Series: Are You Real? [#7]
HOW WILL JESUS FIND YOU?
1 John 2:18-3:10
Introduction:
There may be some here today that don’t think Jesus is coming back in their lifetime, but He will come just like a thief and you won’t know when. When Jesus returns, how will He find you? There are several types of people Jesus will find when He returns.
1 John 2:18 (NIV)
“Dear children, this is the last hour; and as you have heard that the antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come. This is how we know it is the last hour.”
In the last hour, some will be…
1. Against Christ.
1 John 2:22-23 (NIV)
“Who is the liar? It is whoever denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a person is the antichrist- denying the Father and the Son. No one who denies the Son has the Father; whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also.”
How will you know who is against Christ?
They will deny Jesus Christ.
If you deny that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, then you do not know God the Father. There is no salvation without Jesus Christ.
1 John 3:8-10
“The one who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work. No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God’s seed remains in them; they cannot go on sinning, because they have been born of God. This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not God’s child, nor is anyone who does not love their brother and sister.”
How will you know who is against Christ?
They live like the devil.
1 John 2:26; 3:7 (NIV)
“I am writing these things to you about those who are trying to lead you astray. Dear children, do not let anyone lead you astray. The one who does what is right is righteous, just as he is righteous.”
How will you know who is against Christ?
They will deceive others.
In the last hour, some will…
2. Abandon Christ.
The closer we get to the end, the more persecution of Christians we will see. Persecution of Christians is happening almost all over the world, we just don’t seem to realize that here in the U.S.
When times get tough, there will be many who abandon Christ.
1 John 2:19 (NIV)
“They went out from us, but they did not really belong to us. For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us; but their going showed that none of them belonged to us.”
How can you tell who they are?
They leave the Church.
I know you don’t have to be in church to be saved, but a believer who is growing and is walking close to the Lord will be in church and they won’t just run when things get hard. Our church is supposed to be about Jesus, not our little problems, etc…
1 John 2:24-26 (NIV)
“As for you, see that what you have heard from the beginning remains in you. If it does, you also will remain in the Son and in the Father. And this is what he promised us- eternal life. I am writing these things to you about those who are trying to lead you astray.”
How can you tell who they are?
They are deceived.
Do you believe everything you hear? How do you know what is true in the Bible and what is not?
1 John 2:28 (NIV)
“And now, dear children, continue in him, so that when he appears we may be confident and unashamed before him at his coming.”
How can you tell who they are?
They are not confident and will be ashamed.
If Jesus came back right now, would you be confident that He would take you with Him to Heaven? Even if you are saved, would you ashamed of what He found you doing?
In the last hour, some will be found as…
3. Anointed Children of God.
To anoint means to pour out. If I anointed you with oil, I would pour it on you. I would be able to see the oil that I poured on you. Once we are saved, we are anointed with the Holy Spirit of God. Can people see that in your life?
1 John 2:20-21 (NIV)
“But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth. I do not write to you because you do not know the truth, but because you do know it and because no lie comes from the truth.”
What are the characteristics of someone who is anointed by the Holy Spirit of God?
They know the truth.
1 John 2:24-27 (NIV)
“As for you, see that what you have heard from the beginning remains in you. If it does, you also will remain in the Son and in the Father. And this is what he promised us- eternal life. I am writing these things to you about those who are trying to lead you astray. As for you, the anointing you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit- just as it has taught you, remain in him.”
What are the characteristics of someone who is anointed by the Holy Spirit of God?
They continue in the truth.
1 John 2:28-3:3 (NIV)
“And now, dear children, continue in him, so that when he appears we may be confident and unashamed before him at his coming. If you know that he is righteous, you know that everyone who does what is right has been born of him. See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. All who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure.”
What are the characteristics of someone who is anointed by the Holy Spirit of God?
They have confidence.
Conclusion:
How will Jesus find you when He returns?
