"Experiencing God"
III John 11, "Beloved, follow not that which is
evil, but that which is good. He that doeth good is of God: but he that doeth
evil hath not seen God."
This morning, potential continues to go
unrealized. While no one will ever maximize their talents and capabilities to
their fullest extent, I fear that many times we "sell ourselves short" by
failing to seize mightily upon the great power and strength that has been
showered upon us from the Almighty. Granted, this power and strength is not
ours naturally, but it has been freely given and should be used to His praise,
honour, and glory. This great power and strength comes from the implanted faith
that God deals to us in regeneration, and from that faith we can do great things
that were previously not possible or even considered. Natural man considers the
things of faith to be absurd, but to the faithful, watching servant, these
things are right and just before God. The Apostle John gives us the basic
layout of how a man gets closer to maximizing his potential in experiencing God
and His power.
One of the primary things that John is known for is
being the "Apostle of Love." While he exhibits many of those qualities, John
also shows a persistent proclivity in his writings to truth. II and III John
especially focus on the importance of truth and its non-negotiable necessity.
Part of the truth that he professes is unashamed adherence to that which is good
and complete intolerance for evil. Though we would like to focus on the second
sentence of this verse, notice how absolute his first sentence is. Many claim
that God's word is too hard to understand and/or way too complicated to figure
out. Though some of the visions and prophecies are cloudy, many of the passages
and lessons are just as simple as this. I suggest that their claim to
complicatedness of God's commands is really shade being thrown towards concepts
that they would rather not follow. John simply and absolutely states that we
should cleave to good and abhor evil. No exceptions. Non-negotiable.
The second sentence though is what really captures
our mind this morning. From this absolute principle that precedes it, John
makes a rather grand observation. The first part of the observation is that
anyone that does good is of God. This principle harmonizes with many other
places in Scripture that distinguish between man's Adamic nature and the nature
of Christ that comes in regeneration. Natural man does not incline towards God
nor have any regard for His commands. (I Corinthians 2:14, Romans 8:7)
Therefore, if someone does good, that is evidence that the nature of Christ is
already given much like John's point in I John 5:1-2. One of the common
arguments that our people get against the doctrines of election and
predestination is as follows: "So you say that God before time elected and
predestinated His people. Nothing can change that. Nothing alters who is or
who isn't. So, election is like this great big circle with the elect in it, and
everyone else outside it. But, what about the guy that wants in the circle?
You say he can't get in, because he's not one of the elect." My simple reply to
this line of reasoning is, "Your circle's not big enough." If someone ever has
a desire towards God or does that which is good according to His commands, it is
evidence that he is of God and thereby shows His election and God's work upon
and within him.
As I grow older, it becomes more and more apparent
to me how hideous that false doctrine can be. It is hideous not just for its
erroneous concepts but also the consequential damage that it produces. For
example, if I was an absoluter, I could never be outraged with murderers, not
could I even get bothered if people divided churches. After all, if it was
fixed, then it had to happen right? Friends, that is one of the most sallow
situations that I could imagine a child of God being in. Utter hopelessness
about life. In keeping with our current line of thought, consider what someone
- especially a minister - would have to think who did not believe in the
doctrines of grace. How would a minister feel wondering if those that he
ministered to daily would be with him in heaven or not? Those that I preach to
regularly are the same people that I fully expect to see in heaven some day.
There is no wondering or quaking within my spirit about their eternal health.
How can I have such hopeful resolve about this matter? I see them do good. The
good that I see evidences their gracious state, and I can preach to them freely
in liberty of the Spirit knowing that they have in heaven something reserved
that fadeth not away. What a blessed peace!
The second portion of John's observation is not
exactly what one might expect. He does not draw a contrast of opposites. Had
he done that, the verse would have read this way, "He that doeth good is of God:
but he that doeth evil is not of God." That is a contrast of opposites. Rather
John gives us a different perspective by way of warning. Remember his first
sentence that is absolute in its resolve. What happens when someone does evil?
They do not see God. This is a condition that unfortunately does not only
plague those unchanged souls in the world. Even a child of God born of the
Spirit carries around vestiges of his carnal nature. Paul described it as a
body of death in Romans 7. Because of this corrupt nature that we still have,
we can destroy much good by doing things that are evil.
