This morning, the Reverend John Baldwin preached on “Absolute Truth” taken from 1 John 5:18-21. There are five things that a Christian must believe in to be a “true” Follower of Christ.
- The Inerrancy of Scripture.
- Believe in the Virgin Birth.
- The substitutionary atonement of Jesus.
- The bodily resurrection of Jesus.
- The literal return of Jesus.
There are three absolute truths about Christianity.
- The truth about sin. Children of God want to sin less.
- Truth about Satan. He rules over a falling world.
- The truth about salvation. True salvation is knowing Jesus.
Now let’s look at supporting Scripture for these three truths. The truth about sin is that Children of God want to sin less. Look at 1 John 1:8-9, “If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
When we do this, and really mean it, we will not want to continue sinning and staying in the sin we were once dead in. A person who has been through a true conversion will not desire the sin of the world anymore because through Christ Jesus, He has made us a new creature in Him.
The second truth is this, Satan rules a falling world. He is the prince of this world. See 1 John 5:19, “We know that we are from God, and the whole world lies in the power of the evil one.” Yes, Satan rules the world we live in. This is why evil seems to pervade every political office, from the local government to the federal government. Evil is saturated in politics today because the evil one is running the show as he has done since biblical times.
The third truth is the truth of salvation. True salvation is knowing Jesus. See 1 John 5:20, “And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true; and we are in him who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.”
Let me ask you some simple questions about your relationship with Christ Jesus? Have you accepted Him as your Lord and Savior? Do you really know Him? Do you have a “true” relationship with Him? Are you praying daily to Him? Are you reading your Bible consistently and building your relationship with the Heavenly Father and His Son Jesus? If not for the last two questions, then do you really believe you have a relationship with Him?
Having a relationship means that we are interested in His ways and His way of life for us. Do you truly have a relationship or are you an acquaintance? An acquaintance in the Faith walk is a person who picks up his Bible every once in a while, reads a few verses, and puts his Bible back on the shelf. Its the people who attend church once a year, definitely at Easter and maybe at Christmas, not because of a desire to know more about the living Savior, but because this is what their own parents did while they were growing up. The fact is that Jesus said that we are to be either hot or cold in our faith. See Revelation 3:15-16, “ I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth.”
Jesus wants a “true” relationship with you. He will spew you out of His mouth if you are lukewarm. Lukewarm means that you are an acquaintance of God and of the Lord. You have no “true” relationship with Him. You pick God up when you need Him such as when you need prayer for an illness, or if you have a marital problem and you want God to fix your relationship. Often times when your prayers are answered then God is often forgotten until you need Him again. Then you come back to Him. This is not what the Lord wants. He wants your all, 100%, not just your left over time, when you have spare time from your worldly activities. He wants to hear from you daily in prayer. He wants to speak to your heart through His God breathed Scriptures, so that you CAN live a life of Christ, holy and pleasing to Him.
If you are “truly” an acquaintance, my recommendation is to get on your knees and ask Jesus to forgive you of being lukewarm. Ask forgiveness and get engaged in the Gospel of Christ Jesus through prayer and reading the Bible on a daily basis. Get engaged in a Bible believing church and get involved in the lives of others so that you can encourage one another in your faith walk with Christ Jesus (Cf. Hebrews 10:25). I pray that you will do this today.
Reference:
Rev. John Baldwin, “Absolute Truth,” Berea Baptist Church, July 17, 2022.
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