The Big Little Word

November 3, 1991 PM

1 John 1:1-10

[Leading into Holy Communion]

Introduction

Salvation is God's work. It is all of grace, and there is nothing of our own works or merit that we can do to save ourselves. That is a truism in modern evangelical Christian faith. I agree.

But in the grace of God, somehow God has made it possible for us to respond to His grace. Do you remember the prayer attributed to St. Augustine: Our will is ours, we know not how; our will is ours to make it Thine. (Augustine ?)

Our choices in the matter of salvation are underscored here in the opening paragraphs of I John, underscored by the use of the little word "if." He writes IF WE SAY, and IF WE CONFESS, and IF WE WALK, as well as others (IF WE SIN, IF WE ABIDE.)

I. IF WE SAY

There is always some danger in talking when we are around God. The biggest danger is that while we are talking we can't be listening. We need to hear what God has to say about us.

  1. One possibility of choice in salvation is to say that we know more about ourselves than anyone, even God.

    If we say we have not sinned— or,

    If we say that we have no sin— and here John is talking about people who are into MAKING CLAIMS, and being defensive, instead of HEARING WHAT GOD SAYS about their condition.

    Everyone has sinned. Everyone is born with a bent to sin. Even Christians need daily grace for coming short. (Hamartia)

  2. But just saying doesn't make it so:

    If we say we have fellowship with God we had better be sure that the will of God is precious to us! There is no fellowship with God outside the revealed will of God.

II. IF WE CONFESS

  1. One possibility of choice in salvation is to agree with whatever God has to say about us in our sin and shortcoming.

    Confession is more than signing a statement when you are arrested and caught red-handed. Confession is living in absolute openness before God.

  2. THERE IS GREAT CLEANSING POWER IN A LIFE OF CONFESSION and openness before God. God does not wring confession out of us in order to gloat over our inferior position. But He asks us to open our hearts and lives to His cleansing. God does not violate our personality, and will not perform an unwanted forgiveness and cleansing.
  3. Confession brings forgiveness and cleansing! It brings healing! It is truly GOOD for the soul! Jesus said on several occasions: "I came NOT to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance."

    Even as a small child growing up Nazarene I had problems with this one. We need to be very careful and clear in our definitions of sin. We dare not excuse what God never excuses. God never excuses any sin. But at the same time, we dare not make claims that the Bible does not support.

    Both sides of the Calvinist-Arminian debate are right: We can and must live every day above sin in this present world (Luke 1:75-76) while at the same time, we can and must pray the Lord's Prayer every day, "Forgive us our debts ... "

  4. If we do NOT confess . . .

III. IF WE WALK IN THE LIGHT

  1. Another aspect of choice is acting on what we believe to be God's will.

    God is very patient. But He is also true to His Word. If we walk in the light, we have fellowship (Enoch.) If we do not walk in the light, the light moves on and we are again in darkness.

    Obedience is essential to faith. - THE LIBERATING POWER OF ONE STEP

  2. Pilgrim's Progress is the best illustration I know:

    "Do you see that light?" " "I think I do!" "Follow it! Don't swerve to right or left!"

    [Perhaps a short quote here would be more effective]

[Transition:] This is all the "ifs" in chapter one. But wait a minute. There are more, very much connected with grace and salvation:

IV. IF WE SIN

And so they were saved, and lived happily ever after! No problems could sway them. No defeats. No ... no way! Our faith has to be lived out in the real world.

  1. God's grace is for the real world. Do we ever come short of God's Grace? And John has use of the big little word beyond an initial entering in or crisis.
  2. 'If we SIN, are we "out"? Must we begin all over? Are we no longer children of God?
    1. Not so! Look at some different scenarios:

      If we are enticed into sin suddenly If we have a besetting sin If we rationalize a sin and confess when we do NOT intend to quit

    2. If we sin, we have AN ADVOCATE. A representative. Jesus Christ cares. Jesus Christ is powerful. Jesus Christ is God Almighty! We only hurt ourselves if we refuse to bring our sin to Him. Sin persisted in will bring separation from the relationship!

V. IF WE LET GOD'S WORD LIVE IN US: ABIDE

2:24 "If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, YOU WILL ALSO ABIDE IN THE FATHER AND IN THE SON."

Coming to be "at home" with God and the things of God.

  1. Making the Word of God "at home" in our hearts. The ABIDING WORD. The "bottom line" of our faith is not simply a Word as we know it, but The Word of God, Jesus Christ, a PERSON! Friendship. This is so deeply profound! (excuse the redundancy!) The way to keep the Word resident is to treat Jesus with great reverence as the Person He is, but to seek to share life with Him.
  2. Practice the Presence.

    Thomas Kelly's "A Testament of Devotion": The heart of that book— seek to live in the Presence! If Jesus abides we will not lose the glow of our spiritual reality! When we trust other, lesser witnesses they will not only fail us, they will crush out the light in which we must walk to have fellowship with Christ. Faith is a dynamic reality, not a static point of arrival.

Conclusion

It seems so simple! Just walking in the light; just agreeing with Jesus. And it is really simple! Jesus is on your side, not against you!

For us this evening walking in the light means meeting with Jesus in the Sacrament of Holy Communion. This is a message that is real, not less than spoken words, but more.

Hymn #213 Grace Greater than Our Sin

Prayer of Consecration and Distribution of the Elements

Everyone is contaminated with sin, and everyone has sinned.

We are not sinners because we sin; we sin because we are sinners. There is that within our humanity that does not want to be subject to anyone, even to God. There is that which is inherent in our humanity that wants to be god to ourselves. That is the essence of sin.

People do not go to hell because of this "bent," at least not directly. God does not simply condemn us for being the way we were born. But when we agree with the sin within, and choose our way over God's way, and say these egregious things, then we not only have sin as a condition or state, but we have sin as rebellion against God, and sin as transgression of what we perceive God's will to be. The clear choice of self ahead of God is worthy of eternal damnation.

John's clear message here is: Don't be a fool! Agree with God! Don't make claims of sinlessness that will only separate you from hope of salvation!