Sermon #1407 Miscellaneous
Sermons
Title: “Behold,
What Manner of Love”
Text: 1 John 3:1-5
Subject: Matters of
Great Joy and Great Concern
Date: Tuesday Evening – May 23, 2000
Tape
# V-85a
Readings: Bobbie
Estes and Rex Bartley
Introduction:
I want you to turn with me once more to 1 John 3:1-5, and
just hold your Bibles open, as I endeavor to talk to you from my heart about
matters of great, great importance to every believer’s heart.
(1 John 3:1-5)
"Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that
we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not,
because it knew him not. (2) Beloved,
now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we
know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as
he is. (3) And every man that hath
this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure. (4) Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin
is the transgression of the law. (5) And
ye know that he was manifested to take away our sins; and in him is no
sin."
I.
Here is a cause for wonder
(v. 1).
(1 John 3:1)
"Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that
we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not,
because it knew him not."
John was a man whose life was filled with wonders. It is
unlikely that any other mere man on earth ever saw and experienced such wonders
as this man.
·
He walked with the incarnate God.
·
He witnessed the Lord’s miracles, as he walked on this earth.
·
He was with the Lord of Glory on the Mount of Transfiguration.
·
John was present in Gethsemane.
·
He was there when the Son of God was nailed to the cursed tree.
·
He saw the risen Christ.
·
He was an eye-witness of the Lord’s ascension.
·
The Revelation of Jesus Christ was given to this man, John.
He saw it all! He experienced, first hand, all those great
wonders we talk about! Yet, as he contemplated the great love of God for his
people, it seems to have struck him as the greatest wonder of all. He says, “Behold, what manner of love the Father hath
bestowed upon us!”
A.
Here is a great wonder indeed!
Sinful, wretched worms,
though we are, God almighty, the great God of Glory, infinite, glorious,
eternal, has bestowed his love upon us! I am not amazed by the fact that God
loves. “God is love.” I expect him to
love. But I amazed that he loves us. We do not deserve his love. We are
unlovely and unlovable by nature; but he loved us. Imagine that!
1.
Our Father bestowed his love
upon us in eternity. He loved us with an everlasting love (Jer. 31:3; John 17:23-24).
(Jeremiah 31:3)
"The LORD hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore
with lovingkindness have I drawn thee."
(John 17:23-24)
"I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one;
and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as
thou hast loved me. (24) Father, I
will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that they
may behold my glory, which thou hast given me: for thou lovedst me before the
foundation of the world."
2.
The love of God bestowed
upon us is immutable.
3.
God’s love toward us is
abundant, boundless and free. It is unconditional, unqualified, unwavering,
infinite love!
4.
This love of God, which was
bestowed upon us in Christ before the world began, is an unending,
uninterrupted, persevering love. – It is everlasting both ways! “Having loved his own which were in the
world, he loved them unto the end.”
5.
This love of God, so freely
bestowed upon us from everlasting, is the very same love as that which the
Father bestowed upon the Son from eternity, as our Surety and Mediator (John
17:23-26).
(John 17:23-26)
"I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one;
and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as
thou hast loved me. (24) Father, I
will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that they
may behold my glory, which thou hast given me: for thou lovedst me before the
foundation of the world. (25) O
righteous Father, the world hath not known thee: but I have known thee, and
these have known that thou hast sent me.
(26) And I have declared unto them thy name, and will declare it: that the love wherewith thou hast
loved me may be in them, and I in them."
6.
The love of God for us is the
source and cause of every blessing of grace performed for us and bestowed upon
us in Christ (Eph. 1:3-7).
(Ephesians 1:3-7)
"Blessed be the God and
Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual
blessings in heavenly places in
Christ: (4) According as he hath
chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and
without blame before him in love: (5) Having
predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself,
according to the good pleasure of his will,
(6) To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us
accepted in the beloved. (7) In whom
we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the
riches of his grace;"
7.
God’s love for us is the
source, cause, and motivation of our love for him (1 John 4:19).
(1 John 4:19)
"We love him, because he first loved us."
Note: If God loves me,
everything is all right!
B.
The wonder of God’s love is seen in that which he
has done for us because of his love.
Love is measured best by its deeds. God’s infinite love is
the boundless fountain from which and through which all mercy and grace flow to
our souls. Because he loved us…
1.
