Speaker 1: 0:35

Hi guys, my name is Ariella Andrews and I go to Benicia Middle School. I'm an eighth grader. Today I'll be reading you 1 John 3, 1 through 10. See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God, and that is what we are. The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Dear friends, now we are children of God and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. All who have this hope in him purify themselves just as he is pure.

Speaker 1: 1:17

Everyone who sins breaks the law. In fact, sin is lawlessness. But you know that he appeared so that he might take away our sins, and in him is no sin. No one who lives in him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen him or known him. Dear children, do not let anyone lead you astray. The one who does what is right is righteous, just as he is righteous. The one who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil's work. No one who is born of God will continue to sin because God's seed remains in them. They cannot go on sinning because they have been born of God. This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are.

Speaker 2: 2:23

Anyone who does not do what is right is not God's child. Thanks be to God. Great job, thank you, it's good to be with you. We're on first, second and third John. If you guys go to the back of your Bible, you guys will find these three letters that were written by the guy who wrote the gospel of John. But we're going through verse by verse. We teach the Bible. It's called expository teaching. Today we're going to be in first John, we're going to be in chapter three and we're going to do 10 verses today. So we're going to unpack a whole lot of stuff. I don't know stuff I don't know.

Speaker 2: 2:57

Maybe have you ever noticed how much energy you spend trying to figure out who you are, like deep down, that's literally the question that so many of us have about what choices we make. Like what major do I pick? Really means who do I want to be, or should I post this picture? What that really means is how do I want people to see me, or am I in the right group? Literally means, where do I belong? And we live in this world where we have this identity. That feels like it's something that you actually have to hustle for, like if you can just get the right amount of likes, if you can get in the right friend group, if you can get in the right internship, if you have the right body type, then you're going to actually feel like you're somebody. And here's the problem. That kind of identity actually begins to feel fragile. We're just like one bad grade, one awkward breakup, one slow night on Instagram, and suddenly the whole thing crashes and it's exhausting. And it's not just you. Every generation has their hustle. This one just has Wi-Fi, and that's why so many of you end up scrolling yourselves to sleep at night, because you're just searching for someone to tell you that you matter and identity is fragile. And then what happens is all it takes is one little crack to literally undo you. It's no wonder why so many of us feel exhausted. And today, into that identity and exhaustion, john writes us something that almost sounds too good to be true. This is what he says right here See what great love another translation has. Behold what great love the Father has lavished on us that we should be called children of God, and that is what we are Now.

Speaker 2: 4:50

Have you ever met someone who says one things but, like their actions totally scream something different? Like when your kid says like, yeah, I clean the kitchen, but like the sink looks like a graveyard of dishes and food scraps. Or when someone really insists like I'm totally fine, but they're texting you and they're using all periods, right? Those of you who are older are like, wait, we can't use periods. Look, I'm telling you right now, the younger folk you know, you know periods are stressful. Don't be period in somebody, okay.

Speaker 2: 5:17

But here's the deal. Like, words are right, but the tone doesn't really match what's going on. And John's tone in this message is actually the opposite. He's given it. It's not stiff, it's not cold.

Speaker 2: 5:29

What he's doing here is he's literally writing to us like a spiritual father. This passionate, urgent, authentic. He's practically like grabbing us by the shoulders, shaking us, saying like guys, you got to stop and look at this. This isn't just like a theology tweet, this is worship. This is right here for us, an identity earthquake. And John is saying the deepest question of like who am I right here? Doesn't get answered by what you hustle for. It gets answered by what you were actually given. Identity isn't something you achieve. It's something that you and I actually receive, and here's the identity that matters the most You're a child of God, john is like bursting out. It's so hard to explain this. He's bursting out saying like can you even believe this? And he wants us to feel this too.

Speaker 2: 6:18

This is one of these moments where the writer himself you can feel. He's almost so stunned by God's love that he can't even hold back his own amazement in this moment. And then he's inviting us to actually participate and stand in amazement right along with him. He starts with this, like Mike Drock moment. He says see, and like I said, or behold, what great love the father has. This see and behold.

