Test
Yourselves
by
Bernie
Koerselman
Table
of Contents
Introduction
Salvation
Tests from John’s First Epistle
Test:
Do You Obey Jesus’ Commands?
Test:
Are You Walking in Darkness?
Test:
Do You Claim You Are Without Sin?
Test:
Do You Continue To Sin?
Test:
Are You Righteous?
Test:
Are You Walking As Jesus Did?
Test:
Do You Love God, Your Brother and One Another?
Test:
Do You Love God?
Test:
Do You Love Your Brother?
Test:
Do You Love One Another?
Test:
Do You Love the World?
Test:
Do You Believe Jesus Is the Christ, the Son of God?
Test:
Have You Retained the True Gospel?
Salvation
Tests from Jesus and Other New Testament Writers
Test:
Are You Holy?
Test:
Are You Wicked?
Test:
Are You Bearing Fruit?
Test:
Have You Remained In Jesus?
Test:
Are You Persevering?
Test:
Do You Believe Jesus Is Lord?
Test:
Are You Born Again?
Test:
Do You Repent?
Test:
Are You Willing to Receive the Kingdom of God as a Little Child?
Test:
Do You Forgive Your Brother From Your Heart?
Test:
Do You Love Jesus More?
Test:
Have You Taken Up Your Cross and Followed Jesus?
Test:
Have You Given Up Everything You Have for Jesus?
Test:
Do You Put Into Practice What You Have Heard
Test:
Do You Believe In the Son of God?
Test:
Do You Do the Will of God?
Test:
Are You Conformed To the Likeness of Jesus?
The
Failure Of the Church
Commands
of Jesus
False
Doctrines Within The Church
Dr.
Charles Stanley
Conclusion
Examine
yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test
yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you —
unless, of course, you fail the test? [1]
(2 Corinthians 13:5).
People throughout
the world are able to view great athletic competitions.
The most notable are the Olympic games.
We’re amazed that the human body is capable of accomplishing the
extraordinary feats those Olympic athletes do.
We’ve learned there is a strict code of conduct associated with those
games. Performance enhancing drugs
are forbidden. Each sport has exacting rules by which it is run or played.
Anyone who violates those rules is penalized or disqualified.
The Apostle Paul
said there is a parallel between the conduct of sports and living the Christian
life: “If anyone competes as an
athlete, he does not receive the victor’s crown unless he competes according
to the rules” (2
Timothy 2:5). We will see in
this article that true Christianity has many rules that must be followed or one
will be disqualified from the race whose prize is eternal life.
This kind of thinking is almost foreign to the present Christian culture,
particularly in America, but it is not foreign to Scripture.
It is the message of Scripture.
Speaking of America
in particular, there seems to be great complacency on the part of those who call
themselves Christians. Though they
may appear little different from those in the world who claim no faith,
nevertheless they are confident that they are part of those who will be saved
and go to heaven. I suspect part of
that is because of ignorance of what Scripture says are the requirements (the
rules) of a saving faith.
In this article, we
will discuss first the tests for salvation set forth by the Apostle John in his
first epistle. Then we will examine
the tests (I sometimes call them elements of a saving faith) set forth by Jesus
and the other Apostles. These tests
will rapidly help people determine if they are presently bound for heaven or on
their way to hell. The purpose of
this article is to help those who fail the tests to reexamine their “faith”
and help them come to a true and saving faith, one that will cause them to pass
these tests and have assurance of salvation based on truth.
Again, limiting my
comments to America, it seems most churches presume most of those attending are
going to heaven. They use inclusive
language. There seems to be little
or no teaching on the requirements (the rules) God has specified for those who
will have eternal life. Jesus
warned: “Enter through the narrow
gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to
destruction, and many enter through it. But small is
the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few
find it” (Matthew 7:13-14). Jesus
was speaking to religious Jews as he said that, not to a crowd of unbelievers
who had no knowledge of God.
There seems to be a
feeling that God grades on the curve. The
person attending church presumes he must be in better standing before God than
the person who does not. As he
looks around his community, he may believe he is living a better life than most.
Therefore he believes he can have confidence he is going to heaven.
But is that what Scripture says? Does
God compare my life and your life with others who are wicked and say, “You are
less wicked, and therefore you can go to heaven?”
Not according to Scripture! We
will see that Scripture is unequivocal in many of the tests (and elements of a
saving faith) that we will examine. You
either satisfy the condition or you do not.
Those who do will be saved; those who do not will be condemned.
I know that may sound very harsh, as it is a far cry from what seems to
be preached in many pulpits, but that is what Scripture says.
Let’s see if you agree after we test ourselves to see if we are in the
faith.
There seems to be a
need on the part of many to have assurance of salvation.
I have never felt that need because I know that if my faith remains
strong, I will be saved. Scripture says so. Others
feel insecure, asking their pastors and teachers to assure them that they are
saved and will be going to heaven when they die.
