1 John is a book of Christian certainty. John let's us know that God wants us to be fully assured of our salvation. Through His Word, God provides assurance to those who have received Christ that they are truly His (1 John 5:13). As the Spirit of God affirms through the Word of God the validity of one's salvation, assurance comes. Believers can have a "know so" salvation. Over and over we have seen John use the word "know." In concluding this letter, John shares with us a three-fold assurance that salvation is eternally ours.
John tells us that if we are saved, we can know we are saved eternally:
1. By virtue of the power given us - v. 18
John says that one of the evidences that we are saved is that there is a difference in our attitude toward sin.
As Dr. Adrian Rogers put it, "The unbeliever will leap into sin and when he does, he will love it; but the true believer, when he lapses into sin, will loath it."
One who is truly saved will desire to please the Lord. On occasion, however, he will fail to do so. But when failure to live a pure life comes, does the Christian lose his salvation? John says, "No!"
At first, verse 18 may give one the impression that the believer is responsible for keeping himself saved. But upon further consideration, we discover that when John speaks about "the one who was born of God," he is referring to Jesus. He is telling us that Jesus, the one who was born of God, keeps us safe by His power from the evil one.
When it comes to jokes, there are preacher jokes, lawyer jokes, and of course, heaven jokes. One such joke tells of a man who dies and goes to heaven. Of course, St. Peter meets him at the pearly gates.
Peter says, "Here's how it works. You need 100 points to make it into heaven. You tell me all the good things you've done, and I give you a certain number of points for each item, depending on how good it was. When you reach 100 points, you get in." "Okay," the man says, "l was married to the same woman for 50 years and never cheated on her, even in my heart."
"That's wonderful," says Peter, "that's worth three points!" "Three points?" he says. "Well, I attended church all my life and
supported its ministry with my tithe and service."
"Terrific!" says Peter, "that's certainly worth a point." "One point? Golly. How about this: I started a soup kitchen in my city and worked in a shelter for homeless veterans." "Fantastic, that's good for two more points," Peter says.
"TWO POINTS!!" the man cries, "At this rate the only way I get into heaven is by the grace of God!" Peter says, "Come on in!"
We are no more able to keep ourselves saved than we are able to save ourselves in the first place. It is only by Christ's power that we are saved and it is only by His power that we are kept.
"You are being protected by God’s power through faith for a salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time." - 1 Peter 1:5 (HCSB)
"And I give them eternal life, and they will never, ever [by any means] perish; and no one will ever snatch them out of My hand." - John 10:28 (Amplified)
"I know the one in whom I trust, and I am sure that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him until the day of his return." - 2 Timothy 1:12 (NLT)
"Now all glory to God, who is able to keep you from falling away and will bring you with great joy into his glorious presence without a single fault." - Jude 24 (NLT)
2. By virtue of the position granted us - v. 19
John contrasts the position of the Christian with the position of the those who do not know the Lord. Those who are saved are the children of God, while those who are not, are controlled by the evil one.
"Your father is the devil, and you do exactly what he wants." - John 8:44 (CEV)
ONE WHO IS A CHILD ONE WHO IS CONTROLLED
1. in a position to be blessed 1. in a position to be burdened
2. the object of affection 2. the object of affliction
3. delights in all that is his 3. deprived of all that is his
4. knows fulfillment 4. knows frustration
5. will be with his Father forever 5. will be with his father forever
6. destined to be conformed 6. destined to be conformed
to the Lord's image to the world's image
In Japan, they have learned how to grow square watermelons. They do this because they fit in one's refrigerator better and don't roll around. When the melon starts to grow, they place it into a square mold, and the melon conforms to the shape of the mold.
The moment a person comes into this world, they are put into the world's "square mold." But when one receives Christ as Savior, he is taken out of that mold and set free to be what he was intended to be - a child of God! And as such, he is predestined to become like Jesus.
"Beloved, we are [even here and] now children of God, and it is not yet made clear what we will be [after His coming]. We know that when He comes and is revealed, we will [as His children] be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is [in all His glory]." - 1 John 3:2 (Amplified)
"God knew what he was doing from the very beginning. He decided from the outset to shape the lives of those who love him along the same lines as the life of his Son. The Son stands first in the line of humanity he restored. We see the original and intended shape of our lives there in him. After God made that decision of what his children should be like, he followed it up by calling people by name. After he called them by name, he set them on a solid basis with himself. And then, after getting them established, he stayed with them to the end, gloriously completing what he had begun." - Romans 8:29-30 (The Message)
"God is the one who began this good work in you, and I am certain that he won’t stop before it is complete on the day that Christ Jesus returns." - Philippians 1:6 (CEV)
Because of the special position we have in the eyes of God, we can rest assured that if we are truly saved, we are saved eternally!
3. By virtue of the perspective gained by us - vs. 20
John tells us that by virtue of the spiritual insight receive as a result of growing in our walk with God, we develop a perspective on life which leads us to realize that things which befall us here below have no bearing on whether or not we will one day be with God above.
Paul spoke from this perspective in Romans 8:35-39.
"Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? (As the Scriptures say, “For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.”) No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us. And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord." - Romans 8:35-39 (NLT)
Conclusion: John concludes in verse 21 with a final exhortation to keep away from idols. Why this seemingly abrupt admonition? It is
because John has just been speaking about that which is reality - our secure, abundant life in Christ. Therefore, why settle for that which is false, when we have what is true?
A young man proposed marriage to a young woman. He gave her an expensive, beautiful diamond ring enclosed in an attractive blue velvet box. The following day after their engagement, the young woman said; "How can I ever thank you enough for the beautiful blue velvet box? I love it and will always cherish it!" How do you think her beloved felt?
The same way God no doubt feels when we accept Christ, but do not seek to learn about our glorious salvation and take in its true beauty and magnificence, but instead, turn our backs on the salvation that is our and pursue the idols of this world.
"So if you’re serious about living this new resurrection life with Christ, act like it. Pursue the things over which Christ presides. Don’t shuffle along, eyes to the ground, absorbed with the things right in front of you. Look up, and be alert to what is going on around Christ - that’s where the action is. See things from his perspective. Your old life is dead. Your new life, which is your real life - even though invisible to spectators - is with Christ in God. He is your life." - Colossians 3:1-3 (The Message)
