From the Free Presbyterian Church of Ulster we present Let the Bible Speak. It's good to have you join us today as we spend time around the Word of God, preaching Christ in all his fullness to men and women in all their need. ♪ All our strength be given ♪ ♪ Faith is the victory we know ♪ ♪ That overcomes the world ♪ ♪ Faith is the victory ♪ ♪ Faith is the victory ♪ ♪ Oh glorious victory ♪ with shines of joy. ♪ And grace, O peace, be left behind ♪ ♪ And onward to good faith ♪ ♪ Salvation's trail may not be shared ♪ ♪ With blue or red or white ♪ ♪ The earth shall tremble, neither dry nor wet ♪ Faith is the victory, O glorious victory, that overcomes all. Before the angels we shall look as we confessed in heaven. We'll overcome the hills of black, our hearts with love aflame. And when we show the hopes of life, if Jesus comes, Can welcome you in the Savior's name to our service today. It's lovely to have you along. We trust the Lord will bless you and speak to your heart even as we open the book together. We're going to open in a word of prayer, so let's still our hearts and seek the Lord. Heavenly Father, we thank you for your goodness to us. We bless thee even for the opportunity to gather together today. We thank you, Lord, for your word and for the book. Lord, we bless thee that we can open the book and hear the word of Almighty God. We thank you, Lord, it is the word of faith. We thank you, Lord, that faith is indeed the victory. We can say victory in Jesus, my Savior forever. He sought me and he bought me with his redeeming blood. And we thank you, Lord, for even the gift of faith to your people. We pray that you'll strengthen our faith. Those of us that are saved, we pray that those of us that name the name of Christ will know what it is to depend upon thee for everything. Lord, we know that without faith, it's impossible to please thee. So give us that strong faith, nothing wavering. And Father, we pray for those, Lord, who are not saved. We ask that you will grant them saving faith. Oh, Lord, that you will deal mercifully with them and bountifully with them. Give them that saving faith in Jesus Christ and true repentance, evangelical repentance onto life, that they'll seek to leave the old life behind and seek to live in holiness by God's power. O Lord, we thank you for our Savior. We thank you for the victory which he accomplished upon Calvary. Thank you. He is indeed the captain of our salvation. He faced down all the foes, indeed, the final enemy, death. And we bless thee, Lord, that he conquered all through the shedding of his precious blood. We pray that you'll bless us, help us as we meditate on the word of God. We pray, especially for the Reverend Kenny, that you will fill him with thy Holy Spirit. May he feel great liberty in our midst. And Lord, may he speak with power but in the power and demonstration of the Holy Spirit. So bless our gathering and we pray that you'll take all the glory and all the honor in Jesus' precious name. Amen and amen. We're going to turn in the word of God to the book of 1 John chapter 5, and we'll read the first 10 verses. Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God. And everyone that loveth him that beget loveth him also that is begotten of him. By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and keep his commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments, and his commandments are not grievous. For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world, and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God? This is he that came by water and blood, even Jesus Christ, not by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit that beareth witness, because the Spirit is truth. For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost. And these three are one. And there are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood. And these three agree in one. If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater. For this is the witness of God, which he hath testified of his Son. He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself. He that believeth not God hath made him a liar, because he believeth not the record that God gave of his Son." Amen. And we're certain that the Lord will bless the public reading of his word. We're going to turn to that wonderful hymn, We Never Need Be Vanquished. I'm not afraid where I may live, no waiting for escape, and the best time I save. ♪ In the name of Jesus we shall, we must prevail ♪ ♪ O friends, the world is weeping ♪ ♪ I see him close to me ♪ ♪ The path that the righteous have taken ♪ O where are his foes? He places all his power and people, his resources. of of I'd like to thank the Reverend Leckie for leading the meeting, and it is good to be here at Let the Bible Speak to minister God's precious word. We've been reading from 1 John chapter 5, and I would like to draw to your attention the words of verse 4. And we read there, for whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world. And this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. And in this verse of Scripture, it's speaking to us about overcoming the world. And if we were to think tonight of different verses in the Bible that refer to the world, and I'm sure we would all immediately think of that golden verse in John chapter 3 and the verse 16, and it says, for God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. You may think of another verse with the word world. And of course, the great commission in Mark chapter 16 and the verse 15. And the Lord said, go ye into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. But alongside those verses that make reference to the world, there are other verses containing the word world. For example, in 1 John chapter 2 and the verse 15, it says, love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. And in James chapter 4 and the verse 4, James writes, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? Whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God. And when you think about those verses together, The second two verses almost seem to contradict the first two verses. God so loved the world, and then John says, love not the world. And it would seem almost confusing to us. And our text of Scripture here in 1 John 5 and the verse 4 also makes reference to the world and the need for the believer to overcome the world. In fact, it's the distinguishing mark of the soul that is born again of the Holy Spirit of God, that they will overcome the world. And this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. And so we need tonight to get that victory over the world. But when you think of those references in the Bible to the world, we would need to then establish what the world is before we can overcome that world. And so firstly, I want you to think about the definition of the world. And the truth is that the word world, as it appears in the Word of God, can refer really to three different things. Sometimes when the Bible makes reference to the world, it's speaking about the world as a place, a place. This literal earth upon which we live, this world that the Lord has created, this universe that was made by Him, we refer to the place as the world. But the world, of course, as it appears in the Bible, can also make reference to the people. The world as a people. And really, when you think of that great verse, God so loved the world, it's referring to the people of the world. It's referring to the inhabitants of the world. And so you can see right away that there's the world as a place. the literal world. And then there's a world as a people, the inhabitants of this world. And there's a third way in which the word world is used in the Bible. It speaks to us of a power, the world as a power. For example, when Paul wrote to the Ephesians, in Ephesians chapter 2, and he was speaking to God's people about that time before they were saved. And in verse 2 of that chapter, he says, wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world. according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience." And