God chose us and adopted us
as his own dear children.
2.
Our heavenly Father devised
a plan of redemption and grace, and entered into a covenant with his Son to
save us (Jer. 31:31-34).
(Jeremiah 31:31-34)
"Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new
covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah: (32) Not according to the covenant that
I made with their fathers in the day that
I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my
covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the LORD: (33) But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel;
After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and
write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people. (34) And they shall teach no more every
man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they
shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the
LORD: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no
more."
3.
God sent his Son into the
world and gave him up to suffer the painful, shameful, ignominious death of the
cross as our Substitute to save us (1 John 4:9-10).
(1 John 4:9-10)
"In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God
sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him. (10) Herein is love, not that we loved
God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to
be the propitiation for our sins."
4.
Then, at the appointed time
of love and grace, the Lord God came to us, called us by his Spirit, and
revealed his love to us and in us in Christ (Ezek. 16:6-8).
(Ezekiel 16:6-8)
"And when I passed by thee, and saw thee polluted in thine own
blood, I said unto thee when thou wast in
thy blood, Live; yea, I said unto thee when
thou wast in thy blood, Live. (7) I
have caused thee to multiply as the bud of the field, and thou hast increased
and waxen great, and thou art come to excellent ornaments: thy breasts are fashioned, and thine hair is grown, whereas thou wast naked and bare. (8) Now when I passed by thee, and looked upon thee, behold, thy
time was the time of love; and I
spread my skirt over thee, and covered thy nakedness: yea, I sware unto thee,
and entered into a covenant with thee, saith the Lord GOD, and thou becamest
mine."
C.
We also see the wonder of God’s love in the effect
it has upon those who know it and experience it.
When a sinner is made to experience the love of God in
Christ, his soul, his very life, is transformed by it, transformed to such a
degree that he becomes a mystery to the people around him. Because of the love
of God bestowed upon us and experienced by us, it is written, “The world knoweth us not, because it knew
him not.” The people of this world simply cannot understand the people of
God. The believer is an enigma to the unbeliever. The unbeliever, no matter how
religious he may be, cannot understand the believer’s…
·
Worship and Devotion.
·
Commitment to Christ and the Gospel.
·
Motivation and Concern for the Will and Glory of God.
·
Hopes, Aspirations, and Desires.
·
Unruffled Peace amid the Trials and Troubles of Life.
Truly, this is a cause for wonder. -- "Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us,
that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not,
because it knew him not.”
II.
Here is a cause for confidence
(v. 2).
(1 John 3:2)
"Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear
what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him;
for we shall see him as he is."
Before the worlds were made, God loved us, chose us as the
objects of his grace, and adopted us as his sons and daughters in Christ. And,
now, as the result of his matchless love and grace, we are the sons of God
(Gal. 4:6-7).
(Galatians 4:6-7)
"And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son
into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father.
(7) Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an
heir of God through Christ."
Here are four things every believer ought to know
and rejoice in with confident assurance. If we are in Christ, these four things
should be matters of confident and constant joy to us.
A.
We are now the sons of God.
Our adoption was made in eternal election, paid for at
Calvary, experienced in regeneration, and shall be perfected in the
resurrection. But we are now the sons of God1 And the faithful God will never
disinherit or disown any of his children!
B.
Our heavenly inheritance, as the sons of God, is
altogether beyond the scope of human thought and imagination. – “It doth not yet appear what we shall be.”
1.
We do not really know what
heaven will be like (1 Cor. 2:9).
(1 Corinthians 2:9)
"But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither
have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them
that love him."
2.
We rejoice to know that some
things will not be there (Rev. 21:4).
(Revelation 21:4)
"And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall
be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more
pain: for the former things are passed away."
3.
And we rejoice to know that
our Lord is there. (Jehovah-shammah – The Lord is
There – Ezek. 48:35). – Nothing else much matters!
C.
One day soon, we shall behold our Redeemer face to
face
(Job 19:25-27).
“When he shall
appear, (in death or in his second advent), we shall see him as he is!”
·
In His Divine Glory
·
In His Mediatoral Glory
(Job 19:25-27)
"For I know that my
redeemer liveth, and that he shall
stand at the latter day upon the
earth: (26) And though after my skin worms destroy
this body, yet in my flesh shall I
see God: (27) Whom I shall see for
myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another; though my reins be consumed within me."
