IN JESUS WE OVERCOME THE WORLD


1 John 5:1-21
Key Verse: 5:5

     "Who is it that overcomes the world? Only he who believes that Jesus
is the Son of God."


     In 1 John 5, St. John teaches us how to overcome the world. Those who live
with a sense of defeatism are most sorrowful, whether they are noble or ordinary.
Surely, in Jesus we must overcome the world. In actuality, 1 John 5 is the
conclusion and summary of the Epistle of 1 John. If we love God, we have to
believe Jesus is the Son of God, keep his commands, pray for others, and avoid
idols. It is good to review the contents. May God richly bless you and help you
remember all the life-giving words from this chapter. I pray that God may grant
you faith that overcomes the world in this semester.

First, in the name of Jesus, we overcome the world (1).

     Look at verse 1. "Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born
of God,and everyone who loves the father loves his child as well." This verse
says that everyone who believes that Jeus is the Christ is a child of God or born
of God. To believe that Jesus is the Son of God is to believe that God sent his
one and only Son Jesus Christ to this world and made him humble as a servant.
While on earth, the Son preached the good news of salvation and healed the sick.
Finally, he became the atoning sacrifice for the sin of the world, shedding his
blood on the cross. Because we believe that Jesus is the Son of God, we love God
more than silver or gold. And we love the children of God dearly, so dearly. God
might have chosen someone else if he could. But all human beings are sin-stained.
God could not but choose his one and only Son, who is sinless, as the atoning
sacrifice. Those who realize this love of God are children of God. Here we learn
that true victory does not belong to man's physical body. True victory belongs
to our souls.

     As we studied, "born of God," has deep meaning in it. These born of God are
children of God. Those who are not born of God are children of the devil. We need
Jesus because of the devil. The devil's main work is to plant the diseases of
doubt in the hearts of ordinary people and make everybody sick with sin, and
suffer. The devils were originally God's right-hand men. But they became proud
and the adversaries of God. Jude verse 6 says, "And the angels who did not keep
their positions of authority but abandoned their own home--these he has kept in
darkness, bound with everlasting chains for judgment on the great Day." When they
rebelled against God, they became like horrible animals. The devil wants to make
as many men as possible brutal animals. Praise and thank God that we are children
of God through our Lord Jesus Christ. He became the atoning sacrifice who shed
his blood to take away our sins and all our iniquities and transgressions. God
is our Father, and we are his beloved children. There is no doubt about it. This
is the Biblical fact. We also love God's children.

     There are two persons who said, "I have overcome the world." One is Jesus.
In order to become the atoning sacrifice on the cross, shedding his blood, Jesus
had to go through much suffering and the crucifixion. But Jesus encouraged his
disciples, saying, "I have overcome the world." John 16:33 says, "I have told you
these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have
trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." The other is St. Paul. St.
Paul was very old. He poured out his life as a drink offering. But he did not
say, "I am tired and sorrowful." Paul said in 2 Timothy 4:7-8a, "I have fought
the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith, Now there is in
store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge,
will award to me on that day..." Here, Paul's testimony is his confidence that
he won victory over the world; he is about to pass away, and at the same time,
he is standing to be crowned  with the crown of righteousness. This story sounds
very common to us. But it is not common at all. It may be the unique testimony
of victory in Jesus. In Jesus, Paul was the one who overcame the world.
Missionary Moses ovecame many obstacles of life in Jesus and had victory in
Jesus. His character is his faithfulness. He is becoming old. But he is like a
little child in his learning mind. He became a tennis player in his old age. He
looked like a young man when he played a volley ball yesterday. Through his life
of faith Shep. Tony Morekre was changed into a child of God. Tony was a captain
of B team and is growing in faith.
He overcame the world that treated him as a nobody and became a very important
person. He even moved one woman of faith's heart in Jesus.
 
Second, the secret of overcoming the world (2-5).

     First of all, in order to be the children of God, we must know how to thank
God (Ro 1:21). Those who thank God overcome the world. That's the evidence that
we are  born of God. In the world, the most difficult thing is to thank God or
to thank one's wife or parents. Many people want God's blessing. They live
according to God's promises. God blesses them. Then they forget God's grace
completely. They become their own man by saying, "I want to do what I like to do.
Nobody bothers me now." In the end they become useless in the sight of God. But
the most important thing is that we should not forget to thank God in all
circumstances. One time, St. Paul went to Philippi and preached the gospel of
salvation. Many were converted. Among them, a fortune-teller was also converted.
The owner felt he could not make money through the fortune-teller anymore. He put
Paul and Silas in prison. After being beaten much and put in prison, humanly
speaking, Paul and Silas could not thank God. But Acts 16:25 says, "About
midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other
prisoners were listening to them." This verse tells us that Paul and Silas were
full of thanks, suffering for the sake of Jesus' name. But since Adam's fall, sin
came into mankind. Sin makes man unthankful. When we study Romans chapter 1, the
root cause of all human problems is people's unthankful mind and not recognizing
God as God. If we do not thank God, we become unthankful people. Unthankful
people become all kinds of evil people (Ro. 1:22-31).

