His Commandments Are Not Burdensome

The Call to Hear God’s Word in 1 John 5

Please remain standing for the reading of the word. We are now in 1st. John chapter 5 the last chapter in our study. In 1st. John this is God's holy and infallible word. 1st. John chapter 5 whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God and And everyone who loves him who begot Also loves him who is begotten of him.

By this we know that we love the children of God when we love God and keep his commandments. For this is the love of God that we keep his commandments and his commandments are not burdensome. For whatever is born of God overcomes the world and This is the victory that has overcome the world our faith.

Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God? This is he who came by water and blood Jesus Christ. Not only by water but by water and blood. It is the Spirit who bears witness because The Spirit is truth for there are three that bear witness in heaven the Father the Word and the Holy Spirit and These three are one and there are three that bear witness on earth the Spirit the water and the blood and these three agree as One if Receive the witness of men the witness of God is greater.

For this is the witness of God which he has testified of his son. He who believes in the Son of God has the witness in himself. He who does not believe God has made him a liar because he has not believed the testimony that God has given of his son and This is the testimony that God has given us eternal life and this life is in his son.

He who has the Son of God. He who has the Son excuse me has life. He who does not have the Son of God does not have life. These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life and That you may continue to believe in the name of the Son of God.

Let's pray with me now. Oh Lord our Lord. How majestic is your name and all the earth? We believe that Jesus is the Christ and Therefore we are born of God. Oh Lord I pray that that faith would yield love for you and love for the brethren but also a love and an earnest desire to keep your commandments.

Oh Holy Spirit. We ask that you would do a work in us that we would mortify sin. And clothe ourselves in the righteousness of Christ. We ask all this in Jesus name. Amen, please be seated. I Originally intended to preach first five verses when I started thinking about chapter five, but I'm going to do two shorter messages instead of one longer one.

And I think it'll be more focused for us to consider verses 1 through 3 today in our message. It's important that we remember that God has given us his word. Not to confuse us but to reveal himself to us.

He is Disclosing about his character and he is telling us what we are required to do as his children so any time we crack open the word be it in our own devotional life in our family time of devotions or Particularly under the preaching of the word on Sundays.

We should be attentive. We should be sitting on the edge of our seat because God is speaking to us Through his word and today we have three verses only to consider in 1st John 5. The title of the message today is his commandments are not burdensome.

Born of God and United to Christ

His commandments are not burdensome. Those of you who need an outline I forgot to put it on slack first very simply born of God. It's right there in verse 1. Second is found in verse 2 loving God and keeping his commandments and 3 the third verse his commandments are not Burdensome.

Born of God. Loving God and keeping his commandments his Commandments are not burdensome. It's important again for us to reflect upon the reason that John has written what is his purpose in writing and as we've gone through the book, we've seen how prominent love is, but He's also started at the outset and it's here in our text today eternal life is found in Jesus Christ alone.

There is no salvation. There is no eternal life apart from Christ. We sometimes think about our Jewish friends. We think they're misguided because they haven't fully embraced Jesus. They don't know God.

They don't know God the Father because they have rejected Jesus the Son. We must remember that we have friends who seem well-intentioned who seem to have a Modicum of a Christian worldview. But if they do not believe in the exclusivity of salvation and eternal life in Jesus Christ.

They are not saved. They are in danger of the judgment they need to be Implored they need to be convinced. They need to be admonished to repent and believe in the gospel of Jesus Christ and John has said it at the outset and it's been interspersed.

We must never be untethered unanchored from Christ and his gospel. Think about that section as we read in chapter 5 how many times he said that you continue to believe in the name of the Son of God we too believe that Jesus is the Christ.

But that genuine faith in Christ alone brings about something else it brings us into fellowship with God the Father the Son and the Holy Spirit and Which has been so central to John's thinking. It causes us to be in fellowship and in communion with one another with all of those who believe in him.

And it seems that Understanding of our fellowship with God and with his people is a Source and leads to the fullness of joy according to John. But there are also if you'll remember three threats against that fellowship.

First false teachers who deny That Jesus Christ is the Son of God and that he's come in the flesh all of the implications of Christ in the gospel. It's not just disbelieving the incarnation. It's a disbelief in Christ.

Second and this hits very close to home for us. There's a danger and a threat to our fellowship with God and with one another and it's worldliness. Worldliness is a real and legitimate Threat to our communion with God and one another.

And third and maybe most prominently in John the want of Christian love we have to remember that love is really the linchpin of Our faith in Christ. We have been loved of God. Therefore we love God and we love his people and today John tells us again We love and keep his Commandments.

