Auburn SDA Church
Abiding in Christ
  • All Glory, Laud, and Honor

      • 1 John 2.24-26NKJV

      • 1 John 2.27NKJV

  • In the first century, the Roman world operated on what was called the patron-client system. Everything—business, politics, relationships—was based on status and reciprocity. You scratched my back, I scratched yours. If you gave a favor, you expected one in return. If someone of lower status asked for help, it was only granted if they could offer loyalty, service, or something valuable in return. Love wasn’t really love—it was transaction.
    So when early Christians started preaching about a God who gives without expecting repayment... it was shocking. A God who blesses the poor? A God who welcomes sinners? A God who dies for people who hate Him? That wasn’t just unusual—it was offensive to Roman sensibilities.
    Today we learn about
    the offensive love of God.

    What You Heard

    1 John 2:24 ESV
    Let what you heard from the beginning abide in you...
    What you heard...
    God is teaching that
    we are transformed by
    not just...
    exposure to truth
    but...
    abiding in truth.
    Exposure to truth
    is very important.
    How can you come to faith..
    How can you build a relationship
    without exposure to knowledge?
    without the truth?
    Romans 10:14–15 ESV
    How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!”
    There are steps
    a clear progression.
    The church equip and sends missionaries.
    The missionaries preach the good news.
    The unbelievers first hear the truth.
    Then, they believe the truth.
    Then, they accept Christ and call out to Him.
    There is no chance of
    being converted to truth
    you have never heard.
    But we often make the mistake
    of believing,
    we hear truth each week
    ....we assume...
    we are converted.
    (not necessarily true).
    Many hear truth
    but are not changed by it.
    John Stott
    'Irresistible' is the word an Iranian student used when telling me of his conversion to Christ. Brought up to read the Qur'an, say his prayers and lead a good life, he nevertheless knew that he was separated from God by his sins. When Christian friends brought him to church and encouraged him to read the Bible, he learnt that Jesus Christ had died for his forgiveness. 'For me the offer was irresistible and heaven-sent,' he said, and he cried to God to have mercy on him through Christ. Almost immediately 'the burden of my past life was lifted. I felt as if a huge weight ... had gone. With the relief and sense of lightness came incredible joy. At last it had happened. I was free of my past. I *knew* that God had forgiven me, and I felt clean. I wanted to shout, and tell everybody.' It was through the cross that the character of God came clearly into focus for him, and that he found Islam's missing dimension, 'the intimate fatherhood of God and the deep assurance of sins forgiven'.
    In order to be
    transformed by the truth
    we must let it
    abide in us.

    Abides In You

    1 John 2:24 ESV
    Let what you heard from the beginning abide in you...
    How do you allow
    a teaching to abide in you.
    We always talk about
    Jesus
    Holy Spirit
    abiding in us.
    That makes sense
    because abiding sounds like
    a relational experience.
    We are allowing the
    relationship with God
    to abide.
    But...
    Here is says to
    allow the teaching
    to abide in us.
    That does not
    sound relational...
    How can we experience
    abiding with intellectual concepts?
    Perhaps if we just
    continue reading the verse
    it will answer our questions.

