Week of Meetings 06 1 John 2: — Svend Christensen

John’s Message to Fathers, Young Men, and Children

1 John 2 13, I write unto you fathers, because ye have known him that is from the beginning. I write unto you young men, because ye have overcome the wicked one. I write unto you little children, because ye have known the father.

I have written unto you fathers, because ye have known him that is from the beginning. I have written unto you young men, because ye are strong, and the word of God abided in you, and ye have overcome the wicked one.

Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. For if any man love the world, the love of the father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eye, and the private life of the vain glory of life, is not of the father, but is of the world.

And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof, for he that doeth the will of God abideth forever. Little children, it is the last time, and as ye have heard that Antichrist shall come, even now are the many Antichrists, whereby we know that it is the last time.

They went out from us, for they were not of us. For if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us. For they went out, that they might be made manifest, that they were not of all of us.

For ye have an unction from the Holy One, and ye know all things. I have not written unto you because ye know not the truth, but because ye know it, and that no lie is of the truth. Who is a liar, but he that denieth, and Jesus is the Christ.

He is Antichrist, that denied the Father and the Son, whoso denied the Son, the same hath not the Father, but he that acknowledgeth the Son hath the Father also. Let that therefore abide in you which ye have heard from the beginning.

If that which ye have heard from the beginning shall remain in you, ye also shall continue in the Son and in the Father. And this is the promise that he hath promised us even eternal life. These things have I written unto you concerning them that seduce you, but the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you.

And ye need not that any man teach you, for that the same anointing teaches you all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him. May the Lord bless to us all.

I guess we'll just get to verse 28 too, depends the section. And our little children abide in him, that when he shall appear, we may have confidence and not be ashamed before him at his coming. May the Lord bless to us this portion of his holy word.

Spiritual Progress Through Fellowship with Christ

Now this afternoon we talked about spiritual progress by personal experience with the Lord Jesus. We spoke about how the believer should progress in knowing Christ and to enter into his union with the Lord Jesus, and to increase that way, and then get on into the intimacy of it where we abide in him.

And how the proof of this was obedience to him by not only doing or keeping his commandment, but also keeping his word, which brings out the thought we do things for him because we love him. Now I'm just sitting up there thinking here a little while ago, sometimes we do think, you know, some people may question that.

But we're just thinking, the people that I love are happy out there. You ever see a young couple that are really in love and look really sad and mournful? A young couple that are really in love and they look at each other, their faces are just glowing, you know, and they have that special look about them.

Ever notice that? So it is when we're really in love with the Lord Jesus, bound to show itself. You're in love with somebody, it's a joke, isn't it? You make the face to shine. It speaks about the scriptures, about the symbol of the Holy Spirit, the oil, you know, the oil make a man's face to shine.

And this certain the fruit of the Spirit is love. God is love that will be laid on, and the more we are in love with him, the more faces we're going to shine, the more we'll have that joy unspeakable and full of glory.

The love of God will be shed upon our hearts by the Holy Spirit. What a wonderful thing to be in love, because when you're really in love, you're happy. And it's time to be more than just happy, but to be joyful.

That joy which is inward, that takes you through even the hard places. So now in this chapter, verse three on, we're speaking about spiritual progress. And we came down to verse thirteen. The term little children, we pointed out, is found five times in this chapter.

Three of the times in verse one, verse twelve, and in verse twenty-eight, is the general term for all believers, a term of endearment. But when you come to verse thirteen and verse eighteen, then has special reference to the young believers, to those that are young in the faith, to young boys, some have interpreted it.

Spiritual Maturity and the Fathers in the Faith

Now, you have the degrees of spiritual progress, and you could also say the price of spiritual progress. There's a price paid to become fathers. Everyone starts as little children. Now we have it, of course, here in the reverse.

You speak first to the fathers, then to the young men, then to the children. I think this is the vision we could see here from verses thirteen on. First he writes to the fathers in 13a and 14a. He says, I write unto you fathers.

Not old men, but fathers. And he is writing to the fathers because they're the ones that are taking responsibilities. And he writes to them as those that are mature, I write unto you fathers because ye have known him.

