Become a Creator today!Start creating today - Share your story with the world!
Start for free
00:00:00
00:00:01
We Can Know the Father Personally (1 John 2:13-14)
18 Plays2 months ago
Sunday Message recorded 08 December 2024
by Senior Pastor Victor Morrison
First Baptist Church - Columbus, TX, USA
1700 Milam St.
Columbus, TX, USA 78934
Recommended
Transcript
Humorous Christmas Program Memories
00:00:06
Speaker
Wow, good morning. I have already been blessed so much. Thank you so much for the great singing. Children, thank you so much. Wow, you're so far ahead. When I was in Canada, we did a Christmas program. And I remember when it came time for the angels to speak to the shepherds, they were going to come out of the side door like that. And the angels got their wings stuck. And so they were We saw angels fighting right in front of us. And so anyway, you guys did great sounded good. Your message was so spot on. And so thank you so much for sharing that with us. We're so thankful for our children's ministry and all the things that are going on.
Introduction to 1 John
00:00:47
Speaker
Would you open God's word? It's way over in the New Testament, sort of toward the end. It's the small letter of 1 John. Appreciated Josh opening up our Christmas season last week by sharing with us 1 John chapter 1 verses 1 through 4. And I really enjoyed that message.
00:01:07
Speaker
And so today, I pray that God would speak to us about why He came. Because He came, what is the difference? What has changed simply because He came?
Christianity: Relationship over Religion
00:01:19
Speaker
Well, because He came, we can know the Father personally. Do you realize that Christianity is really, it's not a religion. It's a relationship. It's a relationship with God the Father through His Son, Jesus Christ.
00:01:35
Speaker
Christmas is proof that the Father cares about us. Here's what it says in John 3 16. I know that some of the children even have memorized this verse, but it says for God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son. That's what it's all about.
00:01:52
Speaker
You know, because Jesus came, we can know the Father personally. You know, Jesus said to the Father in a prayer that is found in John, not first John, but in the Gospel of John chapter 17 verse 3, and this is eternal life that they know you.
00:02:13
Speaker
the only true God and Jesus Christ whom you sent. That's found in John 17 verse three.
Paul's Prayer for New Christians
00:02:20
Speaker
If you were to look in Hebrews chapter one verse three, it says that Christ is the radiance of the glory of God, the exact imprint of his nature. So when Jesus came, he was revealing to us the Father. He was showing us what is God like.
00:02:40
Speaker
All you have to do is study the life of Jesus and the words of Jesus and you'll know. That's why the Apostle Paul, when he was praying for new believers, for new Christians, some of you are new in the faith. We're so thankful for you. If you have not yet trusted Christ, we're glad you're here. I hope that this will be a place where you can study and investigate, do your own research, and find out how much that God loves you.
00:03:04
Speaker
But a man named Paul was writing to new Christians in Ephesians 1.17, and he was praying for them. He was telling them, how do I pray for you? One of the ways that he would pray for those that had come to know the Lord, he said that God would give you the spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him.
00:03:23
Speaker
You see, God wants us to know who He is. Colossians 1.10 says that we should be praying for others that they would constantly be increasing in the knowledge of God. Have you ever dozed off in a message? Don't raise your hand. It'll be embarrassing. um It's okay. we We play this again on the evening news. So anybody that sleeps, we put it, I'm kidding. We don't do that.
00:03:50
Speaker
But there was a guy named Philip that seemed like he dozed off, like when Jesus was talking in John 14, 1 through 6. And ah Philip, he must have just kind of been thinking about something else, and he wasn't thinking about what was just said in John 14, 1 through 7. And so what he says was, he says, look, just show us the Father. Just show us the Father, and that's enough. And Jesus calls Philip out on it, and he says, whoever has seen me, has seen the Father. Isn't that amazing? See, that's what Jesus came for, to show us what the Father was like. That's why he went on to say, how can you say show us the Father to Philip? He explained to Philip that he is in the Father and the Father is in him. He notes that his words that he would speak, they were not from his own authority, they were the Father's. The Father was working through Jesus' life and ministry.
