1 John 2 - Matt Grillo - April 29th, 2026

Join us this week as Matt Grillo leads our Wednesday night study through 1 John 2.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:22

Well, I'm filling in, as you heard. Kyle's in Idaho on his way there. So he reached out to me Sunday morning to ask if I could fill in. So I said, sure, I would love to. He only warned me about a couple of hecklers. So that's right. Um he said, you guys have been working through Hebrews, but he kind of gave me free reign tonight because he said you're at a transition point. So we're gonna veer off course a little bit and jump into first John chapter two. And that's where we'll spend our time this evening. Let me pray for us, and uh we will we'll jump in. Come on in. Lord, we thank you for um the body of believers. We thank you for your church and for those members who make up your church. Um I'm grateful for those who have gathered here this evening in obedience to you, in obedience to not give up on meeting together, but to encourage one another and to spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Uh, we want to be formed into your image, and we know that the way in which we do that is through fellowshipping together by reading your word and um by encouraging one another. So that is our aim tonight. Uh, we want to look into your word and see what is there. So, would you guide us as we do that? Would you help us to see wonderful things, um things that we've not seen before? And would it fuel our joy in you to know you, to love you, and to teach others to do the same? Um, be with us this evening, and we ask all this in your name. Amen. All right, so 1 John chapter 2, I will read it for us, and then I'll kind of give you my rough outline, and then we'll talk through it as we go. So, 1 John chapter 2, starting in verse 1, says, My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world. And by this we know that we have come to know him if we keep his commandments. Whoever says, I know him, but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him. Whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked. Beloved, I am writing you no new commandment, but an old commandment that you have had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word that you have heard. At the same time it is a new commandment that I am writing to you, which is true in him and in you, because the darkness is passing away, and the true light is already shining. Whoever says he is in the light and hates his brother is still in darkness. Whoever loves his brother abides in the light, and in him there is no cause for stumbling. But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness, and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he's going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes. I am writing to you, little children, because your sins are forgiven, for his name's sake. I am writing to you fathers because you know him who is from the beginning. I am 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. Do not love the world or the things in the world. If any one loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the desires of the flesh, and the desire of the eyes and pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires. But whoever does the will of God abides for ever. Children, this is the last hour, and as you have heard, the Antichrist is coming. So now many Antichrists have come. Therefore, know that it is the last hour. They went out from us, but they were not of us, for if they had been of us, they would not have continued with us, but they went out, that it might become plain that they all were not of us. But you have been anointed by the Holy One, and you all have knowledge. 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. 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. No one who denies the Son has the Father. Whoever confesses the Son has the Father also. 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. And this is the promise that He made to us, eternal life. I write these things to you about those who are trying to deceive you. But the anointing you have 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. So I get overwhelmed when I look at a chapter as a whole. So I break things down into sections, and I think that there are a few clear sections and ways to divide up chapter two. So we're gonna start with what I see as the first section here. Um, and I'm gonna call it Christ as Advocate and Propitiation. So there are a couple theological concepts in there that we'll try to unpack and make sense of. But let me just give you my one-sentence summary of chapter two, and then we'll go section by section and see where um where I see that. So if you're looking for a one-sented summary, this is it. I'll say it a couple times if you want to write it down. So in 1 John 2, John's arguing that assurance of salvation is grounded in Christ's atoning work and evidenced by obedience, love, doctrinal faithfulness, and perseverance in a world opposed to God. So if I had to summarize it, that would be my one-sentence summary. I'll read it again. First John 2 argues that assurance of salvation is grounded, and that's the key word, it is grounded in Christ's atoning work and evidenced by, that's the other key word, obedience, love, doctrinal faithfulness, and perseverance in a world opposed to God. And I highlight those two words because I think John is making an effort to assure his reader that our assurance of salvation is grounded in Christ's work, first and foremost. But secondly, there ought to be evidence of Christ's work in our lives. So if we abide in Christ, if we claim to profess Christ, and we want the assurance of our salvation, there should be evidence of that. It should bear fruit. And John lays out these tests. Um, there's a moral test, the test of obedience we see in chapter two, verses three through six. There is a relational test, the test of love, and I see that in verses seven through eleven. There's a doctrinal test, right belief about Christ, that I see in verses 18 through 27, and then there's the perseverance test, um, which John calls abiding in Christ. And I see that in verses 28 and 29. Again, these are not conditions to earn our salvation, but evidences that our salvation is in fact real. So we'll go section by section and work through those a little bit. So starting at the first two sections, Christ our Advocate says, My little children, I'm writing these things for you so that you may not sin. So I think right off the bat we see um what sounds like a really simple uh instruction. Don't sin. Don't sin. We as as followers of Christ are called not to sin. Um, but as believers, we do sin. That is that is something that we all struggle with, and we're gonna continue to struggle with until the day that we die, and I think John knows that only Christ was able to live a sinless life. So, my question to you, and we'll kind of debate this a little bit, um, is John calling believers to an impossible standard when he gives his opening um exhortation in this in this verse don't sin. Is he giving us a an impossible standard? Thoughts? Yes, yes, yes, okay.

