THE GREATEST PROMISE
1 JOHN 2:18-29
#promise
INTRODUCTION… http://list25.com/25-craziest-political-promises-ever/1/
Everyone knows that when it comes to promises, politicians make a whole lot of them. They do not have a monopoly on making promises or breaking promises, but they are ones whose promises are often recorded for all to listen to. Every time election season rolls around the promises start flowing and without fail the people cling to the ones they want to believe in the most. So, in honor of their incredible boldness, here are some of the 25 craziest political promises ever:
#25 Vermin Supreme promised a pony to everyone in the United States and a pony-based economy.
#24 John Edwards promised to cure disease and sickness and paraplegics.
#22 Dan Quayle promised no other country in the world would have better educated American citizens.
#20 Ronald Reagan promised not to exploit his opponent’s youth and inexperience.
#19 Dan Quayle promised the future would get better tomorrow.
#17 Hunter Thompson promised to replace all the roads in Aspen CO with sod.
#13 Bill Clinton promised that he was the president that had the most fun.
#12 Jello Biafra promised San Francisco that all businessmen would wear clown suits
#11 Al Gore promised that zebras would not change their spots.
#9 Ronald Reagan promised to give orders to be awakened in a crisis, even if he was in a meeting.
#6 Herbert Hoover promised a chicken in every pot.
#4 Newt Gingrich promised a moon colony by 2020 if elected.
#1 Teddy Roosevelt promised not to run for President again if elected.
We can laugh at those things because some are funny and some are just people who misspoke words when the words were being recorded. If you speak in front of people long enough, you are bound to say something that doesn’t sound quite right! I do think we can all agree that in general breaking promises is frowned upon. We expect that when people tell us something that they keep their word. We expect that when people say ‘yes’ they mean ‘yes.’ We expect that when people say ‘no’ they mean ‘no.’ We expect that when a promise is given that it is kept. We of course know that promises are broken. Maybe we are someone who breaks our promises.
God is different. God is righteous and perfect and keeps all promises made.
* Psalm 89:34 says, “I will not violate my covenant or alter the word that went forth from my lips.”
* 2 Corinthians 1:19-20 says, “For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, whom we proclaimed among you, Silvanus and Timothy and I, was not Yes and No, but in him it is always Yes. 20 For all the promises of God find their Yes in him. That is why it is through him that we utter our Amen to God for his glory.”
God is righteous and perfect and keeps all promises made. This morning as we read in 1 John 2, we are going to find a passage that is full of different ideas, but at the center of it is the greatest promise you and I have from God.
READ 1 John 2:18-29
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. 19 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. 20 But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth. 21 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. 22 Who is the liar? It is the man who denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a man is the antichrist-- he denies the Father and the Son. 23 No one who denies the Son has the Father; whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also. 24 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. 25 And this is what he promised us- eternal life. 26 I am writing these things to you about those who are trying to lead you astray. 27 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. 28 And now, dear children, continue in him, so that when he appears we may be confident and unashamed before him at his coming. 29 If you know that he is righteous, you know that everyone who does what is right has been born of him.
I. THE GREATEST PROMISE
As I was reading this passage I looked at verses about antichrists and anointing and counterfeits. I see all of those verses, but what jumped out at me was in the center of the passage. In verse 25, the Apostle John says to us, “And this is what He promised us—even eternal life.” God makes many promises to us as His followers, but I think the greatest promise He has given us is that if we believe in Him, if we accept Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord, that eternal life with Him will be ours.
This is not a promise that is given one time in the Bible, but is a promise given over and over. We find the promise of eternal life in the Psalms of David. Prophets like Isaiah and Daniel share this promise with us. We also find most importantly that Jesus gives us this promise as well:
* Psalm 16:11, “You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.”
* Isaiah 25:8-9, “He will swallow up death forever; and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from all faces, and the reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth, for the LORD has spoken. 9 It will be said on that day, "Behold, this is our God; we have waited for him, that he might save us. This is the LORD; we have waited for him; let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation."
* Daniel 12:2-3, “And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. 3 And those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the sky above; and those who turn many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever.”
* John 4:13-14, “Jesus said to her, "Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, 14 but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty forever. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life."
