1 00:00:00,160 --> 00:00:03,280 Well, good morning everyone. It is a beautiful day together. 2 00:00:03,640 --> 00:00:06,560 I'm excited to see our visitors. We're happy to hear have the 3 00:00:06,560 --> 00:00:09,600 people who are not normally among us here today to have the 4 00:00:09,600 --> 00:00:12,680 common purpose, the best common purpose one could have with 5 00:00:12,680 --> 00:00:14,600 another. And I'm excited to see our 6 00:00:14,600 --> 00:00:18,400 usuals, the people who we are always so accustomed to seeing. 7 00:00:18,400 --> 00:00:21,240 Thank you for being faithful and continuing to be here and 8 00:00:21,240 --> 00:00:24,960 support of God's Word and in continuing to worship Him one 9 00:00:24,960 --> 00:00:27,280 more day until we get closer to our final goal. 10 00:00:27,920 --> 00:00:30,320 If you have not been here, I've been walking through the book of 11 00:00:30,320 --> 00:00:33,440 first John, and so we'll do a quick intro to bring you up to 12 00:00:33,440 --> 00:00:35,120 speed with the purpose of this book. 13 00:00:35,320 --> 00:00:39,200 We are in lesson 6 and that puts us at the end of chapter 4. 14 00:00:39,680 --> 00:00:42,760 Last time we covered the first half of chapter 4 and 1st John, 15 00:00:43,280 --> 00:00:45,680 and this book was written. First of all, we need to make 16 00:00:45,680 --> 00:00:46,960 sure we understand who it's written to. 17 00:00:47,640 --> 00:00:49,800 This book was written to Christians, people who are 18 00:00:49,800 --> 00:00:52,240 already faithful followers of God. 19 00:00:52,600 --> 00:00:54,280 And that leads us to the message. 20 00:00:54,280 --> 00:00:58,160 The message was that John said that I write these things to you 21 00:00:58,200 --> 00:01:02,200 so that your joy may be full. This book is a book of joy and a 22 00:01:02,200 --> 00:01:05,480 book of reminding us and strengthening us in our joy. 23 00:01:06,080 --> 00:01:08,280 And secondly, so that we may not sin. 24 00:01:09,080 --> 00:01:12,760 If we are to be Christians that are full of joy and full of 25 00:01:12,760 --> 00:01:17,040 God's love and the messages of Christ, that means so that we 26 00:01:17,040 --> 00:01:19,360 don't sin, we need to avoid those things. 27 00:01:20,000 --> 00:01:22,880 The third purpose, he says that you may know, that you have 28 00:01:22,880 --> 00:01:26,480 eternal life, that you may know, and we're getting to that verse 29 00:01:26,480 --> 00:01:28,800 here pretty soon. It might be next study. 30 00:01:29,840 --> 00:01:32,760 And the fourth purpose here that you may continue to believe in 31 00:01:32,760 --> 00:01:35,400 the name of the Son of God. Remember, these Christians were 32 00:01:35,400 --> 00:01:38,160 now starting to get some pressure and they were starting 33 00:01:38,160 --> 00:01:42,480 to have these messages around them that that would detract 34 00:01:42,480 --> 00:01:45,800 from what Jesus said he was and did and from what he claimed to 35 00:01:45,800 --> 00:01:46,840 do. And they were starting to have 36 00:01:46,840 --> 00:01:50,120 some detractors. We're talking within 100 years 37 00:01:50,120 --> 00:01:53,240 of after Jesus came, this had started. 38 00:01:53,720 --> 00:01:57,000 So don't be surprised 2000 years later that it is continued and 39 00:01:57,000 --> 00:02:00,120 that there's pressure it's going to happen, but they knew about 40 00:02:00,120 --> 00:02:01,720 it. And so there's a letter written 41 00:02:01,720 --> 00:02:04,600 to help us in this. And the last purpose I think we 42 00:02:04,600 --> 00:02:08,600 can clearly identify from his statement is that these things 43 00:02:08,600 --> 00:02:11,440 I've written to you concerning those who tried to deceive you. 44 00:02:11,760 --> 00:02:15,040 So related to the people who are providing that pressure, that 45 00:02:15,040 --> 00:02:18,520 pressure was a pressure of the of deception, The devil's work 46 00:02:18,600 --> 00:02:21,680 and the pressure he applies to our faith is one that tries to 47 00:02:21,680 --> 00:02:24,760 twist and deceive. But we are going to counteract 48 00:02:24,760 --> 00:02:28,320 that with truth. So let's get our momentum back 49 00:02:28,320 --> 00:02:31,600 from what we did last time. And we started in verse one. 50 00:02:31,840 --> 00:02:35,200 And it's a beloved do not believe every spirit, but test 51 00:02:35,200 --> 00:02:36,880 the spirits, whether they are of God. 52 00:02:37,240 --> 00:02:42,600 So we test things that are right or to test them against truth to 53 00:02:42,600 --> 00:02:45,600 make sure we know that things we're hearing and practicing are 54 00:02:45,600 --> 00:02:48,560 true. Because many false prophets have 55 00:02:48,560 --> 00:02:51,840 gone out into the world. There is so much deception ready 56 00:02:51,840 --> 00:02:54,680 to trick us if we're not ready by this. 57 00:02:54,680 --> 00:02:58,000 You know, the Spirit of God, every spirit that confesses that 58 00:02:58,000 --> 00:03:00,520 Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God. 59 00:03:00,880 --> 00:03:03,560 And every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has 60 00:03:03,560 --> 00:03:08,120 come in the flesh is not of God. So that is the Gnostic teaching 61 00:03:08,120 --> 00:03:09,920 that we remember. That's the people who 62 00:03:10,000 --> 00:03:13,760 counteracted that, and this is the spirit of the Antichrist, 63 00:03:13,760 --> 00:03:16,840 which you have heard was coming and is now already in the world. 64 00:03:17,160 --> 00:03:20,840 You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because 65 00:03:20,840 --> 00:03:23,960 he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. 66 00:03:24,320 --> 00:03:27,840 They are of the world, therefore they speak as of the world, and 67 00:03:27,840 --> 00:03:30,560 the world hears them. We are of God. 68 00:03:31,080 --> 00:03:35,000 He who knows God hears us, and he who is not of God does not 69 00:03:35,000 --> 00:03:37,480 hear us. Beloved, let us love one 70 00:03:37,480 --> 00:03:41,240 another, for love is of God, and everyone who loves is born of 71 00:03:41,240 --> 00:03:45,160 God and knows God. He who does not love does not 72 00:03:45,160 --> 00:03:50,280 know God, for God is love. In this the love of God was 73 00:03:50,280 --> 00:03:53,480 manifested toward us, that God has sent his only begotten Son 74 00:03:53,480 --> 00:03:55,720 into the world, that we might live through him. 75 00:03:56,040 --> 00:03:59,320 And this is love. Not that we love God, but that 76 00:03:59,320 --> 00:04:03,640 He loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our 77 00:04:03,640 --> 00:04:04,760 sins. And here we are. 78 00:04:04,760 --> 00:04:06,520 We're getting right up to where we're going to cover today, 79 00:04:07,360 --> 00:04:11,400 beloved, if God so loved us, we all love one another. 