Grosey's Messages

Call To Worship Mark 4:26-29

Growing.. fathers children, young men!  Now John begins to write to Christians in differing stages of spiritual maturity.  Mark 4:26 And He said, "The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground,27 and should sleep by night and rise by day, and the seed should sprout and grow, he himself does not know how.28 For the earth yields crops by itself: first the blade, then the head, after that the full grain in the head.29 But when the grain ripens, immediately he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come."

Law and Grace Reading Psalm 86

1John 2:12-17  The Source Of Your Significance

Benediction

Romans 16: 25 Now to Him who is able to establish you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery kept secret since the world began26 but now made manifest, and by the prophetic Scriptures made known to all nations, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, for obedience to the faith ---27 to God, alone wise, be glory through Jesus Christ forever. Amen.

 

 

 

 

Questions for Growth groups and Family Devotions

Steve spoke about self-identity today.  Why is this important for each of us?

1. Know what you are in Christ and cannot lose 2:12-14

1) You are forgiven 2:12    How does this feel in your experience?

2) You know the Father 2:13, 14   How is this foundational to your self-identity?

3) You are victors in the faith 2:13,14   How do you maintain a right self-image?

2. Know what the world offers but cannot give 2:15-17

1) The world cannot give you what you need 2:15   Why are these three aspects of life sinful and also unfulfilling?

2) The world cannot give you what it promises 2:16  How does the world make these promises of fulfilment?

3) The world cannot give you what will last 2:17

Why is this important for you to remember?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cyprian, the Bishop of Carthage (and eventually a martyr), wrote to his friend Donatus: "This is a cheerful world as I see it from my garden under the shadows of my vines.  But If I were to ascend some high mountain and look over the wide lands, you know very well what I would see: brigands on the highways, pirates on the sea, armies fighting, cities burning; in the amphitheaters men murdered to please the applauding crowds; selfishness and cruelty and misery and despair under all roofs.  It is a bad world, Donatus, an incredibly bad world. 

When bad things happen around us and to us, it affects how we think about ourselves and our world.

A friend wrote of how a crisis sent him into a tail spin  Brian Rosner writes:

It was a typical early afternoon for a northeastern Scotland winter's day in 1998. The sun was setting, the wind was howling, black ice was forming on the roads, and condensation had fogged up my car both inside and outside. Sitting there waiting for the engine to warm up sufficiently to demist the windscreen, I reached up to adjust the rearview mirror and stared for a few moments at someone I didn't recognize. Seeing I was alone, it was a tad unnerving. After a few moments of confusion, and upon further reflection, the stranger I had seen turned out to be me!

It wasn't that I was losing my mind. A psychologist might describe such an event in terms of a dissociative disorder, the state of being disconnected from your sense of identity. My experience, however, was more symptomatic of an emotional state than a mental illness. Certain events had changed my life dramatically. I'm sure I'm not the first person to have my marriage end unexpectedly. But for my wife of thirteen years to disown me and renounce our life together left me shattered. Cherished memories seemed like they belonged to someone else. Half of the photos in my mind's album went missing, and the rest were spoiled with coffee stains. My hopes and aspirations evaporated. Looking forward became a luxury I couldn't afford. With damaged memories, an uncertain destiny, and a troubled present, I had lost my sense of self and was forced to revisit the question that you're supposed to settle for good in your childhood and adolescence. That most personal question of all: Who am I?

How do your circumstances affect your sense of self? What role do your relationships play in knowing who you are? How about your possessions, your job, how do these affect your personal identity.  Over the years I've had countless conversations with people of all ages in a myriad of circumstances who are wondering who they really are: people who've lost their job; people whose parents have died; people who feel deflated by their goals for life not coming to fruition; people who feel at sea in our rapidly changing world.

There is one piece of advice that you hear everywhere today in all sorts of contexts. It's a big mantra for the self-help book and seminar industry. It turns up in everything from school captains' speeches, celebrity interviews, and children's books to high-brow literature and philosophical discussions of ethical dilemmas. To disagree with it is almost unthinkable. And most people think it's about the best advice you can give. It is this: "Be true to yourself."

"We live in an age of self-obsession. Everywhere we look, we encounter a preoccupation with self-interest, self-development, self-image, self-satisfaction, self-love, self-expression, self-confidence, self-help, self-acceptance . . . the list goes on." Michael Allen Fox In 2013 the Oxford English Dictionary chose "selfie" as its "Word of the Year".

The advice to be true to yourself probably goes back to Shakespeare. In Act I, scene iii of Hamlet, the character of Polonius prepares his son Laertes for travel abroad with a speech (ll.55–81) in which he directs the youth to commit a "few precepts to memory." At the top of the list is the dictum: "This above all: to thine own self be true."

However, Shakespeare probably meant something different from what we mean. Whereas we think in terms of self-fulfillment and "keeping it real," Polonius's advice was concerned with avoiding self-indulgent pursuits that might be harmful to his son's image, such as borrowing money, lending money, and carousing with women of dubious character. For Shakespeare, "to thine own self be true" means to keep your reputation intact.

In the past an individual's identity was more established and predictable than it is today. Many of the big questions in life were basically settled before you were born: where you'd live, what you'd do, the type of person you'd marry, your basic beliefs, and so on. It's not that there was no choice. Rather, the shape of your life was molded by constraints that limited your choices. Today we are literally spoilt for choice, which can be both a source of joy and anxiety.

According to Peter Leithart, our world destabilizes the self by uprooting people from the traditional fixity of class and place, custom and community. Today our sense of belonging and identity is not supported by continual contact with the same set of friends, the same family members, or the same coworkers. Leithart paints a picture of a society marked by fragmentation and fluidity, where relationships are temporary and loose. In this context, self-fashioning is the order of the day, and self-knowledge is superficial at best.⁸ This is often brought into sharper focus when a crisis hits.

Verses 12-14 are beautifully structured, rhythmic and poetic. 6 times John says, "I am writing" (vs. 12-13) or "I write" (vs. 13-14).  3 different terms are used to identify his audience: 1) children, 2) fathers, and 3) young men. And, each group is addressed twice for emphasis. Now, why does John address his readers in their fashion? Perhaps he has in mind all believers, new believers, older believers and maturing believers.   

John is going to tell you here two things: 1. Who you are in very simple and clear terms.  And 2. How the world around you and its temptations towards idolatries pushes you from the one thing that can stabilise you in a confusing harmful world.

