MOVING TOWARD SPIRITUAL DISCERNMENT-IV—1John 3:10--4:21
Attention:
I have a west-facing window in my office that looks over across 1st St.
If something I find interesting happens outside, I put on my glasses because I am near-sighted. I do that so I can clearly see what is transpiring. I might recognize someone & go outside & say, ‘Hello’ to them. I might see someone involved in some sort of activity that they shouldn’t be, & let them know they have been seen.
Regardless, I put 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.
Today as in previous millennia, 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, ‘recognizes’ 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) 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.
Today, we’ll also discover that...
4—Moving(yourself & the Church) toward spiritual discernment recognizes...DECISIVE MOVEMENT(A)(3:14)
Explanation:(3:14)
3:14—“We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love his brother abides in death.”
“We know that we have passed from death to life,...”
“We”—John is including himself in this promise to all Christians.
“We”—hmeiv—Personal Pronoun 1st Nominative Plural—1) Us, we etc.. Strong—Nominative Plural of egw. We(only used when emphatic).
“We know that we have passed from death to life,...”
“Know”—There is knowledge of & thus certainty of having performed some previous action. I have had conversation with many a person who gets irate with me because I tell them that they can be certain about whether they have eternal life or not.
The Greek behind the word translated as “passed”, pictures a person taking ‘deliberate steps.’ It is in the ‘perfect’ tense signifying that the action is completed or finished.
•True Christians have & do deliberately choose “life” over “death, by ‘deliberately’ choosing Jesus!
“Life” only flows from one’s nurturing relationship with Jesus! The reference here is to ‘eternal’ life.
•There is no other source for “life” than Jesus!
Jn. 14:6—“Jesus said to him[Thomas], “I am the way, the truth, & the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”
Jn. 1:4—“In Him[the Word of God] was life, & the life was the light of men.”
The presence & choice of “Life” for a person, refers to everything that is the opposite of ‘eternal’ “death.”
“Death” is what ‘most’ people live out every day.
•That is, they temporally live in a continual state of separation from God...And should that separation remain, as a result of your stubborn will, that separation from God will remain & be played out constantly, permanently in eternity!
•“Death” is what God’s people have willingly chosen to “pass from.”
I have learned that when you ask just a few pointed/telling questions of people, it brings an honesty to light about the practicalities of their belief system. And the great thing about honestly answering the questions, is that a person may even reveal to THEMSELVES important matters about their belief system that they hadn’t ever given real thought to!
•I have asked many people about their personal certainty of having eternal life—“Do you know for certain that you have eternal life & that you will go to heaven when you die?”
•On the heels of such a question, it’s pertinent to ask another open-ended question. It is very enlightening to listen to the REASONS they give for their ‘certainty.’ When asked, “Suppose you were standing before God right now, & He was to call you by name & ask you, ‘Why should I let you into MY heaven?’ What do you think you would say?”
•You see, most of those same people who claim that they ‘might know’ that they’re going to heaven, ‘when-push-comes-to-shove’, actually have NO confidence at all about ‘going to heaven’!...Or rather, they have, thru their years, maintained a FALSE confidence, based on false/erroneous knowledge &/or a false understanding of God’s truth.
•These people have NO confidence...They have NO certainty because they have NO saving relationship with Christ Jesus! They SUPPOSE that anyone who is certain about going to heaven , attains that certainty by ‘being good enough’, for long enough. They even ‘suppose’ that they know what God considers ‘good.’
•These people have CONVINCED themselves that as long as they sit in a church-house, &/or watch a sermon on Facebook or TV, that it means they are accepted by God—As if ‘CURIOSITY’ about spiritual matters is enough, or that HEAD-KNOWLEDGE about Jesus is enough! CURIOSITY & HEAD-KNOWLEDGE is NOT enough to secure anyone’s place in heaven!
•You see, the reality is that any citizen of heaven—of the Kingdom of God—is a citizen because they have willingly chosen to move FROM curiosity & head-knowledge(“death”), TO absolute TRUST in Christ(“life”)...Their trust is a ‘soul trust’ that is unfazed by any claims otherwise.
