Paternity Test
Paternity Test
Text: 1 John 3:4-10 (NIV)
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. He who does what is right is righteous, just as he is righteous. 8 He 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 him; he cannot go on sinning, because he has 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 a child of God; nor is anyone who does not love his brother.
[1]
I. Introduction:
II. Realize The Potential for Deliverance: A Genuine Experience of God’s Children
A. The Lawlessness of Sin
1. In Practice
2. In Principle
B. The Life of Christ
1. His Purpose
2. His Purity
C. The Liberation of the Christian
1. Abiding in Christ
2. Departing from Sin
3. Experiencing Christ
III. Realize The Problem of Deception: A Counterfeit Claim to God’s Fatherhood
A. Recognize The Danger of Fraud
1. Guard Against Deception
2. Guard Against Defamation of Character
a) The Imitation of Christ
b) The Work of the Devil
c) The Incongruity of both
B. Recognize The Work of Christ
1. He Came
2. He Conquered
C. Recognize The Transformation of the Christian
1. A Change: Delivered From Sin
2. A Child: Born of God
IV. Realize The Possibility of Discernment: The Authenticate Testimony of God’s Children
A. Discerning Paternity
1. Children of God
2. Children of the Devil
B. Discerning Character
1. The Necessity of Righteousness
2. The Necessity of Love
V. Conclusion:
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[1] The Holy Bible : New International Version. 1996, c1984. Grand Rapids: Zondervan.