(11/23) Introduction

About 40 years ago, I checked a book out of a library and noticed that someone had left a card in the book as a page marker. But the card may have been left as an attention getter. It had this written on it, "If you were arrested for being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you?" That is an excellent question; a haunting question. If it were a crime to be a Christian, could the public produce enough evidence to prove that you are truly a Christ follower? Could the folks at your work, in your neighborhood, in your school, or even in your church, point a finger and say, "You think, talk, and do exactly what Jesus did?"

To assure ourselves or others that we are okay with God we often point to the fact that we believe in Jesus, have prayed the sinner’s prayer, were baptized, own a good Bible, go to church, and try to be nice to people, as evidence that we are truly Christians. John says, that’s not it. You are missing the point. And I think he is, as the Brits say, "Spot on!"

I believe with all my heart that there are many, many deceived people sitting at home, or are among the 18% percent of Americans in some kind of religious service this weekend, that are deceived. They have either been deceived by others or they have deceived themselves in believing they are okay with God when they are not. Do you remember what our Lord said at the end of the Sermon on the Mount? "Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. 22 Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ 23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’ (Matt. 7:21-23). John is going to amplify that for us in Ch. 2:3-11.

I. Obedience is the Evidence of Knowing God (v. 3)

John is about to use a play on words in these section. The major cult seeking to lead people away from a vibrant fellowship with God and the Church was Gnosticism. Gnostics claimed to have special knowledge of God that was given to only a few who would be initiated into the cult. The haves’ would despise the have not’s. Gnosticism comes from the Greek word for knowledge, which is gnosko. It is a word used for experiential knowledge. Oida is the word for intellectual or intuitive knowledge. My wife is blessed or cursed with intuitive knowledge. Its scary sometimes. Oida is what people get at school. Gnosko is what you learn by experience. When the Bible says Adam knew his wife Eve, or Joseph didn’t know Mary until she had birthed Jesus, it isn’t talking about oida knowledge. They didn’t just know their wives’ names and where they went to school, they knew them experientially, intimately, really!

John says, here is the test of whether you really know God or not. Its not by how much information you have about God, or the religious stuff you do, its whether or not He is your Lord. Is obeying God’s will the #1 concern of your life? Jesus once asked His disciples, "Why do you call me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things I say?" (Luke 6:46). His commandments (1 John 2:3) are the precepts and teachings of Jesus. Remember what He said we were to do in making disciples? Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen. (Matt. 28:19-20). True Christ Followers want to know what God wants them to do and then they do it. They seek his will in meditating in the Bible and in coming to a church where the Bible is taught.

Forty years ago there was a big debate among evangelical Christians. Does one have to surrender to Jesus’ Lordship to be a Christian? John MacArthur wrote a book called, The Gospel According to Jesus that said, "Yes, you do." Christians were divided. Some said, "No," you just needed to repent of sins and believe that Jesus died and rose again for you and nothing more. But I believe that if you come to Jesus for His salvation, you come surrendering your life to His authority. WE call on the name of the Lord; we believe in the Lord Jesus Christ; we confess with our mouth the Lord Jesus. It’s not just praying a prayer or being baptized, or attending church. God is not my Co-Pilot, He is my Pilot, my Commander in Chief, the King of my life, period, exclamation point! The pattern for my life is now based on what my Lord and God wants me to do in every area.

Now, it is evident that this will occur as one grows up in Christ. As one learns God’s will and His commands, he or she will enact them in their lives. We don’t expect young Christians to be mature until they grow, just as we don’t expect young children to be mature until they are about 30.

God wants you to know Him, personally, experientially as a friend, in fellowship John says with a Father and His Son (1:3, 7). This is why we have coined the phrase (Because it’s not in the Bible), a personal relationship with God. Jesus said, "And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent." (John 17:3) The Lord said in Jeremiah 9 that the people did not know Him; in fact, they refused to know Him. And then He says this, "Thus says the Lord: "Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, Let not the mighty man glory in his might, Nor let the rich man glory in his riches; But let him who glories glory in this, That he understands and knows Me, That I am the Lord, exercising loving-kindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth. For in these I delight," says the Lord. (Jer. 9:23-24)

II. Disobedience is Evidence of Deception (v. 4)

John is pretty blunt about this. Anyone claiming to know God, but is not actively obeying God’s commandments is a liar (Cp. Ch.1:6, 8, and 10). The message of the Gospel has not been implanted in the heart of that person or again, since Jesus is the Truth, Jesus doesn’t reside in that person. Listen carefully, God isn’t interested in your religion, He wants you to trust and obey Him. He wants you to live by faith. God is God and I am not. He is my God and my Lord. My job every day is to report to Him and see what His will is. The Gnostics claimed that obedience was irrelevant to knowing God. Nothing could be further from the truth. God wants your obedience more than He wants your money (Matt. 5:23-24). He wants your obedience more than He wants your worship (1 Sam. 15:22-23). James reminds us that a person who doesn’t do God’s Word is deceiving Himself (James 1:22).