Some reasons for
such insecurity may be that such people know they are not living as Jesus would
have them live. Nevertheless, they
sit under teaching and preaching that assures them they have assurance of their
salvation. In my experience, such
teachers and preachers often point to 1 John 5:13 which says, “I write these
things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know
that you have eternal life.” Then they may say to the person, “Do you
believe in Jesus?” The answer is
likely, “Yes, of course!” They
respond, “Then be assured you have eternal life.”
Is that what this
passage is saying? Or is that an
extreme example of taking Scripture out of context? How do “these things” (that John is writing to them)
relate to assurance of salvation? And
what does it mean to believe in the name of the Son of God? As good Bereans, let’s see what Scripture says!
Do you suppose in
the Apostle John’s time people were also asking questions about how they could
be assured they will be saved? Or
was John very concerned that people thought they were saved but weren’t acting
as if they were part of the Kingdom of our Lord Jesus? Either or both of those could be true. In any case, John’s first epistle addressed both those
questions.
John’s statement
at 1 John 5:13 said, “I write these things to you . . .” What were
“these things” he wrote to them? “These
things” were various tests that he intended his readers to use to examine
themselves to determine if they are in the family of God and have eternal life.
These tests are equally applicable to each of us today.
IF we pass those tests, we may know we have eternal life. If we do not pass the tests, we will know we do not have
eternal life and that we are on the broad road to eternal punishment.
Let’s examine the
tests proposed by the Apostle and see how we fare. As we go through these, we’ll relate John’s tests to
teachings and commands of Jesus and other New Testament writers.
We
know that we have come to know him if we obey his commands. The man who
says, “I know him,” but does not do what he commands is a liar,
and the truth is not in him (1 John 2:3-4).
John sets up a
simple contrast. Those who obey
Jesus’ commands have come to know him. Those
who claim to know him but do not obey are liars.
Jesus told us what happens to liars:
“But the
cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral,
those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—their
place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur” (Revelation
21:8). Any questions? The fiery lake of burning sulphur is Scripture’s
description of hell. Very
clearly, without ambiguity, those who claim a relationship with the Lord Jesus
but do not obey him are liars bound for hell.
In America we find
tens of millions of people in the Bible belt who claim to know Jesus.
But do they obey him? According
to Barna’s research most cannot be distinguished from non-church-goers.
How would each of them fare if they were to examine themselves according
to this test? I fear many would
fail.
Is this an
aberration? Is this a lone teaching
by the Apostle John not found elsewhere in Scripture? Just the contrary. This
is the dominant theme of all Scripture – to obey God and his commandments.
It is also consistent with the command Jesus gave just before he left
this earth. He gave his church
their marching orders:
“All
authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore
go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father
and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and
teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And
surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matthew
28:18-20).
Our duty is to make
disciples. To do that we are to
teach all new converts to obey everything Jesus commanded during his earthly
ministry. Are we doing it?
Do the professing Christians in our churches know what Jesus commanded?
If they don’t, how can they obey?
If they don’t obey, how can they be Jesus’ disciples?
If they’re not disciples of Jesus, can they be saved?
Would a person go
to hell for disobedience to the teachings and commands of Jesus?
Paul wrote the Thessalonians, “He [the Lord Jesus] will punish those
who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus.
They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the
presence of the Lord and from the majesty of his power”
(2 Thessalonians 1:8-9).
There is no doubt that punishment and destruction is the fate of those
who disobey the Lord Jesus. That is
consistent with Hebrews 5:9, “he [Jesus] became the source of salvation for
all who obey him.” Note
the contrast – salvation for those who obey the Lord Jesus, but punishment and
everlasting destruction for those who disobey him.
Jesus
told a parable that illustrates the contrast between the obedient and
disobedient servant:
“Who
then is the faithful and wise servant, whom the master has put in charge of the
servants in his household to give them their food at the proper time? 46
It will be good for that servant whose master finds him doing so when he
returns. 47 I tell you the truth, he will put him in
charge of all his possessions. 48 But suppose that
servant is wicked and says to himself, ‘My master is staying away a long
time,’ 49 and he then begins to beat his fellow
servants and to eat and drink with drunkards. 50 The
master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an
hour he is not aware of. 51 He will cut him to pieces
and assign him a place with the hypocrites, where there will be weeping and
gnashing of teeth” (Matthew
24:45-51).
The
obedient servant is given honor when his master returns.
But the servant who disobeys – beating his fellow servants and eating
and drinking with drunkards – will be severely punished, cut to pieces and
assigned a place with hypocrites (hell). Did
you notice that the punishment for the disobedient servant is greater than the
punishment in all the other parables Jesus told where the person was judged and
condemned? No other one states that
he “will cut him to pieces.”