    Abiding In the Son

    1 John 2:24 ESV
    Let what you heard from the beginning abide in you. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, then you too will abide in the Son and in the Father.
    So it is relational...
    We are are not just
    abiding in theological ideas.
    Spiritual concepts about Christ
    can deepen our relationship with Christ.
    Think about dating someone.
    How do you fall in love.
    I don’t believe in
    love a first sight.
    You fall in love by
    getting to know that person!
    (information).
    Teachings.
    This is why
    baptismal process
    begins with study and prayer.
    How can you fall
    in love with Jesus?
    (abide in him?)
    You must spend
    time with Jesus.
    We must
    get to know Him!
    How can we
    get to know Him?
    Bible study
    Prayer
    Worship
    Spending Time
    Skip section 1
    By the way,
    same is true
    of those who
    lost their first love.
    In the book of Revelation
    John speaks of people
    just like this:
    Revelation 2:4 ESV
    But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first.
    There may be some
    here today that have
    lost their first love.
    Spiritually,
    you may feel that,
    you are just
    going through the motions.
    How can you
    get the love back?
    Spend more time
    with Jesus.
    If you do,
    you will fall back
    in love with Him.
    Done Skip 1
    His love and character
    are irresistible...
    But you must
    take the time
    to put Him first.
    In the midst of one of the darkest places in history—Auschwitz, the Nazi death camp—there lived a flicker of divine love. His name was Maximilian Kolbe. He was a Polish Catholic priest, imprisoned for sheltering Jews and standing against the Nazis. But what made him unforgettable wasn’t just that he suffered in that place—it was how he responded to suffering. One day, a prisoner escaped. And as punishment, the guards selected ten random men to be starved to death. One of the chosen men cried out, “My wife! My children!”
    And that's when Kolbe stepped forward. He wasn’t called. He wasn’t chosen. He volunteered. He said, “I am a Catholic priest. Let me take his place. I am old. He has a wife and children.”
    Amazingly, the guards agreed. Kolbe was thrown into a starvation cell with the others. And for two weeks, instead of screaming or despair, the guards heard singing, prayers, hymns. Kolbe led the men as they died, one by one. He was the last to survive, and eventually was killed by lethal injection. The man he saved—Franciszek Gajowniczek—lived. He returned home. He was reunited with his wife and children. And for the rest of his life, he told people about the man who died in his place.
    This is love.
    This is Christ.
    Drink it in...
    You will love Him back.
    You will abide in Him.
    Skip Section 2

    The Fall

    The fall of Eve
    illustrates this truth clearly.
    Satan said:
    Genesis 3:4–5 ESV
    But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
    What is Satan doing?
    Calling God a liar.
    Distrust God.
    God is withholding good things.
    We can be our own gods.
    We need “other knowledge.”
    Adam and Eve
    loved their creator.
    The began to distrust Him
    when they believe lies
    about His character.
    When truth is distorted,
    God’s character is distorted.
    When God’s character distorted,
    we no longer love Him.
    The Great Controversy
    Hinges upon this!
    The truth about God.
    Telling truth.
    Believing truth.
    Foundation of Life
    And Salvation.
    Remember that,
    Eve was sincere in here deception.
    She believed the Serpent.
    She thought his words
    were the truth!
    Notice,
    her sincerity
    didn’t save her.
    (it did give her a second chance).
    Done Skip 2

    The Promise

    1 John 2:25 ESV
    And this is the promise that he made to us—eternal life.
    Connect with previous verses...
    If you abide in truth
    you abide in Son.
    If you Abide in the Son,
    you get this promise:
    eternal life.
    It is one of the
    laws of the universe.
    Like
    law of gravity
    law of entropy
    moral law.
    This law states:
    Those who abide in Christ live forever!
    In the words of Christ:
    John 11:25–26 ESV
    Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?”
    So???
    Do you believe this?
    (expect strong amen)!
    The story is told of the pioneer days in our country. A man was making his way west when he came to the Missouri River. It was winter and the ice covered the river from bank to bank. But how could the man be sure it would hold his weight? He knew people often drowned in that river when the ice broke. Yet he had to cross. He walked out a little way, then gripped with fear he crawled on his hands and knees. He looked back and saw how far the bank was now behind him and knew he would drown if the ice broke and the frigid water swallowed him up. To spread his weight even more, he lay out flat on his belly and slowly drew himself sliding across the river a few inches at time. All of a sudden from behind him he heard whistling. He whipped his head around and there saw a big man, a farmer, walking across the ice leading a team of horses drawing a heavy wooden sleigh full of hay. He was smiling and whistling and tipped his hat. The timid man stood and brushed off the ice crystals and managed a sheepish smile. That old farmer had crossed the ice many times and knew it could be trusted.

