Welcome Valley Reader
Lesson 4: 1 John 2:3-11
1 John 2:3-6
And
hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments. He that saith,
I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in
him. But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected:
hereby know we that we are in him. He that saith he abideth in him ought himself
also so to walk, even as he walked.
Matthew
7:15-20
John
14:15
Romans 8:9-17 (Especially
verse 14)
1 Corinthians
6:9-11
Galatians
5:22-25
1 John
3:14-15
1 John
4:20-21
People sometimes argue over
the teachings of 1 John, largely because two of the major Christian systems of
theology interpret it differently. As you read the texts and the related
Scriptures, please pay very careful attention to the exact words used. This is
especially important when it comes to matters of cause and effect. Ask the
question, “Why?” as you read the statements in these passages. Then allow the
verses themselves to answer that question.
In the New Testament, the
word walk is sometimes used to refer to the way a person
lives.
1. Is keeping Christ’s
commandments said to be a) the evidence that we know Him or
b) the means by which we
know Him?
2. What (or more properly,
Who) is the power that makes the person who knows Christ
keep His
commandments?
3. What is the evidence that
God’s love has truly become the controlling factor in our
lives?
4. Would it be possible for
God’s work in a person’s life to make that person bad?
5. Would it be possible for
a person in whom God is working to remain bad?
6. We know that we get to be
children of God by faith in Jesus. Yet, that is only our part.
The whole idea of being born
again involves the Holy Spirit coming in and making us
what we weren’t
before. In this context, what is wrong with the person who says he
or she is God’s child
but who lives as if God wasn’t working in his or her life?
7. According to 1
Corinthians 6:9-11, is the change from sinner to righteous person
brought about by a) the self
reformation of someone who tries very hard, or b) the
saving work of God in that
person’s life?
8. Is it possible to have
been saved from sin and continue to live a sinful life?
9. If we say we are living
close to Jesus Christ, Whom should we be acting like?
Brethren, I write no new
commandment unto you, but an old commandment which ye had from the beginning.
The old commandment is the word which ye have heard from the beginning. Again, a
new commandment I write unto you, which thing is true in him and in you: because
the darkness is past, and the true light now shineth. He that saith he is in the
light, and hateth his brother, is in darkness even until now. He that loveth his
brother abideth in the light, and there is none occasion of stumbling in him.
But he that hateth his brother is in darkness, and walketh in darkness, and
knoweth not whither he goeth, because that darkness hath blinded his eyes.
Matthew
5:43-48
John
8:12
John 13:34-35 (Jesus is
speaking.)
John 14:15 (Jesus is
speaking.)
John 15:12-19 (Jesus is
speaking)
2 Corinthians
4:1-7
Galatians
5:13-14
1 John
3:14-15
1. Based on the Scriptures
above, what would you say was one of Jesus’ major
commandments?
2. Would Matthew 5:43-44
suggest that Jesus’ commandment represented something
new in religious and
ethical thought?
3. How far back in history
would Matthew 5:43-44 suggest loving one’s enemies went?
4. Why is love for others a
reality in the lives of a Christian?
5. What is the significance
of the phrase “none occasion of stumbling” in 1 John 2:10?
6. If the idea of not
stumbling relates to walking in the light, what kind of spiritual
safety
might the person who
walks in darkness expect?
7. 1 John 2:9 describes the
person who hates his brother as being “in darkness even
until now.” a) Does
this wording suggest that the person who hates another person
has ever been saved?
b) Is the person who claims to be a Christian but hates others
most likely a
backslider or a hypocrite? c) Does the Bible say that this person is
saved
now?
8. According to the final verse of our text
from 1 John, what effect does hatred have on
one’s ability a) to
know right from wrong? b) to gauge his or her relationship
with God? c) to
find—or even recognize—spiritual truth? d) to make wise
decisions?
9. How would an
unwillingness to let God take the hatred out of one’s heart affect
a
person’s ability to trust
Christ for salvation?
This
study is in the public domain and may be copied and distributed
freely.
Lesson
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