The Core of Christian Character
1 John 4:13-21
Teddy Roosevelt described his successor,
William Howard Taft, as a man who "means well - feebly." Many
Christians are like that today. The want to do what is right,
but for a variety of reasons - mostly related to fear - they
don't. In this brief section, John tells us the secret of
Christian character -- courage.
God in Us
(1 John 4:13-16 NIV) We know that we live in
him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. {14}
And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to
be the Savior of the world. {15} If anyone acknowledges that
Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in him and he in God. {16}
And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love.
Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him.
The Holy Spirit
Many Christians ask, "How do I know that I
really have the Holy Spirit in me? How do I know that it's not
all a sham?" There are a number of evidences:
Do you hear the voice of
conscience convicting you of sin? That's the major role
of the Holy Spirit - to convict the world of sin and
judgment.
He also reminds of the
things Jesus said. Do you hear the words of the
Scripture as He speaks? (Which is one reason we
encourage you to read the Scripture!)
A third evidence is this: we
understand what the Scripture says. Do you remember as a
beginner Christian that so much of the Bible was
incomprehensible to you? And now?
Finally, there is the
outward evidence - the fruit of the Spirit.
Testimony
For those of us who like our evidence in hard
nosed form, there is that indication of the Spirit also.
The incredible mass of
manuscript evidence which supports the Bible.
The prophetic record, over
1500 years long.
Visible yet today, there is
the continuous testimony of the church - see what Jesus
has done for me.
The Acknowledgement
The word used here for "acknowledge"
("confess" in other translations) means "to assent, to
acknowledge and to covenant." In other word, acknowledgement or
confession is not something done solely in word, but in action.
So here's a test case. Try
it for yourself! If this is the truth, it should work
like the truth - and you should see the results in your
life.
Those who do try discover
something: the internal, personal evidence of the Holy
Spirit grows greatly as you testify/acknowledge/confess.
"Know and rely on…"
Trust - or as said here, "rely on" - is the
active verb for the noun faith. Therefore, if we are to have
this faith, we cannot have it only in the intellectual sense -
we must put it into practice.
"Yes," you say, "but …. I'm afraid." It's a
reasonable reaction. But as the saying goes, "No guts, no
glory." If you know Him, you will rely on Him - and will do as
He commands.
Love Casts Out Fear
(1 John 4:17-19 NIV) In this way, love is
made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the
day of judgment, because in this world we are like him. {18}
There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear,
because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not
made perfect in love. {19} We love because he first loved us.
The Nature of Courage
Let us first be clear on the nature of
courage:
Ignorance is not courage -
even willful ignorance. Just because you live with an
unexploded bomb in your house does not mean you are
courageous. You could be ignorant. You could also be
crazy.
Bravado is not courage. The
strutting talk of teenage boys has no place in the world
of men. Bravado is simply hot air trying to convince
yourself of the courage you don't really have.
Courage is looking fear in
the face and doing what you are supposed to do anyway.
Courage admits fear, by definition. Courage is the
conquest of fear.
What Are You Afraid Of?
So, just what is it that you are afraid of?
Here are a few common examples:
Ridicule. Whether
it's the fear of being laughed at or the fear of being
"found out," we are afraid that others might not like us
and accept us.
Suffering. Some of us
are not enthusiasts for pain; bodily suffering arouses
no smiles. That's normal. Most of us do not relish the
idea of dying. That's one kind of suffering. Another
kind of suffering is emotional: that our friends and
family break apart from us, for example.
Financial. Most of us
are convinced we just don't make enough money - and have
so little to spare, and therefore fear the consequences
of this. Many have suffered financially, and have
personal experience in privation.
The future. One of
our great fears is the future - we can see so many
things which might go wrong, forgetting that they
all can't go wrong. We fear what we cannot control.
Love casts out fear
Let's take these fears one by one:
Ridicule
Look, just whom do you
serve? Christ, or the world? If my competitor thinks I
do a lousy job, that's his opinion. If my boss does,
it's entirely another matter.
