First John 3:13-15 Practice of Love vs Hatred

All right, so we're gonna read today a little bit fewer verses than last week. We're gonna read 1 John 3.10 down to 1 John 3.15. And I am in my favorite verse in terms of Bible text, and that's the New King James.

All right, 1 John 3.10, in this the children of God or the children of the devil are manifest.

Whosoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is he who does not love his brother. For this is the message that you've heard from the beginning, that we should love one another. And not as Cain, who was of the wicked one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his works were evil and his brother's righteous. Do not marvel, my brethren, if the world hates you. We know that we pass from death to life because we have, we love the brethren. and he who does not love his brother or brethren abides in death. Whosoever hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.

You think of James Bunby, right? So we'll be back beside right now. All right, as usual, let's summarize the verses we covered last week. The title was Love One Another. All right, now I need to get back on the right screen here. Where's my mouse? Okay, we're good. All right, so loving one another is a new life.

I think we pointed this out as not something we work up to or try to work harder at. And we can turn to many verses here, but as Christ loved us, we should love one another. And how are you doing at loving one another in the flesh? It's just an impossible task. So this is a new life that loves one another unconditionally.

Just think about that. you know, as you walk by people in the street or in the mall or at a restaurant or in your day-to-day existence, that you look at everybody through the eyes of Christ, that everyone is saved by grace. You know, there's no race, there's no gender, there's no transgender here. We're all saved by the same principle or sinners saved by grace. So, you know, if you think about this, this takes care of all world systems where politically we're being influenced day in and day out. But when you put everyone on the cross, like Jim and Margaret and everybody else, we're all equal at the cross, aren't we? Everybody is equal there. There's no prejudice, there's no bias. We're all sinners saved by grace. So loving one another is this new life that we have in Christ Jesus.

Now, Cain's murder of Abel indicates the extremes of evil and good. And the best metaphor here is Christ and Satan. Basically, are we led by Satan? Well, Satan's power has been removed from the believer, particularly if we're scripturally sound and seeing ourselves crucified indeed under Christ and risen with him in newness of life. I mean, the Christ's life has no satanic influence. Satan influenced the world system unequivocally. That's where he's working. And by the way, I think he works in some churches to some extent, and people are unsafe.

Despite the fact that you go to church, Martin and I were talking about that, seeing all the people on the golf course, and all the boys playing baseball. And I'll go down a rabbit trap for a second. When I coached Peter, my oldest son, baseball team for four years, Sunday games weren't started till 1pm in the afternoon. And why? Very obviously right, because people were tending more to their church than they are today. So just an example, and you know, you can't judge somebody because they're a parent of their kid's baseball game or on the golf course.

I mean, probably lots of people who are saved are doing that. We can't be judgmental. But in a sense, it does reflect the world system and how it impacts the world we all live in as strangers. Remember, our citizenship is in heaven. All right, first verse. Do not marvel, my brethren, if the world hates you. Wow, that's a lot of meat. I'm glad we only have three verses this week, thank you. Roger.

Now, marvel not is, you look at really the ultimate translation of this, it's not to wonder, or it's not to be in admiration. And this is an imperative, we're told not to marvel at the fact that the world hates us. This is not something we need to wonder about. It's not something we need to, in some way, admire ourselves because we're better than the world.

And ultimately, this, you know, a couple of other verses really speak to this. Do not marvel that I said to you, you must be born again. I mean, Christ said this to whom? Nicodemus, right? The greatest teacher in Israel. Yeah, I mean, so he's saying that don't marvel at this. There's no wondering to go on here. There's no reason to ultimately hold this in any kind of something that you should not admire. But don't admire the fact that I'm telling you, or wonder about it, that you must be born again.

So it's a very straightforward use of that. And I think Paul shares it beautifully. I marvel that you are turning away so soon from him who called you in the grace of Christ to a different gospel. Notice this is the positive. He's marveling about this. He's wondering what the heck's happened to you.

