June 20
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2 JOHN
1 The elder to the elect lady and her children, whom I love in truth, and not only I, but also all who know the truth, 2 because of the truth that abides in us and will be with us forever: 3 Grace, mercy, and peace will be with us, from God the Father and from Jesus Christ the Father’s Son, in truth and love. 4 I rejoiced greatly to find some of your children walking in the truth, just as we were commanded by the Father. 5 And now I ask you, dear lady—not as though I were writing you a new commandment, but the one we have had from the beginning—that we love one another. – 2 John 1-4
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2 JOHN THE COMMANDMENT FROM THE BEGINNING
A poem inspired by these verses by ILMA
To all who are chosen by the Lord, you are given his Spirit
It is by his Spirit that you become aware of God’s love and mercy
Because you are elect, you are given revelation in his word
By his guidance, you are led to the light and can triumph over the world
God loved you first and that’s why we learn how to love others
It is his command that we also give such love to one another
Those who do not love others, does not love God as well
So, let us follow Jesus so we can ensure God is pleased.
To the church who is the body of Jesus Christ
You are his bride whom he loves so much
He gave his life for you so that you can be free
Therefore, remember to abide and stay close to him
From the beginning of time, he created us for love
Let us not forget that to walk in love is to abide in God
The grace, mercy and love of God is with you if you love
Blessings and favor are poured on you when you obey his command.
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REFLECTION
• Why is it so important for God for us to love another? Why can’t we just love him instead?
Monthly Archives: June 2023
1 JOHN 4 TRUE MANIFESTATION OF LOVE
June 19
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1 JOHN 4
19 We love because he first loved us. 20 If anyone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. 21 And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother. – 1 John 4:19-21
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1 JOHN 4 TRUE MANIFESTATION OF LOVE
A poem inspired by these verses by ILMA
God is love and all who loves God exudes his character
To love God is to follow his will and his commandments
The reason why we can love is because he loved us first
We can never boast that love comes solely from us
You cannot say you love God and hate a brother
That will be lying to yourself and to others
If you cannot love someone whom you see in the flesh
How can you love God whom you can’t see physically
Will you believe someone who claims they love when they can’t show it?
That is only lip service which do not mean anything for it is just hypocrisy
The true manifestation of love is to walk in his Spirit
The Holy Spirit will lead you to give praise to Jesus Christ
He will teach you how to live out of your flesh which is sinful
He will lead you out of darkness and tendencies to do things hateful
To say you love God would mean that you will commune with the saints
You will be a hypocrite if you live life on your own and stay alone and isolated
The Lord God commanded us to love one another because we love him
God sees your heart so if you don’t genuinely love your brother, you will sin
So, let us love one another just as how God loves us
If we love ourselves, we also ought to love our brothers.
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REFLECTION
• Why is it a challenge to love God according to these following verses?
• Share some experiences that make it difficult to love your sisters or brothers in Christ.
1 JOHN 4 PERFECT LOVE CASTS OUT FEAR
June 18
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1 JOHN 4
17 By this is love perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is so also are we in this world. 18 There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love. – 1 John 4: 17-18
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1 JOHN 4 PERFECT LOVE CASTS OUT FEAR
A poem inspired by these verses by ILMA
The love that the world offers is temporary and transactional
The love that we have from the Lord is infinite and unconditional
If you take the worldly love that is given to you by someone
Hold on to it while it lasts, for soon it will be gone.
Fear is the opposite of love for it makes you enslaved
Fear is the absence of trust and can make one in bondage
If fear consumes you, you will never feel joy or freedom
Fear makes you on edge and exhausted and without wisdom.
The love that God the Father has for his children lasts infinitely
It gives you such assurance and contentment that is limitless
The steadfast love of the Lord is so satisfying and fulfilling
It makes one feel accepted as he is so gracious and forgiving.
The love that the Lord has for us is perfect and complete
He gives it to us and we ought to receive it without working for it
He made us all into his own image and likeness
He knows that if we accept his gift, we will be righteous.
If we love, we are made perfect by it because he loved us first
Let us cast all our fears and enter into the greatest kind of love
He gave us his only Son to die so we can be redeemed and renewed
Let us not live in fear, but let our minds and hearts be lived for Jesus.
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REFLECTION
• Why do you think people fear so many things? What does that reveal according to these verses?
1 JOHN 4 ABIDE IN LOVE AND GOD WILL ABIDE IN YOU
June 17
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1 JOHN 4
13 By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. 14 And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. 15 Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. 16 So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.
– 1 John 4:13-16.