He could write to many men, you know, that have swelled heads sometimes. I write unto you because you know the truth. Sometimes we know a lot about the truth. We can hold the truth a knife, so we can have the truth in our heads, and it never gets into our lives and into our feet.

But he says, I write unto you fathers because you know him. This is what Paul picked aside. The word no here, you remember, we pointed out the word no is found some 25 times in the experimental aspect.

I think it's actually the 26th time where it refers to they know by experience. You know him. Well, there's only one way to get to know someone, and that's to spend time with them. You get a young couple and they fall in love with each other, and they want to get married right away.

Sometimes it works out and sometimes it doesn't. And all the people that are more cautious, you say, now you just take it easy. You get to know each other. Get so you can get together and get acquainted and get to know each other, you know.

That's how you really get to know. If you don't get to know each other, you will after a while. You get to live together, you know. Sometimes little angels, it turns out, have horns. You live with them and so on.

And that's a perfect looking young gentleman. He might not just be his knight, the gentleman you see him in everyday stress and strain. It's good to know somebody. He says, now I don't know your father because you know him through personal experience.

You've had dealings with him. You've been walking with him. You've been talking with him. You've been living with him. You become intimate with him. What a privilege to know him in this aspect. So there's the thought of maturity here.

The experience of fellowship. His vision filled with Christ. Like Paul said in Philippians 3, 10, that I may know him. Don't you know him, Paul? Oh yes, I know him, but I'm not satisfied with the present knowledge.

I want to get to know him better. I want to get to know him more intimately. And this should be the desire of any believer. Get to know him more intimately. We speak of a person accepting Christ and to come to know him as your own personal savior.

That's just accepting him. But that's only the beginning of knowing him. Then as you go on with him, day by day, moment by moment, year in and year out, we get to know him more and more, better and better.

And the wonderful thing is, the better you know a person, and the more intimate you are with somebody, the more you're going to be like him. People that live happily together for many years, they become more and more alike.

Because people say they almost look more alike. And there's truth in that. Oh, to be more like the Lord. To be more like him. To have his characteristics. And then the Father, of course, speaks also of authority.

Those that know how to guide things. These were the ones that were sort of fathers to the little flocks. Men of shepherd hearts. Men that had the authority. Men that were looked up to. The father type of men.

Men with spiritual maturity. And it's so wonderful. I'm sure Brother McKay can testify to this. He's had many, many years experience in pioneer work to see men develop from little children to young men.

They get into spiritual maturity and see them become fathers in the assembly where people look to them for guidance and directions and leadership and examples to one. Men that have the people of God in their hearts who has real, his father, the father traits.

The Strength and Calling of Young Men

So he writes to the fathers. Those that have known him. Then the second group he writes to are the young men. He says, I write unto you young men. Now he's writing to the young men, not as much as those that are facing each responsibility of fathers.

But he's writing to young men because they're facing foes. And he gives us three foes. And of course, verse 14, verse 18, you get a fourth one. They're enemies. He says, I write unto you young men. First you have their character in verse 14.

The last part of it, I've written unto you young men because ye are strong. The word strong here means powerful or able. Young men that are strong, powerful, able. Men that are conviction of mind and purpose of will.

It's just wonderful when you meet young men that have real convictions and purpose of will. Men that are determined to live their lives for the glory of God. Men that are willing to stand up and be counted.

Men that are willing to be overcomers. Their character though is strong. I write unto you young men because ye are strong and the word of God abided in you. There's nothing that'll make you strong like the word of God.

You'll not get strong any other way than by the truth of the word of God. The word of God makes us strong. What a grand thing to be able to say to them. The word of God abided in you. You have verse 6 where they abide in him, abiding the Lord.

Here's the word of God abiding in these young men. That the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching, admonishing one another. This is a tremendous thing when the word of God really grips us.

What we don't do is just study the word, but the word studies us. The word changes us. The word forms us. To be strong in the Lord, strong in the word of God. The sword of the spirit for the conflict.