And admiration, I think it's just putting things into context is what that basically indicates. Not that you admire something, but you're in fact admiring something as whether it has worth or not worth, I think is what the interpretation is there. All right, so if the world cosmos, world system, right? Everything we operate within day in and day out hates, and that's an indicative mood that means factually, if it hates you.

So ask Roy's help here a little bit, maybe if here is provides a non-standard conditional clause. Wow, what's that? I mean, Roy can go into this further, but the concept here is the conclusion is prior to the proposal. So it's subjunctive that if the world hates you is a subjunctive clause, but it's a first conditional one, kind of like the world's gonna hate you. So the conclusion is prior to the proposal. The world hates us, like it or not everybody. And notice that this is not a proposal, but it's a command that's based on the condition. Don't be surprised here that the world hates us. Roy, any further comments on this? It's a first-class condition. He's assuming this is going to be true.

Right, right. So wouldn't that word be... I've heard it used as sense. Yep, I think it's a better interpretation. I'm just giving you what one source of information said about how if is used in this text. But I agree with Roy. I think this is really a first conditional sense rather than if. I agree, that's a better interpretation. Other thoughts on this? Well, Bob, in a way, this is a hard pill to swallow because you like to be, most people, Christian and non-Christian, like to be liked. We're going to get to this. But seriously, I mean, that's an important part of this lesson. So we're going to get to this, Roger, I promise you. Are you going to reference to John 15? Well, the handout hasn't been sent yet, but how's this for identification? I hope this is the verse you're talking about because John 15 is where I'm going.

If the world hates you, you know that it hated me before it hated you. Now talk about position and condition and new life in Christ Jesus. That's where this makes a lot of sense, right Tim? Yeah, we're positioned in Christ and the world's going to hate us just like it hated the world. Well, keep in mind that it is his life that's being shown through us. That's right. That's what the world hates.

Well, in a sense, sometimes we're in fact often, I think, we show up in the wrong life. We have a new life in Christ Jesus. Because as Roger implied, we're going to get to this, is are we always demonstrating the light of the new life in Christ Jesus that we've been born unto? And we're not, unfortunately.

Margaret infested this when I was trying to figure out all the problems with copying the handout, sending it out this morning. Anyway, my place became impatient with this. So I promise everybody to get the handout later, get this solved. All right. Now, let's continue this because this theme is really an important one to think about how it relates to each and every one of us. Do you think the world hates you? I know. If you're a prominent person, it comes to light really quickly.

If you're not a prominent person, you can kind of, you know, people don't, you know, get gas at the, you know, the gas station. Nobody knows whether you're a Christian or not necessarily, right? So, and maybe you had- Oh, Roger, you broke with the can of worms? What do you mean? You're going to not be noticed, maybe? Who's a prominent person? Well, okay. I'm saying someone we might see in these days that can change very quickly. Let's say a Supreme Court justice, a political figure.

Those people, if they declare that they're Christians, it's open season in the world. Open season on that. And by the way, it's allowed. That's the interesting part. If it was something else, someone else, and those same things were done to them or treated that way or talked about that way, there would be so much backlash about that. But if you're a believer and that happens, it's open season. It's just so happy.

Well, this is what's going to happen in the tribulation. I'm hearing a fair amount of background. Is that from the room next to us or is that somebody? I'm sure that's coming in from Mike Paul and he's got to mute that if he's going to sit in a public place. Mike, mute your mic. Yeah, Mike. OK. Less noise.

Thank you, whoever. All right, so the next question here is, should not Christians to the world be what Abel was to Cain? And I think we're going to further this a little bit more in the verses that follow. But I'm going to turn to, and by the way, how often do we find ourselves in this position? prominent or not, Roger. What, Mike? I think that was you, wasn't it? Yeah, Mike's muted. But I wanted to say that, you know, the world could actually even be your own family. Oh, absolutely. We've all experienced that, I wouldn't say we all, but many of us have for sure. So you don't have to be prominent to experience it. Okay, okay.

