Ron Dunn Podcast - First John Part Five

Episode Date: March 2, 2022

Ron Dunn continues his sermon series from First John with Part 5

1 John chapter 2. I'm going to read the first two verses of this second chapter of 1 John. And you could title this passage in my message tonight, Nothing Between the Soul and the Savior. I used to hear that song sung a great deal when I was a teenager in revival meetings and such. I don't remember ever hearing it sung without falling under conviction. And again, the Lord dealt with me tonight as he sung. Nothing between my soul and the Savior. 1 John, the second chapter, just two verses. You have another one of these purpose clauses in this first verse. John

gives us another reason why he's writing these words to these believers. He says, My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. And he is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world. My little children, these things write I unto you that you sin not.

What is the basic difference between a Christian and a lost person as regards sin? The difference between the Christian and the non-Christian is not in the absence of sin. When a man is saved, that does not mean that sin is no longer present in his life, that he will no longer experience sin. And that is not the difference. And it's a very important difference because one of the first things that happens to a new Christian after they've been saved

and they find themselves looking back over their shoulder and here come the Egyptians chasing them and those old taskmasters that they thought they were done with once and for all, they thought they would never see that sin again. They thought they would never be bothered by it any longer. And they wake up one morning and look over the shoulder, and there it is, hot after them. And many a time this plunges a new Christian into despair

and even to doubt his salvation. And of course the devil always takes opportunity. And when he finds a vulnerable spot, a soft spot, if he sees you have a glass jaw, he'll go for it every time. And when he sees the shock and despair and disappointment and the seeds of doubt because this old sin has come back upon you, he'll use that and he'll say, uh-huh, see, if you were really saved, you wouldn't do that. If you were really saved, you wouldn't think like that.

If you were really saved, you wouldn't be bothered by that any longer. That preacher told you Jesus came to take away sin, and you're still here. but the difference between a Christian and a non-Christian is not the absence of sin. Now John has already labored this point. There evidently was heresy creeping around the New Testament church back in those days that said that after a man was saved, he no longer sinned. The old nature eradicated because John says in verse 8 of the first chapter, if we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. And that refers to the principle of sin, the sin principle.

Verse 10, he says, if we say we have not sinned, that refers to the practice of sin. We make him, God, a liar, and his word is not in us. That's pretty strong language. He says, if a man, even though he walks in the light as God is in the light, and even though he is experiencing and enjoying fellowship with God, yet if he says, I have no sin, he's calling God a liar. And by the way, it says he deceives himself. You'll notice it doesn't say he deceives anybody else. He only deceives himself. You don't deceive anybody else when you say you have no sin. Everybody else knows you have sin. And he says, you simply deceive yourselves. And so John has already made it very emphatically clear

that the difference between a saved man and a lost man is not in the absence of sin. Here's the difference. Not in the absence of sin, but in our attitude towards sin. In the attitude towards sin. It is impossible, now listen very carefully, it is impossible for a person to have the life of God, to have the Spirit of God indwelling in him, and to have the same attitude towards sins that he had previously.

Impossible. Absolutely impossible. One reason is the Holy Spirit won't let you have the same attitude towards sin. I like to quote what Bud Robinson, old Nazarene evangelist of another generation, used to say. He said, when God saved me, he didn't fix me up so I couldn't sin, he just fixed me up so I couldn't enjoy it.

And there's a great deal of truth and theological accuracy in that statement because the Holy Spirit indwells us and one of his ministries is to make us super sensitive to anything that is contrary to the will and nature of the Lord Jesus Christ. And it is impossible for a man to know Jesus in salvation and to have the Holy Spirit indwelling him and to have the same attitude towards sin that he had before he was saved. And the basic difference between a believer and an unbeliever is not the absence of sin.