Speaker 2: 6:45

This is a Greek word, translated right here, great love that we have underlined. It's the word patpos, not platypus, but patpos. Right, it literally means from what country is this? In other words, that this love is foreign, like it's not your ordinary, it's out of this world, it's a love that it's not this love, that's just like if you're useful to me, then that's a good kind of love, or this conditional kind of love. This is God's love. And then it's not just trickled out, it's lavished. And here's then the result You're not just then a follower, you're not just a fan, but you're actually a child. And God doesn't just swipe right on you because you looked good. One day he then adopts you into his family and he looks at you and says mine.

Speaker 2: 7:38

And then the wild thing when you think about it, like how most of us grew up defining ourselves. So if you think, for some of you, way back to like middle school and high school, like you were like the smart one, or some of you you were the athletes, or some of you you were the funny one, some of you you were the awkward one, and then in college maybe you became the stressed one or the partying one, or the one that says I'm always the broke one, right, and we've carried labels like our whole lives all of us has. But John says here's the label that sticks is this child of God? And it hits differently when you think about it.

Speaker 2: 8:15

In our generation, especially with this obsession with identity, we're living in this full-blown identity crisis. Just take a couple examples Social media, for example. Our mood literally can rise and fall or crash depending on how many likes we get. We measure our value on double taps. We feel like when the likes roll in, we feel worthy, and if they don't, I feel invisible.

Speaker 2: 8:41

Many of you have maybe posted something and checked it an hour later and you're like, filled with disappointment because you're like only 12 likes, like nobody cares what I was doing or what I had to say, or like what I was eating right. But God doesn't measure you by your clicks. His love isn't an algorithm, it's adoption. Then there's self-branding Like this is a huge one. Like you know how exhausting it is to keep the perfect Instagram grid, the curated Spotify list or, for some of you, the LinkedIn hustle posts where we actually are just running a business. Nowadays that feels like meinc and it literally becomes exhausting. And I'm telling you, god is not interested in your brand. He doesn't adopt the filtered, photoshopped version of you. What he does is he adopts the messy, real you, the one that's got no edits, no resume, padding, just grace, thanks. Be to God or think about politics. This is a hot one.

Speaker 2: 9:39

Our generation is told to pick a tribe and you live or die by it right, red or blue, right or left, and if you don't toe the line, cancel. Culture is waiting for you and that is so fragile. It's literally one conversation, one statement, one post away from exile. But John reminds us before you're red or blue, friends, before you're anything else, you are his and family, his can't be canceled, it can't be voted out and it cannot be unfollowed. And then there's the good old body image, one right, where every ad screams like you're not enough and you're not fit enough and you're not pretty enough and you're not shredded enough, right and comparison just becomes this identity that we're constantly battling with. And John cuts through the noise and says your worth is not in the mirror, it's not in your feed, it's in your heavenly father that you've already been chosen, that you are already loved.

Speaker 2: 10:40

Think of the difference between a fan and a child, right, like if you've been to a concert or you're somewhere else. You know fans scream, they want an autograph and they can't get near. The two are blessed. They can't get really near them. But who gets near them? The children, right? A child doesn't need a ticket, they belong. And that's literally us with God.

Speaker 2: 10:58

It's in a culture right now that's obsessed with finding yourself. John says whoa, whoa, whoa. This is the best part. You don't have to do that. God's already found you. And God's love is different. It's not based on clicks and tribes and filters and resumes. It's lavished, it's foreign, it's out of this world. It doesn't just tolerate you. What it does is it adopts you and welcomes you in, and you don't have to manufacture this identity when you've been given one that's eternal child of God.