All right, so Hebert, I'm just going to quote him up, central importance for victory when a Christian is subjected to the world's hatred is the recognition that hatred is the natural response of the sinful world towards righteousness. Now is that true of self-righteous people too, do you think? Most states of the world, people who are going to be dedicated Muslims or dedicated Hindus or dedicated Mormons who in fact live a pretty self-righteous life if you look at it, do they hate us too? I'll let you ponder on that one. Well, self-righteousness is different from righteousness.

Well, that's true. And who's the judge of that? God is. Thank you. But I think we are often put in a position of being judgmental ourselves in terms of someone else's behavior. But that doesn't mean we shouldn't be discerning in terms of the behavior, in terms of what the impact might be and what the source is. But we can't be judgmental. I mean, we all have sin nature still, right? In the poorest of circumstances, the believer can look as ugly as a non-believer. Go ahead. The righteousness is not necessarily behavior. It's standing before the Lord. Well, for sure. But he's the ultimate judge, is he not? Yes. I'm asking a question that's not simple to answer, actually. And let's go to this next question. So should we try to make the world hate us? I don't think we need to.

Come on. And Kim, I'm going to take you back in the last month in time. Think about everything you've done in the last month now. Well, Bob, this is actually my point. And we all make these choices. And we, okay, here comes, you know, Joe Blow comes past us and we have an opportunity, well, you say, and you make a judgment.

You say, well, maybe, and sometimes you feel bad, I should have talked to that person. We had an experience with an Indian guide in Arizona, through the Indian ruins, Navajo. And I was, we struggled the whole time thinking about how can we talk to this guy? And we ultimately never did. And in retrospect, he said that he didn't have a problem with Christians. He said 30% of Navajo are Christians, and of course, Christian. And I didn't know what that meant. Christians? I don't know. Anyway, but the upshot was, here's the case, and we all face it.

Do we open our mouths sometimes when we should? And in reverse, sometimes we can say something, and it seems that it makes it worse. Don't you think, though, the Lord and the Holy Spirit will open the door in some way for you to say something? That's exactly right.

And so sometimes it's almost more harmful to say something when the door isn't open. There's no, you know, and it's you almost Not speaking of you specifically, but it's you trying to, you know, kind of feeling this self-righteousness. Well, I need to share this with this person, but there's no opening. And so all that happens is they're They are not only rejected, but they don't want to hear what you have to say.

Well, we're talking about a life now. That life, it needs to appear somewhat different, and that may or may not be sharing the gospel. Remember, people who look at David may see something different about him, and his life is the best gospel anybody's ever going to read, right? And so Hal used to make that point repeatedly. Each one of us may be the only gospel account people ever read. Isn't that incredible?

And I think Smith's done it well, but Smith is being quoted in least. Roy, did you have a comment? Well, I was just thinking of Paul asking Christ to pray for him in the scripture, that he would have boldness and proclaiming what God wants proclaimed. So he had to face the same issue, didn't he? Yeah. All right, good. Now Smith, I pulled from Weiss, this is Smith's quote, not Weiss, but anyway, that's where I pulled it from. I think this hits the point in the middle of the head.

It's no wonder if the world hate us. and its judgment is not decisive. Isn't that important? What the world thinks of us is not decisive. Nevertheless, our business is not to be hated by the world, but to commend Jesus to it and win it. We must not impute to the world's hostility to goodness, the consequences of our own unamiability or tastelessness. Tacklessness, my bad. Yeah, that's good. There, I'm better without my glasses reading the screen.

Okay, so anyway, I like it, our business is not to be hated by the world, but in fact, if we are who we are in Christ Jesus, ultimately there will be some hatred directed to us, but that's not our goal. Our goal as we live in the new life in Christ Jesus is to bring people to the Lord. There's gotta be something different about us, everybody. And this is not something we work at. This is by faith and growing in grace that God has given us.

