Week of Meetings 04 Unity of God's Family — John W. Bramhall

The Family Epistle and the Father Revealed in Christ

We turn tonight to the first epistle of John please. The first epistle of John chapter two. We've had the joy of looking into the gospel of John in the past two nights and considering the great truth of God the Father and the revelation of that blessed Father through God the beloved Son.

We have also noted how God the Father obtained this family. Tonight we turn to the epistle that is a family epistle written by the Spirit of God through the same servant that wrote the gospel, John. Begin reading with me tonight in verse 12 please.

I'd like to read through verse 28. I write unto you children, I'm omitting the word little which is omitted in the original text, I write unto you children because your sins are forgiven you for his name's sake.

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 and on this occasion the word little is correct.

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 abideth in you and ye have overcome the wicked one.

Love not the world neither the things that are in the world. If any man loved 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 eyes and the pride of life is not of the Father that is of the world.

And the world passeth away and the lust thereof but 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 there many antichrists whereby we know that it is the last time.

They went out from us but they were not others for if they had been others they would no doubt have continued with us but they went out that they might be made manifest that they were not all others. But 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 that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist that denieth the Father and the Son.

Whosoever denieth the Son the same hath not the Father. But he that acknowledgeth the Son hath the Father also. Let that therefore abiding 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 has 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 but as the same anointing teaches you of all things and is true and is no lie and even as it hath taught you ye shall abide in him. And now children abide in him that when he shall appear we may have confidence and not be ashamed before him and his coming.

May God bless the reading and by the Spirit give health and blessings to the ministry of his precious word. We are known to two particular facts concerning the coming of the beloved Son of God into this world.

To bring first of all the revelation of his Father. For as the Lord Jesus said no man knoweth the Son, knoweth the Father rather but the Son. And he to whom the Son will reveal him. And we have noted from the Gospel of John the purpose of the Son of God coming into this world was not only to reveal his own glory which he did, but to also reveal the Father.

The revelation of the Father with all that is involved in the Father's person, the Father's bosom, the Father's love could never be revealed to mankind without the coming of the Son. We rejoice to be living in the Christian age when we have the full blaze of divine revelation.

When the heart of God has been revealed through the coming into this scene, by his words, by his works, and by the consummation of his death upon the cross, the Son has fully revealed the Father. It is an absolute impossibility for any person to declare that they can never know God as Father.

And to suggest that he has never been revealed as such. For in the glory of the Son, and in the person of the Son on this earth, from the manger to his death upon the cross, the Father has been revealed.

One of the unique facts concerning the Gospel of John, as many of you may have noted, is when you read it through, and not only behold the glory of the Son of God, and the glory of the only begotten of the Father, but you will also note, if you count carefully, 120 occasions the Father is mentioned.

For the obvious purpose of the Son manifesting his glory in the whole Gospel, and through his life, was to reveal in fullness and exhibit in perfection the heart of his Father God. We rejoice, and would to God we could fathom deeper, and then come all fully into that revelation that is unfolded, the heart of God.

Christ Gathers the Children into God's Family

But the Lord Jesus came not only to reveal the heart of his Father, he came also to gather the children that would consist of the family, to belong to his Father. And we acknowledge, as we saw last night, that for the purpose of gathering together the children of God, who scattered throughout the generations of this age, throughout the countries of this world, the Spirit of God would bring them, through that blessed one who was to redeem them, to be brought into the family of God, and to the Father.

He came not only to gather, to bring the Father to our revelation, but he came also to gather the children, and to obtain them for his Father. Thank be to God. He not only redeems the Father on one hand, but he reaches out by his hand of grace and power, to rescue a poor believing sinner, and through sanctity himself, and his redeeming work, bring that sinner into the family of God.

For as many as received him, as we saw, to them gave he the right, the privilege, the authority, to be called the sons or the children of God, even to them that believe on his name. And beloved, it is a wonderful joy to the heart of the Father when another one is born into the family.