Speaker 2: 11:31

So now, in verse two, he says Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known, but we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. So we're already his kids, but the glow up's not finished yet. We've already been adopted, but it's not been perfected. We've already been loved, but we're not yet fully transformed. It's like an engagement I see you, justice. It's like an engagement, right. Like you're excited about this stuff. You got the ring. Like you're committed, but you're not really married yet. Joy is here. Like excitement's here, but the wedding feast is still coming in the future. That's our life in Christ. Like we're committed now but yet not fulfilled. Like that comes later. And then there's this next promise. That's totally insane, that we're actually going to be like him. Like our one glimpse of Jesus in his glory is literally going to burn away every ounce of shame and sin and brokenness. There's no more faking it, there's no more struggling. Like we finally are going to reflect his image perfectly.

Speaker 2: 12:40

You know how kids imitate parents those of you who maybe seen a kid or you're a parent they do this all the time. Sometimes it's really cute and sometimes it's totally like a cringe moment where you're like ugh, right, like you know, you can catch a kid like copying dad's walk and trying to do their footsteps or the mom's phrases and their sayings. But you know, have you like ever seen a kid cussing? Right Like you think it's funny. You're like, and then you think, whoops, my bad, right. And John says one day what's going to happen is we're actually going to see Jesus in our. This imitation like of him is going to be finally fully complete, not cringy, but just glory.

Speaker 2: 13:21

And then John says in verse three all of them who had this hope in him purify themselves, just as hope is pure. And hope here, when he's talking about it, isn't this passive hope, it's not passive waiting, it's actually active prep. And he's been talking about this a lot. It's like knowing that company's going to come over to your house and suddenly what are you doing? You're like scrubbing the bathroom, like your promotion depends on it. Right, you got to make a good impression. You start seeing things you've never seen before. And you don't just hope that the place cleans itself. What do you do? You move In the same way. That's what he's asking us.

Speaker 2: 13:53

If you know that Jesus is coming back, hope pushes us to literally live differently. Right now. It's like training for a marathon. I did a half marathon once I'm not lying to you, by the way. Once was enough. That's all I needed to do. I had the medal to prove it. I got the little number things. Yeah, that was it. And here's the deal. When you're training like an athlete right, you don't just hope you're going to finish. What do you do? You adjust to like your whole lifestyle, like your diet changes, your sleep changes. You run when you don't feel like running. Why? Because there's a race coming and you want to be able to finish it. And John says the same thing. You know what's coming, and so it should change how you're living right now. And hope in Christ should make us more like him. If our future is supposed to be like Jesus, then our present friends should start to reflect him right now.

Speaker 2: 14:46

Okay, so now really listen to these next two verses. This is verses four through six. It says everyone who sins breaks the law. In fact he says sin is lawlessness. But you know that he appeared so that you might take away our sins and in him there is no sin. No one who lives in him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen him or know him.

Speaker 2: 15:12

So John's saying here, right here, like hey, sin isn't just slip-ups, like it's rebellion, like this cosmic anarchy. But Jesus came to take away sin and because of him, what he's saying is like sin no longer fits us. It's like not what we wear anymore. And here's the deal. Like we may stumble and you know this, we might like mess up here and there and like have our moments, but we don't stay there. He's saying you don't wallow.

Speaker 2: 15:36

It's like a college student that literally is thriving on gossip. Like sharing the latest tea of what makes, and it's like makes them feel important. Like sharing the latest tea of what makes, and it's like makes them feel important, like better than someone else. But over time what happens? Friendships burn, trust erodes. They realize they've built their entire identity on tearing other people down. That's sin. It promises this connection, but literally it delivers isolation. And then what happens is Christ intervenes. They hear James' words, the tongue is like a fire. They repent and slowly what happens is this gossiping turns into encouraging and they're not known anymore as the gossiper but the one who builds people up. That's what it looks like when Christ starts destroying sin.

Speaker 2: 16:26

Or a man hides his addiction in the dark In the corner of his room, laptop glowing at 2 am. He thinks it's private, it's victimless, but inside it's destroying his relationships, his confidence, his sense of self, and shame becomes his second skin. And then he hears the gospel again and shame becomes his second skin. And then he hears the gospel again. If anyone in Christ, they are a new creation. He confesses, joins a group, maybe celebrate recovery, opens up and chains begin to break and instead of shame, freedom, instead of secrecy, accountability. That's Christ breaking lawlessness. He continues in verse seven and eight Dear children, and again, I love the language.