Other thoughts? A lot of times I see Christians judge people and judgment is not love, I don't think. Outwardly, we shouldn't judge people. No, Mike, I agree. Individuals are not to be judged, but the world system is. I mean, I think we need to identify the world system for everything it represents. Yes, Jim. Like what Smith had said, our own unamiability or tactlessness. We need to be tactful in how we. Exactly. And I'm speaking to myself. I'm very, it's so easy to condemn, you know, and tell people what they're doing wrong, you know, and it's just, I'm kind of like that.

I try, you know, I believe it's Colossians 4.6 or 4.5. conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. And let your speech always be with grace. So I think we need to think about what we say to people, not condemn them.

Well, as Margaret alluded to, it's spirit-led. I think when open doors are, I mean, if the doors crack, then sometimes the spirit will lead us through that. And I think that's an opportunity to share the word. But many times, the doors are shut. I think, I agree with Margaret, you do more harm shoving the gospel down people's throat. I can question myself whether I did that with my brother, my late brother, I don't know. I had a friend at work, a good friend when I was still working.

I tried to witness to him. He's a Catholic. And he said, Jim, I don't want to hear what you have to say. You just let me look at your life. Wow, so you're an evidence of that. That's interesting. But don't tell me what you have to say. I don't want to hear it. You know, he's probably done it a million times. It's a great example, Jim.

Mike, go ahead. It's the Holy Spirit that convicts of sin, righteousness, and judgment. All right, let's further the cause here. James 4.4, I think it's a verse that makes some relevance and sense to us here. Adulterous, as he calls them.

Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whosoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. Now notice this enmity with God is the world system, not the individual. Back to what Smith said, our business is to be hated by the world to the extent that we commend people to Christ and the truth of the gospel. That's where the spirit leads. But the world system, we need to hate it. And I think the more we grow in age and grace, the more we do. So what's friendship with the world?

I'm sorry I'm asking all these hard questions today, but I think- Don't you think it's trying to fit in? It's trying to be accepted within the culture that we have. and losing sight of who we are in Christ. I mean, I think it's, and it's so easy for our ego to kind of want to fit in.

All right, let's put this into context. I mean, many of us have jobs over the years, and we're responsible to our job activities. We have to get along with our employees and or our employer in our job space. So if you will, we're fitting in. I mean, you with all your activities with the Kappa Alumni Association, you're fitting into a world system. I'm not being accusative here. I'm saying we all fit into the environments we've chosen to fit into. Is that friendship with the world system?

No. No, I don't think it is. Jim, go ahead. You know, John said it in Chapter 215, don't love the world or the things in the world. Yeah. You know, you can love the people. You can get along with the people. but don't love the world system, recognize that the world system is completely contrary to God's system. And James again uses the word world to be cosmos. That's the world system.

And boy, is there no better issue than abortion right now? I mean, we had the news on this morning. Actually, we had Wimbledon on watching the men's final. But anyway, is that friendship with the world? No, I like sports. But anyway, all that aside, the channel we turned on in the bedroom was on, I think, Fox News. And it was showing all the anti-abortionists rallying around the country this weekend in terms, boy, if that's not world system and hating the world system.

But part of the problem is, though, that a lot of these Organizations that we are part of have adopted this mantra. And that's what is starting to happen. It's creeping in. It's not just the world system. out there. It's actually creeping into things that we belong to and we're part of. And we have friends and we have, you know, that's the issue that's starting to happen. And isn't it interesting? Well, let me finish.

And so now what's happening is they're turning on people who don't agree with them, even within these organizations. And so it used to be that we could be part of these different things, and we were not ostracized if we didn't have their view, because politics and all those other things we're not part of it, but now it's different. And I think the workplace, this is starting to also happen in the workplace, where people are being ostracized and called out because they don't believe this worldview. I mean, isn't the worldview now, they even use terminology that is comfortable to even maybe the church, reproductive health is the way it's being described.

