A. An innocent life taken (Isaiah 53:4-6, 9b; John 18:38; 19:6)
B. Against human reasoning – Jesus died willingly (John 10:11-18)
II. Love personified on the cross
A. The extent of God’s love: the world (John 3:16)
B. The timing of God’s love: while we were still sinners (Romans 5:6-11)
C. The personal nature of God’s love: for me (Galatians 2:20)
III. Love spoken by the crucified Holy One
A. Love toward His mother, Mary (John 19:26-27)
B. Love toward the penitent thief (Luke 23:39-43)
C. Love toward His executioners (Luke 23:34)
A. Who is my brother? (1 John 4:20-5:1)
B. Does John teach “faith only”? (1 John 5:1-2; Matthew 25:31-46; James 2:14-26; Matthew 22:37-40; Romans 13:8-10)
C. “For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments” (1 John 5:3; John 14:15,21,23,24; Romans 12:1)
II. Faith is the victory
A. We CAN overcome the world! We CAN be victorious! (1 John 5:4; 2:15-17; Hebrews 11:33-34)
B. Does it matter what one believes? (1 John 5:5; Romans 10:17)
III. Faith established by the testimony of witnesses
A. Three witnesses (1 John 5:6-8; John 16:13)
B. The witness of God is greater than the witness of man (1 John 5:9; John 5:33-36)
C. To have the Son is to have life (1 John 5:10-12)
A. Prodigal living (15:11-13)
B. Hitting rock-bottom (15:14-16)
C. He came to his senses (15:17-20a)
II. The patient father
A. Filled with compassion (15:20b-23)
B. He wasn’t looking at the past, but the present (15:24)
III. The older brother
A. He was angry (15:25-28)
B. He felt entitled (15:29-32)
IV. Application
A. We need to come to our senses (Isaiah 59:1-3; 1 Peter 4:3)
B. God is still patient and compassionate (1 John 1:5-9; Psalm 103:11-13; Ephesians 1:11-12)
C. Do not begrudge God’s forgiveness of another (Matthew 20:1-14)
A. Tried to get Jesus to defend Himself (Matthew 27:11-14)
B. Wanted to delegate jugdment to Herod (Luke 23:4-7)
C. Gave the people a choice (Matthew 27:15-23)
D. Finally gave in to the will of the people (Matthew 27:24)
II. The chief priests
A. The slanderous accusations against Jesus (Luke 23:2)
B. Envy (Matthew 27:18)
C. Incitement (Matthew 27:20; Luke 23:23)
D. Irreverence (Matthew 27:41)
III. The mockers
A. The mob (Matthew 27:25)
B. The soldiers (Matthew 27:27-31)
C. The passersby (Matthew 27:39-40)
D. The robbers on either side of Him (Matthew 27:44)
IV. The mourners
A. His mother, Mary (John 19:25; Luke 1:28, 30-31, 46; 2:51)
B. Other women, including Mary Magdalene (Luke 8:2; John 20:1-2, 11-18)
C. John, the disciple whom He loved (John 19:27; 20:30-31)
A. Knowing God (1 John 4:7-8; Philippians 3:8-11; Titus 1:16)
B. Christ gives us life (1 John 4:9; John 14:6; 1:4; 11:25; 5:24)
C. Christ is the propitiation of our sins (1 John 4:10)
D. We have no excuse to not love the brethren (1 John 4:11)
II. Confessing God’s love
A. The good confession (1 Jn. 4:15; Acts 8:37-38; 1 Tim. 6:12)
B. More than mere lip service (Matthew 15:8; 7:21)
III. Abiding in God’s love
A. Mutual indwelling and reciprocal abiding – the closest fellowship and communion possible (1 John 4:12-16)
B. We can be bold by conforming our lives to His (1 John 4:17; 1 Timothy 6:11; Ephesians 5:1-2)
C. There is no fear in love (1 John 4:18; Psalm 111:10)
IV. Practicing God’s love
A. Selflessly seeking the very best for another (1 John 4:19)