May I incidentally, and not just by incident, but personally, if I may be speaking before one soul who knows not the Savior, and you may not have Christ, you may not be a child of God. May I say, God desires that you become his child.

Christ, beloved, has died to save you. And you have the opportunity, if you will, of becoming a child of God, and a member of the family. Now when you turn to the epistle of John, as we have done tonight, and shall perhaps tomorrow night do, we look not just at the Father, we look at the Father's family.

For John writes the epistle to the family. The whole letter is addressed to the family of God. And in the context of what we have read tonight, the words of John are addressed to the family, and all the family.

But will you note with me carefully the opening words of his address in verse 12? For when John begins to speak, he speaks first of all of one thing that classifies the whole family. He says in verse 12, I write unto you children.

And let me restate, the word little is not in the original text. It should be omitted, for John is looking by the Spirit at all the family. I write unto you children, because your sins are forgiven you for this next thing.

Now may I emphasize what God the Spirit emphasizes here? A truth that indicates one of the most precious facts regarding the family. And that is the unity of the family. The unity of the family of God.

A characteristic that belongs to every one of the family, and that acknowledges they belong to the family, and they are the children of God. If perhaps you may ask the question in your heart and mind tonight, am I in the family of God?

I perhaps am not sure that I am. Then may I point out to you with definite assurance, how you may know that you're in the family. For the one prevailing characteristic that John acknowledges belongs to every one of the family is this fact.

They have received the forgiveness of their sins. Your sins are forgiven you for his next thing. And may I say faithfully, if your sins are not forgiven, you're not in the family. And on the other hand, if your sins are forgiven, they are in the family.

May I quote the words of Paul if he wrote them? As he declared the predestination of the believer, and the foreordained counsel of God that in each unreligious past, he determined that he should have a family.

And that family should be brought before him, holy and without blame, in love. Then John goes on, or Paul rather, goes on to state how they came into the family. Saying that through the Beloved, they have been accepted in the Beloved, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace, by his precious blood.

Now let me repeat those words carefully, the seventh verse of that chapter particularly, Ephesians 1. In whom, that is, the Beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace.

There is only one way for you and me to get into the family. Our sins must be forgiven. And on the ground of acceptance through Christ the Beloved, can we be brought into the family of God. Now may I point out to you, where you will find your redemption, the redemption of your soul must only be found in a person, that person, the Beloved, in whom we have redemption.

You cannot get into the family of God apart from the Son. For in him, and in him alone, you can find your redemption, your deliverance from the penalty, your deliverance from the bondage and the power of sin that is over you.

And why is redemption found in him? For you have the power of that redemption, through his blood. In whom we have redemption, through his blood. What can wash away my sin? Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

What can make me whole again? Nothing but the blood of Jesus. O precious is the flow that makes me white as snow. No other fount I know, nothing but the blood of Jesus. My beloved sinner friend, the power of redemption is in the blood of Christ.

For the blood of Jesus Christ, his Son, cleanses us from all sin. And then if you trust that same, given his precious blood, you will have the proof of your redemption. You say, what is that? The forgiveness of sin.

The forgiveness of sin. For the word forgiveness, translated from one Greek word into two English words, either remission or forgiveness, is the same. And the forgiveness of sin, what is that? Well it means to lose something.

And I know nothing better to lose, than to lose your sins, and have them taken away. May I give you very briefly and pointedly, what God does when he forgives sins? Let me quote the words that are written in Psalm 103 verse 12.

As far as the east is removed from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. For when God forgives the sins of one who trusts his Son, he puts those sins out of reach. What a God! You'll never be able to do it, but he can, through the blood of his dear Son.

When God forgives sins, he not only puts them out of reach, Micah chapter 7 and verse 19 declares, their sins will I cast into the depths of the sea. And what a joy to recognize! When God forgives sins, he puts them into the depths of the sea figuratively.

I don't know how deep the sea is, but I recall reading, shortly following World War II, an amazing find by the United States Navy, that west of the Philippine Islands, they came across a deep trench. And there was a deep body of water that was explored after the war, and was found to be 6 to 7 miles deep.

