LIFE IN CHRIST

TOPIC: LIFE IN CHRIST
TEXT: Jn. 3:1-24,5:14.20.

MEMORY VERSE: He that keepeth His commandments dwelleth In Him, and He In him. (1 John 3. 24).

CENTRAL TRUTH: Living In Christ inspires pure conduct and loving service.

INTRODUCTION
Do Christians have reason to celebrate life in Christ? Absolutely! Life in Christ begins by being adopted into God's family. We experience God's love lavished on us. We are given a hope that inspires us to purity and a love for others. yet if we claim to be children of God. we must prove it by a godly lifestyle and deeds of kindness. It is these very things pure conduct in obedience to God's commandments and love for others that are evidences of our living a life in Christ. The benefits of life in Christ are wonderful. We have confidence that God hears and answers our prayers.
Our faith will stand firm as we trust in Christ's care and rest in the knowledge that we are God's. let us celebrate this wondrous life we have in Christ.

1. LIVING AS GOD'S CHILDREN 1 Jn. 3:1-3.
Believers are God‘s adopted children. In adoption. the lack of blood relationship makes the love of the parents more of a choice or act of the will. It is logical for a parent to love a child produced out of physical union, but to love someone else's child as one's own is an amazing act of generosity. This reflects the kind of love God shows to us. God's love is extraordinary. Despite this present obscurity, believers are looking forward to a day
when they will see God as He is (1 Jn. 3:2; 1 Cor. 13:12). John went on to teach that sin is lawlessness, which is rebellion against God's laws (v.4). Jesus came to

take away sin (V5) and whoever continues in sin does not know Jesus (v.6). without the new birth. a person's inner being remains inclined toward sin and he or she remains a child of the devil.

2. EVIDENCES OF LIFE IN CHRIST1 Jn. 3:11-24. in 1 John 3:11
John stated a basic Christian concept: “love one another’. He men described two very different examples people can follow in response to this command Cain's angry response to his brother piety. Abel lived a righteous life whereas Cain was evil (v.12). what John tried to point out is that the way a person loves others reveals the validity or invalidity of his faith (v14). Those who love are alive. Those who do not are dead. Hatred towards someone is as morally wrong as committing the act of murder (v.1 5; see Matt. 5:21.22).
John saw the unwillingness to help someone in need as a heart problem (v.17). God's love changes a man's hear from selfish living to show concern for others. It must be understood that the word brother can refer to a Christian on our similar faith and value. It can also be a generic reference to another human being (similar to the definition of a neighbor from the parable of the good Samaritan).
A believers ongoing acts of love and generosity result in a sense of belonging to God, a heart at rest, and a clear conscience (1 Jn. 3:19-20). Those who live for themselves and up disconnected from God with a heart in turmoil and a guilty conscience. .

3. BENEFITS OF LIFE IN CHRIST 1Jn. 5:14-17.

One of the benefits and characteristics of life in Christ is the ability to connect with God in prayer. 1 Jn. 5:1415 gives characteristics of prayers that connect with God praying according to God's will.

There is also the benefit of victorious faith in 1 Jn. 5:18-20. John challenged that Christians should make a radical about-face in their view of sin (v.18). Despite the hostility of a world under the control of the wicked one, the believer has spiritual protection through “he that is begotten of God" a reference to Jesus. Faithfulness to God brings the believer into a place of safety in God's protection just as Job had a hedge of protection (See Job 1:10). Our faith is assured because we know Jesus keeps us. There Is also the assurance that “we are of God” (1 Jn. 5:19). We recognize that the world is under the sway of the wicked one and wickedness. We were delivered from the power of darkness and translated into the kingdom of Christ as we entered into a right

relationship with God. The new mind-set and relationship sustains the believer in a hostile world with the

assurance that knowledge of the one True God is the source of eternal life. (v.20).

QUESTIONS.

1. What makes love for an adopted child unique? 
2. From 1 Jn. 3:11-15 and Gen. 4:1-9. what are some key differences between Cain and Abel?
3. How did John show love is action-oriented in 1 Jn. 3:16-18?
4. What is the connection between the believers lifestyle and prayer! 
5. What are some examples of prayer that are not in agreement with God's WI"?
6. How do you understand 1 Jn. 5:18?

My name is Ubong Kingsley Nsini. I am a preacher in Bible Christian Evangelical Church Inc. I am called by God to preach His good news and to help other preachers spread the good news all over the world.

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