Some
may raise the argument that we are no longer under the “Law” so therefore
there is nothing we are to obey. The
Law that Paul emphasizes we are no longer under – that we died to (Romans
7:4,6)
and that was nailed to the cross (Colossians
2:14)
– is the Old Testament Law.
Paul said that he is under Christ’s law, “To
those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not
free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law), so as to win
those not having the law” (1
Corinthians 9:21. Also Galatians 6:2).
Note that Paul equated God’s law with Christ’s law – one and the
same for the New Testament believer. The
Law of Christ is everything Jesus taught and commanded.
If
we claim to have fellowship with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not
live by 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, purifies us from all sin (1
John 1:6-7).
John crammed a lot
in these two sentences. He preceded
these statements by “This is the message we have heard from him [Jesus] and
declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all” (1 John 1:5). Jesus
revealed to his disciples that light is a quality – an attribute – of God.
The Apostle tells us in verse 7 (above) that if we walk in the light, the
blood of Jesus purifies us from all sin. That
is the condition of a person who is being saved.
The Lord Jesus and
other New Testament writers speak of darkness as something evil.
The implication of walking in darkness is to act wickedly, to do evil
(verse 6), to be disobedient. If we
do evil but claim fellowship with Jesus, John says we lie.
What happens to liars? As we
saw earlier, Jesus said they are bound for the lake of fire.
To reiterate
John’s warning: The person who
does evil – who walks in darkness – has no fellowship with Jesus. The person who claims to have fellowship with Jesus, but does
evil, is a liar.
John gives us the
following example of walking in darkness: “But
whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks around in the darkness;
he does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded him” (1
John 2:11). Who are the
brothers of a Christian? They are
other believers. Jesus defined
“brother” this way, “Whoever does God’s will is my brother and sister
and mother” (Mark 3:35). John’s
admonition then is against those who hate their fellow brother or sister in the
church. If anyone hates another
believer, he walks around in the darkness.
If he claims to be a believer and claims fellowship with the Lord Jesus,
he is a liar!
To make sure we get
the point, the Apostle John contrasted those who are in the light from those who
are in darkness:
Anyone
who claims to be in the light but hates his brother is still in the
darkness. Whoever loves his brother lives in the
light, and there is nothing in him to make him stumble.
But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks around
in the darkness; he does not know where he is going, because the darkness has
blinded him . . .. Anyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and
you know that no murderer has eternal life in him (1 John 2:9-11, 15).
Verse
15 (above) makes clear that being in darkness and walking around in the darkness
means being without the Lord Jesus and without eternal life.
We cannot claim to be in the light while we walk around in darkness and
expect to have eternal life. Such a
person does not qualify for eternal life.
Paul
confirmed that true Christians are not in darkness:
“But you, brothers, are not in darkness so that this day should
surprise you like a thief. You are all sons of the light and sons of the day. We
do not belong to the night or to the darkness” (1
Thessalonians 5:4-5).
You see how this
relates to the former test of obedience. Those
who disobey are evil – they walk around in darkness.
Jesus commanded we love one another.
Those who hate their brother are in direct disobedience to a command of
the Lord Jesus. Such people are not
saved. Because they do not do the
will of God, they will not enter the Kingdom of Heaven (Matthew
7:21); because they do not obey, they do not have the Holy Spirit (John 14:15-16); because they do not have the Holy Spirit, they
do not belong to the Lord Jesus (Romans
8:9).
The
Apostle John apparently knew of people who claimed they were without sin. He made clear such claims were false: If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves
and the truth is not in us (1
John 1:8). If we claim we
have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our
lives (1 John 1:10).
Is that a salvation
issue? Yes, indeed.
Jesus died on the cross to atone for sin.
If a person has no sin, he has no need for someone to atone for his sin.
As to such persons, Jesus would have died in vain.
But there are no such persons. As
Paul said, “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans
3:23). Thus, any person who
says he has not sinned is a liar. We
know what happens to liars – their place is in the lake of fire (Revelation 21:8).
There is a second
way we know such persons are not saved. John
said, “The truth is not in us,” referring to those people who claimed to be
without sin. We must remember that
truth is a person – the Lord Jesus Christ.
Jesus said of himself, “I am the way and the truth and the life (John
14:6). Thus anyone who does
not have the truth in them does not have Jesus indwelling them.
Finally, v. 10,
above, says that if we claim we have not sinned, his word has no place in
our lives. Scripture emphasizes the
importance of Jesus’ words – that they are spirit and they are life, (John 6:63), they are the words of eternal life (John 6:68), and it is Jesus’ words that when put into
practice are like the wise man building his house on the rock (Matthew 7:24-28), and it is Jesus’ words that will
never pass away” (Matthew
24:35). Jesus’ words
are the good news of the Gospel. No
one can have eternal life who does not have Jesus and his words in his
life.