1. WHO ARE YOU?

a) You are forgiven 2:12  John begins with one of the most simple and basic truths of Christianity: we have been forgiven for all of our sins because of "his name's sake." This speaks to both the person and work of Christ, especially His perfect atoning work (2:2). Matthew 1:21 reminds us, "You shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins." Jesus cleanses us from all sin (1:7) and unrighteousness (1:9). He is faithful to forgive all the sins of those who trust in Him. Having run to Jesus as our advocate and atonement (2:1-2), we have been welcomed by God as His children. What a wonderful truth that, "The name of the Lord is a strong tower, the righteous man runs into it and is safe" (Prov. 18:12).

a. Your sins have been forgiven!  12. I am writing to you, little children, because your sins have been forgiven . . .

We are children of God not because we earned our way into the family – not by merit in the sinner, but because of the infinite merit of the Saviour. No matter how old you are in the faith, one of the most disheartening things the enemy of your soul attempts is to try and bury you in the depths of your depravity.  And one of the most encouraging things you can do, evidently, is not to argue with him, but readily agree with him – and then remind him, and yourself, of the cross of Jesus Christ.  

Martin Luther spent a difficult night with the devil, and I think each of us has as well. The devil rattled off all his sins and wrote them on the wall of his room in his mind.   HOW CAN GOD FORGIVE ALL THAT? He seemed to yell! 

Martin Luther responded: "Yes it is all true I am all of thise things, but write over them all "The blood of Jesus God's Son cleanses us from all sin!"

The risen Lord blinds Paul on the road to Damascus, redeems him and then commissions him to take the gospel to his world and with that gospel, open their eyes so that they may turn from darkness to light . . . so that they may receive forgiveness of sins (Acts 26:18).

For just over 15 years, from 1991 to 2007, one evangelical seminary conducted a survey among nearly 1,000 Muslims who had converted to Christianity during those same 15 plus years.  Those converted Muslims surveyed represented 50 ethnic groups from 30 different countries – so they weren't surveying the same neighborhood.  These believers were asked, "What was it about Christianity that made you risk your life and your relationships and place your faith in Jesus Christ?"  One of the most often repeated answers from all of them was the simple fact that they could not be certain of the forgiveness of their sins . . . and the Christians they knew were absolutely convinced they had been forgiven. You want a refreshing fact?  Every sin you've committed and every sin you will commit is already known – and already paid for – by Jesus Christ, the living, resurrected, Son of God.

b. Your eternal safety is guaranteed by God's signature.   12  your sins have been forgiven you for His name's sake.

Isaiah 43 25  " I, even I, am He who blots out your transgressions for My own sake; And I will not remember your sins. Your eternal relationship with God through Christ doesn't become ratified by the credibility of your signature; it is ratified by the credibility of His.    I picked up a guy who obviously was an alcoholic who lived for alcohol.  It was pouring rain so hard we couldn't go any further on the road. Then I thought.. well he isn't getting out in the rain again, so I willshare with him the good news. Where will you spend eternity? In heaven! Why? I signed the card. I asked what card, he showed me how thirty years before he had signed a decision card in a Baptist church at Lakemba under famous evangelist John Ridley.  He was strongly assured that because he had signed the card he was ok!  But its not you or I that has to sign a card.  It's God who signs off on us.    For His name's sake! Your forgiveness and security isn't permanent because God is concerned about you keeping your word; He happens to be concerned about keeping His word.   That's why it says  for His name's sake.

Your sins have been forgiven and your security as a believer is guaranteed by God's signature.

c) You know the Father 2: 13,14

When we receive Jesus as our Saviour we also get God as our Father (cf. 2:23). John says to the fathers in the faith that "you have come to know Him who is from the beginning" (v.13). The reference "Him" may be to the Father or even to Christ. Possibly both! Of course both are true. We now know in an abiding permanent relationship the One who has existed from all Creation and the One who we have come to know in the Gospel. There is a deep and abiding knowledge that has grown throughout their Christian experience. The longer they have lived the deeper and better do they know Him.  Your satisfaction is now in a personal relationship.

John has been telling us what to do and what not to do . . . he knows that we might get the impression that satisfaction in the Christian life is by following the rules.  So he effectively begins by reminding the most vulnerable among us that the issue is not the rules you keep, but a relationship you can enjoy.

I write to you, fathers,  Because you have known Him who is from the beginning…..

I write to you, little children,  Because you have known the Father.

14 I have written to you, fathers,  Because you have known Him who is from the beginning.

Children can become focused on so many things – and so many things might do nothing but distract them.

John says here, "Children, isn't it wonderful that you're getting to know your Father . . . focus on your Father."

No matter how old you grow in the faith, you've discovered early that satisfaction never comes from keeping a list of rules, but developing a loving relationship with your Heavenly Father.  Children begin discovering God is their Father.

Romans 8: 14 For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.15 For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, "Abba, Father."16 The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God,17 and if children, then heirs --- heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together.

Older believers grow to know God is their Father!  He who is from the beginning!   Created all things.  Ordained all things from before the creation of the world. Ordained you to know Him from the foundation of the world. Orders all things in your life, from before the foundation of the world!

d) You are victors in the faith 2:13-14

I write to you, young men,  Because you have overcome the wicked one.

I have written to you, young men,  Because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you,  And you have overcome the wicked one.

When you don't think you can get through it, whatever that is infront of you that is destroying you, remember you have overcome already!  v. 13 and 14.  3truths about your war with the devil: 1) You are strong, 2) the Word of God abides in you and 3) you have overcome the evil one. There is no doubt in my mind that our strength and our ability to defeat the evil one has a 2-fold source. One is the work of Christ (see 3:8) and the other is the Word of God abiding in us. Satan will accuse us and distress us. Remember the work of Christ, remember the Word of God.

 Satan accuses me of sin I trust the work of Christ   Satan tempts me to sin I turn to the Word of God

2. HOW THE WORLD HARMS YOU

Your self image, your self-identity, can only be undermined in your own mind.  It is in you that the world finds something that can affect your self-identity and can shake you.  And the devil uses the desires in our own heats to confuse and distract us and tempt us. James 1: 13 Let no one say when he is tempted, "I am tempted by God"; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone.14 But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires (LUSTS) and enticed.15 Then, when desire (LUST) has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death.

