The Revelation of the Son of God - 1 John 3:4-10

1:30Pretty harmless. Who is this guy? What is he doing? What a thought. Who would have come in on a donkey, right? Who is this guy? What is he doing? What was he doing? Well, the text that we'll be studying this morning answers that questions in a very rich and profound way. Just to look back on where we are before I read the text, we're in a section dealing with righteousness, beginning at the end of chapter 2 and verse 29. If you know that he is righteous, you know that everyone also who practices righteousness is born of him. Now, if you add another bookend, look down at verse chapter 3 and verse 10. By this, the children of God and the children of the devil are obvious. Anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor the one who does not love his brother. So, everything in between these two bookends is this is a section about righteousness and really the spiritual origins of every human being.

2:47The practice of righteousness happens by the children of God. Those who do not practice righteousness are. Children of the devil. Spiritual origins of every human being broken down into two categories. Section on spiritual paternity and recognizing those who belong to God and those who belong to the devil. Question becomes, who is your spiritual father? And what John does, and he gets excited. In verse 29, he says, if you know that he is righteous, you know that everyone who practices righteousness is born of him. And then he goes into verse 1 of chapter 3. See how great a love the Father has bestowed on us. So he goes into his excitement about being children of God. Marvel at this. Look at this marvelous love that the Father has bestowed on us that we would be called children of God. And such we are. For this reason, the world does not know us because it did not know him. Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when he appears, we will be like him because we will see him just as he is. And everyone, everyone who has this hope fixed on him purifies himself just as he is pure. So John is, they're saying he takes our minds to the second coming of Christ, the second appearing, the second revealing. And he says, Lord. Looking at that, if you really are a believer, if you really believe in what the scriptures have said about Christ, if you really believe the Christ that John is proclaiming, you are looking forward to a day when He is going to be revealed and we are going to be made like Him, we're going to see Him like He is, and therefore, based upon His second coming, His people who truly believe that are actively right now purifying themselves. It's a motivation for holy living, knowing that you're one day going to stand in the presence of the King, but they are also motivated by His first advent. John takes our mind to the second advent in verse 3, and then in verse 2 and 3, and then in verses 4 through 10, He takes our mind back to His first Advent. Let me read those chapter 3, verse 4 through 10, our text this morning. Everyone who practices sin also practices lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness. You know that He appeared in order to take away sins, and in Him there is no sin. No one who abides in Him sins. No one who sins has seen Him or knows Him. Little children, make sure that no one deceives you. The one who practices. Practices righteousness is righteous, just as he is righteous. The one who practices sin is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. The Son of God appeared for this purpose to destroy the works of the devil. No one who is born of God practices sin because his seed abides in him, and he cannot sin because he is born of God. By this, the children of God and the children of the devil are obvious. Anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor the one who does not love his brother.

6:36So you can very well understand that in revealing his Son, God also shed light on several other realities, as our text shows us this morning. The realities of sin. Sin is reality. There is a nature to sin. There is a source of sin. There is a source of righteousness. There are children of God, and there are children of the devil. And John breaks all of humanity down into those two categories: children of God, children of the devil.

7:16Spiritual paternity. Who do you belong to? And he wants to inform the church, call to mind, so that they are not taken away. There are those. Who have defected from the church, and he is wanting to make sure that they understand who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are. And so, as we walk through this text this morning, I want you to see three purposes for Christ's first advent so that you will know clearly who the children of the devil are and who the children of God are, and how to be sure where you stand in all of this.

8:02So, that's where we're going. Three purposes: it's God, the revelation of God's Son, it's also the revelation of the spiritual origins of every human being, but the revelation of the Son of God. And we can think about that. There is no clearer day when he appeared as a day he rode into Jerusalem. Who is he? Well, he's the Son of God. What does he come to do? Three purposes. Number one, he came to take away sins. He came to take away sins. Look back at verse 4.

