Who Is God?- Part 6

1 John 3:16-24; 4:1-6

Scripture Reference

1 John 3:16-24; 4:1-6

Introduction

We continue our series, “Who Is God? – Part 6,” unpacking the rich portrait of God as revealed in 1 John. John writes to help believers know God more intimately by seeing Him as Light, Love, and Life. In chapters 3 and 4 John turns our attention to God as Love — not a sentimental emotion but a holy, active, and discerning love that transforms how we live, relate, and witness. Tonight’s passage drives home two partner truths: love without action is empty, and love without truth is dangerous. We will look at the actions of love and the authenticity of love so that we might love like Christ — practical, sacrificial, and rooted in the Word of God.

Powerful song, a powerful truth. It must not have been easy for Naaman. Think about that. The royalty that he had, the things he was used to, and for God to say, go to a muddy river and do this. But he had to trust him.

Quote from Preacher

This opening quote (corrected for punctuation and capitalization) captures the heart of obedience: God’s ways often clash with our pride and precedent, yet true faith means trusting and obeying even when the command seems beneath us.

Outline

Actions of Love: Service, Sacrifice, and Substance
1. Fellowship Visible in Service
  John shows that true Christian fellowship is not merely social ease but service that builds spiritual bonds. When believers serve one another, they demonstrate the gospel. Serving together deepens care and makes practical the command to love.
2. Ultimate Good: Sacrifice (1 John 3:16)
  “Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us.” Christ’s willing death is the standard of love. If God gave Himself for us, we must be ready to sacrifice for our brethren — not merely tolerate them, but invest our lives in them.
3. Unconditional Giving: Using Worldly Goods to Meet Needs (1 John 3:17)
  John condemns the Christian who has resources and deliberately ignores a brother’s need. Genuine love is practical and sacrificial — it uses what we have to help others, not hoard for comfort or status.
4. Pure Religion Is Costly and Consistent (James 1:27 referenced by the preacher)
  True, undefiled religion visits and cares for the fatherless and widows — those who cannot pay back. The church must be a family that gives without strings attached, even when the world abuses that generosity.
5. Prayer and Action Linked (1 John 3:22)
  John connects answered prayer with obedience and loving action. Often God answers the pleas of our hearts through our hands — He moves when we move to meet needs in faithful obedience.
Authenticity of Love: Discernment, Declaration, and Distinction
1. Discriminating Truth: Try the Spirits (1 John 4:1)
  Not every profession of love or faith is genuine. John warns us to test spiritual claims by Scripture. Truth discriminates — it reveals and separates.
2. Detecting Truth: Christ’s Humanity and Lordship (1 John 4:2-3)
  The test is simple and central: any spirit that confesses Jesus Christ come in the flesh is of God; any spirit that denies that is not. This distinguishes Christian truth from antichrist error (Jehovah’s Witnesses, liberal theologies, and other systems that deny Christ’s full deity and true incarnation).
3. Determining Truth: Greater Is He That Is in You (1 John 4:4)
  Believers can overcome false teaching because the Holy Spirit lives in them. This is not arrogance but assurance — the Spirit guides us into truth as we dwell in God and obey His Word.
4. Discovering Truth: Words Reveal Allegiance (1 John 4:5-6)
  The world listens to the world; God’s people sound like the Word. Speech, doctrine, and life reveal whether someone is of God or of the world. The Christian’s language and testimony should be shaped by Scripture, not the culture.
5. Practical Steps for Discernment
  • Read the Bible regularly (know the standard).  • Compare any teaching with the whole counsel of Scripture.  • Beware of clipped quotes taken out of context.  • Look for fruit: does the teacher’s life match his words?  • Pray for the Spirit to guide you into all truth (John 16:13).
Assurance and Accountability: Conscience, Confidence, and Commandment-Keeping
1. Clear Conscience through Right Action (1 John 3:19-21)
  When we love without strings attached and do what we can for others, our hearts gain assurance before God. If our heart condemns us, remember God is greater than our heart and knows all things — repentence restores peace.
2. Answered Prayer Linked to Obedience (1 John 3:22)
  Prayer that expects God to act must accompany obedience. John ties receiving of requests to keeping God’s commandments and doing what pleases Him — action and obedience are partners with prayer.
3. Three Commitments that Prove Our Abiding (1 John 3:23-24)
  Believe on the name of Jesus, love one another, and keep His commandments. If we keep these, we dwell in God and have the Spirit’s witness — this is the evidence of authentic Christianity.

Summary

1 John 3:16–24 and 4:1–6 show us that God’s love is both active and discerning. Action without truth becomes sentimentality; truth without action becomes hypocrisy. The Christian life requires sacrificial service, unconditional giving, and spiritual discernment. We are called to love as Christ loved — practical, costly, obedient, and anchored in the confession that Jesus Christ came in the flesh and is Lord. That love produces assurance, answered prayer, and a life that witnesses to a watching world.

Let us not love in word, neither in tongue, but in deed and in truth.

Quote to Ponder

This second quote from the transcript (corrected for capitalization) is the heart-cry of John and should be ours: do not love merely with words—prove it by deeds and by truth.

Application for the Week

Take these practical steps to live out the actions and authenticity of love this week. Each step is measurable and meant to produce spiritual growth and gospel witness.

Serve one tangible need
Identify a member of the church, a widow, or a family in need and do one concrete thing for them (deliver a meal, mow a lawn, pay for groceries, drive to an appointment). Do it without announcing it or expecting anything in return.
Give from your means, not your leftovers
Set aside an intentional gift this week for someone who cannot repay you — an anonymous monetary gift or a grocery store card. Demonstrate love by using your resources to meet needs.
Practice honest confession and reconciliation
If you are aware of a strained relationship with a brother or sister in Christ, initiate reconciliation. Follow Christ’s command: go, make it right, and then return to worship and prayer.
Test what you hear by the Word
When you watch a sermon clip, read an online devotion, or hear a teaching, compare it to Scripture. Ask: Does this affirm Christ’s full deity and incarnation? Does it align with the whole counsel of God?
Clean up your speech
Monitor your conversations: replace worldy idioms and euphemisms with wholesome language. Practice speaking in a way that honors Christ and blesses others.
Pray with actionable expectancy
Include in your prayers this week requests tied to action — “Lord, give me a heart to help the Johnson family; show me the practical step I should take.” Then step out when the Lord clearly directs you.
Study to discern
Read 1 John chapters 3–4 this week in the KJV. Take notes of one verse each day and ask how it shapes your love for others. Memorize 1 John 3:18 and 1 John 4:2–3 to sharpen discernment.

May God give us the grace to love like He loves — sacrificially, truthfully, and visibly. Let our lives be a gospel that both cares and convicts.