These words are said to be engraved on a Cathedral in Lubeck, Germany:

"Thus speaks Christ our Lord to us. ‘You call Me Lord but obey me not. You call me light, yet see me not. You call me the way, yet walk me not. You call me life, yet live me not. You call me wise and follow me not. You call me fair and love me not. You call me rich and ask me not. You call me eternal and seek me not. If I condemn thee, blame me not.’"

This book contains God’s will and the best way to live this life this side of death. If you are not actively reading, meditating, and seeking what God wants you to do, all you have is religion, you do not have God, so says John.

III. Commitment is the Evidence of Love (v. 5)

The word, Keep, means to keep watch over, to guard. God’s word and commandments are to be committed to for the purpose of obeying and fulfilling. David wrote Psalm 19 and 119. Both Psalms speak of David’s love for the Word of God. Let’s look at the first 16 verses of Psalm 119 and read them responsively. "Blessed are the undefiled in the way, Who walk in the law of the Lord!

2 Blessed are those who keep His testimonies, Who seek Him with the whole heart!

3 They also do no iniquity; They walk in His ways.

4 You have commanded us To keep Your precepts diligently.

5 Oh, that my ways were directed To keep Your statutes!

6 Then I would not be ashamed, When I look into all Your commandments.

7 I will praise You with uprightness of heart, When I learn Your righteous judgments.

8 I will keep Your statutes; Oh, do not forsake me utterly!

9 How can a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed according to Your word.

10 With my whole heart I have sought You; Oh, let me not wander from Your commandments!

11 Your word I have hidden in my heart, That I might not sin against You.

12 Blessed are You, O Lord! Teach me Your statutes.

13 With my lips I have declared All the judgments of Your mouth.

14 I have rejoiced in the way of Your testimonies, As much as in all riches.

15 I will meditate on Your precepts, And contemplate Your ways.

16 I will delight myself in Your statutes; I will not forget Your word.

Our Lord Jesus (John 8:31-32) said, "If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. 32 And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." John says. That person has brought God’s desired end to fruition. "The Love of God is perfected in Him." God poured His love into rescuing you, and forgiving you, and adopting you, so that you can pass His love on to others, and accomplish His will. That is His goal. John says, if you seek to know and do God’s will, you know God. You are in Him and He is in you. Paul told us in 2 Cor. 5:17, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new." The evidence of that newness is your commitment to God’s word.

IV. Imitation is the Evidence of Discipleship (v. 6)

This is, in my opinion, John’s theme verse of this whole letter. Let’s read it together. "He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked." The word abide, means to dwell with in friendship, fellowship, communion, and harmony. Remember that one of John’s goals is that you be in fellowship with God, and with other believers (1:3). The word, walk, means to walk around and is used as the way one moves about in this life, or the way you live your life. Anyone claiming to be a friend of Jesus, or a Christ Follower, is obligated (ought) to do what Jesus would do, or to imitate His actions, His words, and His thoughts; if He is your Lord and you claim to be one of His.

Jesus called us to Follow Him, or to walk the road with Him as His disciples, and friends. Watch what He does, listen to what He says, and then imitate that. Paul tells us this in Eph. 5:1-2 "Therefore be imitators of God as dear children. 2 And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma." Peter also tells us this in 1 Peter 2:17, "For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps:"

120 years ago, Charles Shelton wrote a classic Christian novel, called In His Steps, For those of you that don’t know, it is a story about a Church that was a typical Church devoted to a good Sunday service, but failed in caring for the poor and down trodden in their community, and when a man died after condemning the church for not caring, the pastor pledged that for the next year, He would make no decision without first asking this question, "What would Jesus do?" WWJD! In the novel each week more and more people willingly gave themselves to that commitment. It changed the way Church was done, the way a newspaper was written, the way businesses were run, and more. It is a book worth reading. It may have been updated or modernized recently.