80 00:04:13,120 --> 00:04:17,240 And we talked about last time how we want to be loved by God 81 00:04:17,240 --> 00:04:21,160 in a way that is genuine and self sacrificing and true. 82 00:04:21,360 --> 00:04:24,600 And so may we love each other. And when he says one another, 83 00:04:24,600 --> 00:04:26,640 he's been talking about the context of our brethren. 84 00:04:26,920 --> 00:04:30,960 So yes, we love everyone around us, but the specific context is 85 00:04:30,960 --> 00:04:33,560 he's he's trying to get us to treat each other a certain way 86 00:04:33,720 --> 00:04:37,280 that is radically different then maybe what we might intend to do 87 00:04:37,280 --> 00:04:38,920 when we get closer with one another. 88 00:04:39,520 --> 00:04:42,920 And when we see each other's warts and when we get frustrated 89 00:04:42,920 --> 00:04:46,840 with one another, he's trying to challenge us to love one another 90 00:04:47,040 --> 00:04:49,720 as God so loved. OK, here we go verse 12. 91 00:04:50,120 --> 00:04:54,600 No one has seen God at any time. No one has ever seen God in the 92 00:04:54,600 --> 00:04:59,000 flesh because God is spirit. If we love one another, God 93 00:04:59,000 --> 00:05:02,440 abides in US and his love has been perfected in US. 94 00:05:03,160 --> 00:05:07,360 So God's love is perfected in US and has grown to completeness in 95 00:05:07,360 --> 00:05:10,960 US when we love. Now that word perfected if 96 00:05:10,960 --> 00:05:13,880 you've done the done much Bible study, you know it is commonly 97 00:05:13,880 --> 00:05:17,960 used as a word of completeness, not of complete perfection in 98 00:05:17,960 --> 00:05:20,760 the sense that there is no sin you ever commit because that is 99 00:05:20,760 --> 00:05:24,160 contrary to another teaching. We are going to sin, but it is a 100 00:05:24,160 --> 00:05:29,000 love that is completed in US. In other words, it is mature and 101 00:05:29,000 --> 00:05:32,880 fully developed. And that's important because we 102 00:05:32,880 --> 00:05:36,440 want to give an accurate representation to the world of 103 00:05:36,440 --> 00:05:39,320 God's love. We don't want to give some 104 00:05:39,320 --> 00:05:42,160 counterfeit, cheap version of God's love to the world. 105 00:05:43,200 --> 00:05:47,280 You know, sometimes I think this might be our depiction of God's 106 00:05:47,280 --> 00:05:51,480 love to the world. We're trying, we're putting some 107 00:05:51,480 --> 00:05:54,200 effort there, but there's not a lot of skill. 108 00:05:54,200 --> 00:05:57,600 Maybe, maybe there's, there's some really rough details that 109 00:05:57,600 --> 00:06:00,800 we're showing. We're getting some idea, but we 110 00:06:00,800 --> 00:06:03,800 really kind of don't give the full picture that we're trying 111 00:06:03,800 --> 00:06:07,320 to give and so on. My challenge and our challenge 112 00:06:07,320 --> 00:06:13,720 from John the writer, is we need to be loving so that there is a 113 00:06:13,760 --> 00:06:18,280 more complete and a more real picture of God's love. 114 00:06:19,960 --> 00:06:25,200 Because at some point you become more developed and more complete 115 00:06:25,200 --> 00:06:27,840 or more perfect. Now this is another drawing. 116 00:06:27,920 --> 00:06:29,600 There are plenty of imperfections in it. 117 00:06:29,960 --> 00:06:31,800 If you were to look at this drawing, you would find things 118 00:06:31,800 --> 00:06:34,800 that are not perfect. That doesn't mean that there is 119 00:06:34,800 --> 00:06:38,400 completely without spot. You and I are not going to be 120 00:06:38,400 --> 00:06:42,080 completely without messed ups and wrongs and sins. 121 00:06:42,200 --> 00:06:46,640 But we can do a whole lot better job of getting the picture and 122 00:06:46,640 --> 00:06:51,400 of conveying the love of God and the developed picture of what 123 00:06:51,400 --> 00:06:56,440 God's love is. So he says God abides in US and 124 00:06:56,440 --> 00:07:00,080 His love has been perfected in US if we love one another, 125 00:07:00,360 --> 00:07:03,360 That's the test if we love one another. 126 00:07:04,800 --> 00:07:09,520 So this is the first statement he makes that he says God's love 127 00:07:09,520 --> 00:07:12,040 is perfected on us by this or you by this. 128 00:07:12,040 --> 00:07:15,280 You know that God's love is perfected in US number one, if 129 00:07:15,280 --> 00:07:19,000 we love one another. Now remember this word love. 130 00:07:19,000 --> 00:07:20,440 There are many Greek words for love. 131 00:07:20,440 --> 00:07:23,880 They had more than we do. It was the, IT was the Greek 132 00:07:23,880 --> 00:07:26,560 word agape. And an agape was a self 133 00:07:26,560 --> 00:07:29,880 sacrificial love. There was a love for romantic 134 00:07:29,880 --> 00:07:32,400 love, those arrows. There was the love for a good 135 00:07:32,400 --> 00:07:34,880 feeling you had towards someone. That was Phileo. 136 00:07:35,320 --> 00:07:39,520 And there are many others, but the one he's using here is 137 00:07:39,520 --> 00:07:44,560 agape, a love that is self sacrificial and is willing to 138 00:07:44,560 --> 00:07:48,240 lay down our life for another. That was what we read in the 139 00:07:48,240 --> 00:07:51,120 last chapter, right? That we would lay down our lives 140 00:07:51,120 --> 00:07:57,080 for the brethren. And this word is so important 141 00:07:57,360 --> 00:08:01,400 because it is an indication of several things that we need to 142 00:08:01,440 --> 00:08:06,240 convey to give an accurate representation of God's love. 143 00:08:06,920 --> 00:08:09,920 And first of all, it is an indication of activity. 144 00:08:11,520 --> 00:08:16,200 If someone years later says I'm going to show a remembrance of 145 00:08:16,200 --> 00:08:20,480 my relative that makes me remember them and reflect their 146 00:08:20,560 --> 00:08:25,800 memory in my mind, and they do absolutely nothing, you're like, 147 00:08:25,800 --> 00:08:28,880 well, that's a worthless remembrance. 