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1 JOHN 4 ABIDE IN LOVE AND GOD WILL ABIDE IN YOU
A poem inspired by these verses by ILMA
The moment you believe in the Lord Jesus Christ
You are given his Holy Spirit to give you new life
The proof that you have his Spirit is when you confess Jesus
You declare that God sent his only Son to be our Savior
As you continually abide in his word and in his will
The Holy Spirit pours out his fruits in your spirit
You learn to love, to be patient and gentle
You have an abundance of joy, peace and kindness.
The proof that God is in you is when you show love
Anyone who does not love is not from God
All those who disobey and continue with their sins
They are not abiding in him and they don’t have his presence
Abide in love and God will abide in you
If you don’t put on your new self, you won’t be renewed
Confess that Jesus Christ is the Son of God
Testify that God sent his Son to save us.
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REFLECTION
• Some people claim that they know God but actually only heard of him. What is the proof that you know God according to these following verses?
• How is the act of love a proof that God lives in you?
• Share your insight about Christians claiming they love God but hate others?
1 JOHN 4 WHOEVER LOVES KNOWS GOD
June 16
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1 JOHN 4
7 Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9 In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. 10 In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. 11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 12 No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.
– 1 John 4:7-12
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1 JOHN 4 WHOEVER LOVES KNOWS GOD
A poem inspired by these verses by ILMA
God is love and whoever he has chosen will manifest love
True love is that God loved first us and sent his only Son
Love is the manifestation of God’s presence in us
Because God is love, those who knows him walks in love.
If someone doesn’t show compassion or hate his brothers
They must not have known the Lord who commands to love one another
Because God loves us, shouldn’t we also love each other?
Who are we to say that we can love God if we don’t love our brothers?
God is the only source of love; without him, we can’t have it
Whoever loves knows God and he has his Spirit in him
The absence of love manifests the love for the world
When there is love, there is also a hunger for God’s word.
If someone says they know how to love but doesn’t show it
That person is a liar; he clearly doesn’t have God’s spirit
To love one another is the demonstration of God’s presence
To hate another person is the evidence of the works of the devil.
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REFLECTION
• How different is the world view of “love” from this true love that John was talking about in these following verses?
1 JOHN 4 ON TESTING AND DISCERNING SPIRITS
June 15
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1 JOHN 4
Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world. 2 By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, 3 and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already. 4 Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. 5 They are from the world; therefore, they speak from the world, and the world listens to them. 6 We are from God. Whoever knows God listens to us; whoever is not from God does not listen to us. By this we know the Spirit of truth and the spirit of error.
– 1 John 4:1-6
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1 JOHN 4 ON TESTING AND DISCERNING SPIRITS
A poem inspired by these verses by ILMA
We are cautioned to be aware of spirits around us
Let us not believe every spirit, instead, bring it to a test
We live in a world that is corrupted and full of deception
The prince of this world wants us all to have chaos and confusion.
The only way we can test the spirit is if we walk in God’s Spirit
He gave us his word so we can walk in truth and not be deceived
You will know if it is from God when they confess Jesus became man
If they deny Christ, they don’t speak the truth but lies from Satan.
The spirit of the antichrist does not declare Jesus as Lord
They will deceive you with subtle lies that are from this crooked world
Many false prophets and antichrists are out now to wreak havoc
If you believe in Christ, you will have his Spirit who’ll deliver you.
Do not be afraid little children for Christ has already won the battle
He who lives inside you is stronger than they are, so have courage
Those who listen to the truth and lives in it are from the Lord Jesus
Don’t fret if the world doesn’t listen to all those who are from us.
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REFLECTION
• Why do you think some people cannot discern the Spirit of truth from error?
1 JOHN 3 GOD IS GREATER THAN OUR HEART
June 14
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1 JOHN 3
19 By this we shall know that we are of the truth and reassure our heart before him; 20 for whenever our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and he knows everything. 21 Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence before God; 22 and whatever we ask we receive from him, because we keep his commandments and do what pleases him. 23 And this is his commandment, that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he has commanded us. 24 Whoever keeps his commandments abides in God, and God in him. And by this we know that he abides in us, by the Spirit whom he has given us. – 1 John 3:19-24
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1 JOHN 3 GOD IS GREATER THAN OUR HEART
A poem inspired by these verses by ILMA
When the Spirit convicts you of sin, do you repent right away?
Or do you wallow in guilt when you do wrong and go astray?
To all those whom God has chosen to belong to him
The Spirit of the Lord is given to them so they can overcome sin
When you acknowledge the correction of God’s Spirit
He will also guide you to the right path so you can walk on it.
