I. "WE KNOW THAT WHOSOEVER IS BORN OF GOD SINNETH NOT."
A. John first speaks of being born of God in his gospel,
JOH 1:13 Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
1. John then tells us that Jesus said to Nicodemus, the ruler of the Jews,
JOH 3:3 Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.
2. Peter speaks of being born again,
1PE 1:3 Blessed [be] the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
1PE 1:23 Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.
3. John speaks of being born of God in other parts of this letter,
1JO 2:29 If ye know that he is righteous, ye know that every one that doeth righteousness is born of him.
4. In chapter 3 he says much the same as what he declares here,
1JO 3:9 Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God.
5. Here in this chapter he has much to say about being born of God.
1JO 5:1 Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God: and every one that loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him.
1JO 5:4 For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, [even] our faith.
B. What does it mean to be born of God?
1. In explaining to Nicodemus what it meant, Jesus said, "That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit."
2. We had a fleshly birth which we celebrate annually as we count the number of years since that day, which to us is the most important day in the history of the world.
a. We were born with a fleshly nature.
b. Our first concerns were our fleshly needs.
c. When our fleshly needs were not met, we let everyone know about it with our loud wailings.
d. We didn't care what time of the night it was, we had no regard for other's need of sleep, we were uncomfortable and would not quiet until someone met our demands.
e. From birth, our fleshly comfort and ease was the paramount issue in our lives.
f. We were unconcerned what disadvantage it brought to others, we wanted our needs met, and we were determined to try to control other peoples lives.
g. Many continue this same attitude all through life. They have the mind of the flesh and live the life of the flesh.
3. Jesus declared that living this two dimensional life could never gain us entrance into heaven. That it was necessary to have a new birth. The birth of the spirit. The spirit must rule in our lives.
a. The life of the flesh is death. In the life of the flesh sin is natural.
b. The life of the spirit is love, joy and peace. Living in the spirit, sin is unnatural.
c. Basically the life of the flesh is self-centered.
d. The life of the Spirit is other centered.
e. Jesus said that it is more blessed to give than to receive.
C. John tells us that whosoever is born of God, "Sinneth not." This in Greek is ouch hamartanei which is in the lineal present active indicative, and should be translated, "Does not keep on sinning."
1. That is, does not live in sin. Sin is not the common practice of my life.
2. This means that we are freed from the power of sin.
3. It does not mean that we never sin, but that we are no longer slaves to sin.
4. Our carnal nature was a slave to sin.
a. We were not sinners because we sinned.
b. We sinned because we were sinners.
c. Paul speaks of us as being by nature the children of wrath even as others.
d. But we have been born again, and thus have a new nature. If any man be in Christ, he is a new creation, old things are passed away and behold all things become new.
e. In His dispute with the Jews, Jesus said, "You are of your father the devil, and you do his works."
f. We were once in that same condition, but now we have been born again by the Spirit, and we do the works of our Father.
5. Writing to the believers John said, "If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us." And when I sin, I have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. He is there at the right hand of the Father making intercession for me.
II. WHY IS IT THAT I CANNOT LIVE IN SIN? HE THAT IS BEGOTTEN OF GOD KEEPETH HIM. RATHER THAN (HIMSELF) IT SHOULD READ (HIM.) THE ONE REFERRED TO HERE AS BEGOTTEN OF GOD IS A REFERENCE TO NONE OTHER THAN JESUS.
1. Notice how closely the words of Peter parallel the words of John,
1PE 1:3 Blessed [be] the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
1PE 1:4 To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you,
1PE 1:5 Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.
2. Jude said, "Now unto Him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy."
3. How we rejoice and should rejoice in the keeping power of Jesus Christ.
a. Jesus said,
JOH 10:27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:
JOH 10:28 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any [man] pluck them out of my hand.
JOH 10:29 My Father, which gave [them] me, is greater than all; and no [man] is able to pluck [them] out of my Father's hand.
