1 JOHN: DISCERNING TRUE FROM FALSE SPIRITUALITY

Part VII: True Spirituality In View Of One Day Meeting The Lord

(1 John 2:28-3:3)

I. Introduction

A. When the rapture occurs, every person who knows Christ as Savior will not only meet Him, but 2 Corinthians 5:10-11 reveals he will give an account to Christ at His Judgment Seat for the life he has lived as a believer.

B. One may be tempted to fear such a future, but 1 John 2:28-3:3 shows us how to prepare for it with confidence:

II. True Spirituality In View Of One Day Meeting The Lord, 1 John 2:28-3:3.

A. The Apostle John revealed that we believers must truly fellowship with the Lord now to prepare to have boldness and not be ashamed before Him when Christ returns to get us at the rapture, 1 John 2:28:

1. Using the term teknia that the KJV renders "little children" (U. B. S. Grk. N. T., 1966, p. 817), every true believer (teknion, Arndt & Gingrich, A Grk.-Eng. Lex. of the N. T., 1967, p. 815), John urged them to "abide" in Him, what John 15:7, 10 claims is to fellowship with the Lord in heeding His Word, 1 Jn. 2:28a.

2. In doing so, not only would they mature from the Little Children to the Young Men to the Fathers maturity levels respectively (1 John 2:12-27), but they would have "confidence, outspokenness" (parrasia, Ibid., p. 635-636) and not be ashamed before the Lord at His coming, 1 John 2:28b.

B. For our application, John clarified that this true fellowship involves two major focuses, 1 John 2:29-3:3:

1. First, true fellowship involves leading a life that produces righteousness as a general way of life, 2:29:

a. John claimed that if we "understand " (oida, Ibid., p. 558; Ibid., U. B. S. Grk. N. T.) that He, Christ Who is coming is righteous, then we "come to know" by experience (ginosko, Ibid., Arndt & Gingrich, p. 159-161) that everyone who "produces" (poieo, Ibid., p. 687-689; Ibid., U. B. S. Grk. N. T.) the righteousness of God in his life has been permanently spiritually born (gegennetai, perfect passive of gennao, "be born" (passive), Ibid.; William D. Mounce, The Analyt. Grk. Lex. to the Grk. N. T., 1993, p. 122, 124.

b. Back in 1 John 1:10, John had already acknowledged that every believer has committed acts of sin after salvation, so he does not here in 1 John 2:29 mean one must become sinlessly perfect still to be saved, but that a true believer who is permanently born (eternal security) of God generally produces a righteous life!

2. Second, true fellowship involves continual purifying of oneself from specific acts of sin, 1 John 3:1-2, 3:

a. Shifting his approach to woo his readers to want to cleanse themselves of individual acts of sin, John in 1 John 3:1-2 dwelt on the wonderful hope of the believer at the rapture: (1) addressing his readers as "Beloved," John reminded them of the Father's gracious that He permanently bestowed on them (dedoken, perfect tense of didomi, "give," Ibid., U. B. S. Grk. N. T.; Ibid., Mounce, p. 132, 144-45) that they might be called the teknion, children as belonging to God's family (cf. "A,1" above), and John added, "and [that] we are!" (Ibid., U. B. S. Grk. N. T.; 1 John 3:1). (2) As God's beloved children in His family (tekna, Ibid.; 1 John 3:2a), it does not yet appear what we shall be like for our benefit (esometha, future middle ind. of eimi, "be, exist," Ibid.; Ibid., Mounce, p. 164, 218), the thrust of the middle voice in the Greek verb, but we know that when He, Christ, appears, we will be existing to our benefit (esometha again; Ibid., U. B. S. Grk. N. T.) like He is, for we will see Him for our benefit (opsometha, future middle ind. of horao, "see, behold," Ibid.; Ibid., Mounce, p. 341, 347) just as He exists [now], 1 John 3:2.

b. With the privileged position of being God's beloved born ones in His spiritual family, in view of our personally beneficial blessing we will know in sharing our Lord's glory at His appearing when we are personally benefited through the blessing of seeing Him, John notes that everyone who has this hope in himself purifies himself ('agnizo, "purify," Ibid., U. B. S. Grk. N. T.; Ibid., Mounce, p. 50) of acts of sin even as Christ is pure, 1 John 1:9; 3:3. God's grace toward us makes doing anything less unreasonable!

Lesson: God wants us to look forward with positive anticipation and relaxed courage to our Lord's coming and not be fearful of it, and to do so, we must stay in fellowship with the Lord, heeding His Word. That true fellowship involves leading a life that generally produces righteousness, and purifying one's self of specific lapses into acts of sin in view of the wonderful and personally blessed hope of seeing the Lord and being translated into the likeness of His glory at His coming.

Application: May we anticipate Christ's return with courage, not fearful shame, by staying in fellowship with the Lord through heeding His Word, which involves leading a life that produces righteousness as a way of life and purifying ourselves by God's provision of acts of sin in line with our wonderful, blessed future with Him!