8:40Everyone who practices sin also practices lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness. Sin. Mardiology. Talked about that one Sunday evening. Sin, sin, the one who's practicing sin, the one who Is skillfully growing in a manner of crossing boundaries, moving boundaries, rebelling against God, redefining truth. All of this is the habitual pattern of sin. And the one who is doing sin or the one who is practicing sin is also practicing lawlessness. The idea of doing is the idea of exercising, accomplishing, working to produce. What is the underlying theme of your life? What are you producing in an ultimate sense? What is your doing?

9:39Sin is not something superficial to John at all. It is not to be treated lightly. Something deep, sin, habitual pattern of sin says something about you and says something about who you are. So John does not take sin lightly at all, because sin, the very nature of it, is it is lawlessness. And John doesn't say that sin results in disregarding God's law. That's not what he's saying. Oh, it does that. Sin is fundamentally lawlessness. Sin, by its very nature, is rebellion. Sin, by its very essence, is lawlessness. No law being the law unto themselves.

10:32You know, we can underestimate sin many ways today. Look around. We underestimate sin. We excuse sin under so many means. We often think of personality disorders instead of sin. We often think or trivialize sin on other grounds. But look at the purpose of God's Son. Verse 5: You know, y'all know. That's what he's saying. Y'all know this. I'm already telling, y'all know this, that he appeared in order to take away sins, and in him there is no sin. You know why he appeared. It's that word. You know why he was revealed. There's a passive there. He was revealed. You know why God revealed him. It's not just that he appeared. You know why he God made him appear.

11:34He was manifested. He was made known in order to take away sins. Who is he? Well, he's the Lamb. You remember John the Baptist, discipled John the Apostle. And you remember in one of the very first encounters that John the Apostle had with Jesus were the words that John the Baptist said in Jesus Christ. They're recorded in John 1:29. The next day he saw Jesus coming to him and said, Behold, this is John the Baptist, behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. Same exact language. So John never forgot. John was a good disciple of John the Baptist. John the Baptist never saw Jesus go to the cross. He pointed to him and said, There he is. Follow him. He must increase. Your attention, your focus must be upon him, not upon me. He is the one that takes away the sin and takes away your sin. John never forgot those words, John the Apostle.

12:42And so he reminds the church, y'all know that he appeared in order to take away sins. Now, this is the God-sized task. Something no ruler could do, no government can do. This is the epic challenge of the ages to remove sin from the hearts of humanity, to remove sin from the spiritual realm and incarcerate it forever, to remove it from heaven and earth and in the hearts of humanity. That's what the king came to do. Imagine a person who could remove from planet earth every lawless deed, every Unkind act, every selfish ambition, and replace it with sacrificial love, sacrificial devotion, kindness, gentleness. Imagine somebody who could come on the scene and remove all the lawlessness and replace it with this kind of righteousness and love. That's a God-sized task. And wouldn't the world be very different?

13:59Welcome to the good news. Behold, your king. This one riding on the donkey coming down that mountain. He comes to take away sins. And notice, look back at verse 5. You know that he appeared in order to take away sins, and in him there is no sins. Notice he didn't absorb sin into his essential being in order to take it away. He removed sin without becoming a sinner. He took sin in his body. He took it to the grave. He put it in the grave. And he came out of that grave and he left. He separated his people from the guilt of that sin forever.

14:52It's like you see this king coming down the mountain and it's like he's coming calm. Devoted to the glory of his heavenly Father. And he comes, he says, take every shot. Do whatever you want. Let your fury run its full course. Put me in the grave. And I'm coming out. I'm coming out. He removed sin without becoming a sinner. What a king. But look at, did he accomplish what he set out to do? Get back at verse 6.

15:47No one who abides in him sins. No one who sins has seen him or knows him. Remarkable words. No one who abides in him. He came out of the grave. Everything that we picture in baptism. He came out of the grave. And no one who abides with him, no one who goes with him, no one who lives in him sins. Because he came to put away sins, came to take it away, and in him there is no sin. Anyone in union with him does not sin or does not, is not sinning. That's the word.

