LIVE LOVE The Way to Love REFUGE Small Group Lesson
Bible Passage: 1 John 4:7-10; 5:1-3 Scripture Memory: 1 John 5:3 Small Group Objectives: - Students will learn that there is NO SUCH THING as real love apart from complete trust in God. - Students will begin to evaluate where their lives reveal trust in God and where disobedience to His Word shows a lack of love. “This is love for God: to obey his commands. And his commands are not burdensome….” [1 John 5:3 NIV] “The proof that we love God comes when we keep his commandments and they are not troublesome.” [1 John 5:3 MSG] 3 Big Intro Questions to Ask: Make sure you and the students read through the Bible passages in 1 John 4:7-10; 5:3 before you answer questions. Keep in mind, these questions will help evaluate their understanding of God’s love for them and the role they have in LIVING LOVE before others. 1. What does it mean to be “born of God”? (LEADERS: Being born of God means that you have a personal/individual relationship with God. When we trust Jesus to save us from our sins, we become part of His family—a child of God) 2. When does God start loving us? Why does this matter? (LEADERS: God loves us before we can ever love Him. He has invited us into a relationship with Him, making it possible for us to truly love. This means that we do not have to earn His love. We can live confident that God first chose to love us.)
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3. How should we live? Why? (We should live by loving God and others. The Bible teaches that if we truly know God, then we should love like God loves.) What are some ways that God shows love? Are these ways in which we can show love too? How? [LEADER] If God loves us enough to willingly sacrifice His Son for us in order to have a relationship with Him, it is obvious that He is worthy of our trust—He is trustworthy. [LEADER] Have the students read the following passages, allow time for students to respond to each passage by answering this question (Since God is trustworthy, how should we respond to Him?) • Proverbs 3:5-6 (Answer: Ultimately we respond to God’s trustworthiness with FAITH) • Deuteronomy 6:5 (We respond to God’s trustworthiness in LOVE) • John 14:23-24 (We respond to God’s trustworthiness in OBEDIENCE) [LEADER] How this works is that if we trust in God, we respond to Him with faith, and that faith is expressed in love and obedience. Disobedience is actually a lack of trust/faith. God’s commands aren’t pointless. They are meant to protect us, guide us, and help us have the full life God has in store for us. So, if we truly love God and believe He is trustworthy, it will show by whether or not we listen to and obey His commands— and obedience will be shown by how we love. QUESTION: What comes to your mind when you hear the word “obey”? What about the word “command”? [LEADER] Allow for responses. Explain that we misunderstand this vital part of our spiritual life often: (Usually, these words provoke negative responses. We don’t like to be bossed around, and we may feel like that is exactly what the Bible does. But the Bible is not some old book of rules; it’s God speaking to us in LOVE.) READ (and re-read) the following: • 1 John 3:16-17 • 1 John 4:7-10 • 1 John 4:15-21 • 1 John 5:3 2
[LEADER] Pass out “If… Then…” handout and have students read the handout.
When completed, havee the students answer the following questions questions: • What does this mean to you? • How does this challenge the way you think, act, and live? • Realizing that God is love, what specifically has God has said that you have trouble with when it comes to trusting in Him? • What has He said that you do not obey? • Do you Trust that God loves you? Do you trust that He has a great reason for everything He says? PRAYER TIME: Have the students spend some time listing things that are hard to trust God for… spend time in prayer pr praying for God’s help with those things.
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[LEADER NOTES] Here are some things I came away with as I studied the passages in 1 John. I didn’t place them in the specific lesson, but they may prove helpful as you prepare for your small group time. - Love for one’s brother/sister comes from God. It is evidence/proof of our being born of God (born again). - This kind of love is not natural for us. - We cannot learn this kind of love, it comes only from God—this is why we must be “born of God.” - God is the originator—the giver of love. - Whosoever truly loves his brother/sister is not only born of God (1 John 2:28; 3:24), but is also one who “knows” God. - This kind of LOVE involves “concrete actions” not just empty words and promises—ACTION (James 2:18b, “Show me you faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do”). - This kind of LOVE is agape love: it requires the commitment to sacrifice one’s most beloved possession for another’s gain (cf. John 3:16).
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