Speaker 2: 17:13

She's beloved is another one that uses here. Don't let anyone lead you astray. The one who does what is right is righteous, just as he is righteous. The one who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the son of God appeared was to destroy the devil's work. So right here, this is intense language.

Speaker 2: 17:38

John is not mincing words. He draws this clear line in the sand that we are a part of either two families God's family or the devil's. That's it. There's no neutral, there's no like vibe in between the two, like you can't have two kings.

Speaker 2: 17:50

We've had this conversation a handful of times now and spiritually, what he's saying is you're showing a resemblance to one father or the other. And think about family resemblances. This is what this looks like. You know. Some people say like oh, you must be related to them. Like you've got the same smile right. Or like, oh, I can tell by the way you laugh. You're totally siblings. The resemblance literally gives it away. And spiritually, friends, the same thing happens. If you belong to God, it shows. If you don't, it shows too. And saying that you follow Jesus and living this unrepentant sin is literally like wearing a vegan for life hoodie and then like smashing some baby back ribs at the barbecue. People are going to be like that doesn't like connect, it doesn't make sense. Right, and don't miss this.

Speaker 2: 18:37

John says Jesus came not just to forgive, but he says destroy. This is strong language. Destroy the devil's work. This is literally demolition language. Jesus, this isn't like patching cracks here and there. He's literally knocking down the whole structure of evil. Picture a condemned building, like the walls are cracked, the foundation's rotten, the thing's got to come down and a wrecking ball swings and smashing it to the ground. That's literally what he's trying to describe here, that Christ is doing with sin in Satan's strongholds, that every addiction is broken, every lie is exposed, every chain is shattered. That's the demolition day for the kingdom of darkness. That every decision, then, that you and I make then either joins Jesus in his demolition work or helps the enemy patch his walls. There's no middle ground In your life. This is so important. Your life and my life is always partnering with one kingdom or another. So it begs me to ask this question what if Jesus is actively swinging the wrecking ball at the things you hold captive? We're just gonna sit on that one for a second. What if today, right now, jesus is actively swinging the wrecking ball at the things you hold captive?

Speaker 2: 20:03

And the Father's love is His great love should instruct us about our relationships with one another. It's why the Apostle Paul's thought in the book of Ephesians he says this. He says follow the example, therefore, as what Children loved children and then do something actively, walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. He's saying imitate God by walking in love. And for some of us we'd be like, well, like, ah, like what does that look like? Well, maybe you've heard this exhortation from the Apostle Paul before. A lot of you maybe you've heard this like at weddings it's not just for weddings.

Speaker 2: 20:53

It says this love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous, love does not brag and it is not arrogant. Love does not act unbecomingly. It does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth, bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails. So just for a second, let's actually make this uber personal. Let me say it again, but with a practical twist. Just replace a word here with a name. Josh is patient. Melissa is kind and not jealous. Rob does not brag and is not arrogant. Robin does not act unbecomingly. Vicky does not seek its own. John is not provoked. Evelyn does not take into account wrong suffering. All stopped, everyone's like who's next right? Put your name there. Justice rejoices in the truth. Bears all things, believes all things. Mark hopes all things. Jfk endures all things. Mark hopes all things. Jfk endures all things. Raquel never fails right.

Speaker 2: 22:20

Those qualities, your qualities, should increasingly actually describe the relationships you have with others, and, honestly, friends. It should begin with the people in this room, the people in your sphere, the people you have with others and, honestly, friends. It should begin with the people in this room, the people in your sphere, the people you live with. And we're all prone, though, to excuse our lack of love by blaming those we're supposed to love for why we can't love them. That's why John says this is a battle. This is a battle.

