SIGN OF LIFE #1--The person who has life BELIEVES THE WORD OF GOD (1 John 5:9-12).
Consider again 1 John 5:9. This verse compares the witness (testimony) of _________ with the witness (testimony) of __________. We usually receive the testimony of men! When a person tells you something, do you usually say, "I don’t believe you, you’re a liar!"? _______ If you were to read in the newspaper that a plane had crashed in Chicago, would you believe it? ________ Suppose your doctor tested you and told you that your blood pressure was high. Would you believe him? ______ Do we usually receive the testimony of men (1 John 5:9)? ______ Whose testimony is even greater than that of men (1 John 5:9)? ___________ Most of the time men tell the truth, but do they always? ______ According to Titus 1:2 and Hebrews 6:18, why is the testimony of God greater? ____________________________ If we normally believe what men tell us, how much more should we believe ________________________________ If we usually take men at their word, how much more should we _______________________________________________.
When a person does not believe the testimony of God, he is thus accusing God of being a ___________ (1 John 5:10). But the person who is a true believer is able to say, "Lord, You are a God of _____________ (Deuteronomy 32:4) and the Bible is ___________ (John 17:17) and therefore I know that everything You say in Your Word must be ________________
The testimony (record, witness) that God gave concerning His Son is found in 1 John 5:11-12. What did God give to us (verse 11)? _______________________ Where is this gift found (verse 11)? ___________________ According to verse 12, the person who has __________________ has ___________ and the person who does not have _______________________________ does not have __________. The person who believes God’s testimony concerning His Son is able to say, "Lord, I believe that eternal life is a free ___________ (Romans 6:23) and this life is found only in Your _________ (1 John 5:11), and because I have R________________ Christ (John 1:12) as my personal Saviour and Lord, I now __________ (1 John 5:13) that I have eternal life."
Thus, a true believer is one who receives the testimony of God and who believes that whatever God says must be true!
GOD SAID IT!
I BELIEVE IT!
THAT SETTLES IT!
A genuine believer takes God at His Word and believes that God cannot lie. Therefore, we are simply saying that A TRUE BELIEVER IS ONE WHO BELIEVES! This is so simple it hardly needs to be said! Not only does a true believer believe what God says about Christ, but he (or she) also believes what God says about everything else. As we grow in the Lord, we begin to discover what God has said about many different things, and we learn to accept what He says as truth.
Some people CLAIM to believe in Jesus, but they have problems believing the Word of God. Consider the following examples, and ask yourself, "Do these people really receive the testimony of God?" As we shall see, their real problem is that of UNBELIEF (read Luke 24:25-27; Matthew 22:29). Let’s examine some of their problems:
But Jesus said that God’s Word is ___________ (John 17:17) and the Scriptures cannot be _________________ (John 10:35) and all things that are written in the Scriptures must be _____________________ (Luke 24:44) including every jot and every tittle (Matthew 5:18--this is like saying "every dotting of the i and every crossing of the t")! Did Jesus believe the Bible? ______ What these people are really saying is this: "I believe in Jesus but I believe that Jesus was wrong when He said that the Bible is truth." Is it possible for the Son of God to be wrong? _____ Therefore this is what the believer should say, "I believe in Jesus and because I believe in Jesus I also believe ______________________."
But Paul said, "For this we say unto you by the __________ of the
____________"
(1 Thessalonians 4:15) and "If any man think himself to be a prophet or spiritual,
let him acknowledge that the things that I write unto you are the _______________________
of the ________ (1 Corinthians 14:37). Did Peter recognize Paul’s letters as being
"scripture" (2 Peter 3:15-16)? ______ Therefore, the believer should say,
"I believe in Jesus and I also believe what __________ wrote because what Paul wrote
was in a very real sense the words of Christ (compare John 16:12-13)! All the Bible should
be in red letters!
But Jesus said, "Have ye not read that He who made them at the _______________________ made them ________________ and _______________" (Matthew 19:4; compare Genesis 1:27). Did Jesus believe in the Genesis account of creation? Was Jesus an evolutionist or a creationist? _________________________
But read carefully the words of Jesus found in Luke 17:27. Did Jesus believe in the great flood described in the book of Genesis? __________
But Jesus said, "Jonah was three days and three nights in the________________________________" (Matthew 12:40; compare Jonah 1:17). Therefore, the believer should say, "Because I believe in Jesus I also believe that ___________ was really in the belly of a great sea creature. Jesus said it! That settles it! And I believe it!"
The person who is truly saved believes the testimony of God! He believes all of God’s Word. Are you a Bible believer? Do you accept God’s Word as truth? Do you believe what God has said concerning His Son (1 John 5:9-12)? "Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith!" Are you dead or alive?
SIGN OF LIFE #2--The person who has life HAS A HUNGER FOR THE WORD OF GOD (1 Peter 2:2).
In 1 Peter 1:23 we learn that a person is _________ _____________ by the __________ ___ ________. In 1 Peter 2:2 we find that the person who has been born again is likened to a ________________ ____________ What is the one thing that babies yearn for, long for, earnestly desire, and fuss over if they don’t get it? ________________
If a baby has no desire for __________ then something must be wrong! Healthy babies have a real hunger for milk! Likewise, what should the born again believer yearn for and desire (1 Peter 2:2)? _________________________________________________
Is there something wrong with a Christian who never wants to read his (or her) Bible? _____ Is there something wrong with a lover who has no desire to read the love letters which come from that special person? ______ Is there something wrong with a believer who has no desire to read God’s love letter? ______ If a believer truly has a hunger for God’s Word, then should he desire to faithfully attend a Bible-teaching church where he can learn God’s Word? __________
Consider also 1 Peter 2:3: "If so be ye have __________ that the Lord is gracious." Have you tasted that the Lord is gracious? Have you tasted and seen the goodness of the Lord? Have you been saved by His wonderful grace? IF NOT, then it is not surprising that you do not desire His WORD which tells more and more about His grace and goodness! If someone gets a taste of something that is real good, then they will DESIRE MORE AND MORE!!
Consider the following verses which show the great desire and delight that David had for God’s Word: Psalm 1:2; Psalm 19:8,10; Psalm 119 (verses 16, l8, 40, 47, 72, 77, 97, 103, l05, 111, 113, 129, 130, 131, 143, 162, 174). Do you feel the same way towards the Word of God as the Psalmist did? Is God’s Word a delight to you? Do you find it very sweet? Is it more precious to you than money? Do you hunger after it more than after food?
The Bible is God’s personal love letter to us and we should read it with that attitude. We should set aside time each day to meet with God and with our Bible. If we really love the Lord, then we should love to hear Him speak to us (and God speaks to men today through His Word).
Do you really love God’s Word? Do you really enjoy reading the Bible and learning truth from the living God? Do you really hunger for the Word of God? Do you really love to go to church to learn more of the Bible and more of the God of the Bible? Is Psalm 19:7-11 really true for you? "Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith!" Are you dead or alive?
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