Beloved, tonight we will continue our consideration of 1 John and also continue our consideration of the text we started last week, 1 John 2, verses 1 through 6. Before we turn to that text, let's read together John chapter 17. John chapter 17. Which we call Christ's High Priestly Prayer. John 17, as we hear now the Word of God. After Jesus said this, He looked toward heaven and prayed, Father, the time has come. Glorify Your Son, that Your Son may glorify You. For You granted Him authority over all people, that He might give eternal life to all those You have given Him. Now this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God and Jesus Christ, whom You have sent. I have brought you glory on earth by completing the work you gave me to do. And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began. I have revealed you to those whom you gave me out of the world. They were yours. You gave them to me. And they have obeyed your word. Now they know that everything you have given me comes from you. For I gave them the words you gave me and they accepted them. They knew with certainty that I came from you, and they believed that you sent me. I pray for them. I am not praying for the world, but for those you have given me, for they are yours. All I have is yours, and all you have is mine. And glory has come to me through them. I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name, the name you gave me, so that they may be one as we are one. While I was with them, I protected them and kept them safe by that name you gave me. None has been lost except the one doomed to destruction so that Scripture would be fulfilled. I am coming to you now. But I say these things while I am still in the world so that they may have the full measure of my joy within them. I have given them your word and the world has hated them for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world even as I am not of it. Sanctify them by the truth. Your word is truth. As you send me into the world, I have sent them into the world. For them I sanctify myself that they too may be truly sanctified. My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message. That all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one. I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because You loved Me before the creation of the world. Righteous Father, though the world does not know You, I know You, and they know that You have sent Me. I have made You known to them and will continue to make You known in order that the love You have for Me may be in them and that I Myself may be in them. If you would turn to 1 John 2. 1 John 2. Last week, Sunday evening, we considered together the first two verses of our text 1-6. And tonight, we complete this sermon with verses 3-6. Beginning at verse 1 of chapter 2, My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense, Jesus Christ the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours, but also for the sins of the whole world. We know that we have come to know Him if we obey His commands. The man who says, I know Him, but does not do what He commands is a liar, and the truth is not in Him. But if anyone obeys His Word, God's love is truly made complete in Him. This is how we know we are in Him. Whoever claims to live in Him must walk as Jesus did. Dear people of God, again last week we began to examine this text, 1 John 2 verses 1 through 6, and the truth that fellowship with God is demonstrated or evidenced by walking in the light. And of course, this is what John had also begun to teach us already in chapter 1. He teaches us that it is impossible to have genuine fellowship with God and at the same time to walk in the darkness of continual and habitual sin. He makes it clear that believers do commit sin, but they do not live in constant darkness. Peter says God's people have been brought out of darkness into His marvelous light. And therefore, beloved Christians fight with all of their God-given might against sin. Yet, when we do sin, for those who humble themselves, confess and repent of their sins, There is forgiveness from God. And this is the confidence that those who have genuine fellowship with God may have. Confidence, beloved, because walking in the light of the truth of the Word of God reveals the truth of who God is and what He has done. It reveals the truth that not only is He a holy, a righteous, and a just God, but He is also merciful, gracious, and loving. But the light of that truth also reveals to us that we walk in the light only because of another. That's the first point that we considered last week. The believers walk in the light and fellowship with God is made real only by Jesus Christ who, as John says, is the righteous one. The one who speaks to the Father in our defense. In other words, our advocate. And the one who is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, the propitiation. He is the righteous one. He is our advocate. He is the propitiation. Our identity as children of light who enjoy genuine fellowship with God and walk in the light of the truth is bound up with Jesus Christ. The only one able to make that genuine fellowship possible and who has indeed made that fellowship real. And He did it all. You see, He was able to accomplish this because, again, He is the Righteous One. He alone was able and did live the perfectly righteous life in obedience to God's law in our place. He alone offered the perfect sacrifice for all of our sins. And He alone has the right to stand before God on our behalf as our defense attorney and claim our eternal life by His death. He alone was able to guarantee the forgiveness of all of our sins, past, present, and future. And congregation, may this be our comfort as we continue in this life. May it be our comfort that indeed Christ's shed blood will never stop being effective for you and me. God accepts us as righteous and draws us into fellowship with Himself all and only for the sake of Jesus Christ our Lord. But that doesn't mean then that we can carry on in this life