And they said it would take a penny 48 hours to get to the bottom. Well I'm not going after that penny, not even a lot of other pennies. But to recognize the figurative language that God uses, I will cast their sins into the depths of the sea.

But you know there's something better than that. In Jeremiah 31 -34, Hebrews 10 -17, re-quoted, God says their sins and iniquities will I remember no more. Not only out of sight, not only out of reach, but out of mind.

When God forgives, he forgets. Which is so much better than we can do. What a John. My beloved, listen. You may be anxious, I hope you are. If you're not in the family, I hope you're anxious to be in the family.

Here's the way. In Christ we have redemption. And it's in his person. The power of it is through his blood. The fruit of it will be when you take him as your savior, and confess him, and receive him. You'll have the forgiveness of sin.

Jesus said to a man on Matthew 9 -2, Son be of good cheer, thy sins be forgiven thee. And if there's a happy person that should be a happy person, it's the one whose sins are forgiven. I hope you're one of them.

And if you're not, you can be. And to think of the plenitude of God's grace, according to the riches of his grace, the unmerited favor. You do not deserve it, and neither do I. You can be saved. And the moment you are, you're in the family.

You're in the family. For note this twelfth verse of our chapter. The characteristic of every member of the family, they possess the possession of sin being forgiven. And you know, may I say, they have it now.

Praise the Lord. A present progression, as well as of eternal duration. And righteously maintained for them by the risen Savior at the right hand of God, our great high priest, our great advocate, our great living intercessor.

Oh beloved, may I ask the question, plainly, are you in the family of God? Do you have your sins forgiven? For John looks at the whole family, and says, I write unto you children, because your sins were forgiven you, for his name's sake.

Hallelujah. To think that God would forgive our sins for the sake of his beloved son. Oh what a salvation. But may I add, and it's so lovely to talk about getting children, it's so wonderful to have children.

But you know it becomes another problem to raise children. Which some of us might know. And likewise that seems to be the case with God, the father of his own family. He has a lot of difficulty with his own children, believe it or not.

The Unity and Spiritual Growth of God's Family

And if he writes to them in this portion, God does something that no other could do. And he does something that no other should do, perhaps I rather should say. God divides his family. And in the scripture we have read, he classifies the family belonging to him in three divisions.

Now as long as I can read the word of God, no other is alright to divide God's children. But some take the prerogative, unfortunately. But the family is one. And to the heart of the father they are one.

They are his children. Why are they his children? He has redeemed them. He has forgiven them. To his son they have been brought into the family. The family is one. And my beloved brother and sister, I earnestly plead that in your affection, and in your practical dealing with the children of God, you may ever remember, the family is one.

And every child to the father's heart is as precious as the other. But then, very similarly as in an earthly family, you have different grades of growth. You have older children and younger children. And you have family grades of growing up.

Likewise does God in his family. The father recognizes, and John specifies particularly, there are three grades of development in the family of God. Look at him, verse 13. He mentions the three of them.

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.

Now here you find the three grades of development and growth in the family of God. God's children have to grow. Peter said, as new-born babes desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby.

And as God watches his children, he notices their spiritual development and growth. Some of them come to lose the maturity of being called fathers. Others go on developing and are classified as young men, so typical of their strength and their power.

Others are little children, in the infant classes it were, of the family life. And these are the three classifications of the human family. And the three divisions of God's family, as he classifies them, based upon their spiritual development and their growth.

Spiritual Maturity and Knowing Christ

But now note with me as you go to verse 14. The first classification, let's look at the family, and see first of all those whom he classifies as fathers. And you will note, in verse 14 he only repeats what he has stated in verse 13 about the fathers.

I have written unto you fathers, because ye have known him. That is, from the beginning. Now may I again repeat with emphasis, the expression fathers specifies spiritual attainment only. Not necessarily physical years.

