Take a Good Look at the Love of God
1 John 3:1-2
Sermon by Rick Crandall
Series: The First Epistle of John
(Prepared December 24, 2023)
BACKGROUND:
*Before we begin our study today, let me remind you that the Apostle John was a very old man by the time he wrote this letter. Bible scholars estimate that it was written between 85 and 100 A.D. John Phillips explained that John was "feeling the weight of his years and aware that his days on earth were about done. A godly life lay behind him and a very long memory thrilled him. His native land of Israel was far away, for John now lived in Ephesus, a pagan city on the edge of the European world. Just as Jesus had prophesied, Israel had been crushed by the Roman army. Jerusalem had fallen, the Temple had been destroyed, and Jewish national life had basically ended.
*Also by this time, dangerous heresies were spreading spiritual poison in God's churches. For example, some false teachers denied the divinity of Christ. Others denied the humanity of Christ. And John denounced these false teachings in the strongest possible way, so one of the greatest themes in this letter is the truth of the Gospel. (1)
*Another great theme is God's kind of agape love. It's the kind of love that God has for us, and the kind of love God wants us to have for one another. We know that agape love is one of God's greatest priorities, because the original words show up 51 times this very short letter.
*Now, as we begin chapter three, a third great theme is the transforming power of Jesus Christ. God's Son can turn any sinner into a saint, if they will put their trust in our crucified and risen King, if they will receive Jesus as their Lord and Savior. With this background in mind, lets' read 1 John 3:1-2 to behold the great love of the only true and living God.
MESSAGE:
*What’s the best thing you have seen today? There are many ways that we could answer that question. But, without a doubt, the best thing we Christians have seen today is the amazing love of our Father in Heaven. I say this because everything else good or beautiful, helpful, or encouraging we have seen today can ultimately be traced back to the love of God.
*And in vs. 1 John urged us to "Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us." This is the amazing love that God has already poured out on us through the cross of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. And God wants us to see it. "Behold," John urged. And the original word for "behold" means to take a good, long look at God's love. Inspect it. Examine it. Study it.
*The great preacher, Charles Spurgeon pointed out that this word "behold" is here because this is such an important portion of God's Word, and the Holy Spirit wants us to pay special attention to it. It's as if the Holy Spirit says, 'Stop here! I have put up a big flashing sign to tell you that there is something exceedingly important here." John Gill said we are to look at the Father's love "by faith, with wonder and astonishment at His matchless blessing of grace." God wants all Christians to keep focused on His amazing love for us, and today's Scripture helps us see why. (2)
1. FIRST: BEHOLD THE FATHER'S LOVE, BECAUSE IT HELPS US APPRECIATE HIS AFFECTION.
*As John wrote in vs. 1, "Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called the children of God!" William MacDonald pointed out that God's "love for us could have saved us without making us His children. But how very much more God the Father show's His love by bringing believers into His family as children!" (3)
*Back in John 3:16 Jesus told us that "God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." But here the Apostle John talks about the special love that God the Father has given to everyone who has received Jesus as their Lord and Savior. "Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called the children of God!"
*It's important for us to understand that God the Father was seldom revealed or referred to in the Old Testament. John Phillips said that "Father" was practically a new name for God, in the way that Jesus used it and taught us to use it. Let me also tell you that Dr. Ralph Wilson found only ten verses in the Old Testament that referred to God as "Father."
*On the other hand, I counted well over 250 times that God is referred to as "Father" in the New Testament. You see, -- everything changed when Jesus came! He revealed God the Father to us in ways never possible before. And the New Testament presents this great truth to us in literally hundreds of Scriptures. (4)
*Think for example about how Jesus taught us to pray in the Sermon on the Mount. In Matthew 6:9 He told us to begin by saying, "Our Father who is in Heaven." Then think about the wonderful prayer lesson Jesus taught us in Matthew 7:7-11. There Jesus said, "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. Or what man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!"