"I've got something that the world can't give and the world can't take it away.

I've got Jesus and He's given me life and it keeps me night and day.

I've got something worth talking about It makes me sing and it makes me shout.

I've got something that the world can't give and the world can't take it away!"

People today generally build their lives around

1. Your race, ethnicity, and nationality;            2. Your culture;                        3. Your gender and sexuality;

4. Your physical and mental capacity;               5. Your family of origin;          6. Your age;

7. Your relationships;                                          8. Your occupation;                   9. Your possessions;

10. Your religion;                                                 11. Your personality and character.

But the world cannot give you what you need 2:15. These things though good, can actually undo your soul if you focus on them as your chief good.  It is the nature of idolatry to allow something secondary become primary, before God. So  John commands us, "Do not love (present imperative with a negative), stop loving the world or the things in it." Why? To love the world is to not love Father God which is what you really need, what you were created for and what gi es you a stable self-identity. John says Choose God the Father not the worldly enticements of the father of lies (John 8:44).  Recognize that turning even good things into god things becomes a bad thing. It is to give your love to a "lesser lover" and one who can never satisfy, who can never give you what you truly need.

Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.¹⁶ For all that is in the world --- the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life --- is not of the Father but is of the world.¹⁷ And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.

These same 3 weapons slew Adam and Eve in the Garden. Genesis 3:6, "The woman saw that the tree:

1. was good for food – lust of the flesh            2. was pleasant to the eyes – lust of the eyes

3. was desirable to make one wise – the pride of life

"lusts" means cravings, strong desires, lust, passion. The word is neutral. The trouble comes from within us!

 Matthew 15:18  But those things which proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and they defile a man.19 For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies.20 These are the things which defile a man, but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile a man."

Matthew 5:27-29, "You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'you shall not commit adultery,' but I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you; for it is more  profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell."

Pride in possessions appeals to our ambitions.       Pride is vain glory, boasting, arrogance. It refers to the braggart who exaggerates what he has in order to impress others. It is the "I, me, my" person. It is about the external things, not the main thing, our relationship with God.  What gives meaning and value to your life? What is the Source of Your Significance?  Is it possessions? Is it your place at work? Pride, power, possessions, prestige, and position? Is it your relationships and family? What if all these things are taken away?  What have you got left?

"Pride of possessions" or "pride of life" speaks of the person who glorifies himself rather than God. He or she makes an idol of their stuff, their career, their achievements, their social standing. This person fails to see that the Lord Jesus, the King of Glory, turned the value system of this world and all this stuff on its head.

A.W. Tozer draws our attention to the blinding deception of the "pride in possessions":  "There is within the human heart a tough, fibrous root of fallen life whose nature is to possess, always to possess. It covets things with a deep and fierce passion. The pronouns my and mine look innocent enough in print, but their constant and universal use is significant. They express the real nature of the old Adamic man better than a thousand volumes of theology could do. They are verbal symptoms of our deep disease. The roots of our hearts have grown down into thing, and we dare not pull up one rootlet lest we die. Things have become necessary to us, a development never originally intended. God's gifts now take the place of God, and the whole course of nature if upset by the monstrous substitution." (The Pursuit of God, 22).

 

In Greek mythology there were dangerous sea creatures called Sirens. These were half-women half-birds who would play or sing such enticing music that sailors would steer toward them and die as their ship crashed upon the jagged rocks. These sirens appear in two myths, Homer's Odyssey and the story of Jason and the Argonauts. If you're not really into Greek mythology, maybe you saw the cartoon movie, Ice Age Continental Drift. Manny the Wooly Mammoth (whose voice is Ray Romano) had to steer their iceberg past some creatures disguised as beautiful females – they borrowed this idea from Greek mythology. But back to Greek Mythology - when Odysseus sailed by the sirens, he filled all his sailors' ears with beeswax so they couldn't hear the music. He had his crew tie him to the mast as they sailed past the sirens. He was so tormented by the music of the sirens that he tried his best to break free and swim to shore. He was almost driven mad by their enticing songs.

But in the story of Jason and the Argonauts, Jason used a different strategy to avoid the call of the sirens. They had a talented musician onboard named Orpheus. While they sailed past the sirens, Orpheus played music on his lyre that was louder and more beautiful, so that the sailors paid no attention to the music of the sirens.

The world is still playing its siren music trying to attract us toward what it claims is the pleasures of sin. But it is a dangerous song because sin always leads to death. And most of us can think of Christians who have ended up with their faith shipwreck on the jagged rocks of sin. But our response to the siren call of the world should not be that Odysseus who tied himself to the mast. He was tormented. Instead Jason and his sailors were listening to another song – a song so beautiful that they didn't even hear the song of the wicked sirens. As followers of Jesus, we're listening to a new song, and it's so beautiful and captivating that the song of the world no longer appeals to us.

Cyprian, the Bishop of Carthage (and eventually a martyr), wrote to his friend Donatus: "This is a cheerful world as I see it from my garden under the shadows of my vines.  But If I were to ascend some high mountain and look over the wide lands, you know very well what I would see: brigands on the highways, pirates on the sea, armies fighting, cities burning; in the amphitheaters men murdered to please the applauding crowds; selfishness and cruelty and misery and despair under all roofs.  It is a bad world, Donatus, an incredibly bad world.  But I have discovered in the midst of it a quiet and holy people who have learned a great secret.  They are despised and persecuted, but they care not.  They are masters of their souls.  They have overcome the world.  These people, Donatus, are the Christians — and I am one of them." 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1 JOHN 2:3-11.      Matthew 22:34-40  Luke 13:22-35

Walking in the Light.

1John 1:5 This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.6 If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.

And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments.4 Whoever says "I know him" but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him,5 but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him:6 whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.

7 Beloved, I am writing you no new commandment, but an old commandment that you had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word that you have heard.8 At the same time, it is a new commandment that I am writing to you, which is true in him and in you, because the darkness is passing away and the true light is already shining.9 Whoever says he is in the light and hates his brother is still in darkness.10 Whoever loves his brother abides in the light, and in him there is no cause for stumbling.11 But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.

Psalm 80 ESV 2 stir up your might and come to save us! 3 Restore us, O God; let your face shine, that we may be saved! 7 Restore us, O God of hosts; let your face shine, that we may be saved!

