Loving Him Means Loving Them
“Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves the father loves his child as well.” 1 John 5:1 (NIV) Loving God was supposed to be the easy part. Loving the people who…
Rodney Garcia
The Spirit Is the Proof
“This is how we know that we live in him and he in us: He has given us of his Spirit.” 1 John 4:13 (NIV) You do not have to feel certain to be certain. Feelings rise and fall with…
They’ve Seen You
“No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.” 1 John 4:12 (NIV) Someone watched you this week and drew conclusions about God. They were…
Love Was Never Your Idea
“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 John 4:10 (NIV) You keep trying to love people better than you can. You wake…
Test the Voice Not Yourself
“Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.” 1 John 4:1 (NIV) Not every spiritual voice you hear is from…
Your Heart Isn’t the Verdict
“This is how we know that we belong to the truth and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence: If our hearts condemn us, we know that God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything.”…
Unseen by the World but Not by God
“The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him.” 1 John 3:1b (NIV) You assume no one notices when you leave a room. Most days it feels true, like your absence changes nothing at…
Christ Already Broke The Devil’s Power
“The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work.” 1 John 3:8b (NIV) Some of you are still fighting a war Christ won. You brace yourself daily for a fight that has already ended. John’s church…
Watch Where Envy Leads You
“Do not be like Cain, who belonged to the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own actions were evil and his brother’s were righteous.” 1 John 3:12 (NIV) A quiet comparison can…
Hope Grows Into Holiness
“All who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure.” 1 John 3:3 (NIV) Real hope was never meant to make you lazy. John’s church had recently been shaken by teachers who convinced some to leave.…