Though spiritual attainment may be found chiefly among elderly believers. But then on the other hand, many elderly believers may still be babes in Christ, when they should have developed into being fathers.

But the classification specifies spiritual attainment only. And the special characteristic of the fathers is declared. Ye have known him. That is, from the beginning. Who's him? Beloved, the one to whom the apostle refers is none other than the Son.

As you may find from the very opening of the epistle in chapter 1 verse 1 through verse 3, he that was from the beginning, that blessed Son of God, ye have known him. And may I point out that the word known, as it is written here, is in the perfect tense, indicating that the stent produced continues, and they have gone on.

Faithfully, growing in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Just let me briefly suggest, and it will suffice, this is the attainment of spiritual development where the believer has gone on knowing more of the Lord Jesus, and continuing in that path.

To the place of spiritual maturity in the family of God. O beloved, this is the ideal. This is the ideal for every believer. And thus to recognize, these are those who have found constant delight in that blessed Christ whom they have found in himself.

In what he is, in all of his moral beauty, in all of his moral perfection, in all of his moral excellencies. And they have been occupied wholly with Christ, as we find tonight. They have found more about Jesus would I know.

O beloved, you'll never exhaust, from this book you will never exhaust all you may know of Christ. Never. He must never be going on, day by day, in fellowship with him, and his words by the Spirit, and faithfully continue from the time we have found him.

And go on knowing him, and continuing in the knowledge of Christ. Let me quote Peter's words at the end of his second epistle as he wrote them in chapter 3 verse 18. But grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

O beloved, may I point out something. From what we've already studied, those that go on to know more about the Son, they learn more about the Father. By the same measure, being occupied with Christ, they know more about the Father, for the Father is displayed in Christ.

Beloved, may I put before you briefly. This is the ideal goal, if you're in the family of God. This is the objective that you and I should be aiming at. Don't be satisfied just to have your sins forgiven.

That's precious. That ought to make you happy, and should, and will, even through eternity. I remember when I was a boy, named him as the Lamb. Never will I forget a solemn lesson that came to my attention in my early days.

Perhaps I wasn't more than eight or nine. But as children do, sometimes we varied our method, our way of going to school. And occasionally there was a certain path that we took towards school, that took us by a home, where sometimes we would see, sitting in a high chair in front of the home, whether permitting, a young child.

The child looked no more to be than ten or twelve months of age, sitting in a high chair. That child was twenty-one years of age. Some physical malfunction hindered the development and growth of that young child.

Born as a babe, yet never matured more than the size as well as the mentality of an infant. My beloved, just let me state carefully and prayerfully, let you and I realize the spiritual responsibility, if we are the children of God, to grow.

Feeding upon the Word of God. Feeding upon the Christ of God. Occupied with himself. And singing his glory in the book. And going on to the maturity of father. Which indicates spiritual development and spiritual attainment.

Young Men, Spiritual Strength, and the Abiding Word

Not the second classification. Now you can see the grave. From maturity we come down in verse fourteen verse. John says in the center of it, I've written unto you young men, because ye are strong, the Word of God abideth in you, and ye have overcome the wicked one.

Now there's another classification. There are three particular characteristics describing the young men. The young men, we know, usually pride themselves by nature for their strength. And John refers to the spiritual strength of those that are termed young men.

There are three characteristics of them. Note what he says first. You've overcome the wicked. Oh first of all, you're strong. They pose that spiritual strength. Thank God for that. One certainly rejoices to see young men with spiritual strength.

One of the ambitions, the natural ambitions of a young lad, it was mine own, was to be physically strong. I was puny, I was skinny, they called me skinny. And I determined I'd get away from it. And so being such a wise boy as I thought I was, I bought the heaviest dumbbells that I could carry home.

Dumbbell as I was, in order to develop strength. Well, that was the physical ambition. My beloved, far greater in importance and necessity is for a believer to develop spiritual strength. Paul writing to Timothy said, be strong in the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ.