    Deception

    1 John 2:26 ESV
    I write these things to you about those who are trying to deceive you.
    In the pervious sermon,
    we learned about heresy
    of gnosticism.
    Part of that belief system
    the idea that Jesus
    never became human.
    We experience Christ
    first though knowledge of truth.
    Then we fall in love with Him
    and we abide in Him.
    Satan knows that he
    can short-circuit this plan
    by presenting falsehood.
    The truth show us...
    the amazingly attractive
    character of Jesus Christ.
    Falsehood and Heresy are simple.
    The distort
    the Character of God.
    When you know
    the character of God
    Gnosticism is easy to spot
    it destroys God’s character.
    In the 1800s, there was a remote Hawaiian island called Molokai, used as a leper colony. It was a place of isolation, despair, and death. Those sent there were considered untouchable, rejected by society—and frankly, forgotten.
    But there was one man who refused to forget. His name was Father Damien. He was a Catholic priest from Belgium. And when he heard about Molokai, he didn’t just send prayers or resources. He volunteered to go. He sailed to the island, knowing full well that leprosy was contagious and often fatal.
    He didn’t wear gloves. He didn’t keep his distance. He lived among the people. He embraced them, built homes, dug graves, bandaged wounds, held dying hands. And eventually, he caught leprosy himself. He became what they were—not by accident, but by love. Before he died, he would begin his sermons with a simple, devastating phrase: “We lepers...” He no longer said “you.” He said “we."
    That is what Jesus did for us. He didn’t save us from a distance. He moved in. John 1:14 says, “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.” He didn’t stay in heaven and shout instructions. He came to where we are. He lived in our brokenness. He touched the untouchable. He bore our disease—our sin. And like Father Damien, He died not just beside us... but as one of us.

    The Anointing Abides in You

    1 John 2:27 ESV
    But the anointing that you received from him abides in you...
    First:
    Truth abides in you.
    Next:
    We abide in Christ.
    Now:
    anointing abides in us.
    Who is doing the action?
    Are we doing the abiding?
    Or receiving the abiding?
    It is actually both...
    May I suggest that,
    we cannot abide
    in truth
    in Christ
    unless we allow
    the truth
    the anointing
    to abide in us.
    We can’t have active experience
    “We abide”.
    With out the passive experience
    “We are the object that receive abiding.”
    In other words,
    the pressure is not
    on us to perform!
    Have you ever watched a mother with her newborn? There's something sacred in that connection. Even before a baby understands language, before it can return affection or say “thank you,” a mother pours out care—waking at all hours, feeding, holding, soothing. And science has discovered something fascinating behind that love. It’s a hormone called oxytocin—sometimes nicknamed the “love hormone.”
    Oxytocin is released in high amounts during childbirth and breastfeeding. It creates a strong, emotional bond between mother and child. Even when the baby is crying nonstop, even when she’s exhausted and drained, that biological connection motivates her to stay. The baby hasn’t earned it. The baby can’t repay it. And yet the love is there—overflowing, relentless.
    That’s just a shadow of the way God loves us. Isaiah 49:15 says, “Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you!” Even stronger than a mother’s bond, God’s love isn’t triggered by hormones. It’s rooted in His very nature. It’s who He is.
    He doesn’t love us because we’re good. He doesn’t stay because we behave. He loves us because He chose to—and He never forgets. In a world where love is often transactional, God’s love is one-sided, initiating, and sustaining.
    All that we have to do,
    is abide…
    Abide in that love.