SPEAKER_06 12:21

Um that clearly tells us in scripture that we are not perfect, right? We will never achieve the the purity that Christ has. Well, we must strive for that.

SPEAKER_00 12:32

Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 12:33

But and we also to Christ we should recognize sin for what sin is, but we're still human beings and we still fall with the holy red hour.

SPEAKER_00 12:44

Yeah. Okay.

SPEAKER_07 12:49

Well, the quash is three how we're supposed to because we're reborn, we're supposed to try to live a new life. We're gonna even, you know to know what's a sin, and even though we're gonna do it is to try to overcome all those aspects and desires, we need to try to think like Christ and put those things away and what those other type of thoughts, even though they do come to us, but we're supposed to, you know, repent and move on.

SPEAKER_03 13:11

Yeah. Uh our motto was standard is excess. Right. And it's really about the principle, like, because that that is our standard. He is calling he's calling us to that. That's what Christ we're to follow him, we are to try to mod a DM or we're gonna fail every day. But yeah, this is the standard. The standard is Christ, and so yeah, for sure.

SPEAKER_00 13:37

Yeah. I I like the way that you phrase that, and I my takeaway was was similar. Um I I don't think it's that John is calling us to an impossible standard. I think he's calling believers attention to, like you said, to the standard. Um that standard is righteousness, complete righteousness, and that's the only thing that can assure us of our salvation from God's wrath. And that's our biggest problem is is God's wrath. And so I think John is stating the standard and drawing our attention to two things. Number one, that the standard is perfect righteousness, and number two, um, is that our inability to meet that standard, or that we are unable to meet that standard as sinners. So we've got a pretty big problem on our hands to begin with in that opening statement. But there is good news just on the horizon in verse two. I guess it's the second half of verse one. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world. So a couple of uh fancy theological terms in that passage that we'll we'll unpack and discuss a little bit. Um the first one is that Christ is our our advocate. Um talk for a minute about an advocate. What is what does an advocate do? Speak for you.

SPEAKER_06 15:42

Someone that can speak the does give you a weight.