No
one who lives in him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has
either seen him or known him . . .. No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because
God’s seed remains in him; he cannot go on sinning, because he has been born
of God . . .. We know that anyone born of God does not continue to sin (1 John 3:6, 9, 5:18).
How many times do
people profess faith but then have no observable change in their lives?
That is the very condition that both Barna and Gallup confirmed in their
polls about most professing Christians – their personal lives display chaos
and self-destructive behaviors: pornography,
workaholism, infidelity, and lack of spiritual vitality.
Do such people have eternal life? No!
They do not pass the test – they continue in sin.
We also know they fail the test of not doing the will of God, of not
obeying Jesus and thus not receiving the Holy Spirit; all three are necessary
for those who will have eternal life.
To continue in sin
is different than occasionally sinning. All
of us can, and likely do, have occasions where we lose our temper, say something
unkind, think an impure thought or fail to do that which we know we should do.
That is sin! But for those
occasional sins, John assures us, “My dear children, I write this to you so
that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the
Father in our defense—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One” (1
John 2:1).
We are not to
misunderstand what John has just said. He
said he is writing this to us so that we will not sin.
But when we do sin, if we confess our sins, he [Jesus] is faithful and
just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness (1
John 1:9). This refutes the
false teaching that every time we sin we lose our salvation and have to be
resaved. Not so!
But we must immediately repent – confess our sin to the Lord and turn
from the sin – and not continue in it. He
will then forgive us and purify us from all unrighteousness.
Then we will be blameless and free from accusation before our God (Colossians
1:22) and there will be no uncleanness that interrupts our fellowship
with him. What if we do not repent
and do not turn from the sin? Then
either we have never known the Lord Jesus, or we are guilty of deliberately,
willfully continuing in sin. In
either case, we are not on the road to eternal life.
We have abandoned that road, if we were once on it, and chosen the broad
road that leads to destruction.
Now the Apostle
looks at the opposite of sinning – righteousness – and we see the test for
salvation presented differently:
If
you know that he is righteous, you know that everyone who does what is right has
been born of him . . .. He who does what is right is righteous,
just as he is righteous. 8 He who does what is
sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from
the beginning . . .. This is how we know who the children of God are and who the
children of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not a child
of God; nor is anyone who does not love his brother (1
John 2:29, 3:7-8, 10).
“For
I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and
the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven”
(Matthew 5:20).
The Apostle John is
echoing the warning of Jesus that we must be righteous, even more righteous than
the legalistic Pharisees.
John
sets up Jesus’ standard of conduct as the standard his disciples will follow. We are to be like Jesus.
He is righteous; we are to be righteous. Paul said the same, “For those God foreknew he also
predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the
firstborn among many brothers” (Romans
8:29). If we are conformed
to the likeness of Jesus, we will be righteous as he is righteous.
John spoke of true
believers as being children of God. Paul
confirmed that: “The Spirit
himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children” (Romans 8:16). ALL
true believers are God’s children. There
is no eternal life for those who are not God’s children. Those who do not do right (are not righteous) are not God’s
children, but children of the devil (1
John 3:10). We all know
where the children of the devil will spend eternity.
This is clearly a
salvation issue, notwithstanding that current heresies prevalent throughout
Christendom say how we live is not important – it is only what we believe that
counts. Jesus said we will not
enter the kingdom of heaven unless our righteousness exceeds that of the
Pharisees. Their righteousness was
external. Jesus expects our
righteousness to also be internal – of the heart.
Is it important to do right – to be righteous?
Yes, indeed! Our eternal
future hangs in the balance.
The
Apostle John did us all a favor when he gave the next test, because it teaches
us a most important lesson about how we are to live.
John said,
Whoever
claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did . . .. Whoever lives in love
lives in God, and God in him. In this way, love is made
complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment,
because in this world we are like him
(1
John 2:6, 4:16-17).
John
gave us the reason we must study the Gospels with special diligence.
The Gospels relate all we know about Jesus’ life here on earth.
We are to live (walk) as Jesus did.
Jesus said he had a new command for us:
“A new command I give you: Love one another.
As I have loved you, so you must love one another.
By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one
another” (John
13:34-35). Jesus said,
“Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends (John
15:13). Jesus modeled for us
what he taught. How much did Jesus
love us? He loved us so much he lay
down his life for his friends. Who
are Jesus’ friends? He told us:
“You are my friends if you do what I command” (John 15:14).
John
made another special contribution, doubtless because God foreknew this objection
would be made by many that the scripture referring to being conformed to the
likeness of Jesus (Romans
8:29)
refers to when we get to heaven. They
say when we get to heaven we will be conformed to the likeness of Jesus.
They claim there is no requirement to be conformed to the likeness of
Jesus in the here and now. But John
specifically disabused us of that false claim.
John stated that in this world we are like him (1
John 4:17). Where are we to be like Jesus, conformed to his likeness?