With whom do you associate?
Perhaps you are ridiculed because you're spending too
much time in the bar and not enough in church.
If you love them enough, do
you care what other people think? If your son were sent
to prison, would you visit him or ignore him?
When I first joined this church I mentioned
that my wife and I frequently visited a prisoner who had once
been a member of our class. The wife of one of our elders heard
this and flounced off saying, "I can't believe anyone who is a
Christian could possibly be in prison!" Respectability is the
counterfeit of righteousness. Seek respectability and never be
ridiculed; seek righteousness and never be condemned.
Suffering
Did you really think you'd
get through life without it? Everyone suffers; indeed,
Christ promises it to his followers. The real question
is, "what kind of suffering - and for what reasons."
Does not God use suffering
to shape you? Are you so recalcitrant that you are
unwilling to let God forge you into his perfect tool?
Does he not promise to
reward you a hundred fold in the life to come?
Finally, there is this:
would you willingly suffer for your child? Your brother
or sister? He is asking you to extend that love to all,
as He has extended his love to you.
Financial
Do you happen to recall who
owns the cattle on a thousand hills? Is he not also the
awesome God who told you that he will care for you, oh
you of little faith?
Is this not really a matter
of Lordship? If you are not master of your money, then
your money is master of you. And Jesus is not.
Finally, are you generous to
those you love? Perhaps the issue is not your greed but
the limits of the circle of those whom you love.
The Future
As one of our older hymns
puts it, "I know who holds the future - and I know who
holds my hand." He who commands the present, created the
past and controls the future loves you.
If you do his will, would he
not care for you? Or do you think he is a God who is not
truly love?
Our fears are just that: fears. Conquer them
with God's method: love.
Proof in the Pudding
(1 John 4:20-21 NIV) If anyone says, "I love
God," yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does
not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he
has not seen. {21} And he has given us this command: Whoever
loves God must also love his brother.
So I know that the Holy Spirit is in me. So I
know that love casts out fear. How do I know if I'm getting it
right?
Mouth versus Action
This is a pretty obvious point. What do
you think of a hypocrite? Not much, I suspect. God is pretty
fair about this: he will use the yardstick you proclaim about
hypocrites to judge you. Remember what Christ thought of the
Pharisees? Hmmmm.
Seen and Unseen
John now points out something for us: it's
easier to love the "seen" than the "unseen." Think about it this
way: suppose you hear a news story about some small children -
say, seven years old or so - who are being confined in a sweat
shop and forced to work 16 hour days. That arouses some anger -
but then suppose the sweat shop is in your town. Suppose you
know the owner. Think how much more outraged you would be!
That's just it: we find our sympathies
flowing much more easily for those whom we see. Now turn this
around: what examples of this love have we seen?
We have seen the supreme
example of Christ on the Cross.
We have the example of
others in the church, living and dead - a great cloud of
witnesses.
So both our charity and our anger are greatly
increased by our seeing a personal, up close example. Which
brings us to the question: what do others see in your example?
Commandment
God understands your fears; they are not
unusual at all. For that reason God has given us the
commandment. Commandment eases uncertainty and doubt. After
all, if I am doing what God has clearly stated to be his will,
will He not look with favor upon me? "What" always drives out
"What If."
Courage is found in command. Soldiers
understand this; as the Scripture says, who responds to the
uncertain trumpet? But God has blown the trumpet with the
strongest of notes. Like the soldier in the confusion of combat,
we need to listen to the voice of command cutting through the
noise of battle.
Blackjack Pershing put it this way: "Send me
soldiers who can shoot and salute." In other words, it is not
sufficient for a Christian to know his way around the Bible, to
attend Bible class and so on. It is necessary, but not
sufficient. To that must be added obedience. When our Lord gives
a command, we should follow it. We should not just render our
excuses.
Fear God - and let his love drive out fear.
