My name is Iwana. I go to Venetia Middle School. I'm a seventh grader. I'll be reading 1 John chapter 5, verses 13 to 21. I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you may know that you have eternal life. And this is the confidence that we have toward him. If we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. 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. If 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 do not lead to death. I do not say that one should pray for that. All wrongdoing is sin, but there is sin that look that does not lead to death. 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. We know that we are from God and the whole world lies in the power of the evil one. And we know that the Son of God has come and given us understanding, so that we may know him is true. And we are in him who is true, in his son Jesus Christ. He is the true God of and eternal life. Little children, keep yourselves from idols. This is the word of the Lord.

Great job. Thanks, give you to God. Thanks, Lana. Good job, girl. All right. So we are uh a Bible teaching, Bible-believing church, and we are finishing up this last chapter in the first letter of John. Uh, this is different if you're new with us. There's uh John's big book, which is called The Gospel. It's in the beginning of the New Testament, uh, and it's much longer. It describes a biography, the life of Jesus. And then later on, we catch up here, and he's been now in his elder uh writing churches, like probably in his 90s and writing to these churches, specifically this church is writing to, and he's writing them to some other people. We're gonna see those over the next couple of weeks as we jump into these other two letters. Um, and he's does a large part of the New Testament. So today we're wrapping that up. And here's kind of where I want to kick this off with. If you think about it, there's one word that literally stalks our generation. It's the word uncertainty, right? Like, did the professor curve the exam? Did my roommate like vemo me back yet? Like, does the person actually like me? Uh just my Instagram stories about my dog, right? Or like, is the government gonna open back up this month? We live in a constant refresh loop, checking like red receipts. Um, we look at our GPA portals and just the dopamine stock market of likes. And in the middle of this cultural static, John actually ends this letter today with this spiritual opposite of doom scrolling. It's this word, assurance. He writes, I write you these things that you may know that you have eternal life. This assurance, not hope, like in a vague way, uh, not finger crossed by, but like, no. Now, for some of us, let's just be honest. A lot of us carry like this Christian imposter syndrome. Like you've been to camp or you've been to church, maybe some of you have been baptized or you've taken communion, but deep down inside, you still wonder like, what if I'm faking it? And it's like John here is the seasoned mentor sliding a coffee across the table, saying, Breathe. Here's what's real. And then he gives us these five anchors we're going to see today to hold on to in a slippery world. He says, You can know, you can essentially have assurance, you can then ask, you can have confidence in prayer, and then you must cover each other. This is intercession when somebody blows it. Welcome to the club. Um, you are kept that God's protection in a real spiritual battle, like where we live here. Um, and you must ditch the idols because your heart is velcro and the idols are lent. Isn't that true? So here's the plan. Uh, we're gonna walk through this text just moment by movement, movement by movement, and then I'm gonna try to make it really practical. So, right off the bat, number one, you can know. This is verse 13. Assurance is not arrogance, it's faith in God's testimony. So, John's purpose statement right here leads like a banner through this whole letter. I write you these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life. And he said this a lot, that the Christian life begins with news, not advice. And the news is that Jesus lived the life that uh we should have lived but couldn't. He died the death that we should have died, and then he rose to give us the life that we cannot earn. And that faith is not just this spiritual vibe check, it's trusting in God's testimony about a son. So assurance is not spiritual cockiness when you think about that. It's just agreeing with God about who Jesus is. Think about it like a birthday gift. When somebody gives you AirPods, you don't like stare at the box for three months, wondering it's for you. What do you do? No, you open it, right? You put them in and you do that weird like head bob dance, right? Because you're jamming to your new gifts like you've ever given to your kid. You use the gift. Assurance is us opening the box of grace and saying, thank you, not let me pay you back. Let me push here just for a second. Because a lot of us, a lot of us, maybe this was your story. You grew up maybe in a home that was about perfection or performance. And so you would struggle with this idea. You always have. You say, like, but I still sin, I still stumble. You