God' Love

APRIL 7, 2021 STUDY NOTES I JOHN 4:7-11 BIBLE TEACHER: CLIFTON JONES GOD’ LOVE INTRODUCTION In these few verses we find one of the greatest passages in the Bible on-the subject of love Words related to God’s love are found 34 times between 1 John 4:7 and 5:3 in 18 verses John tells us of the love of God for man, the love of man for God, and love for one another John reveals to us that Love originated in God and Love was manifested in Jesus Then he tells us that Love is perfected in those who are “Born of God” BORN OF GOD 1Jn 4:7 Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. “Beloved” is John’s favorite way of addressing the true church, those who are saved A very appropriate way of addressing Christians, those who know the truth of God’s love Identifying those who have experienced the love of God and have the love of God in them Identifying those who are united together by the love of God, God’s Love is the tie that binds Identifying those who have become lovable and should be loving one another That is the appeal that John now makes--let us love one another: As a result of being among the “beloved,” we must continue to “love one another” To “love one another” is of utmost importance to John, 1Jn 3:11 For this is the message that ye heard from the beginning, that we should love one another. 1Jn 3:23 And this is his commandment, That we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us commandment. 1Jn 4:11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another. 1Jn 4:12 No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us. 2Jn 1:5 And now I beseech thee, lady, not as though I wrote a new commandment unto thee, but that which we had from the beginning, that we love one another. The character of a Christian is to daily practice love toward one another The world daily expresses hate toward the Christian, Joh 15:19 If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you. It is important that we “love one another,” the world must see the truth of God’s love through us Paul agrees 1Th 3:12 And the Lord make you to increase and abound in love one toward another, and toward all men, even as we do toward you: 1Th 4:9 But as touching brotherly love ye need not that I write unto you: for ye yourselves are taught of God to love one another. We are to “love one another” with the love of God We are to love others with the love that God has poured into our life, Rom 5:5 And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us. Page 1 of 6 God has poured His love into the heart of every Christian for love is of God; This kind of love is not a natural love found within man, it did not originate with man The origin and source of this kind of “love” is God, love had its beginning with God We learned the truth of love when we learned that God loved us, Joh 13:34 A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. You cannot truly “love one another” until you have experienced the love of God within you Loving one another reveals to others that you are a Christian, Joh 13:35 By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another. Which John now tells us, and every one that loveth is born of God, There is an emphasis upon “every one,” each one of us, each individual Christian Everyone who is “born of God” shares the nature of God and the love of God Everyone that has been born physically does not personally experience God’s salvation love But everyone who has been spiritually born again loves with the love of God Love is the results and the evidence of the New Birth, love is the proof of salvation John speaks of the love that can only come from the new nature, Jesus explained it, Mat 5:44 But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; If we practice loving others according to Jesus, the world will know that we know God and knoweth God. Knowing God goes much deeper than the thought of God’s existence It is not a head knowledge believing that God is somewhere, but an experience of the heart “Knowing God” is the knowledge of experience, to know from a personal experience It is a day-by day learning experience that gives us a greater understanding of self and God Once you come to know God you continue to live in an experience of learning more about God There are things in life that you learn from experience and will never forget That is how John is describing this experience of knowing God Something that can never be forgotten, we can never forget God’s love for us GOD IS LOVE 1Jn 4:8 He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love. What a sad state of life for a person to experience, the absence of God loving through you The reason this love is not a part of their life is because they don’t know God They absolutely do not know God, they have never had that personal experience with God’s Son Without the knowledge of God there is no hope, Eph 2:12 That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world: for God is love. It is important that we understand “God is” which presents the One and Only God In John’s writings he gives us a threefold expression of the nature of God The very nature of God is Spirit, Light, and Love--God is Spirit--God is Light--God is Love God is spirit, Joh 4:24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. That verse is a description of the Person of God, which is like unto Christ and the Holy Spirit God the Father, God the Son, and God the Spirit, are not material beings but spirit The essential nature of the Godhead is spirit, God is not flesh and blood as we are Page 2 of 6 God is not bound to any place, to anything, to anyone, or in any way John is not saying that God is one spirit among many spirits which are in the world Spirit refers to His invisible nature just as “Light” does, God is light, 1Jn 1:5 This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. Light means “to shine” or “to make manifest,” “Light” is the very nature of God He did not attain it or receive it, “God is Light” The symbolism of light and darkness is often found in Scripture Intellectually, light is truth and darkness is ignorance or error Morally, light is purity and darkness is evil So, what does the symbol of “light” tell us about God? Light speaks of God’s Glory, Splendor, Majesty, Purity, Righteousness, Holiness, and Truth “Light” reveals the truth, light exposes whatever exists, whether good or bad, right or wrong The truth of God is revealed in the “Light,” God is righteous, pure, holy, true The truth of man is revealed in the “Light,” man without God is sinful, evil, morally bad Probably the number one thought that John has in mind here is “revelation,” light reveals God is self-revealing, He must reveal Himself, God wants us to see Him and know Him If you fail to see the love of God and experience the love of God, you do not know God John says, “God is love,” love has its origin from God, He is the source of this kind of love Love is His nature, but the thought is much more than the fact that God loves Love does not define