A Defining Relationship

Introduction:

If I were to ask you what is the greatest relationship you have, what would it be? What relationship has the most meaning to you? Was there a relationship that maybe altered your life? Would you say that the relationships you have in the local church are good and healthy relationships? What about bad relationships? Does the thought of relationships in some respects, make you cringe?

Relationship, that word has taken on quite a wide range of meanings. According to Healthline, there are 35 different terms that can define or describe different relationships.

Relationships are not a bad thing, they are given by God, so that man can live in a society and work the earth as He intended. However, there is one relationship that far supersedes every other one. Turn with me in your Bibles to 1 John 2. We are going to see what I have titled this sermon as “A Defining Relationship.” As we look into this, I want us to view it three ways, first we are going to see the “Tragedy of denying this relationship” (vv.21-23a), second, we are going to go deeper into “The Greatest Relationship” (vv.23b-24), and third, “The Eternal Promise” due to this relationship. Let’s read verses 21-25.

1. The Tragedy of Denial (denying this relationship) vv.21-23a))

We begin in verse 21. John’s emphasis is to make clear the truth that resides within the brothers. He also makes clear his intention for writing what he did about the antichrists. Notice, he does not say that they were unaware of the truth and that they were actively being deceived by false teachers. What does he say? He tells them that they know the truth and that it resides within them. John reinforces that there is no lie that the antichrists say that is true. Every lie that comes from their mouths is a lie. They are devoid of the truth. So, why does John start this way? How does this help us to understand verse 22? We are talking about denial, not deception and untruths. Well, before we can get to the denial that is in verses 22 and 23, we must see where the denials foundation lies. Denial lies in untruth. In other words, those who say that Jesus is not God or He is not one with the Father deny the truth! In doing so, they deny the gospel of Jesus Christ especially as a message that conforms to (and answers) the nature of reality. So, ultimately, those who deny Jesus Christ, deny reality!

Look with me in verse 22. The verse starts with what could be seen as written in the singular. John asks, “Who is the liar but the one who denies?” We know, as we have walked through the rest of this text, that it not possible for this to be in the singular. This would be out of sorts with verses 10 and 11 for example. John does not refer to the one who loves or hates his brother as if there were only one person who had ever done such a thing. We saw last week that the antichrists are ‘many’ and not just one.

However, antichrists are not just referred to in the physical realm. They are addressed in a spiritual sense as well. We see this in how verses 22 and 23 come together. If you would notice with me that John answers the question of who the denier is at the end of verse 22. He says that this is the antichrist. Now, look down at the beginning of verse 23 and let’s see how they work together. John tells us in verse 23 that ‘everyone’ who denies the Son and the Father. It is with this that our eyes are opened to see the spiritual realm of the antichrist. Remember, how we saw last week that there are people that you and I know that deny our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, but they are not hostile toward us? Verse 23 brings that to light for us. In other words, the spirit of the antichrist, the one who has denied the Son and the Father, is just as guilty and wicked as the hostile ‘antichrist.’ MacArthur goes into detail about these deniers saying, “Any denial, deviation, or distortion of the scriptural view of Jesus Christ – His incarnation; that He is both Son of God and Son of Man, the promised Prophet, Priest, King, and Redeemer – constitutes the spirit of antichrist” (pg. 100). They are of the same spirit although they might not display physical or verbal hostility. John tells us that everyone who denies the Son has the spirit of antichrist within them.

I was reminded of the debate that takes place in some Christian circles as to whether Adam is our federal head. Moreso, does his sin apply to every human being that has existed and will exist in the future. Genesis 3 and 4 make it clear through Adam’s lineage that sin has spread throughout all human history. Verse 23 of our text confirms that human sin continues to press on. The implication of verse 23 is that this has been going on since sin first entered the world until John’s current day. Furthermore, it implies that this denial of Christ will continue. You would be a fool to think that the denial of God does not happen today! So, does Adam’s sin continue down to us? The obvious, and biblical answer is, yes!