They both still sin. Now, let me hasten to say there will be a difference in the, well, this is not a good word, but it's the only word I can think of, in the amount of sin. There will be a difference, and we'll see that in a moment. not a good word, but it's the only word I can think of, in the amount of sin, there will be a difference, and we'll see that in a moment. But the basic difference, the main difference, is in the attitude towards it. In the attitude towards it. That if a person can willfully and deliberately and knowingly sin and feel good about it and enjoy it and experience no conviction, I believe he's lost. Now, I said if he willfully and deliberately and knowingly sins,

because there are times when you and I sin not knowingly, not willfully, not deliberately. We sin in ignorance and experience no conviction but I said if a man willfully knowingly deliberately does that which he knows is against the Lord and is contrary to the Lord's will and experiences no conviction and feels good about it and can be just as happy outside the will of God as he can inside the will of God there is something basically wrong with him and that thing that's wrong with him is he has not the life of God dwelling in him. The attitude has changed. Now, what John is trying to do in the second chapter is show Christians what their attitude towards sin ought to be, and that's what I want to talk with you about tonight. The Christian's attitude towards sin.

The Christian's attitude towards sin. And there are three attitudes towards sin you'll find right there in verse 1. And we're just going to take these two verses and examine them and explore them and see what is to be my attitude towards sin. First of all, notice what he says, My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. That ye sin not. Now that is to be the first and the basic attitude of the believer towards sin. What's the attitude? Don't do it.

And he uses an aorist tense in this verse, which literally means we're not to commit a single act of sin. That is the ideal. That is the standard. I thought you just got through saying, preacher, that we are going to sin, and now you turn around and say we're not to commit a single act of sin right on both counts.

You couldn't expect God to lower the ideal just because of our sin, could you? No, the ideal, the standard that God erects for every believer is this. These things right unto you that you sin not. That's the standard towards which every Christian is to be striving. That you sin not. Not a single act of sin.

And no believer has any right to be satisfied with his spiritual progress as long as he is falling short of that standard. Now, I think the reason that John is making it so emphatic in this verse is because in chapter 1 he has just given us two good reasons to sin. I have an idea the author is anticipating what some member of the congregation is going to say. He has just said in chapter 1 that if we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and if we say we don't sin, we make God a liar. And if we'll confess our sins, he's faithful and just to forgive us our sins. And I think that John was anticipating what some of us might have said, oh, oh, I see. Well, here are two good

reasons for sinning. Here are two good reasons for having a light attitude towards sin. And by the way, I think one of the great problems of many of us today is we do not take sin seriously enough, and we have too light and flippant and casual an attitude towards it. And I think the reason we have such a casual attitude towards sin is because of the two reasons that John mentions in chapter 1. Somebody says, well, if I'm going to sin anyway, why fight it? Now, don't you smile at that. You have said that yourself. You have excused your sin with that very same explanation. You may not have worded it just like that, but you have excused yourself that very way.

You say, how do you know? Because I have. John has said, if we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves. The sin principle is still there. That old flesh, that old diabolical child of Adam that is antagonistic towards the will of God, the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak, it's still there. The sin principle is there.

If you say it's not there, you're deceiving yourself. If we say we have not sinned, if we deny any practice of sin, we're calling God a liar because we do sin. And so I say, well, if, if the old nature is still with me, and if it is true that in this life I'm going to sin anyway, why worry about it? Why worry about it? God made me this way. I mean, nobody's perfect, and I'm just human, and God said that I'm still weak. Isn't it amazing how many times we will use that to excuse and treat lightly our sin? The second good reason for sinning is because forgiveness is so easy. Forgiveness is so easy.

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Is that right? That's right. You mean all I have to do is to simply confess that sin, don't have to do any penance, don't have to beg,

just simply agree with God that it was a sin and He'll forgive me? That's right. Well, then why worry about it? Friend, there have been a number of times when you have gone ahead and have knowingly and willfully

and deliberately sinned and not worried about it because you knew you could always get forgiveness just by asking for it. And so you didn't take it seriously. And John said, These things write I unto you that you sin not. And the first and basic attitude of the believer towards sin is this,

