Author: drthomasclothier

“See what kind of love the Father has given to us 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. ² 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.³ And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.” (I John 3:1-3)

Along with the blessings of Jesus Christ delivering believers from the penalty and the power of sin, is also the blessing that Jesus Christ delivers believers eventually from the very presence of sin.

Today’s text begins with John setting a tone of wonder and awe that the church bask in the blessing of God’s love for sinners. That sinners in Christ, such as himself, are called the children of God is astonishing to the apostle and should also be to us. Being a child of God is not something yet future for the believer in Christ. It is a present reality and state of one’s being accomplished by God’s grace alone, through faith alone in the person and work of Jesus Christ alone.

John continues to say that the reason the fallen world does not understand our love for God is because it does not understand God’s love for the world. The Apostle Paul expressed the same thoughts in I Corinthians 2:14 which says, “The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned.”

Finally, John states that as believers in Christ are presently God’s children, we still have not become everything God has in mind. He will still deliver us from the very presence of sin. I John 3:2 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.”

Often people primarily focus on the physical changes that will occur when a believer in Christ is glorified. Our bodies which are perishable, dishonorable because of sin, weak and natural will be changed. Paul expressed this in I Corinthians 15:42-44 which says, “So is it with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown is perishable; what is raised is imperishable. ⁴³ It is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness; it is raised in power. ⁴⁴ It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body.

However, while not ignoring the significance of the believers’ bodily transformation, the Apostle John also has the Christian’s spiritual transformation in mind. The believer in Christ will be like Christ in holiness, righteousness and glory. The believer in Christ will no longer sin in thought, word or in behavior. Hallelujah!

With this mind, believers in Christ strive to be pure at the present time in order to increasingly mirror what they will be for all time. This striving for holiness (I Peter 1:16; Leviticus 11:44) is not pursued in order to obtain salvation, but rather out of gratitude for our salvation.

Take several moments throughout your day today to praise God and to pledge to Him your desire to be holy as He is holy. One of these days, when either He comes again or calls you home, you will be completely holy as He is. Hallelujah! What a Savior!

May the Lord’s truth and grace be found here.

Soli deo Gloria!

 

^“If you know that he is righteous, you may be sure that everyone who practices righteousness has been born of him.” (I John 2:29)

When children are asked the question in Sunday school, Vacation Bible School or even youth group, “Why did Jesus come to earth”? The answer usually and correctly given is, “To die on the cross in order to save us from our sins.”

However, that answer is only half correct for it only addresses the passive obedience of Christ while He was on the cross fulfilling the Father’s will. There is also an active obedience that Jesus fulfilled and that was in perfectly obeying the law of God throughout His life leading up to and including His crucifixion on the cross. It was Jesus’ active obedience in His life which qualified Him to be passively obedient by His death.

The Apostle John says that “He (Jesus Christ) is righteous. This means that Jesus Christ, in His being, is continually being in accordance to what God requires. This should not shock a believer because the Scriptures teach that Jesus Christ is God (John 1:1-2). It is this righteousness which God imputes to the believing sinner by grace alone, through faith alone in the person and work of Jesus Christ alone.

Dr. C. Sproul explains that, “The only righteousness that meets the requirements of the Law is the righteousness of Christ. It is only by imputation of that righteousness that the sinner can ever possess the righteousness of the Law. This is critical for our understanding in this day where the imputation of the righteousness of Christ is so widely under attack. If we abandon the notion of the righteousness of Christ, we have no hope, because the Law is never negotiated by God. As long as the Law exists, we are exposed to its judgment unless our sin is covered by the righteousness of the Law. The only covering that we can possess of that righteousness is that which comes to us from the active obedience of Christ, who Himself fulfilled every jot and tittle of the Law. His fulfilling of the Law in Himself is a vicarious activity by which He achieves the reward that comes with such obedience. He does this not for Himself but for His people. It is the background of this imputed righteousness, this rescue from the condemnation of the Law, this salvation from the ravages of sin that is the backdrop for the Christian’s sanctification, in which we are to mortify that sin that remains in us, since Christ has died for our sin.”

The believer in Christ evidences they have received Christ’s imputed righteousness as they practice Christ-like righteousness. These are they who truly display that they have been born of God.  

It can be correctly concluded that God not only delivers the sinner from the penalty of sin (justification), but He also delivers the believer from the power of sin (sanctification). The Apostle Paul writes in Philippians 1:6, “And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.” 

