Who Are You?

Text: 1 John 2:12-17

Proposition: Knowing that we have the capacity to sin we need also to know that we have an even greater capacity to love the truth of Who Christ is in us.

Introduction: Let’s recap for a minute, we’ve been journeying in 1st John which began with an introduction of Who God is. God is self existent, full of the ability to impart life itself, a God who has a unity of fellowship between the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. He is light and in Him is no darkness at all, He is as separate from sin as light is from darkness, one cannot abide the presence of the other. The intent of the Father is that we would choose to engage ourselves in Light Work, the recognition of sin at work within us in our thoughts and actions. We have the capability to see sin, to call it for what it is, to confess our sin and repent and be forgiven from it. We even have the work of an Advocate Who presents Himself as the propitiation for our sin, paying the price of our rebellion. We talked about the day that Justice married Mercy, when the cross met the judicial demands of God against our sin. We even talked about the Rules to Sin By, knowing the pull of sin in this world and knowing that though we do have a capacity to still sin as Christians there are rules we need to keep close so as to guard against sin. The conclusion to that was that we are free to sin as much as we want as long as it can pass three tests: Is it Morally right?; Is it Doctrinally pure? ;Is it Love truthfully? These were questions particularly for the church that it would not sin against itself, that it would not cripple itself and worse wound the reputation and name of Christ. So amidst the cautions about sin and the call to walk in the light, John now addresses the church in its various degrees of maturity. He’s going to speak to new believers, then to those who are in the thick of the battle for their faith and lastly to those who have fought those battles many times over. He uses the terms children, young men, fathers to describe the church in its various degrees of maturity and growth. I think that what John is doing is speaking to them about Who they are more than where they are. The emphasis is on identity more than on their respective successes and failures with sin. As people are tempted by the world, tempted to fit in, to please, to perform, the great question that can unseat their faith is, “Who Am I?” 1st John 2:12-14.

I. The Foundation of Who You Are Begins With An Action That God Took.

That may seem like a well known principle to many but the significance of it is what forms the bedrock of who you are in Christ. The truth is that our identity in this world changed the moment we were forgiven for our sin. Once we were under the kingdom of darkness, ruled by the Prince of the power of the air as Ephesians puts it, meaning under the influence and control of Satan’s deceptions. Once we were considered to be children of wrath, a term that refers the way sin is in our very natures at birth and that sin makes us enemies of God. ‘Forgiven of our sin’ means that there has been a radical transformation in our identity. Once you were a convict, now not only are you a citizen of the greatest kingdom. The very record of your failings has been cancelled and no longer exists. You are justified, made as innocent as if you had never sinned. You are redeemed, purchased with a price, brought out from captivity and set free. But don’t miss the cause behind this action, it’s there in verse 12, “for His names sake”. The name Jesus comes from the Hebrew, ‘Joshua’, a compound name meaning Yaweh Saves. But He also has another name that that we recognize more from our Christmas traditions, Immanuel, which means God with us. The point is your identity was radically changed when you were forgiven of your sin because God with us became God Saves us. His names sake means it is why He came, His names sake refers to the purity of Who he is as God.

But don’t stop there look at the next verse, I write to you, fathers, because you have known Him who is from the beginning.” The reference here is to Christ who not only was before all creation but Who made all creation. The Greek word for beginning is ‘arche’, a word that can mean, ‘that by which anything begins to be’. Those who are mature in their faith also know that Christ is the place from which they have their starting point. That refers to more than just creation, it refers also to their salvation, their identity in Christ. Those who are mature in their faith come again and again to this resting place of the Way, The Truth and the Life.

Then so as not to miss the middle ground John addresses the in between crowd, “I write to you, young men, because you have overcome the wicked one.” The ‘young men’ are a reference to men and women who are no longer brand new Christians yet neither are they yet mature in their faith. They are in between, learning, often struggling, growing and are for the most part the front line troops for the present battle. Just think, who is it that fights in a war, it’s not the children and it’s not the elderly, it’s the young men and women. But don’t miss the effectiveness of their battle, these young men and women have overcome the evil one. They have learned the seductive methods that Satan attacks with and they have taken hold of the key means by which they can defeat the enemy of their souls. They have caught hold of the truth of who they are in Christ. There is nothing else that will enable them to withstand the tornadoes of culture or the tsunami’s of temptation. That’s the foundation, what about the formation?

II. The Formation of Who You Are Is All About Your Capacity In Christ.     In a number of translations like the NIV or New King James, verses 12 to 14 are set out in a different format. They are laid out like a poem or song, perhaps it’s why there is this seeming repetition of phrase, similar and yet different in wording. In the second stanza of the poem which begins in the last part of verse 13, John writes, “I write to you, little children, because you have known the Father.” There is a subtle change in the word he uses here for, ‘little children’. The first time he used the word ‘teknion’, a term of endearment that infers their need like an infant to depend on God. The second time John uses the word ‘padion’, for little children. It infers an immaturity of faith that requires instruction like a toddler. The thought again is that they need to know the truth of who God is, first the basics and then the sequential knowledge of God that’s coupled with the love of God as their Father. Whether John speaks to the little children, the young men who resist the evil one by the Word of God or to the fathers who have weathered many battles of faith, the intent is still the same. It’s all about who you are in Christ. If identity is confused or uncertain then the ability to withstand the schemes of Satan will be compromised.

So how do we grasp the truth of this identity we posses in Christ? Let’s look at a couple of verses of Scripture that will point us in the right direction.

2 Corinthians 5:17 begins with this truth, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” When you became a Christian the old identity of being at war with God died, it passed away. Your new identity was now as His child, beloved, forgiven, adopted.

2 Peter 1:3,4 say “…His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue,by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.” Our identity in Christ is built upon the knowledge of God and also upon His power at work in us through that knowledge. In addition to that we have a great number of precious promises which enable us to become partakers of the divine nature! The word nature, whether it refers to a sin nature or to the Divine nature simply infers a capacity or ability to develop in something. Before you were a Christian the only capacity you had was for self glory. As a Christian you now have the capacity to pursue God, to know Who He truly is and to glorify Him. The divine nature in us will defeat the capacity for sin as we intentionally seek God’s power, through His word and grasp hold of the precious promises that are certainties in His kingdom.

In some cases it will mean we have to unlearn the lies that have become part of our belief, in some cases it will mean identifying and tearing down spiritual strongholds in our lives for there are spiritual forces at work in us that do not want our capacity to glorify God to progress.

In it all and through it all is the truth of our identity in Christ. Who are you? The answer I hope is that because of Christ you are one who is, “…strong, and the word of God abides in you and you have overcome the wicked one.”

The answer to the question of “Who are you?”, will determine to a great degree the answer to the next question, “Who do you love?” It’s what the next verses of this chapter are all about.  

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