SPEAKER_00 15:50

Yeah, I like that a go-between, like an intermediary or were you gonna say something? Hopefully keeps you out of jail. Yeah, represents you. Yeah, so did I miss somebody over here? No, good deal. So the the word advocate, the way it's rendered in the Greek has that same emphasis of like a legal intercessor. And so if we're thinking about uh like in legal terms, we think about things like the judge, the the jury, the prosecution, the defense, and if you're the one on trial, uh your defense attorney is serving as your advocate. And like a lot of you guys said, you know, he speaks on your behalf, he pleads your case before the judge, he's your legal representative. Hopefully, he keeps you out of jail. Um, and so it is with Christ. And I think that's the imagery John is trying to draw to our attention. Um, Christ serves as our advocate in the courtroom of heaven, where God the Father is the judge. And so we have an advocate because we can't fulfill that perfect standard of righteousness. Um we have to have somebody step in on our behalf in order to, in order to deal with that dilemma of satisfying God's wrath um and pardoning the sinner. So, right off the bat, going back to my summary sentence, we see that our assurance of salvation is grounded in Christ's atoning work. Uh, the second theological term is propitiation, and that's kind of one that you might not hear tossed around as much. I know the ESV version uses propitiation, NIV says something different, and I'm blanking on does anybody have atoning sacrifice. Okay. So um talk about talk about that for a moment. Anybody want to take a stab at what propitiation means? Yeah. Imputing righteousness. I see you in the back. Imputed righteousness. Paying the price. Okay. Yeah, so there's like this um there's this idea of a wrath being satisfied, um, referring to the act of making atonement for sin um through an acceptable sacrifice. And the term and the studying that I did, one thing I noticed is that it carries a specific theological weight to it. It describes how Christ's death addresses God's wrath against sin and is the means by which divine justice is satisfied. So there's those two components. One is divine judgment is satisfied, and the relationship between God and humanity is restored. So there's the justice being satisfied as one piece of propitiation, and then there's the relationship that has been restored, and it's it centers around this idea that sin creates a rupture and a relationship with us and God that requires resolution. Um, but that's not merely the forgiveness of like a casual offense, but it's a genuine addressing of the offense through a sacrifice that God accepts. So it involves both the removal of guilt and the satisfaction of God's righteous judgment. So right off the bat, John wants to make clear we can't do it because we're not righteous. Because we are sons of Adam, we are born sinners, and nothing, not even our best efforts, will be able to measure up to the standard. And so the good news is that our assurance is not based off of our performance. Um, it is based off of Christ's performance and what he did on the cross. So that assurance of salvation is grounded in Christ's atoning work. So ultimately, it rests on Christ. But that doesn't mean that we get uh a free pass. They're like, great, Christ took care of that for us. Um, we have no part to play. And Paul goes through, or not Paul, excuse me, John, spends the rest of this chapter outlining our responsibility. Um, so as I mentioned earlier, we'll jump into the next section. So there are these four tests that John presents to us, and these are tests that are to be kind of used as like a litmus test to gauge our um whether or not there is evidence of this assurance of salvation. So if you'll remember back a few minutes ago, I said there's a moral test of obedience, which we see in verses three through six. And we'll let me reread that section for us right now. It says, and by this we know that we have come to know him if we keep his commandments. Whoever says, I know him, but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him. Whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked. So first test is the test of obedience. What do you think John means here by knowing God? Whoever says I know him but does not keep his commandments is a liar. So is this just like a like I've got some distant cousins that like I know of them. I know their name. I know where they live. Is that like the kind of knowledge you think John's referring to here? More of an intimate knowledge.

SPEAKER_04 23:20

I think sometimes you claim like know it money, you know, claim it or clap sometimes. Like this is like you know, I I know that guy.

SPEAKER_06 23:28

Yeah, we are we okay.

SPEAKER_00 23:32

Yeah. Yeah, I think it's very clear that there is uh there's a knowledge of God that John is hinting at here that is far more intimate, that is far more relational than just a head knowledge. Um and this makes sense because, you know, even Satan and demons know God, uh, but they surely are not in Christ. Um so there's much there there's a deeper knowledge than just knowing generally about about who he is. Um anybody want to add to that?

SPEAKER_01 24:31

I think because when Jesus is acting as our advocate, he he isn't really uh like pleading our innocence, he's like presenting his body as like sin, um as the propitiation for our sin. And so I don't I don't think that um like it would be overstating to say like he he loves us, he's intimately aware of the depths of our sin and he's calling us into a relationship or a covenant with him. Like that is extremely close when we're really close to the people who we like know their sin. Yeah, know the depths of their their struggles and their their their besetting sins. And so there is an intimacy that Christ knows of us, but also um that he invites us into in in communion and close relationship with him.

SPEAKER_00 25:42

Yeah. Being known is a very scary thing. You think about it, like you think about like nobody knows ourselves better than ourselves. Um and well, of course the Lord does, but yeah, when you when you open yourself up to be known by somebody, uh there's a risk involved in that. There is not just the good glowing parts of your character and personality that people know, um, but to say, like, I know my wife, um, I know those qualities about her, and I know the other qualities. She knows the other qualities of me. Maybe I should switch this around. She knows my my uh less flattering qualities. She sees uh the full picture, the complete picture, and by God's grace, says, Yes. Like I want to love you and I still accept you. Um and I think that's a beautiful picture of what um it means to be known by Christ, that he sees all the ugly and he still says, Yes, like I'm gonna go to the cross, I'm gonna pay for your sin, I'm gonna restore that broken rupture and relationship that exists between you and God the Father. And when God the Father looks at you, he will not see the ugly. Um, he will see Christ's imputed righteousness upon us. Um and so I hope that we have that knowledge in our bones that we preach that to ourselves every day because we need it, because it's so easy to think about and listen to the voice of shame in our head, um, or to just identify ourselves by our shortcomings. Um, and so just as an encouragement, Christ looks at you, he sees the righteousness of God the Father, he doesn't see the sinfulness, he doesn't see your wickedness, he sees a spotless, pure, and holy bride. Um, and that's good news. That's good news for all of us.