148 00:08:28,880 --> 00:08:30,920 That's a worthless thing to say. You Remember Me. 149 00:08:30,920 --> 00:08:33,480 And then just like, well, we think about it sometimes. 150 00:08:34,159 --> 00:08:38,559 So it isn't this love takes an an idea and a remembrance of God 151 00:08:38,559 --> 00:08:41,039 and a love of God and puts it into activity. 152 00:08:41,760 --> 00:08:44,320 James says that faith without works is dead. 153 00:08:45,960 --> 00:08:50,720 And so our love takes an active role that shows it's alive and 154 00:08:50,720 --> 00:08:53,560 shows God's love is in US and real in US. 155 00:08:53,560 --> 00:08:57,320 We studied a couple weeks ago about how that's how we know 156 00:08:58,040 --> 00:08:59,840 that we are of Him if we follow Him. 157 00:09:00,600 --> 00:09:03,800 And so that shows activity and it shows life in us. 158 00:09:04,040 --> 00:09:06,400 If God looked down when he spiritual, when he sees 159 00:09:06,400 --> 00:09:12,000 spiritual life in our habits or would he see death #2 it conveys 160 00:09:12,080 --> 00:09:17,480 a quality of God's love. This is big because we know how 161 00:09:17,480 --> 00:09:20,160 the world sometimes sees God and how the world wants to talk 162 00:09:20,160 --> 00:09:25,120 about God and bad mouth God and we don't ever want to cheapen 163 00:09:25,120 --> 00:09:29,400 the quality of God's love. And so we need to do a good job 164 00:09:29,560 --> 00:09:32,280 and focus our efforts on the love because we don't want to 165 00:09:32,280 --> 00:09:36,000 emulate or or give a message that God's love is cheap. 166 00:09:37,240 --> 00:09:42,040 It is valuable what God offers and love speaks to the quality 167 00:09:42,160 --> 00:09:45,640 of what is in US and it also speaks to longevity. 168 00:09:46,920 --> 00:09:50,760 If you are going to follow the command to love one another, you 169 00:09:50,760 --> 00:09:55,320 can't love incompleteness in a short period of time. 170 00:09:56,040 --> 00:09:58,600 Because before you can love, you have to get to know someone. 171 00:09:59,200 --> 00:10:02,480 You have to get to develop a relationship with them. 172 00:10:03,040 --> 00:10:05,360 And then maybe you go through something where you work on 173 00:10:05,520 --> 00:10:08,880 something together or and then you you develop a challenge in 174 00:10:08,880 --> 00:10:11,800 that relationship. And then here comes an 175 00:10:11,800 --> 00:10:13,880 opportunity when there's a challenge to do some self 176 00:10:13,880 --> 00:10:16,560 sacrifice. And so if you don't have an 177 00:10:16,560 --> 00:10:19,200 opportunity to self sacrifice, maybe you're not even in the 178 00:10:19,200 --> 00:10:25,200 process enough to practice love. We have to be involved enough to 179 00:10:25,200 --> 00:10:27,120 get to the point. We've had enough longevity that 180 00:10:27,120 --> 00:10:30,320 now there's an opportunity to sacrifice for my brother and 181 00:10:30,320 --> 00:10:34,360 show the love that I'm claiming. And so that longevity is an 182 00:10:34,360 --> 00:10:39,480 indication that we have love, we have had hardships, maybe shown 183 00:10:39,520 --> 00:10:43,640 face some backlash and that was opportunity. 184 00:10:43,640 --> 00:10:46,600 And so our love, it's perfected in us. 185 00:10:46,600 --> 00:10:50,360 That's why it's so important that God's God is abiding in us 186 00:10:50,360 --> 00:10:52,840 through love. Verse 13. 187 00:10:52,840 --> 00:10:58,480 By this we know that we abide in him and He in us because he has 188 00:10:58,480 --> 00:11:03,560 given us of his Spirit. God's Spirit is living in US. 189 00:11:04,320 --> 00:11:09,400 It teaches us, it lives in us. We have His deeds and we have 190 00:11:09,400 --> 00:11:13,240 His heart and we have Him working in US. 191 00:11:15,040 --> 00:11:18,640 How much more could you ask for from God to have His actions and 192 00:11:18,640 --> 00:11:23,600 His motives in your own life? We have that we have, we have 193 00:11:23,600 --> 00:11:26,280 these things inside of us. We have His strength working in 194 00:11:26,280 --> 00:11:30,560 US. Verse 14 And we have seen and we 195 00:11:30,560 --> 00:11:35,320 have seen and testified that the Father has sent the Son as 196 00:11:35,320 --> 00:11:38,000 Savior of the world. Remember, this is an eyewitness. 197 00:11:38,480 --> 00:11:41,480 We're reading people who were eyewitnesses of Jesus who didn't 198 00:11:41,480 --> 00:11:44,160 want you to know, didn't want you to think that you've missed 199 00:11:44,160 --> 00:11:46,400 out. They're eyewitnesses relaying to 200 00:11:46,400 --> 00:11:48,320 you and I that we don't have to miss out. 201 00:11:49,000 --> 00:11:51,560 He's conveying it to us so that we can have this connection with 202 00:11:51,560 --> 00:11:53,880 them. We learn from chapter 1 verse 203 00:11:53,880 --> 00:11:56,480 15. Whoever confesses that Jesus is 204 00:11:56,480 --> 00:12:01,480 the Son of God. God abides in him and he in God. 205 00:12:01,920 --> 00:12:05,640 Now this word confess means to say the same thing as or to 206 00:12:05,640 --> 00:12:12,240 agree with, but if we just say things, do we really think that 207 00:12:12,240 --> 00:12:15,840 God abides in US or what does he really mean by confesses? 208 00:12:16,600 --> 00:12:18,920 I believe this is talking about the confession of our life. 209 00:12:19,640 --> 00:12:22,960 Because if, if let's say my relationship with Taylor, if I 210 00:12:22,960 --> 00:12:25,680 were to go out around you guys around other people and say, 211 00:12:25,680 --> 00:12:29,560 man, I love Taylor so much. She is the best thing that's 212 00:12:29,560 --> 00:12:33,720 ever happened to me and I just want to love her everyday. 213 00:12:34,640 --> 00:12:36,160 She's she's my she's my favorite. 214 00:12:36,160 --> 00:12:40,840 She's the best and yet whenever, when I spend time with her or if 215 00:12:40,840 --> 00:12:44,760 I were alone together and I want nothing to do with her, I don't 216 00:12:44,760 --> 00:12:48,400 talk to her, I don't court her or show interest in her. 217 00:12:50,040 --> 00:12:53,160 And really, when I have other opportunities to choose her or 218 00:12:53,160 --> 00:12:55,120 something else, I always choose the other thing. 