The Father has poured out His love on us without measure, an unrestrained affection that calls us His children. This divine love is not earned but freely given, making each of us His favorite in a unique and personal way. It's a love that sees us as pure through the blood of Jesus, continually cleansing us as we abide in Him. This profound truth should anchor our hearts, reminding us of our cherished identity in Christ. [04:50]
1 John 3:1
See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him.
Reflection: When you consider God's "unconditional, unrestrained love" for you, what specific area of your life feels most impacted by this truth, and how might embracing it more fully change your perspective this week?
True love extends beyond mere words; it demands action, but action guided by wisdom. We are called to open our hearts to those in need, allowing their struggles to break our hearts, yet we must carefully define what "help" truly means. It's not about enabling harmful patterns but about guiding someone in the right direction, even if that means saying "no" to requests that would perpetuate their struggles. This discerning love seeks to empower and uplift, aligning with God's plan for growth and blessing. [19:38]
1 John 3:17-18
But if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him? Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.
Reflection: Think of a situation where you've felt a desire to help someone, but weren't sure how. How might applying the principle of "helping someone go in the right direction" guide your approach in that specific situation?
In a world filled with many voices claiming spiritual authority, it is crucial to discern and recognize the true spirit. Not every passionate or eloquent message aligns with God's truth. The ultimate test of any spirit or teaching is its confession of Jesus Christ—that He came in the flesh, lived, died on the cross, and rose again. Any spirit that denies this foundational truth is not of God, but rather of the spirit of antichrist. As believers, we are equipped to recognize these deceptions and stand firm in the truth of who Jesus is. [28:47]
1 John 4:1-3
Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already.
Reflection: In what ways have you recently encountered messages or ideas that challenge the core truth of Jesus Christ coming in the flesh, and how can you more intentionally anchor yourself in biblical truth to discern them?
As children of God, we possess an incredible advantage: the Spirit of God dwells within us. This indwelling Spirit is greater than any deceptive force or influence in the world. No matter how cunning the deceptions, or how subtly the enemy tries to lead us astray, we have the divine guidance to navigate through them. By learning to yield to the Holy Spirit in our daily lives, we increase our capacity to recognize truth and avoid being misled, walking confidently in God's wisdom. [34:17]
1 John 4:4
Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.
Reflection: Where in your life do you currently feel most vulnerable to worldly deceptions or confusing messages, and what practical step can you take this week to yield more fully to the Holy Spirit's guidance in that area?
God's perfect love is the ultimate antidote to fear. When we truly grasp the depth of His love for us, it transforms our perspective, replacing anxiety with fearless confidence. This isn't a naive optimism, but a deep-seated assurance that God will protect, care for, and watch over us. Knowing we are His cherished children, acceptable to Him, allows us to approach life—and even the day of judgment—with boldness rather than shame. Embrace His perfect love, and watch as fear loses its grip. [40:34]
1 John 4:18-19
There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love. We love because he first loved us.
Reflection: Reflect on a specific fear or anxiety you've been carrying. How might intentionally meditating on God's perfect love for you, and His promise to protect you, begin to diminish the power of that fear in your daily life?
The epistle of John is revisited with a clear, urgent focus: believers are defined by their union with Christ and by love that moves. Being “in Christ” means ongoing cleansing by Jesus’ blood, a present identity that defeats the power of sin and breaks the devil’s hold. That new identity is rooted in God’s lavished love—God sent his Son to remove sin and to make believers children of God—and this reality should shape both confidence before God and daily conduct. Love is presented not as sentiment but as costly, visible obedience: Christ’s laying down of his life establishes the pattern, and Christians are called to lay down their lives for one another in concrete, discerning ways.
Practical application sharpens the call. Helping others must be defined carefully; true help guides people toward health and responsibility rather than enabling destructive patterns. Financial giving and compassion are important, but they must be governed by wisdom about long-term flourishing. John also presses spiritual discernment: not every spirit that speaks belongs to God. The definitive test is the confession that Jesus Christ came in the flesh—denials of the incarnation reveal a spirit opposed to Christ and open the door to deception. Believers have the Spirit within them—“greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world”—so discernment, not fear, should mark the community.
