That We May Know 1 John 5:13-21 1 John 5:13-21

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That We May Know 1 John 5:13-21 1 John 5:13-21 13 I

write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life. 14 And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. 15 And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him. anyone sees his brother committing a sin not leading to death, he shall ask, and God will give him life —to those who commit sins that do not lead to death. There is sin that leads to death; I do not say that one should pray for that. 17 All wrongdoing is sin, but there is sin that does not lead to death. 16 If

18 We

know that everyone who has been born of God does not keep on sinning, but he who was born of God protects him, and the evil one does not touch him. 19 We

know that we are from God, and the whole world lies in the power of the evil one.

20 And we

know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true; and we are in him who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life. 21 Little children, keep yourselves from idols.

Introduction – Recap the Series (Walking in the Light of Love for God and Love for Others through Jesus Christ) Exposition I.

John’s Goal – Our Assurance of Eternal Life (Vs. 13)

II.

John’s Reasons (Vss. 14-20) a. b. c. d. e.

Confidence in Prayer (Vss. 14-15) Forgiveness in Disobedience (Vss. 16-17) Perseverance in Sanctification (Vs. 18) Deliverance in God (Vs. 19) Understanding in Christ (Vs. 20)

Conclusion (Vs. 21) John concludes his letter by warning his audience to “keep themselves from idols.” At first glance, it may seem like this instruction is out of place, but in reality, it gets to the heart of everything else that John has been saying. Idolatry, according to Tim Keller, “is anything more important to you than God, anything that absorbs your heart and imagination more than God, anything you seek to give you what only God can give. An idol is whatever you look at and say, in your heart of hearts, ‘If I have that, then I’ll feel my life has meaning, then I’ll know I have value, then I’ll feel significant and secure.’ There are many ways to describe that kind of relationship to something, but perhaps the best one is worship.” If John’s audience does not guard against idolatry, everything that he has written will be undermined. All confidence in prayer will disappear, all hope of forgiveness will dissolve, the pursuit of holiness will stall, we will return to the slavery of sin that God has set us free from, and we will either neglect the truth of Christ or suppress the truth of Christ in unbelief. Idolatry steals our joy, our assurance, and our confidence in God. Therefore, we must flee it so that we may walk in the light with love toward God and others!