39:52,680 unsaved and unrescued you. But here's the deal. 717 00:39:53,120 --> 00:39:57,880 It is possible for a child of God to live all of their life in 718 00:39:57,880 --> 00:40:00,640 loving the world instead of loving God and one day stand 719 00:40:00,640 --> 00:40:04,280 before Jesus Christ their Lord and Savior and only have the 720 00:40:04,320 --> 00:40:08,640 ashes of a wasted life set on fire by love for the world and 721 00:40:08,640 --> 00:40:11,040 not a love for Jesus. That they did not live out the 722 00:40:11,040 --> 00:40:13,400 plan of God for their life and they bore no fruit for the 723 00:40:13,400 --> 00:40:17,000 Kingdom of God and got nothing, nothing to show for it when they 724 00:40:17,000 --> 00:40:19,760 stand before Jesus Christ. Saved, yes. 725 00:40:19,760 --> 00:40:22,320 Fruitful for the Kingdom? No, because a love for the fire 726 00:40:22,320 --> 00:40:24,880 of the world burned up any effectiveness for the Kingdom of 727 00:40:24,880 --> 00:40:28,720 God. You don't want to do that. 728 00:40:30,240 --> 00:40:34,760 You don't want to do that. So the question is, do you have 729 00:40:34,760 --> 00:40:39,400 any areas of your life that are on fire for the wrong thing? 730 00:40:41,040 --> 00:40:44,240 They may not be bad things, they're just not God. 731 00:40:46,080 --> 00:40:50,080 And maybe you need to ask God to be a firefighter, to flood you 732 00:40:50,080 --> 00:40:53,240 with His love and remind you of his plan and His goodness. 733 00:40:54,360 --> 00:40:56,440 And maybe you just want to come and get on your knees or posture 734 00:40:56,440 --> 00:40:59,440 yourself, or come pray with me or one of our counselors or 735 00:41:00,200 --> 00:41:02,480 encouragers and say I've got fires in my life. 736 00:41:02,480 --> 00:41:06,080 I need God to put out loves for things that have gotten out of 737 00:41:06,080 --> 00:41:09,720 control, that are robbing me of fruitfulness and effectiveness 738 00:41:09,720 --> 00:41:14,520 for the Kingdom of God. Maybe you're here and John and 739 00:41:14,520 --> 00:41:15,880 praise team are coming to the stage. 740 00:41:17,400 --> 00:41:22,720 Maybe you're here and you're not forgiven of your sin because you 741 00:41:22,720 --> 00:41:26,240 never asked. You don't know God personally 742 00:41:26,440 --> 00:41:29,880 because you never trusted in Jesus as your Savior, and you've 743 00:41:29,880 --> 00:41:33,040 not overcome the enemy because he's whooping you up and down 744 00:41:33,040 --> 00:41:35,440 right now and you know it, and you don't have the victory 745 00:41:35,440 --> 00:41:37,920 through Christ. Would you step out from where 746 00:41:37,920 --> 00:41:40,160 you are and come tell me, pray with our encouragers. 747 00:41:40,160 --> 00:41:42,480 Come ask questions we could help walk you through. 748 00:41:42,640 --> 00:41:44,200 Take those next steps to trust Christ. 749 00:41:44,200 --> 00:41:46,920 We'd love to do that with you. I'm going to pray and then I'm 750 00:41:46,920 --> 00:41:49,640 going to ask you to stand and respond as the Lord leads you 751 00:41:49,640 --> 00:41:54,120 this morning, Heavenly Father. God, I want to ask right now in 752 00:41:54,120 --> 00:41:57,840 these next moments, Father, that you allow us to say yes to 753 00:41:57,840 --> 00:42:00,160 whatever it is you've pointed out in our lives need to be 754 00:42:00,160 --> 00:42:02,920 surrendered to you. God, I pray you'd put out any 755 00:42:02,920 --> 00:42:07,720 fires in our life where a love for something other than you is 756 00:42:07,720 --> 00:42:10,760 taking territory and robbing us of fruitfulness for the Kingdom 757 00:42:10,760 --> 00:42:11,960 of God. God, we don't want to stand 758 00:42:11,960 --> 00:42:14,920 before you one day with the ashes of a wasted life. 759 00:42:15,920 --> 00:42:19,440 God, we want to be vessels through which you can use and 760 00:42:19,440 --> 00:42:21,000 bear fruit for the Kingdom of God. 761 00:42:21,560 --> 00:42:24,280 Help us love you first. Keep us from the danger of 762 00:42:24,280 --> 00:42:27,280 loving the world and help us tell others how they can escape 763 00:42:27,520 --> 00:42:29,960 that same danger by trusting you. 764 00:42:30,160 --> 00:42:33,920 And I pray if anyone is there on the precipice of a decision for 765 00:42:34,000 --> 00:42:36,320 Jesus today. Father, you lead them to full 766 00:42:36,320 --> 00:42:39,400 faith in your son. Rescue them from their from 767 00:42:39,400 --> 00:42:42,080 their sin. Pour out your forgiveness. 768 00:42:42,320 --> 00:42:45,120 Give life as you promised. If they call on you, let them do 769 00:42:45,120 --> 00:42:47,240 it even now. In Jesus name I pray, Amen. 770 00:42:47,240 --> 00:42:48,920 Would you stand? Would you sing? 771 00:42:49,080 --> 00:42:51,160 Would you come as the Lord leads you this morning?