SPEAKER_02 28:11

Um, that's why in first John 1 9 uh says if if we confess, that word confess is interesting because it means I agree with God. When the spirit touches my heart and in my sin, I said, you know, you're you're right. And if we confess that to gring with God, He's faithful and just it for you. That's right. And uh that's part of the intimacy is it uh you know, if your wife said to you, why don't you just grow up and you know stop this behavior or whatever? You know what I mean? Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 28:52

But that's uh I just thought Yeah, no, that's a great connection, Roger. Glad you brought that up. Yeah, confess our sin, he is faithful and just, forgive us our sins, cleanse us from all unrighteousness. And I think sitting in that truth makes this first test, or should make this first test really easy to pass if we're looking at ourselves and examining our our hearts. Let me go back to my summary statement. First John 2 argues that assurance of salvation is grounded in Christ's atoning work, it is what he did, and evidenced by obedience. So that's gonna be the first uh or the second, excuse me, the first test, but the second part of um this section. So knowing God and abiding by and being obedient to his word. Um when we see and live in that reality, I don't see how our response to that could be anything other than obedience to Christ. Um I think obedience is the inevitable fruit that is produced. Um, it's not optional, it's a natural byproduct of um knowing God, loving Christ, treasuring Christ, living in the knowledge of what He's done for us, it creates obedience. Um, apple trees produce apples, and I think heart that is grounded in this truth produces uh the fruit of obedience. Um so this sanctification process is what we call it sometimes, is an evidence that we are in Christ. Um, it but it is not our justification, it is not our grounds for justification. Um we've all heard the term legalism thrown around a lot. Um, it's this idea that we earn our salvation based off of our works and what we do. And I think the problem with that is the order that we've talked about. Um it starts with a love, a recognition of what Christ has done for us, and out of that flows our obedience. But we can never we can never obey our way into a right standing with God. So I think that's an important uh distinction to make there. Second test, let's flip over to uh test two, which is the relational test. So let's look at verses 7 through 11 again together. It says, Beloved, I'm writing you no new commandment, but an old commandment that you had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word that you have heard. At the same time, it's a new commandment that I'm writing you, which is true in him and in you, because the darkness is passing away, and the true light is already shining. Whoever says he is in the light and hates his brother is still in darkness. Whoever loves his brother abides in the light, and in him there is no cause for stumbling. But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness and does not know where he's going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes. So this is another test John is giving us again. Should be evidence. We should be able to see evidence of this in our lives that deepens our assurance of salvation, that again is grounded in Christ, but we're looking for the evidence, we're looking for this fruit in our own lives. Um let's go back to verse seven for a minute because this is a little vague, at least it was uh to me whenever I read it for the first time. He says, I'm writing you no new commandment, but an old commandment that you've had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word that you have heard, but it stops there. Um, he doesn't go on to elaborate on what that commandment is. And my guess is that because his audience was probably a Jewish audience primarily, they were really steeped in the Old Testament law. Um, and so they would have been very familiar. Like he wouldn't have had to spell out exactly what this covenant was, or excuse me, what this commandment was that he was talking about. Um, as we read it today, it might be a little less clear. Um, so I wanted to, well, first of all, does anybody know what commandment he's referring to there? I know it because I have my cheat sheet in front of me. Bingo.

SPEAKER_07 34:38

Jesus called it new in John 13, 34.