The end of the argument returns to love: God is love, and abiding in love produces boldness before God and casts out fear. Love with action—the union of orthodoxy and charity—marks authentic children of God. The epistle repeatedly ties correct belief to ethical obligation: genuine faith shows itself in sacrificial service, careful help, spiritual sobriety, and a fearless confidence born from being loved and sealed by God’s Spirit.
``So so watch this. If it's not God and the Holy Spirit saying so for example, let's just go with the idea that Jesus did not die on a cross. Okay? God would never say that. Jesus would never say that. He's got the scars to prove it. The Holy Spirit would never say that. Alright? Who would say that? Satan. Satan would say it. So is it right for the believer to say no? Any teaching that denies Jesus Christ came, died, and rose again is demonic at its core. Yeah. That's what we have to say. That's what we have to understand.
[00:29:15]
(41 seconds)
#I noticed the quoted block repeats many passages. Do you want a hashtag for each paragraph as a separate quote (including duplicates), or one hashtag per distinct quote only? Please confirm which approach and/or how many hashtags you want.
you have the spirit of God in you. And greater is he who's in you than he who is in the world. There's no deception that you should be able to look at in the world and it deceive you because you got the spirit of God leading and guiding you. And the more we learn how to yield to him in our lives, the greater chance that we have of not being deceived in this life. Amen? It's about yielding to him because greater is he who's in me than he who is in the world. Amen? Look in the next verse.
[00:34:47]
(26 seconds)
Perfect love casts out fear. Let me show you the difference. I never have a problem. I walk through the woods in the middle of the dark. It doesn't bother me at all. Why? Perfect love casts out fear. Let me tell you why. I believe with all my heart, God will protect me, take care of me, watch over me. I'm his favorite. There might be a thousand at my right and 10,000 at my left, but it doesn't come near me. Praise God. God is going to protect me because he loves me. Amen?
[00:42:40]
(24 seconds)
That's right. Jesus came to destroy the works of the devil. Jesus did not negotiate with the enemy. You can learn a lot about life in the Bible, y'all. You do not negotiate with certain entities. Alright? Jesus did not negotiate with the devil. He defeated the devil. That's how you deal with the devil. Alright? Here's the here's the fourth one. You ready? Being a child of God means God's seed, the word of God, remains in us.
[00:06:52]
(27 seconds)
Before you ever go about talking about giving, you have to define the term help. First of all, you think as believers we should help people. Okay. Okay. We're we're kinda partly cloudy on that. Come on, church. How many of you believe we should help people? Yes. Alright. One more time. Should we help people? Yes. Okay. Now here's the problem. You have to define help. You have to define help.
[00:12:54]
(28 seconds)
Let me explain. My dad was a drug addict. If you gave my drug my dad any drug, if you kept Robitussin in the counters, if you had any drugs in your home at all, he wanted to take it, drink it, get high on something. K? And when you didn't give it to him, guess what? He got mad at you and said, why why won't you help me? Why? Because I'm not helping you. Because me saying no to you is me helping you.
[00:13:22]
(31 seconds)
Years ago, for for a long time, would give to anybody that was asking money. I'd just give whatever I got. Years ago, I felt like in my heart, I don't give to panhandlers. I don't. You say, well, why? Well, why? Is your heart shut off? No. Actually, whenever I see a panhandler, my heart breaks for them. It really does. But I also recognize that, and maybe it's because of what my son does, or maybe it's because I've been around the world a while, but, you know, you you get to the point where you recognize that people panhandling usually, possibly, they got addictions.
[00:16:50]
(36 seconds)
We are in Jesus now. This is what this to clarify this, let me explain. This is why he says, he who abides in Christ cannot sin, cannot sin. He's not talking about you don't have the ability to go out and verb, take the action of sin. No. He's saying that if you're in Christ, first John one seven, anyone who's in Christ, he is being cleansed continually. You remember the car wash scenario I gave you in the first message? You know, you're constantly being cleansed because you're in Christ. So if you're in Christ, you can't sin. Why? Because you're being washed by the blood of Jesus continually.
[00:05:37]
(40 seconds)
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