Joining Our Savior's War against Our Sin [Family Worship lesson in 1John 3:4–10]

What’s the big deal about sin? 1John 3:4–10 prepares us for the second serial reading in public worship on the Lord’s Day. In these seven verses of Holy Scripture, the Holy Spirit teaches us that sin is a big deal because it is opposed to God, opposed to Christ, and opposed to the new life and identity of the believer.(click here to DOWNLOAD mp3/pdf files of this lesson)

2024.04.25 Hopewell @Home ▫ 1 John 3:4–10

Read 1 John 3:4–10

Questions from the Scripture text: What does the one committing sin also commit (1 John 3:4)? Why is this true? Why was Jesus revealed (1 John 3:5)? Who knows this? What isn’t there any of in Him? What doesn’t the one abiding in Him do (1 John 3:6)? What two things hasn’t the sinning one done? How does the apostle address his readers in 1 John 3:7? What does he urge them not to let anyone do? What is the relation between one’s works and one’s status? From where do both come? Of whom is the one who sins (1 John 3:8)? How do the devil and sin relate to one another? Who has been manifested? For what purpose—to destroy what? Of Whom are some people now born (1 John 3:9)? What does such a man not do? Why—what abides (remains) in him? What can’t he do? Why—of Whom has he been born? Which two categories of men have been distinguished from one another (1 John 3:10)? How is this distinction revealed? What two things are always the case for someone who is a child of God?

What’s the big deal about sin? 1 John 3:4–10 prepares us for the second serial reading in public worship on the Lord’s Day. In these seven verses of Holy Scripture, the Holy Spirit teaches us that sin is a big deal because it is opposed to God, opposed to Christ, and opposed to the new life and identity of the believer.

The nature of sin: lawlessness, 1 John 3:4. Sin is utterly heinous, because it is against God. It is against His existence, His deity, His glory, His claims upon us. And this glorious God has given us His Fatherly instruction, His law. This law is an expression of the applications to our lives of the implications of His character for us as His image-bearers. So sin is an utter rejection of the glorious God, and an utter rejection of His self-revelation to us. It clamps its hands over its ears, as it were, and refuses to receive God’s good and kind communication of Himself.

Christ as solution to sin (1): taking away our sins, 1 John 3:5-6. Jesus was manifested to take away our sins (1 John 3:5a) in the two ways that we heard about in 1 John 1:9. In our justification, Jesus Himself is counted as our righteousness, with His keeping the commandments of the law counted in our behalf, and with His offering Himself as an atoning sacrifice wiping away the guilt and penalty of our sin. So, He was manifested to forgive us our sins. But He was also manifested to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Not only does He instantly take away the penalty of our sin; He instantly takes away its power over us and progressively takes away its power within us and presence within us. Indeed, sin still feels powerful, but it is no longer our master. And He weakens it more and more, even as He makes us more and more holy. 

Jesus’s great work is to take away sins. It is the height of wickedness to tolerate sin or to teach that a Christian may do so. Since in Jesus there is no sin (end of 1 John 3:5), and since a Christian may aptly be described as one who abides in Jesus, how can a Christian go on in sin? Sinning never comes from seeing Him; sinning never comes from knowing Him (1 John 3:6). Though since the time that this book was written, false teachers have been telling saints that seeing and knowing Jesus permits them to go on sinning comfortably, the truth is exactly the opposite. Abiding in Christ makes sin most uncomfortable!

Christ as solution to sin (2): destroying the works of the devil, 1 John 3:7-8. The word for “practices” in 1 John 3:7 (and 1 John 3:10) is actually “works.” There were teachers at the time saying that those who were righteous with God in Jesus Christ could just go on working unrighteousness. But this was a lie, so the apostle says, “let no one deceive you.” If Jesus is righteous, then He produces a telltale sign in those whom He makes righteous: they work righteousness (1 John 3:7). 

But all believers began dead in sin (cf. Ephesians 2:1), walking according to the devil himself (cf. Ephesians 2:2), as children of wrath (cf. Ephesians 2:3). And even after we have that new seed within us, that new birth, that new nature, it is possible for us to live according to that which is passing away, that which remains from our former nature. Is it ok to go on sinning then? By no means! “He who sins is of the devil” (1 John 3:8)! Whenever a believer sins, he acts according to that satanic nature with which he came into the world. He must not do so! Jesus came to destroy the works of the devil (end of verse 8), to go on in is to fight against the cosmic mission of our God and Savior. 