It is in verse 23 that we get our first glimpse of the relationship between the Son and the Father. Notice that John tells us that those who deny the Son at the same time, even if they don’t mention it by name, deny the Father as well. John tells us, not directly, that the Son and the Father are inextricably linked together. There is no separation between the two. They are one. This will be important for our consideration a little later. But as we consider this verse in context to those who deny, they are guilty of denying the Creator of the universe and the only One who can liberate them from sin. Practically speaking, those who deny God the Son spit in His face, the very One who created them. I am convinced that they are creating the greatest spiritual crime that could be committed. It is right under the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit (Matt. 12:31).

I want us, for a moment, to see the gravity of not having the Son and the Father. You are correct if you were to say that the magnitude of this is that the one who denies the Son and the Father does not possess either of them. There is no existence of a personal and intimate relationship with the Father and the Son. John says that this denial is of the Son and the Father, therefore, the one who denies has no relationship with God whatsoever. What a scary thought!  

2. The Greatest Relationship (between the Son and the Father) vv. 23b, 24))

Let’s move on to The Greatest Relationship which takes the second half of verse 23 and verse 24 into consideration. The tide of John’s writing in chapter 2 changes at this point and we will see this change throughout the remainder of chapter 2. John makes another contrast in verse 23. We saw how he began with speaking about the one who denies the Son and the Father. Now, we turn our attention to what occurs when the believer confesses the Son. Christians who confess the Son are at the same time confessing the Father. This is true whether both titles are used or not. Hence, the interlinking that the Son and the Father have. John is telling us that there is no way that they can be separated from One another. This further implies that the Jehovah’s Witnesses belief on this subject is wrong. The Bible tells us over and over that Jesus is, indeed, God. He is the same God that spoke to Abraham, Moses, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and many others.

*A note must be made at this point. It is contradictory to Scripture, if we were to believe that Jesus Christ only appeared in the New Testament. The gross implication that He was literally born of the Father (a legitimate created being, like you or me) comes from this kind of belief. Without Christ being eternal, both past and future, we would not have the unchangeableness of God. God’s immutability (He doesn’t change) is a critical attribute for us to consider. Without it, God is like the rest of us. He can change His mind whenever He wants, His will can change at a moment’s notice. This would also be true for the blessed hope that we so greatly anticipate. If this were true, God could change the entire eternal existence that He has already prepared for us and has spoken about (through His Son, by the way). Thus, when we confess the Son, we have the belief that we are also confessing the Father.

What is amazing here is that although the denier will not confess the Son now, one day He will. Speaking of Christ, Paul writes in Philippians 2:9-11, “Therefore, God has highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” What a joy it is for each one of us who has put our trust in Christ for salvation to have the privilege and duty to confess His name here on earth, and to continue to do so in heaven.

Those who confess the Son have the Father. Unlike the possessive nature of ‘to have’ that we saw before, this word is not possessive. It is relational. The Psalmist understood this in Psalm 73. Verses 25 and 26 say, “Whom have I in heaven but You? And besides You, I desire nothing on earth. My flesh and my heart fail, but God is the rock of my heart and my portion forever.” Unlike what we saw before about the verb ‘to have’ meaning that it is a possession or a feature, the meaning behind ‘to have’ in verse 23 is to have a relationship with. In this case, if we have a relationship with the Son, then we have a relationship with the Father. This continues the overarching theme of oneness that we find in these verses. We have a relationship with the Father as much as we do with the Son. This is reaffirmed for us in John 17:9-10. “I ask on their behalf; I do not ask on behalf of the world but of those whom You have given Me; for they are Yours; and all things that are Mine are Yours, and Yours are Mine; and I have been glorified in them.” We share in this blessed relationship between the Father and the Son as the prized possession of the Father that is bestowed upon the Son. We are the Son’s as much as we are the Father’s.