•A person must place personal FAITH in God’s Christ/Messiah/Lord/Master—Jesus. They must move from curiosity & head-knowledge, to putting absolute faith in Jesus’ having to literally die a criminal’s death in order to pay the penalty for their personal sins & overall sinfulness which they have unquestionably committed against God!
A person cannot be saved unless he or she first recognizes that they are sinners, because they have sinned against God—That is, that they must recognize that they are lost to God because of their personal sinfulness.
To put it succinctly, ’A person must be lost before he or she can be saved.’
“Know”—eidw OR--oida—Perfect Active Indicative 1st Plural—1) To see; 2) To know—2a) To know of anything, 2b) To know, i.e. Get knowledge of, understand, perceive—2b1) of any fact, 2b2) the force & meaning of something which has definite meaning, 2b3) To know how, to be skilled in, 2c) To have regard for one, cherish, pay attention to(1Th 5:12). Eidw/oida denotes to see with the mind's eye, signifies a clear & purely mental perception. Strong—a primary verb; used only in certain past tenses, the others being borrowed from the equivalent optanomai & oraw; properly--To see(literally or figuratively); by implication(in the perfect only)--To know.
“Passed”—metabainw—Perfect Active Indicative 1st Plural—Lit. -=- ‘with the foot’—1) To pass over from one place to another, to remove, depart. Strong—To change place. Used 12X.?From—meta—1) With, after, behind. Strong—properly--Denoting accompaniment; “Amid”(local or causal); occupying an intermediate position between apo[off, away from] or ek, ex[from, out] & eiv[to, into] or prov[toward, near to]; less intimate than en[in] & less close than sun[with, together]); a primary preposition.—& the base of—basiv—from bainw(to walk); A pace("base"), i.e. by implication--The foot.
“From”(See 3:10, 19; 4:1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 8, 13)—ek OR--ex—Prep.—1) Out of, from, by, away from. Strong—a primary preposition denoting origin(the point whence action or motion proceeds), From, out(of place, time, or cause; literal or figurative; direct or remote).
“Death”2X—yanatov—Noun Genitive Sing. Masc.—1) The death of the body—1a) That separation(whether natural or violent) of the soul & the body by which the life on earth is ended, 1b) with the implied idea of future misery in hell—1b1) The power of death, 1c) since the nether world, the abode of the dead, was conceived as being very dark, it is Equivalent to the region of thickest darkness i.e. figuratively--A region enveloped in the darkness of ignorance & sin; 2) metaphorically--The loss of that life which alone is worthy of the name,—2a) The misery of the soul arising from sin, which begins on earth but lasts & increases after the death of the body in hell; 3) The miserable state of the wicked dead in hell; 4) in the widest sense--Death comprising all the miseries arising from sin, as well physical death as the loss of a life consecrated to God & blessed in him on earth, to be followed by wretchedness in hell. Strong—(properly, an adjective used as a noun) Death(literally or figuratively).
“To/Into”—eiv—Preposition—1) Into, unto, to, towards, for, among. Strong—To or into(indicating the point reached or entered), of place, time, or figuratively--Purpose(result, etc.); also in adverbial phrases; a primary preposition.
“Life”(See 3:15; 3:16—quch)—zwh—Noun Fem.—1) Life—1a) The state of one who is possessed of vitality or is animate, 1b) Every living soul; 2) Life—2a) Of the absolute fulness of life, both essential & ethical, which belongs to God, & through him both to the hypostatic "logos" & to Christ in whom the "logos" put on human nature, 2b) Life real & genuine, a life active & vigorous, devoted to God, blessed, in the portion even in this world of those who put their trust in Christ, but after the resurrection to be consummated by new accessions(among them a more perfect body), & to last for ever. Strong—Life(literally or figuratively).?Zwh corresponds to Hebrew—yx. A)quch—Breath, i.e. by implication--Spirit, abstractly or concretely--The animal sentient(perceptive) principle only, which is distinguished from, B) pneuma—The rational & immortal soul, & C)zwh—Mere vitality, even of plants. These terms thus exactly correspond respectively to the Hebrew...A)vpn, B)xwr & C)yx.
