TWENTY ONE REASONS WE KNOW THAT WE KNOW THE LORD – PART FOUR
Sunday, August 23, 2009
We know we know the Lord because:
15. We are cleansed from sin
“But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us.” 1 John 1:7-10 NKJV
“And you know that He was manifested to take away our sins, and in Him there is no sin. Whoever abides in Him does not sin. Whoever sins has neither seen Him nor known Him. Little children, let no one deceive you. He who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous. He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil. Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God. In this the children of God and the children of the devil are manifest: Whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is he who does not love his brother.”
1 John 3:5-10 NKJV
The freedom that we have in Christ is not the freedom to sin because we think He will forgive us anyway, but it is the freedom to live for Him and walk in righteousness. Jesus came to destroy the works of the devil. There is a clear distinction between the child of God and the child of the devil. Before we are saved, without the cleansing blood of Jesus, sin has dominion over us and it pulls us anyway it wants. Even though we want to do right, we keep doing wrong. Once we are washed in His blood, our heart draws us toward Him and toward righteousness. Our desires change. Sin no longer satisfies. The fact that we are cleansed from sin and we live righteously indicates that we truly know Him. If someone says that they know Him, but they practice sin, they make themselves to be a liar.
16. We are free from condemnation
“There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death.” Romans 8:1-2 NKJV
“For if our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and knows all things. Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence toward God. And whatever we ask we receive from 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.” 1 John 3:20-23 NKJV
Thank God, we are free from condemnation through Jesus Christ. We no longer fear God’s wrath and punishment; we no longer have a guilty conscience because of sin; we walk in the peace and freedom of His forgiveness. Because we know God and we know His character, we can now come confidently into His presence. Sin cannot stand in the presence of God. Because we are free from sin, we are free from the condemnation of sin and we have confidence toward God – confidence in His love, care and concern for us.
17. His Spirit dwells in us
“Now he who keeps His commandments abides in Him, and He in him. And by this we know that He abides in us, by the Spirit whom He has given us.”
1 John 3:24 NKJV
“You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.” 1 John 4:4 NKJV
“By this we know that we abide in Him, and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit.” 1 John 4:13-14 NKJV
“[He has also appropriated and acknowledged us as His by] putting His seal upon us and giving us His [Holy] Spirit in our hearts as the security deposit and
guarantee [of the fulfillment of His promise].” 2 Corinthians 1:22 AMP
The fact that the Holy Spirit lives in us is proof that we know Him. The Spirit cannot dwell in an unclean vessel – only in a vessel that has been washed and cleansed and made brand new by the blood of Jesus and the work of the Holy Spirit, Himself. It is the work of the Holy Spirit that makes us a brand new creature in Christ. It is the work of the Holy Spirit that builds character in us and grows and increases the fruit of the Spirit in us. It is the Holy Spirit that anoints us and endows us with spiritual gifts and graces. All this work of the Holy Spirit in us is
evidence that we truly know God.
Recent:
Righteous Now
Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. 2 Corinthians 5:17 KJV
Therefore if any person is [ingrafted] in Christ (the Messiah) he is a new creation (a new creature altogether); the old [previous moral and spiritual condition] has passed away. Behold, the fresh and new has come! 2 Corinthians 5:17 AMP
“Therefore if any man be in Christ…” What does it mean to be “in Christ”? Galatians 3:27 says, “For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.” You are baptized into Christ when you receive Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. Romans 10:9-10 says, “That if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” And Romans 10:13 says, “For whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.” The moment
Defeating Strife
These six things the Lord hates, indeed, seven are an abomination to Him: 17 A proud look [the spirit that makes one overestimate himself and underestimate others], a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, 18 A heart that manufactures wicked thoughts and plans, feet that are swift in running to evil, 19 A false witness who breathes out lies [even under oath], and he who sows discord among his brethren. Proverbs 6:16-19 AMP
Faith Facts
Faith is persistent
Luke 11:9-10 AMP
So I say to you, Ask and keep on asking and it shall be given you; seek and keep on seeking and you shall find; knock and keep on knocking and the door shall be opened to you. 10 For everyone who asks and keeps on asking receives; and he who seeks and keeps on seeking finds; and to him who knocks and keeps on knocking, the door shall be opened.
John 16:24 AMP
Up to this time you have not asked a [single] thing in My Name [as presenting all that I AM]; but now ask and keep on asking and you will receive, so that your joy (gladness, delight) may be full and complete.
Faith is single-minded
James 1:5-8 AMP
If any of you is deficient in wisdom, let him ask of the giving God [Who gives] to everyone liberally and ungrudgingly, without reproaching or faultfinding, and it will be given him. 6 Only it must be in faith that he asks with no wavering (no hesitating, no doubting). For the one who wavers (hesitates, doubts) is like the