Don't do it. Not a single one. Not a single one. I thought of it as Curtis was singing that song, Nothing Between. Lord, perhaps of all the things that we, your children, need in this place tonight is a baptism of sin consciousness. Of sin consciousness. I don't mean brooding type of sin consciousness. I don't mean that kind that broods over my failures and over my faults. What I mean is that kind of sin consciousness that takes it seriously and is grieved when we deliberately and willfully and knowingly sin against God. And that's the standard. That's the standard. And you have no right to be content and satisfied

with your spiritual progress as long as you fall short of that standard. And so you know what that means? That means that you ought never to be satisfied with where you are spiritually as long as you live. All right, let's move on and look at the second attitude that a Christian is supposed to have towards sin. He says, my little children, these things write I unto you that you sin not, and then watch this, and if any man sin. I think if I had been writing

that, I would have said, but if any man sin. Don't you expect to find that word next? If you were just reading it, or somebody were quoting it, you would expect him to say, don't sin, but if you do. But he doesn't say that. He says, and, and. In other words, he's saying, he's saying this, don't be you that you sin not, and if you do, and that if is an understatement. It means in sense, literally. It doesn't mean that there's a possibility you want. Literally, it could read like this,

and since you do sin, or when you do sin. And so this is the second attitude that the believers have towards sin. The first one is this, don't do it. Run from it. That's the Christian's ideal. Then he comes down to the Christian's everyday experience. We will sin. We will sin. And if any man sin, it is a fact of our existence that we as Christians do sin. And we need to recognize it and we need to be conscious of it.

That's what John is trying to get across in the first chapter. Not to give us an excuse to sin. Not to give us reason to take sin lightly and unseriously. But in order to impress us with the reality of it. We will sin. Don't be surprised. Because if you're surprised, then you're wobbly on your spiritual feet

and the devil can knock you off and get you into the valley of despair and defeat and doubt. Now, I want us to examine this, if any man sin, and I want you to see something that is extremely important. Again, in this verse, he uses that aorist tense, which means, and if any man commit a single act of sin.

Now, that is very, very important. That is very, very important. He says, and if any man, talking about a believer, commits a single act of sin. Friend, he did not say, and if any man, talking about a believer, commits a single act of sin, friend, he did not say, and if any man, speaking of a Christian, goes on continually sinning. I want to show you something. Would you look over in the third chapter of 1 John? I'd be interested to know if these verses ever bothered you like they used to bother me. Somebody's already said amen before I've said what verse it is.

That means I've got somebody's range. Listen to what he says in verse 6. Whosoever abideth in him, and I, is that right? Sinneth not whosoever sinneth hath not seen him

neither known him verse 8 he that commit a sin is of the devil for the devil sinneth from the beginning for this purpose the Son of God was manifested

that he might destroy the works of the devil. Now look at verse 9. Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin. For his seed remaineth in him and he cannot sin because he is born of God.

What would you do if I just sat down and dismissed you? Now you have two apparently contradictory statements. John has just said, chapter 1 and chapter 2, that we will sin, that we do sin. Then he comes over in chapter 3 and says, If anybody sins, he's of the devil, and he that is born of God, notice the graduation of emphases in verse 9,

whosoever is born of God does not commit sin. Then he says, he cannot commit sin. Well, that really is strong. He can't. I mean, even if he wanted to, he couldn't. He cannot commit sin. Well, that used to just bother me no end. Not only because it seemed to contradict what he was saying,

but it just, well, it put me in hell. I mean, it really did. Because I sinned. And he said, if you sin, you're of the devil. And whosoever is born of God does not commit sin. He can't even do it. Well, the explanation is really very simple, and it was a number of years before I ever discovered the difference in the explanation. The explanation is simply this, and those of you that have been taking Greek will understand this. The verbs in those verses in chapter 3 are in the present

tense, are in the present tense. And literally what he's saying is this, whosoever abideth in him does not go on sinning. Whosoever continues sinning hath not seen him. Verse 9, whosoever is born of God does not go on habitually committing sin, for his seed remaineth in him, and he cannot habitually commit sin. The idea is this. The present tense indicates a habit of life, a rule of life. Remember what I said this morning about sin in the life of the believer? It is the exception and not the rule. It is the exception and not the rule. What he's saying in chapter 3 is this, that a man who is saved, he cannot habitually sin as he used to. Sin is no longer the rule of his life. Now it is the exception in his life.