Here – in this world! Paul
also emphasized the need for purity and righteousness – being like Jesus –
in the here and now. He told the
Philippians, “Do
everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless
and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved
generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe as you hold out the
word of life (Philippians 2:14-16). Where
are we to do this? In this crooked
and depraved generation. When are
we to be blameless and pure? Now,
today, as we hold out the word of life to those who are not saved.
WWJD
on pins, bracelets and key rings represents the question, “What would Jesus
do?” This is an incredibly
important question. Not only must
we ask that question, but also we must be willing to make every effort to live
our lives as Jesus would if we would have eternal life. Paul commanded, “Be imitators of God,
therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ
loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to
God” (Ephesians 5:1-2). Purity
results from doing what Jesus would do. John said, “We know that when he appears, we shall be like
him, for we shall see him as he is. Everyone who has this hope in him purifies
himself, just as he is pure” (1
John 3:2-3).
If
there is anything Jesus emphasized, it is love.
He said the first and greatest commandment is “Love the Lord
your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind (Matthew
22:37). Could obedience to
this command be a test for salvation? Yes,
indeed. The Apostle John added the
definition of what it means to love God: “This
is love for God: to obey his commands. And his commands are not
burdensome, for everyone born of God overcomes the world” (1 John
5:3-4). Jesus said, “If
you love me, you will obey my commands” (John
14:15).
We’ve come full
circle again to obedience. Love
for God is to obey his commands. Then
we remember Jesus’ warning, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’
will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my
Father who is in heaven (Matthew
7:21). As we will see later,
“does the will” means to obey the teachings and commands of Jesus
that are the will of God the Father. Salvation
hinges on our love of God (expressed as obedience to God’s commands).
Doesn’t it make
perfect, logical sense that if we really love God we will obey his
commands? Who could have thought
otherwise? Yet the opposite is
widely taught today. Many of those
who teach the heresy of unconditional eternal security claim there is nothing we
can do – either sin or disobedience – after we are “saved” that can
affect our salvation. Hopefully you
have seen in these tests many scriptures that prove the opposite conclusion.
Thomas Fuller
wrote, "He does not believe, that does not live according to his
belief." We all know that to
be true. People act according to
what they really believe. Do we
really love God with all our heart, soul, strength, and mind if we make no
effort to obey his commands? What
does God say about people who willfully disobey him?
The writer to the Hebrews told us: “If
we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the
truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, but only a fearful expectation of judgment
and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God” (Hebrews 10:26-27).
What does Scripture
say the Lord Jesus will do when people ignore the rules, commands, and
principles he set forth as he presented the Gospel during his ministry here on
earth? Paul told us:
“He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of
our Lord Jesus. They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out
from the presence of the Lord and from the majesty of his power” (2
Thessalonians 1:8-9).
In cases of
deliberate sin and disobedience to the gospel of our Lord Jesus, the price to
pay is judgment, raging fire, and everlasting destruction.
Should we take sin and disobedience seriously?
Indeed so.
Shouldn’t we be
living to please God? His command
is to love him with all our heart, with all our mind, with all
our soul, and with all our strength.
Is there anything left over? Doesn’t
that require everything of us – our time, energy, honor, and obedience?
Can anything be more important?
Anyone
who does not do what is right is not a child of God; nor is anyone who does
not love his brother . . .. We know that we have passed from death to life,
because we love our brothers. Anyone who does not love remains in death . . ..
If anyone says, “I love God,” yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For
anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he
has not seen. 21 And he has given us this command:
Whoever loves God must also love his brother (1 John 3:10, 14,
4:20-21).
Much of this
command is inter-related with the tests and scriptures we’ve reviewed before.
For example, once again John says that a man is a liar who claims to love
God but hates his brother.
We know this is a
salvation issue for several reasons. First,
because a liars’ fate is to be cast into the lake of fire for all eternity.
Second, a person who does not love his brother is not a child of God.
We’ve already seen that all true Christians are children of God.
If a person is not a child of God he is a child of the devil and we know
the fate of the devil and those who follow him.
Finally, John says it is God’s command that all those who love him
[God] must also love his brother. There
we see the need to do the will of our Father in heaven.
John says it is God’s command – his will – that we love our
brother. Failure to do that is
disobedience to the will of God and will deny entry into the kingdom of heaven.
Dear
friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves
has been born of God and knows God.
Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love . . .. No
one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love
is made complete in us . . .. This is how we know that we love the children
of God: by loving God and carrying out his commands (1 John 4: 7-8, 12, 5:2).
Isn’t it amazing
how these tests continue to come full circle to obedience to the will of God,
and to carrying out God’s commands? Even
the test of knowing that we love the children of God is fulfilled by loving God
and carrying out his commands.
What are specific
commands of God concerning loving one another?