That's what Pilgrim used. You remember when they fought Napoleon there in the Valley of Humiliation? He drew the sword and he fought with the sword and he won that victory as he faced the foe. Well here's the foes or the conflict now in the foes.

Overcoming the Evil One

First he says I've written unto you young men because ye have overcome the wicked one. Again now the last part of verse 14 and ye have overcome the wicked one. The word overcome is found six times in this epistle, 17 times in the book of Revelation.

I think John is the only one that uses that word. And the wicked one or the evil one is found five times in this epistle. So these men, these young men are the old, are the overcomers. You know when the uncle Sam wants people to go and fight who does he choose, who does he call?

From the physical standpoint he calls the young men. Some of us as we get a little bit older you know we're not too bad for a little while. I can't see I could get in the ring with one of my boys for a couple of hours yet you know.

But after a couple of hours we're not used to it anymore. As you get up your knees, get your legs get tired and your hands get heavy you know. And you get puffy and you just you can't stay with it. So the young men are the men to face the foes, they're the men for the conflict.

And that's why especially he is bringing out these enemies to have to face. The first one is the evil one, the enemy from beneath. Then they ought to have the enemy from around them, the world. Then they have the enemy within the flesh.

And of course later on we see the enemy from alongside of them, these false teachers. First conflict is with the enemy, the evil one. And oh what a evil one that he is. But thank God that although he's that wicked, that evil one, he's not omnipresent.

He's not omnipotent. He's not omniscient. He's not all-knowing. He's not all-powerful. He's not all-present. He's not almighty. He's limited. Thank God he's a defeated enemy. And we can overcome him because the Lord Jesus destroyed him to the power of death.

That is the devil. True death he destroyed. He broke the power of his enemy. He's a defeated foe. And as Paul also said, we can be more than conquered through him that loves us. Resist the devil, he says, and he'll flee from you.

We can be overcomers. Who is he that will overcome us? The one who has faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. You need not be a defeated Christian. We can be victors, overcomers. And he said, now you have this foe from beneath, this evil one.

He's the accuser of the brethren. But remember we said we have the advocate up there on our behalf. One that won a great victory. One that's alive right up there representing us. Our attorney up there with the father.

And then we have him that great as he that in you that he that in the world. We have the Holy Spirit. You have an anointing as he says in verse 20. We have the power of God the Holy Spirit. That's why we can have the victory.

There's no need for a Christian to be defeated. There's no need for a Christian to be on the losing side. God wants us to be overcomers. And you have the enemy, the world. Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world.

Loving God Rather Than the World

Now the Bible, the word of God says that the God of this world is the devil. The evil one, the same evil one. He's the God of this world. How inconsistent it is to be to seek to overcome the evil one if we are in love with the world.

The thing that's under him, anything in the world that's referred to here in this type of a world is that which is antagonistic and opposed to the will of the father. And I may go further to say anything that comes between the Lord and all lives.

There's so many things in this world that can distract us and take our eyes off the Lord Jesus that can spoil our appetite for the things of God. And he says don't you put a love on anything that'll get between you and the Lord.

I think it's what we need to emphasize here. What is the world? Can there be some specific things that say there's anything? That comes between you and the Lord. If you cannot do that certain thing or you can't go that certain place for the glory of God and you cannot take the Lord with you, then it's better not to do it.

So many people say well is it wrong to do this? Is it wrong to do that? Is it wrong to do the other thing? I think it's much better to look at it from the positive approach. The thing is that you're really in love with the Lord Jesus.

This is the real thing isn't it? Then you don't have the love for the world. But nevertheless we are in the flesh and because we have that flesh in us. When I'm speaking of the flesh I'm not speaking about the body in front.

I'm speaking about that falling and damning nature spoken about that's the lust here. We have that in us and because we have that all nature this thing in us that responds to the world around us. That's why the word of God also says make no provision for the flesh.

But we'll come to the flesh. For the world around us oh is a lurement. How you can get involved in many things that are in themselves harmless and yet they robbed you. The secret is to be so much positive with the Lord and to occupy with him and his business or that you haven't got time for these things.