D.
And when we see him as he is, “we shall be like him.”
In that great and glorious day, we shall be immediately
changed into his likeness, perfectly conformed to the image of the Son of God! Then
we will…
·
Think as he thinks.
·
Want what he wants.
·
Love what he loves.
·
Hate what he hates.
·
And have what he has!
May God grant to every believing soul here an unshaken
confidence in these things, that we may draw near to him in full assurance of
faith.
(2 Timothy 1:12)
"For the which cause I also suffer these things: nevertheless I am
not ashamed: for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able
to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day."
(2 Timothy 4:6-8)
"For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is
at hand. (7) I have fought a good
fight, I have finished my course, I
have kept the faith: (8) Henceforth
there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous
judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also
that love his appearing."
III.
Here
is a
cause for hope (v. 3).
(1 John 3:3)
"And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even
as he is pure."
Faith in Christ gives us a cause for hope, “hope that maketh not ashamed.” We have “a good hope through grace.” “This hope” is our hope.
A.
Our hope is the confident expectation of everlasting
good from God.
·
Preservation
·
Resurrection
·
Everlasting Glory
B.
The basis of our hope is the finished work of Christ
as it is revealed in Holy Scripture.
·
The Immutability of His Purpose
·
The Efficacy of His Blood
·
The Power of His Grace
·
The Virtue of His Intercession
·
The Truthfulness of His Promises
C.
This blessed hope has a purifying effect upon all
who possess it.
1.
It purges our hearts from
the love of this world.
2.
It sets our hearts upon the
pursuit of Christ.
3.
It fills our hearts with the
anticipation of heavenly glory.
IV.
Here
is a
cause for concern (v. 4).
(1 John 3:4)
"Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is
the transgression of the law."
A.
God’s elect, as long as we
live in this body of flesh, are sinners still.
B.
Sin, with us, is an
unceasing, bitter and painful, fact of life.
C.
Our sins deserve eternal
damnation.
We have transgressed God’s holy law. We have violated the
very character of God. Unless a suitable sacrifice is found, one who can fully
atone for all our sins, satisfying God’s law and justice for us, we must
forever perish under the wrath of God in hell. But, blessed be God, such a
sacrifice has been found by God himself in the person of his own sear Son (Job
33:24).
(Job 33:24)
"Then he is gracious unto him, and saith, Deliver him from going
down to the pit: I have found a ransom."
V.
Here is a cause for joy (v.
5).
(1
John 3:5) "And ye know that he was
manifested to take away our sins; and in him is no sin."
A.
Our Lord Jesus Christ was manifested to take away
our sins.
B.
He did what he came here to do. – “It is finished.” – “Now, once, in the end of the world hath he
appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.” – “He has, by himself
purged our sins.”
C.
“And in him is no sin!”
“Did you hear what Jesus
said to me?
‘They’re all taken away,
away!
Your sins are pardoned and
you are free.
They’re all taken away!’”
Now listen carefully. I want you to get this, rejoice in
it, and glorify God for it.
1.
We are no longer under the
curse of the law because of sin.
2.
We are no longer under the
dominion of sin (vv. 6-9).
In these verses John tells us three things which need to be
clearly understood.
a.
God’s saints are not ruled,
governed, and controlled by sin (vv. 6-7; Rom. 6:18).
(1 John 3:6-7)
"Whosoever abideth in him sinneth
not: whosoever sinneth hath not seen him, neither known him. (7) Little children, let no man deceive
you: he that doeth righteousness
is righteous, even as he is righteous."
(Romans 6:18)
"Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of
righteousness."
Illustrations: Tennis Ball
Mississippi
River
b.
Those whose lives are ruled
by sin, by the lusts of their flesh, are children of the devil (v. 8).
(1 John 3:8)
"He that committeth sin
is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the
Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil."
c.
When the believer sins, it
is not him (his true self) sinning, but sin (the old man) that dwells in him
(Compare v. 9 and Romans 7:20).
(1 John 3:9)
"Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed
remaineth in him: and he cannot sin,
because he is born of God."
The believer is a person with two natures, flesh and
spirit, the old man and the new man. The old man will never surrender to the
new. The flesh will never surrender to the spirit. Yet, we live not after the
flesh but after the spirit (Rom 7:14-25; Gal. 5:22-23; Rom. 8:1-9).