*How much more? -- Infinitely more! Think about any decent dad you know. If his son asked for bread, would Dad give him a stone? If his son asked for a fish, would Dad give him a snake? No! Godly dads want the best for their children, and that is exactly what our Heavenly Father wants for us. No one could ever possibly love us more. And in vs. 1, John said, "Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God!"
*Christians: We are literally the true children of God! Thank God, we are also sinners saved by grace, but we're not just sinners saved by grace. We are part of the Family of God. And John 1:12-13 tells us that we were born again spiritually when we received Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, for "as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God." Praise the Lord for that!
*But Christians: Remember that we have also been adopted into the Family of God. Paul spoke of this great truth in at least two places. For example, in Ephesians 1:3-7, Paul said:
3. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ,
4. just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love,
5. having predestined us to ADOPTION as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will,
6. to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He has made us accepted in the Beloved.
7. In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace.
*I have heard adoptive parents talk about the boundless joy they had on the day their dream of adoption came true. And think about the kind of love on display when families choose to adopt children. My parents didn't choose me, and there were probably days when, given the choice my Mama would have said, "Mmmmm, -- no thanks!"
*But our Heavenly Father has the kind of love that He could look at us warts and all, and still say, "I choose you!" And it’s all because of God’s amazing, grace-filled love.
*God has proved His love for us more ways than we can count. But He proved it best on the cross of His only begotten Son, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. As Romans 5:8 says: "God demonstrates (or proves, displays, exhibits) His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." Now the Heavenly Father will receive us into His family, if we will receive His risen Son, Jesus, as our Lord and Savior. Praise the Lord!
2. BEHOLD THE FATHER'S LOVE, BECAUSE IT HELPS US APPRECIATE HIS AFFECTION, ALSO BECAUSE IT HELPS US UNDERSTAND THE WORLD'S REJECTION.
*John mentioned the world's rejection at the end of vs. 1, and again he said, "Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God! Therefore, the world does not know us, because it did not know Him." The AMP Bible says, "The reason that the world does not know (recognize or acknowledge) us is that it does not know (recognize or acknowledge) Him."
*Church: That's why Christians are hated and rejected around the world. The people who hate us don't know Jesus Christ. On the night before the cross, Jesus said this to His followers in John 15:18-19, "If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you."
*There are countless reports of this hatred here in the United States. People have been put out of business and worse, simply because they were trying to follow the Lord. Tragically, it's much worse in other parts of the world.
*A couple of months ago, we got an urgent call to prayer about a Muslim-background Christian in South Asia. I'll call her Miriam. She was attacked by her uncle and father-in-law in Pakistan. They beat her and forced her to eat poison because they suspected that she had left their faith and become a Christian. They then took her to the police station and left her there. Thank the Lord that someone took Miriam to a hospital, and by God's grace, she recovered.
*But most Muslims in that part of the world are in real danger when they put their faith in Jesus Christ. And there are many people in our own nation who hate Christians with white-hot fire. Why? -- Because we know God the Father through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
3. BEHOLD THE FATHER'S LOVE BECAUSE IT HELPS US UNDERSTAND THE WORLD'S REJECTION, AND IT HELPS GIVE US COMFORT IN HARD TIMES.
*In the first part of vs. 2 John said, "Beloved, now we are children of God." Believers, right now we are the children of God. Not someday, not by and by, but right now, we are the children of God. And that is a fact.
*Through Jesus Christ, we are now and forever a part of the Family of God. That's a fact, and nothing can change that fact. On your happiest days, on your saddest days, no matter what terrible things might be going on in your life, right now, you are a child of God. Let this great truth help give you comfort in the hard times of life.
*The great preacher Charles Spurgeon explained, "'Now are we the children of God,' but how is it with your heart today? Are you in the lowest depths of sorrow and suffering? Remember that now you are a child of God! Does corruption rise in your spirit, and grace seem like a small spark in your heart? Beloved, now are you a child of God! Does your faith seem to almost fail you? And do you feel like a candle almost blown out by the wind!
