Moving Toward Spiritual Discernment-5

MOVING TOWARD SPIRITUAL DISCERNMENT--5

—1John 3:10--4:21

Attention:

Remember that I gave you an example of putting on my glasses, so that I can be more discerning, & thus more effective in my ministry.

If you are a Christian, you are equipped to be, & are expected to be, ‘spiritually discerning’ in all your endeavors.

God’s people are always in training toward being spiritual discerning. Some of us have a ‘good way to go’ in that regard, others are miles ahead of the curve, & still others are somewhere in between the two extremes.

It is imperative that God’s people see the importance, the seriousness & the security that comes with their Moving Toward Spiritual Discernment.

One of the outcomes of the Church gathering together, is for the purpose of being encouraged & strengthened in it’s Movement Toward Spiritual Discernment.

The apostle John sheds light on this need for Spiritual Discernment in the Church.

Spiritual Discernment is a necessity in the Church.

•How is Spiritual Discernment in the Church achieved/accomplished?

--OR--

•What must be recognized in moving ourselves & the church & toward spiritual discernment.

At least 15 things we must recognize when moving toward spiritual discernment.

I’ve chosen the word, ‘recognition’ here, because it goes beyond mere ‘acknowledgment’ or mental agreement. ‘Recognition’ of the things we’ll examine implies not only head knowledge, but heart knowledge which then drives a person to performance or action.

In the past few weeks we’ve found that:

Moving(yourself, the Church, & others) toward spiritual discernment recognizes...

1. OPPOSING SIDES(3:10)

•Children of God & Children of the Devil.

2. The FOUNDATIONAL MESSAGE(3:11)

•Love One Another.

3. IMPASSIONED BELIEF(3:12-13)

•The world hates you.

4. DECISIVE MOVEMENT(A)(3:14)

•Passed from death to life.

Today, we’ll continue in our discovery that...

5.—Moving(yourself, the Church, & others) toward spiritual discernment recognizes...

DECISIVE MOVEMENT(B)(3:15)

3:15—“Whoever hates his brother is a murderer, & you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.”

“Whoever hates his brother is a murderer,”...

“Whoever”—

No one is excused from the concern of these directives.

“Whoever”—pav—Adj.—1) individually—1a) Each, every, any, all, the whole, everyone, all things, everything; 2) collectively—2a) Some of all types. Strong—apparently a primary word; All, any, every, the whole.

“Hates”—

To “hate” is to ‘detest’ a person, or to ‘pursue them with hatred.’ A ‘hater’ extends no mercy or grace to the one they hate. !Do not soften this word! And do not excuse yourself from it’s application either!

Just so this is brought home, one author has written that “Hatred is the desire to get rid of someone, whether or not one has the nerve or the occasion to perform the act.”—D. Burdick in DLANAC

“Hates”(See 3:13; 4:20)—misew—Present Active Subjunctive 3rd Sing.—1) To hate, pursue with hatred, detest; 2) To be hated, detested. Strong—To detest(especially--To persecute); by extension--To love less; from a primary misov(hatred). Used 42X.

“His Brother”—

This is particularly for those who should be side-by-side serving God together.

“His”—autov—Personal Pronoun Genitive Sing. Masc.—1) Himself, herself, themselves, itself; 2) He, she, it; 3) The same. Strong—from the particle au[perhaps akin to the base of ahr[air] through the idea of a baffling wind]--Backward; the reflexive pronoun--Self, used(alone or in the comparative eautou) of the third person , & (with the proper personal pronoun)of the other persons.

“Brother”(See 3:13, 14, 16, 17; 4:20, 21)—adelfov—Lit.-=-‘Together in the womb.’—Noun Masc.—1) A brother, whether born of the same two parents or only of the same father or mother; 2) Having the same national ancestor, belonging to the same people, or countryman; 3) Any fellow or man; 4) A fellow believer, united to another by the bond of affection; 5) An associate in employment or office; 6) Brethren in Christ—6a) His brothers by blood, 6b) All men, 6c) Apostles, 6d) Christians, as those who are exalted to the same heavenly place. Strong—A brother(literally or figuratively) near or remote.?From—A(as a connective particle).—&—delfuv—The womb.

“Is a murderer,”—

“A murderer,” is someone who for their own selfish reasons, kills other people. Murder begins in the heart, prior to the fulfillment of any act that might bring about the taking of another’s life(Mat. 5:20-22).

Mat. 5:20—“For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes & Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.”

Lk. 11:37-39—“And as He spoke, a certain Pharisee asked Him to dine with him. So He went in & sat down to eat. When the Pharisee saw it, he marveled that He had not first washed before dinner. Then the Lord said to him, “Now you Pharisees make the outside of the cup & dish clean, but your inward part is full of greed & wickedness.”

Mk. 7:11-16—“But you say, ‘If a man says to his father or mother, “Whatever profit you might have received from me is Corban”--’(that is, a gift to God), “then you no longer let him do anything for his father or his mother, making the word of God of no effect through your tradition which you have handed down. And many such things you do.” When He had called all the multitude to Himself, He said to them, “Hear Me, everyone, & understand: “There is nothing that enters a man from outside which can defile him; but the things which come out of him, those are the things that defile a man. If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear!””