Unmerited: Family Welcome to the dysfunctional family Romans 12:1-8, 1 Corinthians 12:12-27 We are all made incredibly from other. We all are made for incredibly . Many differences tend to , not . Why I have to love you, and you have to love me 1 John 2:9-11, 3:16-18, 4:7-12, 19-21, 5:1-5, Matthew 5:23-24, Romans 12:17-21 It’s not about ; it’s about . Not loving is us… it’s our . Our two choices are to either love those , or the . How in the world can I love someone like you? I have to remember: How I got at the . We are all in a of becoming like ,but none of us have yet. I can’t when I’m at His . The best way to connect with us is the Connection Card in the bulletin. For the Digital Bulletin, visit myncc.info. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Support Our Ministry If you found this message beneficial and you would like to help continue our ministries, we would be grateful for your support. Go to northcoastchurch.com/give ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Food for Thought for the week of December 11, 2022 We were reminded this weekend that when we were adopted as God’s children, we gained a family. This family is made up of a variety of differences, which means there will always be conflict, misunderstanding and a reason to create division in the family of God. Not if, but when we struggle to love those in this family, 1 John provides us with an answer to this family problem and a map to remind us where to fix our minds and hearts. So, grab your Bible, circle, highlight and underline, and at the end of our time, we will have a map to turn to any time we find ourselves struggling to love our brothers and sisters. As you read through these passages in your Bible, make notes of the language John uses and the length at which he goes to get his point across. Stop 1: 1 John 2:9-11 9 Anyone who claims to be in the light but hates a brother or sister is still in the darkness. 10 Anyone who loves their brother and sister lives in the light, and there is nothing in them to make them stumble. 11 But anyone who hates a brother or sister is in the darkness and walks around in the darkness. They do not know where they are going, because the darkness has blinded them. When you’re in conflict with another Christian, do you focus more on what they are doing or on your attitude towards them? Stop 2: 1 John 3:16-18 16 This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. 17 If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person? 18 Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth. How do you know if you’re actually displaying what's commanded in the above verses or just saying the right things? Stop 3: 1 John 4:7-12 7 Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9 This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. 10 This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. 11 Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 12 No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us. We see that God's love isn't passive towards difficult people but instead is active. What's one way you can take a step of displaying love to a fellow Christian you wouldn't normally display love to? Stop 4: 1 John 4:19-21 19 We love because he first loved us. 20 Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. 21 And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister. Considering this passage, how does God view our relationship with Him if we have a problem with a “sibling?” Stop 5: 1 John 5:1-5 Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves the father loves his child as well. 2 This is how we know that we love the children of God: by loving God and carrying out his commands. 3 In fact, this is love for God: to keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome, 4 for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. 5 Who is it that overcomes the world? Only the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God. Is there any relationship that needs attention this week in light of the above verses? How can you keep God's commandment to love that sibling this week?