Let’s
read a few verses from the 4th and 5th chapters of First
John which cut to the heart of the message we have from God this morning.
1 John 4
9 God showed how much he
loved us by sending His One and Only Son into the world so that we might have
eternal life through him.
11 Dear friends, since God
loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other.
17 And as we live in God, our
love grows more perfect. So we will not be afraid on the day of judgment, but
we can face Him with confidence because we live like Jesus here in this world.
21 And God has given us this
command: Those who love God must also love their Christian brothers and
sisters.
1 John 5
1 ¶ Everyone who believes
that Jesus is the Christ has become a child of God. And everyone who loves the
Father loves His children, too.
2 We know we love God’s children
if we love God and obey His commandments.
3 Loving God means keeping
His commandments, and His commandments are not burdensome.
There
are three questions we will ask ourselves during out Bible study time together
this morning. If you get these correct you will have a good life …
1. Do I love God?
2. Why does God want me to love others?
3. How do I know if I love God and others?
To
best answer these questions let’s turn to what is known as the “Love Chapter”
in the Bible.
Note: Give
families time with each other to explain and discuss:.
1 Corinthians 13
4 Love is patient and kind.
Love is not jealous or boastful or proud
5 or rude. It does not demand
its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged.
6 It does not rejoice about
injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out.
7 Love never gives up, never
loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.
13 Three things will last
forever — faith, hope, and love — and the greatest of these
is love.
1. Do I love God?
a. It’s really a simple
test … Do you obey Him and love others?
b. Disobedience to
God’s Word is a sign of selfishness not love.
c. We are instructed to
love God more than we do ourselves and love others as much as we do ourselves.
2. Why does God want me to love others?
a. So that they may experience God’s love for
them through me.
b. When Christians disobey God, we confuse the
world about God and about Christians. An unloving Christian is an oxymoron. The
Bible calls that person a hypocrite.
3. How do I know if I love God and others?
a. Are you a child of
God?
b. Are you patient;
kind; jealous; boastful; proud; or rude?
c. Do you demand your
own way or are you irritable?
d. Do you keep a record
of wrongs done by others?
Don’t
give up … Open your heart to the Lord and allow Him to work on the areas of
your life that need to change. Christ is being formed in you each and every day.
Maybe this will help:
·
Repent
for being a bad example and ask God to forgive you.
·
Let
others know you are sorry for being impatient or unkind, jealous, boastful,
proud, demanding, irritable, or rude.
·
Work
with God so others can experience His love through you.
