1 JOHN
Chapter 4, Verses 1-7
[1-29-12]
Review:
1 John 3:22-24) [KJV] And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight.
23) [KJV] And this is his commandment, That we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us commandment.
24) [KJV] And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us.
Besides Loving God and People What Other Conditions Apply To Answered Prayer?
Mark 11:24-25A) [KJV] Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive [them], and ye shall have [them].
25A) [KJV] And when ye stand praying, forgive,
1 John 5:14-15) [KJV] And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us:
15) [KJV] And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him.
QUESTION: What are some conditions in the above verses?
ANSWER: Faith, forgiving those who wrong us, and asking for things that are God’s will are conditions in the above verses.
QUESTION: What does it mean to ask for things that are “according to his will”?
ANSWER: We need to ask God with the right attitude [2 Chronicles 7:14], in the right part of the prayer [Matthew 6:9-11], and for the right thing [1 John 5:14].
NOTE: Asking God with the right attitude helps our heart not to condemn us; asking God after a time of worship helps us pray with more confidence; and asking for something we know He wants to do, because it’s revealed in His Word to be His will, gives us an air of expectancy!
CLOSING NOTE: It all goes back to faith; we need to believe God will answer our prayers.
James 5:16) [KJV] The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.
On To This Week’s Lesson:
1John 4:1-7) [KJV] Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.
(MSG) My dear friends, don’t believe everything you hear. Carefully weigh and examine what people tell you. Not everyone who talks about God comes from God. There are a lot of lying preachers loose in the world.
QUESTION: Who are we to question, a spirit or a man?
ANSWER: We are to examine the doctrines of preachers, to see if they are teaching the doctrines of the Holy Spirit, or the doctrines of devils.
2) [KJV] Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God:
3) [KJV] And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that [spirit] of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.
QUESTION: What two things must a teacher confess about Jesus to show himself legitimate?
ANSWER: He must confess that Jesus is the Christ, and that He came to this earth in human flesh.
QUESTION: What were some of the false teachers of John’s day teaching?
ANSWER: They were teaching that Jesus came as a Spirit, and appeared as a man, but was not flesh and blood.
QUESTION: Is a man who believes that Jesus is the Christ and that He came in the flesh a Christian?
ANSWER: This passage is examining the “spirit” that inspires various teachings. The Holy Spirit inspires the doctrine of the incarnation of the Christ; false spirits inspire the doctrines that are contrary to sound teaching regarding Jesus being fully God and fully human.
4) [KJV] Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.
QUESTION: In what way have we “overcome them”?
ANSWER: We have not believed the false doctrines of devils.
QUESTION: How did we overcome them?
ANSWER: We overcame those lying spirits by the power of the One living in us Who is greater than the one that is in the world.
John 12:31) [KJV] Now is the judgment of this world: now shall the prince of this world be cast out.
2 Corinthians 4:4) [KJV] In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.
Ephesians 2:1-2) [KJV] And you [hath he quickened], who were dead in trespasses and sins;
2) [KJV] Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:
QUESTION: Who is the one “that is in the world”?
ANSWER: The devil is “the prince of this world,” the “god of this world,” and the “prince of the power of the air” in this world. He blinds “the minds of them which believe not,” and he works “in the children of disobedience.”
NOTE: The God Who live in us through the person of Jesus Christ has protected us from the error of false teachers through the person of the Holy Spirit. GOD IS GREATER THAN THE DEVIL!
Regarding this discussion of the humanity of the Lord Jesus,
“Rome, by the doctrine of the immaculate conception of the Virgin Mary, denies Christ’s proper humanity” [JFB].
QUESTION: Is the teaching about the Godhead important?
ANSWER: I believe it is. The Mormons teach that God is an exalted man rather than an eternal being.
QUESTION: Is that an acceptable doctrine? After all, they do teach that Jesus has come in the flesh.
ANSWER: If God is an exalted man from a previous world, a man many Mormons hope to follow the example of and become gods of future worlds, then does that doctrine teach that God Himself is an exalted, forgiven sinful man? If God is a forgiven sinner, then was the Son of God, the Lord Jesus, truly sinless?
5) [KJV] They are of the world: therefore speak they of the world, and the world heareth them.
6) [KJV] We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God heareth not us. Hereby know we the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error.
QUESTION: Why do many believe doctrines that aren’t based in Scripture?
ANSWER: The unsaved sometimes gravitate to the doctrines of devils because they are “of the world” just as the one we have overcome is “of the world.”
QUESTION: Who is the “we are of God” people verse 6 is referring to?
ANSWER: It is John and the others he refers to in Chapter One:
1 John 1:1) [KJV] That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes,
2) [KJV] (For the life was manifested, and we have seen [it],
3) [KJV] That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you,
4) [KJV] And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full.
QUESTION: Why is this so important?
ANSWER: John, and those he was referring to, were writing the very Word of God for us. The Holy Spirit inspired his words. Believers listen to what the Scripture says. This is the test for “truth” and “error.” People must believe the Scripture to be the Word of God. They don’t always have to agree with my understanding of it in order to be saved.
NOTE: John understood his place in the church. He was one of those chosen to give us, through his writings, the very Word of God. Because he understood this he could say, “he that knoweth God heareth us.”
7) [KJV] Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God.
QUESTION: What is he doing here?
ANSWER: He is taking us back to the emphasis of his letter; we must love one another.