It’s funny what memories stick in your head as a child. At times I cannot recollect things I wish I could remember, such as times with my maternal grandfather who died before I was age five or all those lines that followed statements like, “Whatever you do, don’t ever forget …” On the other hand, there are things my mind has chosen to hold on to that I believe give no great blessing to my life and wish my mind would release.

One of those such memories is walking through my house as a child and seeing one of my parents lying flat on the ground on his or her back. Both my mom and dad had back problems, and when I would ask what they were doing, they would just say, “My back went out on me.” This happened most often with my dad as he has a leg about an inch shorter than another (which throws everything off), a twisted spine, and tension which easily built up in his shoulders.

All of this really meant nothing to me until recently a chiropractor told me that the cause of many of my headaches, pain in my hips and legs after standing for a while, and tension in my neck and shoulders was due to the fact that one of my legs is about an inch shorter than the other. In fact, he told me that it is extremely rare to find that kind of thing. “Well,” I thought, “it’s not even rare in my own family.”

For good or bad, children often resemble their parents. I seem to have gotten much of the bad from each of mine, but whatever is passed on, most agree on this. If you see Lili and her mom it is obvious Lili is her daughter. Parental resemblance is simply unavoidable. And in biblical days this was even more the case because children did not simply look and act like their parents, but sons would almost always take up the same trade as their fathers. Therefore, if someone made a bad career choice in life every generation after him paid for it.

This reality of parental resemblance is what John picks up on and fleshes out in 1 John 2:28-3:10. John uses verse 28 as a transition from the topic of abiding in him to our standing before Christ at his coming. This thought then leads him to talk about discerning whether we are ready to meet the Lord, that is, whether or not we have been born of God.

Therefore, in 2:29-3:10 John makes a few statements some statements along this idea of family resemblance to give assurance to those who indeed are converted and to give a warning to those who are not and have deceived themselves into thinking they are. He begins the section with an implied statement connecting this reality that they would have known (of parental resemblance) with a statement about those having been born of God.

Just as children resemble their parents, so God’s children resemble him (2:29-3:3)

This seems to be John’s declaration in verse 29, as he writes, “If you know that he is righteous, you may be sure that everyone who practices righteousness has been born of him.” That is, just as children resemble their parents, so God’s children will resemble him.

However, John does not want this to be some abstract reality to them but that which addresses them directly where they are. Thus, he writes in 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.” That is, John is saying, “Look, you yourselves have been called God’s children, and that is exactly what you are. You have been born of God.

This is an amazing reality that we far too often ignore. I don’t know whether it is that we think God owes us such a right or we simply make ourselves too busy in life to think, but I would dare say our lives are not filled with thinking and meditating on this amazing reality that God’s love has made it so that we are his children. This is one reason why we walked through that reality in our corporate singing this morning. We need to take time and ponder this amazing reality. We were God’s enemies, fit for hell, by nature children of wrath, and now we are his children. Far too seldom do I lie on my bed, meditating on that reality until I am overcome by God’s grace and drift into sleep with tears of joy and amazement filling my eyes.

And yet, John’s hearer’s might have a question amidst thinking of this, namely, “Why then are those who have left the church giving us such a hard time and trying to get us to disbelieve and follow other practices?” John responds in the latter part of verse 1, “The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him.” That is to say, it is a clear sign they do not know the Father, otherwise they would know that your resemblance is clear.

At the same time, however, John is not unaware of their struggles. He is not unaware of the Christian’s struggles to live in righteousness. Thus, as the hearers might be beginning to think they might not be God’s children amidst their struggles, John writes, “Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we will be like him, because we shall see him as he is” (3:2).

Christians should be practicing righteousness right now so as to display the resemblance with their Father who is righteous (2:29), however, we must also realize that our transformation, our salvation is not yet fully realized. Again, this can be to us as comforting a reality as knowing that we are God’s children. For especially if you have fought the battle against sin, feel worn and battered by its effects, and are rightly sensitive to your sin, you no doubt long for the day when the fight will be no more. You long when not only does your heart convict you of righteousness but the rest of your members long for it as well. You long for the day when he appears and we indeed resemble our Lord Jesus Christ. Well, know for sure that for the believer that day is a certain reality. This is the goal of our salvation even as Romans 8:29 tells us that we have been predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, who is himself the image of the invisible God. Thus, if this is our goal and those who have been born of God resemble him and are resembling him more and more, then it stands to reason that “Everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure” (3:3).