*Fear not, beloved. It is not your feelings, on which you are to live. You must live simply by faith in Christ and the perfect Word of God: 'Beloved, now are we the children of God!' With all these things against us, with the foot of the devil on our neck, and the sword in his hand ready to slay us, beloved now in the very depths of our sorrow, wherever we may be, now, as much in the valley as on the mountain, as much in the dungeon as in the palace, as much when broken on the wheel of suffering as when exalted on the wings of triumph. -- 'Beloved, now are we the children of God!'" (5)
*I often think of Dot Van. For many years, Dot was one of those misguided people who thought you had to earn your way into Heaven. And she felt like she was good enough to go. I witnessed to Dot several times back in the 1990s. Her son went to church with us at Emmanuel Baptist. She had some good qualities, but had also made some very bad choices in life. And she was always very hard-hearted when we talked about the Lord. She didn't want anything to do with Jesus Christ.
*But the last time I saw Dot, she had completely changed. It was an astounding, glorious change! Dot was very sick with cancer at the time, but she did not complain. Instead, she took the time to tell me how she had been saved. God had started working on her heart 6 months earlier. The Lord showed her that she wasn't good enough to get into Heaven on her own. So, around Christmas in 1998, she asked Jesus to save her, and Dot told me, "I know that He has."
*You could hear it in her voice, and you could see it in her eyes. It was an amazing transformation! And I walked out of that hospital room a foot off the ground! That day, Dot also told me that when she got her cancer, God told her that it was going to be bad, but that was okay because He was going to be with her. And He was! As her son bent down to rub her forehead, Dot's last words were, "Jesus is with me son. -- Jesus is with me." And then she went home to be with the Lord. On her worst days, Dot was comforted by the great truth that she was a child of God. And Christians, we can be comforted too!
4. BEHOLD THE FATHER'S LOVE BECAUSE IT HELPS GIVE US COMFORT IN HARD TIMES, AND BECAUSE IT PROMISES OUR FUTURE PERFECTION.
*John talked about our perfect future in vs. 2 when he said, "Beloved, now we are the children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is."
[1] CHRISTIANS: WE ARE GOING TO A PERFECT PLACE: "FOR WE SHALL SEE HIM AS HE IS."
*In Revelation 21:1-4, John began to describe it this way:
1. And I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea.
2. Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
3. And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, "Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be with them and be their God.
4. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying; and there shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.''
*I felt like I got a little taste of Heaven in January 2000. It was at a large Prayer Rally we had at the West Monroe football stadium. The rally was scheduled in response to an ACLU lawsuit against prayer in school. The goal was to take a bold stand for Jesus Christ and the power of prayer. The theme was "United We Stand. Boldly We Pray. Humbly We Wait." Religious liberty lawyer, Matt Staver spoke for a few minutes. There was special music, and prayer. Then a giant crane lifted up a cross that must have been 30 feet tall.
*They were hoping to have 10,000 people come to pray, but 15,000 showed up that day! The stadium was completely packed, both in the stands and on the field. Anybody who was there knew it was a high and holy time.
*I have never seen anything else quite like it, the testimonies, the prayers, the faith, the unity, the presence of God, and the cross were wonderful. Then a beautiful rainbow appeared right above us in the cold, hazy sky above. It was truly amazing.
*Pastors were down on the field, and after the rally I walked through the joyous crowd to look for my wife Mary. Every few seconds I would see another friend. We would greet each other, and praise the Lord for the amazing blessings of the day. And I thought, "This is a little taste of what it's going to be like when we get to Heaven!"
[2] CHRISTIANS: WE ARE GOING TO A PERFECT PLACE. AND WE WILL BE PERFECT PEOPLE.
*In Philippians 1:6, Paul told those Christians that he was "confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ." And vs. 2 says here says, "Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, WE SHALL BE LIKE HIM, for we shall see Him as He is."
