The Love of the Father
Questions for Study 4

1 John 3:1-24
Memory Verse: 1

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I. The Love of the Father (1-10)

1. Why is it the great love of God that we should be called children of God? How did they come to be born of God? What are the privileges and blessings they recieved from God? (John 1:12)

2. In what way are the children of God contrasted to the children of the world? (1)

3. What is the ultimate hope of the children of God? How does this also give children of God unshakable confidence concerning their future? What is the consistent inner life of those wo have such hope? (3)

4. How does the author define "sin"? What are the reasons for "those who live in Christ" or "those who have seen or have known him" not to keep on sinning? How are the lives of the believers and the unbelievers each characterized?

5. What are the marks of the devil? Why? What is the standard by which one can be tested whether he is a child of God or a child of the devil? How do the children of God overcome the devil and his work?

II. Love One Another (11-24)

6. What is the heart of the Christian message? (11) In what way is the illustration of Cain its antithesis? (Matt. 5:21)

7. How does the motivation of Cain's murdering his brother give us a clue as to the human nature of those who belong to the evil one? (12) How does this explain the reason for the world's hating followers of Jesus for no reason? (13, Jn. 15:19)

8. What is the test by which a believer knows that he is in the spiritual state "having passed from death to life"? (14, Jn. 5:24) How does John emphatically declare the spiritual meaning of hate? Why do you think one who hates remains in the spiritual condition of death? (15, 2:11)

9. How do Christians come to know what love is? What are the motivations and reasons why Christians ought to love their brothers? What does this teach us about the quality of Christian love?

10. What illustration does John give to teach us that brotherly love is a practical thing? How does this teach us that love demands action?

11. How does brotherly love bring rest and assurance in our hearts? Why are God's approval and condemnation more important that that of our own hearts?

12. What other confidence does one have before God as he obeys God's commands of love? What are the two most important commands? How do we know that we live in God and God in us?