Bible Study 1 John God is Light & Love

1 John is a first hand experience report of Jesus, God in the flesh, that visited the earth. A creator of the universe, larger than the universe He created, came into this little earth, as a man to communicate and save us. This is almost unimaginable. But John declared to us that the One, whom he touched with his own hands is the Word of Eternal Life that was with the Heavenly Father.

Christianity differs from other religions in one key aspect - Jesus Christ. If you remove Jesus Christ, Christianity is void. All other religions can still stand without their founders.

The main themes of 1 John are about Jesus Christ the Eternal Life, the Light and the Love. We who has fellowship with Jesus must walk in the light and in love. By walking in the light, we stay away from sin. Sin is revealed by the Light. Sin breaks fellowship. Sin and its effects, however, are removed by our confession. It is also about exposing the evil and staying away from the lusts of the world. Fellowship with Christ is also about love in action. Love is proactive - it acts first. Love is about obedience. Love is without fear. Our loving deeds assure us that we are of God who is Love.

I find John writing to be a bit repetitive. He tends to say the same thing in different ways. It shows that our language are too restrictive to explain the greatness of Jesus and His love.

The main title for the 5 chapters are :

1. Jesus, True God Came 
2. The Growth Stages
3. Believers Love like Their Father & Sin not
4. Discernment & True Love 
5. Our Identity & Authority

 It is exciting to discover the Love that Jesus had for us. It is also revealed slowly in our own life as we grow up from a child, young man and to fatherhood that we come to understand the Love of God. Let start with chapter 1... Bible Study 1 John Chapter 1 Walk in Fellowship with Jesus

Bible Study Galatians 3 Discussion

Additional learning from our discussion on Galatians Chapter 3 are shown in the mind map below:

There is nothing to add to the completed work of Christ but to receive in faith and showing the faith through our behavior. The Spirit ruling over our mind and body.

A main question is Q4 Do we still need to follow the Law after we are saved by Christ?
We don't have to follow the Law for our justification or salvation for we have been justified and saved by Christ. Following and living out the Christ in us actually surpassed the requirements of the Law. Nevertheless, the Law serves as a mirror for our behavior - a minimum standard. We follow the spirit of the Law. We also exceeds the Law as we love and forgive others.