Speaker 2: 22:50

Now let me just circle back around to verse eight real quick. He says the one who does what is sinful is of the devil, and like right, here again I came back because this is just so intense Because the devil has been sinning from the beginning, and the reason the son of God came and appeared was to destroy the devil's work. This language here feels so extreme, and I sat on it all week, and I think, actually, as I sat in this, I thought like we need to actually feel the sting of this because it's such strong language. I even had something in my spirit this week that literally was like begging or feeling bad, of like I'm gonna say this and people are gonna be like, oh my gosh, it's so intense. So I even thought like how can I soften this up a little bit? It's like really rough and really intense. But ultimately I think we should feel it, even if you're like, wow. So you're saying I'm of the devil, right? First off, let me just say I'm not.

Speaker 2: 23:46

John might be, but I'm not right, it's right, it's that guy right. And then it begs the question like well then, why should we feel this? Because this is a real battle and because it's bigger than all of us and because, more importantly, it has real consequences on the line and could be really beautiful, good ones, but also ones that kill, steal and destroy. Think about it like this If I was to soften this up, or if John was to soften this up just a little bit, it's like telling your kids after you just cooked with this pan don't touch the pan, sweetheart. It might be a little warm, like the pan might just stay away from, it's just a little hot. Okay, honey, right, we do one of those Now. You can still see the heat rising off of it. But you don't want to be over the top, you just want to be really gentle and soft with it. Like the pan might be warm, don't do that, right. But then what happens? They reach over, they try to move it, they drop it, it breaks something. They have a new emblem in their hand that's scarred in this process. And then they why didn't you tell me it was burning hot like fire? And your response was like, well, I did right. Like I said it might be warm and they're like, yeah, you said that, but not on fire. It's the same thing.

Speaker 2: 24:57

We need this extreme metaphor and understand that it is both metaphoric and literal. Verse nine no one. Then he says who was born of God will continue to sin. Oof, because God's seed remains in them. They cannot go on sinning because they have been born of God.

Speaker 2: 25:17

So right here, just John's just doubling down on this. He's saying if you're born of God, then you can't make peace with sin. Why? Because God's seed is in you. What is that? It's his spirit and it's in you. And that seed then grows, and when it grows it changes things. Have you ever seen like a weed break through a crack in the concrete right. One little crack and before long the whole sidewalk is filled with it's just splitting apart. That's God's spirit in you. It's supposed to be like that quiet and unstoppable that is pushing against the hardness of sin. That then literally begins to bring new life in your life. Think about it. Who is a student's GPA right? Your identity for some of you might actually be wrapped up in your. You guys are like freaking out. Why are you talking to me? Your identity might be wrapped up in your GPA Straight A's.

Speaker 1: 26:07

Yeah.

Speaker 2: 26:07

He's like this guy right here Straight A's right Makes you feel valuable. Then one semester, what happens? Suddenly you bomb a class and your world caves in. And then what happens? Anxiety and depression crash like a wave. But then you have an encounter with Christ and you begin to realize your worth. I see middle schoolers back there. Your worth isn't in a grade book, it's an adoption. And slowly what happens is peace replaces pressure and then joy replaces despair and instead of living for identity, you're living from identity. That's the Spirit's seed growing in you.

Speaker 2: 26:52

Verse 10 he says this is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are. Anyone who does not do what is right is not God's child, nor anyone who does not love their brother or their sister. So John says the distinguishing marks, they're clear it's righteousness and love. That if there is no pursuit of righteousness here or there is no love for people here, then you're not showing the family resemblance. And yeah, I know it's blunt, but literally John's saying like I don't want anyone to be living in this false assurance. Ultimately, what he's saying is God's kids look like God's kids. You're going to say you're a kid, you're going to need to look a little bit like a kid. Being a disciple isn't about saying the right word Sunday and then living however you want Monday through Saturday. It's literally about transformation, and that transformation then shows up through love.