If you've been born of God you have three loves God Father Son and Holy Spirit the brethren and again very heart-searching today his Commandments, let's get into the exegesis of the text first. Let's look again at verse 1.

Whoever.

Believes that of course is that Greek word that we get faith from pistis in a form of that word. But believing here is to entrust. It's used by John of various degrees of faith.

Whoever.

Believes That Jesus is the Christ from its first beginnings its Incipient stirring in the heart and soul of a man up to the fullest of assurance. It is this idea of believing we think about believing as a one-time.

Act.

Believing is the characteristic of the Christian life. We believe He admonishes us to continue to believe at the end of this section to continue to believe in the name of the Son of God. It also believing also repudiates all the various things which Aside from Christ are commended as a means of salvation.

We're not saved by our obedience, we're not saved by coming to church. We can attach Religious things and say these are the ways in which we're saved when in fact the person of Christ and his work and his grace the love of God Shed abroad in our hearts.

This is the only means of salvation so there is an exclusivity in believing that Jesus is the Christ and it is a belief that Trusts in an absolute sense. I Am jumping into eternity Trusting that I will land safely in the arms of the Lord Jesus Christ.

What takes us to another word that we say so much and The name of Jesus is often attached with it Christ. It's not his last name. Sometimes we think he's maybe it's his last name, but the Christ means he's the anointed one.

Jesus is the anointed one. Jesus is the Messiah. He is that coming King that Israel long waited for who the Jews expected to be the Savior of their nation and the author of their highest good. John here declares that this Jesus the Son of God is the long-awaited Messiah.

He's the one who's going to bring life and life abundantly. We must look upon Jesus as our life. Not only as our salvation from hell. But our our life itself our life in this earthly body and in the future and eternity.

Jesus is Our life, he's our Messiah. He is our Savior he is the anointed one and we are blessed because we are united to the anointed one the Christ. If you believe this It says in our text. You are born of God.

This is an amazing thing for us to consider. We've already discussed this in John 1st John that we are children of God. We usually think about this in procreation a descendant. But here we should understand that we have been inborn with God's Spirit we have been made alive in Christ.

We are God's Offspring and in that Jewish sense one who brings others over to his way of life as a father bears Resemblance to his children as children to their father. So to those born of God began to be brought over to God's side of things and there's something peculiar about John's usage of born in both the gospel and in this first epistle.

It is God conferring upon men the nature and disposition of his sons. This is a work of God himself. When David preaches the gospel in the streets, it's not because of the craftiness of David's message.

If someone is born of Born again, it's because God has conferred upon men that nature and disposition.

Of.

Sonship he imparts to them Spiritual life by his own holy power. So if you are a Christian if you're here today You have been born of God and it's been because of God's powerful working in you. He has made you his son.

He's done it by his own holy power. That's why the exclusivity of faith is how we're saved. We don't earn it. We don't merit it. It's only because God has worked powerfully in us. This is how we become born of God.

His own holy power prompts and persuades souls to put their faith in Christ and Which we are talking about today, which so central to this Message today in our section is and to live a new life that is consecrated to himself.

It's not only the get out of hell pass. It is a new manner of living. Christ is our life. God has taken us to be his sons and daughters. Consequently we've been born of God that means that we live a new and a different kind of life.

As a result First one continues. It says everyone who loves him. Referring to God certainly referring to Christ the begetter the one who begot Also loves him. This is the brethren who is begotten of him.

And I think we tend to think about this as first being Christ. Certainly we love the Son of God. But I think the interpreters of the New King James did it right when they capitalized the first him and not the second.

The second him is the people of God those who have been begotten of him and we've been talking about this at length in First John. The rationale continues in verse 2. The Christian born of God is united to the only begotten Son.

He also loves those who are born of him and that takes us to verse 2, which says by this. We know that we love the children of God see how that connects to the verse before. We love those who are begotten of him.

We love all of the children. I have to stop you again and ask. Do you love all of God's people? Do you love the Arminians? Do you love the dispensationalist? Do you love those who have different? Theological stripes than you if they be in Christ.

They are our Brethren, we are called to love them in spite of our differences. I implore you to shed your hatred and discuss with some of God's people if They be in Christ, we love them we can take great exception with them we can have great debates with them we can Challenge them in their errant doctrine, but we can't stop loving them because they have been loved by God.