18 Then we shall not turn back from you; give us life, and we will call upon your name!

19 Restore us, O LORD God of hosts! Let your face shine, that we may be saved!

NASB  ³  O God, restore us And cause Your face to shine upon us, and we will be saved.

NKJV  ¹⁹ Restore us, O LORD God of hosts; Cause Your face to shine, And we shall be saved!

Restore us.   1 John 1:9  If we confess our sins He is faithful and just to forgive us our sns and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Maybe you have heard of the name "Ivan the Terrible." You may be thinking, "Yeah, I kept that kid last week in Sunday School." Ivan the Terrible was crowned the first Czar of all of Russia in 1547. The term Czar means "Caesar." He was cruel and ruthless. He gouged out the eyes of the architects who built the beautiful St. Basil's Cathedral so they would never be able to build anything more beautiful. He had seven wives and abused them all. He even killed his own son in a fit of anger. There were many other reasons why later generations gave him the title "terrible." When he died in 1584, the leaders of the church followed his strange instructions. They shaved his head, and dressed him in a Monk's robe. Ivan knew he was such a wicked man that he was hoping God would mistake him for a monk and let him into heaven. I call him "Ivan the Stupid." My friend, you can't get into heaven by disguising yourself as someone and hoping God will mistake you for him or her. There is only one door and that door is Jesus.

Mark Twain once wrote: "Having spent a considerable amount of time with religious people, I can understand why Jesus liked to be with tax collectors and sinners."

Calvin "John here reminds us that the knowledge of God derived from the Gospel is not ineffectual, but that obedience flows from it."

And by this we know that we have come to know him,

WHOEVER says 4, 6, 9    4 Whoever says "I know him" but …. 6 Whoever says he abides in Him, (but…)   9 Whoever says he is in the light and …

Has the light of God's face been eclipsed in your life by sin getting between you and your Lord?

And when you come to know Jesus, He remakes you from the inside out. You get to know Him, and knowing Him changes you from within. "know" can mean "believe," or "approve," or even "love":"I am the good Shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine" (John 10:14). But its commonest meaning is to be sure or assured, as in "One thing I know, that, whereas I was blind, now I see" (John 9:25).  Knowing God is moving from being in the dark into being in the light. Remember 1John 1:5 God is light and in Him is no darkness at all.

"The knowledge of Christ has become expressive of a personal and saving interest in His work and grace. There is great propriety in this use of the term. Knowledge is the result of observation and experience. It implies certainty. If we say we know a man, it supposes we have had fellowship with him, and have proved what sort he is. If we know a country we must have been there and seen it and become versant with its inhabitants, soil, and products. If we know a medicine, we must have used or analyzed it, and so become acquainted with its constituents and properties. Now this is precisely the force of the term when we speak of the knowledge of Christ. Hence it is the characteristic of believers in our text: 'we know Him.' We know His power, for we have proved it; we know His wisdom, for we have been guided by it; we know His love, for we have enjoyed it; and we know His truth, for we have ever found Him faithful. How thankful we should be that this is the nature of true religion. It is not a speculation about which there is uncertainty. It is not a doubtful opinion. It is knowledge. It is a reality of which we may know ourselves. They who attained it may say 'we know him'" (J. Morgan).

When a person becomes a Christian there is a lot of changes: It is like moving to another country.

There is a new residency.         There are new responsibilities.   There are new relations.

Augustine… chased by a prostitute, a former friend.. "Augustine, it is I!"  Augustine running calls back: "Yes but is no longer I!"

Pink:  The truth of Christ being  our redeeming sacrifice and our advocate, His atoning sacrifice will not induce a careless walk or encourage a spirit of lawlessness. Where Christ is truly known as Lord and Savior, His authority is gladly owned; if He is loved, there will be no question about obedience. A spiritual apprehension of what Christ has done and is now doing for us is the most effective means and motive unto a God-honoring life.  In fact, John is encouraging you to have assurance of your salvation. Assurance..comes from the cross.      Evidences: assist that assurance by letting us know there has been a great change in us because we have recognised what Jesus has done for us.

The Truth Test      -Gospel         The Moral Test      -Righteousness       The Social Test       -Love

Here John is saying to us that there is a new desire from within to keep God's commandments, particularly the commandment to love. The Old and New Testaments fit together to say that there is an inward change that occurs in the person who really believes. They move from just keeping the commandments to loving God and loving people. Just like the Lord Jesus said in Matthew.. you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and you shall love your neighbour as yourself.

Tis A Thing I Long To Know, Do I Love The Lord Or No?

Here are some tests to let you know that you have truly believed in Jesus and been saved.

1. DO YOU HAVE A LOYAL LOVE FOR THE LORD?  The Loyalty Factor

A loyalty to our Lord     if we keep His commandments."

The word commandment refers to injunctions or orders – this is not the word nomos as a reference to the Mosaic Law. He's specifically thinking of the commandments of Christ for the New Testament believer.  This is the great commission of Christ to His apostles – to make disciples, teaching them to observe all that I've commanded you.  The New Testament letters are filled with commands of Christ.  And the believer is to keep them, John writes here.  The word translated "keep" has the idea of observant, watchful obedience. While the Christian will not perfectly or at times even consistently obey the Lord – which is why John began his letter by giving us the means and methods of confession – the believer wants to obey.  The believer is grieved by his disobedience.

The idea here of "keeping his commandments" has to do with determination and desire.  The believer wants to match his walk to his talk.

 "The believer cannot keep Christ's commandments perfectly, but he can keep them purposefully. The believer can rise each day with longing in our heart to do what God would desire.

Obedience is more than just "keeping the commandments." There is a love there. Remember.. love the Lord your God!        Commanding love is very difficult.  Responding to love is very easy.

I would not work my soul to save, that work my Lord has done.

But I will work like any slave for love of God's dear Son.

