This Is How We Know

Well, Happy Father’s Day, everybody. It’s a great time. I’ll mention it later, but my daughters were born on Father’s Day. I won’t give you their age because they can do that if they want. But this is this special day because we do get to honor our Father who has saved us from this world and sent His Son to die for us. And so today we’re going a little bit off the usual path on the Gospels, and we’re going to be looking at 1 John, and we’ll get to that in a few minutes. But as we begin today, I want to make an announcement and then have a sermon. As many of you know, Pat and I have been here in the Broward Church for the last 21 years as an elder couple and Church leaders. It has been an incredible time for us as we have seen the Church grow and mature and adapt to reaching people in new ways, ways that some of us old folks would never have done. This has been an experience beyond what we have ever envisioned. For us, these have been some of the best times of our lives.

Also, many of you know that my mother died last year at the age of 94, but all the rest of our family, from our children, grandchildren, brothers, and sisters, plus most of our nieces and nephews and their families, live in Washington, DC to New York corridor in the Northeast. We had discussed the possibility of moving near them for years, but with my mother here in South Florida, it was never seriously considered. But now, as I turn 70 this July, it has become more obvious of the need to be near family, to be near our children and grandchildren, as well as our siblings, sometime in the latter part of this summer or early fall. We have been elders in the South Florida area for almost 25 years, and we are ministry leaders. Even here in the early 1990s, and some of you were around then, this is not an easy decision for us as we love this church. We love you. Yet this is the time for us to move. Why? We are so encouraged and excited about the direction and leadership of the church. The elder couples we have worked with are special, and we know that there will be spiritual and godly oversight.

And Pat and I are especially grateful for the past few years of ministry leadership with Tony and Cassandra. And I’ve seen how they changed the direction and effectiveness of reaching the lost. We both feel that we have learned so much. How to run a ministry and how to love people deeply. We’re not leaving anything. We don’t want to leave, but we’re moving to. We’re moving to be near our family. This will always be home in so many ways to us. We are asking you to request your prayers now. As we are getting prepared to move from where we are now? We especially pray for our search for a house up in the Philadelphia area because we haven’t found one yet. We may be nomads, I don’t know. But we will be taking time in early July again to go up and search. Please pray for the move. That will go smoothly. But most of all, that God will send us to where we need to be for our spiritual strength and where we can be a blessing to the church there. And we’re grateful for your love and support through all these years together. So when Tony asked if I would give a lesson today after I read the announcement of leaving, my first thoughts were, Can I actually speak after that?

And what do I say? I still think that way. As this decision has been very difficult for us because we love it here in the Broward Church so much. Florida and the weather are fine, but that’s not why we’re here. Our hearts have been here with the Church and with so many of you who have been our friends for so many years. So if I need to gather myself sometimes in this session, please bear with me as I try to express 21 years of friendship, coworking in the Gospel, and being a part of a church that has been such an important part of our lives. And see, this is a big month for us anyways. I mentioned before, first of all, our two daughters were born on Father’s Day many years ago. It’s hard to believe we’re old enough to have daughters at that age. It’s a reality check on realism there. But secondly, on June 28, it’ll be the 50th anniversary of my baptism. I was baptized as a college student about a month before I turned 20, so I was between my sophomore and junior years of college when I decided to make Jesus Lord.

It’s hard to describe what God has done through these 50 years. I’ve been blessed to be married to Pat for 43 and a half of those years. And I know I would not have made it spiritually, emotionally, or sometimes even physically without her in our partnership, our relationship together. Then, of course, there’s the church and all of you. Don’t worry, I’m going to get to the scriptures, okay? We’ve gone through so much together in the last 21 years. And those of you who’ve been around 21 years know it’s been a series of ups and downs. For some of you, I was talking to Richard Rodriguez. He says, Yeah, remember, we used to go into your garage in Cooper City, and we’d study the Bible with people. That was in 1990 when he was a campus intern and working on campus. We have gone through so many challenges and victories together as we walk with Jesus. I have struggled with what to say. You can ask Pat. Even last night, I read what I wrote before last night and I hated it, so I rewrote it last night. What do I say that makes sense? What do I want to leave, thoughts I want to leave with you?

We’ll be around for another month or so, but this is probably the last time I’ll be able to speak in front of you. This has been hard as there is so much I would love to say, but we don’t have four hours. But there’s so much we want to express gratitude for. Then as Pat and I were talking the other day, we try to take walks in the morning and we prayed together. I was sharing with her my struggle with what to say. She reminded me how much I loved the book of 1 John and suggested, Why don’t you teach out of that since you love it so much? And maybe you’ll get through the sermon that way. And I love 1 John for so many reasons because it is a letter from the Apostle John to disciples that mean so much to him. He even calls them his little children. They aren’t just brothers and sisters. He calls them his little children. That word, Padeon, is a word that means deep emotion and deep closeness. You see, John is known as the apostle of love, and that’s rightfully so. But these three small letters at the end of the New Testament, first, second, and third John, also show that he is the apostle of assurance and truth.

See, John desired that his friends know what was true and what they need to be watchful for, how their walk with God may need some correction, and to continue following Jesus with the assurance of faith. He writes a small letter where the Greek words to know, and one of them is called “ginosko”, which means you know by experience or observation. Then the second word is “oida”, which is to know by reflection. They’re used over 40 times in this small little letter because he wanted them to know. And so today, this is a phrase you’ll see all through 1 John. This is how we know, not how we feel, not hope, although hope is mentioned. But this is how we know. So I thought, what can I leave? So today I’m not going to be really preaching a lot. It’ll be more to sharing my heart and sharing what I hope can be left with you as Pat and I leave. You see, it’s been 30 years. When he wrote this, it had been 30 years since the Apostle Paul warned the Ephesians elders that even among them, there’d be people who rise up to draw away people from the Gospel, to change the Gospel, and follow them.

There had been a tremendous spread of the Gospel with the new churches all over what we call the Mediterranean world and even further. But there also had been severe persecution and hardship. John wanted the disciples to have Jesus as the center of their faith, be confident in their relationship with God, understand the necessity of loving their brothers and sisters, and still be certain of their salvation, that it was worth it to be a follower of Jesus. It would be a long time before they would ever see him again. We have no record of John ever going to where the people had written to. So as we leave here in Broward, I want to share, or we want to share some thoughts from 1 John that prayerfully encourage and challenge us to really, and you’ll see this, know God. So we start off in 1 John 1, and there’ll be two slides for this. It says The very first thing that John wanted his little children to know was that it has to be all about Jesus and not anything else. That which is from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched.

This we proclaim concerning the Word of life, life appeared. We have seen it and we testified to it. And we proclaimed to you the eternal life which was with the Father and has appeared to us. We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard so that you may have fellowship with us. Our fellowship is with the Father and his Son, Jesus Christ. We write this to make our joy complete. The number one thing we hope that we can convey and that we feel and we know that we have learned in a much deeper way is that Jesus really has to be the center and the decision-maker of all that we do. John made sure to communicate that everything he was writing in this book or this letter, revolved around having fellowship with him first, but then having fellowship with the Father and his son, Jesus Christ. You see, the church was facing the challenges of many false doctrines. If you do any study, the beginnings of what it was called Gnosticism, it was persecuted. The heartache of people leaving the faith, because it seemed too hard to them was a constant pressure that the early church faced.

But John was proclaiming the eternal life that comes from a deep fellowship with God, not just a friendship, but a fellowship with God. Why should they continue to follow Jesus? Why obey His commands? He was trying to answer that for them. And as I was sharing with my community guy last Wednesday, we had a community group, and I shared with them and said, I’m having a hard time and know what to say. So I was sharing with my community group about what I wanted to say about this. And one of the members recounted a time in their life when they were in high school. Many of us still remember that. For some of us, it’s a more distant memory. And it was a skip day in their high school. So many of their friends wanted her to skip school, have breakfast at a local restaurant, or maybe go to the beach instead of going to school. Yeah, it’s going to be fun. It’s going to be great. We’re all doing it. But she would not follow the crowd because she respected her parents and did not want to disappoint them. Her friends even asked her, Well, will they beat you if you don’t go to school?

And she said, No, it has nothing to do with that. That was not the case. She just wanted to respect them and not disappoint them with her decisions. She wanted them to be proud of her as a person. It was not fear. It was love and respect for the relationship she had with them, and she did not want to damage that in any way. I started thinking, isn’t that why you and I are to live the Christian life? You see, John was trying to communicate the same thing to these Christians he wrote to and to us. Our lives are to be guided by our desire to please him. The Apostle Paul wrote it, even we make it our goal to please him. We don’t follow God to get something. What do I get if I follow? What’s going to change in my life? How will God bless me? We follow God so we can be close to him. So he’ll be proud of us. We actually deal with our sins because we do not want to disappoint our fathers. Do not be afraid to be found out. We have quiet times because it is the way to create and grow a relationship with God.

We have friends who can challenge and correct us because God says over and over again that we need those relationships to stay close to Him. We encourage one another. Hebrews use the term daily. That’s a challenge, isn’t it? Encourage another one or another daily so that we would not be hardened by sin and be separated from him. We share our faith, not because it’s a rule, but because it shows how much God means to us. I’m so proud of God and what he’s done for me in 50 years. Took this stubborn, obstinate 20-year-old who thought he knew everything and unfortunately has the memory to remember a lot of things. So people don’t think he remembers everything. And he forgave me. I remember June 28, 1973, at 3:30 in the afternoon, going to a little Baptistry in a little church building. I said, What do you say? We didn’t have the same study series and all that, but I did know that he read Romans and he said, I said, Jesus is Lord. He said You’re going to be baptized now in the name of the Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit, I remember that day.

I am so proud of what he’s done in my life and so thankful. He has given me strength in hard times and joy and victory. I want people to know him like I know him. Just as I am proud of my family, it’s funny. Some people say, Oh, You talk about Pat, you talk about your daughters, you talk about your grandkids all the time. But why? Because I want people to know Pat like I know her. I want people to know my daughters. I want people to know my grandkids. The joke is you can have a shy little grandmother, but you ask her about her grandchildren, she’s a virtual orator. But most of all, I want people to know about the most important relationship I have. More than my family, more than anything I do. It’s the one I have with God, my heavenly father. You see, John is showing the real center of our faith. I want to encourage us to dig deeper into this because is Jesus really the center? Is he the decision-maker of your faith? Because it’s so easy to fall into the trap of thinking we are close to God by our performance.

The trap of thinking we are doing well because we happen to show up at church every week. The real competition is when they go to community groups every week. Or maybe to think because we don’t commit some of the sins that other people struggle with, that somehow that makes us close to God. And yet we need to ask ourselves, if Jesus is really in the center of our lives, how involved are you in the dreams of God and going into all the world? Are you involved with people by helping them become Christians, and taking the time to study? Or are you involved with people who are struggling and need people to help them stay Christians? Or do you let the professionals, Tony, community group leaders, let the professionals do that? We say there’s no clergy and laity, but the only way that is true is if each one of us… This is our church. It’s not Tony’s church. It’s not the elders’ church. But all of us are involved with Jesus being the center. I continually need to ask myself about my relationship with Jesus over and over again. Corinthians even says, test yourself. Am I too busy to talk with him?

Too busy to have read my Bible, pray? Do I make it a priority to spend time with other Christians so I can be encouraged by them and to be encouraged? Is my relationship with a father more important than my family, my job, my success, paying my bills? See, John starts his letter by saying he was showing them eternal life and not just life. The Apostle Paul even wrote in 1 Corinthians 15, verse 19, that if Christians, if their hope is in this life only, they are to be the most pitied of all men because they have a chance for eternal life and yet settle for only what this life can give. Jesus is a sinner. But what’s the second thing I’d like to leave? It’s found in 1 John 2. We can know who is a disciple and who’s ready to be baptized. We can know. 1 John 2, verses 3 through 6, We know that we have come to know Him if we keep His commands. Whoever says, I know Him but does not do what he commands is a liar. And the truth is not in that person. But if anyone obeys His word, his love for God is truly made complete in them.

And this is how we know we are in him. Whoever claims to live in him must live as Jesus did. It’s a shocking scripture, isn’t it? John is just really blunt. He’s an apostle of love, and he says, But people can be liars. Some people would say, Well, that’s not a loving thing to say. In John’s mind, it was because it got their attention. It is amazing the answers we get to the question of how we know if people are Christians or not. How do we know they’re ready to become Christians? When I was getting my master’s degree in Bible at the Harding School of Theology in Memphis many moons ago, one course had us go around to about 80 different churches in the city. If you know anything about Memphis, there’s a church on every corner and there’s a church in the middle of the block, too. It’s amazing. Some of them have a church on this corner. On the opposite corner is a liquor store. But anyway, I don’t know what that says. But our job was to go and interview the staff and say, Well, how do people become Christians? And how are they members of your church?

It was amazing. I went to over 60 churches. I still think I have the note somewhere. I think I got 58 different answers. It went on all the time. All you have to do is believe. You got to pray this prayer. They were raised in the church and they come every Sunday, so they must be okay. Their parents are these. They’re so well known. They’re following their parents. They’re good. They give their time. They serve people. There was a comic who a long time ago had a skit, and he said, when asked the child, What about things? And the answer was, I don’t know. I don’t know. When I came from there and asked the question, How do you know? I said I don’t know. Why? Because they were all over the place. In 1 John 2, verses 1 and 2, we’re not going to have it for the sake of time. It makes it clear that we’re sinners. We never get to the point where we’re not sinners. But Jesus is the Savior and he’s here to save us and the whole world. Okay? Yes, we hope the hope would be we wouldn’t be sinners, but the fact is that we are sinners and still need a savior.

We’re all messed up. As one scholar said, the best of us is a mess. And all of us need a savior. But how do we know that we’ve really accepted him? How do we know if someone is ready to be baptized into Jesus Christ? Is it just an agreement with a doctrine? How do we determine whether someone who claims to be a Christian is really a Christian? John makes it clear right here. This is how we know whoever claims Jesus must walk as he did. Follow his commands. That’s why this once saved, always saved is trash. You can’t be living in sin and claim to follow Jesus. See, love and obedience go together because true love endures and stays and finds a way to obey. Finds a way to obey when we don’t feel like obeying. Have you ever felt like not obeying? I do it all the time. When it goes against the grain, you’re going to be a weirdo. When it seems countercultural and everybody else is doing it. When it is hard, love finds a way to obey. Love will figure it out. Mere belief will just give up. Just a little aside, Tony has given several lessons over the last month, last week’s lesson, as well as the ones before about the Good Samaritan.

I recommend going back to our YouTube channel and listening to him again. They are deep and challenging, but most of all, they’re set out of love so that we can follow Jesus. So that’s just a little aside. We don’t know the depth of preaching we get here sometimes and the depth of what it can do for us. When someone is considering becoming a Christian and counting the cost of their personal commitment to Jesus, I have often heard it said, or maybe even people think, people should not have to jump through hoops to become a Christian. That’s true. No hoops to jump through. But just as the Apostle John writes here, if they’re not willing to be obedient to what they do know, they are not ready to be baptized. Are they worshiping with the body of Christ, the Church? Are they engaging face-to-face with the disciples? If not, how can they understand the life-altering commitment of joining the body of Christ? It’s not hoops. It’s so they can count the cost. Are they trying to read the Bible for themselves and pray? If not, how can they be close to God?

How can they get to know him? And the same for all of us who have been around a while. How can we know who isn’t a Christian if they obey commands? And we’re not talking about perfection. Remember, Jesus knows and John knows we’re sinners, we’re going to fail. And that’s why Jesus has to be the center. It’s not our performance. But we cannot be afraid of facing this truth, and we cannot water it down no matter what anyone, no matter what our culture says around us. This is how we know. But why the standard? Because our life is to be close to God and have fellowship with Him. We cannot be near Him if we’re not walking with Him. And so the challenge is don’t water it down. It doesn’t matter how many people are in the church. What matters is how many people have become disciples. The next couple will be shorter. But you know this, 1 John 3, verse 10, this is how we know. I love that phrase. This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are. I don’t think I’ve ever heard anybody call me a child of the devil.

May have thought it, but I don’t think I’ve ever said it. Anyone who does not do what is right is not God’s child, nor is anyone who does not love their brother or sister. What? In case you didn’t get it, you had to follow up in verse 16. That’s verse 10. This is how we know what love is. Jesus Christ laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. Jesus himself said this in John 13. He says A new commandment, not a new suggestion. Not a good new idea. But a new commandment I give you, love one another just as I’ve loved you. He all you could do is stop there and I’d go, I failed. To love as Jesus loves. By this, all men will know you’re my disciples. Discipleship is more than believing facts about Jesus or having a few doctrines, or having a few nice songs to listen to. It has shown in how we love others. See, we live in a culture of individualism, and self-sufficiency, and that can infiltrate the church.

People say they can worship God on their own without the church. I can worship God on the beach. Oh, yeah, you can do that. But that’s not what God said. The pandemic has led people to say they can worship God at home because it’s easier. I don’t have to get up and get ready. More common may be that someone can attend church on Sundays but have no time for anyone else for the rest of the week. Yeah, John is clear that if we’re not loving our brothers and sisters, we do not belong to the faith. It is harder, it is. It is harder to be involved with people rather than just enjoy the music and someone who can get up and inspire us. It’s a lot harder. Why? Because the church is made up of a bunch of sinners of which I’m the worst. But true Christianity is another way of life. We are called to lay down our lives for each other. The standard is what Jesus did. He left heaven. Think about it. He left heaven, and perfection, and came, lived, and died. We go through the good times and the hard times.

We’re there when it takes time, energy, and effort. Love when people are unlovable and maybe a lot very annoying to us, too. Love when they hurt you. This is laying down your life for the brothers and sisters. Now, he’s not saying this is easy or convenient. And this is another lesson I know I need to be reminded of all the time. You see, sometimes when my phone rings, the text comes or whatever, my first reaction is, I’m too tired, I’m too busy, don’t want to talk to them. I’ve tried, etc. So I don’t answer. Sometimes I don’t respond. Yes, I may not have responded to you. I forgive. Please forgive me. But that’s my sinful nature coming back. But I thank God for the scriptures and how it teaches me to love when I am tired when I am busy. I also have Pat, who’s a constant reminder of one, and one who is willing to challenge me. That’s why you have to marry well, everyone. Who you marry can determine whether you get to heaven or not. But she’s willing to go there and challenge my attitude and call me back to Jesus and then keep reminding me to make sure I’ve done it.

Now, I’m irritated at her usually, but that shows how much she loves me. I’m thankful for the elders and their example and their encouragement, and what they’re willing to do. Tony, encourages and pushes and gives goals, not only to me but to the rest of the staff. I would not naturally lay down my life beyond a certain point. I might give a point, but only a certain point. That’s not like Jesus. And what’s one of the biggest obstacles in loving our way? We are way too busy. We’re busy with activities. We’re busy on our devices. Our schedules are crammed with things to do, and places to go yet. John says, Loving others, especially brothers and sisters is not optional if we want to know Jesus. If you’re like me, I need to be intentional with this. Why? If I wait until I am free or wait until it’s easy, it’ll never happen. It’s a decision I have to make. Why make that decision? Because it is a command of Jesus. And to be in him, I need to be following his commands. Two quick points and then it’s time to shut up. First John 5, verses 2-5, This is how we know that we love the children of God.