* John 6:48-51, “I am the bread of life. 49 Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. 50 This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. 51 I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”
You and I and everyone on the whole planet are created beings by God Almighty. God promises that if we believe in Him that eternal life is our reward. What is that life like? These few verses that we just read describe it a little:
Eternal life is fullness of joy and pleasure and happiness.
Eternal life is free from tears, guilt, shame, struggle, and sadness.
Eternal life is fullness of all the good aspects of life.
ILLUSTRATION… Cell Phone Commercials (p)
You know I think long-term promises are under attack in our society. By attack I mean that people do not expect promises to be kept. We live in a society now where change and broken promises are expected. I could talk to you about how marriage used to be until death do us part. Now it is often, until I get bored with you. I could tell you a story about an employer who wrongly got rid of an employee right before retirement age to skirt around the pension. I think one of the best areas that would surprise us that illustrates our lack of promise keeping is cell phones.
Cell phones? Yep. Think about the last cell phone carrier commercial you saw or heard. The commercial stated their coverage was best. Good. The commercial also stated their data plans were better than all the others. Fine. The commercial put forth why their service is better than the competitors. Expected. What the commercial also offered was bonus money in the hundreds of dollars to do what… break the contract with the company you have now. Money to break a promise. Incentive to break a solid agreement. Cell phone companies are paying the fees associated with breaking contracts in order to get new customers. Cell phone companies are paying for people to break their contracts and we don’t think anything of it. Hey that’s business. Hey that’s me getting a better deal. Hey that is me breaking a promise and thinking nothing of it because I didn’t have to pay for it.
May I suggest to you that no matter what type of promise or contract we break, a part of us suffers. You may not agree with me, but I think it is true. Our integrity suffers. Our word suffers. Our willingness to persevere suffers. As we are in small things, so we are in large things.
II. OBSTACLES IN OUR WAY
As I read this passage, it is most certainly true that in verse 25 we have the greatest promise that God has given us. God promises eternal life. But what about all the other verses? What about the other 10 verses we read? What about those?
As I have reflected on these verses, I think surrounding the promise are obstacles that are in our way of receiving God’s greatest promise. Now they are not obstacles that God puts in our way, but obstacles because of human nature, our choices, and the consequences of sin in the world. As we read over these verses, we find three obstacles to the promise that the Apostle John warns us about.
First, desertion. In verses 18-19, it describes some people who were part of the church and part of the Christian faith, but left. John states, “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.” Faith in Jesus Christ is not a one-time thing. Faith in Jesus Christ is not a Christmas and Easter event. Faith in Jesus Christ is not a Sunday only way of living. Faith in Jesus Christ is a consistent lifestyle of reading God’s Word, worshipping together, encouraging each other in good deeds and genuine love, and sharing faith with those around us. Consistent. Daily. Inside. Outside. Personal. Active.
Desertion is something all of us must guard against if we want to receive eternal life. Not everyone remains faithful and receives eternal life. John tells us that. Jesus also tells us that we must remain with Him. John 15:4, “Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.” Some fall away. Some are not faithful to God. Some are not faithful to Christ. Some just hit God up in prayer when life stinks. We must make our faith in Jesus Christ the priority of our lives. Serious business.
Suggestions to guard against desertion:
* Be in worship services and Sunday School classes weekly
* Find a small group in church and connect there and make friends as you serve
* At-home regimen of Bible reading and Bible discussions
* Listen to Christian music
Second, denial. Denial means that we say we don’t know who Jesus is. Denial means we say we don’t believe that He is the Son of God. Denial means we do not identify as one of His followers. John tells us, “Who is the liar? It is the man who denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a man is the antichrist-- he denies the Father and the Son. 23 No one who denies the Son has the Father.” If you deny Jesus in your life, you do not have eternal life in any way shape or form! We might think that it is just unbelieving people who deny who Jesus Christ is. That is not so! We should not forget that in Luke 22:34 Jesus tells Peter, "I tell you, Peter, before the rooster crows today, you will deny three times that you know me." Peter denied knowing Jesus. He did so to distance himself from Jesus. We who call ourselves believers can deny Jesus.
It is possible even for us who are believers to deny Jesus and it is something we must guard against. In all times and in all situations we must confess with our mouth, that we are believers. We must act like believers. We must vote like believers. We must spend our money like believers. We must date and marry like believers. We must have Jesus as Savior and Lord in all parts of our lives and not deny Him. In Luke 12:8-9 Jesus warns us, “I tell you, whoever acknowledges me before men, the Son of Man will also acknowledge him before the angels of God. 9 But he who disowns me before men will be disowned before the angels of God.” Serious business.
