The knowledge of God given us by the Spirit is not mere information, but it is a relational and intimate knowledge.
Scripture: 1 John 2:28-3:3
Sermon Notes:
- The hope of the Christian is summed up in the apostle John’s injunction to abide in God.
- Eternal life is fellowship with the Father and the Son by the Holy Spirit. This life was manifested to us in the incarnation of the Son.
- The spirit of antichrist denies the incarnation of the Son.
- The gospel of the Word of Life is to abide in us that we might abide in the Father and the Son.
- The personal anointing of the Holy Spirit is our adoption as children of God.
- The knowledge of God given to us by the Spirit is not mere information, but it is a relational and intimate knowledge.
- Because of our knowledge of God, we derive hope and confidence.
- The fruit of the knowledge of God in our lives is righteousness and witness to the world.
- Regarding the second coming, John says that the Christian’s glorified nature will be fully revealed.
- Heaven is a present reality but it is veiled. At His ascension Christ went behind the veil into heaven’s glory.
- At the resurrection we will be glorified in our resurrected bodies, we will behold God as He really is, and we will experience full fellowship with God.
- Those who are damned remain in hatred and enmity toward God, and enter into eternal shame.
- Those redeemed by the Lamb will stand before the judgment in confidence by the atonement of Christ.
- We are called to be children of God by the supernatural new birth (Jn. 3:5-8), and so we can be confident that God will complete His work in us (cf. Phil. 1:6)
- We practice righteousness not as slaves, but as friends of God. We should long to be righteous as God is righteous.
- God the Father raises us up as His children and we mature in righteousness.
- In our walk we either look like the world or we look like Christ.
- When the world is more hostile, it is harder to bear the name of Christ.
- When we are confident in our identities in Christ, we present something attractive to a world in search of self-made identities.
- Our growth in maturity in Christ manifests itself in increasing purity and righteousness.
- The unrighteous will be disinherited from the kingdom of God, but God’s transforming work continues to raise up His children (1 Cor. 6:9-10).
Application Questions:
- How do we become children of God? What is the role of the Holy Spirit?
- What is the fruit of an intimate and personal knowledge of God?
- How is the present kingdom reality related to heaven?
- Do we look like the world or do we look like Christ?
- What does it mean to bear the stigma of Christ?