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Kept From The Clutches of Satan
Pastor David L. Brown, Ph.D.
Sermon Delivered 01/08/05 1 John 5:18-21 "We know that whosoever is born of God sinneth not; but he that is begotten of God keepeth himself, and that wicked one toucheth him not. 19 And we know that we are of God, and the whole world lieth in wickedness. 20 And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life. 21 Little children, keep yourselves from idols. Amen." Outline In today’s message we will study…
The Precious Promise To Believers: We are kept from the clutches
of Satan Introduction Verse 18 begins, "We know that whosoever is born of God sinneth not…" This is a companion verse of 1 John 3:6 & 9 which says "Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not…" and "Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin…" We addressed these verses in depth in message 12, titled Genuine Believers Do Not Make A Practice of Sin. If you want to study the meaning of these verses, you can pick up these notes from the office or get them from the church web site located at -- www.FirstBaptistChurchOC.org. I concluded that message by posing this question - Are you a pig or a sheep? If you are happy to persist in sin and you have a persistent rebellious, lawless attitude toward God and His Word you are a pig. You are lost. You are unsaved. You are yet in your sins and will go to Hell unless you repent and return to Christ. If you are a sheep, you will be very disturbed, troubled, unhappy and miserable when you sin. I have often told you that Christians are not sinless but Christians do sin less.
Verse 18b
"…he that is begotten of God keepeth
himself, and that wicked one toucheth him not.
One of the great stabilizing truths of the Bible is
that Jesus Christ protects his own. That is what "God keepeth himself"
means. While Satan, particularly his demons, can and do tempt us, hinder
us and try to keep us from doing the will of God, he may not touch us
fatally. Our souls are protected from damnation. Turn to John 10:28-30
"And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither
shall any man pluck them out of my hand. 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. 30 I and my
Father are one." While Satan and his diabolical hoard may prevail upon the
believer to draw him or her into some acts of sins, the old devil may not
"touch" believer to bring to eternal damnation. Turn to
John 5:24
"Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on
him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into
condemnation; but is passed from death unto life." One commentator puts it
this way: "That wicked one toucheth him not" means the prince of
this world has nothing in the believer to fasten his deadly temptations
on, as in Christ’s own case. His regeneration has severed once for all his
connection to the prince of this world. The prince of this world cannot
touch the believer’s regeneration-life." One of my favorites, the old
Baptist preacher Dr. John Gill (1697-1771), who is buried at Bunhill Field
near John Bunyan and Susanna Wesley, put it this way: the devil cannot
come at the believer so as to wound him to the heart, or destroy that
principle of life that is in him, or so as to overcome and devour him; he
may tempt him, and sift him, and buffet him, and greatly afflict and
grieve him, but he can not touch his life, or hurt him with the second
death."
Turn with me to Romans 8:32-39"He that spared
not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with
him also freely give us all things? 33 Who shall lay any thing to
the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth. 34 Who
is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather,
that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh
intercession for us. 35 Who shall separate us from the love of
Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine,
or nakedness, or peril, or sword? 36 As it is written, For thy sake
we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the
slaughter. 37 Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors
through him that loved us. 38 For I am persuaded, that neither
death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things
present, nor things to come, 39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any
other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which
is in Christ Jesus our Lord."
Turn to 1 Peter 1:3-5 "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, 4 To an inheritance incorruptible, and
undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, 5
Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready
to be revealed in the last time."
The evidence is clear. The genuine believer is kept
from the clutches of Satan. What a glorious blessing!
Now we need to look at…
Verse 19 "And we know that we are of God,
and the whole world lieth in wickedness."
Focus on the phrase "the whole world." This is a
reference to the entirety of the unsaved people that live on this globe.
This verse makes it clear that mankind is divided into two great
divisions, those that belong to God( "we are of god") and those that
belong to wickedness or to the wicked one. The Christian believers belong
to God. Born-again Christians are of God, and from God, and
to God, and for God. The unsaved person is dominated by the
power of darkness (Colossians 1:13). The word wickedness is a very
interesting word. To be sure, unsaved mankind "lieth in wickedness." But
there is more. Wickedness is a translation of the Greek word ponhrw –
ponero (pon-ay-ro), which is masculine and singular, therefore identifying
the devil. So when we read, the whole world lieth in wickedness,
it includes being in the jaws and in the bowels of the wicked one, the
devil. There are, indeed wicked individuals, many wicked ones, many wicked
spirits, in the heavenly or the ethereal places; but they are united in
wicked nature, wicked policy, and wicked principle, and they are united
also in one head, the prince of the devils and of the diabolical
kingdom. Satan is the head of the malignity and of the malignant world;
and he has such sway here that he is called the god of this world (2
Corinthians 4:4). Therefore, the unsaved men of the world, which is
the greater part of the inhabitants of it, are addicted to sin and,
wickedness and the bias of their fallen minds is to it, they are set upon
it, and give themselves up to it. They are immersed in it, and are under
the power of it: Further "in the wicked one," Satan, the god of this
world; they are under his influence, and led according to his will, and
they are governed by him, and are at his beck and call.
What a sad state of affairs for those who are unsaved.
Paul wrote to the Philippian believers describing the end of those in the
dominion of wickedness -- "(For many walk, of whom I have told you often,
and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the
cross of Christ: 19 Whose end is destruction, whose
God is their belly, and whose glory is in their
shame, who mind earthly things.)" Philippians 3:18-19. The perilous
plight of the an unsaved person is destruction, condemnation to Hell for
all of eternity.
Verse 20 says, "And we know that the Son of God is
come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is
true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ.
This is the true God, and eternal life."
I am so thankful that Jesus Christ is my Savior!
Because he is, I have been given an understanding of spiritual things that
the unsaved world just does not have. It has been revealed and affirmed to
me that there is one God and only one way to God. Yet, I personally know
people who still worship Dagon (see 1 Samuel 5). I have talked to people
who actually believe in and seek to communicate with Trolls. I have heard
the blasphemous prayer of a witch who addressed her prayer to Diana! And
another priest who prayed to his higher self. Friends, they are lost and
will be damned for all of eternity if they do not repent and turn to
Christ!
I have been taunted and criticized because I am so
narrow minded and closed minded as to believe that there is only one way
to God and that is through Jesus Christ and him alone. Call me what you
like, but I know the TRUTH and I will not lie to make others feel better.
"Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man
cometh unto the Father, but by me." John 14:6
John’s final words " Little children,
keep yourselves from idols. Amen." |
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