16:32One in him, the one remaining in him is not sinning. It's a present indicative of who they are, describes their character, a habitual character. And this section, in case you haven't already picked it up, touches on a whole lot of theological issues and a whole lot of interpretive challenges. In fact, so many, I think we ought to have another white horse end night for those of you who want to have one. Because I'm not going to be able to take the time to unpack all of these. By the way, the white horse end nights are the nights when we get around and really go deep into the theological issues that some of the passages touch upon. Well, this section touches upon a number of them. But I want to point out to you, so I'm not going to go into all the ins and outs of it all, but I want to point something out to you. Your translations are good.

17:36No one abides in him sins. And the idea of this word of sin is he is continuing in sin. He is practicing sin. It's the same verb. Look down at verse 8. The one who practices sin is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. It's actually a present there. The devil is sinning from the beginning, is how you would translate verse 8. My point in saying this is the very same verb that's here in verse 6 is also used to speak of the devil in verse 8. It's the same verb, same form, and it describes the devil who is sinning, who is sinning from the beginning. And there is a comparison that's being made between those who abide in Christ and the devil himself. Those who abide in Christ are not sinning like the devil is sinning. There is something very different. There's a different dynamic going on. The devil is sinning, speaking of an ongoing, unrepentant, slanderous kind of rebellion. The one who abides in him is not in that same sin category, is not continuing in this ongoing, unrepentant, slanderous rebellion. And the why? Why is that? Because those who see Christ, even on the pages of Scripture, are transformed into his image. Look at what he says: no one who abides in him sins. No one who sins has seen him or knows him. So the reason that the person continues in sin is that they do. Not know or see him at all.

19:36Jesus is a transforming beauty. Christ's righteousness is the law that God wants for all of us to conform. Christ's righteousness is the law, and as you see his righteousness, it is so attractive, so beautiful that it transforms you, it draws you in and it reshapes you. And that's why when we see him, we know that we're going to be like him because we're going to see him as he is. We'll behold his deep beauty in verse 2 and be transformed. Christ's righteousness is God's law.

20:24And the lawless reject Christ's rule. Antichrist rejects Christ's rule. The antichrists that are plaguing the church at this time that John is writing reject Christ's rule. Well, he came to take away sins. There's a second purpose of Jesus' first appearing or his first advent, and that was to destroy the works of the devil, to destroy the works of the devil. Look back at John's. Command in verse 7. Little children, like I said, little children, listen, listen, little children. Make sure no one deceives you. The one who practices righteousness is righteous just as he is righteous. In other words, this one's pretty easy. Don't let anybody mislead you. And this is the main command of the whole section: do not be misled. Do not let anybody, no one at all, at any time, under any circumstances, be misleading you.

21:37The one who practices righteous is righteous. The one who practices righteousness is righteous, just as he is righteous. Apparently, the deceivers that John is dealing with had come up with some kind of sinful and silly notion that one could be righteous without practicing righteousness. You ever heard that today? Oh, yeah, I'm righteous. Yeah, that wasn't right. Yeah, I know. No, righteousness. Can you be righteous without practicing righteous? John is saying no. Jesus, the whole thing about abiding in him, the whole image of the vine and the branches, fruit-bearing capacity, those who are in him bear the fruit of being in him. And guess what? In him, there is no sin. Sin at all. He appeared to take away sin. So, guess what? If you're in him, don't be surprised. He's not going to, a person cannot be married to him and continue in the habitual pattern, growing and developing in sin.

22:48Why is that? Look at the purposes for God's Son, purpose of God's Son in verse 8. The one who practices sin is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. Literally, the one who practices sin is of the devil, for this devil has or is sinning from the beginning. He is still in his settled character of propagating and doing lawlessness. That's what the devil is doing, continually doing. So, what is practicing sin? Well, practicing sin, just like any other practice, if you're going to be a doctor, you're going to practice medicine, you want to get better at it, right? If you're going to any kind of skill, whether it's law, whatever kind of work you do, you practice it, your occupation for the purpose of developing and growing. What is practicing sin? And I think that's a great way to express it. The translations that translate this and practicing continual spirit are talking about a spiritual pattern. Well, practicing sin is growing.