*We will be like Jesus! This promise is sure. There is no reason to doubt it. We will be like Him, perfect in every way. Our bodies will be raised and transformed to be like the Lord's resurrected body. We will have no more sickness or pain forever!
*We will be able to walk through walls if we want to. That's what Jesus possibly did on the first Easter Day. In John 20:19 the doors were shut, but Jesus came and stood in the midst of His disciples. Did Jesus walk through the wall? Well, He could have if He wanted to.
*But it may be better to say like John Phillips that Jesus "moved at the speed of thought." At least that's how it seemed after Jesus rose from the dead. He would just appear here and there during that forty-day period. Then in Acts 1:9 Jesus "was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of the disciples' sight." Jesus could fly and move at the speed of thought. And one day, we will be able to do that too, because we will be like Jesus! (6)
*We will have perfect bodies, but even better, we'll be perfect on the inside. All of the righteous perfection, all of the perfect goodness that exists in Jesus today will exist in us forever! We will be like Jesus! We are going to a perfect place. And we will be perfect people!
*In vs. 2 here, John talks about the promise of our perfection. He also talks about seeing our Savior: "We shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is." And one day we will! "Now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face." That's the way Paul put it in 1 Corinthians 13:12.
*But why can’t we see Him now? Can an ant really see you? Can a germ? How much less can we fully see the Lord God Almighty! "But we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is!"
CONCLUSION:
*That is the sure promise for everyone who knows Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, so, put your trust in the Lord Jesus Christ. Never stop looking at the love that God the Father has poured out on us through the cross of Christ. And do anything you can to help other people see the love of God. Let's ask Him to help us, as we go back to God in prayer.
(1) Sources:
-Adapted from EXPLORING THE EPISTLES OF JOHN by John Phillips, Kregal Publications, Grand Rapids - "Exploring John’s First Epistle - Introduction" - Downloaded to "Bible Study 6" from Olive Tree Bible Software, Inc.
-WORD PICTURES IN THE NEW TESTAMENT by Archibald Thomas (A. T.) Robertson - Published in 1930-1933 - 1 John - THE FIRST EPISTLE OF JOHN - ABOUT A.D. 85 TO 90 - By Way of Introduction - Relation to the Fourth Gospel - Downloaded to e-Sword by Rick Meyers - Copyright 2021
(2) Sources:
-Adapted from Charles H. Spurgeon - THE NEW PARK STREET PULPIT - EXPOSITION 1 John 3:1-10
-Adapted from JOHN GILL'S EXPOSITION OF THE BIBLE by Dr. John Gill, D. D. - 1697-1771 - Published in 1746-1766, 1816 - 1 John 3:1 - Downloaded to e-Sword by Rick Meyers - Copyright 2021
(3) BELIEVER'S BIBLE COMMENTARY by William MacDonald - Edited by Arthur Farstad - Thomas Nelson Publishers - Nashville - Copyright 1995 - 1 John 3:1-24 - Downloaded to e-Sword by Rick Meyers - Copyright 2021
(4) Sources:
-EXPLORING THE EPISTLES OF JOHN by John Phillips, Kregal Publications, Grand Rapids - "How We Show the Family Life" - 1 John 3:1-24 - Downloaded to "Bible Study 6" from Olive Tree Bible Software, Inc.
-"Names and Titles of God - 9. Abba, Father" by Dr. Ralph F. Wilson - https://www.jesuswalk.com/names-god/9_father.htm
-Actually 270, if I counted correctly
(5) Adapted from Charles H. Spurgeon - THE NEW PARK STREET PULPIT - EXPOSITION 1 John 3:1-10
(6) EXPLORING 1 CORINTHIANS by John Phillips, Kregal Publications, Grand Rapids - "There Will Be a Change of Dimension - 1 Corinthians 15:36-42a - Downloaded to "Bible Study 6" from Olive Tree Bible Software, Inc.
