Lead Pastor
Sermons by Wade Allen (Page 16)
In the previous message, we completed the first section of the book of First John that focused on “God Is Light.” Now in this second section of the book, the focus turns to “God Is Love.” In this first message of this second section, the Apostle John presents the challenge to love one another. He says that this love will serve as evidence of our new life in Christ. But John is careful to note that love that is not demonstrated to others through our actions is not really love at all!
I’ll never forget something that my father told me one time as I was preparing for a game. I assume it was a football game that I was about to play, but I don’t recall the situation or exact circumstances surrounding the conversation—I only remember what he said. He said to me, “Don’t forget whose name is on the back of your jersey.” When I walked out onto that field, I wasn’t just representing myself—I was representing five generations of Allen men in Northwest Arkansas!
In our sermon today, I want us to think about this from an eternal/heavenly perspective. God the Father wants us to remember who we are as we live each day—we cannot forget that we are children of God—so we must live like God’s children!
In order to recognize counterfeit currency, you must be completely familiar with the real thing! In our study this morning, we’re going to take a few minutes considering real and counterfeit Christians—apostates and authentic believers. When considering this subject, it is essential that we know and understand who Jesus is and how we can come to know him better, because He is the definitive measure of truth!
Wouldn’t be nice if every time darkness and temptation was approaching us, we would hear some ominous music playing in the background to warn us? Wouldn’t be awesome to have John Williams composing the soundtrack of our lives? As awesome as that would be, it’s a fantasy—just like the Skywalker saga that we find in the mythical Star Wars universe. The reality is that darkness and evil lurk around every corner and we are seldom aware until it is too late! As we’ll discover today, the power of darkness resides in us—in the desires of the flesh, the desires of the eyes, and the pride of life. So as we continue our study in 1 John this morning, we’re going to be focusing on power of darkness and the promise of God to overcome the power of darkness in our lives.
In the movie, The Princess Bride, Westley (the “Farm Boy”) proves his love to Princess Buttercup by being willing to do anything and everything that she commanded him to do. But it wasn’t just that he did what she told him, it was about the way that he did it. It was all about his attitude! As we move on to the next section of our study of 1 John, we find that God views obedience as a display of our love toward Hiim.
Just because I have trusted in Christ as my Savior doesn’t mean that I never sin again or need to repent and ask forgiveness. Admitting that you have sin in your life, repenting of that sin, and accepting God’s forgiveness for that sin is an ongoing (never-ending) process in the mortal life of a believer which should cause us to think, speak and act more and more like Jesus every day.
In this message, we will introduce the first section of 1 John—“God is Light”—and then over the next several weeks, we will look at five different words of encouragement from John about how we should live our lives as a result. While John’s writing is very theological in nature, the goal of his writing is for transformation in the lives of people. Gary Burge notes, “Truly acknowledging the reality of God results in changed living… [John’s] point initially is not to dispute doctrine. Instead, he wants to cultivate discipleship that knows how to ‘live by faith.’”
This morning, we are starting a new study through the book of First John. While relatively short—just over 100 verses in total—this booklet is packed full of deep theological truths and compelling lessons on how to live the life that God created us to live. The title of our sermon series in 1 John is: “Light – Love – Life: Living the Life God Created You to Live.” Over the next three months, we will be walking through the text of this little book looking for encouragement during this time of isolation.
There is a way of thinking that has become more and more popular during my lifetime. It’s hard to sum up this point of view with just one word, or even a few words, without being offensive to someone. Truth is no longer considered absolute, but relative, which gives individuals the perceived right to choose what they believe and what they do not. People all over the world will say that there are many more paths to God than Christianity. But I ask you today, is there any other way?
We have made our way through the first five cities of the province of Asia and in this message we will be studying the church at Philadelphia. The title of this message is “Accessing God’s Open Door” because our passage this morning tells us about an open door that no man can shut that has been opened by God for them. In light of all the craziness that is happening as a result of the Coronavirus, we must ask ourselves: “What open doors has God placed before us?” and “Are we willing to walk through them?”