We move on to verse 24. This verse starts with some familiarity. Again, John is one who is quite repetitive. He tells us to have the truth of the gospel reside in our hearts continually. However, I want us to consider the effect of the relationship between the Son and the Father and the gospel which John calls us to continue to abide in.

To lay the foundation, we must see this text for what it says. In the same way that Jesus attributed Himself with the Father as John records in His gospel (as we shall see shortly), he does so again here. The Bible is consistent. The relationship between the Father and the Son is a consistent theme throughout the entire Bible. From creation to the second coming of Christ, there is an inseparable bond between the Father and the Son. In the Upper Room discourse, Jesus proclaims His oneness with the Father. Jn. 14.7 says, “If you have come to know Me, you will know My Father also; from now on you know Him, and have seen Him.” This was said in the presence of the disciples minus Judas who had gone off to betray Him. In verses 10-12, Jesus makes it painstakingly clear that He and the Father are One.

So, what does this mean for you and me? Why is this important for us to understand? Why is it the “Greatest Relationship?” Turn with me to Genesis 1:26. This is a familiar passage for us. However, may this not deter us from seeing what God has for us this morning. If you would, then, turn to Genesis 3:22. Notice the similarity. What do these verses have to do with the relationship between the Father and the Son? Two things. First, who made man in His image? Verse 26 tells us that God said, “Let Us.” Who is the Us? The first chapter of both Genesis and Hebrews tells us that the “Us” is the God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. Are you beginning to see why this relationship truly is the greatest one? Permit me to add another. In Genesis 3, man has wisdom on a level he had never had before. After Yahweh declares that man is like God (in that man has a small degree of wisdom), God casts Adam and Eve out of Eden. Praise God that He did! Would you want to live in this sin cursed world forever? I sure don’t! It was in that moment (after he sinned) that man was in desperate need. Who conjured up the plan to redeem humanity? Yes, that’s right, the Father and the Son.

We could summarize to say that our entire life is dependent on this relationship between the Father and the Son. Paul Washer says that “we cannot breathe apart from the power of God.”

It is utter foolishness to not love God. He is so kind to us, in that He has provided for us in our greatest time of need! Because of the plan of redemption that God has designed, what is our response to His kindness? Like the Jews who believed in Jesus, in John 8:31, we abide in the word. We follow His commandments out of love for Him. John 14:21-23 tells us, “He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me; and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will disclose Myself to him. Judas (not Iscariot) said to Him, “Lord, what then has happened that You are going to disclose Yourself to us and not to the world?” Jesus answered and said to him, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our dwelling with him.””

We have seen this abiding before. Chapter 2, verse 6 tells us that the one who abides in the Lord walks in the ways of the Lord. The one who is of the Spirit walks in the Spirit. Verse 24 adds on to this saying that the one who possesses the commands of the Lord in his/her heart abides in the Son and the Father. The outward expression of abiding in the Son and the Father is to walk as They do in holiness and righteousness. We are promised that the Son and the Father will abide in us as we hold fast to the commands of God. Further, 1 John 4:13 says that, out of His love for us, we are promised by the Father and the Son that the Holy Spirit will reside in us. This is how “we know that we abide in Him and He in us.” Therefore, Christian take comfort that the God of all Creation, who made you, promises to abide in you and never leave you, both in this life and the one to come.

3. The Eternal Promise (given to those who are grafted into the relationship) v.25))

With that, we finish with our third point, The Eternal Promise. Look with me in verse 25. John writes this in a sort of chronological way. He starts by telling his readers and us that God will provide all our needs on earth. He promises to walk with us at the inception of being regenerated as a new creature in Christ until the day that we leave this earth. Because God is eternal, which we have seen before, He takes every provision and promise on earth and brings them to their glorified end which is eternal life. The ultimate promise that God has given to us is that we would live in eternity with Him forever. This is where John ends this story of events.