Another Christmas Program Anecdote
00:04:50
Speaker
There was enough ample evidence for Philip to know what God the Father was like just by hanging around Jesus. If you think about it, all of the Christmas narratives that we enjoy reading, I'll never forget one time, we were trying to make it real. So we'd say, let's have a children's program. So that's when the angels got stuck coming out the side door. But the real funny one was whenever the shepherds, they started reading the the passage in Luke where it talks about the shepherds. So then they were only supposed to walk in. There were three shepherds.
00:05:25
Speaker
And so the last shepherd named Bradley took off his belt and he started whipping the shepherd in front of him saying, own own dasher, own donder. And he was I was like, what in the world is happening? It's it's going to be a disaster.
00:05:40
Speaker
But if you read the scripture, it'll give you the accurate record that there were angels, there were shepherds, there was a star, there were wise men. And when Joseph, when he had a dream, the angel spoke to him, he said, his name will be Emmanuel, speaking of Jesus, which means God with us, something very unique and special was happening when Jesus was born. You know, that's why the angel explained to Mary that Jesus would be the son of the Most High.
00:06:10
Speaker
But you know, first John is a short letter.
Knowing the Father through 1 John
00:06:14
Speaker
It's a short letter that I think is very important to us. And one thing we find in there is this word no, to know, K-N-O-W. Even being from Tennessee, I can spell that one. But jesus Jesus wants us to know who he is. And he came so we would know who his father is. And so 40 times that word no is mentioned in 1 John. It's mentioned several times in the Gospel of John.
00:06:42
Speaker
But I've selected three passages this morning from 1 John that I would like for us to look at, because I think they underscore the importance of knowing the Father, and that's why Jesus came. So would you stand in honor of God's word? I would like to read these passages. The first one is found in 1 John, chapter 2, verses 12 through 14. I am writing to you, little children, because your sins are forgiven for his name's sake.
00:07:12
Speaker
I'm writing to you, fathers, because you know Him who is from the beginning. I'm writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one. I write to you, children, because you know the Father. I write to you, fathers, because you know Him who is from the beginning. I write to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one.
00:07:42
Speaker
Now, if you would go to chapter three, let me read verses one through three, which once again, it talks about those who don't know the father in this case, see what kind of love the father has given to us that we should be called the children of God. And so we are the reason why the world does not know us.
00:08:04
Speaker
is that it did not know him. Because we are God's children now and what we will be has not yet appeared, but we know that when he appears,
00:08:18
Speaker
we shall be like him because we shall see him as he is. And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure. And one last one is in chapter five and verse 20. Chapter five and verse 20 says, and we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding so that we may know him who is true. And we are in him who is true in his son, Jesus Christ. He is the true God.
00:08:56
Speaker
and eternal life. Let's pray together. Oh, Lord, we love Christmas. I'm so glad that Christmas is all about Jesus. And so, Lord, help us this Christmas not to lose that focus. There are so many things that come on the radar at this time of the year. But that's one thing that ought to be our anchor. It ought to be that what we're focusing on and thinking about constantly. is how great your love is for us and how you have displayed for us so clearly who the Father is. And so speak to us this day. Help us to be ready for Christmas. In Jesus name we pray. Amen. Thank you. You may be seated.
00:09:40
Speaker
I believe that these verses give us five principles related to knowing the Father personally. Knowing the Father personally through Jesus Christ. Don't miss the significance of Christmas and the coming of Christ in Bethlehem because the significance is this personal relationship that you and I can have through Christ with the Father.
Christ's Mission to Reveal the Father
00:10:04
Speaker
So real quickly, let me look at verse 20. Let's just start where I ended and we'll go backwards, okay? It's kind of a backwards way of doing things, but I love 1 John verse five chapter 5 and verse 20 because it reminds us that Christ came for this purpose.
00:10:21
Speaker
that we could know the Father. That's what it tells us in verse 20. You know that word there, so that? It's one Greek word, hena. It means a term of purpose. The purpose of Christ's coming is stated after that, that we may know Him. Do you know who God is? Do you know the Father? Do you know what He's like?