any old way we want to. God's people are new creatures who possess a new heart with a new way of thinking, a new way of feeling, a new way of willing. Thinking the thoughts of God instead of thinking the thoughts of the devil. Feeling, desiring to do the will of God instead of desiring to follow the way of evil. And willing, setting our goal on being obedient to God. And therefore, beloved, our walking in the light is also, in the second place, a walk according to a particular standard. And in the third place, a walk following a perfect example. Now, boys and girls, often when someone says or brags that they are able to do something, we say, prove it. Prove it. We want proof. Put your money where your mouth is. If you talk the talk, then you'd better be able to walk the walk. And why do we want proof? Because as the saying goes, actions speak louder than words. Now in a sense, John is teaching here that no one should ever have to ask the Christian. No one should ever have to ask the child of God to prove it. The lives of God's people are to be living proof 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, that we enjoy fellowship with God. Now before we go any further, let's take a moment to think about our individual lives. Can I say that this is true about me? Can you say that this is true about you? That 24 hours a day, seven days a week, your lives are living proof that we have fellowship with God. But not only are believers, congregation, to demonstrate proof to the world of their fellowship with God. The same proof that we give to others is also to be proof for ourselves, especially in times of doubt and temptation. Proof that we have fellowship with God. Proof to ourselves that we walk in the light of this truth. God's people walk according to a particular standard. And this standard is itself revealed by the light of God's Word. Notice again verses 3 through 5. we know that we have come to know Him if we obey His commands. The man who says, I know Him, but does not do what He commands is a liar and the truth is not in him. But if anyone obeys His Word, God's love is truly made complete in him. Do you notice the emphasis on knowing in these verses? Remember, Gnosticism focused on achieving a particular or a higher knowledge of some sort. And once that higher knowledge was achieved, then that one was said to have obtained salvation. John teaches here that there is indeed to be knowledge, but he shows us what that knowledge is to be. It is to be knowledge of who God is and what He has done and what He commands. Now we know that fellowship with another leads to knowing that one better and better. This is certainly true when it comes to human relationships. Boys and girls, when you begin school in kindergarten, you may meet lots of children that you never knew before and you don't know much about them. But as you spend time with them in class or on the playground or at birthday parties together, you get to know more and more about them. And the same is true for those of us who are married or were married. On that first date with your spouse, you most likely didn't know that much about each other. But with time, getting to know each other, you also came to know that this was the one for you. Fellowship with God. necessarily means knowing Him, having a relationship with Him. You see, you can't have one without the other, and this is especially true with the koinonia fellowship that John has been teaching us about. Remember, koinonia fellowship is a being-on-the-same-page kind of fellowship. To know God is to be on the same page as Him. It is to know His Word, which is a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path. And as the light of the Word of God reveals the truth of God and as it reveals the truth of man and as it reveals the truth of Jesus Christ and the truth of the only way of salvation and the truth of everything else that the infallible Word of God teaches and as He illumines our hearts and minds by the power of the Holy Spirit, God's people are commanded to follow the narrow path. You see, very simply, beloved, the test of knowing God, the test of having a relationship, a true relationship with God, is obeying His commands. This is the doing part of walking in the light. Walking in the light includes asking, what must I know? And also, what must I do with what I know? The distinctive characteristic of the child of God is that he obeys God's commands. John Calvin says it beautifully when he says, We cannot know Him as Lord and Father as He shows Himself without being dutiful children and obedient servants. That's what that relationship is all about. To know Him and have genuine fellowship with Him is to do it according to His terms. Terms which are for our good. And this obedience to God's commands, beloved, includes on the one hand all that is implied and all that is included in God's law of love. It includes observing all that is in harmony with that law. It includes keeping that law in our hearts and walking according to it in our lives. It means that one has a heart transformed by the Holy Spirit, a heart then that desires God's law and can say with a psalmist, Oh, how I love Your law. It is my meditation all the day. Paul says in 2 Corinthians 3 verse 18, And we who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory are being transformed into His likeness with ever increasing glory which comes from the Lord who is the Spirit. God's people who are being recreated in the image of God understand the truth of John's words in another place later on in this letter when he says that God's commands are not burdensome. Instead, God's people delight in the law of God. They find God's precepts to be sweeter than honey. Take the time to read Psalm 119, even if you only do it section by section, taking one section per day. Take the time to read Psalm 119 and meditate on the beauty that the psalmist finds in the law of God. Just make a list of all that the psalmist says about the law of God. You see, the psalmist is blessed with wisdom