Bible Study - Stand (2) - GOD'S promise of Eternal Life - 1 John 5:6-13 - September 13, 2015

Bible Study – Stand (2) – GOD’S Promise of Eternal Life – September 13, 2015

This is lesson two (2) in our series entitled “Stand Strong; Building Your Life on GOD’S Promises.”

Our focus scripture is 1 John 5:6-13.

You were created for eternal life in CHRIST.

GOD’S original intent for the human race was eternal life with HIM. Our human ancestors, Adam and Eve, sinned by eating the forbidden fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. The consequence for this sin was death. Eternal life was lost because of this sin. It took a decision for humanity to lose eternal life and it takes a decision for eternal life to be restored only through faith in JESUS CHRIST. Let’s explore!

Let’s read 1 John 5:1-5: (Background Sets the Stage)

1 Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Messiah has been born of God, and everyone who loves the parent also loves his child. 

2 This is how we know that we love God's children when we love God and obey His commands. 

3 For this is what love for God is: to keep His commands. Now His commands are not a burden, 

4 because whatever has been born of God conquers the world. This is the victory that has conquered the world: our faith. 

5 And who is the one who conquers the world but the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?

Faith is the foundation of Christianity. Faith was vital to GOD’S relationship with Abraham as we read in Genesis 15:6:

6 Abram believed the Lord, and He credited it to him as righteousness.

 James the half-brother of JESUS wrote in James 2:19:

19 You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that--and shudder.

Faith in GOD must lead to action, which is placing one’s faith in HIS Only Son, JESUS, because all humans do not measure up to the righteousness of GOD. No person can be good enough or do enough good deeds to earn their right to go to heaven.

JESUS paid, in full, the price GOD requires for sin in order to redeem humans from sin and eternal death. JESUS broke the sin barrier and opened the path to GOD but every person must take the action to receive CHRIST as his or her Savior. When a person places his or her faith in CHRIST, he or she experiences the miracle of rebirth in his or her spirit and becomes GOD’S Son or Daughter.

JESUS said it best in John 14:6:

6 Jesus told him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.

In First John, the Apostle John was writing to fellow Christians so they would know the truth about being a Christian.

The Gnostics, false teachers, were preaching several notions about CHRIST such as JESUS was not a real person but a spirit or a myth or a mere human chosen by GOD to serve a purpose. One Gnostic, Cerinthus, taught that Jesus was a man named JESUS, who lived but the divine CHRIST came upon him at his baptism and left him before he died upon the cross. The Apostle John knew better and wanted to dispel such nonsense.

Let’s read John 3:27-36: (John the Baptist speaks a message regarding GOD authenticating CHRIST as HIS Son. John the Baptist was the forerunner or herald who announced CHRIST as the promised Messiah.) 

27 John (the Baptist) responded, "No one can receive a single thing unless it's given to him from heaven. 

28 You yourselves can testify that I said, 'I am not the Messiah, but I've been sent ahead of Him.'

29 He who has the bride is the groom. But the groom's friend, who stands by and listens for him, rejoices greatly at the groom's voice. So this joy of mine is complete. 

30 He must increase, but I must decrease."

The One from Heaven

31 The One who comes from above is above all. The one who is from the earth is earthly and speaks in earthly terms. The One who comes from heaven is above all. 

32 He testifies to what He has seen and heard, yet no one accepts His testimony. 

33 The one who has accepted His testimony has affirmed that God is true. 

34 For God sent Him, and He speaks God's words, since He gives the Spirit without measure. 

35 The Father loves the Son and has given all things into His hands. 

36 The one who believes in the Son has eternal life, but the one who refuses to believe in the Son will not see life; instead, the wrath of God remains on him.

The Apostle John recorded these words of John the Baptist regarding JESUS.

Let’s consider our focus scripture.

Let’s read 1 John 5:6-9: (Assurance of Salvation)

6 Jesus Christ-He is the One who came by water and blood; not by water only, but by water and by blood. And the Spirit is the One who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. 

7 For there are three that testify: 

8 the Spirit, the water, and the blood-and these three are in agreement. 

9 If we accept the testimony of men, God's testimony is greater, because it is God's testimony that He has given about His Son. 

The Apostle John was writing to Christians to dispel the false teachings of the Gnostics. He referenced what was accepted in a court of law to substantiate truth which was the testimony of two-three witnesses.

In verses 1-5, the Apostle John, equated faith in CHRIST with the miracle of rebirth and becoming GOD’S child; thus GOD is their parent e.g. Father. The question that needed to be put to rest was, “Did JESUS CHRIST come to earth in the flesh and was HE also divine?”

The Apostle John referred to the things that witnessed the reality of JESUS being both human and divine. This is where John gets interesting.

John gives the facts that testify to the reality of CHRIST as both human and divine:

-         Water – JESUS was born a human via the Virgin Mary.

-         Blood – JESUS died on the cross as a human but gave up HIS Spirit.

-         Spirit – GOD raised JESUS as the first fruits from the dead, which proved that HE conquered both sin and death. This was necessary to open the path between mankind and GOD so that all who place their faith in HIM will be born-again and receive eternal life and the Holy Spirit. There is a Spiritual conception which takes place. Consider the human spirit as the egg and GOD’S Spirit as the divine sperm. At the instant of salvation every human who receives CHRIST as his or her Savior is literally born into GOD’S family as HIS Son or Daughter. The Holy Spirit testifies to this truth.  

