The Standard of A Christian

1 John 3 18-24

18My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue, but in deed and in truth.

19And hereby we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before Him.

20For if our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart and knoweth all things.


21Beloved, if our heart condemns us not, then we have confidence toward God.

22And whatsoever we ask we receive of Him, because we keep His commandment and do those things that are pleasing in His sight.

23And this is His commandment: that we should believe in the name of His Son Jesus Christ and love one another, as He gave us commandment.

24And he that keepeth His commandments dwelleth in Him, and He in him. And hereby we know that He abideth in us: by the Spirit which He hath given us.

This teaching today will encourage those in the faith and to those that might be here that are not in the faith: present the truth so that you may come to know Jesus and be saved from your sin. Also, after you have received Salvation, the entire book of 1 John is biblical proof to how you should be living. I will ask questions that only you can answer with your heart. This text will in the end challenge you to live holy and blameless before a just God.
18My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue, but in deed and in truth.

A proper belief in Jesus Produces (it bears fruit), after you bear fruit the father will prune you so you will indeed bear much fruit.
A proper belief in Jesus makes one yield in obedience to his commandments.
A proper belief in Jesus shows a love for God and fellow believers.
When these 3..
Sound Faith
Obedience
Love
When these three operate together they result in happiness, holiness and assurance. They constitute the evidence, the litmus test of a true Christian.

The Lord will demand some fruit when we come before him.
1 Corinthians 3:13
Every man's work will be made clear in that day, because it will be tested by fire; and the fire itself will make clear the quality of every man's work.
How will the things you do for the Kingdom stand up in the fire?

Are you involved in anything that reveals that you are a child of God?
I believe we have got so consumed with the world, that we have forgotten that we are pilgrims, that we belong to the holy city, we are citizens of heaven. This is what the text is saying when it says we are in this world but not of it.
I think we have forgotten we are peculiar; we too busy trying to fit in.

19And hereby we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before Him.

20For if our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart and knoweth all things.


Are you assured when you come before the father?
Self Sacrificing love is required of us as believers. It may not be necessary to give our lives, but it certainly is necessary to give of our substance.
What is substance?
The most essential part of anything, the most vital part.
We have to give it all…

The child of God can have an assurance, but suppose we are not doing what we should be doing. Does that mean we lost our Salvation? Certainly not, We don’t lose our salvation. It is a gift of God. So when you see some folk who claim to be saved and they bear no fruit they never had it to begin with. These are the folk Jesus was talking about in Matthew, when they said to him on judgement day: Lord, have we not prophesied in your name and done many wonders in your name, he gone say depart from me for I never knew you, you who practice lawlessness. Knew, I didn’t know you intimately, he said practice lawlessness.

I remember when my dad first taught me how to play basketball, he put me under the hole and I had to shoot from that spot all day. I practiced that thing, day in and day out. This is how some supposedly Christians do, they practice sin day in and day out and claim the name of the Lord Jesus. They practice lawlessness.
On the other hand, The person who has salvation but his heart is condemning him and he knows he hasn’t been given the Lord his substance.
He comes broken and contrite before God and He says Lord I have done nothing for you. I have done nothing at all. Yet I come to you in prayer. The Lord will hear and answer according to his will.

This is when our heart condems us but God is greater than our heart and knoweth all things.

21Beloved, if our heart condemns us not, then we have confidence toward God.

This is the believer whose heart dones not condem him and he is walking in love and giving everything he or she has. THey pray with assurance. They come boldly before the throne of grace.


22And whatsoever we ask we receive of Him, because we keep His commandment and do those things that are pleasing in His sight.
Love in action gives assurance in prayer, you can expect him to hear and answer your prayer.

23And this is His commandment: that we should believe in the name of His Son Jesus Christ and love one another, as He gave us commandment.


Don’t say you believe on him and then not love one another. With one breath you say you love the Lord and the other you talk about someone.
It’s not lip service. It should be from your heart, it should be genuine. This is so desperately needed today. This is the Christian life in a nut shell.
Believe on the Lord Jesus and thou shall be saved! And to do the things that are pleasing in his sight is to love one another. Obedience and love demonstrate the presence of the new nature in the believer. The fact is true to faith, the enjoyment of the fact is conscious to obedience.
24And he that keepeth His commandments dwelleth in Him, and He in him. And hereby we know that He abideth in us: by the Spirit which He hath given us.

The Holy spirit verfires these things to our hearts if we have not grieved him. We grieve him when we don’t do his will. If you are a professing and you are not grieved in your sin. Examine yourselves.

Pastor Paul Washer said it like this…
What do your profession of Christianity means?
Absolutely Nothing!
Your profession means nothing , it’s a lifestyle.
Preach the gospel and if necessary use words. Preach the gospel and if necessary, use words.

The holy spirit is given to every believer as Paul makes clear in Romans 8:9
But ye are not in the flesh, but in the spirit, if so be that the spirit of God be in you. Now if any man have not the spirit of Christ, he is none of his.
The very mark that you are a child of God is that you are indwelt by the the spirit of God and it is the Holy Spirit who will verify these things and make them real to your heart.

Are you a child of God?
I pray that these scriptures have encouraged you or challenged you in some kind of way. When we read the word of God it should convict us and/or encourage us.