Just like we have. By this we know that we love the children of God. And here it is the central part of our message today when we love God and Keep his Commandments, I like us to turn back to John's gospel in chapter 14, please John chapter 14.

We believe in a faith that works. Believing is not a work, but genuine faith produces a work. John 14 beginning at verse 15 it says.

If.

You love me keep my commandments. Sounds like our text doesn't it? There is no loving God without an yearning and earnest desire to keep his commandments. We all should be challenged here. We all have been products and experience.

Easy.

Believism. We believe in a gospel. It's very easy when in fact, it's so hard that it took the Son of God going to the cross and If we believe there is an ethical a moral Obligation for us as those who are born of God who have their life identity rooted and founded in Christ to now.

Love all of the things that he loves. He fulfills every demand of God's law because it was required of him and so we too must desire and seek after obedience to all of his Commandments. Verse 16 of chapter 14 of John's gospel says.

And I will pray the father. And he will give you another helper. That he may abide with you forever. Just for a sneak peek. We're gonna be talking more about the Spirit's work Lord willing. Next week it comes up in our text.

So you see John has this mind here that this teaching of Jesus that he heard with his own ears. He's really expounding on it in his epistle in 1st. John 5 The Spirit of truth verse 17. Whom the world cannot receive because it neither sees him nor knows him, but you know him for he dwells with you and Will be in you.

We are the sons of God verse 18. I will not leave you as orphans. I Will come to you. So this sonship is also a promise of that we will not be orphaned and.

This.

Prevention of orphan like behavior in us is accomplished by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit again. More of that will come next week Lord willing. A few more verses here in verse 19. Starting in John 14 again a little while longer.

And the world will see me. No more, but you will see me. Because I live you will live also. At that day you will know that I am in the Father and you and me and I and you. Isn't that glorious. It sounds like the high priestly prayer of John 17.

I am in the Father and you're in me and I'm in you. We are united to the Christ the anointed one the Son of God. And because we're united to the Christ the Son of God. We're united to God the Father. And because we're united to God the Father the Holy Spirit dwells within us.

Spectacular.

And all of its elements. Verse 21. He who has my commandments and keeps them. It is he who loves me. Young ladies. Someday a young man will come into your life making a lot of promises About how much he loves you, but there has to be accompanying actions.

Talk is cheap. Men have learned that they can use words and they can convince ladies to do things. Talk is cheap. Jesus says my love will not be cheapened by mere words. If you say you love me the actions have to accompany the words He who has my commandments and keeps them.

Those are the ones that Love me. We make great boasts in our theological knowledge. We take great stock in our learning. Does our Actions match our words. Do we really love him? Do we want to keep his commandments now?

We know we can't do this perfectly. We know we need a Savior but we have one in Christ that should spur us on to greater heights of obedience because he has Trailblazed the path for us that we might walk in these works.

If you love me keep my commands. The one who loves me will be loved by my father and I will love him and manifest myself to him. Judas not Iscariot said to him Lord, how is it that you will manifest 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 home with him. Isn't that what this is all about. Why we've gathered here today.

That God the dwelling place of God dwells with men. We are the abode of God. God dwells with us his people because of this love. We've been united to Christ in faith. We have the Holy Spirit. We are the sons of God.

But listen to verse 24. He who does not love me does not keep my words and the word which you hear is not mine. But the father who sent me. Don't turn there, but make your way back to our texts and I'm going to read something from the Sermon on the Mount.

Very early it happens. And it kind of puts to rest this idea that obedience doesn't matter. We don't have a cheap grace here. We don't have an easy Believism. We have a miraculous work of God transforming sinners into sons.

So we have the power now and the ability because God dwells within us. He's come and making it made his home with us. We now have this great capacity for obedience and in fact an affinity and a love for it we should.

Jesus says Early in the Sermon on the Mount. Do not think that I came to destroy the law or the prophets. I Do not come to destroy but to fulfill for assuredly I say to you till heaven and earth pass away one jot or One tittle will by no means pass from the law until all is fulfilled.

The jots and tittles are the small marks.

Over.

Hebrew and Greek words horns and accent marks in Excruciating detail. Christ is going to keep the law. So Commandments are not insignificant to God. Commandments are important to God so much that Jesus is going to fulfill it to the letter and even to the breathing marks.

The horns of the Hebrew out. He's gonna bring every detail. He's going to fulfill. Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments and Teaches men so shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven.

But whoever does and teaches them he shall be called Great in the kingdom of heaven. For I say to you that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees You will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.