219 00:12:56,480 --> 00:12:59,640 Does that really have any indication that that I love her 220 00:13:01,000 --> 00:13:04,840 or that her love is abiding in me and I and her love means 221 00:13:04,840 --> 00:13:07,480 nothing. That would mean absolutely 222 00:13:07,480 --> 00:13:11,720 nothing to her if I said that. So our confession is important. 223 00:13:12,200 --> 00:13:14,280 And so the other way around, though, if, if I only love 224 00:13:14,280 --> 00:13:18,160 Taylor and never said it said to her or said to other people, she 225 00:13:18,160 --> 00:13:23,760 might feel like well wonder. And so we by to love God have to 226 00:13:23,760 --> 00:13:26,400 confess him with our life and we have to confess him with our 227 00:13:26,400 --> 00:13:30,280 mouth because that is a true representation of God abiding in 228 00:13:30,280 --> 00:13:35,280 US and and that he living US, us living in him and he living in 229 00:13:35,280 --> 00:13:39,600 US and is mostly lived and spoken when given opportunity. 230 00:13:40,040 --> 00:13:44,400 Verse 16 And we have known and believed the love that God has 231 00:13:44,400 --> 00:13:48,040 for us. God is love and he who abides in 232 00:13:48,040 --> 00:13:51,360 love abides in God and God in him. 233 00:13:53,440 --> 00:13:54,480 I just want to ask you a question. 234 00:13:54,480 --> 00:13:56,760 Do you believe the God, the love that God has for you? 235 00:13:58,080 --> 00:14:02,400 Because sometimes it's harder for me to believe the love God 236 00:14:02,400 --> 00:14:06,000 has for me than the believe the love God has for you for 237 00:14:06,000 --> 00:14:07,640 whatever the reason. The might can work that way 238 00:14:07,640 --> 00:14:10,360 sometimes. Sure, I understand how God can 239 00:14:10,360 --> 00:14:14,680 love you, but he really loves me because I know me. 240 00:14:15,880 --> 00:14:19,600 God really loves me, the writer says we have known and we 241 00:14:19,600 --> 00:14:23,280 believe this and he has given us proof of real love that Jesus 242 00:14:23,280 --> 00:14:26,800 died for us. And sometimes when I think about 243 00:14:27,040 --> 00:14:31,080 the people who are unwilling to hear Jesus and how he port is 244 00:14:31,080 --> 00:14:33,720 how to heart out to them. I like to read this in the 245 00:14:33,720 --> 00:14:35,880 perspective of somebody who who does follow him. 246 00:14:37,000 --> 00:14:41,840 Matthew 23 verse 33, verse 37. Jesus says, O Jerusalem, 247 00:14:41,840 --> 00:14:44,680 Jerusalem. He's speaking to the Jews, the 248 00:14:44,680 --> 00:14:47,680 one who kills the prophets and stones those who were sent to 249 00:14:47,680 --> 00:14:50,120 her. How often I wanted to gather 250 00:14:50,120 --> 00:14:52,720 your children together as a hen gathers her chicks under her 251 00:14:52,720 --> 00:14:57,000 wings, but you are not willing. Another translation says you 252 00:14:57,000 --> 00:15:01,400 wouldn't let me hearing how he talked to people who did not 253 00:15:01,400 --> 00:15:04,360 want him makes you pretty, pretty excited to be those 254 00:15:04,360 --> 00:15:08,680 chicks who were under his wings and he let come into him. 255 00:15:09,240 --> 00:15:16,080 God loves you and God wants you. Verse 17 love has been perfected 256 00:15:16,080 --> 00:15:19,240 among us in this. So here's the second thing. 257 00:15:19,240 --> 00:15:22,800 He, he's used this phrase again. Now love has been perfected 258 00:15:22,800 --> 00:15:30,000 among us in this thing that we may have boldness in the day of 259 00:15:30,000 --> 00:15:35,680 judgement. God's love has been perfected 260 00:15:35,680 --> 00:15:38,200 among us. And that when that day of 261 00:15:38,200 --> 00:15:41,280 judgement comes, when all this said and done and that day 262 00:15:41,280 --> 00:15:49,720 comes, we have boldness. Now that is a big deal because 263 00:15:50,000 --> 00:15:52,920 sometimes it's in the back of our minds, you know, that that 264 00:15:53,200 --> 00:15:55,520 impending day of judgement and it kind of feels like a big 265 00:15:55,520 --> 00:15:56,840 deal. And so let's just put it out 266 00:15:56,840 --> 00:15:58,520 front. Let's take this day of judgement 267 00:15:58,520 --> 00:15:59,680 and let's put it to the forefront. 268 00:15:59,680 --> 00:16:00,880 It's not in the back of our minds. 269 00:16:01,080 --> 00:16:05,560 It is a heavy day. The day of judgement is a heavy 270 00:16:05,560 --> 00:16:09,920 day because in, in this life, all of your big decisions, all 271 00:16:09,920 --> 00:16:14,800 of your big days, it's, it's maybe a big day, but really life 272 00:16:14,920 --> 00:16:17,760 goes back to normal after the big day, right? 273 00:16:17,760 --> 00:16:20,320 You're moving along, you have to spike something big happens. 274 00:16:20,520 --> 00:16:23,640 Maybe it's a good thing. Maybe it's a new career path. 275 00:16:23,640 --> 00:16:27,040 Maybe it's a, a, a life decision, like you're getting 276 00:16:27,040 --> 00:16:29,680 married to a spouse. Maybe it's a big financial 277 00:16:29,680 --> 00:16:32,200 decision. You have a spike where something 278 00:16:32,200 --> 00:16:36,120 big happens, but life tends to go back to how it normally was. 279 00:16:36,480 --> 00:16:39,400 Everybody around you probably didn't experience the same 280 00:16:39,400 --> 00:16:41,960 thing. And so life goes on about as 281 00:16:41,960 --> 00:16:45,840 usual. But this day is different. 282 00:16:46,680 --> 00:16:50,400 Judgement Day is going to be day worth after this moment. 283 00:16:50,560 --> 00:16:52,600 Nothing else is the same for you. 284 00:16:52,840 --> 00:16:55,520 Nothing else is the same for anybody else in the world. 285 00:16:56,720 --> 00:17:01,560 If this day goes well for me, if Judgement Day goes well for me, 286 00:17:02,640 --> 00:17:06,960 every good thing that I've ever experienced just became the 287 00:17:06,960 --> 00:17:10,960 daily breath that I breathe in the presence of God himself. 288 00:17:12,079 --> 00:17:15,480 Every good experience, it's like I lived my life and there were 289 00:17:15,760 --> 00:17:19,720 always these good experiences tied into my life by the by the 290 00:17:19,720 --> 00:17:22,680 grace of God, the Bible says every good and perfect gift is 291 00:17:22,680 --> 00:17:24,800 from above and comes down from the Father of lights. 