God, God defines love Love does not tell the whole story of God, God tells the whole story of love, the truth of love To know God is to know His love, to know Jesus is to know the love of God GOD LOVED US 1Jn 4:9 In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him. The love of God for man has not been a hidden secret, it was “manifested toward us” God’s love has been made visible, it has been clearly shown, it has been demonstrated before us God made a public declaration of His love by sending “His Only Begotten Son” Jesus is the visible proof of God’s love “toward us” John wants us to know the truth of God’s love, look at verses 9-12: “love of God toward us,” (9) “He loved us” (10) “If God so loved us” (11) “His love is perfected in us” (12) John tells us that we can believe it, 1Jn 4:16 And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him. because that God sent his only begotten Son John tells us of the price that God’s love was willing to pay for “us” “God Sent” Jesus for us, “His Only begotten Son” His unique Son was the one who was sent, the only one, the only one of His kind He is the one and only Son, Joh 1:14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. The “Only Begotten Son” is the only one who could be sent, and He was sent “into the world” into the world, “The world” represents not just where we were, but the state which we were in “The world” is the abode of sinful man, God sent His Son into the world of sinful man, Joh 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him Page 3 of 6 should not perish, but have everlasting life. John now tells us why God sent “His Only Begotten Son” into the world that we might live through him. You do not have life until you receive Jesus Christ, you are spiritually dead, Eph 2:1 And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; Only through Christ are we made alive spiritually, Eph 2:5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) GOD LOVED US 1Jn 4:10 Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. “Herein” states that this is the true story of love, this is it, this kind of love is the truth of love The truth of love is identified in the self-sacrificing love of God for the benefit of others God did not love us because we loved Him not that we loved God, Our love relationship that we have “In-Christ” did not begin by our loving God John presents it in a strong way, it was absolutely not that we initially loved God We were not looking for God because we were not in love with God The great mystery of God’s love is that “He loved us,” how could He do that? but that he loved us, We were not loveable, loving obedient children, we were disobedient, Eph 2:2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: God is the God of infinite love, who loved the world of sinners, He proved it to us and sent his Son Because God is the God of love, mercy, grace, and forgiveness, He “sent His Son” Because God is holy, He must judge sin, holiness requires the judgment and punishment of sin God’s love sent His only begotten Son to be “the propitiation for our sins” to be the propitiation for our sins. “Propitiation” means that Jesus Christ, the righteous, satisfied the righteous demands of God God is just or righteous and must remain true to His Character His righteousness and holiness demand wrath upon sin and the sinner The holiness of God requires that sin must be punished The wrath of God demanded that the penalty of sin be paid Both the love of God and the wrath of God must be satisfied God could not change His holy demands against sinners apart from “propitiation” Only God could satisfy those demands, God himself must provide the escape from His wrath God provided the necessary sacrifice that would satisfy His demands “Propitiation” speaks of the satisfaction of all God’s righteous demands for judgment upon sin The word “propitiation” signifies the turning away of God’s wrath by a sin offering That offering was the sacrificial death of Jesus on the cross Jesus can forgive our sins because He is “the propitiation for our sins” Page 4 of 6 Sin is the problem that separates us from God Jesus satisfied the righteous demands of God against sin, He was made sin for us, 2Co 5:21 For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. The sacrifice of Jesus on the cross was acceptable to God God was fully satisfied with the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross That sacrifice turned the wrath of God upon sin from the believer God’s wrath will still fall upon the unbeliever GOD SO LOVED US 1Jn 4:11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another. This is the fifth and final time that John uses the word “Beloved” to identify the believer What a privilege it is to be loved by God, but it comes with a responsibility Literally John says, “since, or in view of the fact” that God so loved us There is no doubt about it, we are certain of the truth of God’s love for us “So” refers back to the act of God sending His Son to become the sacrifice for our sins And that point has been “so” strongly presented and leads up to another very strong point we ought also to love one another. The love that is of our new nature, 1Jn 4:7 Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. We learned it from the beginning of our new life, 1Jn 3:11 For this is the message that ye heard from the beginning, that we should love one another. We are commanded to love one another, 1Jn 3:23 And this is his commandment, That we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us commandment. It is a must, 1Jn 4:11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another. QUICK REVIEW OF CHAPTER FOUR Do we have false prophets and false teachers today? How do you tell the difference between the true prophets and the false prophets? The content of their message, what they say about Jesus Christ Who listens to false prophets, the people of God or the people of the world? Can God’s people be led astray? How do you tell the difference between Christians and those who are lost? 1. The daily character of the Christian is marked by righteousness and not sin 2. Their attitude of daily life is identified by love, self-sacrifice, giving to help the needs of others 3. Christians want to hear, learn, and live the message about Jesus The religious world of today is teaching many different ways to live your spiritual life There are only two ways that you can go spiritually, the way of Christ or the way of Antichrist The spirit of antichrist is now preparing the way for the world to follow the Antichrist Regardless of what the future holds for this world that we live in, living for Christ is the answer Being prepared for life today and tomorrow is living for Christ today It is easy to understand why we should live for Christ, God loves us through Christ John strongly spoke of God’s love to us in 1 John chapter 4, love is found 27 times (count them) Now listen to a song that shares what John has told us Page 5 of 6 Page 6 of 6