Advent Week 4, Love All
This week we’re talking about our last main theme of Advent - Love All. The advent candle we will light this week is the candle symbolizing “love”.
Anchor Texts:
1 John 4:7-8 ESVUK - God Is Love
John 3:16-17 ESVUK - For God So Loved the World
Luke 10:25-37 ESVUK - The Parable of the Good Samaritan
Yes, John 3:16-17 is an anchor passage again. It’s so critical to our understanding of why Jesus came and why He is coming back again that we have to keep revisiting it in light of other themes. This week’s theme, Love, is the greatest of all themes in the Bible. Everything else important happens because God is Love. His creative activity, His relational activity and His redemptive activity are all aspects of this greatest core description of who God is and what He does: LOVE.
As usual, the questions are here as a launchpad for your discussion, with family, friends, and connect groups, but be as mindful as possible to bring your bunny-trails and ideas back to the biblical text which is our grounding and authority.
Is it surprising to you that Jesus encourages his followers to love a Samaritan? (Remember they were people who didn’t like Jews, and who practiced a heretical/idolatrous form of Judaism.) Who might be like a Samaritan around you that God is challenging you to love?
2. Read 1 John 4:7-8 - Pastor Nate talked about the meaning of “Agape” being partly about what God chooses and prefers. Who or what things does God choose? What does He fight for?
3. Do we choose and fight for these same thigns? Are our priorities the same as God’s?
4. What do you love at Christmastime? Are they things that God says are valuable in the Scriptures?
The Theme in Art:
Amatuer artists have much to offer us as well. This art is from a collective called Tree of Life. What combination of symbols do we have here that teach us about God’s love?
God's Love for the World by Nancy Brennan - John 3:16. "For God so loved the world, He gave His only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in Him, shall not perish but have everlasting life."
The Theme for Kids:
Here is a great lesson for kids full of examples of how Jesus showed God’s love to all kinds of different people.
The Theme in Song:
Get your ears ready! This is a bit rockier than some of the other songs I usually post here, but as a big heavy rock fan in high school, I mellowed out a little through the band Ascend the Hill, a worship band that added a little flavour of soaring electric guitar into their excellent arrangements of many hymns. This particular hymn, The Love of God, became a favourite of mine through their influence. I appreciate it in both traditional and updated forms, and this version here is saturated with the passion of this band praising the Living God, the one who created, defines, and embodies Love. And don’t worry, it’s not that rocky. Enjoy!