And you know, where is this? There's no God in this. I mean, there are beautiful scriptures that indicate, I mean, Psalm 139, I think 13 through 15 is an incredible scripture about God forms all of us, talking to David there. But I mean, the point is, is that that's not the one and only scripture.

But I've seen one online link that defends abortion for women, because at times when God used, you know, ultimately human you know, death to sustain the nation of Israel, there were pregnant women who, in fact, were part of that. And so, that condones abortion. See, God allowed pregnant women to also die with this, you know, pro-Israel-like view of sin in the world.

Anyway, we're going astray, but I think that, ultimately, the world system is what we hate, and that doesn't mean we can't be in the world, but we're not of it, right? I think that's the message we can be in the world what we're not of the world. The worldly Christian is a miserable Christian. Well there's a lot of truth to that but I don't think are we you know counting up metrics gee today I was more of the world system and my moral price no it's a life we live by faith that's spirit enabled and inactivated.

Okay, let's turn to 14. We know that we have passed from death to life because we love the brethren, and he who does not love abides in death. Well, we know that we pass from death to life because we love the brethren. Okay, we know is factual. It's a fact that we know we pass from death to life because we love the brethren.

So that's something we're established in the new life. And love, agapio, is only of the new nature, isn't it? It's another indicative mood, meaning it's factual. Thus, again, these are facts. So having passed is a perfect tense and indicates that we have left one state of being for another. And again, it's just ongoing support of the new life we have in Christ Jesus. What do you consider having passed from death to life? What's that really mean in terms of practical application?

Well, let's turn to Colossians 1.13. He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the son of his love.

So isn't that just not our sins being forgiven, but isn't the new life we have in Christ Jesus. So that's the life. And again, I think John continues to return to this theme of abiding, and where we abide is in the Lord Jesus Christ, and not in our own flesh or individuality. I don't know if it will help, but it might be helpful to mention this is Oida.

This is factual knowledge that we know, and it's perfect which means it happened in the past with on writing results now. And here's the reason, because we love one another of the same kind. We love one another who has been born again. We associate, we have fellowship with one another. It's only believers that can do that. That's right. And of course, the question to the class, I think, is redundant. And Roy just perfectly stated that the only way we do this is the new life in Christ Jesus.

And John deals with this repeatedly in his epistle. He who says he is in the light and hates his brother is in darkness until now. And secondly, if someone says, I love God and hates his brother, he's a liar, for he does not have his brother whom he has, he does not love his brother whom he has seen. How can he love God whom he's not seen? So again, this theme of John in his first epistle continues and is repetitive.

So, yes. This is a follow-up to the preceding verse. This is in contrast to the world hating us. Yeah, this is a positive. The last verse was a negative. So going forward, how does this new life we have in Christ Jesus take the pressure off? The pressure to loving one another is a pressure that the flesh can't measure up to. Jim? It's not about us. It's about who God is. You know, it's God who works through us. So there's no pressure on us.

We're not capable of loving our neighbor who maybe, for whatever reason, there's no way we're going to love that neighbor. But in Christ, with his life, we're capable, finally, of being able to do that. perfect comments and leave nicely in the next few bullet points.

Moreover, he who does not love abides in death. He who does not love abides in death. Again, isn't this entirely the new life we have in Christ? And how else can such a love exist in the flesh? It just can't. Now, the question is, You know, it seems like it's infinitely impossible to have the new life lived out so extensively that we're loving everyone, our brother, I mean, the Christian brethren first, and then beyond that, all people with the love that Christ has shown for us. I mean, it just, but don't worry about that. As teachers have said that the Christian life is an impossible life. We've been asked to live an impossible life. That's why it has to be his life. And once you come to grips with that, it helps tremendously. You stop trying and let him do it.

Well, you know, Galatians 2.21, which follows one of our favorite verses, 2.20, is if we're under the law, Christ died in vain. So this idea of keeping track of how we're doing is just anything but grace. It's all law. So again, this new life needs to be borne out by us by being in the word, knowing him and allowing the spirit to open up that new existence that we have in Christ Jesus. So why then does John go on to say, without love, we abide in death? What do you think? We still have a sin nature. What right? I'm sorry. We still have a sin nature. Yes, okay. And the evidence of it being there is it is separated from life. Right.

