Thank you for listening to our Emanuel Baptist Church podcast sermon series by Pastor Sean Cole. Emanuel exists to display God's glory, declare God's gospel, and to disciple for God's great commission. If you have any questions about this message or would like more information about our church, you can visit our website at www.ebc-online.org. Now here's Pastor Sean. Well, I wanna invite you to open your Bibles to the book of 1 John. And as you're turning to 1 John, I do wanna give a shout out of thanks to all of those who helped last week make it a wonderful 70th anniversary celebration. So all the ladies that served us the food and those that decorated, let's just give them a hand for what they did last week in serving us. I was very thankful for God's grace. So this morning I wanna tell you the story about Anytown Baptist Church. Anytown Baptist Church. Much like Emmanuel, this is a church that was a Bible-believing congregation. They valued the preaching of God's word. They wanted to reach people for Christ. They had a good fellowship where people were in healthy relationships. However, there was a small group within the church that began to teach some things that caused major confusion and division. They began to teach that they alone had received inner promptings from the Holy Spirit and they alone had received these revelations and these new insights into Jesus and the gospel. And these new insights just didn't sit well with the rest of the congregation. They couldn't quite put their finger on it, but they knew that it just wasn't right. And those who began to question this group were charged with being legalistic, you're being Pharisaical, you're stifling the move of the Spirit, you're standing in the way of a fresh movement of God. And then things began to go off the rails. This group began to teach that they had received this spiritual class of being these elite super Christians and they never sinned. They reached this point where they never sinned and as a matter of fact it was kind of confusing because their lifestyle did not back up what they said about sin. It was very confusing. They would say things like this. You know, it really doesn't matter what you do with your body, because after all, it's just the prison house of the soul. If your heart's in the right place, you can do whatever you want with your body. And so they began to engage in some sexual immorality, all in the name of it really doesn't matter what you do with your body, just go with your heart. they began to become elitist. They began to experience this quote unquote move of the spirit. And they began to look down on everybody else. And then they began to gossip about the other people in the church. And then long time friendships were quickly breaking apart. And as a result of this group, any town Baptist became a divided and loveless church, causing extreme confusion. Then one day, this group told the rest of the church that they had received a direct word from the Lord, that they were to leave and start their own church. So the following Sunday, 10 families and a few others left with an attitude of superiority, and they told the remaining congregation this, you better get your act together spiritually or God's gonna bring judgment on Anytown Baptist Church, because you're quenching the work of the Spirit. And they left. And as you can imagine, them leaving caused waves, and the aftermath was horrendous. And so the people that stayed in Anytown Baptist Church, they were confused, they were anxious, they lacked assurance. And they began to ask these questions, What if we're wrong and they're right? Is what we really believe true? Maybe we're believing the wrong thing. Can I really send my heart out and not repent? What if they're right about all of this? So they began to adopt an attitude of mistrust. They did not trust other believers. They'd been hurt so badly. And so the church that stayed back and remained together, how do they process what just happened? How do they regain their assurance? How do they know that what they really believe is true and that those who left were the ones that were sinners? I've just shared with you an imaginary story about a made up church called Anytown Baptist Church. But this is precisely what happened to the church that John wrote to in the area of Ephesus. A group of people who held to false teaching caused great confusion in that church and left. And their exit caused those that stayed to be unsettled, anxious, and hurt. And so John writes 1 John to give this hurting congregation, this confused church, assurance that they in fact are right and they need to know beyond a shadow of a doubt that they have true life in Christ. And if you look at 1 John 2, verse 19, we'll get there in a few weeks, but this kind of sets the stage. So 1 John 2, 19 tells us about this. 1 John 2, 19. They went out from us, but they were not of us. For if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might be complained that they all are not of us. They went out, they left, and they caused confusion. So we start 1 John this morning. And I want to give a little bit of