24:00In your skill of sin, growing in your skill of blaming others, growing in your skill of excusing sin, growing in your skill of not confessing sin, or maybe even growing in your skill of declaring sin not to be sin. A lot of elaborate arguments out there. They could take something sin and say it's not sin, but then you can even go a step further and boldly calling sin good and good sin. That's somebody who has developed in this practice of sin, who has propagated sin both on a personal level and on a corporate level. What are you? Who are you? Are you propagating? Is the story of your life one of propagating sin personally or corporately?

24:52But look at what he says: little children, make sure no one deceives you. The one who practices righteous is righteous. I'm sorry. Back to verse 8. The one who practices sin is of the devil. The one who practices sin is of the devil. Notice that phrase, of the devil. Out of the devil. It speaks of spiritual paternity, being out of the devil. John unashamedly breaks the whole human race down into two categories: you're either of your spiritual father, the devil, or you're of your spiritual father, God Himself.

25:33Of the devil. There is an organizational affinity among those children born of the devil. There's a brotherhood, a sisterhood, a common disposition. And that's why they can rally together against Christ, anti-Christ. That's what draws them together, is anti-they're against him. But look at the source. We've looked at the nature of sin. The nature of sin is lawlessness. But look at the source. The ultimate source is the devil who is sinning from the beginning. The one who practices righteousness, sorry, the one who practices sin is of the devil. For the devil is sinning from the beginning. By the way, I just want you to look at the fact that John is not talking about a sinless perfection here. He's already made, he already recognizes that sin is going to be a reality in the life of believers. Look back at chapter 1, verse 9, verse 8. He says, if we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves, and the truth is not in us. So we're deceiving ourselves.

26:53And then he says, but if we confess our sins, verse 9, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us of our sins and to cleanse us from all. Unrighteousness. So he recognizes that sin is going to be part of growing up in Christ and that God has made a provision for sin. And then he says it again in chapter 2, verse 1: My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we, he includes himself, have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. And he himself is the propitiation for our sins and not for ours only, but for those of the whole world.

27:36So he is not recognizing, he is recognizing that there will be acts of sin, and he refers to them as acts of sin. But he makes a distinction between the sin of the devil. He is sinning. He is in a settled character of propagating sin. And so everyone who is in this state, everyone who practices sin and propagates sinning, he is exhibiting the devil's character. He is born. He is out of the devil. The devil's DNA is running through him or her.

28:28But notice. John uses the word devil here. He doesn't refer to him as the adversary. The one who practices sin is of the devil, is out of the devil. The word devil means slanderer. Slanderer, the one who defames, the one who slanders, the one who discredits. You see, the one, you see, God created man to bear his image, right? We're all, there's only one purpose for us, to image God, to image God. And when we refuse that, there isn't any other purpose except to be cast aside as salt that has no flavor. It's good for nothing, right?

29:16See, the one who is created in God's image and yet practices sin is a living slanderer. That's what the devil does. I mean, we're spiritual beings. We animate our spiritual father. And the one who is habitually sinning, growing in sin, is a living slanderer to who God is. Does that make sense? The devil is a slanderer. And when you impersonate him, when you image him, you are a living slanderer to who God is. We slander God by. Imaging what God is not. That's exactly what the devil wanted. He wanted to make us all a bunch of sinning machines and therefore slandering machines.

