1 John 1-3. That Ye May Have Fellowship with Us and with God.

1. Read John 1:1-4. Describe in writing John’s desire for those he wrote to.

John desired for those he wrote to, to have a fellowship with the Father and His son, Jesus Christ, that our joy may be full.

Study the following scripture references and then list what these verses teach about how we can come to know God better and have greater joy and fellowship with God:

1 John 1:8-10:

We make the Lord a liar and deceive ourselves when we say that we have no sins.

If we confess our sins, the Lord, who is faithful and just, will cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

1 John 2:3-6:

Those that say they know the Lord but do not keep His commandments are a liar and have no truth.

Those who keep the word of God can be perfected in His love and can walk in the light of Christ.

1 John 2:9-11

Those that say they are in the light but hate their brother (fellowman) walk in darkness and know not where they go because the darkness has blinded them.

Those that love their brother abide in the light and will not stumble.

1 John 3:11-19

We should love one another. We must not be surprised when we realize the world hates us, we passed from death to life because we loved our fellowman. Those that do not love his brother are murderers and have no eternal life.

The Lord laid down His life for us and so we should lay down our lives for our brethren.

The love of God cannot dwell in the hearts of those that do not have compassion towards his fellowman in need.

The Lord says that we should not love by word, but in deed and truth.

1 John 2:15-17

Those that love the vain things of this world cannot have the love of the Lord in their hearts, for the lusts of the world passes away but the love of the Lord abides forever.

1 John 2:20-21

The Lord can help us understand the truth of all things. No lie is the truth.

1 John 2:27

The Lord abides within each one of us and He can teach us all things, which is truth and not lies, and through these teachings we can abide in Him.

1 John 3:4-6

Sin is a transgression of the law, yet the Lord has manifested to take away our sins because there is no sin in the Lord. Those who abide in the Lord will not sin, but those who do sin do not know the Lord.

2. Choose one of the ways to greater joy and fellowship with God as you described it above and write a paragraph explaining how you can better implement those principles in your life.

As I was reading through all these verses, I realized that a lot of emphasis was placed on the principle of serving our brethren. Not only does serving and loving one another bring us closer to our fellowman, but also it is the one act that brings us closer to Jesus Christ than anything else. The love of the Lord can only dwell in the hearts of those that serve and have compassion towards their brethren. 1 John 3:19 say those who do not have compassion towards their fellowman are murderers and have no eternal life. I can have a better fellowship with Christ by looking for opportunities to serve my brothers and sisters. This can be difficult because it requires us to step out of our comfort zone and look for those opportunities, as most of the time they don’t just fall into our hands. Yet there are opportunities all around. I can give a comforting hug, or provide a listening ear. I can share what I have with others, even though it may not be much. I can check up or send a letter or gift to an old friend or someone who needs to know they are being thought of. I can look for opportunities to serve in my church. I can reach out and be a friend to someone who needs a friend. Sometimes when I think of service, I think of something big, like taking the day off to go do some service project, even though those are nice to do once in a while, I realize that it is small acts of service everyday that makes all the difference.