It is regarding that day which Paul spoke of which we will examine when next we meet. Until then, may the Lord’s truth and grace be found here.

Soli deo Gloria!     

“And now, little children, abide in him, so that when he appears we may have confidence and not shrink from him in shame at his coming.” (I John 2:28)

What do you do with your guilt? To begin with, what exactly is guilt? Guilt may be defined in two different categories.

First, there is objective guilt. This is when a person is guilty of breaking the law. Regardless of how the individual in question may feel, the objective reality is that they have broken the law and they stand guilty before a judge awaiting the penalty for their crime. They are at fault, they are to blame and they must bear the responsibility for their behavior.

Secondly, there is subjective guilt. This is the remorse the person in question feels about having broken the law. For example, they may be objectively guilty of failing to stop their vehicle at a stop sign. However, they may also feel subjective remorse and shame for having hit another car, which had the right of way, and causing pain and suffering for the other car’s occupants.

Back to our original question. What do you do with your guilt? Some people deny they have done anything wrong. Others bury their guilt and seek to place it in the remotest part of their brain. Still others seek to medicate their guilt away through drugs and alcohol. There are even those who seek to self-atone for their guilt by doing well on behalf of others.

What do I do with my guilt before the perfect law of God? This is the most important question each of us will ever ask. Dr. R. C. Sproul writes, “What do I do with my guilt before the perfect law of God?” is the most important question each of us will ever ask.”

The Gospel of Jesus Christ offers the only permanent and eternal solution to the problem of the individual’s guilt. It alone offers real forgiveness of sins. What specifically is the Gospel?

The Gospel of Jesus Christ sets forth the following truths. First, God Exists. Genesis 1:1; Isaiah 45; Second, Sin Exists. Sin is any lack of obedience or conformity to the person and character of God. Sin is a debt, a crime and estrangement from God.  Romans 3:9-20; 23; Ephesians 2:1-3. Third, Salvation Exists. Romans 3:21-26; Ephesians 2:4-10. Fourth and finally, One Savior Exists: Jesus Christ. Why Jesus Christ?

The blessing of abiding in Christ is because He has delivered the believer from the penalty of their sin. Meditate upon these following truths again concerning the sinless Son of God.

• Jesus Christ is the Sinless, Eternal Son of God – John 1:1-2; Colossians 1:15-18.
• Jesus Christ became man – John 1:14; Romans 1:1-3; Galatians 4:1-4; I John 4:1-2.
• Jesus Christ was born of a virgin – Matthew 1:18-25; Luke 1:26-38.
• Jesus Christ lived a sinless, righteous life for sinners – I John 1:5; I Timothy 6:13-16; James 1:17; 2 Corinthians 5:21; Hebrews 4:15.
• Jesus Christ died a substitutionary death on the cross for sinners – Isaiah 52:13-53:12; Romans 5:1-10; Galatians 3:1-14; Philippians 2:5-11.
• Jesus Christ resurrected bodily from the dead – Matthew 28:1-8; Mark 16:1-8; Luke 24:1-11; I Corinthians 15:1-4; John 2:13-22; 11:25-26; Acts 2:22-36.
• Salvation is solely on the basis of the imputed righteousness of Jesus Christ, given by God the Father, through the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit by grace alone, through faith alone, in the person and work of Jesus Christ alone. Romans 3:21-26; 5:1-10; Ephesians 2:1-10; 2 Corinthians 5:21; Zechariah 3:1-5.
• Jesus Christ ascended to God the Father, Acts 1:1-11, and will return in power and glory, Matthew 24:29-31; Revelation 19-22.

While we acknowledge that these truths are hated by the antichrists, they must be held dear by those who are followers of Christ.

The Apostle John writes that if believers abide in the person and work of Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord, they will not be ashamed when He comes back in power, might and glory. They will have boldness and confidence because their salvation and righteousness is centered in Him. He has removed all of the believer’s sins. There is therefore no more guilt.

What happens, however, when I still feel guilty for what I have done? How can God help me in that situation?

Dr. R. C. Sproul writes, “In simple terms, we must take God at His word. We must live by His truth, not by our feelings, for His Word is objective and our feelings are subjective. If He says “I forgive you,” we are forgiven, no matter how we may feel. Our enemy, Satan, loves to accuse the children of God, to remind them of their violations of God’s law in order to take away their joy. But the Bible tells us that if we resist him, he will flee from us, and we resist him by the Word of God. In all things, we must cling to this truth: God will not lower His standards, but through Christ He will forgive all those who ask Him to do so.”