00:10:46
Speaker
You know, knowing God is a gift from Christ. Did you catch that in verse 20? And we know that the Son of God has come and has here comes, has given, has given us, but also knowing God requires discernment. And so that's why we need what Christ can give to us that we don't have ourselves in the flesh. We need discernment. We need this knowledge that comes from Him. We need understanding, it says.
00:11:14
Speaker
So the gift is He's come, He's given us understanding why, so that we may know Him, so that we may know Him. You see, knowing God involves more than intellect and information.
00:11:32
Speaker
It involves interaction. It's that personal relationship. It's that God intentionally said, I want you to know what I'm like. There's no excuse for not knowing what God is like. And so that's why I think it's so important for us to study the life of Jesus and to learn about his life. You know, this verse alone shares with us one glimpse of who God is. Look at verse 20. What is mentioned three times? It's almost like the father's saying, don't miss this. It's really important. What is the father like? I'll tell you what he's like. He's true. It says it three times. He's true.
00:12:12
Speaker
If you don't know anything else about God, He is not going to lie to you. He is not going to be deceptive. He's going to tell you the truth. That's so important in this day in which we live to know who is trustworthy, who's being honest with me, who's being genuine and real. I'll tell you who it is.
00:12:32
Speaker
It's God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit. The Spirit of God is called the Spirit of Truth. So the Spirit of Truth is pointing to the Son, and the Son is pointing to the Father, and He's saying, you know what? He is so true. Let me read the verse one more time before we go to chapter three. And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding so that we may know Him, here it comes, who is true.
00:13:00
Speaker
And we are in Him who is true in His Son, Jesus Christ. He is the true God in eternal life. Probably even our children are old enough to know that not all other children tell them the truth. Some people in this world will tell you a lie, but the one person in the universe that I want to establish that you can trust, you can trust God, you can trust Him. So let down the bongo drums, put them down and just let God just speak to you. He wants to tell you who He is.
00:13:32
Speaker
Well, first, Christ came, I believe, for the purpose so that we could know the Father. Secondly, though, you'll have to go to chapter 3, and I want us to look at verse 1 to begin with. Christ came because something is preventing, something is preventing us from getting to know who the Father is.
Obstacles to Knowing God
00:13:52
Speaker
What is it? What's standing in the way?
00:13:54
Speaker
Well, if you were to study through the New Testament, especially, but even the Old Testament, there's three things that stand in the way between us and God and and helping us get a clear picture of who He is. One is the devil. The second one is the world. And the third one is the flesh. All three of those are going to tell you the lie. But remember, God says, I'm going to tell you the truth. And so let's look at verse one, see what kind of love the Father has given to us.
00:14:23
Speaker
that we should be called children of God, and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him. You ever feel misunderstood as a Christian? You feel like, don't you know I'm bringing you the greatest message that could ever be delivered to anyone? And sometimes the world says, I don't want to hear that. I don't want to hear about God. I don't want to hear about the Bible.
00:14:49
Speaker
And it's like, wait a minute, I'm bringing you the message that your creator cares about you. God loves you. But some people don't want to hear it. And so that's why I say, well, the world is just incredible in the way that it wants to prevent us from knowing the Father.
00:15:08
Speaker
But you know, it says there's an amazing display of the Father's love in every Christian, because in every Christian, you know, you can sometimes see when you look at a son, you can see his daddy, you can look in ah in ah a mother, you can see the mother, but there's things about us, even mannerisms that we pick up from our parents.
00:15:31
Speaker
Well, it's kind of like that with God. See what kind of love the Father has given to us. You know that word see there means look at it. Don't miss it. You know, there's a dazzling view of God's love if you will look at the body of Christ. Are we perfect? No, we're not perfect. We're broken. But you know what? You can still see the Father's love, His redemptive love in us, an amazing display of the Father's love, but also there's a dazzling distraction away from the Father's love.
00:16:06
Speaker
You see, the world does not know us because it does not know God. He doesn't know him. So that's why we have to tell them. John 1.10 says, as a matter of fact, whenever Jesus was born in Bethlehem, when he grew up and became a man, began to teach, began to live before the people. Here's what it says in John 1.10, he was in the world And the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him." Isn't that amazing? It's like he made everything here, and yet when he came, it's like, who are you who are you to come and tell me what to do? You see, in Matthew chapter 2, remember the wise men? They saw the star, so they knew that the Messiah had come. So they went over to Jerusalem, and they're looking for him. Where where do we go? Where do we find him?