and understanding from God's law. He makes it clear that the path which is opposite of the path of following God's law is the wrong path, and it's the path that leads to destruction. He teaches that true bondage is following the way of sin. Psalm 119 verse 45 says, I will walk about in freedom, for I have sought out your precepts. It's only God gives true freedom. For the psalmist, being obedient to and following God's law is a lifestyle. It is God's law we are to hide in our hearts that we might not sin against God. And congregation, to keep the Word of God is to apply it to all of the conduct and all of the activities of our lives, no exceptions, and this includes when we sin. It includes following what the Word of God says when we sin. God has revealed Himself to us in His Word and through His only begotten Son by the illumination of the Holy Spirit and we are called to respond to Him. Jesus said, I am the Good Shepherd. I know My sheep and My sheep know Me. My sheep listen to My voice. I know them and they follow Me. Fellowship with God, congregation, includes responding to His voice. Responding with sorrow for, confession of and repentance for our sins. Responding with obedience to love God of all and our neighbors as ourselves. And the believer's obedient response to the Word of God is to take God's Word and not to treat it as simply a good book of suggestions to use as I see fit, but to cherish the Word of God. To go to Scripture to answer the questions and the situations of life that we may face to understand that God's commandments reveal to us who God is and what we are to be as those restored in His image. God is holy as His commands reveal. And we are called to be holy. You see, John is clear that indeed the test of having fellowship with and knowing God is being one with Him, is obeying Him. Again, John records in Christ's high priestly prayer these words in verses 6-8 I have revealed you to those whom you gave me out of the world they were yours you gave them to me and they have obeyed your word now they know that everything you have given me comes from you for I gave them the words you gave me and they accepted them they knew with certainty that I came from you and they believed that you sent me and beloved what a beautiful truth that the believer's knowledge of God and the believer's keeping of his word are indeed our response to God's giving of Himself through Jesus Christ. It is impossible to truly know God and at the same time not do what He commands. In other words, at the same time, walk in darkness. In verse 4 of our text, John goes on to speak the truth about a false claim. The man who says, I know Him but does not do what He commands is a liar and the truth is not in him. If the transforming truth of God is in the heart of one, it is impossible for that one to do what John says here. It is simply impossible for that one to claim to know God but not be obedient. Jesus said the truth shall set you free. Only the truth by God's grace sets one free from being a slave to sin so that one is able to be obedient to God. Only the truth brings a proper knowledge of God. And only when the truth of God is a dynamic, controlling influence in our lives are we then able to be obedient. But when the truth of God is not that dynamic, controlling influence, then one cannot truly know God and therefore does not truly obey God. But the one who claims to know God and yet does not obey Him is a liar. And the idea here is not that that one lies occasionally, once in a while. But that that one lives the lie. The truth is not in him. It is not a part of him. He has nothing to do with the truth. His whole life is a lie. In reality, he is the fool who has said in his heart, there is no God. Because, beloved, to claim to know God but not obey Him is really to treat God as if He doesn't exist. Again, as Jesus said, not only do His sheep hear and know His voice, they listen to Him and they follow Him. Those born again by the regenerating power of the Holy Spirit cannot resist the sweet voice of Jesus Christ. They cannot help but to follow Him. They love that voice and they will work so that nothing separates them from that voice. Those who walk in the light of God's truth not only know the fellowship and love of God, but as John says in verse 5, but if anyone obeys His Word, God's love is truly made complete in Him. Now what does that mean? That God's love is truly made complete in Him. Some versions say that this love is perfected. Is it talking about God's love to the believer? Or about God's love in the believer? Or is it talking about the believers' love to God? Or is it talking about all of the above? You see, all of these are suggested even by Reformed scholars who then try to give support for their interpretations. I really don't know what it means. I really don't know what it means. I know that it doesn't mean that our love for God is perfect. It doesn't mean that our love for God is perfectly and sinlessly demonstrated. Of course, that should be our desire, that should be our goal, but that's not what this text means. Some say that this complete love is talking about the fact that the love of God fills completely the heart and life of the person who obeys the Word of God. And therefore, not only does the believer experience the love of God, and not only is he free from doubts about God's love, but he himself is overflowing with God's love toward God and others. And that certainly may be a part of what John is saying here. Some say that this complete love, again, is not talking about sinlessness, but that God's love has been firmly established in the heart of the believer, never to be taken away, never to be lost. And I think that that also has some merit. I believe Dr. Steve Bob Westminster here in Escondido was on the mark when he says that here in this text, The idea is that the individual in question has a genuine and full expression of love instead of mere lip service. A genuine and full expression of love instead of mere lip service. The child of God, blessed