Suggestions to guard against denial:
* Pray diligently that you will have reactions and words to say when faith is the topic
* Buy Christian shirts or hats and wear them when NOT at church
* Pray with people when they have issues or crisis in their lives
Third, detours. Our world is full of ideas and notions and philosophies and religions that claim to be completely true. Some philosophies teach that all paths lead to God. Some religions teach that their path is to God. Some ideas teach that we are God. Some teach that God always gives prosperity in response to prayer. Some claim to preach the truth, but change it to fit their version of God. There are so many different ideas in our world that can infiltrate our Christian faith and lead us off the narrow path which leads to eternal life. It is possible to listen to false teaching and incorporate it into our Christian worldview without even knowing it.
It is possible for us as believers to hear something and take it as truth and it end up being a false teaching. John says that when he says, “I am writing these things to you about those who are trying to lead you astray.” John was writing to people who had differing ideas among them and he wanted them to guard against believing something that was completely false. We must guard against following beliefs that are contrary to what God presents in His Word. Serious business.
Suggestions to guard against detours:
* Sit under correct Biblical teaching so you know what is true and can spot the false
* Be careful what TV, movies, and radio programs you listen to
* Check with a minister or elder before you read a Christian author you know nothing about
* Be consistently in God’s Word yourself so that you have a solid foundation in life
I don’t know about you, but I personally want to take these obstacles as serious business because I don’t want anything in my way of accepting the greatest promise God has ever given. I want to have eternal life that is fullness of joy and pleasure and happiness; free from tears, guilt, shame, struggle, and sadness; fullness of all the good aspects of life. I am going to do what it takes to guard my heart.
BRIDGE
I was doing some reading this week about promises and God’s promises, and I came across a quote from a book written by a Christian counselor in Parker, Colorado. I like his background and have been reflecting on what he said in one of his books. Christian counselor Craig Lounsbrough says in his book, “An Intimate Collision: Encounters with Life and Jesus”, “Maybe I’ve got to be sufficiently broken by life’s many broken promises to be sufficiently compelled to seek out God’s unbreakable promises.” That quote has stuck in my head ever since I read it. Because it has been stuck in my head, it occurs to me that there might be folks here today who are tired of life’s broken promises and are ready to accept God’s unbreakable promises. I’d like to share with you all about God’s unbreakable promise.
III. THE GOSPEL
What I want to share with you is simple and not difficult, but is the most important truth you will ever hear. I want to explain all about God’s greatest promise using 3 words that all begin with the letter “S.”
The first of three “S” words is “SOUL.” I would hope that you agree that you have a soul. It is part of who you are and every human being has a soul. Having a soul is one of the things that makes us different from all other things in this world. That soul was given to us by God and makes us who we are. That soul is what connects us to God. That soul is what continues into the afterlife when we die. I happen to think that our souls are the most important part of us.
The second of three “S” words is “SIN.” Sin is wrongdoing. Sin is doing what is wrong when we know it is wrong. Just like all of us have a soul, all of us also have sinned. All of us have done something wrong. Sin is serious business because the end result of every single sin is that it separates our soul connection with God. Any sin no matter how small disconnects us with God and separates us from Him. You and I both know that life here on Earth does not last forever, but souls do. When we die, our soul is either connected with God and remains that way or our soul is disconnected with God and remains that way.
The third of three “S” words is “SALVATION.” Salvation is when the disconnected soul is reconnected to God. Every soul that is disconnected from God by sin is in need of salvation. The problem is that we cannot reconnect ourselves. We sinned. We made the mistakes. We fell short. God made a way for us to reconnect through Jesus Christ. Jesus paid for our reconnection. Jesus provided a way for our souls to be paid for that we might reconnect with God on a permanent basis.
I hope that makes sense.
I hope it is simple and easy to understand.
3 “S” words… SOUL, SIN, SALVATION.
God loves your soul. He wants you to be with Him forever in Heaven and has made a way for that to happen through belief in His son Jesus Christ.
CONCLUSION AND EVANGELISTIC INVITATION