If you are in need of forgiveness, ask God right now to do so. His Word says He will (I John 1:9).

May the Lord’s truth and grace be found here.

Soli deo Gloria!

 

 

 

 

 

²⁶ I write these things to you about those who are trying to deceive you.²⁷ But the anointing that you received from him abides in you, and you have no need that anyone should teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about everything, and is true, and is no lie—just as it has taught you, abide in him.” (I John 2:27-28)

 One of John’s purposes in writing to these young believers he explicitly states in today’s text: ^“I write these things to you about those who are trying to deceive you.” The word deceive (πλανώντων; phanonton) means to lead astray. The grammar indicates this effort to stray from the truth is the possessed and singular purpose of the antichrists. It is also a present, active and continual effort.

Can Christians be deceived? History and experience has shown that this indeed can happen. That is why the Apostle John will go on to say in I John 4 that believers in Christ should always test the spirits to see if they are of God (I John 4:1-3).

Pastor and author Sinclair Ferguson explains that, “Christians have been, and are, capable of being deceived. Have none of the elect been deceived in recent years into supporting “ministries” that have proved so tragically different in reality from what they professed to be? Sadly, we are more easily addicted to the spectacular (“signs and wonders”) than to the substantial, to novelty (“false prophets”) than to a wholesome orthodoxy. If we think Christians cannot be deceived, the deception has already begun.”

However, the apostle includes a contrast which has to do with the anointing John spoke of in I John 2:20-21. This anointing and consecrating ministry by the Holy Spirit in which He regenerates, baptizes, indwells, gifts, seals, fills and illuminates each elect sinner is one which remains or abides.

Therefore, there is no need for the believer to require a special, anointed teacher. Such a notion is popular and pervasive in cults and false religions where the individual whims of the leader are observed rather than the authoritative Word of God.

Dr. Ferguson offers some helpful and practical tips to avoid deception by false teachers and antichrists. He states, “But how can we guard ourselves against spiritual deception? By developing sensitivity, we become aware of Satan’s strategies in our lives (2 Cor. 2:11). Have you learned what they are? By developing self-knowledge, we recognize how weak we are. Since nothing good dwells in our flesh (Rom. 7:18), we need constantly to depend on the Lord. Do you? By developing an appetite for God’s Word, we are “trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil” (Heb. 5:14, ESV), and we grow in discernment.”

May the Lord give each of us the ability to discern deception, to develop knowledge of ourselves and to develop an appetite for God’s Word.

May the Lord’s truth and grace be found here.

Soli deo Gloria!

 

 

 

 

²⁴ Let what you heard from the beginning abide in you. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, then you too will abide in the Son and in the Father. ²⁵ And this is the promise that he made to us^[a]—eternal life.” (I John 2:24-25)

What is it that the church and the believers to whom the Apostle John was writing had heard from the beginning? What was the message that was to abide in them? The answer is, the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The Gospel is not a message just for our justification but also our sanctification which ultimately leads to our glorification.

The Gospel is not just about the believer’s past conversion. The Gospel is also about the believer’s current transformation into the holy character of Christ. This is the message which is to continue in the believer’s life.

To abide (μενέτω; meneto) means to remain or to persevere. The first occurrence of this word in today’s text is in the form of a command. God commands the church to persevere in the message, truth and proclamation of the Gospel.

For argument’s sake, what exactly is the Gospel? I submit for your benefit and edification, the following outline. This should be familiar.

• God Exists. The God of the Bible. The One, True God. Genesis 1:1; Isaiah 45.
• Sin Exists. Sin is any lack of obedience or conformity to the person and character of God. Sin is a debt, a crime and an estrangement from God. Romans 3:9-20; 23; Ephesians 2:1-3.
• Salvation Exists. Romans 3:21-26; Ephesians 2:4-10.
• One Savior Exists: Jesus Christ. John 14:1-6; Romans 3:21-26; I Timothy 5:1-2.

It is this core message in which the individual believer, and the collective church, must continue to abide and remain. To fail to do so is heresy and will result in tragic consequences.

The Gospel’s ultimate promise in the Gospel is eternal life. This is life not only in length but also in the character of the holiness of God.

Dr. John MacArthur explains that, “The gospel that cannot change. Let it remain; do not follow false teachers (cf. 2 Tim. 3:1, 7, 13; 4:3). Christian truth is fixed and unalterable (Jude 3). If we stay faithful to the truth, we continue to experience intimate communion with God and Christ and persevere to the full eternal life (cf. 1 John 5:11–12).”