God’s children opposed to sin, 1 John 3:9-10. Furthermore, going on in sin sets us against our new nature (1 John 3:9; cf. Galatians 5:16–17). We came into this new nature by being born of God. We cannot be born of God, then unborn of God. The new nature must persist and must win out until that which is from our former nature is defeated and eliminated. When we sin, we may know that it is coming not from our new and lasting nature in God, in Christ, but from our former and condemned nature whose days are numbered. So for every thought, we must determine: does that thought come from the spirit or from the flesh? For every word, we must determine: does that word come from my former nature or from my new nature from God? For every action, we must determine: does that action come from me as a child of God, or rather as I used to be, a child of the devil?

This is vitally important for us to distinguish, and if we find that we do not care to work righteousness, then this is very serious indeed. All of humanity are divided into two categories in 1 John 3:10: the children of God and the children of the devil. That song of old liberalism tells a diabolical lie when it says, “with God as our father, brothers all are we.” No, there are two fathers: the devil is the father of those who are still in the first Adam, and God is the Father of those who are in the second Adam. God is the Father of those who are in Christ. And verse 10 gives us the telltale sign of the one who is a child of the devil: he doesn’t work righteousness, and he doesn’t love his brother. Such a person cannot be a child of God. In the Son of God, there is no sin (1 John 3:5), so the children of God, who abide in the Son of God, also do not sin. Do they commit sins? Yes (cf. 1 John 1:8, 1 John 1:10), but only from what remains of their former, vanishing nature. It is not of their new nature, and they are at war with it.

How is it evident that you are at war with your sin? If you had to evaluate by whose side you seem to be on, do you seem to be a child of God or a child of the devil? What has Jesus done about the penalty of your sin? What is He doing about the power and presence of your sin? 

Sample prayer:  Lord, forgive us for breaking Your holy law. Not only is our sin against You Yourself, but also against Your good and kind teaching to us of Your law. Forgive us for how we have been willing to think and say and do that which Christ came to destroy. Forgive us for having tolerated thoughts, emotions, and actions that belong to the children of the devil, rather than the children of God. Truly, our sin is a dreadful thing. But we thank You that if we are in Christ, it is because we have been born of You, and Your seed remains in us. Make us to work righteousness, and to love our brother, we ask through Christ, AMEN!

 Suggested songs: ARP118A “Because He’s Good, O Thank the LORD” or TPH461 “Blessed Are the Sons of God”

2024.04.24 Prayer Meeting Live Stream (Live at 6:30p.m.)

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Romans 13:11–14 Sermon Outline

We urge you to assemble physically, if possible, with a true congregation of Christ's church. For those of our own congregation who may be providentially hindered, we are grateful to be able to provide this service.

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What the Servant Secured for His Bride and Offspring [Family Worship lesson in Isaiah 54]

What does the Servant secure for the church? Isaiah 54 prepares us for the first serial reading in public worship on the Lord’s Day. In these seventeen verses of Holy Scripture, the Holy Spirit teaches us that the Servant secures for the church an age in which He Himself is her Head, and the Lord deals with her accordingly. (click here to DOWNLOAD mp3/pdf files of this lesson)

2024.04.24 Hopewell @Home ▫ Isaiah 54

Read Isaiah 54

Questions from the Scripture text: Who is commanded to sing (Isaiah 54:1a)? Even though she hasn’t done what (verse 1b)? What sort of singing (verse 1c)? Even though she hasn’t done what (verse 1d)? How do her offspring and joy compare to whose? Who says this? What will she have to do for her growing family (Isaiah 54:2-3)? What will they inherit (Isaiah 54:3b)? What two things is she told not to do (Isaiah 54:4a–b)? Why, what will be taken away (verse 4c–d)? Whom does she have now for a Husband (Isaiah 54:5a)? What is His Name (verse 5b)? Whom does she have for nearest of kin/Redeemer (verse 5c)? What else is He called (verse 5d)? Who has called her (Isaiah 54:6a, d, Isaiah 54:8c)? From out of what condition (Isaiah 54:6b–c)? How long was she in that condition (Isaiah 54:7a)? How will the mercy into which we brings her compare (Isaiah 54:7b, Isaiah 54:8b)? How sure is His promise to do this (Isaiah 54:9-10)? What is her condition now (Isaiah 54:11a–b)? But how does the Lord describe His adorning her (Isaiah 54:11-12c)? What blessings will her children have, in addition to being many (Isaiah 54:13)? How secure will she be in her new, righteous condition (Isaiah 54:14)? What will the enemies still do, but what will happen to them (Isaiah 54:15)? Why won’t any weapons succeed against His people (Isaiah 54:16-17c)? To whom does this heritage belong (Isaiah 54:17d)? How will they come into it (verse 17e)? How can we be sure (verse 17f)?

What does the Servant secure for the church? Isaiah 54 prepares us for the first serial reading in public worship on the Lord’s Day. In these seventeen verses of Holy Scripture, the Holy Spirit teaches us that the Servant secures for the church an age in which He Himself is her Head, and the Lord deals with her accordingly. 