And how necessary to thus be developed and possess spiritual strength. Can I add just a word of entreating? We're not young people here at large. Mostly in the older class. But wouldn't you know that our young people recognize the importance of spiritual strength.

The necessity of being spiritually strong. So meaningful today. The second characteristic of these young men, which was the source of their strength. The word of God dwelt in their hearts. Because ye are strong and the word of God abideth in you.

Oh beloved, this was the source of their strength. The abiding of the word of God in their hearts. Well did the psalmist say, thy word have I hid in my heart, that I might not sin against thee. Jeremiah said, thy words were found and I did eat them.

And they were to me the joy of the rejoicing of my heart, for I am called by thy name. Daniel said, if he spoke of the angel who came to him with the divine message, when he had spoken unto me, I would strengthen them.

And oh beloved, the secret of a believer's strength is the partaking, the eating, the masticating, and the speaking of the word of God into his and her soul, his and her life. You are strong through the word of God, which abideth in you.

You know it's a joy to realize he wants the word in us. And we know the result is this, the result of the strength. They were victorious over the wicked one. Ye have overcome the wicked one. Even Satan.

And thank God for the young men. But then you will note, John writes very little to the fathers. He writes somewhat more to the young men. And he writes much more to the little children. But to the young men he points out an ever-present danger in verse fifteen, sixteen, and seventeen.

The World, Its Lusts, and the Loss of Spiritual Affection

Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man loves 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 eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.

And the world passeth away of the lust thereof, but he that doeth the will of God abideth forever. Now may I point out the dangers very carefully. First of all, let me begin by noting with you at the end of verse fifteen.

It is possible for the young believer to lose, or for any believer to lose, the affection of the Father. Oh, don't let me say that the Father will never love his child. But note what John says, note the word carefully all the way through.

If any man loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. Now let's be very careful and let's be very sure that what is indicated, the heart of this believer cannot be placed in its enjoyment and with its affection upon the world, and at the same time be in the enjoyment of the love of the Father.

They don't go together. Love not the world. If any man loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. I think we all remember in our family experiences of occasion, when we were young particularly, when there was a coldness betwixt the parent and the child, and the love of the parent was not able to be poured upon the child.

Why? Usually because of the disobedience of the child. There's been occasions. I'll never forget one day when I hit a baseball right through the front window, I went around three, four blocks before I came home to look at my dad.

I didn't know what he was going to do. There was a breeze. Then I would look. The danger is putting the affection upon the world. Not only the world, but the things that are in it. Note those two distinctions.

Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. The world is that system of things under Satan, who's the god of this thing, the prince of this world, the one in whom it lies. The world lies in the hands of the wicked one, John Wright, in the fifth chapter of this book.

And the believer, please may I remind you, the world crucified your Saviour and mine. Paul said, God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of Christ my Lord, by whom the world is crucified underneath, and I under the world.

And my beloved, may I say this, look, this world is no different than what it was in Calvary. This world has stated what it would do and have done with the Son of God, and would do again if he were here.

James very, very, very severely reprimands the believer in his epistle, who is a spiritual adulterer, by seeking the world, and not the things which are with God. Or, as we may realize, this was the danger for the young men, to love the world.

And then John particularly states what the world can fit from, two things mainly, lust and pride. The lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and then the pride of life. Lust, wanting what we have not, and then when we have it, proud that we possess it.

That's the world. But, says John, that world is passing. The world passes away, and the lust thereof, but he that doeth the will of God abideth forever. I remember a dear old brother to whom I said years ago in my youth, perhaps in my early married days, I seek to go on and seeking to go on for the Lord and with the Lord.

And to this dear old brother in Christ who knew the word of God so blessedly. I said, brother, I wish I knew my Bible like you know it. And do you know what he said to me? He said, Johnny, you can if you pay the price.

You can if you pay the price. Like one Christian has said, you may have heard the quotation. To another, I'd give the world if I knew my Bible as you do. And the other said, that's just what I gave. Beloved, let's be sensible.