     The love of God overflows in the hearts of the children of God. With the
love of God, we care for the children of God, for the love of Christ compells us
(2 Co 5:14), not because we have leisure time, but because we are compelled by
the love of God to take care of God's flock of sheep. I saw three Shep. Steve's
sheep joined our sport koinoia. I thought about why many sheep are flocking
around him. I realized that he took care of their problems like his own. He was
pouring out his love for them ranging from homeworks to choosing majors and
future directions. He spent a lot of time with them though he has many things to
do because he has the love of God in his heart.

     We are living in a materialistic society. American dollars look mighty. In
America, time is money. Therfore, to love others through one to one Bible study
seems to be impossible. But St. John says it is not burdensome when we have the
love of God in our hearts. Look at verse 3. "This is love for God; to obey his
commands. And his commands are not burdensome....." These days people are
indifferent and selfish and clever in pragmatic inrtigues for instant benefit.
How can we give our time, which is life itself? We can give our time for others
because we are born of God and we are children of God. and we keep his command
because we love God.

Third, losers, to be condemned.

     We know that even in the 100 meter track race there is a victor and a
loser. We also know there is an ultimate final victor and loser of life. It is
a solemn fact that God has given each person one life. In retrospect, history
tells us that all the conquerors and worldly heroes won the battles or wars of
the world, but they all died in the dep realization of their defeats in their
lives in the world. When we think about world famous conquerors, we naturally
remember Julius Caesar. He thought he conquered his part of the world . But he
was stabbed in the back by Brutus. Then Caesar said, "You, too, Brutus?" It
meant, "You defeated me, my most loyal subject." Joseph Stalin, even if he is
named after New Testament Joseph, did not believe that Jesus is the Son of God.
He colonized 16 neighbor countries and made them speak only Russian. Only five
million Jews were forbidden to learn Russian to isolate them. In spite of his
achievements and power, they say that he suffered from "Hitler phobia," thinking
that Hitler was the contemporary Napolean Bonaparte. Stalin lived in an
underground tunnel for 30 years and died soon after World War II. Mark Twain was
a writer so popular that elementary school kids wanted to be writers like Mark
Twain, not president. But he died after saying the most sorrowful words, "It
might have been." It means, "If I live one more time, I would live a better
life." Many tried to find one who said, "I have overcome the world," or "The
crown of righteousness is before me." But they all died in defeat or defeatism.
Many people try to achieve something, looking for a shortcut for their success
and wealth. Some people try hard to maintain their world. But in the end they
become losers of life because they did not have any eternal hope. 

     We know Leo Tolstoy (1828-1910), who wrote "War and Peace," "Anna
Karenina," and "Resurrection." He is indeed the outstanding genius in literature.
Ordinary men don't even understand their wife's charater. A brilliant young man
who is handsome does not know the beauty of a woman. He evaluated Maria in "The
Sound of Music," a woman of charm and beauty, as a selfish woman. But in his
novel, "War and Peace," Tolstoy described 383 different people's characters so
precisely. We can say he is 383 times more a man of insight than ordinary people.
Many a person does not even know what kind of person he himself is. Tolstoy
became a Christian of his own kind. He wrote many beautiful novels. He had a
sense of God's majesty in his religiosity and enhanced the moral standard  of
chaotic Russian people based on the Sermon on the Mount. But he felt superior.
Then he became proud. Finally, he did not believe that Jesus is the Son of God.
As a result, he could not accept God's gift, Jesus Christ, and eternal life
through his Son and the kingdom of God as his inheritance. So he could not thank
God at his death. Contrary to his writing, he is known as the one who died with
the most tragic hallucination.

     Look at verse 5. "Who is it that overcomes the world? Only he who believes
that Jesus is the Son of God." A true victor is only he who believes that Jesus
is the Son of God. Why is it so? In history, there were many people who perceived
that there is a spiritual world and God Almighty. But because they did not know
Jesus, they made all kinds of idols and worshiped them. In history, the number
of idols made by men is in the multi-billions. When Apostle Paul went to Athens,
he found the city of Athens was filled with idols, all kinds of idols. Each had
its own kind of name. There were innumerable nameless idols, too.(Ac. 17:23).
Since the world was made, mankind lived on earth seeking God the Almighty as if
they were looking for a mom to help them.