One of the earliest commands, first recited in the Old Testament and
reaffirmed by the Lord Jesus as the second most important command is, “Love
your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew
22:39, first at Lev. 19:18).
Jesus gave us a new
command, “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so
you must love one another. By this all men will know that
you are my disciples, if you love one another” (John
13:34-35). While the other
command dealt with loving our neighbor, this command concentrates on believers
loving fellow believers. It is said
that in the early days of Christianity, the love Christians had for each other
drew others to the faith even when it meant almost certain persecution and
sometimes death. So it should be
today, as all people have the need and desire to be loved.
Once again let’s
remember that Jesus said and did (and commanded) only what God his Father told
him to do and say and that the commands Jesus gave us are the commands of God
the Father. John said, “we know
we love the children of God by loving God and carrying out his commands.”
Isn’t it amazing how once again we come full circle to loving God and
carrying out his commands?
John also
reiterated the opposite side: Whoever
does not love does not know God (1
John 4:8). Such a person
does not do the will of God. Is
there salvation for those who do not know God and do not obey him?
No, of course not! We must
love one another, and do his will, just as the Lord Jesus commanded, if we are
to have eternal life.
Do
not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love
of the Father is not in him. For
everything in the world—the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and
the boasting of what he has and does—comes not from the Father but from the
world. The world and its desires
pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever (1
John 1:15-17).
This
is another test that comes back to the necessity for obedience if we are to have
eternal life. Here John assures us
that the man who does (obeys) the will of God lives forever.
James also warned
us, but in even stronger terms: “You
adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world is hatred
toward God? Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of
God” (James 4:4). James uses stronger words – hatred toward God and enemy of
God – when describing what friendship with the world means. But he speaks only of friendship with the world, not
“loving the world” as does John. Merely
friendship with the world means dreadful things about our relationship with God.
Doubtless this is because the entire world system is under the control of
the evil one. It stands as an
opposite of what the Kingdom of God stands for.
Can we be friends with the world that hates God?
Where is our loyalty? It
MUST be totally with God and the Lord Jesus if we are to be saved.
We must recognize that we are aliens here on earth.
Peter, calling the Christians to pure lives, said:
“Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the
world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul” (1
Peter 2:11). Likewise, the
writer to the Hebrews spoke of the faithful of the past, “they admitted that
they were aliens and strangers on earth (Hebrews 11:13).
They were longing for a better country—a heavenly one. Therefore God is
not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them (Hebrews
11:16).
Jesus had much to
say about those who live well and love the world. In the parable of Lazarus and the rich man, he said of the
rich man, “There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and
lived in luxury every day (Luke
16:19). While the beggar
Lazarus reclined in the bosom of Abraham when he died, the rich man went to
hell. Jesus warned, “But woe to
you who are rich, for you have already received your comfort. Woe to you who are
well fed now, for you will go hungry. Woe to you who laugh now, for you will
mourn and weep. Woe to you when all
men speak well of you, for that is how their fathers treated the false prophets (Luke 6:24-26). The
lesson is that kingdom people – followers of the Lord Jesus – are not to
have the same goals and desires as the secular people of this world.
What an indictment of the church when the polls of Barna and Gallup show
that many professing Christians cannot be distinguished from those who are not
Christians.
Surely loving the
world is one of the greatest dangers for believers in the developed world today.
People in America, the great consumer nation, buy and buy, seemingly
satisfying their every want. In
talking with professing Christians in America, their conversations are often
about their cars, their homes, their vacations, their hobbies and sports, and
their planned or present retirement. When
people speak of retirement, they rarely speak of it as an opportunity to serve
God more, unencumbered by having to earn a living.
Rather they speak of it as an opportunity to satisfy their every desire,
to play golf, tennis, or other games, and to do what they want, when they want. We give ourselves away by what we speak.
Jesus said, “Out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks” (Matthew
12:34, Luke 6:45). We find
out what is in a person’s heart by what he says.
That sounds like another good test, doesn’t it?
Perhaps each of us should listen to our own speech.
Do we speak about the teachings and commands of our Lord Jesus (see Deuteronomy 6:6-9) and the kingdom of our Lord, or do we
speak about secular matters, about things, the fun we have had or hope to have,
and the desires of our flesh?
If
you answer this test in the affirmative by loving the world or being a friend of
the world you are not in the kingdom of God.
In fact, James says such a person hates God and is an enemy of God. Such a person is on the broad road leading to destruction and
can expect only God’s wrath and judgment.
Everyone
who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who
loves the father loves his child as well . . .. This is the victory that has
overcome the world, even our faith. 5 Who is
it that overcomes the world? Only
he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God (1 John
5:1, 3-5).
Anyone
who believes in the Son of God has this testimony in his heart. Anyone who does
not believe God has made him out to be a liar, because he has not believed the
testimony God has given about his Son. And
this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his
Son. He who has the Son has
life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life (1
John 5:10-12).