    The Anointing Teaches You

    1 John 2:27 ESV
    But the anointing that you received from him abides in you, and you have no need that anyone should teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about everything, and is true, and is no lie...
    What exactly is this
    anointing that teaches us?
    Jesus identifies
    it as the Holy Spirit:
    Skip Section 3
    John 14:26 ESV
    But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.
    John 16:13 ESV
    When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come.
    Done Skip 3
    The Holy Spirit teaches us.
    The anointing = The Holy Spirit.
    Remember that
    it is exposure to truth
    about God’s character
    that leads to love.
    But how can we
    learn about God’s character
    not be confused by
    many false teachings?
    The Spirit guides us.
    Those who are sincere
    will hear His voice.
    Skip section 4
    God is always
    working to reveal Himself
    even to those in darkness.
    Romans 1:18–21 ESV
    For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened.
    There will be many
    who are saved
    that have never heard
    the name of Jesus.
    They will be judged upon
    how to responded to
    the working of the Spirit
    on their soul.
    Everyone has had
    some expose to truth
    because of nature and creation.
    What did they
    do with the little bit
    Spirit and truth they had?
    This decides their destiny.
    Done skip 4
    There’s a foundational idea
    in psychology called
    attachment theory.
    It says that
    the way a child bonds—
    or fails to bond—
    with their caregiver shapes
    how they relate to people
    for the rest of their life.
    (not perfect)
    If a child experiences
    secure attachment—
    meaning they’re
    loved,
    comforted, and
    responded to consistently—
    they grow up with
    a deep sense of safety.
    They know how to trust.
    But if that love is
    unreliable or absent,
    it can leave a person feeling
    insecure,
    anxious, or
    withdrawn.
    The child may grow up asking,
    Can I really depend on anyone?
    Now pause for a moment…
    and think of how many people
    are walking through life
    with that question
    lingering in their soul:
    Can I really trust that
    someone will love me,
    no matter what?
    Will they stay?
    Will they care?
    The beauty of the gospel:
    God offers us the
    ultimate secure attachment.
    He doesn’t flinch
    when we fail.
    He doesn’t ghost us
    when we’re messy.
    He doesn’t withdraw His love
    when we disappoint Him.
    2 Timothy 2:13 ESV
    if we are faithless, he remains faithful— for he cannot deny himself.
    God’s love is not anxious.
    It’s not distant.
    It’s not based on
    our performance.
    It’s steady.
    It’s reliable.
    It’s secure.
    And when we truly begin
    to attach your soul to that love…
    it changes how we see everything.
    We stop hustling for approval.
    We stop fearing abandonment.
    We begin to rest
    in the arms of a Father
    who isn’t going anywhere.
    That is love
    That is Abiding Love.

    Abide in Him

    1 John 2:27 ESV
    But the anointing that you received from him abides in you, and you have no need that anyone should teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about everything, and is true, and is no lie—just as it has taught you, abide in him.
    Live like you learn.

    Appeal

    Let truth abide.
    Let anointing abide.
    As you do,
    You will abide
    in Christ.
    Some of the greatest hymns weren’t written in triumph—they were written in the ashes. One of them is called “O Love That Will Not Let Me Go.” It was written by a Scottish pastor named George Matheson. He was brilliant. He was on track for a successful ministry and engaged to be married. But life took a hard turn.
    In his twenties, Matheson began going blind. Eventually, he lost his sight completely. When he told his fiancée, she broke off the engagement. She didn’t want to live with a blind man. He was crushed. Rejected. Alone. But years later, on the night of his sister’s wedding—watching her step into the joy he once dreamed of—George sat down, overwhelmed by emotion… and wrote a hymn in just five minutes. He said it came to him “like a voice from heaven.”
    Listen to the first line: “O Love that will not let me go, I rest my weary soul in Thee…”
    Do you hear it? This wasn’t a love that disappoints. Not a love that abandons. Not a love that depends on your ability or your condition. It’s the love of God—unshakable, unconditional, unstoppable.
    George Matheson may have lost his vision… but he saw something most of us miss: That God’s love isn’t fragile. It doesn’t break when life does. When human love lets you down, there’s still a deeper Love that will never let you go. That’s the love that carried him—and it’s the same love that carries you.

      • 1 John 2:24NKJV

      • Romans 10:14–15NKJV

      • 1 John 2:24NKJV

      • 1 John 2:24NKJV

      • Revelation 2:4NKJV

      • Genesis 3:4–5NKJV

      • 1 John 2:25NKJV

      • John 11:25–26NKJV

      • 1 John 2:26NKJV

      • 1 John 2:27NKJV

      • 1 John 2:27NKJV

      • John 14:26NKJV

      • John 16:13NKJV

      • Romans 1:18–21NKJV

      • 2 Timothy 2:13NKJV

      • 1 John 2:27NKJV

  • O Love That Wilt Not Let Me Go

      • Colossians 4:6NKJV

      • Colossians 3:18–19NKJV

      • Ephesians 5:21–25NKJV

      • Ephesians 5:33NKJV

      • 1 Corinthians 7:3–4NKJV

      • Romans 13:1–4NKJV

      • 1 Peter 2:14NKJV

      • Colossians 3:20–21NKJV

      • Colossians 3:20–22NKJV

      • Ephesians 6:5NKJV

      • Colossians 3:22–25NKJV

      • Colossians 4:1NKJV

      • Colossians 4:2–4NKJV

      • Colossians 1:3–5NKJV

  • Sweet By and By
  • Shall We Gather at the River
  • O When Shall I See Jesus
  • All Glory, Laud, and Honor