May I point out, and I do not say this in a disparaging spirit, but one of the great reasons that the believers of today do not know their Bible is because of the world. That it snared them with its responsibility and even its pleasure.

I tell you frankly, I believe with all earnestness that if I turn to the world for my satisfaction, I will lose my grip on spiritual things. You can't have both. You can't have both. That was the danger.

And John reminds them of that danger. And he would say, oh may we indeed let the word of God abide in our hearts. For you know, the wise man wrote in the Proverbs, buy the truth, sell it not. For you know the devil's ready to bid for it any day.

False Teaching, the Antichrist, and the Spirit's Anointing

And believe you me, he's got his bids in already. And he's taken away from many the truth of God. Now that brings us to the last category. The classification of little children. And may I point out briefly, that when it comes to the little children, John writes particularly of the greatest danger that faces the youngest believers in the family.

And that danger is so prevailing today. It is the danger of false teaching. Go down with me to verse 26. You have the crux of it there. The whole crux of the section mentioned, beginning with verse 18 and going down through verse 27, he ministers to the little children.

And the purpose of this ministry is in verse 26. These things have I written unto you concerning them that seduce you. And the greatest danger to young children, to the little children in the family of God, is the seduction of false teaching.

The young men, they're strong. The word of God is in them. The fathers are mature. The little children are in greater danger. For the abundance of false teaching may surround them. Now in the closing moments, and they're brief, let me point out what John tells the little children in seeking to find their source of health and safety.

For the development of all, may I mention this in passage, you can read the context yourself, and you will have noted, the development of all false teaching will culminate in the coming of the Antichrist.

There are many Antichrists, John says. But the continuation of these many false Christs, the continuation of all false teaching, will someday culminate in the appearance of the Antichrist. And beloved, we must be near that time.

For there is more false teaching than any other kind in the world today, unfortunately. But note very briefly the source of good faith that John suggests. Verse 20. As he says to the children, this is a fact that belongs to you.

You have an option from the Holy One and you know all things. What's he mean? They possess the Holy Spirit of God. Thank God that every believer, no matter how young, is possessed by the Spirit of God.

They have a divine teacher. Go down with me to verse 27, please. Let's get with verse 27. The anointing which you have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you. Now what John is emphasizing is this.

You have the presence and the person of the Holy Spirit. He is your teacher. And he's not relegating out the ministry of teaching in the Church of God. But he is bringing to the little children one means of safety, the presence of the Holy Spirit.

Listen to his voice. Holy Word. For to us ye have not received the Spirit of the world, but the Spirit which is of God, that ye may know the things that are freely given to us of God. And may I encourage every believer, no matter how young in the Lord, you've got the same teacher I have.

The Holy Spirit. Hallelujah. Praise his name. You need not go astray. Let the Holy Spirit be your guide and the redeemer of the truth of God. Note the second source of safety. Look in verse 21. I have not written unto you because ye know the truth, because ye know not the truth rather, but because you know it.

And that no lie is of the truth. Now here's another basis of safety. The truth you do know, don't ever give it up for a lie. For if you listen to false teachers and follow their teachings, you're going to give up the truth that God gave you.

And one of the safe ways of not presenting such a catastrophe is to hold on to the truth that you have and don't give it up. The truth you know, blessed be God, for the purpose of false teachers and the purpose of the devil through them is to take away the truth from God's dear children.

What you do know, don't make the mistake of investigating erroneous teachings when you're just a little child in the family of God. And then a third thing, verse 24. Let that therefore abide in you which ye have heard from the beginning.

And if you keep what God has given you through his word, by his Spirit, which you do know, if that which ye have heard from the beginning shall abide or remain in you, ye also shall continue in the Son and in the Father.

Oh, what a measure of safety. Hope you love it, listen. Little children. One of the saddest things that takes place in Christian experience is to see young believers going astray from the truth of God.

And the word of God, as John writes to the family, would indicate those agents of the false teachings and the method of safety that they might follow, the Holy Spirit who's within them, the anointing.