This We Know: Knowing That You Know God
11.08.2020
11.08.2020
Every Christian desires to know God beyond intellectual facts. Is this possible? This week we look how it is not only possible to know God personally, but also how to continue to grow in personal knowledge of Him for the rest of your life.
There exists no greater privilege and blessing for the believer than to truly know God. As many people in both John’s day and the world today profess to know Him, how can we as Christians know that we know Him? In this week’s message of the This We Know: A Journey in 1 John series, Tyler Briggs highlights the difference between simply knowing about God and truly knowing God through joyful obedience to Him.
Point #1: You know you know God when you joyfully obey God. (1 John 2:3-4)
In objection to the Gnostics, who stressed the importance of acquiring secret, intellectual knowledge about God to know God, John offers the Obedience Test – the first of three tests for fellowship in 1 John, chapter 2. Verse 3 testifies that true knowledge of God is demonstrated through joyful obedience. Ultimately, you can know you know God when you are walking with Him by living out His Word.
Point #2: You joyfully obey God because you know God. (1 John 2:5)
Tyler emphasizes the connectedness of obedience and our love of God and for God. The more we know and love God, the more we obey Him. The more we obey Him, the more we know and love Him. Therefore, joyless obedience means we are out of step with God.
Point #3: You walk like Jesus when you walk with Jesus. (1 John 2:6)
How did Jesus walk? Tyler calls our attention to four key aspects of Jesus’ walk, as chronicled in the Gospel of John: 1) Jesus walked in obedience (John 15:10), 2) Jesus walked in joy (John 15:11), 3) Jesus walked in love for others (John 15:12), 4) Jesus walked with the Father (John 17:22-23). Inevitably, as we live in true fellowship with Jesus, we will live and love like Jesus.
Application