He does sin, but friend, that's not what characterizes him. Before a man is saved, he's sinning in the present tense. After he's saved, he sins in the aorist tense. Before he's saved, sin is that which rules and characterizes his life. It is the habitual, ever-ongoing practice of his life. After he's saved, he does not continue in the way he did before he was saved. He can't because God's seed abides in him. His sin now is occasional and incidental and accidental and exceptional.

And it is extremely important that in 1 John 2, 1, he says, and if any man commit an act of sin, he does not say, and if any man goes on sinning just like he always did before he was saved. You say, what are you trying to say? Well, what John is trying to say, dear friend, is simply this. If a man walks down the aisle of a church and makes a profession of faith, and he goes out the door living as he has always lived, continuing in his sin as he always sinned, and that life of sin is still the rule of his life

and still that which characterizes him habitually, there's only one thing true about that man, and it's this. He did not have a genuine experience of salvation. He cannot go on as he used to. He just can't do it. Why? He's changed.

This is what people don't understand when they lambast the doctrine of eternal security. You've heard it. I've heard it. They say, well, if I believe what you believe, that you can be saved and never lose your salvation, I'd go out here and live like the devil. Well, if that's what you want to do, then you may as well go ahead and do it because you don't have anything to lose. Because he that is born of God cannot, cannot go on living as he once did. He just cannot do it. The Christian does sin

but his attitude is changed sin is present in his life but it is no longer prominent in his life have I made it clear? I haven't confused anybody nobody misunderstands

nobody is confused amen Anybody? Nobody misunderstands? Nobody's confused? Amen. Now, if we had the time, and if you'll take the time to read through 1 John, you'll find he goes back over this ground again and again and again and again. And as I have read and studied this little epistle of 1 John over again in the past few weeks and days,

I have thought to myself, brother, there's nothing any more relevant in all the book than this right here. I don't know of anything that needs to be spoken to professing Christians and church members across our land than this, that he that is born of God, friend, just can't go on living like the world and like he used to live. He just can't do it. God's seed, God's nature remains in him. It is an impossibility. I think it's an impossibility because God won't allow him. I believe before God would allow a Christian to go on in sinning, I believe you'd take him home to glory. You just can't do it. And that's why I made the statement earlier that if a person makes a profession of faith in Christ and he goes out and there's no change, there's no moral change in that man's life, I'm not saying

that he's perfect and he never has any falls or slips. But what I'm saying is if there is no obvious change in his life, if absolutely nothing is different and he is still characterized by the same rule and reign of sin he was before he made his decision, it was not a genuine, true decision. That's just what the Bible says.

You notice, don't you know don't you that John argues like a woman yes he does Paul argues like a man you know how a woman argues you know how a woman argues? You know how a man argues? Well, let me share it with you.

Now, a man, I know there are exceptions to this. I'm just, you know, taking the average. Paul argues like a man. In other words, a man is very logical, rational, and when he wants to prove something, when he wants to prove something, he will go all the way around the world arguing it. That's the way Paul argues. If you read the epistle to the Romans and the epistle to the Galatians, you'll see that.

I mean, he's just reasoning, reasoning, reasoning, throwing in every argument of logic, building up his argument. Now, that's the way a man argues. He may take three hours trying to prove something, and when he gets to the final point, his wife has been there all along. But she may not know how she got there. You see, you know, I'm getting in see, a woman knows what she knows. And God has equipped her with some kind of intuitive radar. A woman is basically an intuitive person and moves by intuition. And she feels something and she knows it's right. And she may not be able to prove it's right. And she may not be able to give you arguments of why it is right,

but she knows it's right. And she simply says, this is the way it is. You can like it or leave it. And the disgusting thing about it is that she's usually right. Now, basically, basically, a woman is an intuitive creature and knows things by intuition and simply makes a flat statement of it without trying to logically, rationally, reasonably prove it. Now, John argues like a woman. In other words, you'll not find any place in 1 John where he tries to prove anything he says.