30:14But what did Jesus do? Look back at verse 8. The Son of God appeared for this purpose to destroy the works of the devil. His entry into Jerusalem that day, his entry into this world was God revealing his Son. And he appeared, God revealed him. He appeared for this purpose to destroy the works of the devil. Jesus did not come to animate sin, he came to animate righteousness, his father's righteousness. And he came to expose the works of the devil. He came to destroy the works of the devil. And good question is, what are the works of the devil? What does he mean? The works. Well, works refer to proofs. Works refer to accomplishments or manifestations. We can think of works as a manifestation of the devil himself. Just like art may be a manifestation of who you are, or something that you give yourself to may be a manifestation. Your works say something about you. Well, the devil's works are manifestations of himself.

31:28And he came to destroy. These manifestations of himself. He came to destroy those image-bearers, the image-bearing capacity of whom Satan was using to slander God. But the language here pictures sin as a force that binds people to do the will of the devil and to so manifest him. That's what slavery is. Go your own way, do your own thing. You are bound tighter than you imagined. You are bound to do your father's will, who is the devil. That's what going your own way.

32:22And the language here is sin is a force that binds you. It wraps you. It's the same word that to destroy is the same word that John uses a little bit earlier in John chapter 12 to that wrapped up Lazarus as he came out of the tomb. Unbind him. That's the word. The Son of God came to unbind man from having to manifest the devil. He came to free you. It's the same expression as he. He untied the donkey in Matthew 21:2, he untied the donkey. That's the idea. He came to destroy, he came to loose the works of the devil so that you and I do not have to manifest the devil anymore.

33:22He came to free his people from this enslaving power of the devil. That's what he came to do. He came to take away sins and he came to destroy the works of the devil. Was he effective? Look back at verse 9. No one who is born of God practices sin because his seed abides in him and he cannot sin because he is born of God. If John has left anything ambiguous, he really clears it up here. He's doubling down in even stronger language. No one who is born of God practices sin. No one who is born of God is growing in the skill and defense and propagation and promotion of sin. No one is.

34:17Everyone who is born of God is moving in the direction of innocence, moving in the direction of doing what is right and more perfectly imaging God. There isn't. A middle ground that John sees here. His language is some of the strongest. You talk about turning to a new way of life. John is strong on this language. What's interesting is many people who say that repentance isn't a necessary part of the gospel do not understand, and they will point to John and say, Well, John never uses the word repentance. They don't understand what John is saying. John's language here, and he cannot sin because he is born of God.

35:07Incredible words. The child of God is not indifferent to sin. It is a big deal. It is a big deal in the life of God's people because it was a big deal to God. It was a big deal to his son. He came to take away sins. He came to destroy the works of the devil. In him there is not any sin. So he or she who is born of God is not nurturing sin, but doing away with it. That's how you can tell who the children of God and the children of the devil are.

35:44And the reason, look back. No one who is born of God practices sin. Why? Because his seed abides in him. That's the reason. No one who is born of God practices sin because his seed abides in him. Incredible language there. It's the word we get, it's the word sperma. God's seed is in him. Sperm. God, you talk about paternity. His seed is in him, and therefore he doesn't practice sin. Hey, think about this. What is this seed? What is a seed? I think he's already told us what it is. Chapter 2 and verse 27, just a few verses back. As for you, the anointing which you received from him abides in you, and you have no need for anyone to teach you, but as his anointing teaches you about all things and is true and is not a lie, and just as it is taught you, you abide in him. What is this spiritual anointing? What is it? As I shared when we were on that verse, it is spiritual, spirit-implanted truth. Truth. Spirit of truth. You cannot separate truth from the spirit of truth. To have one is to have the other.

37:12And you think about spiritual DNA. What is it? It's truth. Truth. Truth. When you believe the truth as a spiritual being, you take that into your life and it shapes you. Truth shapes you. If you listen to the devil, guess what? You are part of his spiritual DNA. If you live for yourself, you are a child of the devil. But if you live for the glory of your heavenly Father, like Christ did, you are born of him. His spiritual DNA is running through you. That's what truth is: spirit-implanted truth.

