God is Father (I John 3:1″“9) 1. Happy Birthday! (1 John 2:29) Welcome to the family! Who gave birth to you? See John 1:12-13 & 3:3-21 2. Your Inheritance (1 John 3:1a) 3. Your New Family (1 John 3:1b-2) 4. Future Glory, Present Purity (1 John 3:3) 5. Not My Kid! (1 John 3:4-9) Who’s Your Daddy? Of whom are you born? Children of the Sinless Savior, Sin Less

Living in the Light: Keep The Faith 1 John 2:18 ““ 29 The Fourth Condition for Living in the Light: Keep the Faith 1. Antichrists Attack the Faith (1 John 2:18, 22-23) Jesus IS the Faith John 8:19; 16:3; 17:3 1 John 4:15; 5:1 2 John 9 2. Adversaries Abandon the Faith (1 John 2:19, 26) 3. God’s Anointing Causes us to Abide in the Faith (1 John 2:20-21, 23-25, 27-29) Jesus IS Eternal Life 1John 5:11 1John 5:20 Do you have the real Jesus? Will you stay in Jesus no matter what?

Living in the Light: Reject Worldliness (I John 2:12 ““ 17) 1. True Christians Encouraged (1 John 2:12 ““ 14) Sins forgiven (v. 12) Know the Father (vv. 13-14) Word of God abides IN you (v. 14) Overcome the evil one (v. 14) 2. True Christians Love God, not the World (1 John 2:15) Overcome the evil one = Overcome the world! See 1 John 4:2-6; 5:3-5 Is the Love of the Father IN you? 3. Why? We shouldn’t love things that aren’t from God? (1 John 2:16) Worldly love is not from where? But is from where? 4. Live for the eternal rather than the temporal (1 John 2:17) What is passing away? What is forever? See 1John 3:8; 1Peter 4:1-5; 1Thessalonians 4:1-7; 1John 5:19-20 What do you live for?

Living in the Light: Be Obedient I John 2:3-11 1. How do you know that you’re God’s? (1 John 2:3-6) The main premise (1 John 2:3) A test that someone is NOT God’s (1 John 2:4) A test that someone IS God’s (1 John 2:5-6) 2. Why? God’s Commandment of Love IN You (1 John 2:7-8) See 1 John 3:23; 4:21 and John 13:34-35 3. Light begets light, Love begets love (1 John 2:9-11) An example of FALSE Christianity (1 John 2:9, 11) An example of TRUE Christianity (1 John 2:10)

Living in the Light: Renouncing Sin I John 1:8-2:2 1. Admitting Our Sinful State To Ourselves (1 John 1:8) 2. Answering for Our Sinful Actions (1 John 1:9) 3. Acknowledging Our Sin Before God (1 John 1:10) 4. Abiding in the Light, Not in Sin (1 John 2:1) 5. Jesus Christ -The Only Advocate for Our Sin (1 John 2:2)

The Word of Life, God is Light I John 1:1-7 I. John Describes The “Separatists” 1. They do not practice love in relationship with the readers (2:9-11 and 4:20-21) 2. They do not acknowledge the humanity of Christ (1:1, 2:22, 3:5, 4:2-3, 5:56) 3. They have aligned themselves with forces opposed to faith, the world (2:15, 4:5-6) 4. They are instruments of evil and “actors in the last days” because they act like Christ but are anti-Christ (2:18-23) 5. They were never confessing Christians (2:19) 6. They do not adhere to John’s teachings or the general corporate body (4:6) 7. They falsely claim to know & love God (2:4, 4:20) and to be in the light (1:6, 2:9) 8. They falsely regard themselves free of sin (1:6-10, 3:3-6) 9. They are w/o moral restrictions in their behavior (3:4-10) II. John’s Purpose for the Readers 1. That you may have fellowship – to confirm their Christian faith and walk (1:3) 2. To make “our” joy complete (1:4) 3. In order that you will not sin (2:1) 4. To you who believe = ETERNAL LIFE (5:13) 5. To refute false doctrine (1:6, 8, 10; 2:18, 26; 3:7; 4:1-3) III. The Word of Life, God is Light (1:1,5) IV. Come out of the Darkness, Come to Jesus Christ (1:6-7) Right fellowship is with the apostles and Jesus Christ Wrong fellowship is with those who do not believe or follow Christ