SPEAKER_00 34:44

Yeah. So I'm gonna flip back there for a second. Ten extra points there, sir. Deuteronomy 19. Excuse me, Leviticus. Thank you. Leviticus 19, verse 18. So this is the this is the old commandment that he's talking about. You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, and this is the this is the part, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord. So this uh this idea of loving our brothers, loving our sisters, and just the general theme of love, like they will know that we are Christians by our love. So this is a test that John is putting forward. Um the test of love. Um, you also referenced John, was it 30 1334? And the subheading for this section, um, and the ESV anyway, is titled A New Commandment. So we've looked at the old. Um, the new commandment in 1334 says, and these are the words of Jesus speaking, a new commandment I give to you, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples if you have love for one another. Um so we have Jesus making this connection between this old commandment found in Leviticus, and then the new commandment, which I think is intensified uh through Christ, because there's this sacrificial element that is added. Um Christ loved us sacrificially unto death. Um, and so there's this uh there's this element of self-sacrificial love um that he's calling us to, um, which goes beyond just tolerating uh people around you. Um I think that just in a practical application, it can be really easy for us um to feel justified in our um dislike for other people uh based off a number of different things. Uh maybe it's their personality, maybe it's their the way they talk, maybe it's the way they dress or where they're from, or um any number of things. Um and then we can justify um that you know, really if they if they just weren't quite so much like that, um, I I could love them. So really the issue is in their courts. Um if they would stop doing that, it would be much easier for me to love them. Um and I think that this is this is the new commandment piece that Christ is uh that Christ is calling us to. Um, we've got to get past that. We we want people to see Christ in us, and that should be our uh our chief aim is to love God, to know him, and to make him known. And sometimes that's gonna make us uncomfortable. Um, we're gonna have to love people that are hard to love. Um I know I'm hard to love a lot of times. And I know I've got people in my life that, man, it's hard to love them some days. Um, but something that really convicted me um as I was reading this is hatred, of course, is the opposite of love, but it's not uh it's not a bad attitude towards somebody or just hard feelings. It's evidence in our lives of spiritual darkness. And this is a theme that John picks up on a lot. You we see it light and darkness mentioned a lot. Um, light always referring to something that is good, darkness referring to something that, you know, that which is evil. Um that theme is evident, and John as well. So, man, that is uh that really makes me think differently about the way that I love others or the way that I fail to love others. Um if I don't love my brother and sister, I don't know that there's a middle ground. We we tend to find categories between love and hate, but if we don't love somebody, we've really only got one other option. Um thus, if there is hatred in our hearts, um there is evidence of spiritual darkness. And if we work the logic of that backwards, if there is evidence of spiritual darkness, um our assurance of salvation is or could be precarious. Um because John is outlying these are the tests. There's the test of obedience, there's the test of love, there's the test of doctrinal faithfulness, there's the test of perseverance in a world that's opposed to Christ. Um, as a follower of Christ, we should pass all of these tests with flying colors. Not because they're easy, not because um we're great, but because of the evidence that we understand what we talked about, we understand that Christ is our advocate, we understand the work that he did on the cross, we understand that because of what Christ did, when God the Father looks at us, he sees perfect, spotless, blameless, holy. And we were not that. We were hard to love. If anything, Christ should have been filled with hatred towards us. Those who mocked him, those who spit upon him, those who flogged him, and he went silently uh like a lamb to be slaughtered. It's knowledge of that, it's that framework that allows us to love in the way that Christ loved us and laid down his life for us. Um questions on that section, thoughts, comments. It is abundantly clear that we are not going to make it through all of this tonight. But we'll get as far as we can. I'll go until I see people nodding off. All right, third test. Uh, doctrinal test. I see that in verses 18 through 27. And when we say the doctrinal test, we're talking about just right belief about Christ. So a little backstory. Um first John starts with John fiercely defending that Christ is fully God and fully man. He has a divine nature and he has a human nature. And that was uh called into question at the time. There was a big controversy about that. Um, I believe Docetism was the belief that God was not, uh, God the Son was not fully human. Um, and so therefore they rejected that Jesus um was God. And so he's fiercely defending um this doctrine that God the Father was there in the beginning, God the Son was with him in the beginning, and God the Son, through Jesus, stepped into time and space in the form of a man to do the work that we've we've already discussed. And so he defends that in uh the first chapter, the Gospel of John, he's doing that as well, making that connection. Um and so this is he's kind of circling back around to speak to that again in verses 18 through 27. Children, it's the last hour, and you've heard that uh antichrist is coming. Fun fact, John is the only uh the only writer in the New Testament to use that specific phrase antichrist. Um, and that speaks to obviously what we were just talking about antichrist against Christ, that Jesus is not the Christ. So anyone believing false doctrine about Jesus as the Christ is the Antichrist. Um he says, so now many Antichrists have come. Therefore, know that it's the last hour. 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. So um believing rightly what Scripture teaches about Christ is really important. Um there it is. So the key doctrine there that John is enforcing is uh perseverance of the saints. I'm sure you've heard that um that phrase before, but it's this idea that we are persevering to the end, that we will uh have this assurance and confidence that if Christ called us to himself, that he will carry us through to the end. Um and so to know false doctrine, you've got to know right doctrine. So we have to be students of this word and to know it clearly so that we will not um fall victim to false doctrines um that are floating around. And I think present day uh there are some false doctrines that I think the church has to be really careful about and push back on uh pretty aggressively. Um I think the hot button issue today um is regarding gender, so-called, I say so-called gender identity issues. Um that a man can be a woman, a woman can be a man, um, that there are there is such a thing as gender fluidity. Um and that compromises a fundamental truth about humanity, which God made in his image, and he made them male and female, two categories, not three, not undecided, not undetermined. Um, there are male and female. And I think when we distort that truth, um we are distorting the truth of God's word. What God has made very clear and plain to us, um, we have to embrace, we have to accept. Um so there are many more um things to just be on alert, especially if you have uh young kids or if you are the parent of older children who and you have grandkids, um be alert, be on guard, that that stuff's everywhere. It's in our music, it's in television, it's uh everywhere you look, the world is trying to cram this ideology down our throats. Um, that love is love, uh, that you can be what you want to be, that you can feel any way that you want to feel, and we just need to affirm that. Um, and that is not true, that is false doctrine. Um, and we need to be alert and on guard against that. I'm off my soapbox on that. Anybody want to add? You guys have it is. I mean, full stop. It is, it is a distortion of something um good that God made. And um I mean, in in one sense, that's creation. Right.