292 00:17:24,960 --> 00:17:27,960 We have good gifts in our life everywhere. 293 00:17:28,520 --> 00:17:31,800 It's like all those good things are then just my day. 294 00:17:31,800 --> 00:17:39,080 It's my life in God's presence after that moment and I I don't 295 00:17:39,080 --> 00:17:42,600 wake up anymore after that judgment day, if it goes well 296 00:17:42,600 --> 00:17:44,480 for me, I don't wake up anymore tired. 297 00:17:46,040 --> 00:17:48,320 I don't wake up anymore and feel sore. 298 00:17:49,200 --> 00:17:53,320 I don't wake up anymore and feel this sense of responsibility and 299 00:17:53,320 --> 00:17:56,560 heaviness that all good things take a lot of work. 300 00:17:57,480 --> 00:18:00,120 If you want to do good things for your family, for your 301 00:18:00,120 --> 00:18:04,240 health, for your job, that's a heavy thing. 302 00:18:05,200 --> 00:18:07,240 Because if you're going to let you take physical exercise, for 303 00:18:07,240 --> 00:18:10,040 example, if you want to fit it in every day, you got to get up 304 00:18:10,040 --> 00:18:12,240 early and it takes pain. No pain, no gain. 305 00:18:12,240 --> 00:18:15,480 They say you got to get up and you got to grind, and there are 306 00:18:15,480 --> 00:18:16,760 days where you don't want to do it. 307 00:18:17,920 --> 00:18:20,760 And so you wake up every day kind of with that heaviness. 308 00:18:21,160 --> 00:18:23,760 Once Judgment Day happens, you don't feel that heaviness 309 00:18:23,760 --> 00:18:27,280 anymore because your body doesn't regress anymore. 310 00:18:27,280 --> 00:18:28,880 Your body doesn't have pain anymore. 311 00:18:29,000 --> 00:18:30,600 It doesn't have soreness, it doesn't have pain. 312 00:18:30,600 --> 00:18:33,880 You don't wake up foggy or you don't, you don't have mental 313 00:18:33,880 --> 00:18:37,920 fatigue. And I'm not saying that you, you 314 00:18:37,920 --> 00:18:39,680 wake up, I don't know what rest is going to look like over 315 00:18:39,680 --> 00:18:42,600 there, but we know God rested. So and then you go about your 316 00:18:42,600 --> 00:18:45,080 day or whatever it looks like in God's presence. 317 00:18:45,320 --> 00:18:49,120 And we know that in the garden it was a place of paradise and 318 00:18:49,120 --> 00:18:52,200 they had work to do. It didn't hurt. 319 00:18:52,200 --> 00:18:55,640 It felt great. It was a peaceful labor, but 320 00:18:55,640 --> 00:19:00,600 there was a service to be done. And in God's presence, I imagine 321 00:19:00,600 --> 00:19:03,480 a service to be done based on somewhat of that model. 322 00:19:03,880 --> 00:19:05,040 Sometimes people think about heaven. 323 00:19:05,040 --> 00:19:09,120 They think boring and sitting in church and singing well, serving 324 00:19:09,120 --> 00:19:11,200 God's presence. I don't know what it's going to 325 00:19:11,200 --> 00:19:12,920 look like, but I know it's going to be great. 326 00:19:14,080 --> 00:19:17,680 And you go about that work for for that day or that service to 327 00:19:17,680 --> 00:19:20,360 God. And it is the most meaningful, 328 00:19:21,000 --> 00:19:24,240 the most satisfying, the most fulfilling work you've ever done 329 00:19:24,240 --> 00:19:26,520 in your life. Think about the projects you did 330 00:19:26,520 --> 00:19:29,200 in your life that felt good when you did it because you had an 331 00:19:29,200 --> 00:19:32,360 ability and you used it and you were successful in God's 332 00:19:32,360 --> 00:19:34,040 presence. You were doing the thing you 333 00:19:34,040 --> 00:19:38,240 were very much created to do. You were created to worship God 334 00:19:38,360 --> 00:19:41,040 and in God's presence, after that judgement day, if it goes 335 00:19:41,040 --> 00:19:43,000 well for you, you're doing that all the time. 336 00:19:43,720 --> 00:19:46,040 You were satisfied. The work doesn't hurt. 337 00:19:46,640 --> 00:19:53,480 You were completely happy with where you're working, with what 338 00:19:53,480 --> 00:19:57,200 you're doing, with who you're working with, and with who 339 00:19:57,200 --> 00:20:01,440 you're working for. Can you imagine how good it's 340 00:20:01,440 --> 00:20:04,680 going to be? And when you're done, there's 341 00:20:04,680 --> 00:20:08,800 not an ache, there's not a pain, there's no mental fatigue. 342 00:20:08,800 --> 00:20:11,280 There's no dreading what's going to happen the next time you have 343 00:20:11,280 --> 00:20:13,280 to go to work because the work you did today might not have 344 00:20:13,280 --> 00:20:15,440 gone super good and it might set you up bad for Monday. 345 00:20:15,880 --> 00:20:18,920 There's no dread of getting up on Monday and dragging yourself 346 00:20:18,920 --> 00:20:22,640 to work on Monday morning. There's none of that because in 347 00:20:22,640 --> 00:20:25,760 God's presence you have complete rest and you have complete joy 348 00:20:25,760 --> 00:20:28,160 and complete peace. There's nothing pulling you back 349 00:20:28,160 --> 00:20:32,920 that used to pull you back. And when you're done with your 350 00:20:32,920 --> 00:20:35,560 work, you just get to be in his presence. 351 00:20:37,840 --> 00:20:42,760 You just get to be with him. And we will see him as he is, 352 00:20:42,760 --> 00:20:44,720 and we will know him as we're done. 353 00:20:48,320 --> 00:20:54,400 But if Judgement Day doesn't go well for me, every good thing I 354 00:20:54,400 --> 00:20:58,160 ever experienced in this world is zapped right out of my life 355 00:20:59,280 --> 00:21:02,760 because the one source that gives every good and perfect 356 00:21:02,760 --> 00:21:05,880 gift from above is now not in my life anymore. 357 00:21:06,760 --> 00:21:10,080 God gives good things to people who aren't good. 358 00:21:10,160 --> 00:21:12,440 The rain falls on the good and the bad, but it's still good 359 00:21:12,440 --> 00:21:17,360 things from God in this life. But now I chose a life. 360 00:21:17,360 --> 00:21:19,640 I said, God, I don't want you in my eternity because I don't want 361 00:21:19,640 --> 00:21:22,560 you in my present life. And so all of a sudden on 362 00:21:22,560 --> 00:21:25,680 Judgment Day, if it doesn't go well for me, I now do not have 363 00:21:25,680 --> 00:21:28,840 any of that in my life. And all the good things that 364 00:21:28,840 --> 00:21:31,960 made-up this life are zapped out and all I'm left with with is 365 00:21:31,960 --> 00:21:35,000 the pain. The Bible describes hell as a 366 00:21:35,000 --> 00:21:39,120 place of outer darkness where you can't see your hand in front 367 00:21:39,120 --> 00:21:43,560 of your face because darkness is not anything. 