Old Wisdom for a New Year A Study on the Assurance of Salvation As taken from the book of 1 John which was specifically written for this purpose: 1 John 5:13 These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life. 1. Do you share the intimacies of the Christian life with ______ and ________ _________? 1 John 1:6 If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; 7 but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin. 2. Do you have a ______ ____________ of your _____ against the Word and love of God? 1 John 1:8 If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar and His word is not in us. 3. Do you live in _____________ _____________ to the word of God? 1 John 2:3 By this we know that we have come to know Him, if we keep His commandments. 4 The one who says, “I have come to know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him; 5 but whoever keeps His word, in him the love of God has truly been perfected. By this we know that we are in Him: 6 the one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked. 4. Do you __________ the _________ and its ways? 1 John 2:15 Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 5. Do you long for the _________ of ________ _________ and to be ________ like Him? 1 John 3:2 Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is. 3 And everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure. 6. Do you habitually do what is _______ _______ and _____ ______? 1 John 3:7 Little children, make sure no one deceives you; the one who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous; 8 the one who practices sin is of the devil; for the devil has sinned from the beginning. The Son of God appeared for this purpose, to destroy the works of the devil. . . . 10 By this the children of God and the children of the devil are obvious: anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor the one who does not love his brother. 7. Have you suffered _____________ because of your faith? 1 John 3:13 Do not be surprised, brethren, if the world hates you. 8. Do you ______ other Christians _________________ and want to ____ _______ them? 1 John 3:14 We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love abides in death. 9. Do you experience ___________ ________? 1 John 3:21 Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence before God; 22 and whatever we ask we receive from Him, because we keep His commandments and do the things that are pleasing in His sight. 10. Do you discern the __________ of the _______ _________ within you? 1 John 3:24 The one who keeps His commandments abides in Him, and He in him. We know by this that He abides in us, by the Spirit whom He has given us. 1 John 4:13 By this we know that we abide in Him and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit. 11. Can you discern between ____________ _______ and ________? 1 John 4:1 Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. 2 By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God; 3 and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God; this is the spirit of the antichrist, of which you have heard that it is coming, and now it is already in the world. 12. Do you enjoy listening to the _____________ taught by the ___________ of the Lord Jesus Christ? (which are contained where?___________) 1 John 4:6 We are from God; he who knows God listens to us; he who is not from God does not listen to us. By this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error. 13. Do you believe what the Bible teaches about ________ _________? 1 John 5:1 Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and whoever loves the Father loves the child born of Him.

Advent 4: Proclaiming Jesus the King I. Kings Proclaimed Jesus (Matthew 2:1-12) II. Angels Proclaimed Jesus (Luke 2:8-14) Savior (also Matthew 1:21; Acts 4:12) Christ (= Messiah = Anointed = King) Lord III. Shepherds Proclaimed Jesus (Luke 2:15-21) IV. Jesus is the Only True King (selected passages) Have you received Jesus as your Savior? Do you serve Jesus as your King?

Advent 3: The Birth of Jesus the Messiah 1. A Dialogue Between Gabriel and Mary (Luke 1:26-38) What’s in a name? (Luke 1:31; Matthew 1:18-25) A Baby’s Stature! (Luke 1:31-33) Great Son of the Most High The Lord God will give Him David’s Throne Reign over the house of Jacob forever His kingdom will have no end On Jesus’ Pre-existence to John who was born first! (Luke 1:36; John 1:15, 30) 2. A Dialogue Between Elizabeth and Mary (Luke 1:39-56) “God my Savior” (Luke 1:47) Abraham’s Forever Covenant (Luke 1:55) 3. The King is Born (Micah 5:2-Luke 2:1-7) God fulfilled His promise to send the Savior God will Save you too, if you receive Jesus Christ