Proof of Life: Sons & Daughters

1 John 3:1-10

Connect:

• Share how you have seen God in the Highs and Lows of your week.

Prayer:

Pray that God would lead your discussion time and bring fresh insight, conviction, and hope through your time together.

Review:

This series, Proof of Life, is looking at how we KNOW that we are saved, born of the Spirit, alive in Christ… and what that looks like in our daily walk! This week we looked at our standing as the sons and daughters of God because of our life in Jesus Christ…

The Grand Tour of the message: Thinking back on what you heard this Sunday…

o What did you learn about God?

o What did you learn about people?

o What did you learn about yourself?

o What do you want to commit to putting into practice?

Reflection:

Personal Experience:

• Share a time when you made a critical decision, one that cost you, on the basis of your identity as a believer, a family member, a person of integrity… Maybe it was blowing the whistle on an unjust or unethical business move. Maybe it was choosing to say “no” to a career move because of your family commitments. Maybe it was something clear in Scripture that was a raw matter of conscience. What happened and how did your identity as a Christian, a family member… affect that decision?

  Group Discussion:

• Read 1 John 3:1

  • Why does God love us? We know He does; why does He?

  • Discuss what John talks about as “great” love. Why call this love “great”? (Eph 2:1-10, Rom 3:19-26, Rom 5:6-11, Titus 3:3-7,

  • John says we are called “Children of God”. What does that mean? (John 1:12-13, Romans 8:12-17, Gal 4:4-7).

  • Scott shared the story of a lady who experienced inner healing, the power to forgive and a powerful inner peace… all through God’s revealing to her that she was His child. How does that revelation have that great an effect?

• Read 1 John 3:2

  • Paul talks about what we are now as His children. Let’s dig into that…

    • Believers struggle between 2 natures, old and new: (Rom 7:18-24, Rom 8:5-9, 13-19; Gal 5:16-25, Ephesians 4:22-24, 2 Cor 5:17)

    • Our bodies die, but we will get new ones (Phil 3:20-21, 1 Cor 15:39-44)

    • We live in a world under a curse, and that curse will be removed (Rev 21:4, 22:3-5)

• Read 1 John 3:3-10

  • What is the difference between struggling with sin and living in sin? (Prov 28:13, Matt 7:15-20, John 3:19-20, 2 Peter 2:20-22, Rom 6:1-2, Rom 6:11-14, Rom 7:18-25, Rom 8:13, Gal 5:16-23, 1 John 1:5-10)

  • Someone asks you, “How come I still sin when the Bible tells me I am free from sin?” How would you respond?

  • Scott said, “When we sin, we are losing sight of God’s goodness. Discuss that; how does the temptation to sin distract us from the goodness of God?

Application: 

Knowing WHO we are will direct HOW we spend our lives. Begin with our identity as God’s children, and allow God to deal with us as His children— whether that is through mercy (Luke 24:47, etc) or discipline (Heb 12:5, etc) or the reminder that He has lavished His love on us (1 John 3). Start there, then speak and act accordingly wherever and whenever we are.

Prayer:

Spend some time praying together that God will witness to our hearts the reality that after we are saved, born again, become new creations in Christ… we are His children, heirs with Christ, beloved. Thank Him for that truth and ask Him to reveal this to the depths of our heart as we open our hearts to Him.

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