“Because we love the brethren.”...
God’s people love one another even thru their faults, simply “because” they are their ‘family’ in Christ. The only reason they are given to one another & give them the time of day’ is because they are bound together around one thing & one thing only...They all love Jesus & receive His love to themselves!
So, the godly “love” that God’s children have toward their brothers & sisters in Christ(“the brethren”), is NOT the means by which they have unquestionably crossed over the threshold of eternal “death” & into the realm of eternal “life”(14:14a).
*Rather, the godly “love” that God’s children have toward their brothers & sisters in Christ, is FURTHER EVIDENCE that they have crossed over “from death to life.”
God does not want His people/Christians to get mad, & get even or take vengeance! They instead are expected to get mad & get over it & around it—by turning that anger over to God. Why? Because God’s leads His people thru the Holy Spirit to grant them the presence of heart & spirit to honor Him in all their responses, even down to the utter ‘heartaches’ that ‘family’ might bring from time to time.
Speaking from way too much personal experience—God’s people might do many ‘stupid things’ in anger until the time when we finally turn our anger over to the Lord!
“Because/For/That”—oti—Conjunction—1) That, because, since. Strong—neuter of ostiv[Which some, i.e. Any that; also (definitively)--Which same]as conjunction; demonstrative--That(sometimes redundant); causative--Because.
“Love”2X(See 3:17, 18, 23; 4:8, 10, 11, 12)—agapaw—Present Active Indicative 1st Plural—1) of persons—1a) To welcome, to entertain, to be fond of, to love dearly; 2) of things—2a) To be well pleased, to be contented at or with a thing. Agapaw concerns embracing especially the judgment & the deliberate assent of the will as a matter of principle, duty & propriety. Strong—perhaps from agan(much) [or compare bge[To breathe after, i.e. To love(sensually)]]; To love (in a social or moral sense). RWP—“the noble word so common in the Gospels for the highest form of love.”?Not—filew—i.e. To have affection for(denoting personal attachment, as a matter of sentiment or feeling).
“Brethren” -&- “Brother”(See 3:13, 15, 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.
“He who does not love his brother abides in death.”
The ‘other side of the same coin’ is that a LACK of, or the absence of “love” for one’s brothers & sisters in Christ also provides evidence. It is a decisive & determinative symptom of a person’s unquestionably “abiding” in the realm of “death”, rather than “abiding” in “life”, even though “life” is ‘available’ to them by God’s grace thru faith in Christ.
•So you see how John is comparing belief that is positive & eternally beneficial, with belief that is negative & eternally detrimental.
•John confirms the eternally beneficial or the eternally detrimental, by means of the test of the presence or absence of “love” for the “brethren” or family of God.
One writer says, “the absence of Christian love indicates that one has not passed into the state of spiritual life.”—DLANAC
And thus John, thru the Holy Spirit of God, says that “We know” “that we have passed.”
John does not mince words! You either ‘IS’(“passed from death to life”)or you ‘AIN’T’(“passed from death to life”)!
*An Example:
An experience I once faced as a pastor, should help to illustrate this aspect of what it means to “abide in death.”
•Following the completion of Vacation Bible School one year, the person who had headed up the snack/food segment of VBS wanted to recognize the volunteers who had helped them out. A noble gesture to say the least. Certificates were handed out to those people during the morning worship service, to the admiration & applause of the congregation. However, one person was very disappointed, supposing that they too should have been recognized along with the others. During the ‘worker recognition time’ in the worship service, & before the whole congregation, that disgruntled person openly voiced their disappointment for all to hear.
That is an example of NOT loving your brother in Christ!
•Now I’m not saying you should ‘blackball’ such a person, but rather that such indulgences in sin would be repented of!
There are continual temptations that we battle with, that want to push us into the realm of outright sin(Js. 1:14-15).
Js. 1:14-15—“But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires & enticed. Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; & sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death.”
When you give yourself over to the sins of jealousy, envy, hatred, bitterness, grudge-keeping, etc, etc.,.... these are all examples of “abiding in death.”
This truth should bring YOU to a moment of decision!...