As a side note, I will say that though I am
thankful to say in full assurance that those I minister unto are those I expect
to meet in heaven, I cannot say the opposite with equal force. I have met and
continue to meet people that seem interested only in themselves. Their lives
are such that I cannot see any love, joy, peace, etc. that would indicate a
spiritual nature. However, I cannot say in full assurance that I fully do not
expect to see them in heaven. When someone exhibits kind grace and charity, I
say, "They are a child of God." When someone exhibits none of these things, I
say, "To my best evidence, I really don't know." Anyone that knew the dying
thief until his "11th hour" would have likely said he was hell-bound. Yet, even
cases not that extreme can leave us not knowing based on the lifestyle pursued.
That is why I am supremely thankful that the gavel does not rise and fall under
my arm. (II Timothy 2:19)
This road of doing evil is one that unregenerates
and disobedients can alike go down. Since both can travel this road, John did
not lump them together in an eternal state, but he did lump them together in a
fellowship state. Workers of evil do not see God. The word "see" here is best
understood as "experience." The word "see" can have many different
connotations, but due to God's nature, experiencing Him is what is most fitting
in this thought. To experience God is to see His hand and watch care upon us.
One of my favorite examples of this is found in Mark 4 when Christ stills the
storm and waves of the sea. Mark takes the time to tell us that there were many
little ships on the sea that night, but only those in the boat with Christ could
assuredly say where the deliverance came from. All the ships benefited, but
those with Christ saw the source. This country of ours has been blessed for
many years with freedom and liberty, but many living here do not see where the
deliverance comes from.
Children of God living in malice and strife can
fail to see God for long seasons. King Saul went astray to the point that God
would not even answer his prayers. Sampson failed to see God as his strength to
the point that he naturally did not see anything else again. Solomon spent many
of his latter years in abject disobedience failing to see God's hand and having
to lament the vanity of all things under the sun from the book of Ecclesiastes.
Many of God's children today miss the great opportunities and blessings of
experiencing God through His church, word, gospel, fellowship, etc. due to the
wicked lifestyles that they pursue. So much time running to waste! So much
loss of potential!
Evil is so easy to slip into. All it takes is too
high an opinion of self. When we raise our thoughts of who we are above what
they should be, we automatically by extension lessen who God is in our minds.
If we are pretty good in our own eyes, He is not as needed or valuable to us.
When a man's ways please himself, he is headed on a road leading to destruction
and peril. Have you heard people today espouse a belief in God but deny the
necessity of church or worship? Has anyone lately promoted the idea of doing
"your own thing" even if it flies contrary to the Bible? These mindsets garner
the affection of the natural mind that loves promotion of self, but they will
hinder us from experiencing God and His power. Though we may still be blessed
in a sense based on those we are around, we will not understand how or in what
way we are blessed. The governor of the feast in John 2 knew that they had wine
- and really good wine at that - but he had no idea where it came from. The
servants knew because they did that which was good by following Jesus' commands
to the letter. They experienced the blessing of not only the miracle but an
understanding of its nature and source.
Today, miracles happen all around us. One of the
most profound in my opinion is when a frail man of the dust is blessed to open a
very old book and bring forth things both new and old to the edification of the
hearers and the glory of God. The preaching of the gospel is a miracle on the
same level as healing the sick (Matthew 11:5), yet so many miss the experience
and/or fail to see that it is of God. Does this mean that everyone that scoffs
at the necessity of the gospel and its power is necessarily damned to hell? Not
at all. It simply means that everyone walking down this path is going to miss
experiencing God in a special way.
My life is full of wasted filler. Mediations and
studies have been ruined. Fellowship has been severed. Yet, I can blessedly
find other times when I experienced Him very profoundly. These times serve as
markers and reminders to draw nigh to Him. Though we will all see Him with our
own eyes some sweet day, let us put away evil here so that we can experience Him
and His power while we walk here below. His hand is not slack, nor His arm
shortened. He is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we can ask or
think. Therefore, let us strive to go higher and higher in our service to Him.
The moment we think we "have arrived" is the moment that evil has crept back in
to rob us of seeing Him while we are here. For whatever time I have and however
many days I will be on earth, I want to see and experience His power. Being
blessed by His hand is wonderful but understanding how it came is truly
priceless.
In Hope,
Bro Philip