1 John 4 - 2.17.25

Scripture

‭‭1 John‬ ‭4‬:‭12‬ ‭NIV

“No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.”

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Observation

John is writing his fellow believers here, reminding them that the core of our Christian faith is love. God, who is love, demonstrated His love for us by sending His Son Jesus to die on the cross for our sins. And now, as believers who have Jesus living in us, we are to share God’s love with those around us. That way they can experience God and His love for them. They will know we are God’s children because of our love for them. ❤️

“By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”-John‬ ‭13‬:‭35‬ ‭

Application

Showing people who God is by loving them the way He loved me…and that’s unconditionally.

Some people have never been to church or even heard the gospel of Jesus before. For some of them, it’s hard for them to believe in a God that they cannot see, hear, or touch. Well, that is where we as Christians must step in. We may be the closest thing these people will get to going to church, hearing the gospel, and experiencing God. That is why John in this passage is stressing the importance of loving one another. If we are truly Christ Followers, we are supposed to have that love of God in us. We are supposed to share that love and demonstrate that love with the people around us and come in contact with. That way these people can experience God in tangible ways through  our words and our actions. It will hopefully make God more visible, more real, and more known in their lives. 😊

Prayer

Father God, thank You for loving me so much that You came to this earth and died for me. Thank You for filling me with Your love. I pray that I can share and show that love with others in a way that they can experience You in a way that makes You more real and present in their lives. May people see Your love for them through me. I pray this in Jesus name, Amen. 🙏🏽

-Moses Gaddi

1 John 1 - 2.14.25

Happy Valentines Day

SCRIPTURE: 1 John 1:1-4

That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched—this we proclaim concerning the Word of life. 2 The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us. 3 We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. 4 We write this to make our joy complete.

Observation

John was an eyewitness to Jesus who is the son of God from the beginning and came to earth as a man so we can have relationship with Jesus who is the Word of Life. John and the disciples had an amazing firsthand relationship with Jesus. They heard him, seen him, studied him and touched him. Every moment they were with Jesus they were with the Son of God. John wants us to have the same relationship with Jesus that he did.

Application

John wanted believers to have fellowship with him or “us” as other believers. People usually first encounter with God is through relationships with God’s people. People see us and how we live. It is hard to be an undercover Christian and expect people to encounter Jesus. Our lives need to reflect Jesus and our hope is to become more like him. I have great news for all you believers, in heaven we will get to see Jesus, hear Jesus, study Jesus, touch Jesus and have a banquet with Jesus. 

Prayer

Jesus Son of God, thank you for coming here so we can have a relationship with you and the Father. Help us as we encounter others that we reflect you Jesus. We want more of you and less of us. Help us grow in our relationships with each other. Jesus make our joy complete. In Jesus name Amen.

- Robert Oberg

2 Peter 3 - 2.13.25

 S - 2 Peter 3:8-11: 8 But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. 9 The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.

10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything done in it will be laid bare.

11 Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives

O –  2 Peter was written just 3 years after his initial letter to encourage the Church and to teach them about handling persecution and trials from the outside.  This letter was and is, for all who have received the faith. It contains Peter’s last words prior to his death as a martyr. He was warning all of us against an internal attack, complacency, and heresy. Heresy is any belief or practice that explicitly undermines the gospel. The identification and condemnation of heresies have played a significant role in shaping the development of Christian theology in the Church. (Christianity.com) Peter wanted to remind us of the words of the prophets and apostles that predicted the coming of false teachers, to give the reasons for the delay in Christ’s return, and to encourage them to beware of heresies.

A - God may seem slow as we go through trials and are just waiting for Him to help us out of our troubles. With the world caving in all around us - the natural disasters increasing, the cost of everything increasing, the lack of space and natural resources, the division among political parties and agendas, the disparity between the rich and poor, it would appear like now would be a great time to come for us and relieve of us of our hardships and pain. However, God’s timing is never slow…it just isn’t on our timetable. Imagine that! God’s timing is always perfect, whether we can see it now or not. We need to always remember that for us, time really is short. During that short time on earth God gives us some really important work to do in order to continue to grow our family for His Kingdom. He wants so many more people to believe in Him; to repent and turn to him. How can they do that if He takes us all home now? WHO will teach them who Jesus is? Who will show them? I think back to when I became a Believer… there were many different people who played a part in that. And it took time! I’m a little slow, stubborn and hard-headed (no comments!). I remember my great grandmother being a devout Catholic, and I am sure she prayed for me and shared God’s love with me. I remember a teacher in 5th grade inviting me to church camp in 5th and 6th grade. I am sure they prayed for me and showed me God’s love. I worked with some Christians at LAPD, whom at the time, I thought were a couple of “weirdos” but I know they prayed for me and told me things about Jesus. And I had several friends at the gym, that when I would go in to work out the morning after a crazy night of partying, they would tell me about the love of Jesus and who He was. EVENTUALLY, in HIS timing, I came to know Him and the trajectory of my life was forever changed! I am proof that you should never give up (Keep Moving!). I am always going to be a work in progress, but now I work for HIM and not just for the things that I want. We need to be ready to meet Jesus anytime, but also continue to plan our course of service as though He may not return for many years.

Be purposeful. Is there someone in our lives that we need to be sharing the Gospel with?

Romans 10:14-15 (NLT) 14 But how can they call on him to save them unless they believe in him? And how can they believe in him if they have never heard about him? And how can they hear about him unless someone tells them? 15 And how will anyone go and tell them without being sent? That is why the Scriptures say, “How beautiful are the feet of messengers who bring good news!”  

Serving is our privilege. Are we all serving in some capacity alongside the church family?

Matthew 20:28 28 just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

Are we being faithful with our resources and tithes to help grow the Kingdom?  The Bible teaches that giving is a reflection of the heart’s attitude, and how we give reveals our relationship with God. (Freebiblestudyhub.com)

He IS patient with us, but we need to behave like, and work diligently as though He is coming tomorrow! Because when He comes, He will come SUDDENLY! We better be ready to answer for all that we have done for Him and His Kingdom.

P – Lord Jesus, thank you that your timing is always perfect, and that You choose to partner with us so that we can make You known to as many people as we possibly can. Help us not leave any one man behind because we failed to do the work you have called us to do. Lord help us to love others by truly caring what happens to them! Help us to remember where we were when you encountered us. Help us be patient and diligent in all you give us to do until the day comes when we get to spend eternity with you! Amen

- Crystal Flory