      • John 3.16-17NKJV

  • In the first century, the Roman world operated on what was called the patron-client system. Everything—business, politics, relationships—was based on status and reciprocity. You scratched my back, I scratched yours. If you gave a favor, you expected one in return. If someone of lower status asked for help, it was only granted if they could offer loyalty, service, or something valuable in return. Love wasn’t really love—it was transaction.
    So when early Christians started preaching about a God who gives without expecting repayment... it was shocking. A God who blesses the poor? A God who welcomes sinners? A God who dies for people who hate Him? That wasn’t just unusual—it was offensive to Roman sensibilities.
    Today we learn about
    the offensive love of God.

    What You Heard

    1 John 2:24 ESV
    Let what you heard from the beginning abide in you...
    What you heard...
    God is teaching that
    we are transformed by
    not just...
    exposure to truth
    but...
    abiding in truth.
    Exposure to truth
    is very important.
    How can you come to faith..
    How can you build a relationship
    without exposure to knowledge?
    without the truth?
    Romans 10:14–15 ESV
    How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!”
    There are steps
    a clear progression.
    The church equip and sends missionaries.
    The missionaries preach the good news.
    The unbelievers first hear the truth.
    Then, they believe the truth.
    Then, they accept Christ and call out to Him.
    There is no chance of
    being converted to truth
    you have never heard.
    But we often make the mistake
    of believing,
    we hear truth each week
    ....we assume...
    we are converted.
    (not necessarily true).
    Many hear truth
    but are not changed by it.
    John Stott
    'Irresistible' is the word an Iranian student used when telling me of his conversion to Christ. Brought up to read the Qur'an, say his prayers and lead a good life, he nevertheless knew that he was separated from God by his sins. When Christian friends brought him to church and encouraged him to read the Bible, he learnt that Jesus Christ had died for his forgiveness. 'For me the offer was irresistible and heaven-sent,' he said, and he cried to God to have mercy on him through Christ. Almost immediately 'the burden of my past life was lifted. I felt as if a huge weight ... had gone. With the relief and sense of lightness came incredible joy. At last it had happened. I was free of my past. I *knew* that God had forgiven me, and I felt clean. I wanted to shout, and tell everybody.' It was through the cross that the character of God came clearly into focus for him, and that he found Islam's missing dimension, 'the intimate fatherhood of God and the deep assurance of sins forgiven'.
    In order to be
    transformed by the truth
    we must let it
    abide in us.

    Abides In You

    1 John 2:24 ESV
    Let what you heard from the beginning abide in you...
    How do you allow
    a teaching to abide in you.
    We always talk about
    Jesus
    Holy Spirit
    abiding in us.
    That makes sense
    because abiding sounds like
    a relational experience.
    We are allowing the
    relationship with God
    to abide.
    But...
    Here is says to
    allow the teaching
    to abide in us.
    That does not
    sound relational...
    How can we experience
    abiding with intellectual concepts?
    Perhaps if we just
    continue reading the verse
    it will answer our questions.

