FaithLife with Pastor Earl and Friends
1 John 5:5-8
And welcome to another broadcast of Fate Life with Pastor Earl and friends, and you are the friends, and I trust if you put your faith in Jesus, we are forever friends because we're a part of the family of God. We don't evolve into becoming God's children, it's by birth, the spiritual new birth. Jesus said, "Accept a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." And so today we're going to share with you about 1 John chapter 5. How do you know if you are a true believer? How do you know if you're a child of God? Today's broadcast is brought to you by one of our sponsors is Mike Green with a platinum plus limousines. If you have some special occasion, he would be glad to take you to that event and one of his wonderful drivers, they just take such good care of their people, they even go on these special excursions where they can take you to different places, and so he's just a good person to know, and his phone number is 410-796-7433, 410-796-7433. Now we're going to look at 1 John chapter 5, and we're going to return back to verse 5. We're talking about being a believer, a believer in Jesus Christ. The word believe means more than just believing in someone's existence. For instance, now that you have heard my voice and you know who I am and you've been a listener you might say, I believe in Pastor Earl, I believe in his existence, but you don't know me really personally, maybe you do, maybe you don't, but if you know me to the point where you can put your trust in me, that's the real idea of believing. See, becoming a Christian is more than just believing in the existence of Christ. It is that we believe all that the Bible tells us about Jesus, and we are putting our trust in him, we're committing ourselves to him, we're putting our confidence in him. So that's the idea of belief. John 5, who is he that overcome with the world? We live in a world that is a very difficult place. We live in a world that I believe tragically we're coming to the end of what I would call our civilization. Now you say, are you a gloom and doom person, absolutely not. I just think that the signs of the times are showing us that we are very close to the end, and I believe that we're looking forward to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Very dangerous times, very difficult times, and I'm sure that you're experiencing that kind of pressure on your life. And today, as our former president was out in a rally, someone had taken some shots at him, or shots were fired, but you know it's dangerous and it's difficult. So we need someone to put our faith in, someone to trust in, in the book of Ephesians in the sixth chapter when it talks about putting on the armor of God, it says, take the shield of faith, faith in God, faith in Christ, and hold that in front of you and stand behind it, and you'll be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And that is that Satan is out to destroy you physically, emotionally, financially, any way that he possibly can. And so we want to overcome this world. Overcome means to conquer it. We don't have to be overwhelmed by or overcome by the world. And the word for overcome is we can conquer. We don't want the world to conquer us. We want to be able to conquer this present world. And by that we don't mean by sword, but by the Holy Spirit. The word for world is cosmos, and it's all the passions and philosophies and pleasures and poisons of this world without God. And John tells us in the Epistle, he says, the whole world lyeth in wickedness. That's not being negative, it's just the state of our world at this present time. We're in the last days, but we can still triumph over this. We can overcome the world. We can overcome our flesh, and we can overcome the devil. John again in the book of the Revelation in chapter 12, writes under the inspiration of the Spirit, how do we overcome the world by the blood of the lamb? That's your salvation through the blood of Jesus. Then the blood not only cleanses us, but it covers us and helps us to conquer. It is the one element that Satan fears because it met his destruction as Christ put his foot on the head of the serpent at the cross. So you can overcome the world, and overcoming is by Revelation 12, the blood of the lamb, the word of our testimony. So make sure the words that you're speaking are not your feelings or your fears, but words of faith, quoting the word of God, not what you say or what others say, but what does the word of God say and let that word of God flow out of your mouth? Who is he that overcometh the world? Well, it tells us in John 16 and verse 33, Jesus says, "Be of good cheer, man, it's easy to get depressed in this world. It's easy to get discouraged and disheartened. But because we have Jesus, he says, "Be of good cheer." Imagine you're with a friend and perhaps you're getting something to eat. You look very sad and you look very solemn, and your friend says to you, "Hey, be of good cheer." Jesus says, "I have overcome the world." What he did there, there's a song like that. It says, "What he did there brought hope from despair." Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth, that Jesus is the Son of God. Again, the word believeth, put your faith in, put your trust in, put your commit rather to Jesus Christ and put your confidence in him, we're seeing so many spiritual leaders, alleged spiritual leaders fall morally and ethically in these days. And many people are disheartened and disappointed and of course it's sad and it's tragic, but your faith should never be in man anyway, it should be in Jesus Christ, the founder, the Lord of our faith. So who is the one that overcomes the world, he that believeth, present tense, continuously, not just on Sunday morning for an hour, but your whole life is all about putting your faith in Jesus for your salvation, for your sustenance and for your daily survival. And you believe that Jesus is not just a man and not just a martyr and not just a prophet and not just a religious personality, but you believe that he's the Son of God. Now there's a false religion, call themselves the witnesses, and they say that Jesus is a son of God, like he's an offspring child of God. Well, no, it says he is the Son of God and he is God the Son. Jesus Christ, 100% man, 100% God, humanity and deity. But there's one thing that Jesus does not possess and that is man's sinful nature. We know that because he was conceived of the Holy Spirit. If he was conceived of