Don’t Be Deceived

1 JOHN 1:1-4 FELLOWSHIP AND JOYFUL CONFIDENCE ARE THE RESULTS OF RIGHT BELIEF ABOUT JESUS. 1 JOHN 1:5-2:2 WE ARE SINNERS AND JESUS IS THE SOLUTION TO OUR SIN— FOR SALVATION AND RIGHTEOUS LIVING! 1 JOHN 2:3-17 Obeying God And Loving One Another Reveal A Right Relationship With God. 1 JOHN 2:18-27 FAITHFULLY BELIEVING THE GOSPEL TRUTH REVEALED BY THE HOLY SPIRIT REVEALS MY FAITH. OUR RESPONSIBILITY: IDENTIFY LIES, BELIEVE TRUTH, REST IN THE HOLY SPIRITS WORK IN OUR HEARTS. 1 JOHN 2:28-3:3 CONFIDENCE IN OUR FUTURE STANDING BEFORE GOD, GOD’S LOVE, AND OUR FUTURE COMPLETE SANCTIFICATION SHOULD MOTIVATE US TO RIGHTEOUS LIVING TODAY. Don’t Believe the Lie 1 JOHN 3:4-10 DON’T BE DECEIVED ABOUT THE NATURE OF SIN AND ITS POWER OVER YOU. SIN DOES NOT HAVE POWER OVER YOU, LIVE LIKE IT! APPLICATION 1. What wrong thinking do you have about sin? Have you been deceived into thinking you can’t deal with an issue in your life – it’s just the way you are? APPLICATION 2. It is easy to think that I have to live under the control of sin—as if I don’t have choice. As a believer, we choose to sin because it has no power over us. 3. I must start with believing right theology about sin, its power or lack thereof, and Christ’s victory over sin! APPLICATION 4. Remember the necessity of active dependence in the life of the believer: I must actively make deliberate choices of righteousness while depending on God’s transforming power through the Holy Spirit. 5. My everyday choices of obedience and love for fellow believers are indicators of whether I am living deceived. DON’T BE DECEIVED ABOUT THE NATURE OF SIN AND ITS POWER OVER YOU. DON’T BELIEVE THE LIE, LIVE IN THE FREEDOM OF CHRIST!