Who
is the liar? It is the man who
denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a man is the antichrist—he denies the
Father and the Son. 23 No one who denies the Son has
the Father; whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also (1
John 2:22-23).
The titles of Jesus
are not happenstance. The title
Christ means Anointed One or Messiah. This
is the way Jesus was described in the Old Testament prophecies.
He was the Anointed One who would save his people from their sins.
Hundreds of prophecies testified to the coming Anointed One. Jesus fulfilled all those prophecies except those still to be
fulfilled. According to the science
of probabilities, the chance that any man could fulfill just eight
prophecies
is 1 in 1017.
That is 1 in 100,000,000,000,000,000.
The probabilities of fulfilling the hundreds that Jesus has fulfilled are
beyond comprehension. God did not ask us to have a blind faith.
He gave us ample reason to believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of
the living God. To believe in Jesus as the Christ is to believe in all the
prophecies that declare him to be the Christ and in all his power and in all the
attributes ascribed to him in the prophecies. Daniel told us about the coming Anointed One:
“He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all peoples,
nations and men of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting
dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be
destroyed” (Daniel
7:14). Jesus affirmed the
fulfillment of that prophecy: “All
authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me” (Matthew
28:18).
The test works both
ways. Those who do deny Jesus is
the Christ are liars bound for the lake of fire.
Those who deny Jesus is the Son of God do not have the Father and will
not overcome the world. Once again
we see that if Jesus is the Christ and if he is the Son of God – the Lord
Jesus Christ – he is owed obedience and submission, honor and glory.
Those who do not obey him will not be saved.
Jesus warned: “Not
everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but
only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven” (Matthew
7:21).
See
that what you have heard from the beginning remains in you. If
it does, you also will remain in the Son and in the Father. And this is
what he promised us—even eternal life(1
John 2:24-25).
We
are forgetful, aren’t we? What
seems so important to us one minute a week later often seems to have faded away
beyond recollection. With all the
competing interests in our work, our play, our homes, families, and friends, it
is easy to lose the power and urgency of the Gospel.
Likely
all of us have experienced times that we are not nearly as close to the Lord as
we had been. When that happens, who
is it that moved? It wasn’t God.
He remains faithful. James
urges us, “Come near to God and he will come near to you” (James
4:8). Who did James say
should act first? We are to come
near to God. Then God will come
near to us. We are to keep the Word
of God in us so that it remains in us. If
it does, we are promised eternal life – we will also remain in the Son and in
the Father.
What we should have heard from the beginning, as we learned about
the Christian life, are the teachings and commands of Jesus – the words of
Jesus. They are the foundation for
the Gospel and are the true Gospel.
We
have already learned that Jesus’ words are the words of God (John
3:34),
that his words give life, that they are spirit and they are life (John 6:63),
that they are the words of eternal life (John
6:68),
and that his words will never pass away (Matthew
24:35). Is it any wonder then that we must retain the words of Jesus?
If God’s word does not remain within us, is it any wonder that we will
not remain in the Son and in the Father? Is
this a salvation issue? Jesus
warned, “If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is
thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and
burned” (John 15:6). Can any
reasonable person believe that a person who is thrown away and withers, who is
picked up, thrown into the fire and burned has salvation?
Make
every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness
no one will see the Lord (Hebrews
12:14).
To
God’s elect, strangers in the world . . . live your lives as strangers
here in reverent fear . . . I urge you, as aliens and strangers in
the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul (1 Peter 1:1, 17, 2:11).
Peter shows that
citizens of the kingdom of our Lord Jesus are to abstain from sinful desires.
Paul phrased it this way, “God did not call us to be impure, but to
live a holy life” (1 Thessalonians 4:7). Purity,
then, is a characteristic of true believers who are strangers and aliens in this
world.
If we are aliens
and strangers here, where is our citizenship?
Paul didn’t hesitate: “Our
citizenship is in heaven” (Philippians
3:20). Peter said, “we are
looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness” (2 Peter 3:13).
God anticipated
further arguments to holiness and righteousness when he directed the Apostle
John to write, “This is love for God: to obey his commands. And his
commands are not burdensome, for everyone born of God overcomes the world”
(1 John 5:3-4). God
gave us a clear definition of love for him – extremely different from the
world’s definition and, sadly, very different from the explanation of love for
God found in many Christian churches. Then
God put to the lie the objection of many that we can never obey and can never be
righteous by saying, “His commands are not burdensome.”
He further corroborates that in the next phrase as he assures us that
“everyone born of God overcomes the world.”
God’s
solid foundation stands firm, sealed with this inscription: “The Lord knows
those who are his,” and, “Everyone who confesses the name of the
Lord must turn away from wickedness” (2 Timothy 2:19).
Is it possible to
be saved and to be wicked? The
foregoing scripture seems to say that is not possible.
