Merry & Bright

The Gift of True Love This Christmas

Bible Passage: 1 John 4:9-10

Summary: In 1 John 4:9-10, we find that true love is not just an emotion or a fleeting sentiment; it is a profound gift exemplified in God's action, revealing His love through the sending of His Son for our salvation.

Application: This passage encourages believers to understand and embrace the true meaning of love during Christmas, prompting them to reflect on how they can express God's love to others, particularly in a season often filled with commercialism and superficial relationships.

How this passage could point to Christ: This theme highlights Christ as the ultimate revelation of God's love. In His birth, we see the manifestation of divine love, which calls us into a deeper relationship with God and compels us to share that love with others.

Big Idea: True love, as shown through the gift of Jesus Christ, transforms how we relate to God and each other during Christmas and beyond.

Good morning,

I hope that you all had a great Thanksgiving. I know some are still traveling today so let’s remember them in our prayers.

Thanksgiving is always a special time, to gather with friends and family around the table and enjoy some good food. So we will pray for forgiveness today because I am sure we all gave into the sin of gluttoney on Thursday. If you are like me, you waited for the post Thanksgiving sandwich and really enjoyed yourself.

This morning we kick off our Christmas season here at SFBC.

This morning we are going to talk about love, and not just any love, but the true love that comes from God

1 John 4:9–10 NIV

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. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.

1. God's Greatest Gift

1 John 4:9 NIV

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.

This is how God showed His love

A little baby in a manger

The gift the brought us life

Natural lifes blessings

Eternal life

What does it mean to live through him?

We live through His love

Understanding God is to understand the depth of which he cares for us

The difficulty of the birth of Christ

What had to happen to ensure the gift was delivered

The fear, the uncertainty, the

2. Love Defined

1 John 4:10 NIV

This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.

True love comes from God, not from us.

He loved us so much that he sent his Son

We celebrate that this month

We should celebrate every day

I love Christmas

The lights, the music

What I love most, all we do here

Cantata, Meals, Carols, Service, Fellowship

Why do we do these things? Because we love each other

We love because He first loved us

3. God is LOVE!

How would you define love?

God is love

His love is shown through sacrifice

Let this Christmas be one where you see the love of God, not just the blessings

Let every moment be filled with the knowledge that this celebration is for the one who came to save you.

Make it personal

Do you truly understand Christmas?

Christmas is not simply the season of giving, but the season where love was gifted to us in the form of Christ.