Sermon John 1:1-2:2 Testify To The Word Of Life 1) With creeds. 2) With deeds. Easter 3 B 160, 281, 484 (2), 318, 168 April 19, 2015 St.

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1 Sermon John 1:1-2:2 Testify To The Word Of Life 1) With creeds. 2) With deeds. Easter 3 B 160, 281, 484 (2), 318, 168 April 19, 2015 St. John s Evangelical Lutheran Church Frankenmuth, MI 1That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched this we proclaim concerning the Word of life. 2The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us. 3We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. 4We write this to make our joy complete. 5This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. 6If we claim to have fellowship with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth. 7But if we walk in the light, as he is 1

2 in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purified us from all sin. 8If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. 10If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word ahs no place in our lives. 2:1 My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. 2He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world. Introduction: Preach the gospel at all times; when necessary, use words. Although debated about who said it, most credit this saying to St. Francis of Assisi (1181 or 82-October 3, 1226). Regardless of who said it, however, doesn t this statement stress the importance of practicing what one preaches? Perhaps that s because there can be nothing more offensive to another s conscience than hypocrisy. Certainly, the apostle James had this truth in mind when he wrote: Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do (James 2:18b). When John penned these three epistle letters, he too emphasized the importance of not only confessing the correct things about Christianity, but also demonstrating the sincerity of the Christian faith. Undoubtedly, John recalled the words of Jesus when the Savior stated in His Sermon on the Mount: Let your light 2

3 [faith] shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven (Matthew 5:16). Although there is much to meditate on in the section of John s letter than time this morning permits, in this confession and absolution section John urges us: Testify To The Word Of Life 1) With creeds. A. John established this theological foundation echoing thoughts from his earlier written gospel: That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched this we proclaim concerning the Word of life. The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us (1:1-2). In short, John points to the foundation of our faith 1. Who is Jesus and how His mission affected us. The eternal Jesus, the WORD, took on human flesh (John 1:14) for a purpose: to live under law to redeem us (Galatians 4:4-5), to sacrifice Himself for our sins (2 Corinthians 5:21) and to defeat death as proved by His resurrection (John 11:25-26) the creed we confess every Sunday. 2. Why is it necessary to have creeds? John speaks to that point in his second letter: Many deceivers, who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh, have gone out in to the world (2 John 7). 3

4 B. John, too, addressed another type of deceiving that affects fellowship with God & others. 1. Hypocrisy: not practicing what the WORD preaches; often characterized by those who reason: Since I m saved by grace, God will forgive me anyways so I can go ahead and do what I want (Individual argued with pastor: I know I have no scriptural reason to divorce my spouse, but I m going to do it anyways and you have to forgive me. ) 2. A hypocrite is the person who attends church on Sunday, but doesn t live the faith on Monday. Appropriation: Dear Friends in Christ: A pastor once asked one of the straying members of the congregation why he no longer attended services. He answered, I don t need to come to church to be a Christian, especially where there are a bunch of hypocrites. Is it true? Do others see hypocrisy in our lives? (Potato chip bag seems bulging until we open it and hear that release of air to only find the bag half full. do people see our lives full in Jesus?) Paul, the man who described himself as the chief of sinners (1 Timothy 1:15), freely confessed: I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good [It s not God s fault ; can t excuse sinful behavior claiming, I can t help it God made me this way! that s not hypocrisy, but confession]. As it is it is sin living in me. I 4

5 know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do this I keep on doing what a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? (Romans 7:15ff). Do we see our sins, even sins of hypocrisy? But my dear brothers and sisters, what s the solution to sin, doubt, hypocrisy and troubles? It isn t staying away from church whether due to the bad examples of others, etc. Rather, Paul acknowledged after that transparent confession: Thanks to God for Jesus Christ (Romans 7:21). It s turning to the Word of life (v.1). We see this truth in today s Gospel lesson. The house full of fearful disciples had their doubts about Jesus rising from the dead. But Jesus appeared to His disciples and the WORD of life opened the Scriptures to their doubting hearts and sagging souls testifying to WHO He was and WHAT He as their risen Savior had done to save them. Transition: Sometimes we confessional Lutherans get uncomfortable about discussing creeds and deeds (good works). Truly, we are saved by grace alone through faith alone in Jesus alone apart from works. But St. Paul also instructs us: For we are God s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do (Ephesians 2:10). Testify to Jesus, the Word of life by your life 2) With deeds. 5

6 A. What we do reflects our hearts: St. Paul explains, For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved (Romans 10:10). 1. St. John states, If we claim to have fellowship with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth (1 John 1:6): (radio listener s call about hypocrisy ) 2. John further teaches, But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purified us from all sin (1 John 1:7): confession goes hand in hand with trusting Jesus for forgiveness and demonstrating faith s sincerity by living for Jesus! B. What we do is a demonstration of the sincerity of our faith 1. If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives (1 John 1:8-10). 2. It s believing as St. Peter said in our first Scripture lesson: Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved (Acts 4:12) no self-remedy for sin, or no other way than Jesus! Appropriation: Dearly beloved by Jesus: (Analogy of husband and wife after years of marriage begin to act like each other so it is a Christian s marriage with God.). Because of sin and we are 6

7 sinners we aren t always the perfect spouses. But Jesus remains the perfect Bridegroom. In fact, St. John directs us to testify as we confess for ourselves and live that others may see: If anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world (1 John 2:1-2). Conclusion: Dear fellow redeemed: Always preach the gospel; when necessary, use words (Op. Cit.) By God s grace as we cling to His word and sacraments (Holy Communion where we touch our Lord s body and blood with the bread and wine paralleling today s gospel lesson), we confess that Jesus has forgiven us and are energized to live His will out of thankfulness for what He has done to save us. That s Testifying to the Word of Life with creeds and deeds. Amen. 7