00:16:58
Speaker
And so they had to meet with some of these wise men to try to find out. But there was a king named Herod, and he's just like so many. And Herod was like, I don't want there to be another king other than me.
00:17:11
Speaker
And I think that's why it's so many in the world, the world system says we don't want God to reign over us, do we? We want to control things. So everybody follows along just like a little Herod and we're saying we don't want another king, we want to be king. So that's what happens.
00:17:32
Speaker
You know, later in 1 John, I encourage you to read it on your own. 1 John 2, verses 15 and 16 and 17 tells us, why does the world not see God? Why does the world not even know God?
00:17:47
Speaker
Well, it says because of the desires of the flesh, the desires of the eye and the pride of life, the distraction, distraction with sex, the distraction with security, distraction with success. And where does it all lead? Lead. It leads to shame. And that's why the world says, I'm not going to step over in that light. I'm going to stay over here in the darkness.
00:18:13
Speaker
You know, John 15, 21 says, but all these things they will do to you on account of my name because they do not know him who sent me. Those are Jesus words. He's trying to explain how come Christians are rejected by society sometimes. It's because they don't know the Father and they don't know Jesus. But once they come to know the Father through Jesus, they totally change.
00:18:41
Speaker
Well, let's move on to a third thing that verse two says in first John chapter three, verse two tells us something else.
The Second Coming of Jesus
00:18:48
Speaker
It tells us that Jesus didn't just come once as a baby to be born in Bethlehem. He's going to come a second time as king. See the first time.
00:19:00
Speaker
He came to die on the cross for our sins, but he's not coming to die on the cross next time. Next time he's coming to be the king, he's coming to wear a crown. And so 1 John chapter 3 verse 2 says, beloved, we are God's children now and what we will be has not yet appeared, but we know that when he appears, we shall be like him because we shall see him as he is.
00:19:29
Speaker
I love that because it reminds us the pinnacle. The pinnacle of knowing God is not today. No, i I know that many of you have been walking with the Lord longer than I have. You've walked with the Lord deeper than I have, and you know Him better than I do. So I know that this day we're all at different places, okay? But here's the thing, on that day,
00:19:54
Speaker
when he comes back and we see him as he is, and we will become everything that God wants us to be. You see, you look at me and you say, he's so imperfect, I am. But you know what? There's coming a day when I'm gonna be transformed, when you're gonna be transformed, and we're gonna be so amazed at the pinnacle of what it's like to know God and then to be changed, to be just like him, to be just like, well, just like his son.
00:20:22
Speaker
But until then, you know what? we're We're going through training, aren't we? Training from spiritual rebirth. It says, beloved, we are God's children now. There are a couple of different Greek words that are used in 1 John. So we'll unpack those more at another time. But I just want you to know that now we're in training.
00:20:42
Speaker
But there's transforming that's going to happen into a spiritual image that we don't know fully yet. I mean, maybe you're really way out there ahead of me, but are you out there ahead of Jesus? None of us are. We're all still in process. We're all still in training. We're all being transformed. And that's what he's talking about.
00:21:03
Speaker
What we will be has not yet appeared being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another is what 2 Corinthians chapter 3 and verse 18 says. Do you know what God's number one goal is right now in your life, in my life? It's the same thing.
00:21:21
Speaker
If you're a believer, the number one thing he's working on, and he's gonna arrange all of your circumstances. Romans 8, 28 says you know that all things work together for good to those who love him, who are called according to his purpose, but we stop there. If we just went one verse further, we would see what is his definition of good. It's not always our comfort, it's not always our health, it's not always our success. You know what his definition of kind of good is?