Our obedience to Christ is regarded by John as evidence of our experience of Christ . That initial step of knowing Him experimentally was a step of faith and faith, if it is true faith, is a blend of dependence and obedience. Dependence upon Christ's work on the Cross and His word to us in scripture, but obedience to His will . The old obediences that marked our lives before our conversion have been replaced with a new obedience. We no longer walk "according to the course of this world' i .e. doing what others do; nor do we walk any longer "fulfilling the desires of the flesh and-of the mind" i.e. doing what we want. But now the supreme question that dominates our conduct is the question Saul of Tarsus asked in the first moments of his conversion experience "Lord, what wilt Thou have me to do?" To claim an experimental knowledge of Christ as Saviour and to pay no regard at all to His commandments is to be branded a liar v.4. The reason for this is surely that part of the experience of the new life within which is mediated to us through the Holy Spirit is a new awareness of the claims' of Jesus Christ.  If the Holy Spirit is there dwelling in us then we shall become conscious of this new obedience, this new loyalty that must dominate our conduct.

2. DO YOU HAVE A MATURING LOVE FOR THE LORD

Look at 5: Whoever keeps His word, in him the love of God has truly been perfected.

The word translated perfected means "accomplished". In other words, John is encouraging us that when we keep His word, the love of God is accomplishing its purpose in our lives.  One author put it this way; the more we treasure the word of God, the more we open the door for his love to accomplish his purpose in our lives. I love this verb – to keep – His word. It opens up the meaning of what John is intending to convey here.  The word was used in John's day of a sentry, on duty, walking his post.

Joel Beeke, The Epistles of John (Evangelical Press, 2006), p. 63  

It was used for guarding carefully as if a person were guarding a treasure "the love of God" Some scholars say it means God's love for us; others say it means our love for God, but surely i t means just exactly what it says "the love of God" - that new love which is now present in us. A new love that has been received with the new life. Compare Romans 5:5 where Paul states "the love of God has been shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit which has been given to us." But the love which comes to us as a gift must then be allowed to grow and develop into what John cal l s later on in chapter A:18 "a perfect love that casts out fear " a love which is marked by a complete and utter confidence in the one loved. This maturing, this growing of love into a deepening confidence will come only out of a constant and growing obedience. As we obey more and more the will of God in our lives s|o God will unveil, more and more of His mind and will to those He has learned Ho can trust. This is what our Lord said in John 14:21 "He that hath my commandments and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father and I will love him and will manifest myself to him."

And out of that deepening insight will come a deepening love and a growing confidence in the one loved, a growing recognition of His utter worth and of His utter trustworthiness. So our assurance experimentally and practically will rest upon these two things; this will be something for ourselves and something for others see in any genuine Christian life a loyalty in the love. We will to the Lord and a maturity in The thought of the claim stated in v.5 "hereby we know that we are in him" seems to lead John on into v.6 where w4 read "He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to wall even as he walked."

3. DO YOU HAVE A DETERMINED LOVE FOR CHRIST AND OTHERS

 God uses a word that doesn't talk about falling in love; He uses a word that talks about choosing to love.  Warren Wiersbe comments on this term here by writing that biblical agape isn't about attraction, it's about determination. It's not a matter of working it up . . . it's a matter of willing it out.  And the surprising thing is that this kind of self-sacrificing love isn't just for our spouses and family members, it's for the entire body of Christ and beyond.

So it's no coincidence that as John begins telling us all that we are commanded to love each other – he opens by telling us that he loves us too – and he loves us with this kind of deep affection and fidelity and commitment – expressed in this term, beloved.

What is surprising, and I'm sure John's childhood friends thought the same thing, is that John would grow old and affectionate, rather than old and bitter and irritable.

That was John when Jesus called him as one of His disciples.

John was nicknamed early on as a son of thunder, by Jesus, because of his temper (Mark 3).

Luke chapter 9 records that John wanted to call down fire from heaven on a village that had refused to give them shelter for the night – Lord, let's torch all of 'em . . . they deserve it!

It was John's mother who came to Jesus and said, "What can we do to make sure John and his brother James get to sit next to you in the kingdom . . . they want to be at the top of the ladder."

Fiery, passionate, self-centered, judgmental . . .

But now you read this old Apostles letter and although John is still passionate and fearless and confrontational, he makes sure we all understand, underneath it all is agape . . . he loves us dearly.

With that, he begins to tell us how to make sure we avoid the darkness of hatred and walk in the light of love.

Verse 7. Beloved, I am not writing a new commandment to you, but an old commandment which you have had from the beginning; the old commandment is the word which you have heard.

In other words, the concept of loving one another is not new stuff.

The truth was, by the time John wrote this letter, the command to love God and one another wasn't new, but it was neglected.

The rabbis had long since started on their vast work of elaborating on the Law of Moses. They scoured the Torah – the first five Books of the Old Testament, written by Moses – and they looked for every command, every mandate, every charge, every prohibition and every rule and from them they created many of their traditions along with their long lists of do's and don'ts.

For instance, they catalogued 613 commandments from the Old Testament law – which they believed matched the 613 things that made up a human body; they also catalogued 365 negative commandments or prohibitions which they also found significant because that made one prohibition for every day of the year. They loved this stuff.  The problem was – all that stuff replaced love.

John says, effectively – you remember the great commandment – it's really old – it goes all the way back to the beginning – To love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, strength and mind . . . and love your neighbor as yourself (Deuteronomy 6 and Leviticus 19) – you guys are praying this every morning and evening.  In all of your lists, have you overlooked the commandment to love?

Well unbury it . . . dust it off . . . it isn't new . . . it goes all the way back to God's original design.

But then . . . John writes in the very next verse – verse 8, On the other hand, I am writing a new commandment to you.

Wait a minute . . . I thought it wasn't new?!  Well, the word John uses for "new" here isn't referring to something new in time (kairos); but something new in quality (kainos).

In other words, John isn't saying, "Look, here's something brand new that's never come along until now; no, John is actually saying, "Look, there's a brand new quality – a fresh demonstration – of agape/love that is totally unique."  Notice, he goes on to tell us how – middle part of verse 8 – I am writing a new commandment to you, which is true in Him.

In other words, Jesus Christ has shown us new, fresh quality to love. And He expects us to imitate His demonstration of love in our own demonstrations of self-sacrifice.

That's how He could say to His disciples, "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you." (John 13:34)

So, don't let your list of 613 commandments – your 365 prohibitions and your 248 affirmations – get in the way of the most important command of all.

verse 8 – On the other hand, I am writing a new commandment to you, which is true in Him  – and, in you.

This isn't just for Jesus . . . it's for all of us to demonstrate too.  John is actually informing us that this a bigger deal than we might think; we're not only demonstrating the love of Christ, we're demonstrating the light of Christ.  Notice the last part of verse 8 – because the darkness is passing away and the true Light is already shining. Notice the warning in verse 9. The one who says he is in the Light and yet hates his brother is in the darkness until now.