Young people often say well we're harmless in this and we're harmless in that. Friend when I could say when the Lord saved me he just I was 21 before I could say that I realized that a lot of folks that were brought up in Christian homes or didn't have something experience we had as young men.

We've tried some of the things of the world but when I could say as far as I was concerned from one standpoint I was shrewd with the world. And I realized the world still has all kinds of pancakes for me like it has for anyone else.

But the point I'm making is this a lot of these things that the Christians know they call the world they said well I've no right for Christian to dance. There's no right for Christian to drink. There's no right for Christians all these things.

Well I didn't want to do them anyway. They didn't have to tell me I didn't I shouldn't do them. I didn't want to do them. Fella staying at our house some time ago he couldn't understand why we always had this kind of second rate Christian music on on our radio.

Why don't you put on some nice worldly music? He said I could put it on but I like even though Christian music is may not be a higher standard as far as production go. I love the words and the things that they sing about.

I love the Lord. I'm not putting that on because we have to put it on but we love these kind of things. We love the things of the Lord more than we love these other things. It's a matter of choice isn't it?

And I think this should be the secret. Nevertheless he says love not the world or the things of the world. Why? It's a because in here. I love the world. The love of the Father is not in him. That is it's not the controlling the more the stronger force in him.

The love of the Father is not in controlling his life. If it really is then you'll not love the world. If you start loving the world you're sort of getting away and it'll love you. I'll never forget what Henry Armading told back in 1949 at a workers conference in Philadelphia.

He said it's a boy they were a large family the Armading family. Those days they could at the bake shop they could get a whole pie for a nickel. You know that's quite a while ago. And their fare in the evening was bread and butter at home.

This day he was given the job to mow a large lawn and the man paid him a nickel. As soon as he got that nickel he knew what to do with it. He went right down to the bake shop and he bought that whole pie.

And he ate the whole pie by himself. So when he got home at dinnertime and they tried to pass him the bread and butter he said no thank you. His appetite had been spoiled. And the things of this world will spoil our appetite for the things of God.

So love not the world. This is good advice. There's nothing in it. And he had to say that to the young men. Because the young men they see the bright lights. Ah, dad and mother will be holding things back from us a bit you know.

I just imagine the prodigal son doing that when he left home. Getting with some rough gang and so on. Saying ah sissy boy your mom and dad they're just babying you they're holding you down. You're going to get out and enjoy life.

You haven't seen anything that they're saying now that you ain't seen anything. These rough fellows get out you know and make us reading some trashy books or something else to get some ideas into. He won't get out and see life.

When he did get out then he saw life all right. And he experienced it. And there he is down in that far country feeding the swine. And his stomach was so empty he was in rags and he was hungry. Then he came to himself.

What a fool that I have been. Well here he's writing. The age of John by the spirit he's telling the young men love not the world. It disappoints you. It'll rob you of your experience with the Lord. It'll rob you of never going to become fathers.

It'll rob you of the judgment seat of Christ. Love not the world. Because all that's in the world for all that's in the world. I said because but for all that's in the world the lust of the flesh. The lust of the eyes.

The pride of light. These three things. I think the lust of the flesh is the desire of having. The desire for something. The desire of having. Have you ever seen an age or country that decides to have as much as America?

They got they have to have so many toys. I remember we'd be so happy we just had some one little toy to play with. Or make up something up for all. They get bicycles then they want a bicycle then they want a motorbike then they want a sport car.

Then the man he gets up he gets his chevy at the pace he wants to you know he wants to do it. Then he wants to he going up the ladder all the time. Never satisfied. He gets one car then we get two cars.

Get one boat after a while that motor is not powerful enough. I gotta get a bigger motor you know to just go a little bit faster. My whole mind is if my boat isn't as big as neighbor John's so I gotta get a bigger boat.

The desire to have. Keep up with the Joneses. Materialism. I heard a missionary one fellow in behind the iron curtain. And this missionary said to the believers behind the iron curtain we're praying for you out here.

