1 John 3:11-24 - What’s Love Got to Do with It? - The Village Chapel

The Village Chapel - Nashville

1 John 3:11-24 - What’s Love Got to Do with It?

May 21, 2023 • Pastor Jim Thomas • 1 John 3:11–24, John 13:34–35, John 15, Romans 12:10, Romans 13:8

While Christian faith is never merely theoretical, it is always thoroughly practical. What are the marks of authentic Christian faith? Jesus once declared, “By this shall all men know you are my disciples: if you have love, one for another.”

In our own day and time, ‘love’ is a word that has been reduced to the emotional realm and all but eviscerated of its deeper meaning. When we use the same word to describe our disposition towards our favorite ice cream, sports teams, pizza and – oh yeah – people, what then could the term ‘love’ actually mean? And why is the love human beings share with one another so fickle, fragile and fleeting?

Jesus' followers believe there is a love that comes from beyond ourselves and is sourced in Christ. We also believe the nature of love and the scope of God’s love reaches deeper and further, beyond personal preferences or how any one of us might feel in a given moment.

Join Pastor Jim as he walks us through the last half of 1 John 3 and shows us how today’s church is uniquely positioned to both restate and demonstrate the love of God, in spite of the darkness and division that overshadows our present world.

More from The Letters of John: That You May Know...

3 John - No Greater Joy than This…

July 16, 2023 • Pastor Jim Thomas • 3 John

What is the difference between happiness and joy? If you were to list the top four things that add joy in life, what might be on that list? As believers in Jesus, we have been called to live out our faith in a world that is increasingly syncretistic and secularized. Within that context, if you wanted to, how would you measure the vitality and effectiveness of your own spiritual life? The apostle John was one of the closest disciples of Jesus and John’s writings offer us both pastoral and practical insight into what it looks like to “walk in the truth” of the Gospel and to know the joys of faithful discipleship. Join Pastor Jim as he teaches through this short but powerful ancient letter we call 3 John.

2 John - Walking Steadily in Truth and Love

July 9, 2023 • Pastor Tommy Bailey • 2 John, Psalm 90:14, Jeremiah 6:16

The second epistle of the Apostle John opens with an affectionate greeting that sets the tone for the letter's central message: the truth of God's love in the person and work of Jesus Christ. In a time when many believers were being deceived by false teachers, this message of assurance provided a firm footing for a steady walk of faith. We invite you to join Pastor Tommy and The Village Chapel as we consider the practical and timeless wisdom this letter offers us today.

1 John 5:13-21 - What Can We Really Know?

June 18, 2023 • Pastor Jim Thomas • 1 John 5:13–21

What does the Bible have to say to the question of certainty about our salvation? Can a person really know they have been saved? Or do we all just have to nervously cross our fingers, wish upon a star and hope that whenever our time on this earth is over, we have been good enough to persuade God to let us into heaven? What are the distinctive characteristics of authentic, biblical, saving faith? Join Pastor Jim as he unfolds the reassuring promises and hope believers can find in this final study of 1 John and the Gospel of God’s grace through Christ.