know, I go to my Bible sometimes and I binge bad habits. Well, here's the deal: John knows. He literally just said earlier in this letter, if we say we have no sin, then we deceive ourselves. And assurance doesn't mean you never fail, it means that you know where to run when you do fail. It's the difference between a kid on a tightrope and a kid on a trampoline. Uh, a tightrope kid lives tense, like terrified to fall. Trampoline kid, though, like falls on safety and then bounces back, laughing. Essentially, think of it like this the gospel is trampoline grace, not tightrope terror. Second. The next one. Right here. It says this. You can ask. There it is. Verses 14 and 15. Confidence in prayer is not getting God to sign your will, but it's aligning with his. So John continues in this. He says, and this is the confidence that we have towards him that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know what we have the requests. This word right here, confidence, is patacea. We've talked about this one before. It's this open, bold speech. Think of the difference between um like messaging a celebrity or an influencer, you know, online, sending them a DM or messaging your mom, right? The celebrity or the influencer that you make a comment about or you send them a message, you're it's like a diplomat. You're waiting three months to hear, and finally you get a heart emoji, like they saw it, but it's probably from their intern, right? But what happens when you message your mom, right? All caps you send her, and she FaceTimes you immediately, like from the serial aisle. And John's saying prayers eventually is like essentially family talk. It's with the father, not a formal email to the CEO. But here's the condition right here: it's according to his will. Now, that phrase for a lot of us, it scares people because they're like, Oh, so there's a trick. Like, God only answers if I guess what he already wants. What's his will, right? And I would just say, like, no, his will is not a cosmic escape room where you're trying to figure out with enough scented candles and like things just falling into place. God's will is actually revealed over and over again in scripture, and then embodied in Jesus, illuminated by the spirit and the discerned by the church. That's us. And when you ask for what he loves, here, here's what it is: holiness, wisdom. He loves unity, mission, justice, comfort for the afflicted, repentance for the string. He says at that point, I hear you, and I'm on it. Now, here's just some examples that we do. Like, God, make my ex text me. That might not be top-tier kingdom alignment, just so you know. But like, God, will you heal my friends' anxiety and give me wisdom to love them well? That's on brand. Lord, make me rich so people will respect me. Is probably you're trying to hire God as like a PR firm for your insecurity. But Lord, like, provide what I need to be generous, to be stable, to be a blessing. That's kingdom. And this doesn't mean like we can't bring our raw desires. Bring them like all the way. But as you bring them, also bring this not my will, but yours. That's not resignation, that's relationship. It's you acknowledging that God actually sees the map from this 30,000-foot uh view, and you're the one who's looking through a keyhole. And John's logic here is wild. He's saying if if if he hears us according to his will, we know that we have the request. Not that someday it might happen if Amazon Prime comes through and it doesn't get lost in the mail. It's no, it's have, it's have right here, because when God who cannot lie commits himself to something and his purposes, the answer's already in motion, even if it takes time to show up on your doorstep. So the third thing, you must cover each other. This is verses 16 and 17. Intercessors, not inspectors. Some of you just need to take a picture of that one. Remember, intercessors, not inspectors. Now, this is the part of the text that we usually skip by because it's confusing. It says this if if anyone sees a brother committing a sin not leading to death, okay, he shall ask, and God will give him life. Good. There is sin that leads to death. I do not say that one should pray for that. And we're like, what? Deep breath. So, real quick, let's just try to untangle this right now without turning into like the spiritual FBI in this. So, the first, notice the default setting. Pray when you see siblings in Christ sin. People falling. Most sin is in the family, is something that we should be covering in intercession and pursue gentle restoration before you blast them in the group chat or bring them before the throne, right? Before you screenshot, you kneel. It's John like forming a reflex in us. I saw the structure, I saw the stumble, I saw that thing fall apart in them, and then I prayed for the comeback. The second thing is what's this sin leading to death? Uh theology theologians have offered a few interpretations of this, you know, uh, kind of with the context of this entire letter. Uh, you know, it could be like the Antichrist pattern that John mentioned earlier, where someone decisively rejects the son and community. Uh, it could be this dramatic disciplary judgment, like we