John continues his thought from verse 5 (we overcome the world when we believe that Jesus is the Son of God) by launching into an explanation of why we can believe that Jesus is the Son of God and the assurance that comes from that belief. It is reasonable to believe in Jesus because of […]
Throughout the letter John has focused on three tests for the believer – three tests of assurance. The child of God must believe that Jesus is the Messiah (2:18-27, 3:23, 4:1-6, 4:15), the child of God must obey God’s commands (2:3-6, 2:28-3:10, 3:24), and the child of God must love God and his brothers (2:7-11, […]
It all started with Rocky Kauffman. I was 11 years old, just shy of my 12th birthday and in sixth grade. Rocky invited me over to spend the night at his house. Rocky’s dad had a little money so Rocky’s house was bigger and nicer than mine and he had more stuff. AND, Rocky’s parents […]
John begins to summarize and conclude this section on loving one another (4:7-21). He continues his point from verse 17 regarding judgment and the believer’s perspective on it. He then reiterates what he said before about love coming from God and why if we are in Him we WILL love the brethren – and if […]
Many Christmas hymns have amazing theology in their words. One perfect example is Hark! The Herald Angels Sing by Charles Wesley. Its words wonderfully express the wonder and blessing of Christ’s coming along with the somber reminder that He came to die. The following is an exposition of the verses along with some of the […]
Santa on trial for his life. Rudolph – the testimony that can save him.
It makes sense that even though we already studied verse 16 when we looked at verses 12-16 as a text, that we look at the second half of the verse again and use it to better understand the meaning of verse 17. Also, these verses echo much of what John said in 2:5-6, so it […]
This is somewhat of a random book both to write and to select to read. It’s a sort-of history of Oklahoma City written from the standpoint of it being a unique place with a unique history and civic makeup. The book is not exhaustive by any means, and the author builds much of the story […]
John discusses our love for one another and our belief in the Son as evidences of our salvation. He seeks to assure His readers of their standing before God. He tells them they can know they live in God and God lives in them by the presence of the Spirit in their lives. And they […]
John amplifies the truth that God is love by pointing to what God did as a result. God’s nature of love showed itself in the act of sending His Son into the world to die. That the Son died so we can live proves that God is the source and standard of love, and that […]
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