The Whisper Test

The Test

Study Test from Harvard performed by Dr. George Vaillant.

Physical exams, psychological exams, personal interviews for the participants

Greatest predictor of happiness in life later on was warm relationships as a child. His eight year study came down to 5 words: Happiness is love. Full stop.

What are names used for God in the Bible?

Father

Counselor

Mighty God

Ancient of Days

Faithful

The one I want to focus on is found in

1 John 4:7–16 ESV

7 Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9 In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. 10 In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. 11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 12 No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us. 13 By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. 14 And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. 15 Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. 16 So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.

1 John 4:7

The truest truth

1 John 4:16 ESV

16 So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.

The truest truth

We see in this passage and even in the Gospel of truth.

What is that truth?

God loved

Here in vs 16

we see God IS love.

We also see God wants us to live in love. His love

In one of our previous lessons we talked about the various personalities and their traits - those who are mathematically inclined, those who are musically inclined - learn best in those areas and tend to do life in those areas.

We must be careful however, as these traits can cause us to be performance based and then we can fall into the mindset that God’s love for us is based on our performance.

If God’s love is based or determined by my performance, who would that then make it about?

What does God say when we succeed?

When we fail?

When we have faith?

When we have doubt?

God’s answer to everything is love. Why? Because God is love.

What comes into your mind when you think about God?

A.W. Tozer: “What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us.”

Many people have misrepresented God and His love.

Lets consider something we discussed in one of our very first classes.

Ed/Angela whisper.

God wants us to hear His voice and we need to heed His voice, but more importantly God wants us to hear His heart and so He whispers softer and softer so we have to get closer and closer to Him. This is exactly where He want us to be - closer to Him.

He loves us so very much

John 3:16 ESV

16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

Insert your name as we read this verse out loud.

Jeremiah 31:3 ESV

3 the Lord appeared to him from far away. I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore I have continued my faithfulness to you.

God’s voice was the very first voice in your life

Is it the loudest voice?

The seven languages we have discussed are LOVE languages.