Hope-Based Purity

Who Is He? Who Are We?

(1 John 3:2-3, Preaching: Pastor Stephen Magee, August 14, 2016)

[2] Beloved, we are God's children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. [3] And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.

God's children now

It is a special privilege to have the family love of God as adopted children into the household of the Almighty. Children who can remember life prior to being a part of their new family have this benefit over those that cannot: They know what life was like prior to adoption, and they experience life now as full members of their new household who know where they came from. As Christians, we have one further advantage over that good experience of the adopted people of this world: We have learned from the Scriptures that when we were in our former state, it was not just that we did not know God and His family; we were enemies of God.

Romans 5:10, “If while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life.”And now we are friends, John 15:13, “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.” But we are more than friends, 1 John 3:1, “See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are.”

We will be like Him

And there is even more to come. We have hope, based on the promises of God, that this Jesus, who went to prepare a place for us, will one day come again to establish His kingdom in fullness. That means a change for us, for we will be like Him in His resurrection life. How does John know this? Because he is assured based on the Scriptures, that we will see Jesus as He is now. Some New Testament passages that show us how important and central this hope is:

Romans 8:29, “For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.”

2 Corinthians 3:18, “And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.”

2 Corinthians 4:11, “For we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus' sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh.

Philippians 3:21 “who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself.”

2 Peter 1:4 “by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.”

John 17:24 “Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world.”

We will see and be seen—know and be known by the Lord, who even now knows us fully.

1 Corinthians 13:12 “For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.”

And from the final chapter of the Bible, Revelation 22:4 “They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads.”

But this is not just a New Testament teaching. It was based on an Old Testament-driven expectation of a coming resurrection life from passages such as Daniel 12:1-2 “… everyone whose name shall be found written in the book. 2 And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life,...” And more, Psalm 16:10-11, and Psalm 17:15.

Not wish, possibility, or command, but FACT: The purification of the hope-filled

In every generation, God makes the impossible possible. He purifies His children in hope.

Hope purifies. Imagine if Jesus only heard the counsel of the worldly-wise—of the “prudent.” He would not have gone to the cross if He followed such advice. But He listened to His Father:

John 5:19, “So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, that the Son does likewise.”

John 8:28, “I do nothing on my own authority, but speak just as the Father taught me.”

John 10:17-18, “For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father.”

John 12:49, “I have not spoken on my own authority, but the Father who sent me has himself given me a commandment—what to say and what to speak.”

There were a few others who understood, very few, that were able to catch the vision of Jesus.

Simeon and Anna at the time of His birth were a help “to all who were waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem.” (Luke 2:22-38) The hope of Mary of Bethany would have an impact wherever the gospel was proclaimed (Mark 14:3-9). Even a Gentile centurion's word of hope after he had supervised the crucifixion of Jesus (Mark 15:39) inspires us 2000 years after he said what he had to say. But will we be pressed by hope to walk in faith? Try Colossians 3:1-4.

We are already blessed, but there is far more Christlikeness ahead of us. The Lord will purify us with the purity that comes from hope! Jesus is perfectly pure. Hope-based purity is our destiny.

What gets in the way of our progress in hope-based purity?

There will always be people around you to instill within you fear of doing anything great, or fear of simply living by faith. We need to weigh what advisers say, but we need discernment, or we will never attempt anything in life, great or small.

We need to find other people—people of faith, who are used to making that judgment call that distinguishes between faith and presumption, or to look at this from the other side, who are able to see the difference between ungodly fear and reasonable caution. We need to be around those who have been moved by God and used by God to do things that other people were sure were just plain impossible.

Old Testament Reading—Joel 3:18-21 – The Lord dwells in Zion

Gospel Reading—Luke 8:22-25 – Who then is this?