You should already be back at first. John when we love God we keep his commandments. A commandment is a charge an injunction a prescribed rule. In an ethical sense in a biblical sense It's used of the commandments of the Mosaic law the Ten Commandments.

And all of the implications of them. It also means the commandments of God. Especially as is promulgated in the Christian religion. Think about the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus is clarity and fullness. Which he adds not taking one jot or tittle away from the law, but showing the depth and breadth of it.

This is what Jesus preached. His commandment keeping the moral precepts of Christ here the commandments and his apostles the whole body of the moral precepts of.

Christianity.

We don't pick and choose some commandments and not the others and that's very popular in our day. We emphasize some we're very Zealous about a few of them and we're not so zealous about the others. The commandments don't have that Wiggle room.

We have to keep them which means we have to carry them out. We have to execute them as they are given. We have to perform and accomplish what they require. We have to do the thing of keeping Commandments.

This should be very challenging for you. We're not we didn't pray through the Ten Commandments today, but If we were to take some stock in inventory of the Ten Commandments I can think of glaring violations in the Ten Commandments even today.

Not thought rightly about God. I'm not thought rightly about my neighbor. You and I must have greater discipline.

Greater.

Integrity about keeping the commandments of God. Well, it takes us to the third verse and really where the message lands in our hearts but this is the love of God that we Keep his commandments. Do you love the commandments?

Do you view them as? Restrictive. The commandments of God are not Burdensome to the Christian because of the relationship the communion he enjoys with God. The mind of God is revealed to us in the scripture.

The Holy Spirit dwells within us. We look to the exemplar Jesus and we see the commandments being perfectly fulfilled. We see it being walked out in flesh. We see it being performed perfectly. There are three reasons why the commandments could be burdensome to us.

And it's because of the three enemies that we face on a daily basis. The world the flesh and the devil. The enemy has a predictable plan. He's been using it. He keeps going back to the playbook because it works.

He says to us did God really say. He says to us that's not really that important. There's an implication he tries to deceive us by saying that God is withholding something from us. We have to fundamentally believe and have a different view of God's law and his commandments.

This is the better way to live. The world has nothing for us. I say that to my children all the time that world out there has nothing for us. God has given us everything we need and this is the better way to live.

This isn't a restriction that takes away our joy. And in fact when when we get into this river of blessing of obedience, we find fullness of joy. How do you think? Adam and Eve felt prior to being deceived by the serpent and willfully in Adams case.

Disobeying the command of God you think they felt better after the fall. They didn't. Why are we so foolish? Does Israel do better when they disobey the commands of God or are they crushed under the chastening?

Are they crushed under the weight of exile and being conquered by enemies? Why do we fall for the enemy's deception? God is not withholding one good thing from us. In fact, he's given us everything and giving us his son and giving us Christ.

The enemy has a predictable plan. He's like a roaring lion prowling around seeing who he could devour and we say Oh enemy. We see your wiles. We know your deceptions. You say the commandments of God are burdensome.

We say they're not in faith. Second his commandments become burdensome to us when we succumb to the sins of the flesh. The sin nature of fallen man. In you the old man in you inclines your hearts for sin.

Often think of the illustration of the heroin addict it's going to kill him, but he has to take it. We have to be convinced again and again we have to believe that Feeding our sin nature is destructive to us.

Sabotaging our joy it sabotages our peace. It causes a fissure between us and the Lord. We view God's Commandments as burdensome when we feed the flesh. And in fact, it seems that this is the precursor to a lot of Great Falls.

Even the recent fall of a prominent pastor. Is to forget that Christ is better. That the new life that he gives and supplies by the power of his spirit is better than the old one. We have to wage war against our own flesh because our flesh still wants things that are bad for us and finally the world.

Everything you consume all of the images on the billboards what's on the radio. What's on your phone?

The.

Unbelieving system says that the commandments of God are burdensome. It's too heavy a load to carry. It would be too heavy a load if it not be not for Christ. But we have Christ and his yoke is easy. His burden is light.

Do you believe that his commandments are not? Burdensome it requires some some effort. Burdensome and the original means properly heavy. It's weighty. It's even described in the scriptures as something that is grievous.

It presses down on a person with an oppressive force and an Unbelief feels the weight of God and it presses him down. But the Christian has a new affinity because he sees it for what it is. It's an act of love for God from God to his people.

Burdensome is such a grievous burden that it makes a person unable to function or enjoy free movement. The lies of the world the flesh and the devil said God's commands are burdensome. They're weighty.

