This message is from guest speaker Pastor John Wright.

 

Key Book: 1 John

 

There are 5 Key reasons to read this book: complete joy, keeps people from sin, warns about false teaching, strengthen their faith in Jesus, gives assurance about eternal life. In the New International Version (NIV) bible the word “know” appears 38 times. 1 John is a book of things we know or should know. It is a short but powerful book.

 

3 “Knows” relating to why Jesus came:

 

1. He came to take away our sins (1 John 3:5)

We have all sinned and we all fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). Sin, if unforgiven, leads to death (Romans 6:23). God wants to forgive our sins, He doesn’t want anyone to perish but it is up to us. If we truly repent and confess our sins, our sins are forgiven (1 John 1:9). It is for us to know that God’s Word can be trusted and is true.

 

2. He came to destroy the devil’s work (1 John 3:8)

When Jesus went to the cross, the devil’s works were destroyed and defeated. Jesus conquered the author of sin, the author of sickness, and the author of spiritual death. So if the work of the devil is defeated, why is there still so much sin in the world? If Jesus has defeated sin then there must be a way out of it, there must be a way for it not to get a hold of us, not to drag us down, and take us away from our safe position in Christ. We need to get hold of these “38 knows” in the book of 1 John. If we read and take hold of these “38 knows” in our lives, then we will be protected by the stranglehold of the devil. The Lord gives us the ability to resist the devil by the Spirit of God.

 

1 John 2:20-21, 27 — We have an anointing that comes from the Holy One and we all know the truth. Once we are a Spirit-filled believer we do not have to go back and check the laws every time in the Bible because we have the Holy Spirit to let us know what is right and wrong.

There are two things will protect us from the devil’s works:

• abiding in the truth that is written in the Word of God
• the anointing of the Holy Spirit who’s power and revelation shows and enables us to distinguish right from wrong

To receive spiritual knowledge under the guidance of the Holy Spirit is to know the truth in a way that no human instructor can tell you. Only the Holy Spirit is able to bring revelation to your heart. There are spiritual gifts of teaching, preaching, evangelists, etc. But we also have the Holy Spirit dwelling within us giving us that confirmation of what is right and what is wrong.

 

3.  He came to show His love for us (1 John 4:9-10)

God sent His one and only Son into the world that we might live through Him. Love comes from God (1 John 4:7). Christ showed His love for us by going all the way to that terrible cross.

 

I encourage you to read this book of 1 John. It is full of wonderful things we should know. We need to read the things we should know.

 

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If you would like to accept Jesus into your heart please pray the following prayer.
“Dear God, I am a sinner and need forgiveness. I believe that Jesus Christ shed His precious blood and died for my sin. I am willing to turn from sin. I now invite Christ to come into my heart and life as my personal Saviour.”

If you have just prayed this prayer and accepted Jesus as your Lord and Saviour, congratulations! We invite you to contact us as we would love to pray a blessing over your life and help guide you on your journey.

The next step. As a way to grow closer to Him, the Bible tells us to follow up on our commitment.

• Get baptised as commanded by Christ.
• Tell someone else about your new faith in Christ.
• Spend time with God each day. It does not have to be a long period of time. Just develop the daily habit of praying to Him and reading His Word. Ask God to increase your faith and your understanding of the Bible.
• Seek fellowship with other followers of Jesus. Develop a group of believing friends to answer your questions and support you.
• Find a local church where you can worship God.

God bless you.