God-born faith gives eternal victory!

Sermon for Easter 2, April 19, 2020

Grace, mercy, and peace be with you from God the Father and from Jesus Christ, the Father’s Son, in truth and love.  Amen.

God-born faith gives eternal victory!

Dear Christian friends,

            There are many examples throughout history of men overthrowing established governments, or improperly controlling a nation for personal gain: legitimate governments forced into exile, replaced by governments that are mere shells of power because the country is ruled by a warlord or anarchists, nations under the control of brutal dictators who came to power by force or trickery, and numerous other governmental disasters that cause great grief in this sin-torn world.  Some even suggest that this current pandemic is being used to further certain politicians’ ambitions for control.

Warfare and cruelty always abound in this world, so people tend to demand that these problems be fixed and victory be won over those cruel individuals.  It is even somewhat common, today, for church bodies to give up the battle for true victory in order to fight for peace on earth.  That’s not what our sermon text is speaking about.  At best, earthly peace can only be a momentary win before the next crisis arises.  Therefore, our work, as the Christian Church, is to proclaim real, true peace, the everlasting victory.  Thankfully, in our text, today, we will see how God-born faith gives eternal victory!

1 John 5:4-12  ⁴ because everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world.  This is the victory that has overcome the world: our faith.  ⁵ Who is the one who overcomes the world?  Only the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.  ⁶ This is the one who came by water and blood: Jesus Christ.  He did not come by the water alone but by the water and by the blood.  The Spirit is the one who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth.  ⁷ In fact, there are three that testify: ⁸ the Spirit, the water, and the blood, and these three are one.  ⁹ If we accept the testimony of people, God’s testimony is even greater, because it is the testimony that God gave about his Son.  ¹⁰ The one who believes in the Son of God has this testimony in him, but the one who does not believe has made God out to be a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God gave about his Son.  ¹¹ This is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.  ¹² The one who has the Son has life.  The one who does not have the Son of God does not have life. (EHV)

Our Lord Jesus once said to His disciples, "I have told you these things, so that you may have peace in me.  In this world you are going to have trouble.  But be courageous!  I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33)  Hearing Jesus’ words, it is easy to understand that what John is talking about in this section of Scripture is the victory that Jesus has won over sin, death, and Satan.  John is not speaking about world peace, not peace in Iran, Afghanistan, Iraq, Somalia or any of the other scores of nations currently at war or suffering inner turmoil.  However, Jesus has overcome the world.  He has won the victory over anything that would keep us separated from God the Father. 

So, what does that mean for you and me?  John’s words are clear; it is faith that gives the everlasting victory—not warfare, not political skill, not personal persuasion, not the influence of money—in fact, nothing of human endeavor.  John wrote, “Everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world.  This is the victory that has overcome the world: our faith.” 

Does that still seem a bit confusing?  John is telling us that, as Christians, the victory is already ours.  So, do you feel like a great victor?  Do you feel like you have won a battle for the ages and will never have to face trouble again?  Never fear; John’s point, here, isn’t to talk about our feelings, he is telling us the facts.  The fact is, the everlasting victory over sin, death, and Satan was won by Christ and is given to each believer through faith.  John tells us that victorious faith comes from God.

This is of ultimate importance: we are not responsible for gaining the victory.  We are not able, on our own, to believe.  That may sound a bit weird.  Even a large part of modern Christianity pretends that you need to find Christ, ask Jesus into your heart, or that you have to do something to assist in gaining your salvation, but that is dead wrong.  Here, John tells us that in truth, all who believe in Christ have been born of God—that faith is given to us by God’s grace, and God-born faith gives eternal victory!

Let’s step back for a moment and see why this is true.  The natural law written in our hearts tells us that God is real, and that we have sinned against Him, so ever since the Garden of Eden, Satan has tortured mankind with the idea that we need to do something to make God happy, or failing that, we need to try to become a god—to be holy in ourselves.  Every religion of the world, except true Christianity, wants to tell you how to make God happy, or how to have peace with the universe in how you live, but everyone following those religions is lost, because death shows clearly that, on our own, we are not right with God, and in spite of all attempts to appease His wrath, we only fail.