368 00:21:43,560 --> 00:21:45,320 Darkness is the absence of light. 369 00:21:45,520 --> 00:21:47,800 And the Bible says that one source of light is in the 370 00:21:47,800 --> 00:21:50,680 presence of God. He is the light. 371 00:21:51,760 --> 00:21:53,600 And so you take that away and what are you left with? 372 00:21:54,360 --> 00:21:58,760 Complete darkness, you're left with complete separation, you're 373 00:21:58,760 --> 00:22:04,120 left with complete loneliness. And I don't know if we really 374 00:22:04,120 --> 00:22:07,000 get that feeling as adults. I'm really distant from the 375 00:22:07,000 --> 00:22:11,000 feeling of being lost or alone. And then when I was little, 376 00:22:11,120 --> 00:22:15,360 between maybe 5 and and 10 or 12, when I was out in the woods, 377 00:22:16,000 --> 00:22:19,320 if I was camping or backpacking and I got out in the trees by 378 00:22:19,320 --> 00:22:22,040 myself before all the forest fires burned down, you couldn't 379 00:22:22,040 --> 00:22:24,600 see anything. When I got on the trees and I 380 00:22:24,600 --> 00:22:27,200 was off away and I didn't know which direction was which. 381 00:22:28,640 --> 00:22:31,800 I felt lost and not left. I feel a pit in my stomach. 382 00:22:32,320 --> 00:22:34,280 I remember that feeling. I haven't felt it in a long 383 00:22:34,280 --> 00:22:37,560 time. That is our present reality. 384 00:22:37,640 --> 00:22:43,080 If Judgement Day does not go well, that's all you feel and 385 00:22:43,080 --> 00:22:46,960 the pain in life. I believe God provides 386 00:22:46,960 --> 00:22:50,040 thresholds that keep us from certain pains. 387 00:22:50,040 --> 00:22:52,880 When you break a bone, your body has natural pain relievers. 388 00:22:53,480 --> 00:22:56,160 There are certain extents that you don't hit in life for most 389 00:22:56,160 --> 00:22:58,560 people that you've been protected from. 390 00:22:58,560 --> 00:23:02,120 But in heaven, that's gone because there's no source of 391 00:23:02,120 --> 00:23:04,920 comfort. Our source of light is gone. 392 00:23:05,080 --> 00:23:07,080 Our only source of comfort is gone. 393 00:23:07,200 --> 00:23:10,400 Our only source of peace is gone because we rejected him on 394 00:23:10,400 --> 00:23:12,360 earth. And so if Judgement Day doesn't 395 00:23:12,360 --> 00:23:18,240 go well for us or for me, that's a big day for the good or for 396 00:23:18,240 --> 00:23:22,040 the bad. So it is reasonable to have 397 00:23:22,160 --> 00:23:24,080 angst and fear. All right. 398 00:23:24,200 --> 00:23:26,480 I'm not saying we should stay there, but it's reasonable to 399 00:23:26,480 --> 00:23:28,920 look at this if it's sitting in the back of your mind, kind of 400 00:23:29,040 --> 00:23:32,080 kind of marinating there. It's reasonable for that. 401 00:23:32,760 --> 00:23:38,560 But John has something good for us, he says, but we may have 402 00:23:38,560 --> 00:23:42,760 boldness in the day of judgment. Does boldness imply you are 403 00:23:42,760 --> 00:23:46,240 living in fear? No, Boldness implies that you 404 00:23:46,240 --> 00:23:52,000 are ready and you are welcoming that day, He says. 405 00:23:52,000 --> 00:23:55,640 God's love is perfecting us because we have boldness and 406 00:23:55,640 --> 00:24:00,360 judgement. That is a heavy day for all the 407 00:24:00,360 --> 00:24:02,520 reasons we just took the time to talk about and bring to the 408 00:24:02,520 --> 00:24:07,960 front. But it's OK because when I open 409 00:24:07,960 --> 00:24:12,440 my eyes and I see my judge, I'm not looking at somebody, some 410 00:24:12,440 --> 00:24:14,840 random judge who I've never, who I don't know. 411 00:24:16,720 --> 00:24:22,120 I'm looking at my best friend when I open my eyes and see my 412 00:24:22,120 --> 00:24:24,680 judge, and they give me over to the hands of my judge. 413 00:24:24,680 --> 00:24:28,000 I'm not being given into the hands of a stranger. 414 00:24:29,680 --> 00:24:34,760 I'm being given into the hands of the one who bought me and the 415 00:24:34,760 --> 00:24:36,320 one who's been waiting for me the whole time. 416 00:24:37,320 --> 00:24:46,080 And I've been waiting for him so I can have boldness and I can 417 00:24:46,080 --> 00:24:49,520 have as a secondary note of this comment, is boldness in his 418 00:24:49,520 --> 00:24:53,240 presence because judgement is the presence of God. 419 00:24:53,280 --> 00:24:55,960 And that's scary for the reason we have already discussed. 420 00:24:55,960 --> 00:24:58,160 But that's kind of a separate issue itself. 421 00:24:58,160 --> 00:25:03,000 Are you afraid to be in the presence of God on that day? 422 00:25:03,080 --> 00:25:06,960 It's OK because we've been together the whole time. 423 00:25:09,880 --> 00:25:13,160 You remember back to earlier in the John's letter, he said 424 00:25:13,880 --> 00:25:15,200 you've known him from the beginning. 425 00:25:17,680 --> 00:25:21,440 I'm not afraid and I cannot be afraid of that judgement day. 426 00:25:21,440 --> 00:25:24,000 And I can do with boldness because I've already been with 427 00:25:24,000 --> 00:25:25,760 him. This isn't new. 428 00:25:26,240 --> 00:25:28,680 I'm not seeing somebody new. I can have boldness in his 429 00:25:28,680 --> 00:25:31,840 presence and not be afraid of everything that we just talked 430 00:25:31,840 --> 00:25:35,840 about. And so love is perfected in US. 431 00:25:36,160 --> 00:25:39,520 Why? Because as he is, so are we in 432 00:25:39,520 --> 00:25:41,320 this world. This is a little bit of a tough 433 00:25:41,320 --> 00:25:43,400 phrase to kind of piece of heart. 434 00:25:43,400 --> 00:25:45,240 I think there's two key ways you can interpret this. 435 00:25:45,240 --> 00:25:51,480 That both are true is that as he is full of love, so are we full 436 00:25:51,480 --> 00:25:54,160 of love. And as that love grows in US, 437 00:25:54,320 --> 00:25:57,400 you can have a sense of love in your heart that is grounding 438 00:25:57,400 --> 00:26:03,080 that you don't fear because he says there's No Fear in love. 439 00:26:03,680 --> 00:26:06,960 Perfect love casts out fear. Let me back up real quick. 