Continue in Him
1 John 2v28
17th July 2020
1 John 2v28
And now, dear children, continue in him, so that when he appears we may be confident and
unashamed before him at his coming.
John encourages us to continue in him, in Jesus. The Bible doesn't just speak of us being followers of Christ. It says we're in Christ. Romans 6:3 says that we were baptised into Christ, not merely into following Him, but into Him. On the night before he was crucified, Jesus told His disciples:
John 14:19-20
Before long, the world will not see me any more, but you will see me. Because I live,
you also will live.
On that day you will realise that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in
you.
Every true Christian is in Christ. It's the closest possible relationship; you are in Him, and His Holy Spirit lives in you. This idea occurs several times in the letters. Here are a few examples from Paul's letter to the Romans:
Romans 8:1
Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus
Romans 12:4-5
For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have
the same function,
so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.
Romans 16:3
Greet Priscilla and Aquila, my co-workers in Christ Jesus.
We're the body of Christ. It's not just that we serve Christ, or that we believe in Christ, although we do. We're actually in Christ.
In verses 20-27, which we've been studying, John wrote to the churches in his care, emphasising the importance of sound doctrine. Theology matters. Good Bible teaching matters. Now, in verse 28, John emphasises the importance of a Christian's relationship with God: Continue in him. Sound doctrine is not enough. We need a living relationship with God. It's not enough to know about Jesus Christ; It's vital to know Him personally. Real Christianity is not about theory; it's about being a child of the Heavenly Father, a brother of the Lord Jesus Christ.
And it's not enough to have had that relationship some years ago; John urges to continue in him. Christianity is not about a moment in history when you gave your life to Jesus Christ, trusting in His redeeming sacrifice on the cross to win us forgiveness from the Father. It's about living out our lives as God's redeemed community – His family – His servants.
In the parable of the Sower in Matthew 13, some seed fell on rocky soil, and never really put down roots, and it withered so it couldn't bear fruit. Some seed fell among weeds, which choked it and prevented it bearing fruit. Some seed fell on good soil and bore much fruit. Surely, if you love God, if you're grateful for the forgiveness of your sins and the gift of eternal life, you will want to bear fruit for God. This involves continuing in Him.
Jesus said:
John 15:5-6
"I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear
much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.
If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers;
such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned."
It's our duty to remain in Christ our Saviour. And, of course, it's in our own enlightened self-interest. How can we turn our back on the King of Kings? How can we walk away from the creator of the universe, and our Saviour? How can we deny our Lord? How can we live as if we'd never known the joy of salvation? But some do.
How do we remain in Jesus Christ?
Acts 2:42
They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of
bread and to prayer.
Don't neglect the Breaking of Bread, which we also call the Lord's Supper or Holy Communion. It's a means of grace to you. Whenever you participate in it by faith, God strengthens you and deepens your relationship with Him.
Don't neglect the fellowship – the other members of your church family. Visit them. Use the phone and email to continue to devote yourself to them. Chat with the lonely. Bring food to the isolated. It's our responsibility before God.
Don't neglect the apostles' teaching – which we usually call "Bible Study", and don't forget to pray, and don't rush your prayer time.
If we take seriously our responsibility to continue in him – in Jesus – to continue to live dedicated, holy Christian lives, then when Jesus appears we may be confident and unashamed before him at his coming. Jesus is coming back. We don't know when, but we do know we don't want to be embarrassed when He comes.
Jesus put it this way:
Matthew 24:42-51
"Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come.
But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the
thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into.
So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do
not expect him.
"Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom the master has put in charge of the
servants in his household to give them their food at the proper time?
It will be good for that servant whose master finds him doing so when he returns.
I tell you the truth, he will put him in charge of all his possessions.
But suppose that servant is wicked and says to himself, ‘My master is staying away a
long time,'
and he then begins to beat his fellow-servants and to eat and drink with drunkards.
The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an
hour he is not aware of.
He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites, where there will
be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Let me ask you, would it not be a scandal? Would it not be to our deep shame and huge discredit, if we stopped living the Christian life? We've been born again, baptised into Jesus, filled with the Holy Spirit, taught from the Bible, forgiven our sins, many times. God has healed us, led us, sanctified us, protected us, grown us. How can we turn our backs on Him? How can we wander off and do something else?
But some Christians do. If they don't repent, they will be embarrassed at His coming. May God please preserve us from making the same horrendous mistake.
Less that a week before He died, Jesus Christ rode into Jerusalem on a donkey, the Prince of Peace entering His capital city in triumph and in peace. The crowds cheered. They threw their cloaks on the ground in front of Him. They tore branches off the nearby palm trees and spread them on the ground for His donkey to walk on. They sang "Hosanna in the Highest" and "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord". They acknowledged Him as their king. Later the same week,some of the people who'd been in that welcoming, celebrating crowd were standing in front of Pontius Pilate's palace shouting, "Crucify Him, Crucify him".
People who were once Jesus's loudest advocates can become His most vociferous accusers. Many of the people who came to know Jesus around the same time as I did are still following Jesus. Many are not. Many who I saw come to saving faith are still living for Him, trusting in Him, worshipping Him, testifying to His goodness. Some are not. Every one who has walked away is a tragedy.
Don't be one of them. You owe Jesus your allegiance and service, and you need Him. And when Jesus comes back, you'll want Him to see that you've been faithful to Him.