•If you ‘know’ that you currently are choosing to “abide in” eternal “death”, then know—beyond the shadow of any doubt—that you will be eternally benefitted by choosing Christ Jesus, so that you will then both HERE & ETERNALLY “abide” in “LIFE”!
Christian...you might be saved, BUT sadly, you can choose to live your life in the power of “eternal death.” To do so is to live a ‘compromised’ life(1Cor. 3:11-15). And to do so is to be a thorn in the side of your Christian family members, instead of being an encouraging help to the well-being of the family of Christ!
*2Cor. 13:5—“Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?--unless indeed you are disqualified.”
“He Who/He That”—o,—OR—feminine--h, —OR—neuter--to—Definite Article Nominative Sing. Masc.—1) This, that, these, etc. Strong—the definite article; The(sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom).
“Not”—mh—Particle—1) No, not lest. Strong—a primary particle of qualified negation(whereas ou, ouk, ouc expresses an absolute denial); adverbially--Not, conjunctionally--Lest; also(as an interrogative implying a negative answer[whereas ou expects an affirmative one])--Whether.
“Love”(See 3:17, 18, 23; 4:8, 10, 11, 12)—agapaw—Present Active Indicative 1st Plural—1) of persons—1a) To welcome, to entertain, to be fond of, to love dearly; 2) of things—2a) To be well pleased, to be contented at or with a thing. Agapaw concerns embracing especially the judgment & the deliberate assent of the will as a matter of principle, duty & propriety. Strong—perhaps from agan(much) [or compare bge[To breathe after, i.e. To love(sensually)]]; To love (in a social or moral sense). RWP—“the noble word so common in the Gospels for the highest form of love.”?Not—filew—i.e. To have affection for(denoting personal attachment, as a matter of sentiment or feeling).
“Abides”(See 3:15, 17; 4:12, 13, 15, 16)—menw—Present Active Indicative 3rd Sing.—1) To remain, abide—1a) in reference to place—1a1) To sojourn, tarry, 1a2) Not to depart—1a2a) To continue to be present, 1a2b) To be held, kept, continually, 1b) in reference to time—1b1) To continue to be, not to perish, to last, endure—1b1a) of persons--To survive, live, 1c) in reference to state or condition—1c1) To remain as one, not to become another or different; 2) To wait for, await one. Strong—To stay(in a given place, state, relation or expectancy); a primary verb.
“In”—en—Preposition—1) In, by, with etc.. Strong—“In, “At”, (Up-)On, By, etc.; a primary preposition denoting(fixed)position(in place, time or state), & by implication--Instrumentality(medially or constructively), i.e. A relation of rest(intermediate between eiv[into, unto, to, towards, for, among] & ek/ex[out of, from, by, away from]).
“Death”2X—yanatov—Noun Genitive Sing. Masc.—1) The death of the body—1a) That separation(whether natural or violent) of the soul & the body by which the life on earth is ended, 1b) with the implied idea of future misery in hell—1b1) The power of death, 1c) since the nether world, the abode of the dead, was conceived as being very dark, it is Equivalent to the region of thickest darkness i.e. figuratively--A region enveloped in the darkness of ignorance & sin; 2) metaphorically--The loss of that life which alone is worthy of the name,—2a) The misery of the soul arising from sin, which begins on earth but lasts & increases after the death of the body in hell; 3) The miserable state of the wicked dead in hell; 4) in the widest sense--Death comprising all the miseries arising from sin, as well physical death as the loss of a life consecrated to God & blessed in him on earth, to be followed by wretchedness in hell. Strong—(properly, an adjective used as a noun) Death(literally or figuratively).
CONCLUSION:
Visualization:
Putting on my glasses so that I can be more discerning.
Action:
Moving(yourself, the Church, & others) toward spiritual discernment recognizes...
4. DECISIVE MOVEMENT(A)(3:14)
•Passed from death to life.
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.
Pnt#4 only! Presented 09/13/2020am to:
1BCCbelle
Video presentation thru YouTube, Shared to Facebook @ ‘Byron Sherman’ & ’First Baptist Church Carrabelle’
206 SE Ave A(Storrs Ave.)
Carrabelle, FL 32322