And then the persecution happened. They said oh we also pray for you brethren in America. We know how hard it is for you to be spiritual there with all your material things. And we need prayers just as much as they do.

Christians are much more spiritual or easier to be spiritual when you haven't got too much. The lust of the flesh. The lust of habits. And in the eyes. The lust of the eyes. There's this high of C. All these eyes.

Let your eye be single says the Lord Jesus. Have a single eye. Have a single purpose in your life in other words. But the eye gate you know is a very powerful gate. To tell me you remember about 10 of what you hear and about 50 of what you see.

And the Lord spoke about the eye even for a man's relationship to a woman. We can I think you know that that lusting effort I did see. Remember the man with the wedge of gold he saw it. Then he decided.

He saw that that fruit was good come to be desired. And she took it. And this is especially a temptation to young people. And I say that to those of you that are young here tonight. The devil would like to rob you.

So you'll get into this world and love this world and hug this world. And go in for things. Possessing and seeing things and so on. And when you come to stand at the judgment seat of Christ. You will be empty handed.

Describing to the young men. They're the ones that have a real temptation here. Them to be in glory of life. The lust of being. The desire of being. Want to be somebody. Being glory of life. Many a young fellow may be amiss giving his life for the Lord or Lord's service.

Because mother or daddy they decided to be something in this world. Parents is your first desire for your children. Your grandchildren to be all for the Lord. However the Lord wants them to be. My heart's desire for my children more than anything else.

I don't care if they ever make a headline in any paper. Or in an earthly relationship. But I want them to make account for God. I want the Lord to be able to say to them. Well done thou good and faithful servant.

I wish this more for my children than anything else. Because he that do the will of God abided forever. All these things of the world. I don't care what you reach up to in this world. Unless it's really God's calling for you.

And this is where God has pushed you. And where you can do the most for God's glory. If it's only for being glory. It'll come. It'll just be to your own loss and shame. As you stand before him as a judgment seat of Christ.

The Flesh and the Christian’s Body as an Instrument

So much else we could. For your practical things in these things. But that's to the young men. About the world and the lust of the flesh. Wittian and all this in Galatians 5 17. It speaks about the flesh lusted against the spirit.

The flesh is always on the aggressive side. Amalek came and attacked Israel. It wasn't Israel that attacked Amalek. But Amalek attacked Israel. The flesh lusted against the spirit. And all of us wear the flesh in us.

You have that divine nature. You have the flesh. The body is only that which the flesh uses to express itself. This body can be turned over to the Lord completely in fear. An instrument God's hand to be used for all the services of God decided to use it for.

It's like a television. You could use it in a wonderful way for God. You can put things on television that could be a tremendous power for God. But sad to say the devil is using it mostly for things that are harmful and detrimental to the minds of people and especially young people.

But it's not the television that's wrong. It's what they put on it. But it's not our bodies that are sinful. It's what the body's used for that's important. So let's make, that's the word of God says, make no perversion for the flesh.

But put you on the Lord Jesus Christ. When little children, verse 18 on, the little young lamb, it is the last hour. The time here was really the last hour. And it was the last hour when John wrote to these little children and to connect with the little children.

Warnings About Antichrists and False Teachers

Now he's writing to them concerning the false teachers and the false spirit of these teachers, the spirit of the evil one. And it was the last hour then if he said it must certainly be the last seconds of the hour now.

We're living in tremendous days. We never lived in a day when there's been such revolution, rebellion, open antagonism toward that which is right. He never lived in a day when we've seen such momentous things happen in the Middle East.

The whole part of Jerusalem is in the hands of Israel. And just imagine if they're really going to keep it now what will it mean? Already I read in some account right after that that some of the people driving through the old Jerusalem had signs in their car windows.

When are we going to build a temple? This is tremendous isn't it? Already things have been shipped from Indiana to go over there material to go into this temple. The plans for the temple on the 10th have been drawn for around five years.

Things are heading up. He says I write unto you little children it's the last hour. Friends if we're going to do anything for God we must do it now. It's the last hour. The last moment of the hour. As you have heard that Antichrist shall come.