Some Bible scholars consider that the baptism of JESUS at the beginning of HIS ministry was the water to which the Apostle John was referring as recorded in Matthew 3:16-17:

16 After Jesus was baptized, He went up immediately from the water. The heavens suddenly opened for Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming down on Him. 

17 And there came a voice from heaven: This is My beloved Son. I take delight in Him!

The blood could refer to the significant of the blood as symbolized by the Lord’s Supper or to the fact after CHRIST gave HIS life on the cross the soldiers pierced HIS side and water and blood ran out, proving HE was human and thus dead. (John19:34) The resurrection of JESUS by GOD proved that HE conquered both sin and death.

Hebrews 9:22: (The importance of CHRIST shedding HIS blood)

22 According to the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.

Let’s consider two other possibilities:

(1)  Titus 3:5 - He saved us- not by works of righteousness that we had done, but according to His mercy, through the washing of regeneration and renewal by the Holy Spirit. 

(2) The Apostle John recorded in John 3 a conversation between JESUS and Nicodemus. This is why I think water refers to the human birth of JESUS via the Virgin Mary.

Nicodemus was a Pharisee and member of Jewish Council, called the Sanhedrin. He was a somewhat secret follower of CHRIST. He spoke in behalf of JESUS and he assisted Joseph of Arimathea in the burial of JESUS after the crucifixion of JESUS.  Notice what JESUS told Nicodemus about salvation or a person needing to be born-again in John 3:1-6:

Jesus and Nicodemus

1 There was a man from the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. 

2 This man came to Him at night and said, "Rabbi, we know that You have come from God as a teacher, for no one could perform these signs You do unless God were with him." 

3 Jesus replied, "I assure you: Unless someone is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." 

4 "But how can anyone be born when he is old?" Nicodemus asked Him. "Can he enter his mother's womb a second time and be born?" 

5 Jesus answered, "I assure you: Unless someone is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 

6 Whatever is born of the flesh is flesh, and whatever is born of the Spirit is spirit. 

Flesh is one thing and Spirit is another. JESUS made it clear that flesh is flesh and being a human is not enough to get a person into the kingdom of GOD. A person must be born-again into GOD’S family by placing his or her faith in CHRIST. Once the person is born Spiritually into GOD’S family he or she becomes a citizen of heaven and has eternal life. Once born-again Spiritually, the Christian does not become unborn just as once you and I were conceived it could not be reversed: Once GOD’S child always GOD’S child.

How do you know you have been born-again?

Let’s read 1 John 5:10-11:

10 (The one who believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself. The one who does not believe God has made Him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has given about His Son.) 

11 And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. 

Romans 8:16:

16 The Spirit Himself testifies together with our spirit that we are God's children, 

If we have asked CHRIST to forgive us for our sins and for HIM to come into our lives, our focus scripture gives us assurance that we are GOD’S children. In turn, GOD gives us the Holy Spirit Who indwells us as a guarantee of our salvation and our eternal assurance. (2 Corinthians 1:22)

When a person rejects CHRIST, he or she, in essence, is calling GOD a liar. GOD works within every person, who is without CHRIST, to woo him or her into accepting CHRIST as his or her Savior. GOD uses Christians to be the human link between the flesh and the Spirit.

Let’s read 1 John 5:12-13:

12 The one who has the Son has life. The one who doesn't have the Son of God does not have life. 

13 I have written these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life.

The Apostle John laid out the facts:

-         If you have asked JESUS to forgive you for your sins and for HIM to come into your heart, HE did. Thank HIM for saving your soul and then start living for HIM by getting to know HIM through Bible study, talking to HIM through prayer and obediently serving HIM as led by the indwelling Holy Spirit. Born-again Christians have all the rights and privileges as a child of GOD, which includes eternal life in the kingdom of GOD. That is not something yet to come but is a reality at the instant of salvation.

-         If a person does not place his or her faith in CHRIST, he or she does not have eternal life in the kingdom of GOD. Works will not get a person to heaven.

Trust in GOD to keep HIS promises. When we look back over Biblical history and the promises and covenants GOD made with the Israelites, we see that HE always kept HIS promise or covenant. We also see that HE said what HE meant and meant what HE said. When the Israelites broke HIS promise or covenant, HE warned them and if they did not repent, they received the consequences for their actions.

Christians are secure in their faith in CHRIST but we still have to live in obedience to HIM. Sin always has consequences and Christians will find themselves on the receiving end of those consequences when we sin. Do Christians lose their salvation when they sin? No, but if they want to continue to live in an obedient relationship with GOD, through CHRIST, they must confess their sins and repent (stop sinning). GOD forgives them and restores them. (1 John 1:9)

Once we are GOD’S Son or Daughter, through the miracle of rebirth, we are always HIS Son or Daughter. As Sons or Daughters obedient living equals building an obedient and knowing relationship with GOD through CHRIST and rewards for obedient living are being stored in the heavenly treasury. 

Disobedience robs us of the opportunity to build an intimate relationship with GOD through CHRIST and the rewards which follow.

Do you know JESUS as your Savior? If not, now is that opportunity. Ask HIM to forgive you for your sins, believe that HE died on the cross for your sins and ask HIM to come into your life. If you did, then thank HIM for saving you from the consequences of sin, which is eternal death and for giving you eternal life through JESUS CHRIST, the Messiah. You are now a child of GOD and indwelled by the Holy Spirit, learn of HIM and grow Spiritually. If you are not already in a church where truth is preached, then ask JESUS to lead you to the right place where you can learn more about HIM and to put what you learn into action through obedient service. Blessings!!!