Truth

Ephesians 1:11-14 - In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, in order that we, who were the first to hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory. And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession—to the praise of his glory.

Colossians 1:3-6 - We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, because we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love you have for all the saints—the faith and love that spring from the hope that is stored up for you in heaven and that you have already heard about in the word of truth, the gospel that has come to you. All over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing, just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God's grace in all its truth.

Ephesians 4:30 - And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.

John 14:16-17 - And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever—the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you.

Application:

· Does the word of truth (the gospel) give me a firm assurance (hope)?
· Why do I grieve the Holy Spirit, who has sealed me for the day of redemption?
· Does the Holy Spirit stand by me?
· Does the Holy Spirit bring me to the truth of God?

All Scripture verses taken from NIV

Overcomes...Has Overcome

1 John 5:3-6 - This is love for God: to obey his commands. And his commands are not burdensome, for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world? Only he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God. This is the one who came by water and blood—Jesus Christ. He did not come by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth.

John 14:16-17 - And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever—the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you.

1 John 1:3 - We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ.

1 John 2:2,27 - He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world…As for you, the anointing you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit—just as it has taught you, remain in him.

1 Corinthians 12:3 - Therefore I tell you that no one who is speaking by the Spirit of God says, "Jesus be cursed," and no one can say, "Jesus is Lord," except by the Holy Spirit.

Conclusions:

• To overcome the world is to gain victory over its sinful pattern of life, which is another way of describing obedience to God
• Such obedience is not impossible for the believer because he has been born again and the Holy Spirit dwells within him and gives him strength
• The one born of God by faith is enabled by the Holy Spirit to obey
• The Spirit brings people to the truth of God
• Fellowship is the spiritual union of the believer with Christ—as described in the figures of the vine and branches and the body and the head –as well as communion with the Father and with fellow believers
• God, out of love, sent His Son to make substitutionary atonement for the believer’s sin
• The Holy Spirit teaches you all things necessary to know for salvation and Christian living
• One who is regenerated by the Holy Spirit cannot pronounce a curse on Jesus; rather, he is the only one who from the heart can confess Jesus as Lord
• The teaching ministry of the Holy Spirit does not involve revelation of new truth or the explanation of all difficult passages of Scripture to our satisfaction
• God’s holiness demands punishment for man’s sin
• Forgiveness must be received by faith
• The world takes no notice of the Spirit of God

Application:

• Does the Holy Spirit dwell within you?
• Do you obey His commands?
• Does the Holy Spirit live with you?
• Do you have spiritual union with Christ?
• Has God's wrath been turned from you?
• Have you received the anointing of the Holy Spirit?
• Can you say Jesus is Lord?

All Scripture verses taken from NIV

Conclusions derived from NIV Study Bible

Anointing

1 John 2:19-20,27 - They went out from us, but they did not really belong to us. For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us; but their going showed that none of them belonged to us. But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth…As for you, the anointing you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit—just as it has taught you, remain in him.

Jeremiah 31:34 - No longer will a man teach his neighbor, or a man his brother, saying, 'Know the LORD,' because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest," declares the LORD. "For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more."

John 14:26 - But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.

Acts 2:26-27 - Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will live in hope, because you will not abandon me to the grave, nor will you let your Holy One see decay.

Acts 22:14 - "Then he said: 'The God of our fathers has chosen you to know his will and to see the Righteous One and to hear words from his mouth.

Conclusions:

• Since the Bible constantly advocates teaching, John is not ruling out human teachers
• At the time when John wrote, Gnostic teachers were insisting that the teaching of the apostles was to be supplemented with the higher knowledge that the Gnostics claimed to posses
• John’s response was that what the readers were taught under the Spirit’s ministry through the apostles not only was adequate but was the only reliable truth
• The teaching ministry of the Holy Spirit does not involve revelation of new truth or the explanation of all difficult passages of Scripture to our satisfaction
• The teaching ministry of the Holy Spirit is the development of the capacity to appreciate and appropriate God’s truth already revealed—making the Bible meaningful in thought and daily living
• “All things” are all things necessary to know for salvation and Christian living
• When the Lord has done His new work, there will no longer be among His people those who are ignorant of Him and His will for human lives
• True knowledge of the Lord will be shared by all—young and old, the peasant and the powerful
• Know the Lord refers to experiencing the Lord, not knowledge of the Lord
• The Holy Spirit is the Counselor’s normal title in the New Testament emphasizing His holiness, rather than His power or greatness
• Both the Father and the Son are involved in the sending of the Holy Spirit
• The Holy Spirit “reminding you of everything I have said to you” is crucial for the life of the church—and for the writing of the New Testament
• It was the resurrected Jesus that had convinced Paul of the truth of the gospel and that became the foundation of his theology

Application:

• Do you have the capacity to appreciate God's truth?
• Have you experienced God?
• Does the Holy Spirit teach you and remind you of all things?
• Do you have an anointing from the Holy One?
• Is seeing the resurrected Jesus important to you?

All Scripture verses taken from NIV

Conclusions derived from NIV Study Bible

Word of truth

James 1:18-25 - He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created. My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man's anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires. Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you. Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it—he will be blessed in what he does.

1 Peter 1:23 - For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.

John 8:32 - Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."

James 2:12-13 - Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment!

John 8:34 - Jesus replied, "I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave to sin.

Conclusions:

• The new birth comes about through direct action of the Holy Spirit, but the word of God also plays an important role, for it presents the gospel to the sinner and calls on him to repent and believe in Christ
• The imperishable seed is doubtless the word of God, which is imperishable, living and enduring
• Perfect law is the moral and ethical teaching of Christianity, which is based on the Old Testament moral law, as embodied in the Ten Commandments, but brought to completion by Jesus Christ
• In contrast to the sinner, who is a slave to sin, obeying the moral law gives the Christian the joyous freedom to be what he was created for
• Closely connected with Jesus, the truth is not philosophical truth but the truth that leads to salvation
• The truth will set you free from sin, not ignorance
• The judgment is James 2:12 is not for determining eternal destiny, for James is speaking to believers, whose destiny is already determined
• The judgment in James 2:12 is for giving rewards to believers
• A sinner is a slave to sin because he cannot break free by his own strength

Application:

• Have you been called to repent and believe in Christ?
• Are you being what you have been created for?
• Do you know the truth?
• Do you speak and act based on heavenly rewards?
• Are you a slave to sin?

All Scripture verses from NIV

Conclusions derived from NIV Study Bible