He just says it, and you can like it or you can leave it. And he says, if you say you know him and you're not keeping his commandments, you're a liar. And he doesn't argue with you. He doesn't labor the point. He doesn't try to prove it. He simply states it. And he says, if we say we have fellowship with him and walk in darkness,

we're lying. And he is again and again making these flat, dogmatic statements. He doesn't try to argue with you. He doesn't try to prove it. He just simply states it and you can like it or leave it,

but it's the truth. And he says that a man that has been born of God does not go on habitually sinning as he did before he was saved. He cannot do it. If he does, he's of the devil. And I repeat, that is a message that needs to be emphasized to a great many church members.

All right. Now let's come to the third attitude that the believer is to have towards sin. And really this is the main point of this passage and of the message. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. What is the attitude towards sin? Don't despair over it. Don't despair over it. You have not only the Christian's ideal

and the Christian's experience, but you have the Christian's advocate. And if any man sin, what are we to do? Throw up our hands in despair and think that it's all down the drain and we've lost our salvation? No, he says, and if any man sin,

we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. And as I started reading my text tonight, the thought came to me, I said, Lord, I know I'm not going to be able to do justice to this. I'll tell you that's some of the greatest words in all the Scripture right there. We have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. Friend, those are the sweetest words to the believer's ear.

We have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. God thunders down through His Word and through his law from Mount Sinai and from the Sermon on the Mount, and he says, Don't commit a single act of sin. Makes me tremble. And then he says, And if you do sin, you have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. Advocate means one who undertakes your cause.

We'll spend 30 minutes tonight talking just about that word advocate. An advocate was a friend of the accused. He was one that came along beside you for your defense. It's a court term. We could translate it lawyer, attorney. We have a lawyer with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. And there's a beautiful court scene presented here. God the Father is the judge, and I'm on trial,

and I like to think that the devil is the plaintiff. He usually is. What happens when I sin? What happens when I sin? Am I to be plunged in despair and throw up my hands? He says, no, if you sin, when you sin, we have one who undertakes our cause, who is called alongside to champion our cause and to defend us. We have an advocate

with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. And I want to tell you, the only reason a Christian stays saved is because of the heavenly advocacy of the Lord Jesus Christ. And those who don't understand eternal security don't understand it because they do not understand the fact that right now Jesus Christ is in the presence of the Father as my advocate, applying, making applicable to my everyday life the work that he did on the cross of Calvary. As long as Jesus Christ has that position in that court of heaven before the Father, I want you to know I'm saved and saved finally and everly, eternally. What happens when I sin?

Jesus Christ undertakes my cause Jesus Christ undertakes my cause. He undertakes my cause. I'll tell you, I get excited. I think about perhaps the devil just showing up in the court of heaven one day and showing to that judge, God the Father, say, I have here a list of things that preacher down there at MacArthur Boulevard did last week. What are you going to do about it? And I see the Lord Jesus Christ step forward and he said, I'll handle that.

I'll handle that. You see, the way the believer is supposed to live in this life is when the devil starts accusing him, you just say, see my lawyer. My lawyer will handle that. Did you know, I'm going to tell you something. I have never in my life had an occasion

to need an attorney until recently. I didn't know how good it felt to be able to write in a letter to somebody and say, my attorney. And I almost hesitated to use

the personal pronoun mine. You know, but he is mine. I bought him. I mean, you know, I'm paying, you know, he's my attorney. And I want to tell you something. I never realized how good it felt to write the letter and say, my attorney is handling this.

You talk to him. That just felt good. I went to see him. I said, what am I to do? Don't do a thing. He said, I'll take care of everything. And I want you to know I have a heavenly attorney. And he has said, don't do a thing.

I'll take care of everything. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. And I want to give you three reasons why he's such a terrific lawyer. By the way, he's never lost a case. Number one, he's a great lawyer because of his relationship with the judge. Friend, listen, if you ever have to go to trial, you hope and pray that your lawyer is the son

of the judge. His father is the judge. We have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. And that little preposition, with, is a translation of a little Greek preposition, pros, which means face to face, and indicates equality.