    Abiding In the Son

    1 John 2:24 ESV
    Let what you heard from the beginning abide in you. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, then you too will abide in the Son and in the Father.
    So it is relational...
    We are are not just
    abiding in theological ideas.
    Spiritual concepts about Christ
    can deepen our relationship with Christ.
    Think about dating someone.
    How do you fall in love.
    I don’t believe in
    love a first sight.
    You fall in love by
    getting to know that person!
    (information).
    Teachings.
    This is why
    baptismal process
    begins with study and prayer.
    How can you fall
    in love with Jesus?
    (abide in him?)
    You must spend
    time with Jesus.
    We must
    get to know Him!
    How can we
    get to know Him?
    Bible study
    Prayer
    Worship
    Spending Time
    Skip section 1
    By the way,
    same is true
    of those who
    lost their first love.
    In the book of Revelation
    John speaks of people
    just like this:
    Revelation 2:4 ESV
    But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first.
    There may be some
    here today that have
    lost their first love.
    Spiritually,
    you may feel that,
    you are just
    going through the motions.
    How can you
    get the love back?
    Spend more time
    with Jesus.
    If you do,
    you will fall back
    in love with Him.
    Done Skip 1
    His love and character
    are irresistible...
    But you must
    take the time
    to put Him first.
    In the midst of one of the darkest places in history—Auschwitz, the Nazi death camp—there lived a flicker of divine love. His name was Maximilian Kolbe. He was a Polish Catholic priest, imprisoned for sheltering Jews and standing against the Nazis. But what made him unforgettable wasn’t just that he suffered in that place—it was how he responded to suffering. One day, a prisoner escaped. And as punishment, the guards selected ten random men to be starved to death. One of the chosen men cried out, “My wife! My children!”
    And that's when Kolbe stepped forward. He wasn’t called. He wasn’t chosen. He volunteered. He said, “I am a Catholic priest. Let me take his place. I am old. He has a wife and children.”
    Amazingly, the guards agreed. Kolbe was thrown into a starvation cell with the others. And for two weeks, instead of screaming or despair, the guards heard singing, prayers, hymns. Kolbe led the men as they died, one by one. He was the last to survive, and eventually was killed by lethal injection. The man he saved—Franciszek Gajowniczek—lived. He returned home. He was reunited with his wife and children. And for the rest of his life, he told people about the man who died in his place.
    This is love.
    This is Christ.
    Drink it in...
    You will love Him back.
    You will abide in Him.
    Skip Section 2

    The Fall

    The fall of Eve
    illustrates this truth clearly.
    Satan said:
    Genesis 3:4–5 ESV
    But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
    What is Satan doing?
    Calling God a liar.
    Distrust God.
    God is withholding good things.
    We can be our own gods.
    We need “other knowledge.”
    Adam and Eve
    loved their creator.
    The began to distrust Him
    when they believe lies
    about His character.
    When truth is distorted,
    God’s character is distorted.
    When God’s character distorted,
    we no longer love Him.
    The Great Controversy
    Hinges upon this!
    The truth about God.
    Telling truth.
    Believing truth.
    Foundation of Life
    And Salvation.
    Remember that,
    Eve was sincere in here deception.
    She believed the Serpent.
    She thought his words
    were the truth!
    Notice,
    her sincerity
    didn’t save her.
    (it did give her a second chance).
    Done Skip 2

    The Promise

    1 John 2:25 ESV
    And this is the promise that he made to us—eternal life.
    Connect with previous verses...
    If you abide in truth
    you abide in Son.
    If you Abide in the Son,
    you get this promise:
    eternal life.
    It is one of the
    laws of the universe.
    Like
    law of gravity
    law of entropy
    moral law.
    This law states:
    Those who abide in Christ live forever!
    In the words of Christ:
    John 11:25–26 ESV
    Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?”
    So???
    Do you believe this?
    (expect strong amen)!
    The story is told of the pioneer days in our country. A man was making his way west when he came to the Missouri River. It was winter and the ice covered the river from bank to bank. But how could the man be sure it would hold his weight? He knew people often drowned in that river when the ice broke. Yet he had to cross. He walked out a little way, then gripped with fear he crawled on his hands and knees. He looked back and saw how far the bank was now behind him and knew he would drown if the ice broke and the frigid water swallowed him up. To spread his weight even more, he lay out flat on his belly and slowly drew himself sliding across the river a few inches at time. All of a sudden from behind him he heard whistling. He whipped his head around and there saw a big man, a farmer, walking across the ice leading a team of horses drawing a heavy wooden sleigh full of hay. He was smiling and whistling and tipped his hat. The timid man stood and brushed off the ice crystals and managed a sheepish smile. That old farmer had crossed the ice many times and knew it could be trusted.