And that's sort of what he is saying here, I think, because the world hates us. We can hate too. We can imitate them. We can hate one another. And somebody who sins, if we hate them, now wait a minute, they're our brother. Thank you. we go to reaching out to them to help them, not hate them. Yeah, and again, my comment here is, isn't this how our position impacts our condition by abiding faith? I mean, when we hate, that's only sourced in the flesh, and that dies.

Reminds you of 1 Corinthians 3, in terms of all the things we think we're doing good, and even some of the things we're not doing so well, those are burned. That's wood, hay, and stubble. So God, yes. Just a thought here. The word no here is intellectual knowledge. It's not experiential knowledge. This is a fact and it is a fact that we have this sin nature. If we hate our brothers who are born again by God, we're flying in the face of God when we do that. We're in darkness. We ought to recognize that as a fact. So ultimately, I think this is exemplified in a couple of verses I'm going to share with you.

Paul in Philippians 3.8, let this bind be in you, which is also in Christ Jesus. So that mind of Christ is really the new nature that we have in our position of truth.

And John 5.38, but you do not have his word abiding in you because whom he sent, him you did not believe. I mean, so in other words, this is again, an act of faith? Do we have the mind of Christ? Are we positioned in Him?

And if we're not abiding, we're not believing. I mean, it's that simple. I think we need to point out that it has no bearing on our salvation when we abide in death. We're just not in love, so we are in death, basically. Separation. We're still saved. Remember the focus here is fellowship with God. I think it's good to remember death is separation. So it helps me a little bit to think of it that way. We could mean that we're separated from fellowship with God, but we're still saved. And remember, we're not here to please God, we're here to glorify him. I mean, that's the job. Our life in Christ Jesus glorifies our Heavenly Father.

Okay, last verse in this section, 1 John 3.15, whosoever hates his brother is a murderer. And you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him. Well, whosoever hates his brother is a murderer. So who is this brother? Is this a member of the body or is this anyone? What do you think?

Seems like it's his fellow believer, I would say. And I think Strong indicates that in context. In context, a fellow believer united to another by the bond of affection. So this is the church, I think. Well, an unbeliever is not a brother, I think. Exactly. So I think that's the best way to interpret it. The scripture is very, very specific. The brother of him, his own brother. They are our brothers, born by God. A brother can be interpreted more broadly at times too, but I think in context, yes. So why this tough descriptor, a murderer? Isn't he kind of going back to the Cain and Abel thing, maybe? I don't know. In context, yes. Okay. All right, let's drill down here a little bit. I like that one.

Notice a contrast. Isn't this the Apostle John? I mean, we've alluded to that a few minutes ago, white versus black, light versus darkness. The idea of murder you know, we think of that as the most heinous sin. Think of a few other ones, too. But anyway, that's the contrast. This is John, black and white, light and darkness, you know, goodness and death or goodness and evil. And murder is the ultimate outward expression of hatred.

And this represents his current state, someone who, in fact, is a murderer, OK? Now, I think this is one place going back to the Sermon on the Mount has some merit here, because I think it really, you know, the sermons often thought of as kingdom age only, but I think there are principles of God that are brought out in the sermon that ultimately, and in the Beatitudes that are ultimately worthwhile. And this is one I think that has some merit.

So Matthew 5, 21, 22, you have heard that it was said in those of old, you shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment. But I say to you that whosoever is angry with his brother, shall be in danger of the judgment. And whoever says to his brother of Raqqa shall be in danger of the council. But whoever says you fool shall be in danger of hellfire."