see with Anasias and Sapphira, or um Paul with uh the city of Corinth in um abuse of the Lord's Supper. It could just really be a specific, recognized rebellion that is known in that community in that current context. So here's the honest bottom line as I have sat with this text all week. This is what I discovered. I don't know. I don't know. It was something, though, that was specific, that would have been common knowledge to those hearing this message. Remember, this letter wasn't written to us, it's for us. We're getting gleaning out of this. But here's the deal: John isn't saying never pray for hard cases. He's saying, I'm not commanding you to do this because there's a point where prayer actually shifts to sober surrender to God's judgment. In other words, don't be naive, but don't be cynical either. So here, let's just, for us, let's just bring this home. Uh, this might be a situation you've experienced. You know, it is a friend who's spiraling. Maybe they're drinking till blackout or dating someone who treats them like a side quest, or they're ghosting their small group who cares for them, or firing off angry DMs, and you're just seeing them kind of go off. And our flesh wants to do one of two things. It's either gossip, like we need to pray for them, said with like just enough spice to make it feel important, or we just avoid it. We pretend we didn't see it in the first place. And John says, intercede, move towards them. Text something like, Hey, I love you. I'm praying for you. Want to grab some coffee? No judgment. I just want to sit with you. See, see how like easy and hard that is, right? But here's the deal when you show up like that, you're not a sin cop, you're a spiritual sibling with a lifeline. A quick word, real quick, just for the anxious about verse 17. All wrongdoing is sin, but there is sin that does not lead to death. That means that what's going on here is don't dramatize every stumble as a salvation-ending event. You know, just because this happened to you, don't say, like, ugh, I'm done, I'm out. If you love Jesus, hate your sin, it should break your heart, but keep crawling to the cross. Because I'm just telling you, the story is not over. And the point of this paragraph is not to arm yourself with these labels, but it's to recruit you and I as a restorer. Number four, verse 18. Here you go. You are kept. New birth means this new direction. And then Jesus keeps a grip on the evil one that can't break. He says, This 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. There's two misconceptions to dodge here. The first one is this true Christians never sin. That's not what he said. I just want to make that really clear. That's not permission, that's just like understanding, knowledge. He said, Don't keep on sinning. That's it. Basically, it says, Don't live in this stubborn place where you're in an unrepentant pattern as a settled lifestyle. Like that's just who you are. The second misconception is this: that it's all on me to hold on to God. Like it's my job to hang on to him. John flips that and it actually says, No, no, no, Jesus is the one who holds you. This verb here protects, is a guarding word. Think of it like a watchman on a wall. And does not touch, right here at the bottom, does not touch him, means doesn't lay hold of, like can't get there. The evil one can continue to harass and tempt and accuse, but he can't get a death grip on someone that Jesus is guarding. Uh, just an image. Think of it like a toddler crossing the street holding a parent's hand, right? The toddler thinks that they're holding on for dear life. Their little tiny fingers are clinched onto you. But here's the truth: the parent's grip is the one that keeps them safe, right? Your grip on God matters, but his grip on you is decisive. That's why our story isn't this long anxiety attack about losing salvation. It's one big long testimony about being kept. Now, because you are kept, you change direction. We live differently. Not perfection, direction. If you meet Jesus and your habits, loves, and patterns never budge, you didn't meet Jesus. I think maybe what happened is you just met a nice idea about Jesus. Because what happens, and some of you experience this, new birth rewires your desires. I was hanging out with my buddy Rob like two weeks ago. And I was sitting there and he was explaining like his normal life, and this is all new to him. We were having a conversation, and he was telling me about some issues that were going on at work and how he responded like he always would have and had responded. And then he went hard, and then he felt like I didn't go hard enough. And so he went back and he went harder. And then when he went back to his workstation, he sat there and this thing started happening to him. And it was frustrating because he's like, What the heck? I don't want to have to do that. But there's something in him that was being rewired because of his relationship with Jesus, of this is no longer who I am trying to be or want to be. And eventually that led to like apologies to a whole bunch of people, which is never any fun. And what happens is you start noticing sin, not like a rule that you broke, but like poison you