     True victors are those who overcome the world by believing that Jesus is
the Son of God, not idols. It is because God sent his one and only Son to this
world and made him an atoning sacrifice for our sins. As a result, he rescued us
from the power of darkness and Satan and brought us into the marvelous light of
Jesus who teaches us the way and the truth and the life (Jn 14:6). Those who
believe in Jesus have true victories in their lives and they are those who
overcome the world. They are those who are prepared to  be crowned, because they
believed that Jesus is the Son of God.

Fourth, Jesus gives eternal life (6-12).

     Why is it so important that we believe Jesus is the Son of God? Look at
verses 11-12. "And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this
life is in his Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of
God does not have life." It is important to believe that Jesus is the Son of God,
because only through the Son we have eternal life. Men are like grass and all
their glory is like the flowers of the field. The grass withers and the flowers
fall, but the word of the Lord stands forever (1Pe 1:24,25).

     Many think that death is the end of everything. So they say, "Let us eat
and drink, for tomorrow we die" (1Cor 15:32b). Some people think that eternal
life is only the matter after death. But this is not true. Eternal life starts
at present. John 5:24 says, "I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and
believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has
crossed over from death to life." This verse explains that when we received
eternal life through his Son Jesus Christ, we crossed over from death to life and
it is the past event. We have eternal life at the present. Eternal life starts
the moment we accept Jesus as our personal Savior. The Spirit of Jesus gives us
new life everyday. The Spirit of Jesus gives us a new day and a new wife, even
though she is the same wife. For those who have eternal life, everything is new
every day. Those who have eternal life can see the kingdom of God and can enter
the kingdom of God. Ordinary people's agony is what will be the reward of their
lifetime work. Those who do not believe in Jesus have no reward. They must stand
at the judgement seat of God to be condemned. 2 Corinthians 5:10 says, "For we
must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive
what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad."
After judgment, they are put into eternal punishment (Rev 21:8). In this world,
the most foolish thing is being unthankful to God in spite of the fact that God
gave his Son at the atoning sacrifice so that those who believe in him will not
perish but have eternal life.

Fifth, we can talk to Jesus about everything in our hearts (13-21).

     In the past, we were all like Cain, who was greatly distressed to be around
God, even if he had to bear the sense of punishment and guilt and wander around
the world without any meaning of life. But through Jesus Christ, the atoning
sacrifice, we have access to God (Ro 5:2). We can freely approach God. We can ask
anything in Jesus' name (Mk 11:24). Then he hears us. And we can have great
confidence that he will guide us and lead us and be with us as long as we are in
this world as pilgrims. Look at verses 14-15. "This is the confidence we have in
approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And
if we know that he hears us--whatever we ask--we know that we have what we asked
of him." How wonderful it is that our Shepherd Jesus is our best friend to whom
we can tell everything. Those who love God must pray constantly. There was a
story about one minister. One day this minister who was fruitless in his ministry
told his wife, "I cannot go on like this any more as a minister. It is better for
me to find another job." His wife told him, "Do as you wanted. But do me a favor.
Will you pray for an hour every morning for a while?" The minister listened to
his wife's suggestion and got up early in the morning overcoming his sleepiness
and prayed for a hour. It was very difficult for him to pray for an hour because
he used to pray only for 10 minutes. He thought about quitting after 10 minutes.
But he remembered his wife's earnest request and prayed for an hour. Several days
passed. He began to pray for church elders and Bible teachers and all coworkers
one by one. God opened his spiritual eyes and he began to love God's flocks. He
began to pray for his neighbors. Then suddenly the whole town was revived through
their prayers and his ministry became very successful. 
When I examined Missionary David Chung's spiritual life, I see the importance of
his mother's prayer. God's people are praying people. I was happy when Missionary
Anna Seo called to look for Missionary Esther to go to center for early morning
prayer.

     There are two kinds of sins (16). One is unforgivable. The other is
forgivable. All other sins are forgivable, but those who deny that Jesus is the
Son of God are unforgivable, because they are born of the devil. In other words,
those who believe Jesus in their minds only, and do not practice anything, are
all unforgivable sinners. Those who are born of God do not continue to sin, and
they also keep themselves safe from evil and harm because God gives them
understanding (18-20).

     Look at verse 21. As his final words, St. John says, "Dear children, keep
yourselves from idols." Here, those who do not believe that Jesus is the Son of
God are all idol-worshipers. There is no "my own man" in the kingdom of God. They
are all precious children of God. Here we learn that Gnostics are liars, and
contemporary intellectual hedonists. John 8:44 tells us that the devil is a liar
from the beginning, and liars are murderers.

     Let's believe that Jesus is the perfect God and perfect man and that he is
the Son of God. In him we have eternal life and the crown of righteousness. May
God bless you to stand before the Son of God to be crowned gloriously as victors.
Let's read the key verse 5.