    Deception

    1 John 2:26 ESV
    I write these things to you about those who are trying to deceive you.
    In the pervious sermon,
    we learned about heresy
    of gnosticism.
    Part of that belief system
    the idea that Jesus
    never became human.
    We experience Christ
    first though knowledge of truth.
    Then we fall in love with Him
    and we abide in Him.
    Satan knows that he
    can short-circuit this plan
    by presenting falsehood.
    The truth show us...
    the amazingly attractive
    character of Jesus Christ.
    Falsehood and Heresy are simple.
    The distort
    the Character of God.
    When you know
    the character of God
    Gnosticism is easy to spot
    it destroys God’s character.
    In the 1800s, there was a remote Hawaiian island called Molokai, used as a leper colony. It was a place of isolation, despair, and death. Those sent there were considered untouchable, rejected by society—and frankly, forgotten.
    But there was one man who refused to forget. His name was Father Damien. He was a Catholic priest from Belgium. And when he heard about Molokai, he didn’t just send prayers or resources. He volunteered to go. He sailed to the island, knowing full well that leprosy was contagious and often fatal.
    He didn’t wear gloves. He didn’t keep his distance. He lived among the people. He embraced them, built homes, dug graves, bandaged wounds, held dying hands. And eventually, he caught leprosy himself. He became what they were—not by accident, but by love. Before he died, he would begin his sermons with a simple, devastating phrase: “We lepers...” He no longer said “you.” He said “we."
    That is what Jesus did for us. He didn’t save us from a distance. He moved in. John 1:14 says, “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.” He didn’t stay in heaven and shout instructions. He came to where we are. He lived in our brokenness. He touched the untouchable. He bore our disease—our sin. And like Father Damien, He died not just beside us... but as one of us.

    The Anointing Abides in You

    1 John 2:27 ESV
    But the anointing that you received from him abides in you...
    First:
    Truth abides in you.
    Next:
    We abide in Christ.
    Now:
    anointing abides in us.
    Who is doing the action?
    Are we doing the abiding?
    Or receiving the abiding?
    It is actually both...
    May I suggest that,
    we cannot abide
    in truth
    in Christ
    unless we allow
    the truth
    the anointing
    to abide in us.
    We can’t have active experience
    “We abide”.
    With out the passive experience
    “We are the object that receive abiding.”
    In other words,
    the pressure is not
    on us to perform!
    Have you ever watched a mother with her newborn? There's something sacred in that connection. Even before a baby understands language, before it can return affection or say “thank you,” a mother pours out care—waking at all hours, feeding, holding, soothing. And science has discovered something fascinating behind that love. It’s a hormone called oxytocin—sometimes nicknamed the “love hormone.”
    Oxytocin is released in high amounts during childbirth and breastfeeding. It creates a strong, emotional bond between mother and child. Even when the baby is crying nonstop, even when she’s exhausted and drained, that biological connection motivates her to stay. The baby hasn’t earned it. The baby can’t repay it. And yet the love is there—overflowing, relentless.
    That’s just a shadow of the way God loves us. Isaiah 49:15 says, “Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you!” Even stronger than a mother’s bond, God’s love isn’t triggered by hormones. It’s rooted in His very nature. It’s who He is.
    He doesn’t love us because we’re good. He doesn’t stay because we behave. He loves us because He chose to—and He never forgets. In a world where love is often transactional, God’s love is one-sided, initiating, and sustaining.
    All that we have to do,
    is abide…
    Abide in that love.