so, Paul makes reference to the course of this world, or the direction of this world. And that direction, the driving force behind it, is the one who is the prince of the power of the air, and that's the devil. And so there is a power abroad today, and the devil is the driving force behind that power. And so whenever you think here of the world that is referred to, it's not referring to the place. It's not referring to the people. But it's referring to the power that is abroad in this world. For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world. And this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. And you think of the course of this world, and you think of the corruption of this world, and you think of the culture of this world. And the devil is the driving force behind it. And Paul wrote to the Corinthians, 2 Corinthians 4, and the verse 4, he spoke about the God of this world. And again, that is the devil. The God of this world that has blinded the minds of them which believe not. And so I don't have to convince you that there is an evil force at work. An evil force at work that is driving the direction and the course of this world. And we know that the devil, the God of this world, he has his agenda, and he would seek to be pushing his agenda. And therefore, we can see the direction that this world is going, and the popular opinion of this world. driving that course in the direction of homosexuality, of abortion, of euthanasia, the course, the course of this world. The devil would be seeking to shape the course of this world. And so, that's something by way of the definition of the world. But we would have to think secondly about the danger of the world. And that's why these verses, numerous verses are given that would remind us of the danger of this world. The power that is at work in this world is a great danger to the soul. And the power that is abroad in this world is a great danger to the Christian. And through the things of this world, the devil is seeking to influence, and to tempt, and to entice, and to ensnare the soul. And that's why the warnings come to us in God's Word about the world. made reference to that verse in 1 John chapter 2. And in the verse 15, you can see the words there. It says, love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. And when it says, love not the things of the world, what is the apostle John referring to when he's speaking about the things of this world? Well, he doesn't leave us to work it out for ourselves. He tells us there, in that 16th verse, For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life is not of the Father, but is of the world. And you can see the details that John has given to outline to us there the danger that is abroad in this world, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye. And the world is full of it today. And the world would say, well, it's OK to look. But the Lord would say that even if you look at a woman to lust after her, you have committed adultery already in your heart. The psalmist David was ensnared with a lustful look at Bathsheba. And this is still abroad in the world today. The lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes. And then it says, the pride of life. God hates pride. Proverbs 6 and to verse 16 tells us that there are six things that the Lord hates. Yea, seven are an abomination unto him. And in verse 17, the very first thing that's listed there that God hates is a proud look. The Lord resisteth the proud, but he giveth grace to the humble. And pride cometh before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall. And therefore we must see the danger, the danger of this world. And all of these examples are given to us to warn us about that worldliness. The spirit, the influence, the course of this world is traveling. Such a danger there to the soul and to the child of God. And the devil has many traps, many different traps. Maybe in the wintertime, it's possibly you have had a mouse that's got into the house. And people will tell you the different things that you could put in the trap by way of bait. And some people will say, put cheese in the trap, and you'll catch the mouse. And others would say, no, they don't like cheese. Put chocolate in the trap, and you'll catch the mouse. You know the devil, he knows exactly what to put in the trap for each one of us. And we need to be so careful to heed the warnings here from God's Word. That's why James says, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? Whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God. There's a danger there. And so you can see something just very simply by way of the definition of the world and the danger of the world, but the defeat of the world. Because our text of Scripture is encouraging us to be overcomers. For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world, and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. And the Lord Himself said in John 16 and the verse 33, be of good cheer. I have overcome the world. And thank God our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, He has overcome the world. And He's able to say to His children in 1 John 4 and the verse 4, year of God, little children, and of overcome them because greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world. And thank God the Lord Jesus Christ is the great overcomer. He has overcome the world. And the Lord Jesus Christ is within every child of God, and therefore in and through the Savior, we can overcome this world. The Lord Jesus Christ wrought the victory when He suffered and bled and died upon that center tree. He triumphed there at Calvary. He triumphed over sin and death and hell. And as we trust in the Lord Jesus Christ and submit ourselves to Him, we can overcome this world. All that it would throw at us, Romans chapter 8, the end of that chapter, the apostle Paul speaks of God's people about being conquerors. In fact, he actually said, we're more than conquerors. In the verse 37 of that chapter, he says, and all these things, we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. The Lord Jesus Christ who loved us and who gave himself for us, Paul said to the Galatians that he may deliver us from this present evil world according to the will of God and our Father. Thank God we can overcome the world, not in our own strength, but we know that victory through faith. and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. This is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. I remember hearing the story of a young girl who had been out in the things of the world, and she became disillusioned with all that she found in this world. But she knew a Christian lady, and as she looked at that Christian lady, she could see there was a contentment, there was a happiness. And she said to that lady, I would give the world to be like you. And that lady said, that's exactly what you have to give. The old hymn says, take the world, but give me Jesus. All its joys are but a name, but his love abideth ever. through eternal years the same. May God give us each one that victory through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Let's bow together in a closing word of prayer. Our Heavenly Father and our gracious God, we do thank Thee for Thy precious Word, that Word that is a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path. And we pray, O God, that it might come with power and with application to each one of our hearts by the power of God the Holy Spirit. And we thank Thee, our Father, that Thy Word shall not return unto Thee void. And we pray that it would find a resting place even within our hearts, and that each one of us would be conformed more and more to the image of God's dear Son. We do offer this our prayer, giving thee thanks in the Savior's most precious and worthy name. Amen. Thank you for spending some time with us today around the Word of God. For further information visit our website at ltbs.tv. We look forward to joining with you next time as we seek to let the Bible speak once again.