For the longest time I would look at this verse and see it as a command, as if John were saying, “Purify yourselves, brothers.” And indeed, it would be a fitting command because we should. However, 1 John 3:3 is not a command; it is a statement. John simply says, “Everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.” Again, this is simply the logic of the Scriptures. If those who have been born of God will one day be like him (i.e. pure), then God has ordained a means in accord with that goal. That is, if these individuals will one day be pure, then they can be seen now purifying themselves.

Having used this illustration before, I am tempted to use another, but it is so fitting. I remember sitting in theology class, ready to take a test after which we have studied such doctrines as predestination, election, and perseverance when a student wrote on the board, “God has predestined me to make an A on this test.” Soon, after having written that message, the professor walked in, saw the message, and said, “Great, because if God did predestine you for that end then he has given the means as well.” That is, if God predestined that his mind be full of all the right answers to put down for the test then God orchestrated a means to get them there. Therefore, God probably drove the student to do much studying. This is simply the logic of Scripture.

So it is, John points out, with purification. If we one day will be pure, then it stands to reason that we can be identified as those living out the means to this end, namely, we are purifying ourselves. This theme of identifying God’s children, then leads to the next statements by John in verses 4-10 that I will sum up in saying the following:

Therefore, only he who lives in righteousness has been born of God, and he who does not practice godly living has not been born of God but is of the devil (3:4-10)

John makes this bold statement again and again in our text. We already saw this clearly spoken in 2:29, but we see it in 3:6-8a as well as John writes, “No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him. Little children, let no one deceive you. Whoever practices righteousness is righteous, as he is righteous. Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil …” Put simply, the one living in righteousness has been born of God and the one practicing sin has not.

Now, let me clarify one thing here. John is not saying that Christians will not and do not ever sin. In 1:5-2:2, he has already made clear that Christians do and says that anyone who claims otherwise is a liar. However, the text says nothing short of this. Verse 6 says, “Everyone remaining in him does not sin” and verse 9 says “Everyone who having been born of God does not perform/accomplish/bring about/do sin.” So, if John doesn’t mean Christians will never sin, why does he state it so pointedly? I think here F. F. Bruce gives us a good answer. He writes, “When a boy goes to a new school, he may inadvertently do something out of keeping with the school’s tradition or good name, to be told immediately, ‘That isn’t done here.’ A literalist might reply, ‘But obviously it is done; this boy has just done it’—but he would be deliberately missing the point of rebuke. The point of rebuke is that such conduct is disapproved of in this school, so anyone who practises it can normally be assumed not to belong to the school. There may be odd exceptions, but that is he general rule, which has been verified by experience.”¹

That is, John’s not saying that it’s impossible for a Christian to sin. We could all disprove that right now just with our thoughts. But he is saying, as Bruce has pointed out, that such conduct is not approved of and should be the exception in the Christian’s life, not the norm. Therefore, John points out that one practicing righteousness has been born of God and one who is not characterized by such does not know God.

But doesn’t this cut against the practice of much of the church as individuals make professions of faith and we tell them, “You are saved. No matter what, don’t ever doubt it. You can know it’s true”? For John seems to point out quite clearly that if a profession (such as was made, no doubt, by those who had now gone out of the church) is not followed by a life characterized by righteousness, then the individual has not been born of God.

But how can we make such a harsh and staunch claim? John gives us the following three reasons in these verses:

1) The nature of God is characterized by righteousness while the nature of the devil is characterized by sin

John simply appeals to the nature of God and the devil. Why? It is because he is building on the understanding that we will resemble the nature of the one who is our father. And, spiritually speaking, there are only two options: God or the devil. Thus, John points out God’s nature in verses 5, “You know that he appeared to take away sins, and in him there is no sin.” You see? In God there is no sin. In addition, John makes clear in verse 4 that “Everyone who makes a practice of sinning also practices lawlessness; sin is lawlessness.” Therefore, how could one claim to be born of God and live utterly contrary to his nature? Or, again, as Bruce says, “Fellowship with the sinless One and indulgence in sin are a contradiction in terms.”² Therefore, just as children resemble their fathers, if one is going to claim to be God’s child he cannot live opposite of God’s nature.

On the other hand, John points out in verse 8, “Whoever makes a practice of sinning if of the devil, for the devil has been sinning since the beginning.” Thus, it is a simple thought: only the one who reflects God’s nature is born of God, while being characterized as reflecting the nature of Satan means that he is your father. John’s first reason for being able to make such a bold claim is simply the nature of God and the nature of the devil. There is also a second reason.

