Cleveland County herald., 1920-03-04
IMPROVED UNIFORM INTERNATIONAL SUNllIXtSCIIOOL
 LESSON tBy REV. F. B. FITzWATER, D. D., Teacher of English Bible in the Moody Bible Institute of Chicagol tcopyright. 1920 Western Newspaper unlon)
LESSON FOR MARCH '
JOHN WRITES ABOUT CHRISTIAN
 LOVE.


 LOVE.
 LESSON TEXT-I John 4:7-21.
 GOLDEN TEXT-Beloved. if God so loved us, we ought also to love one an- other.-I John All
 ADDITIONAL WATERFALL John. II John, III John.
 PRIMARY ToPIC-Loving One Another. JUNIOR T0PIG-Loving God and Our Neighbors
 lNTERMEDIATE AND SENIOR TOPIC ,-How to Show Love for God and His People
 YOUNG PEOPLE AND ADULT TOPIC Christian Love Upon Society
 l. The Origin Of Love (vv. ', 8.
 Love is of God. for God is love. God not merely loves. but he is the foun- tainhead of love. Love of country. love of humanity, filial and parental love- every particle of love everywhere has been derived from God; his love is infinite, eternal and unchangeable. Since love is of God, everyone who loves is born of God and knoweth God The Christian, by his life of love, in- terprets God to the world. It is not enough that the world should be told that God is good and kind, it should see his nature expressed in the life and love of the disciple. The Chris tian's life is the worlds Bible. Where love is wanting, knowledge of God is wanting
 II. Gods Manifestation of Love (vy. 9, 10).
 Gods method of making known his love is through the incarnation-the sending of his only begotten Sonainto the world to be the propitiatfoT for our sins (John 3 :16). The coming of Jesus Christ into the world and his taking on human nature makes possi- ble life for those who receive him. If we would know Gods love, let us look at Jesus Christ. Those who gaze upon him in reverent contemplation cannot doubt Gods love.
 III. The Supreme Motive of Love (v. ID.
 Gods love is the grand incentive prompting his children to love.
 ". Love the Proof That God DwelIs With Us (vv. 12-16). l. No man hath seen God at any time (v. 12), but there is abundant proof of his being. The one unmistak- able proof of his being is love in the heart of man. Love is not native to the human heart, for the heart is de- ceitful above all things and desperate ly wicked (Jer. IT :9). Out of the heart proceeds murder (Matt. 15 :19). Love in the heart is proof that God dwells within.
 7. Love proves that Gods Spirit is within us (vv. 13-16). The fruit of the Spirit is love (GaI. :22). Gods Spirit dWells within his children. The in- dwelling Spirit shows us Christ and makes us believe in him as Gods Son. the Savior of the world. Those in whom God dwells will always make this confession Those who deny the Deity of Christ have no fellowship with God, and those who have fellow ship with God will confess Christ as his Divine Son.
 V. Love's Relation to the Judgment. (vy. IT, 1S).
 It casts out fear. A judgment day is coming, for God hath appointed a day in which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained (Acts 17 :31). It will be a terrible thing for those unprepared to meet God at that time, but for those who are indwelt by the living God there will be a joyful meeting. He that dWelleth in God and God in him will realize the perfection of love in boldness in the day of judgment, be cause as he is so are we in this world (vv. It, ID. The way to get rid of the fear of meeting God in the judg- ment is to be living with God now.
 VI. Gods Love the Ground of All Love (v. 19).
 The reason we love is that our lives have come into touch with the great fountainhead of love. The incoming of Gods being and nature becomes the animating and controlling principle of our lives The one in whom love is not the master principle does not know God
 Vii. The Child of God Possesses Dual Love (v. 20).
 The proof that one loves the unseen God is that he loves the person visible who bears the likeness and image of God, and has become a member of the same family through the redemption in Christ Jesus. Love to God and man is united in the one breast of the Christian. The one who hates his brother while pretending to love God is a liar.
 VIII. The Solemn Command From God (v. 2D.
 God commands that those who love him should love their brethren. Obe- dience to this command will eliminate all war and contentious.