Self-Deceived About Sin

Self-Deception, Docetism, and the Incarnation in 1 John

Our message this morning Title is self-deceived about sin. My text is 1st John chapter 1 verses 8 through 10. Though I'll begin reading at verse 1 and read down through verse 10 So we get some context because the context and the background for which Which John writes is really pretty important to us as we look at this idea of what it means to be Self-deceived and particularly self-deceived about sin and God's truth as it speaks to us from his word about our sin.

So these verses I'm going to read verses 1 through 10 in 1st John when they stand alone as a single thought and it's found in the context of that really that a single subject which is the reality of Jesus Christ the reality of his word the reality of our sin the reality of the Redemption that he came as a man as flesh and blood in the form of sinful flesh He came to be as we are in terms of his existence as a man yet without sin.

That's all in the first four verses where John it's going to put forth I want you to hear this when I read it in just a moment. He's gonna put forth this reality of Jesus Christ becoming fully human fully truly God and fully truly human.

And then in verses 1 5 through actually the second verse of chapter 2 that we won't read that far the Apostle says forth one ramification of that fact a Ramification of the truth that God became man and that Christ as man while fully God died for our sin.

In the middle of all this line of thought Our three verses 1 8 through 10 which are going to warn us of the danger of not taking literally what the Bible has to say and What John personally witnessed about how Jesus dealt with and deals with our sin.

You see when we fail to acknowledge our sin We implicitly claim that we have no tendency to sin and in fact do not sin and by this self-deception It's serious enough that we actually imply that God has lied and lied particularly about me.

So with that brief introduction, please stand and I'll read to you first John 1 1 through 10. That which was from the beginning which we have heard which we have seen with our eyes. Which we have looked upon and have touched with our hands concerning the word of life.

The life was made manifest and we have seen it and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life. Which was with the Father and was made manifest to us that which we have seen and heard. We proclaim also to you so that you too may have fellowship with us and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ and we are writing these things to use that our joy may be complete.

This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you that God is light and in him is no darkness at all. If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness. We lie and do not practice the truth.

But if we walk in the light as he is in the light. We have fellowship with one another and the blood of Jesus Christ his son cleanses us from all sin. Now we begin the three verses for our text this afternoon.

If we say we have no sin We deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned we make him a liar and his word is not in us.

God bless the reading of his word now. It's proclamation. Please be seated. Before we begin this message. Let us once again go to God in prayer or Heavenly Father. We come again to your word preached to look to your holy and good word to see the truth that is therein and father.

To open ourselves to that truth and to be changed thereby. We pray Lord that you would do this work by your spirit that you would bring us closer to Jesus Christ in his image and do this father by setting before us our need for repentance.

Because of our need for because of our constant sin. So father for all these reasons we ask you to help us along and to glorify yourself once again in this in Jesus name. Amen. So I'll give you a little background.

For first John and what the Apostle John is writing about here. This is gonna be a little bit myopic. I mean being very focused obviously, but the Apostle John was fighting a heresy. He was fighting a particular heresy.

There's a man named Corinthus back in his day and he taught something that we could go on and on about we could spend as they say a month Of Sundays on this, but we won't we're gonna be very Specific this man Corinthus taught that Jesus Christ was not really God in the flesh.

He seemed to be human. He wasn't really a human being. He wasn't really flesh and blood. He was more of an apparition. An apparition not really physical flesh and bone man. And it's falsehood soon came to have a name called dosa tism.

How many of you heard of the term dosa tism? Well dosa tism comes from the Greek word. Okay. Oh and Okay. Oh simply means it seems. Something seems to be this way or that way. So in Corinthian Corinth this is way of teaching in this heresy.

Jesus's advent Was not really an incarnation which simply means an in fleshing if you will where God true God eternal God in Jesus Christ his son becomes true man. It wasn't so much an incarnation. But we could almost think of it as a theophany.