(Romans 7:14-25)
"For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under
sin. (15) For that which I do I allow
not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I. (16) If then I do that which I would
not, I consent unto the law that it is good. (17) Now then it is no more I that do
it, but sin that dwelleth in me. (18) For
I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will
is present with me; but how to
perform that which is good I find not.
(19) For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not,
that I do. (20) Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin
that dwelleth in me. (21) I
find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me. (22) For I delight in the law of God
after the inward man: (23) But I see
another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me
into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. (24) O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body
of this death? (25) I thank God
through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of
God; but with the flesh the law of sin."
(Galatians 5:22-23)
"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering,
gentleness, goodness, faith, (23) Meekness,
temperance: against such there is no law."
(Romans 8:1-9)
"There is therefore now
no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. (2) For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free
from the law of sin and death.
(3) For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh,
God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned
sin in the flesh: (4) That the
righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. (5) For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh;
but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. (6) For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. (7) Because the carnal mind is
enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed
can be. (8) So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. (9) But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be
that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of
Christ, he is none of his."
3.
In the eyes of God’s law, we
are no longer guilty of sin. – Our debt has been paid! -- Our obligation has been met, fulfilled,
and satisfied by Christ (Heb. 1:3). – “He
that is dead is freed from sin” (Rom. 6:7).
4.
God will never charge us
with sin, punish us for sin, or treat us any the less graciously because we
have sinned
(1 John 2:1-2; Rom 4:8).
(1 John 2:1-2)
"My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin
not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the
righteous: (2) And he is the
propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world."
(Romans 4:8)
"Blessed is the man to
whom the Lord will not impute sin."
5.
In Christ we have no sin (V. 5; Jer. 50:20).
(1 John 3:5)
"And ye know that he was manifested to take away our sins; and in
him is no sin."
(Jeremiah 50:20)
"In those days, and in that time, saith the LORD, the iniquity of
Israel shall be sought for, and there
shall be none; and the sins of Judah, and they shall not be found: for I
will pardon them whom I reserve."
Near, so very near to God,
nearer I cannot be,
For in the Person of His
Son, I am as near as He!
Dear, so very dear to God,
dearer I cannot be,
For in the Person of His Son, I am as dear as He!
Jesus, Thy blood and
righteousness,
My beauty are, my glorious
dress.
Midst flaming worlds in
these arrayed,
With joy shall I lift up my
head.
When from the dust of death
I rise
To take my mansion in the
skies,
This, this alone, shall be
my plea, --
“Jesus has lived and died
for me!”
Bold shall I stand in that
great day,
For who aught to my charge
shall lay,
While through Thy blood
absolved I am,
From sin’s tremendous guilt
and blame!
Yes, I shall stand before
God’s throne,
With Jesus’ spotless
garments on,
Accepted in my Lord, God’s
Son,
Made holy as the Holy One!
Application: If these things are so (And they most
assuredly are!), then you and I who have been made the recipients and
beneficiaries of such amazing grace and wondrous love should…
·
Love the Lord our God with all our hearts.
·
Be full of unceasing gratitude and praise.
·
Hate our sins.
·
Tell sinners everywhere about the great forgiveness of sins in Christ.
·
Give ourselves unreservedly to our great Redeemer, the Lord Jesus
Christ (1 Cor. 6:19-20).
(1 Corinthians 6:19-20) "What? know ye not that your body is the
temple of the Holy Ghost which is in
you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? (20) For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your
body, and in your spirit, which are God's."
(Romans 6:11-12)
"Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but
alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. (12) Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye
should obey it in the lusts thereof."
(1 Peter 4:1-2)
"Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm
yourselves likewise with the same mind: for he that hath suffered in the flesh
hath ceased from sin; (2) That he no
longer should live the rest of his time
in the flesh to the lusts of men, but to the will of God."
If the Lord God has done this for me in Christ, (And he
has!), maybe he will do the same for you. Indeed, if you trust him, he has!
(1 John 3:1-5)
"Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that
we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not,
because it knew him not. (2) Beloved,
now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we
know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as
he is. (3) And every man that hath
this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure. (4) Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin
is the transgression of the law. (5) And
ye know that he was manifested to take away our sins; and in him is no
sin."
AMEN.
Songs of Grace #67