“The Love God Hates” 1 John 2:12-17 Bible Study 03/23/14

As strange as it may sound, in some areas of life the concepts of love and hate are quite compatible. We have an explicit example of this in Psalm 97:10: “O you who love the LORD, hate evil!” We have another example in this morning’s text. The first part of 1 John 2 covers what the believer is to do and what he is to love. Now, in contrast to the ‘to do” emphases addressed previously, our text instructs us concerning what “not to do.” In essence, we are warned about the wrong kind of love, the love God hates. Because the world is passing away and has values opposed to God, reject it and pursue His will.

I. Grasp the status of the true believer living in this world (12-14)
-prelude: transitional six-fold statement

-identification of genuine Christians

-explanation of terms: little children, fathers, young men

-well-equipped for victorious living

II. Avoid attachment to this world (15)
-a clear prohibition

-understanding the use of “world” in this context

-an “excluding” love

III. Consider the contradictory character of this world (16)
-desires of flesh- sensuality

-desires of eyes -visual appeal

-pride of life- arrogant self-sufficiency

IV. Feast on the biblical promise (17)
-passing world system

-remaining “will-doing” believer

V. So what?
-Relish the reality of “blessed assurance.”

-Take pains to avoid an “illicit affair” with this world.

-Examine the stewardship of your personhood, perspective and possessions.

-Aim to view your present life through the lens of eternity.

Guest speaker: David Norman
Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, Master of Divinity Student

“Jonah, the Rebellious Prophet” Jonah 1:1-17

“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?

“By This We Know…” 1 John 2:3-6 Bible Study 03/02/14
This morning’s text addresses the very powerful and practical matter of the true knowledge of God. Remember that John is writing to an audience that is being besieged with false teachings about the person and work of Jesus and with false claims of those whose practice fails to match their profession. Notice that some form of the word “know” appears four times in this short passage. Also, note that John connects the concepts of knowing God and obedience to God. While introspection can become morbidly unhealthy, there is a definite place for careful self-examination in the Christian life. This text offers a valid “test” for all professing believers. Because obedience demonstrates the true knowledge of God, pursue the path of radical obedience.

I. God’s Word Offers Assurance (3)
-you can know God

-you can know that you know God

-you need advocacy and obedience

II. God’s Word Offers Instruction (3-6)
-keeping His commandments

-keeping His Word

-walking as He walked

III. So What?
-“For every look at self, take ten looks at Christ.” (R. M’Cheyne)

-“God is not to be otherwise enjoyed than He is obeyed.” (John Howe)

-Take care that your conduct does not contradict your claim.

-Are we obsessed with obedience or paralyzed by pettiness?

-Our lives: testimonies/advertisements of the value of knowing Jesus

-“I love Thee, I love Thee, I love Thee my Lord
I love Thee, My Savior, I love Thee my God
I love Thee, I love Thee, and that Thou dost know
But how much I love Thee, my actions will show.” (John Granade)

“Meet Your Advocate” 1 John 2:1-2 Bible Study 02/23/14
This morning we will focus on two remarkably rich verses in 1 John. They are closely connected to and flow out of John’s emphases in 1 John 1:5-10. We are to have a biblical view of sin as well as a clear understanding of the appropriate biblical response to sin when it occurs in our lives. These two verses offer great comfort and assurance to the believer and invite him/her to prize the promise of the absolutely unique advocacy of Jesus Christ.

Introduction
-Sin is always bad news.
-Three responses: denial, dismissal and despair
-Biblical balance: warning and consolation
-When sin threatens to paralyze you, remember the provision of an Advocate for you.

I. Consider your Advocate’s unceasing action
-“…we have…”

-Advocate: counsel for the defense, to speak up/lift up the voice in behalf of…

II. Consider your Advocate’s premium location
-“…with the Father…”

-face-to-face

III. Consider your Advocate’s matchless qualification
-Jesus, Christ, righteous

-Every believer has an Advocate at all times in the best place who offers real help.

-the justification/sanctification connection

IV. Consider your Advocate’s prior substitution
-present advocacy based on prior activity

-propitiation: atoning sacrifice

V. So what?
-“The wisdom of God ordained a way for the love of God to deliver us from the wrath of God without compromising the justice of God.” (J. Piper)

-When you take the cross seriously, you take sin seriously.

-“Savior, teach me day by day, Love’s sweet lesson to obey, Sweeter lesson cannot be, Loving Him who first loved me.” (J. Leeson)

Guest speaker: David Norman
Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, Master of Divinity Student

“Satisfaction Guaranteed” Colossians 2:8-10 Bible Study 02/16/14

Main Idea: Satisfaction is found only in the person and work of Christ.

I. False Teaching (Col 2:8)
II. Jesus (Col 2:9)
III. Faith (Col 2:10)

Questions for Reflection:

1. What false messages do I face daily?
2. Do I focus more on Jesus’ humanity or His divinity?
3. What hooks have taken hold of me?

“Walking in the Light” 1 John 1:5-10 Bible Study 02/09/14

This morning’s text addresses the subjects of God’s character, our sin and God’s forgiveness. Building on a foundational assertion of God’s nature/character (God is light…), John proceeds to make two crucial appeals to his readers. Believers are to walk in the light and address sin in their lives with sensitivity and honesty. When we grasp God’s character, we aim to advance in our walk and agree about our sin.