a backdrop before we just jive into chapter one. And so let's ask the first question, who's the author of 1 John? Well, there's a lot of liberal scholars that will have a lot of opinions, but it is none other than the apostle John, John the beloved apostle. He also wrote the gospel of John. He wrote 2 and 3 John, and he wrote the book of Revelation. So this is written by John, and it was probably written around AD 85 to 90, so you could say the late 80s. not the 1980s, but the late 80s, AD 80s. And John was a pastor that ministered in the geographic city of Ephesus and the surrounding churches. So he wrote this letter to these churches in the area of Ephesus. Now, if you know anything about Ephesus, this church had a rich history. Paul had actually founded the church in Ephesus. If you go back and you read Acts chapter 19, you also find out that Timothy was the pastor of the church in Ephesus. And so John is an older man, and he's kind of the pastor of these churches in Ephesus, and there's things that are going wrong in that town. During John's time, there was a false teacher in the town of Ephesus. His name was Serentis, Serentis. And many scholars believe that Serentis was the instigator who was probably causing these people to go off the rails in this church. Now, the early church father Polycarp, if you know anything about Polycarp, he was actually burned at the stake, but Polycarp was a direct disciple of John. So we have a church father who had direct teaching from John, and Polycarp tells this story, and it's recounted in Ignatius' Against Heresies, but Polycarp describes what happened one day in Ephesus when John went into the bathhouse. and found out that Serentis was there. So John the Apostle goes into the bathhouse in Ephesus, finds out Serentis is in there, and he comes rushing out, and here's what John the Apostle said. Let us fly out of here before even the bathhouse falls down because Serentis, the enemy of truth, is in there. So John comes rushing out of the bathhouse because Serentis, the heretic, is in there, and he's afraid that the place is gonna fall down on top of them. Sorenthes. Now who's this Sorenthes? What did he teach? Well he taught that God was not the creator of the heavens and the earth. He taught that there was this external force outside of God that created the heavens and the earth. Sorenthes denied the virgin birth. He taught that Mary and Joseph came together and Jesus was a natural human, a product of Mary and Joseph and then at his baptism, the Spirit of Christ or the Spirit descended upon Jesus at his baptism and it was then that he became kind of a superhuman and had the strength to be able to do miracles. So Corinthus was an outright heretic. Now this teaching was an early form of what we call Gnosticism. Now Gnosticism became a full-blown heresy about a hundred years later, but Gnosticism comes from the Greek word gnosis, which means knowledge. And so here's what Gnosticism prized. Secret knowledge. We want to be the in crowd that has the secret deep knowledge that nobody else has. The system was loveless to the core. So having the secret knowledge and being in the in crowd, having this knowledge that others did not. And so many scholars believe that Sorenthus started this heretical group and then if you read the book of Revelation, When Jesus addresses the seven churches, and John wrote the book of Revelation, there's this group called the Nicolaitans. The Nicolaitans were a false group, a heretical group that was known for their sexual immorality. And many scholars believe that Serenthes may have been part of the Nicolaitans. And so the influence of this heretic, Serenthes, And this church split of those that probably followed his teachings serves as the background for John's writing. Now this false teaching had three main components. What are the components of the false teaching? Here's number one. First, they had a heretical doctrine concerning the person and work of Christ. Again, they denied the virgin birth. They had some weird views about Jesus. They were patently heretical when it came to who Jesus is. Second, their bad theology led to unholy living or immorality. They were engaged in all type of immorality, all types of sexual sin. They had a false view of what it meant to follow Christ with holiness. And thirdly, this led to an unloving attitude of moral superiority or spiritual elitism. We're the only ones that have arrived. We have this super knowledge. Everybody else that doesn't, we look down upon them, we gossip. So there's this like us that are way up here and then those of you that don't have quite the spiritual attainments that we have are way down there. So what's the purpose of 1 John? Why did John write the letter? Well, he writes the letter to comfort this anxious congregation that they can know that they have eternal life in Christ. Now, go to the end of the book. Go to John 5.13. As John often does, even in the Gospel of John, at the end he tells us what the purpose is. So we get to the end of the book, John 5, 13. He says, I write these things. Okay, so why is he