And John is effectively saying, Beloved, none of you belong in the shadows . . . get into the Light . . . demonstrate the Light of Christ and the love of Christ.  Get out of the shadows of hatred and un-forgiveness and bitterness and jealousy and all those things that belong in the dark.

Notice verse 11. But the one who hates his brother (get this, we're still talking about Christians) – the one who hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going because the darkness has blinded his eyes.

Again, John's use of the present-tense participle translated "hating his brother, simply depicts a persistent, characteristic attitude. This person is known for simply being hateful.  John says, this person has chosen to live in the shadows – to turn off the light and walk a dark path.  John even adds, his eyes are blinded – a verb that records the blinding impact of hatred in this person's heart

What pitfalls are you dangerously close to falling into because you're harboring a hateful spirit toward another?

 Who is it in your world who would be greatly encouraged if they knew you cared?

 Who is it that could use your insight to help them regain their footing on the path of light?

 Who is God asking you to selflessly serve today?   What is God asking you to faithfully commit to all over again?   Who is God asking you to love today?

Call to Worship Psalm  27:1-9

Isa 49:6 he says: "It is too light a thing that you should be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to bring back the preserved of Israel; I will make you as a light for the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth." 7 Thus says the LORD, the Redeemer of Israel and his Holy One, to one deeply despised, abhorred by the nation, the servant of rulers: "Kings shall see and arise; princes, and they shall prostrate themselves; because of the LORD, who is faithful, the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you."

Psa 104:1,2  1   Bless the LORD, O my soul! O LORD my God, you are very great! You are clothed with splendor and majesty, 2 covering yourself with light as with a garment, stretching out the heavens like a tent.

Psa 36: 9 For with you is the fountain of life; in your light do we see light.

John 1:44 In him was life, and the life was the light of men.5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

3:19 And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil.20 For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed.21 But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God."

 8:12 Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life."

God is light . . . a reference to His holiness, His perfection, His glory – even his person.  By the way, the fact that John refers to God as light and throughout his Gospel Jesus claims to be the light all this equates the essence of Jesus to be equal to the Father.  In fact, when Jesus Christ pulled back the curtain of His human flesh at the mount of transfiguration, Peter James and John had to shield their eyes because the Lord's face shone like the sun and his clothing blazed with brilliant white light (Matthew 17:2).  The future dwelling of the believer in the Father's House will be a place marked by brilliant light and no darkness at all (Revelation 22:5).

Law and Grace reading  Isaiah 6:1-8

1 John 1:1-2:2  WALKING IN THE SHADOWS OR WALKING IN THE LIGHT

Doxology   Numbers 6:24-26

 

1 John 1:5-2:2  The Real Thing

There were some people in John's day who said, "We have fellowship with God." How they had come by it they did not explain. Perhaps they claimed to have reached it by philosophical speculation, by exact reasoning, or by long-continued meditation. Whatever the road, they said that they had reached the City of God and were in communion with the Great Being. John saw that they walked in darkness, rejecting the Light of Divine Revelation from above and the pure Light of the Holy Spirit within. He also saw that they, themselves, were not true, and that their lives were not pure and, therefore, he warned them that they were speaking and acting a lie. Their life was a lie, for they were not walking in the truth. And their profession that they had fellowship with God was another lie, for God can have no fellowship with falsehood. "God is Light, and in Him is no darkness at all" and, therefore, He cannot hold any communion with darkness.

John curtly dismisses false claims with that plain word, "lie." The disciple whom Jesus loved spoke like the Son of Thunder that he was when he had to deal with shams. It is the part of true love to be honest and to expose that which would be injurious to those it loves.

Get The real thing, the fellowship with God which comes of walking in the Light of God.  THE LIGHT OF OUR WALK. True Believers do not walk in darkness. They have found the road and they see it before them. They know whom they have believed and why they have believed–and so they go forward intelligently.

1. Be Serious About Sin

John highlights three false claims about sin. I hear them every day too.  Each is highlighted by the words "If we say." One claims sin is not a big deal.  If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.

1.  Don't Downplay the Consequences of sin.

"If we say that we have fellowship with him and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth" This is the attitude of mind which says in effect that sin no longer matters.

Our deceitful heart suggests to us, first, that we should deny our present sinfulness, and so claim fellowship with God on the grounds that we are holy and so may draw near to the Holy God.

The claim that they made  The claim was that they were both enjoying fellowship with God and at the same time they were able to walk in darkness. Darkness, you will remember, is either the opposite of truth or in this context the opposite of holiness and righteousness. One is tempted to wonder who these people were. Were they true Christians or were they purely nominal Christians? But certainly they were those who maintained deliberately a way of life that was quite out of harmony with the mind and will of God, and yet, obviously, they were claiming to be Christians and to have fellowship with God. Some plead that though it may be they have sin, yet they are not bad at heart. They look upon sin as a technical term and though they admit, in words, that they have sin, yet they practically deny it by saying, "I have a good heart at bottom. I always was well-intentioned from the very first. True, what I have done does not appear to be right according to the very severe judgement of the Law of God, but I cannot help that. I only followed my nature and cannot be blamed, for I never meant to do anything wrong, either to God or man. I have always been kind to the poor and have done the right thing all round. I know I have erred–of course we all have–here and there, but you cannot expect a fellow to be perfect!

The charge they must face  And the charge is quite simply that of lying. John says in effect you cannot possibly persistently, deliberately and continually walk in darkness and at the same time claim that you are enjoying fellowship with God. The Word of God is absolutely clear on this point that sin spoils fellowship. In the Old Testament this note is struck "your sins and your iniquities have separated between you and your God and he cannot hear"  Look at how stupid the sons of Aaron became.

Numbers 16:  1 Now Korah the son of Izhar, son of Kohath, son of Levi, and Dathan and Abiram the sons of Eliab, and On the son of Peleth, sons of Reuben, took men.2 And they rose up before Moses, with a number of the people of Israel, 250 chiefs of the congregation, chosen from the assembly, well-known men.3 They assembled themselves together against Moses and against Aaron and said to them, "You have gone too far! For all in the congregation are holy, every one of them, and the LORD is among them. Why then do you exalt yourselves above the assembly of the LORD?"4 When Moses heard it, he fell on his face,5 and he said to Korah and all his company, "In the morning the LORD will show who is his, and who is holy, and will bring him near to him. The one whom he chooses he will bring near to him.

