Old Llantrisant Hill
- Look at the first 3 verses of chapter 3
- To remind us of the wonderful love in God
- The writer is seeking to encourage Christians
- He wants them to be confident in God's word
- Not to be confused by false teachers (e.g. the Gnostics)
- John reminds people of the centrality of the Scriptures
- The church of Jesus Christ was expanding and growing
- Behold! (3:1)
- We can lose the impact of familiar words
- "what manner of love" - in the Greek 'what kind of place has this come from - we have not seen anything like this before'
- Have you ever known love like this?
- Same phrase as the disciples spoke: 'what manner of man is this that the winds and the waves obey Him'
- Maybe there is a rebuke in this also
- There has never been any love like this - it does come from another place (from heaven)
- The past blessings:
- All God's people are recipients of this love
- It is an unconditional love - it cannot be earned, but is entirely undeserved
- Romans 5:8
- We must let the word of God abide in us (2:24)
- Do you ever lose the sense of wonder of what it means to be a child of God?
- We have been adopted into God's family
- It grants us security
- It grants us provision
- It grants us guidance
- It grants us disciple
- The present blessings:
- We no longer belong to the world in which we live
- Peter describes us as aliens and strangers in the world
- The world in its natural state has no time for God
- We are in a new family
- There is a continual process of sanctification
- 3:2 - although we are well loved we have not been made perfect
- When we are born of the Spirit of God there is a new heart and a new transformation on the inside
- It is like God's DNA is inside us
- Therefore the world does not recognise us
- The future blessings:
- When He is revealed we will be like Him (3:2)
- We don't know what we will look like
- We don't know the exact details
- It has not yet been revealed what shall be
- Only God knows the finer details
- One day all will be clear
- There is a day when He is coming back
- Are we ready for that day?
- A present reality and challenge - surely God's love must have a transforming effect on our hearts (3:3)
- Surely it must cause a deeper love for our Saviour
- What effect does this love have on your heart?
- What are our eyes focused on?
- Do you desire to be holy because God is holy?
- Do you show the same compassion to others that Jesus showed to us?
- Do you love the same things as Jesus and hate the same things He hates?
- Do you put Jesus first, others second and yourself last?
- Put on love
- Closing remarks