Lesson_4_1_John

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.
Related Scriptures
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

Background Information
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.

Questions
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?

1 John 2:7-11
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.

Related Scriptures
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

Questions
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
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?

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