2) The work that Christ did was destruction to sin and Satan

His second reason is the work of Christ. After making statements as to the point that one who practices sin is not born of God, John appeals to the work of Christ. He writes in verse 5, “You know that he appeared to take away sins, and in him there is no sin.” Then in verse 8, “Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil.”

Now, we’ve already looked at parts of these verses, but both of them stress that Jesus came to take away sin and to destroy the works of the devil. This, then supports John’s claim. In order to see this, let’s suppose that this afternoon as we are sharing in food and fellowship at the Oliver’s house I decided to get a number of people together and fish. Therefore, I call people to fish, set them up with poles and bait, and have them all fishing in the pond, and then suddenly someone sitting on the deck eating says, “Man, I have known firsthand the benefits of what Lee has done.” We would say, “No you don’t. Lee came to move everyone from the house and get them fishing. Therefore, you can’t claim to have benefited from Lee’s work and not demonstrate the results of it.”

So, it is with the work of Christ. Because Jesus came to take away sins and to destroy the work of the devil, the one who is characterized by sin and follows after the ways of unrighteousness (i.e. after the ways of the devil), then he cannot claim to have been affected by Christ’s work, for Christ’s work was against both of those things. Yet, John gives us one more reason for supporting his claim.

3) The seed of God dwells within one who has been born again

John writes in verse 9, “No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God’s seed abides in him, and he cannot keep on sinning because he has been born of God.”

Conversion is something more than just making a decision to follow Christ. Something supernatural occurs. You are given a new heart, a new nature, and God’s Spirit dwells within you. This is probably what John appeals to in writing God’s “seed” remains in you. And, if you are born again, you no doubt know this reality.

I remember the effects in my own life even as a young boy. I came to know Christ when I was nine years old. Therefore, you would not have seen any drastic change in my life if you were looking on from the outside. But there was something different, something on the inside that came to shape that which was on the outside. I remember saying to my dad after being converted, “There are things that were sin before that I did without anything in my heart telling me they were wrong before, during, or after doing them. Now, however, that’s not the case. There is something in me alerting me that it is wrong before I do it. I cannot enjoy sin like I once did because there’s something in me that doesn’t like it at the same time that I do like it.” What I was explaining was the kind of thing that one would witness if you could get a cat’s nature inside of a pig. That pig might jump in the mud like it once did, but it would definitely not enjoy it the same way because it had a new nature.

So, it was with me at age 9 and all of us today if we know Christ. You know this reality of his nature within you. You know your hate for sin that is present, even if a desire for sin still often is allowed to triumph. You know your desire for Christ. This is why one who can be characterized by sin, John says, cannot be said to have been born of God. Because of his new nature there should be an amount of repulsion toward sin.

Therefore, this morning, I simply want to end in asking a few questions as we prepare ourselves to come to the table.

Do you marvel at the reality of new birth?

Do you take time to marvel at the reality that God’s seed, his nature is within you? If not, may we today repent and begin to ponder consistently this great reality that we might worship him as we should.

Do you know the reality of God’s nature in you?

Maybe you don’t ponder this reality because you do not know the effects of it. You don’t know the warring against sin taking place within you because it isn’t there. Maybe you’ve deceived yourself a long time and this morning God is showing you that you do not have his nature and that you are not demonstrating knowledge of him in your life.

At the same time, maybe you do know this nature. Maybe you’ve struggled even this week in sin and yet you know the fight. Your heart hates it, and you long to overcome these things. You are longing for the day when you will be like him. This is because God has given you his nature and this morning should be an assuring reality to you that God has placed his seed in you.

Finally, do you feel the weight of the fact that sin is utterly contrary to the Christian’s nature?

We’ve made clear that Christians will sin. However, do you feel the weight of how out of step that is with who you are – a child of a God? When faced with temptation, do you excuse it because “all people struggle and nobody’s perfect” or do you go to war because born again people are not characterized by sin. If you have allowed yourself to see your own life wrong, then repent this morning and realize the nature of God in you and purify yourself, demonstrating that you are one who will one day be like the Son as we see him as he is.

His grace will lead us to that day. Amen.

¹F. F. Bruce, The Epistles of John (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1999), reprint, 90.

²Ibid.

PARENTAL RESEMBLANCE - ASSURANCE AND WARNING

Listen to Audio