writing? I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, and here's why he writes them, that you may know, that you may know that you have eternal life. You know the word know appears 40 times in 1 John, 40 times. And the word confidence appears 25 times. Those are the two key words in 1 John, to know and have confidence. And you can put it this way, to have the confidence to know that you're saved. To have the assurance to know that you have eternal life in Christ. That's why our sermon series is titled Knowing True Life in Christ. John wants to reassure this confused, anxious, troubled congregation that they can be certain, they can know that they have eternal life, they can have confidence. Now, what was the purpose of the Gospel of John? Not 1 John, but the Gospel of John. John gives us the purpose of the Gospel of John, and it ties into this in John 20, verse 31, but these things are written to you, the same wording, these things are written to you so that you may believe. that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name. John, the gospel is written that they may believe. 1 John is written that they may know that they have faith in Christ. Paul puts it this way in 1 Thessalonians 1.5, because our gospel came to you not only in word but also in power and the Holy Spirit and with full conviction. Do you have full conviction in what you believe? Do you have full conviction in the gospel of Christ? The writer of Hebrews says it this way in Hebrews 6, 11 through 12. We desire each of you to show the same earnestness to have the full assurance of hope until the end. so that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises. Do you have assurance of hope until the end that you are truly saved and you will go to heaven? So why is 1 John timely for us as a church? Why is it timely? Why are we doing it now? Well, we live in an age of skepticism and intolerance. Skepticism and intolerance. And we who claim to know absolute truth, those who hold to the Bible as true, are called arrogant at best and hateful at worst. You're intolerant if you say you believe that Jesus is the only way of salvation and that the Bible is God's absolute truth. And we who are confident in our beliefs are told that we are intolerant, that we're unloving. You see, the greatest sin in our culture today is this, to claim that you have absolute truth and that you know absolute truth and other belief systems are wrong. You can't say that today. You can't say with certainty, I know truth, I know the Bible, I have absolute certainty of what this means is true. You can't say that today because that's seen as intolerant, unloving. You see, we live in a world of religious relativism. And what I mean by religious relativism is you really can't claim to know truth, all beliefs are equal, there's so much confusion today, and it's offensive, it's intolerant to say that you have the truth. So we live in a world of religious relativism, we also live in a world of moral relativism, where there's so much confusion, sexual confusion, perversion, there's so much sin out there. I wanna be who I wanna be, I wanna do what I want with who I want, and nobody can tell me what to do or who I am, and I can do whatever I want with no holds barred. We also live in a world of relational relativism, where people have no clue what true sacrificial love is. They just live for themselves, live for pleasure. So we live in a world of religious relativism, moral relativism, and relational relativism. And so the overall structure or theme of 1 John centers around three tests or three ways you can examine yourself to see if you are truly a Christian. And so we're gonna come to these over and over again. And so what are these three tests that John lays for us all throughout the book to help us know that we are in Christ? Here's test number one. Test number one is the theological test. What do I believe? Theological test. And that's kind of where we're gonna start this morning, because that's where John starts. So how can you be sure you're a Christian? Here's the answer. I have sound doctrine and I believe the truth of God's word. There's a theological understanding. This is very important because in today's age we have so many modern day cults, there's progressive Christianity, there's social media, there's rampant false teaching all over the place and sometimes we just need to be rooted into historical Christianity. That's why the creeds and confessions are so important. the Apostles' Creed, the Nicene Creed, the Athanasian Creed. That's why confessions are important. That's why we're going through on Wednesday nights the 1689 Second London Baptist Confession that stood the test of time over 300 plus years that clearly show us what we believe according to the truth of Scripture. So the first test is theological. What do I believe? Test number two, the moral test. How I behave. So how can you be sure that you have life in Christ and are saved? Answer, I follow God's commandments through a lifestyle of holiness and repentance. This is important because so many Christians today that may profess faith in Christ are living immoral, ungodly