Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Adult Sunday School Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/bb/bb20050220.htm

1 JOHN: DEFEATING MISLEADING SPIRITUAL ERROR TRULY TO COMMUNE WITH GOD
Part VI: Blessings The Mature "Father"Has In His Walk With God
N. The Blessing In Seeing We Have God's Gift To Tell Him From Idols That We Might Cleave To Him
(1 John 5:20-21)
  1. Introduction
    1. True fellowship with God produces a tremendous, multifaceted, spiritually fulfilling lifestyle even on this earth, something John briefly stated in 1 John 1:3-4.
    2. So, having revealed the basic levels of growth, John gave insight into the blessings mature "fathers" enjoy for overcoming a reliance on others (along with the world's lusts) as a "little child" and of overcoming reliance on the world's system and its lusts as a "young man." The fourteenth blessing noted is the edifying realization a "father" has of having been forever given from God's discipling of him the gift to discern the true God from false idols that he might cleave to the true God over idols for lifelong blessings:
  2. The Blessing In Seeing We Have God's Gift To Tell Him From Idols That We Might Cleave To Him.
    1. After addressing the three levels of maturity in 1 John 2:12-27, John began an extensive treatment of the blessings spiritual "fathers" experience as motivation for his readers to mature into spiritual fatherhood.
    2. The fourteenth blessing is the realization a "father" has of having received God's permanent gift to discern the true God from idols so he might avoid false idols to retain God's blessing in his Christian life:
      1. 1 John 5:20a in its extended context reveals mature "fathers" realize (oidamen = absolute knowledge, U. B. S. Grk. N. T., 1966 ed., p. 825; Theol. Dic. of the N. T., vol. V, p. 116-119) that the Son of God is come (present tense, Ibid., U. B. S. Grk. N. T.; Zond. Anal. Grk. Lex. , p. 185).
      2. Also, the Son of God, Jesus Christ has permanently given (dedoken = perfect tense; Ibid., p. 85) to "fathers" the ABILITY to perceive (dianoian, Ibid., T. D. O. T., vol. IV, p. 967) the True God, 1 John 5:20b,e. This ABILITY equips a "father" to distinguish between the True God and "idols," 1 Jn. 5:21!
      3. John related that we believers are positioned in that True God and in His Son, Jesus Christ, 5:20c,d.
      4. In this true God is eternal life, so being in Him provides eternal life, 1 John 5:20e in light of 5:11-12.
      5. In summary, the blessing of which John speaks is a spiritually mature "father's" permanent, God-given capacity gained through his spiritual maturation to discern the true God from even intangible idols of others and the world that exist in the incorrect viewpoints of "little children" and "young men":
        1. We before learned that immature "little children" tend to rely on others in the Church as idols for their spiritual blessing, be they spiritual impostors or even true believers, 1 John 2:18-19.
        2. We also learned that though moderately mature "young men" properly opt to rely on the Holy Spirit and heed God's Word for blessing versus leaning on others, they tend to make idols out of worldly lust fulfillment and worldly possessions for blessing that they should seek only from God, 2:14-17.
        3. Thus, mature "fathers" realize from their VICTORIES OVER what the "little child" and the "young man" face as IDOLS in respectively (a) RELYING ON OTHER PEOPLE (b) or the WORLD and its THINGS and LUSTS FULFILLMENTS that, BESIDES the pagan idols made of man's hands, God has PERMANENTLY given them insight that the respective idols of the MIND that "little children" and "young men" use are EQUALLY evil and need to be AVOIDED for the TRUE God's TRULY FULFILLING blessing in their Christian lives!
    3. Having exposed the truth re: the "fathers'" permanently, God-given gift to discern the True and thus truly fulfilling God versus false, unfulfilling gods, John calls "fathers" to do what they must do for continued blessing: "fathers" should abstain not only from the obvious idols made with pagans' hands, but also from leaning on others or the world, its things and lust fulfillments for God's continue blessing, 1 John 5:21!
Lesson: Mature "fathers" who have overcome the MENTAL idol of leaning on others for blessing that "little children" fail to discern and the MENTAL idol of leaning on the world, its things and lusts for blessing that "young men" fail to discern have the insight from GOD'S work in them ALWAYS to DISCERN these IDOLS so they can KEEP AVOIDING a reliance ON them for CONSTANT blessing.

Application: May we mature into "fatherhood" in Christ to receive this discernment and then APPLY it the REST of our EARTHLY LIVES for fellowship with the ONE and ONLY FULFILLING God!