    The Anointing Teaches You

    1 John 2:27 ESV
    But the anointing that you received from him abides in you, and you have no need that anyone should teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about everything, and is true, and is no lie...
    What exactly is this
    anointing that teaches us?
    Jesus identifies
    it as the Holy Spirit:
    Skip Section 3
    John 14:26 ESV
    But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.
    John 16:13 ESV
    When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come.
    Done Skip 3
    The Holy Spirit teaches us.
    The anointing = The Holy Spirit.
    Remember that
    it is exposure to truth
    about God’s character
    that leads to love.
    But how can we
    learn about God’s character
    not be confused by
    many false teachings?
    The Spirit guides us.
    Those who are sincere
    will hear His voice.
    Skip section 4
    God is always
    working to reveal Himself
    even to those in darkness.
    Romans 1:18–21 ESV
    For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened.
    There will be many
    who are saved
    that have never heard
    the name of Jesus.
    They will be judged upon
    how to responded to
    the working of the Spirit
    on their soul.
    Everyone has had
    some expose to truth
    because of nature and creation.
    What did they
    do with the little bit
    Spirit and truth they had?
    This decides their destiny.
    Done skip 4
    There’s a foundational idea
    in psychology called
    attachment theory.
    It says that
    the way a child bonds—
    or fails to bond—
    with their caregiver shapes
    how they relate to people
    for the rest of their life.
    (not perfect)
    If a child experiences
    secure attachment—
    meaning they’re
    loved,
    comforted, and
    responded to consistently—
    they grow up with
    a deep sense of safety.
    They know how to trust.
    But if that love is
    unreliable or absent,
    it can leave a person feeling
    insecure,
    anxious, or
    withdrawn.
    The child may grow up asking,
    Can I really depend on anyone?
    Now pause for a moment…
    and think of how many people
    are walking through life
    with that question
    lingering in their soul:
    Can I really trust that
    someone will love me,
    no matter what?
    Will they stay?
    Will they care?
    The beauty of the gospel:
    God offers us the
    ultimate secure attachment.
    He doesn’t flinch
    when we fail.
    He doesn’t ghost us
    when we’re messy.
    He doesn’t withdraw His love
    when we disappoint Him.
    2 Timothy 2:13 ESV
    if we are faithless, he remains faithful— for he cannot deny himself.
    God’s love is not anxious.
    It’s not distant.
    It’s not based on
    our performance.
    It’s steady.
    It’s reliable.
    It’s secure.
    And when we truly begin
    to attach your soul to that love…
    it changes how we see everything.
    We stop hustling for approval.
    We stop fearing abandonment.
    We begin to rest
    in the arms of a Father
    who isn’t going anywhere.
    That is love
    That is Abiding Love.

    Abide in Him

    1 John 2:27 ESV
    But the anointing that you received from him abides in you, and you have no need that anyone should teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about everything, and is true, and is no lie—just as it has taught you, abide in him.
    Live like you learn.

    Appeal

    Let truth abide.
    Let anointing abide.
    As you do,
    You will abide
    in Christ.
    Some of the greatest hymns weren’t written in triumph—they were written in the ashes. One of them is called “O Love That Will Not Let Me Go.” It was written by a Scottish pastor named George Matheson. He was brilliant. He was on track for a successful ministry and engaged to be married. But life took a hard turn.
    In his twenties, Matheson began going blind. Eventually, he lost his sight completely. When he told his fiancée, she broke off the engagement. She didn’t want to live with a blind man. He was crushed. Rejected. Alone. But years later, on the night of his sister’s wedding—watching her step into the joy he once dreamed of—George sat down, overwhelmed by emotion… and wrote a hymn in just five minutes. He said it came to him “like a voice from heaven.”
    Listen to the first line: “O Love that will not let me go, I rest my weary soul in Thee…”
    Do you hear it? This wasn’t a love that disappoints. Not a love that abandons. Not a love that depends on your ability or your condition. It’s the love of God—unshakable, unconditional, unstoppable.
    George Matheson may have lost his vision… but he saw something most of us miss: That God’s love isn’t fragile. It doesn’t break when life does. When human love lets you down, there’s still a deeper Love that will never let you go. That’s the love that carried him—and it’s the same love that carries you.

      • 1 John 2:24NKJV

      • Romans 10:14–15NKJV

      • 1 John 2:24NKJV

      • 1 John 2:24NKJV

      • Revelation 2:4NKJV

      • Genesis 3:4–5NKJV

      • 1 John 2:25NKJV

      • John 11:25–26NKJV

      • 1 John 2:26NKJV

      • 1 John 2:27NKJV

      • 1 John 2:27NKJV

      • John 14:26NKJV

      • John 16:13NKJV

      • Romans 1:18–21NKJV

      • 2 Timothy 2:13NKJV

      • 1 John 2:27NKJV

  • O Love That Wilt Not Let Me Go
  • When I am Afraid
  • Risen For Me
  • He Lives Again
  • Shining Brightly
  • Building Zion
  • Anytime, Anywhere
Auburn SDA Church
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