Take the time and make the effort to memorize the basic points of the Gospel. May they be ingrained into your mind and memory. May you share these truths with those you know who do not know Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord.

May the Lord’s truth and grace be found here.

Soli deo Gloria!  

 

 

 

²² Who is the liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, he who denies the Father and the Son. ²³ No one who denies the Son has the Father. Whoever confesses the Son has the Father also.” (I John 2:22-23)

The Scriptures identify a liar (ψεύστης; pseustes) as an individual who, above all else, denies that Jesus is the Christ. The Apostle John goes on to say that whoever does so exists as an antichrist. An antichrist is one who is opposed to Christ and seeks to usurp Christ as Savior and Lord.

What do the antichrist(s) specifically oppose about the person and work of Jesus Christ? Take note of the following biblical truths concerning the identity and work of the sinless, Son of God. I realize that we recently covered these truths, but they are worth examining them once more.

• Jesus Christ is the Sinless, Eternal Son of God – John 1:1-2; Colossians 1:15-18.
• Jesus Christ became man – John 1:14; Romans 1:1-3; Galatians 4:1-4; I John 4:1-2.
• Jesus Christ was born of a virgin – Matthew 1:18-25; Luke 1:26-38.
• Jesus Christ lived a sinless, righteous life for sinners – I John 1:5; I Timothy 6:13-16; James 1:17; 2 Corinthians 5:21; Hebrews 4:15.
• Jesus Christ died a substitutionary death on the cross for sinners – Isaiah 52:13-53:12; Romans 5:1-10; Galatians 3:1-14; Philippians 2:5-11.
• Jesus Christ resurrected bodily from the dead – Matthew 28:1-8; Mark 16:1-8; Luke 24:1-11; I Corinthians 15:1-4; John 2:13-22; 11:25-26; Acts 2:22-36.
• Salvation is solely on the basis of the imputed righteousness of Jesus Christ, given by God the Father, through the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit by grace alone, through faith alone, in the person and work of Jesus Christ alone. Romans 3:21-26; 5:1-10; Ephesians 2:1-10; 2 Corinthians 5:21; Zechariah 3:1-5.
• Jesus Christ ascended to God the Father, Acts 1:1-11, and will return in power and glory, Matthew 24:29-31; Revelation 19-22.

The apostle continues to say that whoever opposes Jesus Christ is also opposed to God the Father. In other words, a person can’t say they believe in God the Father while at the same time rejecting Jesus Christ as the eternal Son of God.

It is important for us to understand the underlying historical context to these two verses. One commentary explains that, “Of themselves, these verses would counter equally well a non-Christian Jewish opposition and a Corinthian opposition to Christian faith. Compromising the absolute uniqueness of Jesus as the Christ and the only way to the Father would probably permit Jewish believers to remain in the synagogues—thus delivering them from the direct challenge of the imperial cult and threat of persecution. That false prophets would advocate such compromise (cf. 4:1–6) is by no means difficult to conceive; the late-second-century Christian writer Irenaeus also attributed this view to many later Gnostics.”

How does our present culture seek to oppose the uniqueness of Jesus as the Christ and the only way to the Father? How do many churches seek to do the same thing in many cases? We must resolve to affirm the uniqueness of God’s salvation by grace alone, through faith alone in the person and work of Jesus Christ alone.

May the Lord’s truth and grace be found here.

Soli deo Gloria!  

²⁰ But you have been anointed by the Holy One, and you all have knowledge.^[a] 21 I write to you, not because you do not know the truth, but because you know it, and because no lie is of the truth.” (I John 2:20-21)

During one occasion I had to teach from I John, a friend of mine came up to me to share two thoughts on his heart. First, he thought I was doing a good job in accurately explaining the particular biblical text we had been studying from the epistle. However, the second thought he expressed was a criticism that I had not place enough, or any, emphasis on the person and work of the Holy Spirit.

I John 2:20-21 focuses our attention upon the work of and by the Holy Spirit. In a word, the Spirit’s work is a called an anointing. John says, “But you have been anointed by the Holy One.”

The word “anointed” (χρῖσμα; chrisma) means to assign a person to a task, with the implication of supernatural sanctions, blessing, and endowment—‘to anoint, to assign, and to appoint. A strictly literal rendering of χρίω or χρῖσμα is ‘to pour oil upon.’ However, in place of a literal rendering of χρίω or χρῖσμα, it is often necessary to employ some such expression as ‘to be appointed by God’ or ‘to be given a special task by God.’