Now, so this is really black and white too, isn't it? And this is probably kingdom age appropriate. But just think about the flesh nature. If we hate our brother, in a sense what Christ identifies us with is ultimately the devil and a murderer. I mean, so, I mean, again, don't live under this law, but it's just reflecting, I think, the principles of God is in the flesh. There's no good thing. And here for the kingdom age, this, I think, is going to have plenty of application in terms of the people that are being, you know, living in the kingdom age, which of course will be ruled in righteousness by the Lord Jesus Christ. Okay, Bob. Yes.

I don't think we really want to enter into this as believers. No. admit that we are murderers when we think these things. Now I'm just saying, Roy, that ultimately in the flesh, when we're angry with our brother, and in fact Christ has identified that with being a murderer. I'm not saying it applies to us, but it does kind of reflect the fleshly attitude, right, that we have for one another. But it's not who we are in Christ, but it is who we are in Adam.

Yeah, that's my point. Yeah. And I think also it shows the depths. I think John's trying to show the depths of the sin nature. It's really, sin nature is not a pretty thing. Black and white, Roger. Exactly. And we sometimes may gloss over thinking, well, it can't be that bad. Well, it can be that bad. And that's what murder is kind of the ultimate depth you can go.

Well, you know, it's so interesting because people who are not believers you know, they still think they're going to heaven because, you know, you talk to them and they'll say, well, I haven't ever murdered anyone. I mean, that's the, you know, that's really the one. So I'm, I'm probably going to heaven.

I think everybody back in all the funerals, you've been to memorial services and you're pretty sure we can never be certain, but this person did not know the Lord. We don't know that for a fact, but everybody's in a better place. Everybody's in a better place. I mean, maybe for the Hindu, thinking of Umesh, maybe the Hindu is now an animal that's of higher reputation than the other one. But anyway, we'll leave that behind. All right, we need to finish up. Aren't we so glad we're not under law like this?

So I think Roy alluded to that in his comment. Jason Fawcett Brown, I liked what they said here, such a one who still abides in death. It's not his future state, but his present one, which is referred to. He who hates, that is, loveth not his brother, 1 John 3, 14, cannot in this present state have eternal life abiding in him. So anyway, so the final, yeah, go ahead, Mike. Didn't John also say the thief cometh but not to steal, kill, and destroy? Christ has come that we might have life and life more abundantly. All right let's finish up here then and you know again factual as Roy has alluded to and I have previously that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him so Let's look at a couple of verses that I think are worth ending with here today.

John 8, 44, you have your father, the devil and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. And when he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources for he is a liar and the father of it. Okay, so that places Satan appropriately as a murderer and a liar and has no truth in him.

But the contrast is John 14, 6. Jesus said to him, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. So I think one of my favorite biblical themes is probably what brought me to salvation is realizing that the word of God was truth and Christ Jesus is truth. And so this contrast of no truth and Satan and he's a murderer at heart, ultimately contrasts with Christ, who's the way, the truth, and the life.

And that means, yes, Roy. Just may I emphasize that that word truth is reality? That's good. I hope so. Yes. Right. Okay, we're going to close now. Roger, go ahead, please. We've got time. And so what's really cool about that, that the real reality of life is God's word. And when we depart from that, we are living in unreality. And that's what we see in our world. They're living in unreality. And we see it over and over and over again because they latch onto things upside down, backwards.

The real truth, the reality of life is God's word and who he is. He made us, he created us, that's reality. Well, Marvin and I were talking about this coming down this morning, and the fact that, you know, in fact, we mentioned this even in the house before we left, is that when this generation of ours, let's put 60 plus is out of here, I mean, what's left behind? And that doesn't mean there won't be the church left behind, but boy, the world system is increasingly gonna be occupied by godless theology, self-righteousness at the best, right?

I mean, so. Anyway, remember, our citizenship is in heaven. Wayne, you want to close us in prayer, please? Heavenly Father, we just thank you so much for the truths that we look at in the Word of God. And we know, Father, that without the identification truths, this could certainly be a law. And we just thank you. for the teaching that we have here and identifying with you and knowing that we are in Christ. And we thank you for that, in Jesus' name.