00:21:49
Speaker
is that we would be like a son, because the next verse says to be conformed to the image of his son. So when you quote Romans 8.28, just don't forget Romans 8.29, because that's what God's working on right now. But this day that he's talking about in 1 John 3.2 out there in the future, there's coming a day when all my flaws and all your flaws, all of our weak spots and blind spots,
00:22:16
Speaker
They're going to be done away with in Christ that day when we're transformed totally. So we're going to be transitioning to a spiritual dimension we don't even understand right now, but it really exists. We know that when he appears, we shall be like him because we shall see him as he is. Wow. I just think that's so important that we realize that this is not it. Sometimes we think this is it. No, this is not it.
00:22:45
Speaker
Whenever he comes back, that's going to be it. But fourthly, I think Christ came also to improve our lives, to develop our lives, to purify our lives so that we become, you know, the Bible says that God is holy and so we should become holy like he is. We've got a long way to go. We all admit that. But are we are we moving toward that goal?
00:23:08
Speaker
1 Peter 1, 15, and 16 says, but as he who calls you is holy, you will also be holy in all your conduct. You know 2 Peter 1, 3, and 4 says that all of God's resources, they are all there available to escape the corruption that is in the world. And how does it happen in 2 Peter 1, 3, and 4?
00:23:31
Speaker
through the true knowledge of him who loved us. As we see him, as we get to know him, we will grow more in holiness and purity. It says in verse three, and everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.
00:23:50
Speaker
You know, James 4.8 says, three times it gives imperative imperatives. Imperatives are commands. Here's what it says, draw near to God and he will draw near to you. c Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts. You double-minded. Wow.
00:24:09
Speaker
You know, but biblical scholars tell us that the shepherds were somewhat of outcasts. They didn't have good reputations, so they weren't always welcomed in certain circles. But you know what? Everything changed for one band of shepherd brothers when they were told that a savior had been born and placed in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger. And what they said was, this is good news of great joy that'll be for all people.
00:24:39
Speaker
That's for you. That's for me. But He wants to improve us. He wants us to grow and become more like Him. Let me close with one last thing.
Journey to Spiritual Maturity
00:24:48
Speaker
Fifth, because He came, we can enter a process in knowing the Father. I don't know if you caught it when I was reading it earlier in 1 John chapter 2 verses 12, 13, and 14. But it's so clear that there's this process that we go through. And it's okay if you're at any of these spiritual stages of maturity. But what's really important is that you're making progress in the process. Are you moving? It says little children. It says young men and seasoned fathers. You see, the little children are so fascinated. My sins are forgiven. And so they're focused on forgiveness.
00:25:31
Speaker
the young men that are maturing. And it says men, but I think it could be women as well. But the the young ones that are growing in the Lord are overcoming the devil. And so maybe they're focused on the fight, on standing for good things and godly things and and holy things in society. But the seasoned fathers, what are they focused on? Knowing the father. They're focused on faith.
00:25:58
Speaker
You know, the process seems to feature and highlight one characteristic of God as it goes through each one. I thought about this, the more I studied 1 John 2 verses 12 through 14, I thought, what is it really saying about God Himself? And here's what I came up with. Whenever it says that He's forgiven us for His namesake, I think that we begin by being amazed that He is so gracious.
00:26:25
Speaker
Is God gracious? He is so gracious to forgive us our sins. But also I think we can be amazed as we continue to grow, as we continue to spiritually mature, He is also so victorious. He can help us in those sin battles.
00:26:42
Speaker
He can help us overcome the evil one. So we're amazed that He is so victorious. But then also, I think whenever it says that the fathers are those who know, they know God the Father from the beginning, who was from the beginning. I think they're amazed that He is so glorious. Do you know that God existed before you did, before I did, before anybody in this room did? God created it all, everything.
00:27:12
Speaker
So whenever we continue to grow and mature and develop in our faith, we begin to settle and we begin to say, you know what, I'm not going to panic over all the things that are going on in my life that I can't control because God had a purpose and his purpose was that I would know who he was. There were preventions that were trying to block me from getting to know God.
00:27:35
Speaker
But He overcame them in Christ. And the pinnacle of knowing who He is, someday He's coming back for me. He's coming back for you. Someday you'll see Him face to face. What will that be like to stand before the Lord, God, our Creator and our Redeemer? But He also wants us to continue to grow in purity, in holiness, growing in being more like Christ.