lifestyles that show no evidence of repentance or transformation. There's a lot of confusion in our world today, morally. They're not bearing fruit in keeping with repentance. So test number one, the theological test, what do I believe? Test number two, the moral test, how I behave. Test number three, the relational test, how I relate to others. So how can you be sure if you have life in Christ and are saved? Answer, I love others as Christ has loved me. It's so important that we love one another because we live in a culture of loneliness, pettiness, selfishness, and people are starving for healthy friendships and key, deep fellowship. I just wanna remind you of the discipleship pathway that we talked about a few weeks ago. One of our values is to connect relationally, where you and I can practice the one another's, love one another, serve one another, pray for one another. Now, 1 John, this has always bothered me. And I've always avoided preaching 1 John, because it kind of intimidated me, because I didn't quite understand it. And now I do. So aren't you glad that I understand 1 John? Because if there is a fuzz in the pew, there's going to be a fog in the pulpit. I mean, what does it say? If there's a fog in the pew, there's a whatever. It's an old pastor saying. 1 John is not linear. It's not like Paul where it's argument after argument, building upon, building upon. It's circular. It's spiral. John repeats himself. And it's important that he repeats himself because we need to get it. But he's gonna repeat these three tests all throughout 1 John, these three tests, the theological test, the moral test, and the relational test. So these tests, these things are gonna be coming all through 1 John as we go together. So what I wanna do this morning is just introduce you to what we call the prologue. This is the first four verses of 1 John. So let's read together. 1 John 1, verses 1 through 4. And John lays for us a theological foundation which leads to a relational foundation. He's gonna address the first two. Next week we'll get to the moral. But here he's laying down a theological and a relational foundation as he starts the book. Okay, so let's read this together. That which was from the beginning, which we have heard which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life. The life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testified to it, and proclaimed to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us. That which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us, and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with the Son, Jesus Christ. And we are writing these things so that our joy may be complete. This letter does not begin like a standard letter in one of Paul's epistles where Paul says, grace and peace to you and gifts thanksgiving. No, John immediately just dives in and says, I've got to address the issue here. Because this church has been torn apart by these people that have caused false doctrine. And I need to lay a foundation right from the beginning. A theological foundation. So if I were to go to Walmart or I were to go to Home Depot or I were to go to an NJC and I were to do a survey and I would ask this question, I ask the question, here's the question, what's Christianity? What is Christianity? What type of answers do you think I would get? That's a good moral system. It's an intolerant religion. It's the box I checked when I did my census form, Christian. I think we're kind of a Christian nation. I really don't know. Well, what's the fundamental answer to what is Christianity? Have you ever thought about that? What is Christianity? Answer, Jesus. Fundamentally, Christianity is the person and work of Jesus Christ, our Lord. And there's so much confusion in this early church as to who Jesus is that John has to set them straight. And so Paul says in 1 Corinthians 2.2, for I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. It's all about Jesus, the person and work of Jesus. But this church, if you remember, they've been shaken up by these false teachers, these people that have caused division. And so these people are left anxious. They're perplexed, they're bewildered, they're confused. They've been shaken to the core in their theology and in their relationships. What am I believing? Is it true? My friendships are all out of whack. These people betrayed us. I can't trust them anymore. So what John's going to do is he's going to give us four truths about the faith that lay a theological and a relational foundation for the Christian life. So what are these four truths that John just lays out from the very beginning that we need to understand, that this early church needed to understand? Here's truth number one. Jesus has always existed as the eternal word of life. Jesus has always, keyword always, existed as the eternal word of life. Now, This begins very similar to the way the Gospel of John. That which was from the beginning. That which was from the beginning. Was is in a verb tense in the original language that means continuous action in the past. It's the same verb that John uses in the Gospel of John. It