An appearance of God. You could think of the burning bush in Exodus 3. You could think of the cloud by day and the fire by night that led the Israelites. You could think of the warrior that pastor Brian spoke of in Joshua 5 just this morning.

Those are theophanies the still small voice the Elisha heard from the cave theophanies. Appearances of God now those were actual appearances of God that really was God appearing but it wasn't God himself.

Not God in person. So Corinthians Corinth this would say yeah Jesus was and is God but his coming was a theophany more properly a Christophany appearing of Christ not a physical literal coming of God to the world of men as man.

So that's really the background to the opening. This is why at the very beginning that which was from the beginning now think John chapter 1 the gospel in the beginning was the word and the word was with God and the word was God he was with God in the beginning first.

John chapter 1 verse 1 that which was from the beginning. Who does he mean? He means Jesus Christ the Word of God. His point here John's point here is the literal actual advent of Jesus Christ God in the flesh.

Literally became flesh and bone like us and this is something that current Corinthus was teaching against. He said no, it only seemed to be what he appeared as. Now there's some very serious ramifications to this if Jesus Christ Was not God in the flesh.

If he was just an apparition if he just seemed to be that well that takes care of his suffering does it not? Now we can find out what it means. We say well, God can't suffer. God can't die. How could the eternal God ever die?

Well. Because he was only an apparition because he only seemed to be God. Apparitions don't suffer so that takes care of his death for our sin. Apparitions don't die that takes care of his bodily resurrection and that takes care of our resurrection to follow.

To follow in a resurrection like his. I mean why raise a phantasm and that would take care of our sin. That would take care of our sin. We don't have to worry about sin because if Jesus did not suffer in his own real physical body for our sin.

Then we have no sin to take care of and that takes care of and then that would take care of and you get the idea if Jesus Christ Did not come as true man all the while being true God. There's so much in this scripture That is simply left in the dust.

Well for this afternoon what gets left in the dust is this idea that Jesus Christ died for her sin. That I have sin to deal with that I have sin to confess that I have constant need of the forgiveness of my sins and That's why those first four verses with no fanfare just jump right into the defense of Jesus Christ as literal Physical man, which we have heard we listen to him.

We heard his voice a voice like ours. Which he was seen with our eyes. He was there before us. We looked upon him and we touched him with our hands. He was physical. He was there. If Jesus was not a real person in a real body.

If God only seemed to have come in the form of sinful flesh. Then sin is as much a myth as is Jesus's physicality this is the ultimate consequence of denying that Jesus Christ came in the flesh a denial of my personal possession of sin with a Logically connected denial that I in fact do sin.

And if I in fact do sin, then I in fact do have constant need to go to God in confession of sin and to know his forgiveness. Now that of course made you recognize that's verse 9, which we're going to come to fairly soon but this heresy this.

Those dosetic heresy from this man. From this man there back then it really alarmed the Apostle John. He saw right away the ramifications of it the consequences of believing something like this. And really should alarm us too because dear ones.

Your diet as a Christian your life as a Christian is a steady diet of recognition of personal sin actual sins committed by me. By you and knowing faithfully. The forgiveness and the restoration that God because of his son Jesus Christ bestows upon us.

Confession of Sin and the Truth of God

The first three of the verses have really kind of two ways of speaking. I want you to think of them this way. He starts out he says but if we say we have no sin in verse 8 in verse 10 If we say we have not sinned and then in verse 9 if we confess our sins.

In those three verses with verses 8 and 10 being one way of speaking and verse 9 being another way of speaking. It's all about what we confess what comes from the heart as Jesus Christ says. From the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks.

So that first way of speaking verses 8 and 10 both begin with if we say and. Then they tell us what's implied if we say what follows it's called a conditional statement. We're not going to turn this into a lecture and go on and on about the conditional statement.

But it's really an if then pretty simply it's if then if you do this. Then this is the consequence or if you do this. Here's what's implied. Here's the truth that you're implying by this Action that you take.