PSA 124:1 If [it had not been] the LORD who was on our side, now may Israel say;
PSA 124:2 If [it had not been] the LORD who was on our side, when men rose up against us:
PSA 124:3 Then they had swallowed us up quick, when their wrath was kindled against us:
PSA 124:4 Then the waters had overwhelmed us, the stream had gone over our soul:
PSA 124:5 Then the proud waters had gone over our soul.
PSA 124:6 Blessed [be] the LORD, who hath not given us [as] a prey to their teeth.
PSA 124:7 Our soul is escaped as a bird out of the snare of the fowlers: the snare is broken, and we are escaped.
III. "AND THE WICKED ONE TOUCHETH HIM NOT."
A. The wicked one is a reference to Satan.
1. When you are a child of God he cannot touch you.
2. The Lord spoke through the prophet Isaiah saying,
ISA 54:17 No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue [that] shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This [is] the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness [is] of me, saith the LORD.
a. We see this in the case of Balaam who was hired to curse the children of Israel.
b. God said to Joshua concerning Balaam,
JOS 24:9 Then Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab, arose and warred against Israel, and sent and called Balaam the son of Beor to curse you:
JOS 24:10 But I would not hearken unto Balaam; therefore he blessed you still: so I delivered you out of his hand.
B. Satan cannot touch you except God give him permission.
1. Remember the story of Job, Satan complained that God had put a hedge around Job that Satan could not penetrate.
2. God has a hedge around you.
3. I believe that this scripture stands in the face of those who teach that a Christian can be possessed by a demon.
4. I think that we often put far too much emphasis upon the power of Satan to harm the believer than the power of God to protect the believer.
IV. "AND WE KNOW THAT WE ARE OF GOD AND THAT THE WHOLE WORLD LIETH IN WICKEDNESS."
A. How do we know that we are of God? Because God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, Abba, Father.
1. We can see the fruit of the Spirit manifested in our lives.
2. The things of God have become more important to us than the the things of the flesh.
3. We are no longer in sync or in tune with the world, we feel like aliens. Jesus said to the Jews, "You are from beneath, I am from above, you are of this world, I am not of this world."
4. We have the same feelings that Lot had as he lived in Sodom.
2PE 2:8 (For that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, their unlawful and unnatural deeds found his righteous soul being vexed day after day.
5. We are told not to love the world or the things of the world, for he that has the love of the world in his heart, does not have the love of the Father.
1John 2:15
6. We again are told that friendship with the world is enmity with God.
James 4:4
B. The conflict between the one born of God and the world.
JOH 17:14 I have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.
JOH 17:25 O righteous Father, the world hath not known thee: but I have known thee, and these have known that thou hast sent me.
C. "For the whole world lieth in wickedness."
1. This has been the story of the world from the day that Adam sinned.
2. We read in Noah's day,
GEN 6:5 And God saw that the wickedness of man [was] great in the earth, and [that] every imagination of the thoughts of his heart [was] only evil continually.
GEN 6:12 And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth.
3. Paul describing the world said,
ROM 1:28 And even as they did not like to retain God in [their] knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient;
ROM 1:29 Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers,
ROM 1:30 Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,
ROM 1:31 Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful:
ROM 1:32 Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.
ROM 3:10 As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:
ROM 3:11 There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God.
ROM 3:12 They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.
ROM 3:13 Their throat [is] an open sepulchre; with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps [is] under their lips:
ROM 3:14 Whose mouth [is] full of cursing and bitterness:
ROM 3:15 Their feet [are] swift to shed blood:
ROM 3:16 Destruction and misery [are] in their ways:
ROM 3:17 And the way of peace have they not known:
ROM 3:18 There is no fear of God before their eyes.
D. Those who have been born of God have been delivered from this evil world.
1. Paul wrote to the Galatians,
GAL 1:4 Who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God and our Father:
2. Paul said that the Lord called him to go to the Gentiles,
Act 26:18 To open their eyes, [and] to turn [them] from darkness to light, and [from] the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in Jesus Christ.
Verse-Reference
Square — [Jhn 1:1 KJV]
Abbreviate Books
Use SBL Abbrev.