SPEAKER_06 48:56

Yeah. Well one of the one of the places that we know, of course, like you said, we're hammered 24 hours a day through to media and everything about all stops. But we've got to be very careful also to launch these phone spiritual movies.

SPEAKER_00 49:14

Right.

SPEAKER_06 49:17

If we have a working knowledge of the Bible, we can we can look at that and we can say, you know what, they got the doctrine wrong. They got the story wrong. But because it's friendly, I guess those who don't really have a work for buy-in. Right. And that's the way it starts for all through.

SPEAKER_07 49:42

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 49:42

Just in that in the entertainment thing.

SPEAKER_06 49:45

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 49:45

Much like you say.

SPEAKER_06 49:48

Man to be winner. Other things in society are okay. Uh scripture's very plain about that. Right will be wrong, and raw will be right. Yeah. We just have to be alert to that.

SPEAKER_07 50:00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 50:02

Yeah. The world calls what is right wrong. What is wrong right.

SPEAKER_07 50:14

So many different books it says don't be of this world. Yeah. So he knew we was going to be facing all these challenges. That's right. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 50:23

Yeah. Um, that is a good segue into one of the last sections. Oh, I guess I skipped over this part, but we'll back up and cover it, and then we'll wrap up after this. Do not love the world. Fitting place to end. Verses 15 through 17. Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. That's a convicting text, and that's a good test as well. If we love the world, the love of the Father is not in us. For all in it, for all that is in it, the desires of the flesh, the desires of the eyes, the pride of life, it is not from the Father, but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever. What is John getting at when he's saying, Don't love the world. Yeah. Keeping our eyes heavenward, set your mind on things above. What is evil? Did I hear somebody say that? Yeah.

SPEAKER_07 51:46

Yeah.

SPEAKER_08 51:52

Acclamation praise of things here.

SPEAKER_00 52:03

Yeah, approval of man can be really easy to love. Um, who doesn't love to be affirmed and applauded and admired. Um not that those things are bad in and of themselves, but they can become stumbling blocks and can become idols. Um I don't think John is calling us to uh like to be ascetics, to where we just like retreat to the wilderness and reject everything in the world and we just like make our lives miserable. Um for this right, exactly. Yeah, yeah, you wouldn't run into too many people um that didn't think like you if you were retreating on the mountaintop um to show your godliness. But I think that there are um a lot of things in this world and on this earth that we should enjoy. Um what we see and earth on the world in the world is a lot of God's beauty on display. Um and I think that John would rightly and proportionately want us to enjoy those good gifts, to enjoy a beautiful sunset, to enjoy a sea breeze from the beach, or whatever it is that you enjoy. Maybe it's cooking or sewing or music um or building things. Um I think in all of these things we see and experience different facets of God's character. And I think ultimately that's what draws us to those things. I'm a music guy. Um, I love playing guitar. Um, I love to play the drums. And what I love about that is I know that what I what I'm drawn to is there's something of God's character that's reflected in that creative act. Um, and so I think that proportionately uh we are to enjoy those things, but they are not to become idols. They are not to become the things that we that we live for and that we ultimately love and ultimately find our identity in and our satisfaction in. Um we are to be in the world, uh, but not of the world. So these are the tests that John gives us. I'll read my summary sentence again as we close. That our assurance of salvation is ultimately grounded in Christ's atoning work and evidenced by obedience, love, doctrinal faithfulness, and perseverance in a world that is opposed to God. Let me pray for us as we close.