Introduction

-sin: missing the mark, stepping out of bounds
-sin and the believer’s “family status”
-sin and the believer’s fellowship

I. Contemplate the character of God (5)

-proclamation with an emphasis on the receiver

-“light” in this context: the moral perfection of God

-John’s stylistic emphasis: positive/negative

-looking ahead: the threefold use of “if we say…”

II. Conform to the character of God (6-7)

-the use of “walk”

-the incompatibility of “darkness”

-two results of walking in the light: fellowship and cleansing

III. Confess your sin to God (8-10)

-avoiding self-deception

-confess: to “say with” or agree with God about your sins

-since God is “faithful and just…”

-forgiveness and cleansing

-a sobering warning

IV. So what?

-“The only way, according to John, we’ll ever hear from God the words, ‘You are forgiven,’ is if we speak the words, ‘I have sinned.’” (David Allen)

-You will either cover sin (Prov. 28:13) or confess sin (1 John 1:9).

-“He who cannot find water in the sea is not more foolish than the man who cannot perceive sin in his members.” (Charles Spurgeon)

-Grasp the malignancy of sin and the magnificence of grace.

-Two texts for walking in the light: Psalm 119:11 and Psalm 119:36-37

Teacher: Dr. Matthew McKellar
Associate Professor of Preaching/Chair of the Preaching Department
Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary

“Meet Jesus: God in Human Flesh” 1 John 1:1-4 Bible Study 02/02/14

This morning we begin our study of 1 John. Sadly, Christians often approach teaching concerning the person and work of Jesus in a way that may be classified as “Brylcreem Theology- a little dab will do you.” Too frequently, these people settle for half-truths which results in a half-hearted and often joyless outlook. The content of 1 John is a stirring reminder that one must think biblically and precisely about the identity of our Lord. John was one of our Lord’s original disciples. At the time of the writing of 1 John, he was likely the only surviving member of the original twelve. He was the human author of five of our New Testament books. We know that he spent his later years in Ephesus and that 1 John was written between A.D. 80-85. The letter is addressed to second and third generation Christians who populated the church at this time. Among the topics which appear prominently in the letter are the infiltration of false teachers, the danger of laxity in moral standards, the refutation of false teachings and the profound pastoral heart of John. With this background in mind, we turn our attention to 1 John 1:1-4 and its powerful presentation of Jesus. Because of the factual reality of Jesus Christ, believers can enjoy supernatural fellowship and superabundant joy.

I. Focus on the reality of Jesus Christ

-eternally
-historically
-experientially

II. The reality of Jesus Christ makes fellowship possible

-amazing
-unifying
-mobilizing

III. The reality of Jesus Christ makes fullness profound

-obedience
-affection
-orientation

IV. So what?

-“Jesus was the only man who had a heavenly Father but no heavenly mother, who had an earthly mother but no earthly father; who was older than his mother and who was as old as his Father.” (R.G. Lee)
-Recognize the greatest problem in every culture.
-What you think about Jesus is the most important thing about which you can think.
-Biblical truth always precedes biblical fellowship.
-“There are but two lessons for a Christian to learn- the one is to enjoy God in everything, the other is to enjoy everything in God.” (Charles Simeon)

Guest speaker: Tim Wheeless
Southwestern Baptist Seminary

“We need a Passion for Winning the Lost” Proverbs 24:11-12

Teacher: Dr. Matthew McKellar
Associate Professor of Preaching/Chair of the Preaching Department
Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary

“Thinking and Living-Faithfully! Philippians 4:10-23 Bible Study 01/19/14

Phil 4:8-9 provides an appropriate and interesting bridge from the preceding verses to the verses that follow (the focus of our study this morning).Paul is driving home the essential truth that we must think Christianly in order to live faithfully. One commentator expressed it like this: “When we dwell on the right things, the church is unified, the Savior is magnified and believers are fortified.” As you reflect and rely upon the enabling power of Jesus, you can live with consistent contentment and confident generosity.

I. View contentment as a learned commodity (10-13)
-rejoicing in “revival”

-delicate appreciation

-the discipline of Jesus-sufficiency

-a learned “secret”

-empowerment for the assignment

II. Model the gracious character of God (14-20)
-exclusive partnership

-grace-centered commendation

-a fragrant offering

-fullness according to wealth

-directed doxology

III. Go forward in the grace of God (21-23)
-“trophies” in Caesar’s household

-grace: from focus to finish

IV. So what?
-“The power of Christ in Paul was not for the gratification of Paul’s whims but for the carrying out of Christ’s will.” (A.T. Robertson)

-“For Paul, contentment is not found in creating our own security but by abandoning our security to Jesus Christ.” (Sinclair Ferguson)

-Practice the balanced “blessing” of others.

-You can do what God assigns you to do because of the power He keeps pouring into you.

-“I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength, but sometimes I wonder what he can do through me. No great success to show, no glory on my own, yet in my weakness He is there to let me know…His strength is perfect when our strength is gone, He’ll carry us when we can’t carry on, raised in His power the weak become strong, His strength is perfect, His strength is perfect. We can only know the power that He holds, when we truly see how deep our weakness goes. His strength in us begins when ours comes to an end. He hears our humble cry and proves again…His strength is perfect… (Steven Curtis Chapman and Jerry Dean, Jr.)