This anointing of the individual believer to a particular task by the Holy Spirit is a present and active work based upon a preceding activity by the Spirit at the believer’s conversion. What is foundationally involved in the Holy One’s current anointing of the believer in Christ?

The foundational work by the Holy Spirit, which is reflected in the Spirit’s ongoing anointing of the believer in Christ, is as follows.

• John 3:1-3; Titus 3; I John 2:29; 3:9; 4:7; 5:4, 9-10, 18. This is the new birth. It is being born of God.
• I Corinthians 12:13; Ephesians 4:4-6. The Spirit’s work of placing the believer into union with Christ.
• Romans 8:9; I Corinthians 3:16; 6:19-20; 2 Cor. 6:16; Eph. 2:22. The believer, by the Spirit’s indwelling, becomes a temple of the Holy Spirit.
• Romans 12:6-8; I Corinthians 12:11. Spiritual gifts are God-given abilities for service.
• 2 Corinthians 1:21-22; Ephesians 1:13-14; 4:30. Four primary truths are signified by the seal: 1) security (cf. Dan. 6:17; Matt. 27:62–66); 2) authenticity (cf. 1 Kings 21:6–16); 3) ownership (cf. Jer. 32:10); and 4) authority (cf. Est. 8:8–12). The Holy Spirit is given by God as his pledge of the believer’s future inheritance in glory (cf. 2 Cor. 1:21).
• Ephesians 5:18; Colossians 3:16; Galatians 5:22-23. The Spirit’s filling refers to the Holy Spirit controlling the individual. The evidence of the Spirit’s filling is the Fruit of the Spirit.
• I Corinthians 2:1-13. The ability the Spirit gives to each believer in order to comprehend and understand the spiritual implications and meaning of the biblical text.

Dr. John MacArthur explains that, “Two characteristics mark genuine Christians in contrast to the Antichrists. First, the Holy Spirit (“the anointing,” v. 27) guards them from error (cf. Acts 10:38; 2 Cor. 1:21). Christ as the Holy One (Luke 4:34; Acts 3:14) imparts the Holy Spirit as their illuminating guardian from deception. Second, the Holy Spirit guides the believer into knowing “all things” (John 14:26; 16:13). True Christians have a built-in lie detector and persevere in the truth. Those who remain in heresy and apostasy manifest the fact that they were never genuinely born again (cf. 1 John 2:19).”

Take time today thank God for the anointing by the Holy Spirit in your life. What task(s) has God prepared for you to accomplish for His honor and glory. Ask God to reveal what those responsibilities are to you. May each of us be obedient to the Spirit’s calling and direction.

May the Lord’s truth and grace be found here.

Soli deo Gloria!  

 

  

 

“They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us.” (I John 2:19)

How does the church identify anyone who is biblically defined as an Antichrist? Synonymous terms include false teachers, deceivers and apostates.

The first characteristic John mentions is that Antichrists depart from the church and refuse to submit to biblical authority.

When John writes, “They went out from us,” he is referring to the Antichrists departure from apostolic and biblical authority. The reason for this departure, the apostle concludes, is that these individuals “were not of us.” In other words, the reason the false teachers depart from the church and refuse to submit to biblical authority is because they were never truly converted. They were wolves in sheep’s clothing (Matthew 7:15-20).

Logically, John concludes, “if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us.”

Dr. John MacArthur writes that, “The first characteristic mentioned of antichrists, i.e., false teachers and deceivers (vv. 22–26), is that they depart from the faithful (see vv. 22–23 for the second characteristic and v. 26 for the third). They arise from within the church and depart from true fellowship and lead people out with them. The verse also places emphasis on the doctrine of the perseverance of the saints. Those genuinely born again endure in faith and fellowship and the truth (1 Cor. 11:19; 2 Tim. 2:12). The ultimate test of true Christianity is endurance (Mark 13:13; Heb. 3:14). The departure of people from the truth and the church is their unmasking.”

Have you known individuals who professed faith in Jesus Christ only to soon depart not only from the church but also from the faith? I know of some as I’m sure you do as well. I John 2:19 indicates that their behavior evidences their lack of true conversion to Christ.

Believers in Christ need to constantly be on the lookout for those who not only reject apostolic authority but also depart from church due to an un-submissive spirit. They are showing their true colors.

May the Lord’s truth and grace be found here.

Soli deo Gloria!