B. Love for the brethren flows from a love for God (1 Jn. 4:20)
C. You cannot love God if you do not love your Christian family (1 John 4:21)
A. The context: the complaint of the Pharisees and scribes (15:1-2); Jesus responds with parables
B. The parables: the lost sheep (15:4-7), the lost silver (15:8-10), the lost sons (15:11-32)
II. Looking
A. Light the lamp (John 1:9; Psalm 119:105)
B. Sweep your house (James 4:8)
C. Search carefully (Luke 19:10)
III. Love
A. When found—upon repentance—there is rejoicing
B. What is our attitude at the repentance of another?
A. Upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets (Ephesians 2:19-20a; Acts 2:42)
B. Jesus is “the chief cornerstone” (Ephesians 2:20b-21; Psalm 118:22; Isaiah 28:16)
C. Built together in unity for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit (Ephesians 2:22; 3:17; Colossians 3:16)
II. Things necessary in order to build
A. Some things must be torn down (Judges 6:25-26; 2 Corinthians 10:4-6; Galatians 2:18)
B. Plans for growth (Ephesians 2:21; 4:11-16)
C. The proper foundation (1 Corinthians 3:11; Matthew 7:24-27; Psalm 89:14)
D. Wisdom and knowledge (Proverbs 24:3-6; James 3:13-18)
E. Workers (Matthew 9:35-38; 2 Timothy 2:15)
A. Not natural fear (hurricanes, thunderstorms, etc.)
B. Not sinful fear (Genesis 3:1-5; Matthew 25:24-25; 2 Kings 17:29-33; John 3:19-21)
C. Godly fear (1 Samuel 12:24; Jeremiah 33:8-9; Hosea 3:5; Romans 8:15)
II. Godly fear works together with…
A. Godly love (Deuteronomy 6:1-5; Psalm 145:19-20)
B. Trembling before God (Exodus 20:18-20; Psalm 2:11; Philippians 2:12)
C. Delighting in God (Nehemiah 1:11;Matthew 28:8; Exodus 15:11)
III. Godly fear leads to obedience
A. It is man’s all (Ecclesiastes 12:13)
B. His commands are delightful (Psalm 112:1), not burdensome (1 John 5:3)
C. Godly fear sustains us (Jeremiah 32:40)
D. His goodness motivates obedience (Romans 2:4; 11:22)
A. The purpose: forgiveness
B. Prophesied (Isaiah 53:12)
C. Perpetual intercession (Romans 8:34)
II. A prayer of lamentation (Matthew 27:46)
A. The pain of separation from God (Psalm 22:1; Hebrews 2:9; Romans 3:25; Isaiah 53:6)
B. “Why?” is not a question expressing doubt or unbelief, but faith seeking understanding
III. A prayer of submission (Luke 23:46)
A. A willing surrender (Psalm 31:5)
B. Jesus gave His life; it was not taken from Him (John 10:17-18; 19:10-11; Matthew 26:53)
C. An act of love (John 3:16), grace (Hebrews 2:9), and mercy (Hebrews 8:12)
A. Stop believing every spirit
B. Test the spirits (Acts 17:11)
C. Many false prophets (Galatians 1:6-9)
II. The context: a specific false doctrine (1 John 4:2-3)
A. Gnosticism stated the divine Christ did not actually inhabit a fleshly body
B. The spirit of antichrist
1. Disobedient (1 John 2:19)
2. Deniers (1 John 2:22)
3. Deceivers (1 John 2:26)
C. If a teaching does not originate with God, it must be rejected by the faithful
III. The contrast: truth vs. error (1 John 4:4-6)
A. His readers had overcome (Jude 3; Romans 10:17)
B. The false prophets are of the world (2 Timothy 4:2-4; Matthew 7:13-14)
C. The apostles are of God (Acts 2:42; 2 John 9-11)
But when they believed Philip as he preached the things concerning the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, both men and women were baptized. (Acts 8:12)
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