Speaker 2: 27:51

Let me end today by backing up just for a moment, a little bit from last week. This is from chapter two, how we ended last week. It says now, dear children, continue in him so that when he appears we may be confident. There's an important word and unashamed before him at his coming. Now, I know this is from the end of chapter two, but in reality it's important for us to understand this as we're going through verse by verse by verse. This is how the section actually started. Today we have it broken up in chapters in our translations and our Bibles. It has some different headings, but this was originally written in flow, building on itself as one clear message, and so we need to remember today how John started this conversation, with confidence versus shame. So let's just land that plane real quickly.

Speaker 2: 28:37

Confidence comes from knowing you're his. Shame comes from hiding in sin. Think about it the kid or if you've been the kid that like barges into a house without knocking why? Because they belong there. They're confident. It's my house, like I belong, versus the contrast with the kid who's like sneaking candy before dinner and hiding wrappers under the bed. These aren't true stories, right? Shame. Shame makes you hide, right? Confidence though, what does it do? It makes you run towards your father, like this passage that we covered today in this letter as a whole is literally packed with exhortations.

Speaker 2: 29:19

Somebody like what's that? Let me tell you An exhortation. This is what this is all full of. It's an address or communication. Emphatically, this is what John's doing this whole time. He's emphatically urging someone to do something. This is why it's so extreme here.

Speaker 2: 29:31

So let me just summarize today's verses with some exhortations. Number one remain in Christ, don't drift, don't detach when it gets hard. Stay rooted. Remember we talked about this last week A branch cut off from the vine. It looks fine for a while, but it with sin. Differently, he's exhorting us Deal with sin.

Speaker 2: 30:00

Don't excuse it, don't flirt with it. Kill it before it kills you. Out here we got all this grass. Every year it's turned into that and a spark out on that hill, like if you ignore it, the whole thing goes up in flames fast. It's the same thing with sin. Deal with it while it's small.

Speaker 2: 30:17

Number three, it says anchor your identity. Don't let culture define you by followers, politics, body image. Let the Father define you. Sheep, start to know the shepherd's voice. That's just a reminder to turn off the noise and listen for his because, friends, this is so important. You are his, you're his. That's John's message to us. It's this simple but world-shaking message you are his. That's your identity, not your follower account, not your GPA, not your relationship status, not your job title, not your title of mother or father or husband or wife or sister or brother or friend. You are his. So stop hustling for likes and live from love. Stop curating a brand, because God has always chosen the unfiltered. You Stop letting tribes or trends or comparisons define you. You are his and friends some of you. You need to stop excusing sin. Jesus came to destroy it, not to let you cuddle it.

Speaker 2: 31:47

When I ran my half marathon, I hit the wall they call it around mile 11, literally, where everything in your body and your brain screams quit. Like you can't do this. You weren't made for this. What a horrible idea. Who invented running? All the things right, and towards the end I even stopped at one of these. Like biofreeze stations they have like biofreeze spray and you can stop and get that. And they were like, where do you want it? And I was like everywhere, right, I literally was. And they're like, no, you don't. And I was like I'm not kidding, hit my face, I don't care, like I need some sort of distraction. But ultimately, what do you do? You push through and then you find a second.

Speaker 2: 32:33

Spiritually, some of you feel like you have hit a wall, like where faith feels heavy. Temptation is constant. Don't quit, the Spirit will carry you because you're His. This is your pep talk Get off the bench, stop scrolling through life like it's TikTok and step onto the field. Live bold, live holy and live love. That's what John's telling us.

Speaker 2: 32:58

And walk out there knowing that your jersey says child of God and you don't need to chase identity because you have already been stamped with identity. And so this week you get to walk into your classroom, you get to walk into your job, you get to walk into your family with that jersey on, literally representing Jesus to a world, friends, that is starving for hope. Would you pray with me today, father? Thank you that we don't have to hustle for identity. Thank you that you call us your children, and would you give us strength to remain in Christ, strength to kill sin, and joy to love others boldly. Let us leave here confident not of ourselves, but in you. And for the ones in here who feel unseen, remind them that they are yours. And for the ones fighting these hidden battles, remind them they are free in you, and we pray this in the powerful name of Jesus, amen. Would you all stand as we respond in worship.