Dr. McKellar’s Lesson for March 9, 2014

“A Legacy of Love” 1 John 2:7-11 Bible Study 03/09/14

As obedience is the moral test of your Christian profession, John indicates that love is the social test of it. The love of which you are a recipient is a love which must be relayed. John longs for his readers to live lives that faithfully pass on to others what really matters. Specifically, this morning’s text is a challenge to live and leave behind a legacy of love. Those who know Jesus treasure Him supremely and love others lavishly.

I. Identify The Command
-love for my brother

-The command to love includes all others.

-Jesus personalizes the command to love.

II. Clarify The Command
-old but not obsolete

-new but not novel

III. Apply The Command
-capacity to reveal character

-Failure to love means being in, walking in and groping in darkness.

-Flourishing in love means light and sight.

IV. So What?
-“Love is the overflow of joy in God which gladly meets the needs of others.” (Piper)

-The believer needs both light in the head and heat in the heart. (adapted from Jonathan Edwards)

-“Will they say I loved my family, that I was a faithful friend, that I lived to tell of God’s own Son, when all is said and done?” (Geoff Moore)

-“Preach the gospel, die and be forgotten.” (Zinzendorf)

-What “story” is your life presently telling?