Notice, last week the antichrists did not have one of these blessings. The antichrist is unable to have eternal fellowship with God. But the Christian is blessed with these promises. We will see more of this in the conclusion of chapter 2, Lord willing, next week.

The promise of eternal life is in relation to Christ and this promise centers in Him. We have seen that this entire epistle is about Christ. In verse 24 we saw that without Christ, there is no relationship with the Father. In verse 25, we do not have the promise of eternal life without the Son. In other words, Christ is “the contents of the promise.” He is essential, which is John’s main sticking point. Because the promise is centered in Christ, then the promise of eternal life can only come from God. See how this is written “this is the promise which He Himself made.” The word ‘made’ is not what you and I think it means. It means ‘to promise.’ This verse could be re-written “And this is the promise which He Himself promised us…” Again, this promise is conditional on Christ being Divine. Without that reality, the promise of eternal life could not be made. An implication is made and that is that Christ is eternal. Since He promises eternal life, He must be eternal to orchestrate eternity.

Now, this is quite the claim that Christ is in and of Himself eternal life and the giver of eternal life alongside the Father. Is this claim substantial? That is quite a claim to make of Oneself, isn’t it? Well, He made it confidently and those around Him heard this quite often. Let me back this up by saying there are at least 30 different Bible verses that specifically refer to Christ as the source and giver of eternal life. No, we are not going to go into all 30. I do want to reference a few. Isaiah 53:12 implies this saying, “Therefore, I will divide for Him a portion with the many, and He will divide the spoil with the strong.” Job 19:25-27 “As for me, I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last He will rise up over the dust of this world. Even after my skin is destroyed, yet from my flesh I shall behold God, whom I myself shall behold, and whom my eyes will see and not another.” John 10:27-28 a portion of what Chuck read for us earlier, “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give eternal life to them and they will never perish–ever.”

Brothers, this relationship is not just a theological matter or debate. It is seeing the pure and perfect relationship of God the Son and God the Father, against the antichrists of this age that help us in our discernment. This relationship determines where we are headed for all eternity! It gives us the fire and passion to tell others of the good news of Jesus Christ, because this relationship also determines where the unregenerate sinner is headed! This relationship gives us the purpose for our existence. It is because of this relationship, that we are no longer counted as enemies of God. The relationship between the Father and the Son is essential for our understanding of the Word of God. The way that we function as a local church is affected by the relationship between the Father and the Son.

It is a great error to say that the Father and Son relationship has no bearing on us today. This relationship is what we hinge our physical and spiritual lives on. Brothers, rest in that by God’s grace, He has grafted us into this precious relationship, as we abide in Him!

Conclusion:

If I were to ask you again, what is the most important relationship you have? My hope is that you would say with your Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. For our relationship with Him is the most important both on the earth and in heaven. I want to leave you with a few applications as to how we can continue our relationship with our Lord.

1. The most important thing we can do to be encouraged and strengthened in our relationship with Christ is to be in our Bibles every single day. If I were to ask you, what is first on your mind when you wake up? Or what do you do first when you wake up? How would you honestly answer that? Now, I am not saying to forsake those things which are necessary to do in the morning, but once the necessities are taken care of what comes to mind and what do you do first? My desire for each one of us here is that we would begin our day with the Lord in His Word.
2. You and I must be a people of prayer. It is not enough for us to pray at mealtimes. I mean, think of it this way, what if God only had communion with us once a day? What kind of God would He be? Not a very good one. One of the most precious aspects of biblical Christianity, is our direct access to the Father through Jesus Christ the Son. Brothers take advantage of this privilege that we have!
3. You and I must be committed people unto the Lord. When the times get difficult, run to the Lord, for He cares for you! It is also just as important, and sometimes we forget, that when times are going well, we must also run to the Lord. He has provided us with all that we need. He is committed to us as His chosen people. Might we be those who, in word and deed, are committed to our great God in heaven.