38:04But look at this remarkable statement: no one who is born of God practices sin because his seed abides in him, and he cannot sin. He cannot sin. Literally, he is not being able to sin. And it's this same kind of idea. He is not able to continue in the practice and propagation of sin in his own life or in the world. He cannot. John is clear. The power to continue in sin is impossible. That's the strength of what John is saying here.

38:50John is not simply saying it's inconsistent for sin to be in the Christian life. I think that's where many of us. Would look at this and say, well, it's inconsistent. Yes, sin is inconsistent with the Christian life. Well, that it is for sure. But John is saying something far more strong here: saying the power to continue in sin is not there. Why? Because God's DNA is in them, and the outcome of God's DNA is Christ-likeness. That's how you can tell. And that's just it. Don't let anybody be misleading you. This is very straightforward. The one who is practicing righteousness is righteous like He is. That's where it comes from. That's the source. And as He's already made clear, as John has already made clear in chapter 1 and verse 9, and chapter 2, verses 1 and 2, that sin is going to be a reality in the life of a believer. But he's not talking about ongoing unrepentant sin. He's talking about sin, like an act of sin, rather than a chronic disposition of unrepentant sin propagating like the devil. There's something fundamentally different between the children of God and the devil himself.

40:13They may still sin, but they do not feel the same way about sin. Confession replaces denial. Do you hear people around you confessing? Maybe children, maybe you hear your parents asking for forgiveness. Or something like that, or you see in your parents, or you see something in somebody. Well, it's because they're born of God. Confession replaces denial, repentance replaces excuse. And the avenues and places of sin no longer hold intrigue for the child of God as they did in the past.

40:56Maybe momentarily, but even that begins to diminish. They no longer bring satisfaction, even temporarily. You see, the child of God outgrows the allurements of the world. And listen, why does John say this with such emphasis and with such certainty? Why? Because he understands the new birth. The new birth. You must be born again. Remember Nicodemus? That was the question, chapter three of John. You must be born again. It must be a work of the Spirit of God in your life.

41:40The new birth and what it does, it's what we celebrate in baptism. The new birth is the acquisition of a new nature through the implanting of God's seed, His truth, deep within us. And it gives us a life-giving power that comes from God Himself. The stream of satisfaction, the stream of God's Spirit. You see, birth, the rebirth, the new birth, is a deep-seated, radical, inward transformation that results in outward deeds of righteousness. He came to destroy the works of the devil. He came to do something deep within us and transform us to write God's righteousness upon our hearts. That's what he came to do: he came down that mountain on the donkey that day. He came to write God's righteousness in the hearts of his people and transform them so that they are no longer bound to manifest the devil, but are free to manifest the glory of the infinite and eternal God. That's freedom.

43:09The freedom to do what is right, the freedom to love what is right. That's freedom. So, why did he do it? Good question. But Jesus came to take away sins, to destroy the works of the devil, in order. To establish righteousness in the lives of his people, he wanted to establish righteousness in the lives of his people. Look at verse 10. By this, the children of God and the children of the devil are obvious. Anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor the one who does not love his brother. Now, why does a person do what he or she does? Why do you and I do what we do? Well, it's basically because we are manifesting our spiritual father. That's really what it boils down to. And Jesus came to reveal who the children of God and who the children of the devil are. The ones who are born of God are righteous like Christ. They do the right things. They manifest.

44:21They love bringing glory to their heavenly Father. That's the disposition. And when they get it wrong, they confess. They accept God's provision. There is a movement. The Son of God came to take away sin, destroy the works of the devil, so that righteousness would be rooted in the hearts of his people. And this work stands in direct contrast to the devil's work. The devil wanted to make us and wants to make you a sinning machine. Jesus came to free you, to make you a person.