2. Don't Deceive Yourself  About  The Corruption of Sin.

There is the one who denies that sin matters at all because it no longer exists in them at all.

 Sin no longer existed in themselves, and so we read in v.8 "If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us" This is a fantastic claim for anybody to make. And I have heard some make this claim.

The reasons people say this?  I've heard ministers say that people have progressed so far that to talk about sin is an insult to intelligence. What the Bible called sin, is now just personal preferences to be respected and approved. Don't talk about sin!  That is what some pastors demand today.  Don't call good what God calls evil. Don't call evil what God calls good.  And that is right where our society is at right now.

The results of saying this?  He says "we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us" God's truth is not in us because God's Word is not in us. We do deceive ourselves and to be deceived is always dangerous.  It means that we can expose ourselves to peril when we are not aware of it and this can lead to disaster. Occasionally I do come across Christians who make precisely this claim. They claim what we call in the language of theology "sinless perfection". But I always feel when I meet such a person making such a claim that all that I need is just five minutes with the person's wife, or husband, or child, or even maybe their cat or dog, and I will soon discover the truth. God's truth is that "all have sinned?' and our Lord Himself told us that it was "from within, out of the heart of man" that all evil proceeds. The claim that sin no longer exists, to deny the corruption of sin within our own personalities is to walk in the dark self-deceived.

3. Don't Deceive Yourself  About  The Committing of Sin.

10 If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.

John is concerned with people who were actually denying the fact that they had committed sin. Don't deny the seriousness of Guilt.   They were not prepared to admit that there was anything wrong about what they were doing nor were they prepared to admit that anything was their fault.  Because when you deny the seriousness of guilt you also deny the sacrifice God in Grace made for you. If there is no sin there is no need for a Saviour and no need for Christ. And of course this means that these people are adopting a position which makes God a liar, which means in effect that the whole of God's plan of salvation is nothing,  a hoax and that the offer of the gospel of God's saving grace in Jesus Christ is nothing but a quack remedy for an illness and malady that does not exist.

Two men went hunting in Canada.  They had a pilot take them to a remote spot. They bagged 6 elk. Pilot says, "We can't take off with that many -- too heavy. We can only take three."
One man said, "Last year our pilot had the same kind of plane and allowed us to take 6 elk from here."
"Okay," said the pilot. They took off, but soon found they could not ascend above the hills.  They crashed.  All survived. "Where are we?" the dazed pilot asked the hunters. One replied, "Wow!  We're right where we crashed last year!

4. Be Sure About Salvation

Don't Discard the Grace of God in the atoning death of Christ.        The Power of Christ 's blood

⁷ But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.

The cleansing from sin referred to here has been interpreted by commentators as being either judicial or experimental and referring either to every kind of sin or the very implications of sin indwelling. The fact is that when we walk in the light we become so conscious of the sinfulness of our own hearts that we find that the Cross is all the more the one fact in our redemption. We find this strange paradox emerging in the lives of all God's true servants that the greatest saints are those who have always felt themselves to be the greatest sinners. Rather like a child that loves drawing; in the early stages the result s of that chi ld's efforts are unrecognizable but the child is quite content but as the child progresses so the standard improves arid recognition and indeed approbation may grow too but satisfaction declines. Walking in the light then means being ready and prepared to experience a consciousness of our sin. But it is not enough to be conscious of our sin and so in v.9 John goes on to speak of the second characteristic of those who walk in the light. They are careful to confess their sins to God.

5. Be Careful About Confession

" If we confess our sin he is faithful and just to forgive us our sin and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness" Somebody once said "Keep short accounts with God" and this of course is exactly what walking in the light means. There are some Christians in some churches who go to Confession once a week. John would suggest that we never wait to confess our sins, we go at once.

The word John uses here for confess is a verb that means to agree with another . . . to say the same thing about something –  And in this context, it means to say the same thing about our specific sins that God says.  It's actually, taking God's side against yourself. It's as if you step out of yourself and turn around and say to yourself, "Self, I am agreeing with God on this one – what you're thinking or what you're doing or saying is nothing more or less than sin."

Let me give you a concise definition of Biblical confession; admitting that we disobeyed God, then agreeing with Him that we don't have an excuse.

An outgoing PM offered help to the new PM. He told him that three envelopes had been prepared and placed in the top drawer of his desk. Whenever he made a big mistake, he was to open envelope #1 and follow the directions. He promised the new PM that his advice would work every time. For several months, the new tenure of the PM worked wonderfully. But then, he made his first mistake. It was costly and undeniable. He remembered those envelopes and opened the envelope marked with a number 1 and the brief message simply read, "Blame me." So he did. He blamed the former PM for the problem saying that he'd inherited the problems of the former PM and there was nothing he could do about the issue that he'd encountered. Everyone believed him and things went back to normal. Less than a year later he made another big mistake. He opened envelope #2 and it read, "Blame the Public Service." So he did. And again, it worked. Months later this PM made another big mistake. It was costly and obvious to everyone. He opened the third envelope and it simply read, "Prepare three envelopes."

Verse 7 is referring to our status – that is, we are continually in a cleansed state by virtue of the cross of Christ.

Verse 9 is talking about specific sins which need addressing.  

The Old Testament sacrificial system dealt with this concept.  The offerings of the Levitical law included the sin offerings and the trespass offerings. The sin offerings related to the principle of sinfulness while the trespass offerings related to specific sins.

One author wrote, "The sin offering dealt with who they were and the trespass offering dealt with what they'd done. The sin offering dealt with the root of sin and the trespass offering dealt with the fruits of sin.

In the New Testament, Jesus taught the same principle to His disciples in the upper room where He grabbed a towel and began to wash their dirty feet. When Jesus got to Peter, Peter said, "You'll not play the role of a servant and wash my feet." And Jesus said, "If I don't wash you, you want have any part of me." And Peter said, "Then Lord, wash my whole body."  I love Peter.  And the Lord said to Him, "He who has bathed needs only to wash his feet, but is completely clean." (John 13)

In other words, Jesus was referring to the all-cleansing bath represented by God's application of Christ's death on our behalf – that total and completed and eternal payment for our sinfulness – who we are – cleansed by the offering of Christ once and for all.  Washing feet, on the other hand, was a metaphor Jesus used to represent the ongoing, daily cleansing in the lives of believers for what we do . . . we're not yet delivered from the presence and even participation in sin – in fact, the more you grow in Christ the more aware you are of your sinful thoughts and actions; you don't have to be justified again every time you sin – or, saved again – but you do need your feet washed.

