Christmas Destruction: He came to destroy the Devil!

November 25, 2012
Christmas Destruction: He came to destroy the Devil
1 John 2:28-3:10
Scott Howard

"And now, dear children, continue in him, so that when he appears we may be confident and unashamed before him at his coming.  If you know that he is righteous, you know that everyone who does what is right has been born of him.  How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God!  And that is what we are!  The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him.  Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known.  But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.  Everyone who as this hope in him purifies himself, just as he is pure.  Everyone who sins breaks the law; in fact, sin is lawlessness.  But you know that he appeared so that he might take away our sins.  And in him is no sin.  No one who lives in him keeps on sinning.  No one who continues to sin has either seen him or known him.  Dear children, do not let anyone lead you astray.  He who does what is right is righteous, just as he is righteous.  He who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning.  The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil's work.  No one who is born of God will continue  to sin, because God's seed remains in him; he cannot go on sinning, because he has been born of God.  This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not called a child of God; nor is anyone who does not love his brother."  ---1 John 2:28-3:10

The Reality of Sin...
John defines sin...

• Sin's scope:  sin is universal --> 1 John 3:4 "Everyone who sins breaks the law..."
• Sin's nature:  it is lawlessness --> 1John 3:4 "...in fact, sin is lawlessness."
• Sin's origin:  it is in the devil himself --> 1 John 3:8 "...the devil has been sinning from the beginning."

When we sin we are making a choice not to follow God's law, but to follow the devil.  We are basically looking into the face of God and saying "Your law does not apply to me and I will not submit to it."  It is a direct violation of the law of God.

The Reason Christ Came...
John focuses on...

• Christ's Essence:  He is without Sin. --> 1 John 3:5 "But you know that he appeared so that he might take away our sins. And in him is no sin."
• Christ's Mission:  To destroy Sin. --> 1 John 3:8b "...The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil's work." and 1 John 2:2 "He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world."

The Result for Christians...

• Our belief in Christ makes persistent sin inconceivable. --> 1 John 3:6 "No one who lives in him keeps on sinning."
• Our new birth in Christ makes persistent sin impossible. --> 1 John 3:9 "No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God's seed remains in him; he cannot go on sinning, because he has been born of God."

This doesn't mean that it is not possible for a Christian to sin now and then.  What it does mean is that if you truly know God, and truly live as a new life in Christ, it would be impossible for you to continue to live a sinful life, to live in persistent sin.  It just doesn't make sense that when God puts new life in you, when you become "born again", you would continue living the same old sinful way.  There must be a change, from a sinful life to a life lived for Christ; a striving toward righteousness.

This is what Jesus came to do for us.  He came to destroy sin, the devil's work, and to give us an opportunity to live without sin in a new life.  But it is our choice to accept this gift, or to reject it.  Either way, the gift is available to all, the gift of Christmas destruction of sin.