can be translated that Jesus always was. He has always been. There's never a time where Jesus came into existence. He is the eternal Son of God who has always existed before time. Again, this is how John starts the Gospel. So there's a lot of parallels between 1 John and the Gospel of John, because it's the same writer. John 1, 1 through 4. In the beginning was, same Greek word, was, always existing, was the word. And the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God, all things were made through Him, and without Him was not anything made that has been made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. So right out of the gate, John confronts the Gnostic heresy that denied the virgin birth, that denied the eternality, that denied the deity of Christ. John wants to let his readers know from the very beginning Jesus has always existed as the eternal word of life. But what about truth number two? Truth number two, Jesus came in the flesh as fully God and fully man. What does John go, he kind of bends over backwards to do this. Notice what he says there in verse 1, which we have heard. He heard Jesus with his own ears, which we've seen with our own eyes. He saw Jesus rise from the dead. He spent three years with Jesus, which we've looked upon. We saw the risen Christ. We've touched with our own hands. Yes, Jesus was the eternal son of God who has always existed, but there came a point in time where he came in the flesh, in the virgin birth. He was born and he came as fully God and fully man. John 1.14, the word became flesh. and dwelt among us, and we've seen His glory. Glory is of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth." The Word became flesh. Jesus came literally in the flesh as fully man and also fully God. We can't quite explain it, quite can't understand it, but He's fully God and fully man. And John and the apostles touched Jesus. As a matter of fact, in Luke 24, 39, Jesus says to the disciples, see my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Touch me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have. John touched Jesus. John saw with his own eyes the resurrected Christ. John heard with his ears the voice of the resurrected Christ. But notice what John calls Jesus. the word of life. There at the end of verse one, concerning the word of life. John kind of borrows from John. What is Jesus called in the gospel of John? He's called the word, the word became flesh, but John 14, six, what did Jesus say about himself? Jesus said to him, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. He's the word of life, come in the flesh, fully God, fully man. So John's gonna combat the Gnostic heresy that Jesus was not fully God and fully man. Okay, what's truth number three? John has the authority, both as an eyewitness and as an apostle, to proclaim the gospel of eternal life. Now John was an eyewitness. He says, I saw it, I heard it, I touched it. John was an eyewitness to Jesus' resurrection. But if you remember, Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 15, there were 500 people that saw Jesus. Now there were 500 eyewitnesses, and so yes, John is an eyewitness, but John takes it one step further. There were only 12 that were actually commissioned by Jesus to be apostles, to go proclaim and to preach this truth. And that's what John says there. Notice what he says in verse two. The life, that's talking about Jesus, was made manifest and we've seen it and we testify to it. But notice what he says, and proclaim to you the eternal life which was with the Father and was made manifest. Verse three, that which we have seen and heard, we proclaim. Twice he says we proclaim. That word means to declare with authority, to preach boldly. John was commissioned by Jesus specifically as an apostle to preach this message. And that's what they do in the book of Acts. The apostles preach with authority the message. And so the life, the death, the burial, the resurrection of Jesus must be preached. It must be declared. It must be announced. We must give the message of the hope of Jesus Christ and eternal life in him as the most important message we can ever hear. John, the epistle here, 1 John, has been called the letter of eternal life because of the repetition of that phrase. Eternal life is over and over again. The message, the proclamation of eternal life. But what is eternal life? Jesus tells us in John 5, 24. Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my words and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life." Eternal life means you don't go into judgment, but you go into heaven. And John has authority to proclaim this message. It's the greatest message we could ever proclaim. It's the greatest message we could ever hear. And so Serenthes, this heretic, does not have this authority. These people that left this church, they do not have this authority. John is saying, listen, I have authority because I was an eyewitness. I saw it with my own eyes, and not only that, I was delegated, I was commissioned by Jesus specifically to proclaim it, and I'm proclaiming it to you. And by extension, we also as a church must proclaim the message of the gospel, the hope of eternal life. But there's a fourth truth. And it's not so much the essence of who Jesus is, it's not so much the message of Christ, it's the result of what Jesus brings. It's what the gospel brings. So truth number four, the gospel of Christ results in deep fellowship and fullness of joy. The gospel of Christ results in deep fellowship and fullness of joy. Notice what John says in verse three. That which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us. And indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. Fellowship, the word's used twice there. Do you realize fellowship is the Greek word koinonia, it's really only a Christian word. It's not really used outside the Bible. It means a participation, it means a community, it means a joint partnership in God's grace that's really triune in nature. Fellowship with the Father, fellowship with the Son, fellowship with the Holy Spirit. It's a relationship that we have with God through Christ. Jesus said this in John 17 three. This is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you've sent. So this fellowship that we have with the Father and with Jesus, binds us into fellowship with one another. We are brothers and sisters in Christ in fellowship. John Stott has said this in relationship to how we preach the message, how we proclaim this message. He says this, John Stott says, we cannot be content with an evangelism which does not lead to the drawing of converts into the church nor with a church life that is held together with a superficial camaraderie instead of a spiritual fellowship with the Father and with the Son Jesus Christ." I thought about his wording there. Do we have a superficial camaraderie or a deep fellowship with one another? What's the difference between a superficial camaraderie, hey, we're kind of friends, surface level, versus a deep fellowship with one another? You see, this rattled church that John's writing to, they needed to be reassured that they had salvation, that they could experience fellowship, they could have deep friendships. I mean, the church had been split apart. Can we be friends? Can we have those deep relationships in the life of the church? They've been torn apart by this group that caused problems and left. So the gospel of Christ results in deep fellowship. Not just fellowship with the Father, Son, and Spirit in our salvation, but a fellowship with one another, where we share life together as brothers and sisters in Christ. But notice the last thing. that John says there in verse four. What else does it result in? It results in deep fellowship, but also fullness of joy. Notice what he says there in verse four. We are writing these things so that our joy, some translations say your joy, our joy, your joy, it doesn't really matter, may be complete. That's exactly what Jesus said. John here is quoting the words of Jesus in John 15, 11. What did Jesus say in John 15, 11? These things I have spoken to you that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be full. The fullness of joy. So think about this congregation, if you will. This divisive group led by this man Serentis had come in and torn apart the church. And what do you think the church is feeling in the aftermath of this confusion and chaos? They're anxious. Perhaps they were bitter. They're confused, they're unsettled. They probably lacked joy. They probably lacked the joy of their salvation. They were angry, they were unsettled, they were perplexed. So what is joy? It's really hard to define, but you sure know it when you have it. Here's my definition. It's Pastor Sean's definition, you can take it or leave it. Joy is that deep-seated sense of overwhelming contentment, regardless of your circumstances, where you trust in the sovereignty of God to work all things out for your good and for his glory. It's deeply seated in you. It's overwhelming contentment. It doesn't matter what you're going through. It's regardless of your circumstances. It's an absolute trust in God's sovereignty. And here's what's amazing about this passage of scripture. Did you catch it? Look at verse three. That which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us, and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son, Jesus Christ. Have you thought about the eternal fellowship between Father and Son in eternity past? Ever thought about that? Before the world was even created, the Father and Son and Spirit were in perfect fellowship with one another. And yet, we get to be a part of that when we get saved. So Scottish pastor Robert Canlish, way back in the late 1800s, and by the way, Spurgeon loved him, so Spurgeon often quoted him too. So Robert Candler says this, into that joy, as the joy of inexpressible fellowship between the Father and Son from everlasting to everlasting, and the counsels of a past eternity, and the present triumphs of grace, and the glory of eternity that's to come, you are called to enter, you get to experience fellowship with the Father and the Son. It's almost unexplainable the joy that comes from knowing you have fellowship with