Mary and Joseph, he would have that sinful nature that's passed on by man, Romans 5, 12. Who is he that overcome with the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God? Do you believe that Jesus is the Son of God? Do you believe that he's divine? You say, well, I believe he's a good man. No, you've got to believe that he is God in the flesh, God incarnate. Chapter 5 and verse 6 says this. This is he that came, remember, this is past tense, came by water and blood. Even Jesus Christ, not by water only, but by water and blood. Let's talk about that for just a moment. The water and the blood, some say that the water is just referring to his humanity in his natural birth and then his crucifixion shedding his blood on the cross. I'm not so sure that that's a real interpretation of it, but when it says he came by water and blood, now listen carefully to this, baptism doesn't save you, but baptism is an identifier that you are a believer in Jesus Christ. That's what you do it. That's why you do it. You identify in his death is burial and his resurrection, but when he says he came by water and blood, there are two elements that we take care of in the church. Number one is baptism and number two is communion because we commemorate those two events. The baptism showing that we are a child of God and identifying with Jesus and the communion that we are partaking of his death is burial and his resurrection identifying with Christ. Came by water and blood, now there's something else. The water as you remember at Jesus baptism was a very special baptism because there we see our triune God, the heavens open, the spirit descends and Jesus is there being baptized. The voice from heaven, the father says, "This is my beloved son in whom I'm well pleased." At Jesus baptism is where the father endorses, puts his stamp of approval, and identifies Jesus Christ as his son. He came by water, "This is my beloved son, my unique, one-of-a-kind son, in whom I am well pleased," and then the blood, I believe, refers to the crucifixion of Jesus and without the shedding of his blood, there's no forgiveness for our sins. You see, you can't become a Christian just by being baptized, you can't become a Christian just by taking communion, but if you put your faith in Jesus Christ, the one who the father said, "This is my beloved son in whom I'm well pleased," and you believe in the finished work of Jesus on the cross, and you're putting your trust and your confidence and your commitment in Jesus Christ and toward Jesus Christ, and that's how you become a believer. But it says not by water only, but by water and blood. Another interpretation that I have seen, as he came by water and blood, was when he was on the cross and they took the spear and they plunged it into his side and out came water and blood. Now you say, "Why is that significant?" Well there are major cardiologists that have told us this, that Jesus did not die because he was murdered. He laid down his own life, and many really intelligent people, particularly in the medical world, say that this water and blood, when they plunged the spear, it pierced his side and when the water and blood came out, it was the fact that he had died of a broken heart and died by giving his life for us, broken by our sin. But thank God he didn't stay dead, he died, he was buried and he rose again. And then it says this, listen to this, beautiful part of the verse, and it is the spirit. It is the spirit that beareth witness. When you became a Christian, you didn't do it on your own, you were led to Jesus Christ by the Holy Spirit, then when you receive Christ, the Holy Spirit enters your life. And you become a new creature, you have to quicken, made alive, who were dead in your trespasses and sins. And it says, and it is the spirit that beareth witness because the spirit is truth. If you will study on your own Isaiah 11 1 and 2, it talks about the sevenfold aspect of the Holy Spirit. John 14 to 16, he is called the Comforter, the one called alongside to help. He fills us with his spirit if he is in 5, 18 to 21. And when we repent of our sins, we receive the gift of the Holy Spirit, Acts chapter 2 and verse 38. Then as we get to verse 7, it says, "For there are three that bear record in heaven." The Father, the Word, and the Word is Jesus, remember John 1-1 in the beginning was the Word. The Word was with God. The Word was God, verse 14, and the Word became flesh, God became flesh, and dwelt among us. And we behold His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. For there are three that bear record in heaven. The Father, the Word, or the Son, and the Holy Ghost, and these three are one. Let me tell you this about God, we don't have three gods. We have one being, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit manifest in those three ways. The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. One being, yet we have the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Then it tells us in verse 8, verse 8, as we close today, and there are three that bear witness in earth. So you are a person, and I trust you have put your faith in Jesus Christ. How do you know that? And 1 John is all about knowing, not hoping. There are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, that's the Holy Spirit, and the water. And I think that does refer to the time when we receive Christ and then follow the Lord and believers baptism, that's showing the world that we are a child of God, the Spirit that's within us and upon us, and the water baptism that we go through to identify with Jesus and the blood. And the blood is, of course, our faith in Jesus Christ, finished work on the cross once and for all, shedding his blood for you and for me. And these three agree in one. They are in agreement with who Jesus is. There are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, the water, and the blood. So heaven in earth, just confirm when you are a believer, when you are a child of God. And I trust today that if you have not yet received him, you would do that. Pray with me this prayer if you'd like to receive Christ, say Lord, I repent of my sins today. I change my mind, my will, and my direction, and I receive you as my Lord and Savior. And if you have done that, you have become a child of God. Let me know by using our email at karrisman, C-H-A-R-I-S-M-A-N-1-2-3-4 at gmail.com or text me text only 386-795-8494. And bless you and have a wonderful day and know that God loves you and I love you too. [MUSIC PLAYING]