God used Paul to warn about behavior that was simply not acceptable and
will forfeit an inheritance in the Kingdom of our Lord Jesus.
Consider the language he used:
The
acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and
debauchery; 20 idolatry and witchcraft; hatred,
discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 21
and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before,
that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God (Galatians 5:19-21).
Put
to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality,
impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. 6
Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. 7
You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. 8
But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage,
malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. 9 Do
not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices
10 and have put on the new self, which is being
renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator (Colossians
3:5-10).
Do
you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God?
Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers
nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders 10 nor
thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will
inherit the kingdom of God (1
Corinthians 6:9-10).
But
among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of
impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God’s holy people. 4
Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are
out of place, but rather thanksgiving. 5 For of this
you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person—such a
man is an idolater—has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.
6 Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because
of such things God’s wrath comes on those who are disobedient. 7
Therefore do not be partners with them (Ephesians
6:3-7).
Wicked behavior is
equated with disobedience. Those
who are true believers are obedient to the teachings and commands of Jesus that
teach us how to be blameless and free from accusation before God.
Finally, once again
we examine Jesus’ warning against wickedness:
The
cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those
who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—their place will be in
the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death” (Revelation 21:8).
Note
how severe the language – those who conduct themselves this way have no
inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God – because of such things
God’s wrath comes on those who are disobedient – their place will be in the
fiery lake of burning sulphur (a description of hell).
Can there be any rational argument that this does not refer to loss of
salvation for those who conduct themselves in these forbidden ways?
Considering all the
warnings from Scripture shown above, isn’t it almost unbelievable that many
proponents of unconditional eternal security claim that once a person has made a
bona fide confession of faith that nothing he can do thereafter can cause him to
be unsaved. Calvinists agree, but
for a different reason, claiming that a person who has been predestined to
salvation will be saved, whether he wants to be or not.
If he has been predestined for salvation, obviously nothing he does or
can do will affect whether or not he will be saved.
As I hope you clearly see, both of these teachings are false, both
leading people astray who follow their teachings.
Jesus said, “If a blind man leads a blind man, both will fall into a
pit” (Matthew
15:14). I fear untold
millions are following the broad road to destruction because blind men with
false doctrines are leading them.
“I
am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2 He
cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch
that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.
3 You are already clean because of the word I have
spoken to you. Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No
branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you
bear fruit unless you remain in me. 5
“I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in
him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:1-5).
What immediately
springs to your mind when you read “cuts off every branch in me that bears no
fruit.” It sounds very much like
rejection by God, doesn’t it? And
that is what it is. This
illustration is particularly powerful because Jesus makes clear he is speaking
of a branch that is “in me.” Thus,
he is speaking of Christians, those who are his followers and disciples.
He then sets up two alternatives for those who are in him.
Those that produce fruit God prunes so they will be even more fruitful. But those who do not bear fruit will be cut off from Jesus.
Jesus makes clear that we can do nothing without him.
We will bear much fruit if we remain in him and he in us.
Jesus also told the
following parable:
“A
man had a fig tree, planted in his vineyard, and he went to look for fruit on
it, but did not find any. 7 So he said to the man who
took care of the vineyard, ‘For three years now I’ve been coming to look for
fruit on this fig tree and haven’t found any. Cut it down! Why should
it use up the soil?’ 8
”‘Sir,’ the man replied, ‘leave it alone for one more year, and
I’ll dig around it and fertilize it. 9If it bears
fruit next year, fine! If not, then cut it down’” (Luke
13:6-9).
What kind of fruit
are we to bear? One kind may be the
involuntary fruit of the Spirit – love, joy, peace, patience, kindness,
goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23). Another
kind of fruit may be works. Though
no one will gain salvation through works, as we have repeatedly stated, works
are the evidence of a saving faith. Paul told us, “For we are God’s workmanship, created in
Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to
do” (Ephesians 2:10). Another
example of good works could be inferred from James:
Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to
look after orphans and widows in their distress (James 1:27).
Jesus told a
powerful parable that describes other works and includes other insights as well.
You may know it by the title of “The Sheep and the Goats.”
This parable is so important we’ll include it in full here:
31
“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he
will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. 32 All the
nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from
another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33
He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
34
“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are
blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since
the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and
you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink,
I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed
clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison
and you came to visit me.’
37
“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry
and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38
When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and
clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison
and go to visit you?’40 “The King will reply,
‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers
of mine, you did for me.’
41
“Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are
cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42
For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you
gave me nothing to drink, 43 I was a stranger and you
did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and
in prison and you did not look after me.’
44
“They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty
or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’
45
“He will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one
of the least of these, you did not do for me.’
46
“Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to
eternal life.” (Matthew 25:31-46).
The
parable starts by stating Jesus is sitting on his throne in judgment separating
the people of all nations into two groups, some on his right, the o