1st John chapter 4 verses 17 through 21.

And this is love perfected with us that we may have confidence for the day of judgment because as he is, so are we in this world.

There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear.

For fear has to do with punishment and he who fears is not perfected in love. We love because

he first loved us. If anyone says I love God and hates his brother, he is a liar. For he who does not love

his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen.

In this commandment we have from him

that he who loves God should love his brother also.

Upon further reflection of the text that I announced, I decided to connect versus 20 and 21 with next week's text. So this morning, we're going to focus on verses 17 and 18 and 19.

Verse 17 tells us how to have something that 19. V. V. V.

Tell us how to have something that everybody wants to have.

And verse 18 tells us how to get rid of something that everybody wants to get rid of. So the text is immediately relevant.

You'll have to work to make it relevant at all.

In verse 17 tells us how to have confidence or boldness for the day of judgment. And

verse 18 tells us how to get rid of fear for the day of judgment.

There's simply two sides of the same coin, aren't they?

Being confident before God is just the other side of the coin from not being afraid before God. So the main point of the text is crystal

clear from the outset, namely John once this morning for you to have confidence as you contemplate meeting him on the judgment day.

He doesn't want you to have any fear about that.

Doesn't want you to be scared as you think about your own death and meeting him.

Let's think for a minute about the day of judgment here in verse 17.

I sometimes wonder if people believe that is going to happen anymore.

...