God is merciful and full of compassion and steadfast love
If you confess and acknowledge your sin, you will be pardoned
There is no need to live in the guilt of the sin you committed
God is greater than our heart; he knows us inside and out
We are easily deceived by our own hearts, we are unstable
But the Lord is the Absolute Truth and he is not changeable.
Let us all believe that God has equipped us with his Spirit
The proof of the Spirit’s presence is when there are fruits
The Lord God will give you the ability to follow all his laws
He will instill in you a hunger for his word and his statutes
Draw near to the Lord and he will come close to you
Delight in his word and follow it and you will be renewed.
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REFLECTION
• How can guilt be good for a believer? When can guilt be destructive?
1 JOHN 3 LOVE IN DEED AND IN TRUTH
June 13
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1 JOHN 3
16 By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. 17 But if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him? 18 Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth. – 1 John 3:16-18
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1 JOHN 3 LOVE IN DEED AND IN TRUTH
A poem inspired by these verses by ILMA
You cannot say you know God if you do not manifest love
As a believer, the proof of your love is to show that you care
To love with a return in mind is not love but is a transaction
True love is to lay down one’s life without any conditions
If someone comes to you who is in need and you have it
Do not dismiss it but respond by providing that need.
Let us not just talk but show in action the love that we have
The fruit of the Spirit is in the deed that we show to our brother
It is not in what we say that we can truly prove our love for others
It is in how we risk our own life to bring life to another sister or brother
Jesus lay down his life to save us from the bondage of sin
We also ought to follow his example so we can please him.
When we declare we love someone, it has to be coupled with action
To say that we love and yet now manifest in our deeds is deception
All those who belong to the Lord do not use the word love loosely
If one uses it to get something back in return, it is lying wilfully
Let us love unconditionally like how God love us all
If we don’t, we will easily be tempted and fall.
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REFLECTION
• Share an experience that you totally felt you were loved by someone. What did they do to make you assured of their love for you?
• Why are actions stronger than words in this case of proving your love for someone as John indicates in the following verses?
1 JOHN 3 WHOEVER DOES NOT LOVE ABIDES IN DEATH
June 12
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1 JOHN 3
11 For this is the message that you have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another. 12 We should not be like Cain, who was of the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own deeds were evil and his brother’s righteous. 13 Do not be surprised, brothers, that the world hates you. 14 We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers. Whoever does not love abides in death. 15 Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him. – 1 John 3:11-15
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1 JOHN 3 WHOEVER DOES NOT LOVE ABIDES IN DEATH
A poem inspired by these verses by ILMA
The love of God is the reason why we have life
Without the love of God, we will all die
The Lord made heaven and earth and all humans
It is for his delight that we are all created
Let us therefore abide in God by walking in love
If we are his, we will follow his commands and abide.
Whoever does not love abides in death
He does not know God, so will always be in the dark
When someone loves God, he will be hated by the world
Because the ungodly loves sin, he will abhor God’s word
Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer
No one who hates someone will live forever.
Let all those whom God elect choose to walk in love
For God is love and whoever loves has the Spirit of God
When love isn’t present in someone’s life
There is all kinds of chaos, disorder and strife
Cling to the Lord by meditating on his word
Follow his commands and you will triumph over the world.
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REFLECTION
• What did John mean when he said that whoever does not love abides in death?
• Why do you think John calls someone who does not love, a murderer?
1 JOHN 3 WHEN ONE MAKES A HABIT OF SINNING
June 11
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1 JOHN 3
4 Everyone who makes a practice of sinning also practices lawlessness; sin is lawlessness. 5 You know that he appeared in order to take away sins, and in him there is no sin. 6 No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him. 7 Little children, let no one deceive you. Whoever practices righteousness is righteous, as he is righteous. 8 Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil. – 1 John 3:4-8
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1 JOHN 3 WHEN ONE MAKES A HABIT OF SINNING
A poem inspired by these verses by ILMA
Sin is the reason why we deserve God’s wrath
Because of sin, we have turned our backs to God
The Lord created us in his image, who is sinless
But humans handed over his life to wickedness
So, the Lord God in his mercy and steadfast love
Gave us his only begotten Son to free us
Whoever believes in the one whom God sent
Will have redemption from all their sins.
When you received Jesus in your heart
He sent the Holy Spirit so you won’t be apart
Whoever walks in the Spirit walks in love
Whoever makes a habit of sinning walks in the dark
If you belong to God, you do practice righteousness
If you belong to the devil, you live in lawlessness
Jesus came down so we can be free from sin’s slavery
Since the start, the devil wants us to so sin and be enslaved.
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REFLECTION
• Since we are all sinful, how can we defeat our flesh from making a habit of sinning?
• Why do some people minimize sin as faults or weaknesses instead of taking responsibility for it?