It's this kind of specific cleansing that John speaks of in I John 1:9.  "if we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous or just . . ."  He is faithful – that is, He will keep His word – made as much to God the Son as to us. If Christ's sacrifice was satisfactory, then God will be faithful in forgiving us. He won't go back on His word.  But He's also righteous or just to forgive us.  This also references the cross work of Christ.

God is just – that is, He will never demand a second payment for your sins.

Jesus paid it all really means Jesus paid it all.  And who is it that finds daily forgiveness and cleansing – the blessing of a clean conscience and the benefits from this ongoing cleansing of dirty feet?

The forgiveness we must take  Some people ask for forgiveness but very seldom accept it.. The person who is walking in the light knows what it is to be conscious of sin, to confess sin, and then to accept God's forgiveness and to live the forgiven life. There are some people who seem to think that God has a message of forgiveness for the unconverted but none for the converted. This is tragic and the word is absolutely clear - to cleanse us from all unrighteousness and we must not and dare not make exceptions where God makes none.

 A faithfulness we must trust.  God is described here as being faithful, faithful that is to his promises, and righteous – righteous because having met the demands of his own law once in the person of his own Son he cannot in righteousness ask us to meet those demands our selves. As somebody has said "God will not payment twice demand; once from my bleeding surety's hand and then again at mine.

John makes God's intention absolutely plain in the opening verse of chapter 2 "those things write I unto you that ye sin not" God does not want us to wallow in failure and defeat.

 "If any man sin" We may sin through carelessness, we may sin through presumption, but the tragedy of sin is it can very often bring us to despair and how many a young convert has been tempted to despair and the devil has come saying "you can't be a Christian." But!

"We have an advocate with the Father, even Jesus Christ the righteous: And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world." Every sort of person. Every nationality.

Christ is our Advocate," he is our representative as it were at the bar of God's justice: and he is not only our representative, our lawyer, to plead our case there but he himself is the propitiation. He is the one who in himself constitutes the grounds for our forgiveness before God. We can neither add to what Christ has done or what Christ is, nor can we take away from it. And walking in the light means becoming more and more conscious of my complete and utter dependence upon the merits of Jesus Christ in his death, resurrection and ascension. Someone has said to answer the charge which imagines that here Jesus

Christ is seeking to propitiate an angry God, someone has said "It is not that propitiation wins the love of God but that the love of God provides the propitiation in Christ." Somebody has put it this way "His advocacy is valid because he himself can bear witness that the only conditions on which fellowship between God and man can be restored has actually been fulfilled, i.e. the removal of the sin by which that intercourse was interrupted." It is worth noting that John says here that Christ is the propitiation for our sins and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world. What an amazing statement! What an amazing Saviour! Surely we can have confidence, and complete confidence, in Jesus Christ but no confidence whatsoever in ourselves. This is what it means to walk in the light, knowing that we are accepted in the beloved but never for one moment accepted by God for anything in ourselves.

6. Be  Fruitful  About Friendship

That which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ.4 And we are writing these things so that our joy may be complete. 5 This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.6 If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.

The Lord wants you to enjoy fellowship with Him and fellowship with one another.  Keep short accounts with God.

You have been reconciled to God through the death of the Lord Jesus at the cross.  That became yours forever the moment you believed in Him.  But our enjoyment of that fellowship can be diminished.  Our joy in it can become painful.   Husbands, you know what I mean.. forget something and you get the frosty treatment when you get home.  Act stupid, you are still married, but the enjoyment has become cold.

What  do you need to do?  Sort it out.  Apologise. Buy a new one whatever it was you broke.

Restore that fellowship. 

Are you out of sorts with someone at church? Maybe you are out of sorts with your relationship with God.  There is some secret sin that you are treasuring  in your heart!  Deal with it.  Confess it.. Admit it to God.  You can have a bright joyful Christian life again. Bt get it sorted.

Pilgrims Progress is a great book everybody ought to read. In a story form Pilgrim goes on a journey to the celestial City.  But occasionally he leaves the road. He gets in a mess. And he has to get it sorted. Then he goes back to the place where he left the road and gets on the road again.  You need to get on the road again at the very place you left it.

Christian learned the painful consequences of sinful sleep. He became careless and idle and, as he slept in the light, his roll slipped away. But Christian also demonstrated the fruits of humble repentance. He acknowledged his sin, sought forgiveness, and retraced his steps in a diligent search to find and recover what was lost.

The roll was precious to Christian. It represents, as Bunyan reminds us, "the assurance of his life and acceptance at the desired haven." Assurance is not a given in the Christian walk; it is not guaranteed to all believers. It can be strong or weak at times. It can even be lost for a time due to sin or neglect. The 1689 London Baptist Confession acknowledges that even true believers can struggle with assurance.

True believers may in various ways have the assurance of their salvation shaken, decreased, or temporarily lost. This may happen because they neglect to preserve it or fall into some specific sin that wounds their conscience and grieves the Spirit. It may happen through some unexpected or forceful temptation or when God withdraws the light of His face and allows even those who fear Him to walk in darkness and to have no light. Yet they are never completely lacking the seed of God, the life of faith, love of Christ and the brethren, sincerity of heart, or conscience concerning their duty. Out of these graces, through the work of the Spirit, this assurance may at the proper time be revived. In the meantime, they are kept from utter despair through them. [Confessing the Faith: The 1689 Baptist Confession for the 21st Century, 20.4]

Though Christians may fall into dark times and lose the light of God's felt presence and comfort, God, by the power and work of His Spirit, will keep and protect them. When the time is right according to His purposes, he will restore their assurance and hope. David prayed for such revival as he grieved his own sin in Psalm 51: Make me hear joy and gladness, That the bones You have broken may rejoice.
Hide Your face from my sins, And blot out all my iniquities.
Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Do not cast me away from Your presence, And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, And uphold me by Your generous Spirit.     (Psalm 51:8–12)

"Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: and see if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting."