That Is What We Are!

1 John 2:28-3:10
Key verse 3:1
“How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him.”

1.    Read 2:28-29

²⁸ And now, dear children, continue in him, so that when he appears we may be confident and unashamed before him at his coming.  ²⁹ If you know that he is righteous, you know that everyone who does what is right has been born of him. 

What does the author encourage children of God to do?

²⁸ And now, dear children, continue in Him, This is a continuing theme by Apostle John.  

‘remain in Him’ (John 15:5),’remain in them’ (24), ‘remains in you’ (27) or ‘abide’ (Gr. menein) means continued to stay in Jesus.

What happens when they continue in him? (28b) 

When we continue faithfully in relationship with God, we can be confident and unashamed before God when Christ comes. These two adjectives suggest opposing positions: one will either come into God's presence confident or one will come in shame. The "shame" that is spoken of here is the disgrace or rejection that unbelievers will experience when they come into judgment. And, in context, those who come into such "disgrace" are those who do not "abide."   

Who is born of Jesus and why? (29)

 ²⁹ If you know that he is righteous, you know that everyone who does what is right has been born of him. 

 First, the statement serves to remind readers that righteousness is not simply an intention or feeling, but is manifested in deed and truth. Righteousness is the responsibility of those privileged to be God's children. Second, righteous behavior provides confirmation (evidence) of our relationship with God. Righteous conduct itself does not make us God's children. Rather, such conduct is the consequence or the evidence of a relationship that already exists. "To do righteousness" means to "practice it as a pattern of life which comes from one's very character”.  

2.    Read 3:1-3. 

¹ How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. ² Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears,^{[ HYPERLINK "http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20john%202-3&version=NIV1984" \l "fen-NIV1984-30566e" \o "See footnote e" e]} we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. ³ Everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself, just as he is pure. 

2-1> What does the phrase, “lavished on us,” show about God’s love to us? (1)  

^“1 How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God!” 

God initiated this relationship and completed it by giving his only son on the cross although we do not deserve of it.  He has paid the full price for us to save us and make us his children. The word ‘lavish’ indicates how much he has spent (even sacrificing his one and only son on the cross) for the undeserving sinners.

2-2> Why does the author emphasize the identity of the children of God by saying, “And that is what we are!”? 

“And that is what we are!”  We are such precious and redeemed ones God has bought with the full price.  We should not forget about it.

2-3> Why does the world not know who the children of God are? (1b) 

The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him.  The world does not know God, so they can’t recognize us as the children of God.

2-4> What will we become when the Christ appears? (2)  

² Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.

We will be like Jesus and we can see Him as He is.  We will be transformed like Him. Amen.  We will recognize Him clearly without any questions as missionary Moses knew he met Jesus in his dream. 

2-5> What does everyone who has the hope in Jesus do? (3)

 ³ Everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself, just as he is pure. 

Everyone who has this hope in Him cannot continue in sinning, but purifies himself because he has a living hope.  The sinful life is a kind of expression of despair, or hopelessness.  Those who continue in sinning do not have hope and  in deep despair. They are the ignorant or the nihilist, who go on self destruction because they don’t have any hope.

3.    Read 3:4-6.

 ⁴ Everyone who sins breaks the law; in fact, sin is lawlessness. ⁵ But you know that he appeared so that he might take away our sins. And in him is no sin. ⁶ No one who lives in him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen him or known him. 

3-1> What is sin and what are people doing when they sin? (4)  

 ⁴ Everyone who sins breaks the law; in fact, sin is lawlessness.

Sinning is act of breaking the law and intentional disobedience against God.

3-2> What did the Christ do when he appeared? (5)

⁵ But you know that he appeared so that he might take away our sins. And in him is no sin.

When he appears he will purify us completely and take away our sins.  Because there is no sin in Him, He is not compatible with sin. 

3-3> Why can’t anyone who is in Jesus continue to sin? (5b-6)

 And in him is no sin. ⁶ No one who lives in him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen him or known him.

Continuing to sin is an evidence (or expression) that he has neither seen Jesus nor known Jesus because in him is no sin.  He does not have deep fellowship with Him and he does not care how owefully his sin makes Him grieve.

4.    3:7-10. 

 ⁷ Dear children, do not let anyone lead you astray. 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. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work. ⁹ 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. ¹⁰ 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. 

4-1> What does the author warn us to not do? (7a) 

⁷ Dear children, do not let anyone lead you astray.

So many young immature Christians were led astray by the false teaching.  So the Apostle John warned us not to go astray.  The world teaches the young people that sin is O.K, but it is not O.K.

4-2> Who is righteous? (7b) 

“He who does what is right is righteous, just as he is righteous.” (7b)

Simply He who does what is right is righteous, nothing else. No additional higher knowledge or other teaching is necessary to be righteous.

4-3> Who is of the devil? (8) 

⁸ He who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work.

 4-4> Why did the Son of God appear?  (8b)  

“The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work (8b).  The Son of God came to destroy the devil’s work.

If the devil is characterized by sinning, the Son of God is known by his coming to destroy the devil's work. This work is sin, for as righteousness characterizes God, the Son of God and the children of God, so sin characterizes the devil and the children of the devil. In fact, it is their sinning that marks them as the devil's children. Not only are the devil's sin and Jesus' sinlessness contrasted but so are their characteristic works: the devil sins, Jesus destroys the devil's works. Jesus tears down the edifice of sin that the devil builds up, and so frees people by transferring them to the realm where they abide in righteousness and in Jesus (3:6, 14). 

4-5> Why can’t anyone who is born of God continue to sin? (9) 

^“ 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 (9).”

The destruction of the devil's works of sin is so complete that we read a very bold statement in verse 9, No one who is born of God will continue to sin . . . he cannot sin (or go on sinning).  In reality, we sometimes commit to sin, but we can’t go on sinning without repentance if we are born of God. 

4-6>  How can we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are? (10)
¹⁰ 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. 

Two characteristics of the children of God are righteousness and love. If we don’t do what is right and do not love our brother, we are not the children of God.

PAGE  

PAGE  2