440 00:26:07,160 --> 00:26:11,080 The second way I think this could be true is our standing. 441 00:26:11,640 --> 00:26:13,880 It is the same in him as him in this world. 442 00:26:14,200 --> 00:26:16,200 So we can trust that we are tied to him. 443 00:26:16,840 --> 00:26:19,680 We are tied to Jesus. So in that judgement day, we 444 00:26:19,680 --> 00:26:22,680 don't have to fear the drop off because we're tied to him. 445 00:26:23,120 --> 00:26:26,360 I think those are both true, but the key here is I think the 446 00:26:26,360 --> 00:26:31,120 whole picture is love. There is No Fear in love, but 447 00:26:31,120 --> 00:26:33,720 perfect love casts out fear. You might say, I thought we're 448 00:26:33,720 --> 00:26:36,200 supposed to fear God and and and reverence him. 449 00:26:36,480 --> 00:26:42,280 There's a good thing and healthy fear, but if our love and our 450 00:26:42,280 --> 00:26:46,520 relationship with God is defined by fear, he says, love has not 451 00:26:46,520 --> 00:26:50,200 been perfected in you. You are not a developed person 452 00:26:50,200 --> 00:26:54,040 in love. You are undeveloped in love, he 453 00:26:54,040 --> 00:26:55,960 says. Because fear involves torment. 454 00:26:57,920 --> 00:26:59,960 Reverence does not involve torment. 455 00:26:59,960 --> 00:27:06,480 Fear involves torment. There's a difference if I have a 456 00:27:06,520 --> 00:27:12,280 view on my dad that I am all of a sudden for some reason afraid 457 00:27:12,280 --> 00:27:14,360 of him. My dad has given me no reason to 458 00:27:14,360 --> 00:27:17,320 fear him or to be tormented by a fear of him. 459 00:27:18,800 --> 00:27:22,440 And if I were to somehow have that out of my childhood, I 460 00:27:22,440 --> 00:27:25,560 would need to go get counselling for that because it's not 461 00:27:25,560 --> 00:27:26,840 something I need to work out with him. 462 00:27:27,200 --> 00:27:29,560 It's something that I need to be counselled out of because I've 463 00:27:29,560 --> 00:27:30,880 got something going wrong in my mind. 464 00:27:31,920 --> 00:27:36,280 Some of us need to be counselled out of an unhealthy fear of God, 465 00:27:37,200 --> 00:27:39,160 and you may need one-on-one help with that. 466 00:27:39,480 --> 00:27:41,120 I'm not saying you go to a therapist. 467 00:27:41,240 --> 00:27:43,920 There are a lot of people who could counsel you out of that 468 00:27:43,920 --> 00:27:49,280 irrational fear. How devastated would you be if 469 00:27:49,280 --> 00:27:50,880 your child felt this way about you? 470 00:27:52,840 --> 00:27:55,400 If you're truly a child of God, God doesn't want you to feel 471 00:27:55,400 --> 00:27:57,360 that way. Because if you felt that, if you 472 00:27:57,360 --> 00:27:59,120 knew your child felt that way about you, you would be 473 00:27:59,120 --> 00:28:02,120 devastated. That is the worst thing that can 474 00:28:02,120 --> 00:28:04,000 happen out of a child parent relationship. 475 00:28:05,960 --> 00:28:10,760 God doesn't want that for you. But he who fears verse 18 has 476 00:28:10,760 --> 00:28:14,600 not been made perfect or made complete in love. 477 00:28:15,880 --> 00:28:18,560 There is a process of working out of that. 478 00:28:19,160 --> 00:28:22,400 That's what's evident here. If you are not actively working 479 00:28:22,400 --> 00:28:25,360 out of that process, it's a process we should probably get 480 00:28:25,360 --> 00:28:29,960 started because life gets really significantly better once we do 481 00:28:32,120 --> 00:28:34,960 Second Timothy one verse 7 says for God has not given us a 482 00:28:34,960 --> 00:28:38,960 spirit of fear, but of power and of a love and of a sound mind. 483 00:28:39,080 --> 00:28:41,480 Now the context he's talking about is so that Timothy would 484 00:28:41,480 --> 00:28:43,840 have the courage to go out and spread the gospel, but it's a 485 00:28:43,840 --> 00:28:48,040 very true thing that God does not give us things that are 486 00:28:48,040 --> 00:28:51,720 negative. Now, if I, when I started my 487 00:28:51,720 --> 00:28:54,680 Christian walk and started caring about spiritual things, 488 00:28:54,920 --> 00:29:01,240 developed a mindset of fear, that is different than God 489 00:29:01,240 --> 00:29:05,560 giving me a spirit of fear. Once I stepped into this whole 490 00:29:05,560 --> 00:29:09,840 life, I could develop bad habits, bad mental habits, but 491 00:29:09,840 --> 00:29:13,720 it doesn't mean it's from God, because God does not give us a 492 00:29:13,720 --> 00:29:17,480 spirit of fear, whether in spreading the gospel or in his 493 00:29:17,480 --> 00:29:20,920 own perspective of us, but He gives us a spirit of power and 494 00:29:20,920 --> 00:29:25,840 of love and of a sound mind. So maybe you should read it like 495 00:29:25,840 --> 00:29:27,960 this. But he who fears has not yet 496 00:29:27,960 --> 00:29:30,280 been made perfect in love. That could be a good thing. 497 00:29:31,120 --> 00:29:34,600 If you are living fearful of judgement, you can look at it 498 00:29:34,600 --> 00:29:39,760 like the best is yet to come. I can get to the point where I'm 499 00:29:39,760 --> 00:29:45,240 not afraid anymore, where I have confidence and boldness in the 500 00:29:45,240 --> 00:29:48,320 day of judgement. The best is ahead. 501 00:29:48,640 --> 00:29:52,440 Verse 19, we love him because he first loved us. 502 00:29:52,640 --> 00:29:56,680 So as we developed this love that is self sacrificial, as we 503 00:29:56,680 --> 00:29:59,840 learned in previous weeks, that will lay down our lives for the 504 00:29:59,840 --> 00:30:02,920 people around us because we know them and we're ready to serve 505 00:30:02,920 --> 00:30:05,400 them. There could be a tendency or a 506 00:30:05,760 --> 00:30:08,480 chance that we would look at ourselves and think, wow, all 507 00:30:08,960 --> 00:30:11,680 right, I'm doing pretty good. But he says, no, we love him 508 00:30:11,880 --> 00:30:14,720 because he first loved us. We are not the model, we're not 509 00:30:14,720 --> 00:30:16,840 the originator. It came from him first. 510 00:30:17,320 --> 00:30:18,960 So let's give glory where it belongs. 