Now verses 8 and 10 if we say we have no sin if we say we have not sinned. He's not really quoting someone particularly. He's not assuming that anyone in the church Could say that or even ever did say I have no sin or I have not sinned.

I mean who would say that. If you're bold enough to raise your hand. I would ask you to if you're bold enough to raise your hand right now if I asked you. If you've not sinned raise your hand if you have no sin in you no Tenancy in you that could lead you to sin.

Please raise your hand for us to be amazed. No, no one would actually say that. At least I can't imagine. It's a warning here. It's a warning that should such an attitude in us ever find a footing. Should it take root and grow into fruition?

There are consequences. We've deceived ourselves and we've proved that God's truth is not in us. That's verse 8 or more seriously. We said not only is Sin, not a part of me and I have no part in it, but I don't actually ever sin.

And the consequence of that would be saying that God has lied about me pretty serious stuff. Well, that's the first way of speaking. Implicitly is to say I have no sin. I have not sinned and verse 9. Sandwiched between these two is that second way of speaking if we confess confess with our mouths the Lord Jesus Christ Confess with our mouth to God in prayer our sins confess with our mouth to each other as Jesus Christ says in Matthew 18 15 where we confess to one another we find reconciliation for the Offenses that we've committed against one another.

He says if we confess our sins not set forth as a mere possibility. But as what we call the sine qua non of the Christian life now sine qua non simply means without which not. Something that if missing that thing is not the thing at all.

There's a fairly simple concept. So the sine qua non of a car of an automobile would be let's say an engine. The sine qua non of a church could be the preaching of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.

The sine qua non of marriage is one man and one woman biblically defined sine qua non of the Christian life is a steady diet of recognition of sin. Confession of sin and full faith and assurance that when we speak confession of sin to the Lord He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

So that's our basic structure. That's what those three verses teach us. The first and third structured in the same way giving warning as to what's implied or actually proven. Should they ever be our own should those statements ever be ours.

And the second says Alternatively that God forgives when we repent. So John took Karenthus's lies so seriously that it is said that when he saw him coming in to a Bath house where John was at it's common for the day to be clean that way he saw Karenthus come in and he immediately with his friends bolted from the nearest exits.

Exit urging his friends to come along before the bathhouse falls down. He said because Karenthus the enemy of the truth is in here. So maybe it just seems to be made of brick and mortar. Maybe it just seems like it's not ready to collapse.

Maybe it just looks like a building. But this thing might be ready to fall down upon us. So he got out of there as quick as he could. So what's John's point here? What is John's point. Well John's point is reality reality truth reality over impression truth trumping perceptions.

Where Karenthus ignored the apostolic witness to the reality of Jesus' humanity and offered instead impressions and perceptions. John gives personal testimony to the littler literal physical humanity of Jesus Christ.

That's really the background of docetism. Which is still fairly much alive and well around us and I would ask you can we fall victim to this? Can we fall victim to docetism to acting in a way that? Implicitly says that Jesus Christ didn't come in the flesh and if he came in the flesh and I believe that he didn't really come in the flesh for me.

Can we fall into a trap like this. Well, the answer is yes. Docetism is the religion of perception the victory of sincerely held beliefs over verifiable facts. You remember John Adams who told the jury when he was defending the men who were accused of the so-called Boston Massacre.

Massacre famously said facts are stubborn things. And yet all around us facts give way to perception. I Perceive that biology is an error. I must express myself according to my perception. I perceive that which is growing within me as an impersonal Massive biomatter if even that and is mine to do with as I choose.

See for too many today. Sin is an inconvenient truth that serves only to make me feel bad about myself. Only makes me feel bad about myself, right. Well, the truth is. The scripture doesn't so much set forth before you your sin to make you feel bad about yourself.

The sin is it's a horrible thing as you can imagine. We can't imagine how bad it is because we're not holy like God is. But I would argue That as bad as we should feel about sin. Sin is set forth Before us and put in our face as something that we just can't get away from.

