Sermon Outline: 1 John 1:1-4

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1st John 1:1-4
When we Experience Jesus
Pastor Jason Stewart
I.      Introduction:
a.    What does it mean to “Experience” Jesus?
b.    According to the dictionary, the word “experience” means to have: “Practical contact with and observation of facts or events. An event or occurrence that leaves an impression on someone.  Have you experienced Jesus in this manner? And if so, what type of observable changes and impressions have taken place in your life?

II.     Revelation: Experiencing Jesus
a.    Experience from the Beginning (1:1a)
                                               i.     This is a very similar introductory statement in John’s epistle as he used in his gospel. “In the Beginning was the Word and the Word was with God...” (John 1:1).
                                             ii.     John is referring to Jesus’ preexistence with the Father before He began His work in creation.
                                            iii.     In his epistle, John is probably referring to “the beginning” of the Gospel, and their relationship with Jesus. The reason we can assume this is because of how this phrase is used in John’s epistle.
1.    1 John 2:7 “the old commandment”
2.    1 John 2:13-14 “they have known Jesus from the beginning” of His earthly ministry.
3.    1 John 2:24 “let their faith in Christ abide in them” as it did “from the beginning” when they first met Him.
                                            iv.     We can conclude from looking at the entire epistle, that “from the beginning” is more than likely referring to the beginning of Jesus’ earthly ministry.
b.    Experiencing the Evidence (1:1b-3)
                                               i.     They Heard Jesus (v.1)
                                             ii.     They Saw Jesus (v.1)
                                            iii.     They Looked Upon Jesus (v.1)
1.    There are two different Greek words that are used for visually seeing Jesus.
a.    Saw “horao” – This refers to an eyewitness account.
b.    Looked upon “theaomai” – This indicates that they couldn’t keep their eyes off of Jesus.
                                            iv.     They Touched Jesus (v.1)
                                             v.     They Bare witness (v.2)
1.    This Greek word is martyreo which means “witness, or testimony” and also is used to describe one who gives his or her life for their faith in Jesus.
                                            vi.     They received Eternal Life (v.2)
                                          vii.     They have Fellowship with God (v.3)
c.     Experiencing the Joy (1:4)
                                               i.     Because they have experienced Jesus, and have received eternal life, the result is that they will receive the fullness of “joy”.

III.   Application: When we Experience Jesus
a.    What is your “from the beginning” experience with Jesus?
                                               i.     When God brings you out of spiritual darkness into His miraculous light (1 Peter 2:9), and He forgives you for your sins (1 Jn. 1:9) and pours out His love into your heart through the Holy Spirit (Rom. 5:5), you will always remember that “from the beginning” moment, won’t you?
b.    What is the Evidence in your life that you have experienced Jesus in your life? Because the Bible tells us that as believers we will have experiential knowledge of Jesus in our lives.
                                               i.     Just as the Apostles have heard, and saw, and touched Jesus physically, so too, will the child of God experience these things spiritually. The child of God will have heard Jesus’ still small voice, seen Jesus through the eyes of his or her heart, studied Jesus from within their heart and mind through reading and meditating upon God’s Word, and been touched by Jesus in their heart and soul, because of these events.
                                             ii.     Did you know that God wants to give you that evidence? That is so encouraging when you think about it. God wants to give you that evidence! God wants to give you evidence, even today that He is with you.
c.     One of the benefits of experiencing Jesus in your life will be that you will experience Joy.
                                               i.     We see in (v.4) that “When we Experience Jesus” and have a right relationship with Him, we will experience the fullness of joy.
                                             ii.     John is telling us that the amazing results of living life with Jesus, and being fully devoted to Him, is that we will experience the fullness of Joy in our lives. But in order to experience this joy that is promised to us, we have to let Him in and begin doing life with Him, by being in His word and obeying what it says.

IV.      Conclusion:
a.    This morning we have talked about what it means to experience Jesus in our lives. I know that for some of you this is a new concept, while for others it is not a new idea.
b.    But right here in chapter one of first John we see that John had a living and experiential relationship with Jesus, and just as Peter says in his epistle to those believers who came to faith after Jesus ascended back up to heaven. Peter said, “though we haven’t seen Jesus with our eyes, we still know Him and we love Him” (1 Peter 1:8).
c.     And if we know Him and love Him, then we must spend time with Him. And the way that we spend time with Jesus is first and foremost through His word, and through fellowship with each other.



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