we have seen different tests and indications that you can know that you truly belong to Christ. Once again these tests were to reveal the false teachings that were going on and bring comfort and reassurance to those in the true church fellowship. John has told us that if you are really in fellowship with God and his Son Jesus Christ that you will not walk in darkness, other words you will not live a life of sin. He has also told us that if we really know Christ that we will obey his commands. Then last week in our scriptures he said that if you claim to be in the light but hate your brother then you are still in darkness. We looked at the effects of what hatred for our brother creates in our lives. As we continue in the scripture, John goes from these different tests into addressing his Christian children and reminding them of their position as a believer. It seems that John is addressing them from the standpoint of their chronological age and their spiritual age. I John 2:12-14
He addresses children, young men and Fathers, although not necessarily in that order. Now at times when he says dear children he is referring to the whole group and that it certainly a possibility here. But either way when I look at what he says here to the different age groups I see a spiritual journey here that each Christian should travel.
So today I want to look at three places that every Christian should reach on their spiritual journey in this life.
John writes, I write to you dear children, because your sins have been forgiven on account of his name. That was true of everyone in the true fellowship of the church then and thats true of everyone in the true fellowship of the church now. But its only the beginning in the journey of a Christian. The first stop on the journey of being a Christian is reaching the road of redemption.
To become a Christian and enter the fellowship a person must experience the forgiveness of their sins through the redemptive work of Christ. So there is no way to avoid this first destination of the journey. Without the work and acceptance of redemption there is no
http://www.angelfire.com/ar3/ministry_of_hope/index.html
He addresses children, young men and Fathers, although not necessarily in that order. Now at times when he says dear children he is referring to the whole group and that it certainly a possibility here. But either way when I look at what he says here to the different age groups I see a spiritual journey here that each Christian should travel.
So today I want to look at three places that every Christian should reach on their spiritual journey in this life.
John writes, I write to you dear children, because your sins have been forgiven on account of his name. That was true of everyone in the true fellowship of the church then and thats true of everyone in the true fellowship of the church now. But its only the beginning in the journey of a Christian. The first stop on the journey of being a Christian is reaching the road of redemption.
To become a Christian and enter the fellowship a person must experience the forgiveness of their sins through the redemptive work of Christ. So there is no way to avoid this first destination of the journey. Without the work and acceptance of redemption there is no
http://www.angelfire.com/ar3/ministry_of_hope/index.html