So that we feel good about Jesus. As we understand the redemption we have in him the price that he paid to bring us to God. I once saw Larry King interviewing Joel Osteen and He asked him why he doesn't preach more about sin now.

I cannot quote Osteen's answer exactly anymore. But he said something like this. People have enough bad things in their life. I'm not here to add one more to them. There's a man named Robert Schuller at the Cathedral of Grace, he never met a sin.

He couldn't ignore the church. I came from made a lot of asking Jesus to forgive me. But didn't say very much or said virtually nothing about the sins which require forgiveness and when we don't acknowledge our sin.

When we live a life that is implicitly one that says I don't have sin and I don't in fact sin. The consequences are very severe. The consequences could actually back up to the beginning of 1st John chapter 1 and say that well.

You are actually going into a camp that says that Jesus Christ didn't really come in the flesh as a man and as man. Suffer and die for my sins. It's that serious. Well, then there's the other part with being self-deceived and then in verse 10 calling God a liar.

Literally calling God a liar. You might perceive yourself to be without sin. You might hold that belief sincerely and dearly but it flies in the face of what God says you're self-deceived. You're internally dishonest and intellectually inconsistent and you're standing you're standing in direct contradiction to what God says.

You're saying the cross was not for you and Jesus's blood to the extent. It was poured out for you was wasted. Do we see how serious this is? Do we see what it means when we see ourselves as so pure. Well, we cannot acknowledge the fact that we have sin within and sins that we commit because of that.

He says we're self-deceived the word actually means we're leading ourselves astray and the responsibility Lies at our door is very much like what James says about temptation. Let no one when he is tempted say I'm tempted by God because God cannot be tempted by evil.

Each one's carried away by his own desires and. So, how do we? Get into a position Where we implicitly are saying I have no sin and I have not sinned. It's an abandonment of the truth of God. It's a failure to recognize What is actually said here if we say we have no sin.

That is if I have no possession of any such thing as sin we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. And where does this begin. Why does this church constantly all three of your pastors myself pastor Brian pastor Connolly.

We speak constantly about the true literal coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh and his resurrection in the flesh the physical life of Jesus Christ so important. Because where this begins is denying just that or If we say we have no sin, or we say we have not sinned.

We are then implying they didn't come physically one leads to the other. Deceive means to lead astray to cause to wander. John's very clear here. If we say we have no sin. We've led ourselves away from the truth.

Very much like what I said James says. So similar to James he lays the responsibility with us. He says you're self-deceived. Jesus said in John 17 17. Your word is truth. Now notice what he said here.

He didn't say God your word contains truth. Or your word has true things in it. He says your word is truth. It's just a simple blanket statement. Not contains truth. Now. It's just accurate not like the truth not generally factual.

It is truth itself. It is except for God truth wouldn't even exist. His word is truth. Period. And what does that truth say to us for all sin and fall short of the glory of God? The truth of God says your sins have hidden God's face from you.

The truth of God says God's beloved Son in whom we have redemption the forgiveness of sins. So if you say you have no sin you have no part in the truth in God's truth. Now verse 10 that was verse 8 verse 10 moves from denying the possession of a sinful nature to denial that we have.

That we commit acts of sin. And the consequence of here should really be sort of terrifying. We will soon go into a time of prayer and Each Sunday afternoon when we have a time of prayer the first section of our prayer is what it's right there in your bulletin confession confession of sin.

Do we have sin to confess if we don't we need to think. Verse 8. What does it say? If not, the truth is not in us. Verse 10 Says God is a liar. Serious stuff. Verse 10 Moves from denying possession of a sinful nature to denial that we commit these acts.

We make God a liar make God a liar, which is impossible for God to lie as the Apostle Paul says. He says if we do this if we say we have not sinned the truth the truth of God's Word. Your word is truth said Jesus Christ all that God says is true in all its parts.