45:03Who would love the glory of your heavenly Father, who would love the ways of your heavenly Father, and who would sacrificially promote, sacrificially give themselves for the well-being of humanity. Jesus came to make righteousness flourish on the earth. Imagine a king that can do that. That's what he came to do. You see, it's not an ethnic issue, it's a born-again issue. Righteousness is about doing right. But I want you to pick up, I want you to see one detail here because it introduces the whole next section. Anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor the one who does not love his brother. At first glance, you might think that these are two separate things. Well, you got to practice righteousness, and then you got to love your brother. No, what Jesus, what John is going to go on to demonstrate is that righteousness is about loving your brother.

46:12And you cannot separate the two. You see, if you will love like Christ, as you see him coming down that mountain, loving his people, if you will love like that, sacrificially give yourself to the well-being of others, I'll tell you what. The world makes for a big change. And this is what John is saying: that the light is already shining. The light is already shining. The darkness, we see rays of light. You're seeing works in the lives of men and women who are being transformed by the good news of the gospel, that that truth is going in. They are receiving the truth. They are understanding, agreeing with God, accepting that truth, and they are being transformed, born of God.

47:06So you can't really miss them. Jesus makes distinguishing the children of God from the children of the devil quite obvious. By this, the children of God and the children and the devil are obvious, clear, right out there in front of your face. And even though there are many people who would mislead the church today and say, well, no, there's a way you can be right without practicing righteousness. And there are so many ways that lie is repackaged and propagated through the no.

47:43Well, back to, as I wrap up, just a few thoughts. Go back with me in your mind to John 12:15. Fear not, daughter of Zion. Behold, your king is coming, seated on a donkey's colt. He's no threat to the physical. But he is threatened the whole spiritual disposition of Satan's kingdom. Who is this guy? Who is he that rode on that donkey that day? He's king. He's God's king, settled, resolute, determined, sure, confident. He's God's king.

48:28The question is: is he your king? Is he your king? How can you tell if he is? Well, if you're loyal to his first coming and you're ready for his second coming, then you're one of his. See, listen, think about it this way. If Christ, if we believe that Christ appeared to take away sins and he appeared to destroy the devil's work, and if we truly believe that he's coming a second time and we are going to see him and then we're going to be made like him, how can you and I possibly go on living in sin?

49:15If you really believe this about Christ, how can you go on living in sin? Both his be loyal, if you're loyal to his first advent, you know he's going to be purifying yourself. If you're ready for his second, you're going to be doing the same. Many kings and leaders have done noble things, but this one excels them all. Why is he doing all this? Why does he take away sins? Why does he destroy the works of the devil? Why is he wanting to establish his righteousness in the lives of his people? Well, because he is raising up a generation, a nation, a people, a citizenship who love what is right, who love to love people and give themselves completely to them. And if you think about it, think about today as you leave here. Think about this next week. And put that into perspective with Christ coming down the mountain of olives into Jerusalem on a donkey. Imagine, put these into perspective. If all of us here face the same tasks that God has laid out for us this week, if we would face them with the same kind of disposition that Christ faced the tasks that God set before him, just think if you set out with the same kind of righteousness, the same kind of loving resolve with the tasks that God gave you, whether it be in your relationship at home, whether it be in your work, whatever, if you would face these. Tasks, what a wonderful place this world would be, right?

51:10Listen, every day is an opportunity to do service for your King every day, every day. He paid the penalty of our sin, he always leads us in his victory over sin. What a privilege to be in his service. And regardless of who you are, regardless of the task that he has set before you, embrace it. Be like him. That's why he came to take away your sin, destroy the work of the devil in your life, and establish righteousness in your heart so that you would do service and image the beautiful God that created you. Let's pray. Lord, we thank you for this truth. Thank you for the words that touch us so deeply, that transform us.

52:12Thank you for this lasting testament of that day when you rode into Jerusalem and all that you came to do. Who would have thought all that was going on under the surface, but you have, through your word and through the explanation, Given us insight into these things. So we do not just merely see a peasant from Galilee coming in for a lost cause. We see the King of Kings, our Creator God, coming in and doing His work and loosening us from the bondage.

52:59Oh, be glorified this morning, we ask, in Jesus' name.