Today, we continue our series in 1 John, and I'm going to read 1 John 1, 6 through 10. I know your bulletin says through 2, 2, but the sermon would be way, way, way too long for today, so I've cut it down a little bit. 1 John 1, 6 through 10, please give attention to the very word of God. If we say that we have fellowship with him and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another. And the blood of Jesus Christ, his son, cleanses us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar and his word is not in us. This past week in the Senate, hearings were held to determine the suitability of a new nominee to the U.S. Supreme Court. And in the hearing, Senator Blackburn asked nominee Brown, quote, can you provide a definition of a woman? Nominee Brown repeated the question for confirmation. Senator Blackburn confirmed that that was exactly what her question was, to which the Supreme Court nominee Brown said, I can't. Blackburn queried, you can't define a woman? To which Judge Brown said, not in this context. I'm not a biologist. To which Senator Blackburn asked, you don't know the answer to so fundamental a question? Well, what's the problem here? Do you think nominee Brown really does not know what a woman is? Well, you know, I'm going to tell you after seeing what's going on in higher education at the college level today, she may not know. Maybe she does, maybe she doesn't. Either she is caught or she has been progressively educated successfully to not know the truth. So the problem here is twofold. Judge Brown is mouthing the current progressive education that is seeking to remove all distinctions between sexes, as well as remove all borders of countries, as well as remove the idea of ownership of private property. That's all going on in the higher education today. And Judge Brown knows that if she answers the question accurately, that she will have exposed her destructive intent. So if she doesn't know, then that's the problem. If she does know, she's covering up to keep hidden her position and her intention. She's not willing to come clean. She's not willing to confess her operating definition. Do any of you non-biologists know what a woman is? Do any of you men know what a woman is? I didn't say did you understand them, I asked you if you know what they are. Do any of you women know what a woman is? Of course you do. And if you're going to be a competent judge in this day and time in the United States of America, then you'd better know what a woman is and what a woman isn't. We all need true and accurate definitions by which to live our lives and to make right decisions. And accurate knowledge of terms in any field is essential. And for Christians, it's no different than it is for judges. In fact, I would say that with over half of the people in America being female, being women, that a judge, of all people, would need to know what a woman is so she could protect that woman's rights as she is. Just as Christians need to know the details about the Scripture. In fact, of all people, we as Christians need precise terms so that we can be precise in our understanding, so that we can be better conforming to the perfection of God according to His Word and the infinite balance that we have. So we need to know things like, what is God? If I were to ask you, I could ask you what a woman is, you could probably tell me. What is God, though, as Christian? Do you know? God is a spirit, right? Help me, help me. God is a spirit, infinite, eternal, and unchangeable. In His being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness, and truth. Good for you. And what is the purpose of the Bible according to the Bible? The Bible is given to teach us what we are to believe concerning God and what duty God requires of us. And who is Jesus and what is the gospel of Jesus Christ? You think that's an important question? Jesus is the eternal God-man. He's God the Son. And the gospel of Jesus Christ is where He has come as the perfect sacrifice to die on a cross, be completely dead, to go to the grave for three days, to conquer death, to rise from the grave, to walk among men, and to ascend into heaven, and to promise to come again, and He's coming again to judge the living and the dead. And what is the response that we're supposed to have to that gospel so that we're identified as those being saved by Jesus? Well, you have to have faith. which is to trust in, adhere to, and rely on him and him alone. And you must repent of your sins. And then what Jesus has won, what Jesus has earned, what Jesus has done for us can become ours. It becomes our possession through faith and repentance. And what is justification? Now it's a little more technical, but what is justification? Well, Justification is an act of God's free grace wherein he pardons all, not most of, but all our sins and accepts us as righteous in his sight only for the righteousness of Christ imputed to us and received by faith alone. That's what justification is. And then there's something that follows justification that's tied to justification that's important as a corollary to justification and that is Sanctification. So