511 00:30:19,880 --> 00:30:22,800 Verse 20. If someone says I love God and 512 00:30:22,800 --> 00:30:27,720 hates his brother, he's a liar for he does not love God, he for 513 00:30:27,720 --> 00:30:32,080 he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he 514 00:30:32,080 --> 00:30:38,240 love God whom he has not seen? Now, what that implies is that 515 00:30:38,240 --> 00:30:42,160 in some way it might be easier to love your brother than God, 516 00:30:43,000 --> 00:30:46,640 because when you see people, you can empathize with them. 517 00:30:47,360 --> 00:30:51,080 We don't even, we haven't seen God to be able to see enough 518 00:30:51,080 --> 00:30:53,920 about him to maybe empathize in the same way that we could with 519 00:30:54,240 --> 00:30:57,320 someone around us. Because once you really start to 520 00:30:57,320 --> 00:30:59,160 see people, you notice things about them. 521 00:30:59,160 --> 00:31:01,360 You're like, wow, you're going through something, right? 522 00:31:01,720 --> 00:31:04,280 I feel for you. But with God, we haven't even 523 00:31:04,280 --> 00:31:06,040 seen him. How could we develop that kind 524 00:31:06,040 --> 00:31:10,640 of connection? I can be in a mindset that is so 525 00:31:10,640 --> 00:31:15,040 off track that if I could see God, I wouldn't love him. 526 00:31:17,280 --> 00:31:19,240 I never thought about that before until I studied this. 527 00:31:19,560 --> 00:31:23,840 I could be in a mindset that is so off track that if I saw God, 528 00:31:23,840 --> 00:31:29,680 I wouldn't love him. And so that may seem wrong and 529 00:31:29,680 --> 00:31:33,520 like how far off? That is not necessarily 530 00:31:33,520 --> 00:31:35,720 uncommon, but that may seem wrong. 531 00:31:37,200 --> 00:31:39,640 But it is possible to miss the mark that far with our 532 00:31:39,640 --> 00:31:43,280 perspective. What makes me think my mindset 533 00:31:43,280 --> 00:31:47,720 would even love God if I don't learn to learn to love and serve 534 00:31:47,720 --> 00:31:49,000 my brethren? That's the question. 535 00:31:49,000 --> 00:31:53,160 Basically John is trying to get us to ask ourselves, how could I 536 00:31:53,320 --> 00:31:58,800 possibly think my mindset would love God if I saw Him if I don't 537 00:31:58,800 --> 00:32:02,520 love my brethren and serve them? Maybe we should phrase it this 538 00:32:02,520 --> 00:32:05,760 way. What makes me think my mindset 539 00:32:05,760 --> 00:32:08,480 would even love God with my everything? 540 00:32:08,640 --> 00:32:10,000 Because that's what He calls us to do. 541 00:32:10,160 --> 00:32:12,800 If I don't learn to love and serve my brethren with my 542 00:32:12,800 --> 00:32:18,360 everything, that's a challenging statement John has for us. 543 00:32:19,440 --> 00:32:22,880 How can he love God whom he has not even seen verse 21. 544 00:32:23,200 --> 00:32:26,720 And this is the command that we have from him, that he who loves 545 00:32:26,720 --> 00:32:32,560 God must love his brother also. We need to be prepared for agape 546 00:32:32,560 --> 00:32:35,360 love. Prepare prepared for a self 547 00:32:35,840 --> 00:32:43,680 sacrificing love. And instead of going to chapter 548 00:32:43,680 --> 00:32:47,720 5, I'm going to cut it off there and we will continue that one 549 00:32:47,720 --> 00:32:49,240 and maybe finish that up next time. 550 00:32:50,720 --> 00:32:53,240 My question to you is, do you have boldness and judgement? 551 00:32:54,480 --> 00:32:57,680 I think by now at the end of that conversation, you can see 552 00:32:57,680 --> 00:32:59,680 why it's a pretty big deal to have boldness and judgement. 553 00:33:01,520 --> 00:33:04,240 And it could be today, it could be tomorrow. 554 00:33:05,440 --> 00:33:09,080 We want to be in His presence today, not just so that we could 555 00:33:09,080 --> 00:33:10,720 do it in heaven, but so we could do it now. 556 00:33:10,720 --> 00:33:14,040 And how does peace that passes understanding and if you don't 557 00:33:14,040 --> 00:33:18,240 have that boldness and judgment, the the gospel gives us a 558 00:33:18,240 --> 00:33:20,040 message that will give us a clear path. 559 00:33:20,040 --> 00:33:23,400 How do I know I'm in him? Yes, once you're a Christian, 560 00:33:23,400 --> 00:33:25,080 he's talking to people who are already Christians. 561 00:33:25,080 --> 00:33:26,520 But how do they become Christians? 562 00:33:27,160 --> 00:33:29,640 In Romans 10 verse 17, it says by faith. 563 00:33:29,840 --> 00:33:32,360 Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. 564 00:33:32,560 --> 00:33:36,400 And that produces belief or faith that has a response to 565 00:33:36,400 --> 00:33:39,080 act. In Mark 16 and 16 it says he who 566 00:33:39,080 --> 00:33:42,920 believes and is baptized will be saved and we're called to repent 567 00:33:42,920 --> 00:33:45,000 of our past life. When the people on the day of 568 00:33:45,000 --> 00:33:49,280 Pentecost were presented with the reality of Jesus death and 569 00:33:49,280 --> 00:33:51,400 how they were part of it, they said what are we going to do? 570 00:33:51,800 --> 00:33:56,200 And he said, men and brethren, they said repent and be baptized 571 00:33:56,880 --> 00:33:59,800 for their mission of your sins. They said what do we do? 572 00:33:59,800 --> 00:34:02,640 And that was the call on the day of Pentecost when the gospel was 573 00:34:02,640 --> 00:34:05,320 first preached. And we were to confess him in 574 00:34:05,320 --> 00:34:08,280 Romans 10/9. And 10 tells us that we were to 575 00:34:08,280 --> 00:34:12,000 confess Jesus Christ. And you cannot be saved without, 576 00:34:12,000 --> 00:34:15,800 like we said today, confessing him both in in Word and in life 577 00:34:16,280 --> 00:34:18,960 and to be baptized, as we already quoted from Mark 16, 578 00:34:18,960 --> 00:34:22,360 verse 16. And you can be added to the one 579 00:34:23,080 --> 00:34:26,600 who's came here to die and see if you haven't done that, you 580 00:34:26,600 --> 00:34:28,760 can do that today. But if you have done that and 581 00:34:28,760 --> 00:34:30,760 you need the prayers of the brethren, we'll be happy to to 582 00:34:30,960 --> 00:34:32,920 take care of that. We are family here. 583 00:34:33,080 --> 00:34:36,159 We can pray for you together while we stand and while we sing 584 00:34:36,159 --> 00:34:36,520 this song.