The Little Letters - End of Week 3

INTRO
The following is a guide to help facilitate discussion. Feel free to add or subtract or change questions to fit the conversation, and pray for the Spirit to lead in all things.

OPEN
Have you ever taken apart something that you couldn’t get back together?  Or did you ever start a job and realized you needed a special tool to finish the job?

HEAD
Read I John 4-5 together and share any wisdom, insights, or questions in response to the reading.

In chapter 4, John twice says that “God is love.”  Growing up, what are some of the other adjectives you would have used to describe God?  Are they different than John’s assertion?  If so, what changed for you?

The late Elder William Johnsson wrote in his last book, Live in Love, that I John 4:16 is the most important passage in Scripture.  Why do you think that is?

What does John say is one of the tests of a true prophet in verses 2-3?  Have you ever seen or heard of a prophet that didn’t meet up to John’s test?

According to chapter 4 verse 12, what is a way that God is seen in our day?

John says that perfect love drives out fear, and yet so many professed Christians in our day seem to be driven by fear; fear of other’s sins, fear of end time events, fear of judgment and salvation.  Why is there so much fear among so many Christians and what do we do about it?

What does John say in chapter 5 verse 13 is the reason for his writing this letter?

John talks about sin throughout this book.  In chapter 5, what does he say we should do if we see a fellow believer sinning in a way that doesn’t lead to death?  What if their sin does lead to death; what do you think we do then and what kind of sin might lead to death?  Notice John tells us how to deal with sin with a fellow believer.  How might addressing sin be different for a believer verses someone who doesn’t believe?

HEART
John talks so much about the God of love in this letter, and in His gospel.  What picture of God was He battling?  What was the lie the devil tried to convince us of way back in the Garden of Eden about God?

How can you and I live our lives in such a way as to push back on the devil’s erroneous picture of God in our world?

HANDS
Jesus said, “Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.”  What are some of the ways you love others in the church?  How about others in your world (neighbors, coworkers)?  Write out one new thing you could do this week for someone at church, and someone in one of your other realms of influence, to show love and point them to Jesus.

WORDS TO LIVE BY
“But anyone who does not love does not know God, for God is love. No one has ever seen God...But if we love each other, God lives in us, and his love is brought to full expression in us…We know how much God loves us, and we have put our trust in his love. God is love, and all who live in love live in God, and God lives in them.”
1 John 4:8, 12, 16 NLT