So where should we turn?  We turn to God’s Word.  The Spirit says, “Who is the one who overcomes the world?  Only the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.”  Those who believe in Christ Jesus as God’s true Son and the Redeemer of the world already have victory over this sin-troubled world through their faith.  Furthermore, as we have already heard, the believer’s faith isn’t something he or she achieved.  Rather, that faith in Christ is born of God in them.  Jesus once asked His disciples, "But you, who do you say that I am?”  Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”  Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but my Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 16:15-17)  

As Jesus walked on this earth, He had many battles with the Jews over His identity for they refused to accept that Jesus is God’s Son, and they refused to believe that He was sent by God to save them.  Therefore, Jesus pointed out that it wasn’t He, alone, who testified this truth to them.  Rather, the Father and the Holy Spirit, also, bear witness to that truth through the words of the prophets.  Christ is in absolute agreement with everything prophesied about Him in the Scriptures—not just in ideas, but in the actual nature and events of His life.  The Father established the course of history according to His plans for the salvation of the world.  The Holy Spirit shared the prophecies with the prophets, and Jesus fulfilled everything foretold about the Messiah.  The witness of the three persons of the Trinity is in agreement and is true. 

Regarding this, John wrote, “If we accept the testimony of people, God’s testimony is even greater, because it is the testimony that God gave about his Son.”  Throughout your life, you will run into people who question whether the Bible is true.  Many theologians and teachers, today, claim to know better, or to know something different.  At the same time, most people would still accept the testimony of three eyewitnesses in a criminal case, even if they are not completely sure that the witnesses are honest individuals.  So, if we would accept the eyewitness reports of three mere humans, how could we dare deny the sure testimony of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. 

Here, through John, the Holy Spirit gives us both a promise and a warning,: “He who believes in the Son of God has the witness in himself; he who does not believe God has made Him a liar, because he has not believed the testimony that God has given of His Son.”  Really that is the heart of the matter; we either believe God and the witnesses He sends, or we call God a liar.  There is no middle ground between those two options.  If we believe the promise God gives, God-born faith gives eternal victory!  If we do not believe, we are choosing to side with the liar who has been fighting against God since the Garden of Eden.

Because God sincerely wants us all to be saved, He also gives us “three that bear witness on earth: the Spirit, the water, and the blood; and these three agree as one.”  The Spirit bears witness to us in God’s Word.  Through the Word of the Bible, the Holy Spirit is testifying to the truth of everything we need to know for our salvation.  Because God wants that testimony to be even more real for us, He connects the truth of Jesus to earthly elements so that there can be no doubt about His testimony.

In Baptism, the water also testifies to the connection we have in Christ.  The power to cleanse us from sin isn’t in the water, but in the word of God, while the water shows our cleansing in a physical way.  In the same way, the blood of Christ in the Lord’s Supper, in, with, and under the wine, serves as witness that Jesus really did shed His blood on the cross to rescue us from eternal death.  “The Spirit, the water, and the blood” agree that Jesus is the Messiah; that He shed His blood for the sins of the world; that Jesus has rescued us from the tormenter who was keeping us at war with God.

We have another great promise from our Lord: “This is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.  The one who has the Son has life.  The one who does not have the Son of God does not have life.”  This simple verdict is the sum total of Christianity.  Those who believe in Jesus for forgiveness and salvation have life everlasting full and free.  Christ came into this world for one purpose, to win for us the life we had lost because of sin.  God credits those who believe in His Son with the perfect holiness Jesus lived for us.  Thus, as St, Paul wrote, “There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.  For in Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set [us] free from the law of sin and death.” (Romans 8:1)

Dear friends, you and I have eternal life in heaven because of what Jesus has done for us on earth.  Furthermore, we don’t have to earn that eternal life, because it is given to us solely through faith in Christ which is worked in us by the Holy Spirit through the Word of God’s grace— through the Gospel with the water of Baptism, and strengthened through Christ’s body and blood in His Supper. 

Jesus told His disciples, "If anyone loves me, he will hold on to my word.  My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.” (John 14:23)  The words of your Father in heaven are certain and true.  He sent Jesus into this world for the purpose of making all of us right with Him.  Jesus completed that righteousness for us with His sacrifice on a cross outside of Jerusalem and His resurrection on Easter morning.  Then, true everlasting peace with God is given to you through faith in Jesus as your Savior.  Rejoice in God’s peace!  Through God-born faith, God gives you His eternal victory!  Amen.

Now may the Lord of peace Himself give you peace, always, in every way.  The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all.  Amen.