It’s like this is how we know. Do you notice that said over and over again? This is how we know that we love the children of God by loving God and carrying out His commands. Wait a second. I thought you were talking about loving your brothers. He said it starts with God loving God and carrying His commands. In fact, this is love for God to keep His commands. His commands are not burdensome. For everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. Who is that overcomes the world? Only the one who believes that Jesus is the son of God. You see, the gospel is a being in God. It’s a message of victory. Who doesn’t o doesn’t like to win? Raise your hand. I like to win. I like to win in dominoes. I like to win in the cards. I used to play basketball, I like to win in basketball. I like to win. We all like to win. Well, guess what? If you’re in Jesus, you’re a winner. Now, Satan will try to defeat us and he’ll try to say, No, you’re not.

He’ll send discouragement. He will send problems in our marriage. He makes sure our schedules are so full because we don’t say no. He’ll send us messages about our past, the temptation to sin, and so many other weapons. Yet if we hold on to the faith that John’s talking about, he says we can be victorious. And guess what? Following God will not be a burden. That’s how you know you’ve passed from death to life when God’s commands are no longer a burden, but they’re a way to joy. And that’s also how we show we really love God and love our brothers and sisters. And he says in 1 John 5 verse 13, I write you these things, you who believe in the name of a son of God, so that you may know you have eternal life. I know too many disciples that are questioning whether they will get to heaven. Am I saved? It says you can know. You can know in full assurance. As long as you’re close to God, dealing with sin, loving God, following in his commands, loving the brothers and sisters, and having Jesus as the center of your life, you can know.

That’s not pride. That’s just reality. That’s a fact. It’s not a boost. See, we can be sure of our salvation. Think about how liberating and exciting this is. How do we respond? Well, 1 John 3 says, Well, all who have this hope of becoming like him, purify themselves just as he is pure. So that’s why we admit sin, confess sin, and do what it takes to avoid or overcome sin. God wants us to purify ourselves so we can see him and become like him on the last day. I know I have to always pray and deal with my anger and lust or impurity and materialism and so many other things. We are daily called that. That’s what I appreciate. In 2 Corinthians 3, it says, Every day we change from one degree of glory into another into the image of Christ. That means you don’t make this giant leap. You’re not like Jesus right away. You just take one step at a time, one degree of glory to another. It’s a little step, and then sometimes you have to go back, but then you have to keep on going. We can be sure of our salvation.

See, John wanted his friends to know, and Pat and I want everyone to know it’s worth all the sacrifice and worth all the obedience. Joys will be greater and the satisfaction of a life well lived is greater when we know it’s all worth it. We can know Jesus and we can know that our eternal life is not just for heaven. Remember, eternal life is not heaven. Eternal life starts the day you’re baptized as you grow into one degree of glory into another. We do it by learning to love the Father, love the Son, love our brothers and sisters, and keep his commands. We want to thank everyone. We’re so proud of this church. We are proud of Tony and his leadership. Just to let you know that people all around the world… I mean, around the United States, we go and they ask where we’re from, we go, Broward Church. And they go, Oh, we’ve been watching this. We’ve been watching your music. We’ve been watching the lessons. I mean, Delaware, Baltimore, all these places that people are watching us all over the place. That never would have happened if I led the church. I can barely turn on my computer, much less get people to do all the video stuff.

People all around the world are watching. And as Jesus said in Matthew 5, we’re a city set on the hill, and we’re to draw all men to glorify God. I just want to end with one passage of Scripture, and then we’ll have prayer for Communion. This is my hope. This is my charge. 1 Corinthians 16, verses 13-14, be on your guard. Stay firm in the faith. Be courageous. Be strong, but do everything in love.