Father, Son, and Spirit. And John says, I'm writing these things to you so that you may feel that joy, know that joy, experience the fullness of that joy. So what John does here from the beginning is he says, listen, I need to settle you guys down theologically. Who is Jesus? And I need to settle you guys down relationally. You need to be in fellowship and you can have joy. And so, basically what John says is that Jesus is the eternal Son of God, who came in the flesh, fully God and fully man. He died on the cross, he rose again. I'm an eyewitness to this. John said, I saw it with my own eyes. I'm an expert eyewitness. I'm also not just an eyewitness, but I've been commissioned by Jesus as an official apostle, sent out on a mission to declare this gospel. This gospel is the only hope we have for eternal life in Jesus, who is the word of life. And so when a sinner repents and believes, and you trust Christ for salvation, you enter into fellowship with the Father, Son, and Spirit. And you also enter into fellowship with other believers. And the outflow of this is joy. to the fullness where we find our ultimate satisfaction in Christ. So based on these opening four verses, how do you know you're a Christian? How do you know you believe the truth? Well, let me just ask you some questions. Do you believe that Jesus is the eternal son of God who's always existed? Do you believe that He came in the flesh born of a virgin and is fully God and fully man? Do you believe that Jesus died on the cross for your sins and rose again to give you the gift of eternal life? Do you know deep in your heart of hearts that you do have fellowship with the Father and the Son? And that the only way that you can have that is through Jesus as the only way. And do you have this inner joy that can only come from a relationship with Christ? If you can answer yes to all those, you can have assurance that you're saved. The psalmist says this in Psalm 1611. You make known to me the path of life. In your presence there is fullness of joy. At your right hand are pleasures forevermore. In Christ's presence there is fullness of joy. So John wrote this letter so that we would know that we have eternal life, that we can be assured that we are truly saved. And he also writes this letter so that our joy may be complete. So the question you've got to ask is are you sure of your salvation? Do you know that you are saved? Because here's the problem. When the storms of life hit you, and they will, When false teachers come against you and you see them on your iPad or your computer screen or your phone. Or the trials of life and suffering and difficult circumstances come. When the world, the flesh, and the devil come. Do you know deep in your heart that Christ is Lord? That he will never let you go? and that you have the assurance, the rock solid assurance as a foundation for your soul that you know you have eternal life. May we know we have life in Christ. May we enjoy deep fellowship with the living God. And may we also experience a sweet fellowship with one another as brothers and sisters in Christ. And may the joy of the Lord be our strength as we grow closer to him together over the next few weeks in 1 John. You ready to jump in? You ready to find out what God has for us? All right, let's keep our eyes fixed on Jesus and may the joy of the Lord be our strength. Let me ask you to bow your heads and let's go to the Lord together. Maybe some in this room that have come in today that are anxious. Maybe there's some that come into this room today, Lord, that are doubting. Maybe they've been through a difficult experience, and maybe they're questioning your love for them, or maybe they're questioning whether they're truly saved. And they're troubled in their soul. And Lord, I can't pronounce anybody saved, and I can't look in anybody's heart, but I do know, Holy Spirit, that you can do that work. And John says, I write these things to you who believe in the name of Jesus that you may know that you have eternal life. So Lord, my prayer is that nobody leaves this place today without knowing in their heart of hearts that they have eternal life. That they would have that assurance that they have repented and believed in Jesus Christ as the only way of salvation. And Lord Jesus, they've cried out to you for salvation and they have that joy. So Lord, may we leave this place with assurance May we leave this place with hope. May we leave this place maybe even examining ourselves to see what do I believe? How am I living? How am I loving others? Holy Spirit even now before we go any further would you begin to plow up hearts that may be hard and do a work of softening. Lord we want to be pliable in your hands, we want to Be submissive to your will. We wanna go out of this place with the joy of the Lord as our strength and so humble us. May we keep our eyes fixed on you. May we have the fullness of joy that comes from the love of our Savior for us. Jesus, we love you. We praise you, we honor you. Give us the strength to go forward in the joy of the Lord this week. And we ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.