The world and its desires will lead us astray, so we must confidently remain in Christ. The Apostle John was writing to his audience of Christians who were experiencing temptations and persecution from within and outside of the church. The world and the evil it represents and the antichrist spirit present in those who had previously fellowshipped with the believers created a real threat to those believers who John encourages and admonishes to remain in Christ.

At the end of my sermon I had our congregation to listen to the song "Holy Spirit" sung by Francesca Battistelli (here) to be able to think about the answer to the question about a time when God protected you or His word gave hope and assurance.