00:28:01
Speaker
but it is a process. And so in that process, we get to know God deeper and deeper. So let me ask you, as you get ready to go through the final weeks of this year,
00:28:14
Speaker
have you Have you really increased in knowing who God is? Or are you still at the same place? It's not a treadmill. We should be on a journey. We should be making traction. You should know more about God this year than you did last year. And hopefully next year, you'll know more as you go through that year about who He is than you did this year. I love the story of 2 Samuel chapter nine, verses three through seven.
00:28:44
Speaker
because it tells the story of when David became the king, and there was another man that was King Saul, and he had a son named Jonathan, and Jonathan had a son. But unfortunately, David's friend Jonathan was killed in battle. But before he died, Jonathan and David made a covenant, and he agreed. And they made a covenant, and the covenant was, will you watch after my family when I'm gone, if I die? And David said, yes, I will. And sure enough, Jonathan was killed.
00:29:14
Speaker
But you know, because of the covenant, whenever David became the king, Jonathan is no more. And David said, don't we have like, did a Jonathan have any children? And they said, yes, he does have a son named Mephibos yet. And he says, where is he? Well, he's living over there in Lodovar. Kind of sound like a low play, Lodovar. He's kind of over there in Lodovar. He feels rejected. He feels unloved and so forth.
00:29:43
Speaker
And David said, I remember the covenant that I made with his father. And so David said, send the chariot, and I want Mephibosheth to be brought here. And so when Mephibosheth was brought to the palace, he felt so unworthy. And so he bowed down before the king. He thought, I don't deserve to be here. Really, you should put me to death. That's what most kings would do whenever they became king. They would take care of any of the descendants of the previous king.
00:30:13
Speaker
But instead, David said, Mephibos, I'm going to restore everything your family had. I'm going to let you sit at my table because I want you to be with me the whole time. You know, really, when you think about it, it's like it's almost like this foreshadow of the father and his son, Jesus.
00:30:35
Speaker
You know, really the covenant of our salvation, we we tend to think it's our covenant and it should be, I mean, we personalize it. But here's the thing I think, I think really the covenant is between the Father and the Son.
00:30:49
Speaker
And the father looks at the son and his sacrifice and he says, I will be faithful to you. And so anybody that's under your house, anybody that's under your blood, I will forgive them. I will take care of them. They will be welcome at my table and they will be welcome in my house.
00:31:08
Speaker
And so that's why whenever we trust in Jesus, it's like we're suddenly open to the the covenant between God the Father and God the Son. So I encourage you to get to know the Father through this Christmas season, but you'll only get to know Him through the Son.
00:31:30
Speaker
That's why each time we close, I close with an invitation. We sing a song, but during the song, I stand down front. And if there's anyone who doesn't know Jesus Christ, anyone who's never trusted Him, anyone who's never surrendered to Him, had all their sins forgiven like we were talking about, they're not getting to know who God the Father is. Then we give an opportunity during that song. That's why we call it the invitation song.
00:32:00
Speaker
I'm not giving the invitation as much as it is the Father. I'm giving it in Jesus' name on the Father's behalf. I just want you to know God loves you so much and God is inviting you to enter his family through the covenant that is between his son and him. So would you stand with me? Let's have a prayer. Let's ask God to speak the very best Christmas you could ever imagine would happen if you came to personally know Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. Because then, for the rest of your life and for the rest of eternity, you're going to be on an incredible journey of getting to know who God is, God the Father. Let's pray together. Lord, please bless our time of imitation.
00:32:44
Speaker
I thank you so much for how we can sing a song and during the song we extend the invitation that comes from you because I know that when you spoke to the shepherds you said they were welcome to come to you and so please oh lord Draw us to yourself. I pray today for that one that's still outside of all of this, the one that doesn't know Jesus, the one who's still under a load of their sins. They feel the weight. They know they've done things wrong. And so please, oh God, I pray that they they would come to Jesus today as Lord and Savior and watch their sins be rolled away
00:33:25
Speaker
and that they would begin to get to know who God is. So bless our time of invitation as we sing this song together. In Jesus' name we pray, amen.
00:33:39
Speaker
This is a ministry of First Baptist Church, located at 1700 Milam Street, Columbus, Texas.