Flourishing joy for the currently barren, Isaiah 54:1-3. Israel, in the time of her exile, is forsaken. But the seed that the Servant (Christ!) secures by His labor (cf. Isaiah 53:10d), now produce a multitude of children for her that she did not even bear (cf. Isaiah 49:18–23). This historical metaphor is often lived out by particular church members. That which is true for Israel as a church is true for barren (cf. Psalm 113:7–9) and eunuchs (cf. Isaiah 56:3–5) among God’s people, who receive church-family as a super-natural blessing that they enjoy especially on the Lord’s Day, with a view toward eternity. We get a taste of the family-forming power of Christ when we are more than compensated at church for the emptiness that barrenness, singleness, or bereavement have brought to the home. This is the proper way for converted Jews to feel in the largely gentile church: sing (Isaiah 54:1a)! Break forth into singing, and cry aloud (verse 1c)! You are the seed who are inheriting the nations (Isaiah 54:3b)!

Affectionate love for the currently forsaken, Isaiah 54:4-8. As conveyed so poignantly in the contemporary book of Hosea, Israel are desolate and alone because she has forsaken her Husband. But the Servant who has atoned for her sins (cf. chapter 53) has brought her back into her marriage to YHWH of hosts, her Husband (Isaiah 54:5a) and closest of kin (e.g., “Redeemer,” Isaiah 54:5c, Isaiah 54:8c). His chastening her has been momentary (Isaiah 54:7a) and measured (Isaiah 54:8a) in order to bring her into immeasurable compassions (Isaiah 54:7b) and eternal covenant love (Isaiah 54:8b).

Faithful covenant blessing for the currently sinful, Isaiah 54:9-10. When God promises that the waters shall never again cover the earth (cf. Genesis 9:15), it is in the context of noting that even with Noah’s household as the only remaining humanity, it was still true that “the imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth” (cf. Genesis 8:21). Now in the wake of the Servant’s work, the steadfast love (Isaiah 54:10c), covenant of peace (verse 10d), and compassion (verse 10e) of YHWH are secured to His church forever. We know that particular congregations may be disciplined (cf. 1 Corinthians 11:30–32) and even forsaken of God (cf. Revelation 2:5), but when the church comes into the age of the Servant, she comes into an age in which corporately, as a whole, she is always being built and always under the shining of God’s love like the sun rising until it is at full strength (cf. Matthew 16:18; Proverbs 4:18; 2 Samuel 23:1–5). With Christ as our Head, even those who live in times and places of apostasy and dreadful chastening of the local churches may cling to the Servant and know they are part of a broader church that is still being built under the smile of God.

Fearless peace for the currently attacked, Isaiah 54:11-17. In this final section, Zion is more than just built up; she is beautified. The word picture of the gems, sapphires, rubies, (Isaiah 54:11) crystal, and precious stones (Isaiah 54:12) takes our minds right to Revelation 21:18–21. The greatest beauty, however, is the character of the bride (cf. Revelation 21:2), presented here as the children obtained by the Servant for His church. They are not just plentiful, as we saw in Isaiah 54:1-3, but peaceful. As those taught by YHWH (Isaiah 54:13a, cf. 1 John 2:27), they have the peace (Isaiah 54:13b) of those who don’t fear (Isaiah 54:14) even when enemies are gathered against them (Isaiah 54:15). The God Who so affectionately loves them (Isaiah 54:4-8) is the Creator of swords and tongues and everything in between (Isaiah 54:16-17b). The Lord is their portion (Isaiah 54:17d), because from Him is their righteousness (verse 17e), even as He has said (verse 17f). 

Who is the Head of the church? What has He secured from God for the church on earth? What will she be like when He is done with her? How do you experience the life, love, and mercy personally that He has earned for the church corporately? Who has been attacking you? Why don’t you have to be afraid of them?

Sample prayer:  Lord, we are those barren who are ashamed of our inability and our sin, knowing that You have been right in all of Your chastening us. But You have made us to flourish much; forgive us for not seeing how great this mercy has been! When we look at ourselves, we are ashamed, but we have failed to see how You have removed this shame as our Husband, our Warrior, our Redeemer, our Holy One, our Sovereign God. Grant that we would be quick in repentance, turning from ourselves to You. We know that You will build Your church; give us to live in joy and hope and devotion to You, as part of Your whole church in the earth—even when we sometimes must grieve and be humiliated over what happens locally. 