swallowed and you want it out. You start walking with a limp and a smile, right? Lameness from repentance and joy from grace. Here's the next verse that you get to see clearly. There's two realms, two stories, and don't be discipled by the algorithm. John says, We know that we are from God, and the whole world lies in the power of the evil one. Now, that's not like this motivational poster, something you want to put up like on your wall, but it's a relief if you've ever wondering why following Jesus sometimes feels like swimming upstream in genes. John says, you are from God, that your origin, your identity is actually rooted in him. But the wider system, the cultural uh default settings, the scripts that you and I have been handed, the liturgies of desire is under literally the sway of the enemy. And it's real, not like Hollywood's scary, but like subtle. Literally, he's discipling us through habits, ads, resentments, and obvious common sense that's actually rebellion in like a tuxedo. This is where discernment matters. The feeds you scroll are not neutral, they're catechisms. Every like is liturgy, every for you page is a formation program. None of this means throw your phone out and then you just have to quit everything. But what it means is this you ask, what's this teaching me to love? This is actually something you take a picture of. This is what like what you should think through. What is this thing doing? How is it teaching me to love? What story is it telling me about the good life? And where is Jesus in that story? That's the lens in which we look through. And if the answer is not necessarily, that's a clue. Also, don't mistake the world's power for inevitably, like this is inevitably gonna take place. John doesn't say the world is the evil one, he says it lies in its power. It's these lies that take place. That's temporary. It's temporary. Jesus already stormed the house, friends, and tied up the strong man, and you walk in occupied territory with the occupier's authority. That's why the church matters, not as some holy bunker, but as an embassy to the kingdom, literally an outpost to come here to get refueled, to be able to go back out into the world. We gather to re-hear the true story so we can live in a false story world. Verse 20. John ends his doctoral uh crescendo like this. He says, And you know that the Son of God has come and given us understanding so that we may know him who is true. And we are in him, and we are in him who is true. And his son Jesus Christ, he is the true God and eternal life. Now, for some of you, if you have ever wondered whether the New Testament actually calls Jesus God outright, hello, welcome to verse 20. It's right there. John locates our assurance in this passage, our prayer, our protection, and discernment inside a person who is Jesus. And Jesus doesn't merely point to the truth, he is literally the one who revealed the map, literally, who walked out of the Atlas. Notice the verbs here. He has come and given us understanding. Christianity is not humans climbing to get to God, this spiritual pelotons. It's actually God coming down, grabbing our handlebars and pedaling us home. Where the Son gives us understanding, this real knowledge beyond arrhythmic facts. And then there's this massive line right here. We are in Him who is true in His Son, Jesus Christ. This is union, not just belief, that literally you are grafted in, you are hidden in Christ with God, which means your security is stable. It's as stable as his. This is why Christian growth is not mere behavioral management, uh, it's participation in the life of the with the Son and the Spirit, where holiness is not just this white knuckled niceness, but it's literally the overflow that just naturally comes out of us in him who is true. So when you know what Jesus is like, idols then start looking cheap, which is precisely how John closes this letter. It says, keep yourself from idols, cut the cords to the counterfeit saviors. Uh little children is how he puts it. Little children, keep yourself from idols. Letter end, right? This feels like abrupt to me, like John just add a little PS after signing off, like, oh, forget, don't forget, keep yourself from idols. But it's the perfect landing. Assurance, prayer, intercession, protection, discernment. All of this collapses if the heart is bowing to counterfeits. Idols are not just statue, they're anything, anything that takes a God-sized place in your trust, in your love, and in your hope. Your your idol might be obviously bad, like revenge, or culturally appotted, like achievement. Either way, though, if you must have it to be whole, it's actually a rival God. So just to help you out, let me actually just name a few idols for some of us that can turn into that. First one would be like approval. Approval. Like, if they like me, then I'm okay. And that can become an idol that everybody has to like me for me to be okay. Another one that we experience is achievement. If I crush it, I'm valuable, right? Uh, for you, maybe in that realm, rest feels like failure. Like there is no time to rest. I must achieve. I'm in a performative nature, or aesthetic. If I look right, I'm lovable. We can become