Now, friend, you've never seen in any earthly court where the lawyer was on equal standing with the judge. But this heavenly advocate is face-to-face with the Father. He is on equal footing with the judge, and the judge is his father. That makes me feel real good. But not only because of his relationship with the judge, but also because of his record with the court. Jesus Christ the righteous. And in that verse, by the way, the word righteous is in the emphatic position, emphasizing that which qualifies Jesus Christ to be my heavenly go-between

is because he himself is righteous. He's righteous. He can stand in the court of heaven and stand face to face with the Father and stand in my stead and atone for my sin because he himself is pure through and through. He is righteous. I couldn't even get into the court. There's no way that I could plead my own cause because I, outside of the Lord Jesus Christ,

there's no way that I could approach the Father, but I have one who's in good standing with the court, Jesus Christ the righteous. But the main reason he is such a tremendous advocate is because of his redemptive work. Verse 2, And he is the propitiation, that word means he is the covering for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world. Now this is a strange lawyer,

because as my lawyer pleading my case before the judge, he doesn't plead my innocence. Nor does he plead extenuating circumstances. He doesn't say, Father, you know, it was a tough week, and there were a lot of pressures, and he didn't really mean to, and you know he is weak, and you know he is still just a human. Friend, I tell you, that's the way sometimes you and I try to get forgiveness from God. We come to the Lord and say, Lord, you know I didn't

mean to, and Lord, if such and such hadn't happened, and Lord, you know this pressure and this pressure. Forget it. God's not impressed. Strange thing about this lawyer. All the time he pleads my case, he doesn't say a thing about my innocence. Of course, he couldn't. He doesn't say a thing about the extenuating circumstances. Well, what does he plead? He pleads his blood. He pleads his blood.

He pleads his blood. I'll tell you what he says. He says, Father, everything written on that charge about my client is true. And I know some things about him the plaintiff doesn't even know. And there were no extenuating circumstances, and there's no excuse for what he did. And by strict, pure, unadulterated justice, he ought to be cast into the fires of hell. But Father, I present myself, and I present my pierced hands, my pierced feet, and my driven side. And Father, I ask you, because of my shed blood on the cross, to forgive him. And you know what the verdict is? There is now therefore no condemnation to them which

are in Christ Jesus. And I go free. Why? Because he throws himself into the plea, and he pleads his blood. And I hear a verse of Scripture that says, Our sins are forgiven us for Jesus' sake. For Jesus' sake. Now, because I beg and plead, friend, listen, not even because I promise to do better.

How many times I've wasted my own time in the Lord's by promising Him I'd do better. Friend, I've got only one plea tonight and that's the shed blood of the Lord Jesus. And it's in the present tense.

He says He is. He is. Not He was. He is. He's still the covering of my sins. He's still the covering of my sins. Do you know what I've been sharing with you tonight? I've been sharing with you what goes on behind the scenes

when you confess your sins to God, as 1 John 1, 9 tells you. When you use 1 John 1, 9 and you confess your sins and God forgives you, that's what goes on in the court of heaven. And the presence of his person and the power of his propitiation assures me of my eternal security. And day by day, hour by hour, moment by moment, as I'm living, I have an advocate.

We are having, continually it says, we are having. I'm glad that's in the present tense. That's not in the aorist tense, folks. That's not just occasionally. That's present tense. We are always having an advocate with the Father. And the attitude that you and I are to have towards sin is this. We're not to do it, not a single time.

But we realize that we are going to sin, but we're not to be in despair about it. For when we sin, we have an advocate. If any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father. Jesus Christ, the righteous. The Ron Dunn Podcast is available only for personal edification, not to be duplicated, uploaded to the web, or resold without prior written consent. It is managed and operated by Sherwood Baptist Church. If you would like to listen to additional Ron Dunn messages, visit sherwoodbaptist.net slash bookstore and search Ron Dunn. For more Ron Dunn messages, visit sherwoodbaptist.net bookstore and search Ron Dunn. For more Ron Dunn materials, including sermon outlines,

devotions, and scanned pages from a study Bible, please visit rondunn.com.