But this is exactly what the church is to be and to be doing. We are called and equipped to carry on the life and ministry of our Lord Jesus Christ in this world. John tells us that real Christ-Followers are those who walk the talk. Here is an honest soul searching question, "Would your neighbors, your family, your co-workers, your fellow students say that you walk the talk? Would they say, that you must be a Christian because you act, talk, and think just as they imagine Jesus would?"

V. Hatred is Evidence of Darkness, Love is Evidence of Light (vv. 7-11)

In these verses John is getting to the heart of the problem of the Gnostic cult and many others were having and may have been affecting the church with; that is, talking the talk but not walking the walk when it comes to showing love and grace to others.

I will just summarize these verses because John is going to hammer them in chapters 3 and 4. John wants you to know that he isn’t trying to sell you some new stuff from God. What he is telling us in verses 7-8 is what the Bible has always said. It is what Jesus emphasized in the 4 gospels. It goes back to Cain and Abel and is stated explicitly in Leviticus 19:17 and 33. "You shall love your neighbor, and the strangers among you as you love yourself."

It is a new commandment in the sense that Jesus gave it a fresh meaning. We are to use His love for us as our model for loving each other and those in our world. It is to be our badge, our ID card (John 13:34-35). During WWII, Hitler made the Jewish people wear The Star of David to identify themselves, as police officers use their badges. In the novel, The Scarlet Letter, pregnant Hester Prynne must wear a big red Capital A as identification of being an adulteress. John repeats what our Lord emphasized, imitating His love for us, as we care for others will be our badge, our identification as His disciples.

Those who embraced Gnosticism and believed they were the enlightened ones would despise the poor or any who were not enlightened. But this emphasis of John throughout this epistle is for all of us. John has used all of these first 21 verses to deduct for us that hatred is evidence that you have never come to the light. You don’t know the love of God. You really haven’t understood what His love or what He has done for you. Kind of black and white isn’t it?

Now the question is, who is my brother? Is it someone I share parents with? Is it someone I share church with? Is it someone I share a race with? Is it someone I share an experience with such as the military, a union, a lodge, a school, etc.? Is it someone from my country? The answer is most certainly the same as Jesus gave to a lawyer in Luke 10 when he asked, "Who is my neighbor?" It is anyone who has a need, or anyone you can and are commanded by God to seek the best for. It is your family, your church, your classmates, your neighbors, your countrymen, and those in the world that need Jesus. Do you understand this?

Look at verses 9 and 11. Notice three things about those who hate:

1. They are still in darkness. They are blind.

2. They are walking in darkness. They are still living according to Satan’s desires (cp. Eph. 2:1-3).

3. They have no direction, no goal. They don’t know where they are going.

Let me let you in on a secret. Love, here doesn’t necessarily mean that you have to have warm, goose bumpy feelings for your brother. But it does mean you have the obligation to seek the best for them; to forgive them; to give them what is best for them in their need; to seek how you can share God’s grace with them.

He is also going to tell us in chapter three what James will tell us in James 2 and Isaiah will tell us in Isaiah 58 and Jesus will tell us in Matthew 25, that to do nothing when there is a need is the same as hating them. And, that is something Jesus would not do for you, did not do for you, and will not do for you.

But when you give to others, forgive others, seek the best for others, or share God’s grace with others, you are shining like Jesus and the end result is others will see what real Christianity is supposed to be. People won’t be caused to stumble, and you yourself won’t have to apologize to anyone. Hopefully, people will want to know why you are different, and why you care. They will see that you are the real deal, that you walk the talk (v. 10).

There you have it. Walking the Talk. Let’s return to the beginning. What does the evidence say about your Christianity? If you were arrested for being a Christian would there be enough evidence to convict you?

Are you reporting for duty everyday asking God what He wants you to do today?

Is the question, What Would Jesus Do, your basis for all your decision making?

Is there anyone that you despise, refusing to forgive, or to give to, or seek forgiveness from, or to extend God’s grace to? John makes no excuses, there is no middle ground. You are either in the darkness, lying, or being deceived; or you are in the light and imitating the life of Jesus. Which are you?

Is it time to get honest with God?

Let’s pray about it.

If this life lesson has challenged, encouraged or helped you, let me know, or if you have any questions, write to me at pastorgarybuchman@gmail.com. I would love to hear from you. (p.s. I won’t put you on a mailing list or ask you for money). It would encourage me to know that you were encouraged.

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