what is sanctification? Sanctification is the work, the other's the act, this is the work of God's free grace, whereby we are renewed in the whole man after the image of God and are enabled more and more to die unto sin and live unto righteousness. Both justification and sanctification deal with our sin. One, justification pardons us of all of our sins, and sanctification seeks to separate us from all of our sins. So justification is God pardoning us, and sanctification is Him cleaning us up. I worked with James Kennedy, D. James Kennedy, in Fort Lauderdale for a summer, and he used to say that the thing he loved about evangelism was that he could go out and witness and help them get saved, and then God had to clean them up. It's like catching fish. I love to catch fish. I hate to clean them afterwards. People are a lot like fish, I guess. So justification is pardon for sin, and sanctification is the dying to sin. And since our text deals with sin by name explicitly eight times, it infers sin seven more times, for 15 times in just six verses, then we ought to know what sin is. We need to be able to define sin, to recognize sin, to see how sin manifests itself in people's lives. And we see sin implied here in our text. In fact, in the scripture, sin is either mentioned or referred to by another term well over 3,000 times, 1,100 times just by the word sin. So just as there are about 170 million women in the United States, an accurate definition of a woman would be essential for legal protection. Truly, we as Christians, with so many references to sin, need to know what God says sin is, what God's perspective on sin is. So just for the record, the word sin in the Newer Testament is typically hamartia. And it means to miss the mark. It means to miss the true purpose of our lives, which is found only in God. Hamartia, sin, is an offense against God, against His law, with an emphasis on us being guilty. So what does the Bible say sin is so that we can define and recognize it? Well, 1st John 3, 4. Anybody know 1st John 3, 4 by heart? It says, whoever commits sin commits lawlessness. That's right. And sin is lawlessness. That's why we read the scriptures to see what God's standard is before we confess our sins in the bulletin so that we will have His measure, His straight edge to measure our crookedness so that we can confess our crookedness so that we can be right with God. That's why we approach God by confessing our sins, and that's why it's very important to do. So, is sin really a big deal simply because it breaks one of God's commandments? I actually heard George Stephanopoulos with my own ears—it was on TV, of course—but I heard him on TV say, that the president committed no crimes against America, talking about Clinton, but he only committed crimes against God. He only broke God's law, so it didn't matter. Can you imagine such a thing? He really, really did. So why is sin important? Well, sin separates us from the only true and wonderful and splendid God. Isaiah 59, 2, your iniquities have separated you from your God and your sins have hidden His face from you so that He will not hear. When we're in our sin, God doesn't even hear our prayers. It's that important. He's separate. Sin incurs wrath and terror of wrath. and punishment against the lawbreaker. Job 31, 23. He says, punishment from God is a terror to me. And because of his magnificence, I cannot endure. You know, in life, I don't much care if I don't show myself in a good way to just anybody around me. I mean, I don't want to be bad either. Don't get me wrong. But I'm not trying to impress Many people. I'm really not. But when I'm in front of God, who knows me, I want Him to be pleased because I want Him to be pleased with me. And He can only be pleased with me through what He's done for me through Christ. And I know that, but I want to live upright because He is so magnificent. And if He were ashamed of me and I knew that, It would it would break my heart. I'm like Job. I could not endure that. And the day is coming. We mentioned death earlier, but listen to this. Here's what here's what happens to those who were not in Christ. when they face God. It says in Revelation, they hid themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains and said to the mountains and rocks, fall on us and hide us from the face of him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the lamb. Think about it. They're terrified of the lamb. Is there a lamb on earth that you're afraid of? Probably not. But the lamb of God is terrifying. And there's going to come a day when people outside of the Lamb are going to pray for rocks and mountains to fall on them to hide them from the wrath of the Lamb. And then it goes on, for the great day of His wrath has come. And who is able to stand? Well, there's a great answer to that question, who is able to stand? Because some can stand, and I'm going to tell you about them in just a minute. But what if I don't know what my personal sins are? What if I don't know for what I'm accountable? Well, Leviticus 5.17 says this, If a person sins and commits any sins which are forbidden to be