19 Jul dear john: experiencing the faith that holds us together | part 2 “the cure for our universal condition.”

KEY VERSE: 1 John 

ANNOUNCEMENTS

Online Giving** Regardless of where and when we will able to gather again, we continue to run our ministries and support our missions which bring the Gospel to a lost and frightened world. We are looking to our church family to continue faithfully giving. For those of you who give manually, please consider giving online at https://waterschurch.org/give/. Otherwise, you can mail checks to Waters Church, 57 John L Dietsch Square North Attleborough, MA 02760 and place your campus’ name in the notation field. We are very thankful for your support and understanding!

41411 – text waterschurch (all one word) to stay updated with info.

 

FACEBOOK GROUPS:To join the groups, just go to the Waters Church FB page and go to groups and join the ones you want. Make sure you join the Life Group (group) so we can get people interested in joining a Life group. The Heach Coaches and I will be moderating the group and adding topics for discussion.

 

CLASSES; Baptism class is every 4th Sunday of the Month. at 11:30 / Growth Track runs the first 3 Sundays every month at 11:30 – this is a one and done registrants only need to attend one session / Starting Point runs every 1st and 3rd Sunday at 11:30 – details and descriptions can be found on the registrations which are located under Events on the SGL Hub.

 

 

 

 

 

TELEPHONE LIVE STREAMING – this is now available.  The number to dial is 1-855-352-9749.

 

ALL ANNOUNCEMENTS, CLASSES AND EVENTS CAN BE FOUND AT: waterschurch.guide

 

We may hate looking in the mirror because  the mirror tells us the truth. Like the concave side of a mirror magnifies us and shows us what we really look like.

Sometimes in life we get a glimpse of just how bad the world really is.  Maybe the world has already been this bad but we are just seeing so much more of it on our ‘four inch screens’ (smart phones).   We dont think about all the good things around us, our phones convince us the world is going to hell tomorrow.  It magnifies something that has always been there.  What we are seeing is the depravity of the human heart.

Q. What is an example of some things that have probably always been around us that we are now only seeing because of technology?

To find the right SOLUTION, we have to rightly IDENTIFY the SICKNESS.

Example:  the growing cases of covid in Florida were due to the labs only reporting positive cases and not negative cases.  If we are not careful in life we will mis-diagnose the sickness and then not provide the proper cure.

As in life, we try to diagnose the wrong problem with the wrong solution.  In 1 John, John is talking about the cure for our common universal condition.  He is diagnosing the real problem with a real solution.

Paul Miller wrote an article about his experience giving up the internet for a year.  His deepest problem was not the internet, he found the deepest problem was his heart the external was not the problem.

‘I am still here: back online after a year without the internet.’

Q. What have you tried to pass off as a problem caused by external influences that was really a heart issue?

Mark 7:20–23 (ESV)

The prob with our world is a problem of the heart and all things outside of us cannot fix it.

1 John 1:8–10 (ESV)

Sin is something IN you before it is something FROM WITHIN you.

In verse 8 sin is a condition.  In verse 10, sin is an action. Jesus came to cleanse us of a condition inside of us, to be the cure we cannot find anyplace else and taking the sin out of us. 

GNOSTICISM = “Secret Knowledge”

John was talking about gnosticism.  Gnosticism is false, believing only what is in our minds matters and what is outside does not matter.

Modern gnostic mantras (inward morality):

‘just be true to yourself’, ’Follow your heart’, ‘You are in charge of you’,

‘What you feel is real’, ‘Imagine the reality you want and it will come true (name it and claim it)’, ‘Just think positive’,  ‘Just think right thoughts and attract the right things’ , etc.

We are not the hero of our story. The hero is Jesus who came and died for us.

America’s favorite faith = “ME-ISM”: FAITH in Me.

Q. What modern mantra do you or have you believed to be true and why is that dangerous?

The PROBLEM with the WORLD is a PROBLEM of SIN in the HUMAN HEART.

Division in our culture is because we are the star of our own show and we are only about what we think and feel and then we become monsters.

1 John 1:8 (ESV)

Q. How have you deceived yourself concerning sin (have you ever said you had no sin, or maybe your particular sin was ok, etc.)?

1.  Sin’s SOLUTION: Jesus Christ our DEFENSE ATTORNEY

1 John 2:1 (ESV); Romans 8:34 (NLT)

We can overcome sin because Jesus is our advocate.  He stands alongside us and then He calls out to the Father on our behalf.

Q. Why should we feel confident that God is not against us or condemning us?

Revelation 12:10 (ESV); Job 1:6 (NLT)

We need an advocate because we have a persecutor named Satan.

Our persecutor doesn’t stops lying and some of us are under his bondage right now.

Q. What is Satan accusing you of?

Christianity is a historical reality that Christ died for our sins.

2. Sin’s SOLUTION: Jesus Christ our CLEANSING AGENT.

He does not just defend us, he cleanses us.

1 John 2:2 (ESV)

“Propitiation” – “wash away” / “cleanse away”.

Q. Do you have a hard time believing your sins are truly forgiven and why?

Romans 3:23-24 (ESV); Psalm 103:12 (ESV)

 Our sins aer forgiven and removed as far as the east is from the west.

 

God does not watch our lives on a Netflix show or a VHS tape as we may have believed.

Q. How did you imagine God viewing your sin when you get to heaven?

He washes us clean by his blood when we place our faith in Him.  That is sin solution for our very real problems.

3.  SALVATION’S RESULTS = OBEDIENCE to God by LOVING ONE ANOTHER.

1 John 2:3–6 (ESV); 1 John 2:7–8 (ESV)

When we think God is against us we think others are against us and that is why we have a hard time loving others.  We are to love our neighbors.  We can only love people when we know our sins are forgiven and we are no longer guilty.  He loves us and accepts us through his Son Jesus Christ.  We are to be his agents and love and serve others.

(Leaders: here is an opportunity to move those not serving into serving at Waters.  Have them go to waterschurch.guide).

1 John 2:9–10 (ESV); 1 John 2:11 (ESV); Luke 6:35–36 (ESV)

God has a habit of loving people who are nothing like Him.

Q. What are some examples of how you have loved your enemies?

The ONLY way to KILL “ME-ISM” and truly be LIKE God is to be CLEANSED from your SINS and LOVE OTHERS.

Galatians 5:6 (ESV)

Bridger Walker is a true hero. He stood between his sister and death. 

Jesus saw death coming for us and he stood in our place.  So we could receive the love of God.  That should change how we live.