by the grace of God's love and regenerating spirit, is not one who draws near to God with his lips or mouth, but whose heart is far from God, as Isaiah says. The true believer's actions indeed speak as loud or louder than His words. And congregation, when our hearts and our mouths and our hands are in harmony, that seems to be the complete expression of love. And of course, we know that that love begins with God. In 1 John 4, verse 19, John says, We love because He first loved us. And in chapter 5, verse 3, He says, This is love for God to obey His commands. And we can also consider the last verse of John 17. Jesus says, I have made you known to them and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for Me may be in them and that I Myself may be in them. The true test of fellowship with God is to walk according to a particular standard, His standard, His commands. But John isn't quite finished yet. The believer's walk in the light is not only made real by Jesus Christ, and not only does He teach us the way we are to walk by giving us His commands, but He also shows us how to walk. Ours is a walk following a perfect example. The last part of verse 5 and verse 6 says, this is how we know we are in Him. Now that phrase may belong with what's before and it may belong with what we're about to read. Either way, it fits. Verse 6, Whoever claims to live in Him must walk as Jesus did. Again, to borrow that common phrase, put your money where your mouth is. In Acts 17, verse 28, Paul says of God, For in Him we live and move and have our being and beloved. If this is true, and it is, then we must follow the example that God Himself gave us, and that is the example of Jesus Christ. And of course we know that there are some who say throughout history, some have said that all Jesus was, was a good example for us to follow. But nothing more. Just an example. And of course that's a lie. He is much, much more than that, but it is true that He is to be our example. Remember what John said earlier? He is the righteous one. He delighted in doing the will of His Father. In fact, Jesus said that His food was to do His Father's will. Sometimes we as parents, knowing our own inconsistencies and knowing our own imperfections, we say to our children, now do as I say, not as I do. But our Lord says, do as I say and as I do. You see, congregation, He walked in the midst of this wicked world perfectly before the face of God with all of his heart, all of his soul, all of his mind, all of his strength. He demonstrated perfectly love for God above all and his neighbor as himself and therefore one who claims to live in him, that is to abide in him or take up residency in him. That one is duty bound to walk as Jesus walked. Now we know that we cannot do that perfectly. But that is to be our desire and that is to be our goal. And this is to be our joy, beloved. You see, Jesus practiced what He preached. He preached, whoever loves father or mother, brother or sister more than me is not worthy of me. He preached, take up your cross and follow me. He preached, the first shall be last and the last shall be first. He taught how we are to seek God in prayer and be devoted to His worship. And He demonstrated what it means to give to others without taking. And so much more. We are to practice what Christ preached and what Christ practiced. Congregation, those who enjoy fellowship with God will demonstrate the character of the one in whom they abide. Those who abide in the vine, Jesus Christ will indeed bear the fruit of the vine. And just as His disciples witnessed that He was full of grace and truth, those who abide in Him are also filled with God's grace and truth. You see, the proof must be and indeed will be evident for the child of God. If you say you are a bread baker, the proof of your word is that you bake bread. If you say you are a pianist, the proof of your word is that you play a recognizable tune on the piano. If I tell you during the week as we talk that I'm working on a sermon, the proof of my word had better be that I come to you with a sermon which only happens by God's grace. And if you say you are a Christian, the proof of your word is that you act like Christ. Your life's walk must be patterned after Christ's walk and His Word. I believe the most horrible words some will hear one day are the words of Christ, Depart from me. I never knew you. Those who say they know God but by their actions prove that they don't really know Him, they will hear these shocking words one day. But for those who truly know Jesus Christ by the grace of God and therefore know how great is their sin and misery and how they are delivered from their sin and misery and who desire to live in obedience to God's commands out of gratitude for that deliverance, for them, for you and me who believe, what blessed fellowship is ours. Fellowship with our Heavenly Father made real by Jesus Christ. Fellowship applied by the Holy Spirit. Fellowship with the family of God. And fellowship for time and eternity. Are you enjoying that fellowship? Amen. Shall we pray? Father, we thank You that not only do we have fellowship with You because of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, but You have shown to us and displayed for us what the character of that fellowship, what the character of walking in the light of the truth of the Word of God is all about. Oh, we confess that so often we fall so far short of the obedience that You require of us. But even then we thank You and praise You for the confidence which is ours that Jesus Christ lives to ever intercede for Your people, to stand before You with the sacrifice of His blood in His hands. So that we might indeed have the confidence and the assurance that even the sins that we have committed today are forgiven for the sake of Jesus Christ. Help us, O Lord, to be obedient. Help us to desire to be obedient to You. Help us to be obedient out of gratitude for what You have done for us in Jesus Christ, our Lord. In Jesus' name we pray all of these things. Amen.