Even now are the many Antichrists. Now Antichrist means known as against Christ. Antagonistic to them too. Whereby we know that it's the last time. And all the many false teachers we have. As the times in the you know many of them.

Many that their thing is many of them are in institutions of learning. They're not the other mouth sinners. They are professors, intellectual men, men of polish, polished gentlemen sometimes. Sheep for wounds and sheep clothing.

Marvel not that Paul is to the Corinthians the 11th chapter 2nd epistle. That such are his ministers. Ministers of righteousness. Age of deception. He says these they went out from us. Verse 19. Christian as little children here are warned about facing these pelts.

Lambs facing these wolves. Gives them this solemn warning here in verse 18. But then in verse 19 we have this. Sadly minded they went out from us because they were not of us. When people not real genuine their false teachers come in.

Sooner or later if the family's healthy and strong they're going to go out. But they're being offered they would have continued with us. But they went out that they might be made manifest that they were not of us.

The Anointing of the Holy Spirit and Spiritual Discernment

Then we have this wonderful verse in 20th. And I'm hurrying on there because time is almost gone. And we're going to have the privilege Sunday to hear of brother McKay. Looking forward to that and I'm you all get a real treat.

See a brother McKay. With the few reasons we have here we can't cover all these epistles. So I'm just hitting some of the highlights as we're passing through. But he says you have an unction. The word there is to be anointing from the Holy One.

And ye all know. Some have ranted it. Here it is. Ye know all things. For the wonderful truth is we have this anointing. Every believer has this anointing. In 2nd Corinthians chapter 1 verse 21 and 22 he speaks about that we have the anointing.

We have the earnest. We have the serious. We've all been baptized by the Spirit into one body. We're all indwelt by the Holy Spirit. We have God the Holy Spirit. And look it down verse 27. Since we are on the subject of the anointing which ye have received of him.

When the Lord Jesus went back to heaven he sent the comforter. He came on the day of Pentecost which we pointed out yesterday afternoon. He came and the Lord Jesus promised when he comes he shall not only be with you.

With you but he shall be in you. You have God dwelling in you. Divided in you. He's a permanent gift. And then he says you need not that any man teach you. That doesn't mean that there's no need for any gifts of teachers to be used by the listening head because the listening head has given some teachers.

But we have God the Holy Spirit the author of this book. So when you read the word of God you can understand the things that are of God. And when you hear somebody speak and if he speaks error you can detect it because you have the Spirit of God the Spirit of truth to guide you.

And he speaks about that. And is truth. He's the Spirit of truth and no lie. Even as it had taught you ye shall abide in him. How wonderful to have God the Spirit dwelling in your body the temple of the Holy Spirit.

Eternal Life Found in the Son

And as we come to the great assurance chapter in chapter five you'll see there's a witness of the Holy Spirit. We know we know we know John says we have eternal life also because his spirit God the Holy Spirit we have this anointing in us who bared witness to our spirit that we are the children of God.

One closing word verse 25. And this is the promise that he had promised us even eternal life. Where is eternal life found? John says in chapter five and I just want to go we'll be going into that much more.

Just for the night there may be someone here tonight not saved. You may not be here to hear it again. We not know we don't know the day of the hour when the Lord is going to come. He can come before we have another meeting.

He can come before this meeting is over. You may never see the light of another day. The Lord may suddenly take you. You may never see the light of a new day. We don't know. And if you're here and you're not saved God wants you to know that you can have eternal life tonight.

And where's this eternal life? Verse 11 of chapter five and this is the record of the witness that God had given to us eternal life. Where is it found Lord? And this life is in his son. Eternal life is in a person in the Lord Jesus Christ.

And the Lord Jesus he is so loving. He has his hands out stretched to you. He says come unto me. I just long to give you eternal life. I long to save you. I've come that you might have life and that you might have it more abundantly.

I lay down my life for you that you might live forever. I died that you might live. And I promise to you tonight if you receive me I give unto you eternal life because he that hath the son hath eternal life.

These things have been written unto you to believe the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life. It's a no soul salvation because it's found in a living resurrected victorious Christ who will never die.