As a psalmist He says the truth is not in us and that's a locative sort of idea. That the truth of God actually resides within and here's the overflow of the heart by which the mouth would speak. If that truth is indeed in us God's truth actually located within.

The life of the Christian one of constant recognition of sin one of growth into the image of Christ by way of a steady life-giving diet of confession and restoration and that's verse 9 if verse 8 and verse 10 will speak of this idea of sin as a nature sin as commission and If we deny the one the truth is not in us if we deny the other we're calling God a liar because God's Word clearly says otherwise.

The verse 9 Assumes this constant need to confess our sins. This is hard, isn't it? To always have to look and say I've done wrong again I've done wrong again, but God does not treat us as our sins deserve says the psalmist.

God treated Jesus Christ as our sins deserve and so the if then of verse 9 is this wonderful grace of God that he gives us this if then works this way if we confess our sins and Here the assumption is we have sins to confess if we confess our sins because we've all got sins to confess if we confess our sins as We should when we begin our prayer time that first segment of our prayer time confession of our sin if We should confess our sins from the heart.

What's the consequence of that? Well as bad as the consequent in verse says is That the truth is not in us or verse 10 We call God a liar as bad as those are as terrifying as those consequences should be to us verse 9 is equally wonderful and An equal blessing from God.

It just springs out the other direction completely. He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. He is faithful doesn't mean he's faithful. He's faithful to his own word to his own promise that in Jesus Christ.

He will forgive sins. He said he would and he does in fact do so he's faithful and he's just to forgive us our sins. What does it mean to be just? To be just is to be just in a legal manner. How can God be just in forgiving sins for somebody like me for somebody like you?

How can that be just? Let's say that we're not in the realm of verses 8 and 10. I pray you're not in the realm of verses 8 and 10 where you deny your sinful nature. You deny your commission of sins. We actually do sin.

We actually need to confess sins. How could it be just for a holy God to forgive us our sins? You ever think about that? Because Justice was poured out on another Justice was poured out upon Jesus Christ justice was poured out upon him who never sinned and One of the ramifications of that is because he never sinned all of God's wrath at our sins could be paid for by Him because he had no part of sin himself to pay for.

So when we come to our time of prayer Are we going to be self-deceived, you know, one of my favorite examples of self-deception is that black knight fighting King Arthur Who lost one arm and then the other?

And they lost one leg and then the other and there he is on the ground. He still wants to fight by biting his legs off. It's just not funny. Because that's what we are when we refuse to acknowledge our sin.

I don't know what you've been through this week. I don't know what you've been through today. I do know That when we go to God. A little while we'll break into small groups. We'll go through our four segments of prayer beginning with confession of sin.

I do know That all of us have that to confess and I do know from the truth of God's Word that if we confess our sins and James says in 516 confess your sins to one another. We'll have time for that. And by the authority of God's Word I can tell you That when you confess your sins He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us to cleanse you from all unrighteousness.

Do you have nothing to confess? See verse 8. Do you have no sin nature? See verse 10. See the consequences that think about that very carefully. So I speak to Brothers and sisters in the Lord. I speak to the redeemed of Christ you for whom Christ bled and died.

He came because of sin. His very name harkens from the Hebrew name. Yeshua. Yahweh is salvation. I Don't know what must be confessed. I do know there is that to be confessed or are we self-deceived? Or is God's truth not in us, but brothers and sisters.

I know you. One of the things about a small church is I know you. I look out and I know who you are. And even if I didn't know you personally, I know you've got sin to confess. Do you know the Lord Jesus Christ?

Confess your sin and go to him in faith knowing that he paid for them and Find forgiveness and find salvation. And for you who know Jesus Christ this constant steady diet of confession and knowing his Restoration and his forgiveness is part of the means of grace to growing in the image of the Lord Jesus Christ as we recognize our sin more and more and by that recognition come more and more to the cross and trusting God's restoration and forgiveness.

Little while we will have that opportunity and I praise God. I pray God. They will all take full advantage of the means of grace. He's given us. Amen.