1 John 2:28-3:10
28 And now, dear children, continue in him, so that when he appears we may be confident and unashamed before him at his coming.
29 If you know that he is righteous, you know that everyone who does what is right has been born of him.
3:1 See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. 2 Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. 3 All who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure.
4 Everyone who sins breaks the law; in fact, sin is lawlessness. 5 But you know that he appeared so that he might take away our sins. And in him is no sin. 6 No one who lives in him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen him or known him.
7 Dear children, do not let anyone lead you astray. The one who does what is right is righteous, just as he is righteous. 8 The one who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work. 9 No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God’s seed remains in them; they cannot go on sinning, because they have been born of God. 10 This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not God’s child, nor is anyone who does not love their brother and sister.
What did you want to be when you were growing up? Did you want to be like your mom or dad? What did you end up being – did you follow in a similar career to a parent?
In what ways has God shown his love to you?
Is every person in the world a child of God? How do we become God’s children? (see also: Gal 3:26; Matt 5:9, John 1:12)
What does it mean to you to be a child of God?
What do you think it means that the world doesn’t know us? (v1) (see also John 15:18; 1 Peter 4:3-5) To what extent should God’s children look different from those who don’t know God?
What reasons are given for why practicing sin is incompatible with a relationship with God?
Does verse 6 mean that believers will never sin? How does understanding the context of who John’s opponents were assist our understanding of what he meant by “no one who abides in him keeps on sinning”?
What should our view of sin be if we consider ourselves a child of God?
“From a biblical context behaviour ALWAYS flows out of knowing who you are.” From this perspective, what ought to be the reason we don’t practice sin?
“Your identity is perfected through obedience.” What do you think about this? Do you think people become what they do? Discuss.
Going Deep. (V.-8-10) When you look at your obedience/behavior practices lately, what father (God/Devil) do they reflect? Who have you been apprenticing under? What do you need to repent and believe? How can the group hold you accountable?