They're heavy but faith faith in Christ lifts the weight and the pressure gives way to true freedom. Again Christ's yoke is easy.

And.

His burden is light. You think obedience is painful. Wait to experience the pain of disobedience. This requires some soul-searching and maybe a little bit more time in application. Let's go to that now.

What is your? disposition toward the commandments of God in Scripture. Do you see that there is life. Think about psalm 119. We've sung a portion of that recently. It's a big long psalm from A to Z in the Hebrew alphabet.

It tells us the blessings of God's law and his commandments. There's life to be found there because they point us to Christ the one who keeps the law and give us a pattern of living a Fruitful and joyful and thankful pattern of living.

Children do not fall prey to the lies of the enemy. Put down even your young flesh. Do not listen to the world the commandments of God our life and Liberty. They are not burdensome to the child of God.

What is your disposition toward God's commands. Second part of that question, and this is harder. Are you actively and earnestly seeking to obey them? We have to acknowledge in some ways the answer is no.

We need to repent of that today. We need to earnestly seek out. Search out the scriptures that we might know what those commandments are and we must earnestly desire to obey them. Trusting him to bless us in our striving for obedience.

Third part of this question. Do you truly believe that God's way is not only right? There's kind of this resignation sometimes among the people that I know I should obey the commands. I know that it's right.

It just doesn't feel as good. I know it's right. But do you actually believe in faith in Christ because your children of God that it tends toward your highest good. It's an act of faith. It's an act of believing that God's way is better.

It's better for one man to be married for one woman to one woman for life than it is to have a bunch of girlfriends. So much better. You believe it tends toward Your joy and highest good. It's an act of faith it does.

Second remember in our study of James that just as faith without works is dead so to Love for God without obedience. Turns out to be not love for God at all. You cannot say that you love him without actions.

The sentiment must be matched with action. You must keep his commandments and when you fail you must run to Christ again in faith and say thank you Jesus for keeping the commandments. Enable me to keep them more.

Competently help me to be more faithful to walk in your ways. Third. We have to be honest with ourselves, we know we've learned recently that God loves us and he Wants us to come to him and Integrity and honesty.

He actually knows our sin and he understands our sin. We too have to be honest about our sin in what ways today. Are you committing or cherishing sin? Holy Spirit, I pray that you would uproot this in the hearts of these your people today.

What are you failing to do. There are sins. There are great sins of omission. There are things we should be doing that we're not doing. These are great sins of omission. We need to know what they are that we might start acting appropriately.

What may be more heart-searching for us are what commandments are we? Rebelliously. Blatantly defying. What sins are we committing. Are we comfortable with? Pray that today you would no longer be comfortable in your sin.

And the Holy Spirit would pluck it out of you and uproot it and you would set fire to it. Never to turn back again. Act today. Do the good you ought to do. Turn from every transgression. Repent. Adopt God's precepts.

His commandments as Your own. And finally all of this requires faith. It requires a powerful working of the Holy Spirit and we've learned That God has furnished both of those for us. He's given us faith.

He's given us his Holy Spirit. We now have the power within us by God's help. To keep his commandments to turn from sin. You need today to believe that the Lord's Way is far superior to the ways of the world to the ways of our old man the flesh and To that great deceiver the ways of the devil brethren.

The whole of human history is a proof positive of the failure of men. When they've said that God's commandments are burdensome. Every pain every suffering you see is a result of this. You have previously become expert at seeing sin in others.

You can identify sin in the culture. It's very easy, but can you hold up the mirror of God's Word and see the sin in yourself? Oh Holy Spirit, we ask you again to show us our sin. Give us the courage and the resolve.

The faith to mortify it. Finally you and I have been great sinners, but It's been said many times thing most famously by Newton. We have great need of Savior. We have a great Savior for our need.

Christ.

Asked for forgiveness today. Trust in Christ the one who saves. Do not wallow in guilt and self-pity. But today turn from those things and walk in the newness of life That God has furnished and supplied for us in him.

The Lord has given us many commandments. His commandments are not burdensome to us. We have believed we must believe again. And we need to believe again tomorrow and the next day until we die that Jesus is the Christ.

We love everyone who has been begotten of him. We love his children. We love his people and all of our deficiencies. Oh Lord, we ask that you would shore it up by your grace and mercy. Help us to have an earnest and sincere love for you and for your people.

Give us a holy desire stir up affection in us that we would keep your commandments and Oh Lord help us to exercise this great faith and See and attest and prove That your commandments are not burdensome.

We ask all this in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.