done by the commandments of the Lord, there's the commandment again, Though he does not know it, yet he is guilty and shall bear his iniquity. So you can't plead ignorance. You can't plead ignorance. You stop, a cop stops you and you're, I got stopped for my sticker not being on my, I had it in my car, I just didn't have it on my tag. But I forgot about it. He didn't care. He wrote me a ticket anyway. Ignorance is no excuse. So how many times, have I reminded you of the importance of learning what the Bible says about everything. Jesus said, you are in error because you do not know the scriptures or the power of God. Jesus also said, sanctify them in the truth. Thy word is truth. If you're going to be sanctified, it's going to be according to the scriptures. Without Bible knowledge, you cannot think God's thoughts after him as you are commanded in 2 Corinthians 10. And if you don't think his thoughts after him, then you are guilty and you will bear your iniquity. Without Bible knowledge, you would not understand what sin is and what sin is not. And yet again, ignorance does not remove the guilt. For instance, did you know that there's a type of anger that can well up in us that can send us to hell? Did you know that? Matthew 5.22 is equivalent to murder. Did you know that lust and viewing pornography is adultery of the heart, which makes a person, male or female, just as culpable as the actual physical act? And if you die in that guilt, you will go to hell. 1 Corinthians 6, 9, be not deceived, fornicators, adulterers, homosexuals will not enter the kingdom of heaven. And even if you didn't know it, Leviticus says you're still guilty. Didn't you know that God regulates marriage and divorce and remarriage? Matthew 5, 31, sweet Jesus said it. And the way of marriage is the way marriage is conducted by us was very important to God. How men and women act in marriage, how they live in marriage is very important to God. And if we are not living the way we're supposed to, then we shall bear our iniquity. Did you know that over drinking alcohol is a sin and those who practice it, those who are given to it are sinning? Galatians 5.21, Drunkenness, revelries, and the like of which I tell you beforehand, just as I told you in time past, that those who practice, given to such participation in such things, will not inherit the kingdom of God. Did you not know that? Well, whether you knew it or didn't know it, It really doesn't matter as far as your guilt is concerned, though you did not know it, yet you are guilty and shall bear your iniquity, says the Word of God. And on a human level, let me just ask you, how pleasant is it to be Ignorant of the Bible. How comforting are your thoughts when you can't think of God's truth? Are you satisfied with the way you bump around in this world? A lot of people are like the ball in a pinball machine. Ding, ding, ding, ding, ding, ding, ding, ding. They don't know where they're doing. They're frustrated. They're out of sorts. Why? Because they don't know the scriptures. They don't have the anchor, the foundation of the Bible. And how much good does it do anyone to be angry with the people around you? Does the anger of man ever produce the righteousness of God? Would you say yes or no to that? No. Who says so? James says so. Would your wife or your mother or your little bitty girl Would you enjoy for them to walk in on you while you're sitting there viewing pornography? What would that do for you? And how healthy and good for you and your family is it if a person in that family is practicing fornication or adultery, any form of unfaithfulness? And would you want that to happen to your children? Would you want your children to participate in that? Of course not. And when you are someone you love over drinks, does it bring admiration and confidence in them? How useful is a drunk man or a drunk woman in the kingdom of God? What kind of testimony do they carry with those who know about it? You say, but I didn't know. But you were supposed to know, all of you were supposed to know. All of you can read, all of you can think, all of you have a Bible. You all have that inner sense of right and wrong that cries out for confirmation or refutation from God. Unless, of course, you are suppressing the truth in unrighteousness, as Romans 1 tells us. And though you didn't know, yet you bear your iniquity. You see, you and I have a radical problem called sin and sin ruins lives and sin makes us worthy of hell. But there is good news and that good news is the radical remedy for our radical problem. We have to deal with our sin, and we can deal with it one of three ways. Well, there's three ways. We can try to cover our sins if we don't want the remedy. So that's the first one. You can try to cover your sins if you don't want the remedy. But who, besides a fool, as defined by the Bible, a fool is defined in the Bible as one who rejects God. would not want his sin covered. I want my sin covered and I've got a lot of it to cover, I'm sorry to say. But there are some who don't. They don't care. They don't pay attention. They're casual with their sin. They plan to continue in their sin or they plan to get it right one day in the future. And when is that day? I'll tell you what day it is. It's the day too late. It's the day after you're accountable. That's when you will give an account. That's when you will no longer cover it. It will be uncovered by God himself. Or the second thing, you can confess your sins and have them covered by Christ. And if you do, that's God's remedy. And you can conquer your sins. if you appropriate the proper remedy. So we can try to cover our sins by denying that we have committed them. And when we do, we forfeit the remedy. Look at verse 8 in your text. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves. And people are deceiving themselves today, and the truth is not in them. And worse than that, they not only lie to themselves, but they try to make God into a liar. Listen to this. Verse 10. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His Word is not in us. I've told you, you've got to know the Bible. Here it says, the Word is not in you. You must have the Word in you. Essential. The living Word. If you don't, it leaves you under the wrath and curse of God. The second thing there, we can confess our sins and have them covered by Christ. So if we truly know Christ as Lord and Savior, then we can call on Him and He will cover our sins. Look at our text, verse 7. The blood of Jesus Christ, His Son, cleanses us from most sin, right? No, all sin. You can't go to heaven with even one sin on your soul. Now, that's a big statement. You must be perfect to enter heaven. And that's why the gospel is where God declares that you are perfect judicially in His eyes. He covers 100% of your sins. Even your sin nature is dealt with by Him. cleanses us from all our sin. Verse nine, if we confess our sins, he is faithful just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us again from all unrighteousness. And that word cleanses, sanctify. So if we testify against ourselves, you go to court and you say, you plead guilty. God in God's court, I am guilty, I have sinned. He declares me judicially not guilty because of Jesus. What he is. Jesus has taken my guilt on himself. And then we can conquer our sins. Verse nine again. If we confess our sins, he's faithful just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us. from all unrighteousness. How are you cleansed from unrighteousness? By taking in the word, John 17, 17, sanctify them, clean them up, set them apart by thy truth, thy word is truth. So says Jesus in John 17, 17. Through worship, what happens in a worship service? In a true worship service, you should Have a vision of God, a view of God. You should come to an understanding of God that's greater than you could come to anywhere else on earth at any time. When Agar, Asaph I mean, went into the sanctuary, it was there that he understood God. It was there that he understood life. It was there that he wanted to worship and the worship of God transformed him. And here in this, as you worship, truly worship, Not substitute worship, not unbiblical worship, but true worship should transform you. Participation in the sacraments is how you can have victory over your sins. The sacraments, 1 Corinthians 10 says that when we participate in the sacraments by faith, we receive the blessing, we receive the cleansing of God. And prayer, remember the Lord's Prayer, we just sang it. And we sang, lead us not into temptation, deliver us from evil, prayer. And then last but of course not least is godly friends. Paul in Romans 1.11, said, I long to see you in order that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong. That is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other's faith. And 1 Corinthians 15, 33, the flip side of that is, be not deceived, bad company corrupts good morals or good life. If you're around people who want to be like Christ, you're going to want to be like Christ. If you're around people who want to do the things of the world, you're going to want to do the things of the world. So the flow chart is like this. Ephesians 2, 8, 9, and 10. For by grace you have been saved through faith. That grace and that faith are not something you conjured up. They are the gift of God. So says verse 8. They're not of your works. You didn't earn grace or faith. If you earn grace, it's no longer grace. not of works, lest anyone should boast. So we're humbled in this. And then verse 10 for we are his workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should. Here's a key word. that we should walk in them, that we should live in them, that we should always dwell in those good works, that we should make that our environment all the time. And when we do, then we will be transformed. So God tells us how to identify our sin. He tells us how to have our guilt removed. He tells us how to live in joyful consistency. And now, because you know how to deal with your sin, whether you want to cover it, you want to confess it, you want to conquer it, you know what to do. You know how to do it now. And because you do, you're now doubly accountable. Amen. Amen. Please prepare yourselves for the supper of the Lord.