1 John
1Jo 3:19-24 - Heart Condition - Condemned or Assured
by Joe Holder
And hereby we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before him. For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things. Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God. And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight. And this is his commandment, That we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us commandment. And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us. (1Jo 3:19-24)
John continues his extensive dialogue regarding personal assurance of salvation. Interestingly several New Testament books develop focused themes. A suffering Christian should read 1 Peter, for example. And a Christian in need of more insight into his assurance should read 1John.
This question of assurance becomes more simple and direct upon careful study of 1John. In our study passage we discover a fundamental principle of assurance. It relates directly to your conscience. If you constantly twist your conscience to justify sin, you will weaken your assurance. If you ignore your conscience or in any way violate it so that it convicts you, assurance will diminish. If you conscientiously study Scripture and mold your life into conformity with Biblical teaching, your conscience will bless you, not condemn you, and your assurance will blossom. Occasionally you will meet believers who appear to live exemplary godly lives, but they constantly struggle with their assurance. Perhaps they have not trained their conscience to rely on Scripture and God. Perhaps they are not living in secret as nearly the model Christian life as they appear in public.
This passage presents a perfect occasion for each of us to pause and engage in some serious self-examination. Look for patterns to your assurance struggle. What else is going on in your life during those struggles? How are your personal relationships at the moment? Are you wrestling with anger or tension toward someone you especially love and value? How about your private choices and decisions? Do you follow your emotions or your knowledge of the Bible? Do you go to the Bible, hands and heart open for God to instruct you, or do you go to it, mind already made up and merely seeking to validate your preconceptions? All of these factors will impact God's work in your conscience, and thus your assurance. View low assurance as a red light, a danger signal, to call attention to immediate spiritual needs or flaws in your thinking or conduct. We may actually deceive ourselves into thinking we are doing well, but God will not respond to deception and give assurance based on guile, even if we sincerely deceive ourselves!
Here the pseudo-New Age response will also fail. Have you ever heard a Christian say, "Oh, God doesn't care what you do so long as you are sincere"? The Bible certainly requires sincerity in our conduct, but nowhere does the Bible imply that sincerity alone pleases God. A believer may deceive his/her conscience with this ploy and lose assurance. Because of their faulty thinking, they will not at all understand their low assurance.
Another clue to godly conduct and assurance relates to prayer. Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God. And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight. A clear honorable conscience, not simply deceived into clarity, but one that faithfully follows God, will instill confidence. Godly confidence will drive the believer to God in assured prayer. It will also lead to answered prayer. Few things enhance our personal assurance as powerfully as answered prayer. Many of the Puritans encouraged believers to keep a prayer diary. Make a list of everything you request of God in prayer. Then as God answers the prayer make a note in your diary. Occasionally go back over your prayer list and take note of the number of answered prayers. How often we casually ask God to help in a matter, but when He does we are as casual in noticing the answer and thanking Him for it as we were in the request itself. So we never consciously register the answered prayer and glean the assurance from it that God intended.
Do you see the clear link in this lesson between answered prayer and faithful obedience? God does not promise answered prayers to careless and disobedient believers. And frankly we should not expect answered prayers while we remain stubbornly in our sinful self-absorbed ways. Answered prayer comes in proportion to obedience and pleasing God.
Is there a difference between keeping His commandments and doing things that are pleasing in His sight? Certainly the two categories overlap, but one seems far broader than the other. Do you try to live as near to the edge of God's allowable conduct as possible? Go to the edge. Test God, but try not to cross the line. You might claim in this lifestyle to keep God's basic moral commandments. But you cannot claim to do things that are pleasing in His sight. As you face the many issues that arise each day, you will face some questions that quickly fall into the category of God's moral commandments. You choose to steal or not to steal, to lie or to tell the truth. But then other issues face you that fall more in what might be classified as ethical questions. While you may not find a Bible verse that tells you whether to buy a new car or not, to do this or that in a given situation, you will find a prevailing Bible model of conduct that infects every aspect of your life. Do you try to follow that model or do you try to skirt it in favor of that fringe conduct that falls near the edge of God's allowable ethic? If your heart plots what God will allow you to get away with short of firm and painful chastening, you are far from doing those things that are "pleasing in his sight." And this rebellious stubborn attitude will come home in the form of unanswered prayers and unrealized blessings.
What commandments did John have in mind? He answers the question. Merely keeping the Ten Commandments will not suffice. Here keeping His commandments requires believing on the name of Christ (Authority, you acknowledge that He has ultimate authority over your life and conduct, so you take your life to Him and you practice a lifestyle that reflects His active authority in your life.). The next step in keeping His commandments is to love one another. Don't forget our earlier discussion on John's view of loving God. It has almost nothing to do with how you feel toward God and everything to do with how you act. So loving one another means the same thing. It has very little to do with how you feel toward a particular person, but it has everything to do with how you treat that person. Many years ago a precious friend and member of the church I pastored was literally on his deathbed. He was reflecting joyfully about his love for the people in the church. He named several of the members. Then he paused, twinkle in eye, and observed, "Of course there are a few people, even in our church, who make it harder for you to love them than others." We can all agree with this humorous but true observation. But God does not give us liberty to treat those Christians who stretch our ability to "love" them in the emotional sense differently. We must treat them exactly the same as those we hold dear to our emotions. That is what the God-kind of love is all about, how you treat a person, what you do toward them, not how you feel about them.
And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us. To dwell in Christ is not the same as Him indwelling us through the Holy Spirit. It relates to a lifestyle that comfortably resides in Christ. We all have our comfortable spot in our homes. At the end of the day you look for that warm cozy comfortable spot where you can slouch down and relax. You can really be "at home" there. That is what John intends here. You live so that at the end of the day you can relax, be yourself and be fully comfortable with God. You don't reach the end of the day with anxiety or guile because you lived contrary to Him all day, but you want Him in the next room at night. John ends this lesson as he began it, with assurance. This is the way we know that God abides with us. From beginning to end, this lesson deals with assurance. How is your assurance today? Do you seek more of it? Linger over this lesson and begin implementing Christ into your daily decisions. The more you do the greater your assurance will become.
1Jo 4:1-3 - The Test of Truth and Error