obsessed with this uh about the presentation model in which we're putting off. Or autonomy. It can become like an idol that I have to be in control. If I'm in control, I'm safe. Or attachment. This one's tough for so many people. If I'm romantically chosen, I'm complete. And if I'm not, I'm not. Activism. If I'm on the right side, I'm righteous. And then there's even anointed ministry. If I'm used greatly, I'm approved. How many of you are happy these all start with A? You're welcome. How do you keep yourself from these idols? I honestly think you just keep dragging them into the light. Idols die in daylight. And all of them aren't necessarily an idol, but they can become that. And then what you do is you practice replacement, just not just renunciation, but replace it. You rip an idol out. Uh, if you rip it out without filling that vacuum with worship, I'm telling you, seven more worse than the first come wearing like Lululemon. It's not good. So, what do you do? You replace approval with the father's delight. Then you can replace achievement with receiving your identity before you do anything. You can replace autonomy with trust in the sovereign kindness of God in a partnership. You replace attachment with union with Christ that dignifies both singleness and marriage. You replace activism with cruciform love, truth with tears. And you can replace ministry, idolatry with hidden prayer. So to end today and to end this chapter and really this whole first letter, here's five frequently asked questions that I feel like that we come up with because I think we all have the same questions. You're sitting here, and maybe question number one is Well, what if I don't feel saved today? I'm gonna tell you, I think feelings are great, but they are not your ruler. Remember that. John doesn't say like, I write to you so you may feel better. No, he says, I write to you so you may know. And when feelings dip, tell them to follow the facts of the gospel, not lead them. Eat, sleep, talk to a friend and tell God what you feel. He isn't scared of your lows. Some of you that's just permission, go take a nap. Second one, how how do I know if prayer is like according to his will? Well, start with things that are explicit in scripture. That's a great place to start. Holiness, wisdom, unity, mission, justice, love, reconciliation, provision for needs, comfort for those who are suffering, and then submit all the ambiguous stuff, you know, like should I take job number A or job B? And then under that umbrella, you just get to say, Father, would you make me like Jesus wherever I go and do the things that you care about? And then invite your community to test your motives. And if they say, like, uh, or they make that face like, hmm, sweetheart, right? Feels like ego, then listen. Uh, a third question I think a lot of us do with, well, what do I do if I'm the one in sin? Like the walls haven't fallen down yet, but I'm here. I would say this: don't hide. The fastest way back is on your knees. Confess to God. Then confess to a trusted, like, friend and a believer, and then ask for help now, not after you fix yourself. Too often we think, nope, I gotta fix my stuff first, and then I'll come around. That's like saying you'll call the EMT after the bleeding stops, right? The cross is not shocked by you, who you are, or what you've done. Here's another one that we get. How do I know the devil is real? Or how real is the devil? Well, real enough to scheme, but here's the beautiful part: not strong enough to own you. He specializes in a couple things accusation that you are your worst day, or deception. God is holding you out, he is uninterested, or temptation. Ooh, this thing over here, it's what's gonna satisfy you. And answer accusations with the gospel, deception with scripture, and temptation with escape routes and friends. Remember, verse 18 he doesn't get to lay a hold of you. And then number five isn't idol talk dramatic. I'm just trying to live my life. I'm telling you guys uh idols often wear business casual, they show up as my truth, my plan. My vibe, my brand. And the problem isn't liking good things, it's turning them into the ultimate thing. Like it consumes you. You're thinking about it all the time. And the human heart isn't, it our heart is literally a worship factory. And what's gonna happen is something will end up on the throne. And you are safest when Jesus sits there. So much of your life can feel hazy. But God didn't leave the most important thing hazy. So here it is all together, everything we've just covered today. You can know you have eternal life. That's verse 13. You can ask and be heard. That's 14 and 15. You can cover your siblings with prayer, 16 and 17. You are kept. The evil one doesn't get the final say. That's verse 18. And you can see clearly in a foggy world, verse 19. You belong, friends, to the true one because the Son has come and given you understanding. That's verse 20. So, little children, here it is, verse 21. Beloved, not belittled, keep yourself from idols. And may the God who keeps you keep keeping you until your faith has become sight, and every counterfeit fades to the light of the true God and eternal life, Jesus Christ. Amen.