Suggested songs: ARP45B “Daughter, Incline Your Ear” or TPH404 “The Church’s One Foundation” 

The Rejoicing of Righteous Homes and Hearts [Family Worship lesson in Psalm 118:15–18]

What does a righteous home sound like? Psalm 118:15–18 prepares us for the opening portion of public worship on the Lord’s Day. In these four verses of Holy Scripture, the Holy Spirit teaches us that a righteous home is loud with the sound of rejoicing over Jesus.(click here to DOWNLOAD mp3/pdf files of this lesson)

2024.04.23 Hopewell @Home ▫ Psalm 118:15–18

Read Psalm 118:15–18

Questions from the from the Scripture text: What “voice” does Psalm 118:15a describe? Where is it heard (verse 15b)? What does it rejoice over (verse 15c, Psalm 118:16a, verse 16b)? What has this right hand of YHWH done? What else does this right hand ensure will not happen (Psalm 118:17a)? What will happen instead? Why will the righteous one live (verse 17b)? What has YHWH done to the righteous one (Psalm 118:18a)? But what hasn’t He done?

What does a righteous home sound like? Psalm 118:15–18 prepares us for the opening portion of public worship on the Lord’s Day. In these four verses of Holy Scripture, the Holy Spirit teaches us that a righteous home is loud with the sound of rejoicing over Jesus.

Recognizing the righteous tent. How do you know if you are in one of the tents of the righteous (Psalm 118:15b)? There is one piece of furniture that you will always find there: the voice of loud rejoicing and salvation (verse 15a; the word for salvation here, is the word from which we get “Jesus”!). The word for “rejoicing” is ‘loud’ enough that it can well be translated “crying out.” The victory of the King in Psalm 118:10-14 spills over into the tents of the righteous, who are given a share in His victory. Can people tell if your house is a tent of the righteous? How about your heart? Is there jubilation over Jesus there?

What the righteous rejoice over. Three times (Psalm 118:15c, Psalm 118:16a, verse 16b) we hear what this jubilant voice is rejoicing over: “the right hand of YHWH.” This great King, Who destroys the swarm of enemies, is Himself the right hand of YHWH—the strength (Psalm 118:15, Psalm 118:16b) and glory (verse 16a) of God, which delivers His people. 

Why the righteous are delivered. We deserve death. It is a turn of events when we do not die, but instead we live (Psalm 118:17a). For what purpose are we given this life? “To declare the works of YHWH” (verse 17b)! This is not miserly, on the Lord’s part, but generous. If we had desired all creation, instead of desiring to know Him and His glory, we would desire too little. And it is the great privilege and purpose of our creation and our redemption to declare His glory!

How the righteous are brought into their portion. Notice that being saved by YHWH’s almighty right hand does not mean that we experience nothing but comfort and ease. Psalm 118:188a might look like it doesn’t fit in this section, but it is the standard experience of all whom the Lord saves, all who are true children (cf. Hebrews 12:8). They partake in chastening, in discipline, sometimes quite painfully (the word is intensified by a doubling in the original, cf. Hebrews 12:11). But this is not because the Lord is against them, but rather because He is saving them from the death that they deserve (Psalm 118:18b), the death to which they would plunge themselves without His deliverance and His chastening. 

So, with our thoughts resting upon the victory of the King, let us rejoice over His salvation, and even His faithfulness and wisdom and goodness in chastening us!

Who is your King? Whom has He defeated, and whom/what will He have finished defeating at the last? What painful thing does He do in your life to bring you into the full enjoyment of what He has gained for you? What is an example of His chastening that you have experienced? How often/much do you find your heart full of the affection of rejoicing at all of this? How often/much do you find your home full of the sound of rejoicing at all of this? 

Sample prayer:  Lord, grant that loud shouts of joy would be filling our houses throughout the week, and grant that loud shouts of joy would fill the assembly of Your household on the Lord’s Day. You have saved us by Your Son, Jesus Christ. He has been for us Your valiant and exalted right hand. Even when You have severely chastened us, it has been to deliver us from death so that we may live and declare Your works. So, grant unto us the ministry of Your Spirit, that He would apply Christ to us, and give us to declare Your works in praise, we ask in His Name, AMEN!

 Suggested songs: ARP118C “Loud Shouts of Joy” or TPH118A “O Thank the LORD for All His Goodness” 

Ordained Servants in Service of Worship [2024.04.21 Evening Sermon in Numbers 8:5–26]

In Christ, our High Priest, all of His saints are designated by God for service as living sacrifices.

(click here to DOWNLOAD video/mp3/pdf files of this sermon)

How to Grow in Holiness [2024.04.21 Morning Sermon in Matthew 7:7–12]

Progress in holiness comes through fellowship with Father, Who even uses us in our brothers' lives.

(click here to DOWNLOAD video/mp3/pdf files of this sermon)

Resistance to Tyranny (6): A Case Study [2024.04.21 Sabbath School Lesson]

Gun confiscation as a case study in resisting tyrants.(click here to DOWNLOAD mp3/pdf files of this lesson)