1John 1:5-7: Walking in the Light Part 1: Holy living, this Friday April 27th @ the Moores...

Dear fellow “douloi” of the North Hollywood Bible Study

And again we will have the chance to dig into the text of 1John.  As we will study verses 5-7 in chapter 1, we will begin to work our way through the different test criteria of true Christianity that John provided for his confused readers towards the end of the 1^st century.  They are still as applicable today as they were in John’s days. 

To prepare yourself for the study, you can look at the questions below:

Question 1:  What is the meaning of “light”? What does it precisely stand for? Consequently, what is therefore the meaning of darkness?

To answer this question, study the following passages:

o   John 1:4

o   John 3:19

o   1John 2:9

o   Matt. 5:14

o   Psalm 119:105

o   Eph. 5:8-10 (Phil 2:14-16)

o   Rom. 13:12-13

*** (we will split up in groups and discuss this, it might be good for you to have some notes with you on which you put down some initial thoughts.)

Question 2: What does it mean to “walk in the light”?

We will take a close look at verses 6-7 in 1John 1 to answer this question.

I am looking forward to a great time of teaching and fellowship with all of you.

In His service

Pascal

Fellowship with West L.A. Study, this Friday April 20th 6:30pm!

Dear Fellow Douloi,

This Friday night the 20th, beginning at 6:30 pm, we'll be having a game and fellowship night at Stephen Duwe's duplex. The West L.A. study will be joining the North Hollywood study for this evening of fun! If you'd like, bring your favorite game and snacks to share (feel free to bring your own dinner or eat beforehand). Stephen will be providing the s'mores and bonfire and the garage climbing wall (a kid favorite!). We'll have some worship and prayer around the campfire as well.

We hope to see you there!

Pascal and Stephen

“Back to the Roots” – Basic Christianity “101” (1John 1:1-4)

Dear Fellow Douloi of the North Hollywood Bible Study

Friday April 13^th we will finally dive into the text of 1John 1:1-4. 

Here are some things you can think through in advance and which we will talk about that night.  The questions below are designed, only to give you the broad strokes and will not be part of our discussion in this particular way. They will introduce you to some of the things we will look at in more detail during the study.

1.     The apostle John is introducing basic Christianity in order to call the confused Christians in Asia Minor back to their roots.  He portrays the two most basic elements in verses 1-2, an authentic message and an authentic person.  In which way does that fact shed light on your understanding of the concept of truth?

2.     The purpose of his writing is that the recipients may experience true fellowship (v.3). John’s concept of fellowship is obviously deeper than the way we often understand it today.  In which way does it encompass more than just a social gathering?  (note his statement “with the Father and with His Son”)

3.     The second purpose is genuine Joy (v.4).  Think about the concept of true biblical joy.  What is it based on? How do we cultivate it?

Looking forward to an interesting discussion and great time of fellowship!

Blessings

Pascal

Fellowship Night @ the Bartons this Friday March 30th, 7pm

Dear fellow douloi

This Friday we will have great fellowship again.  The Barton family will graciously open their home to host our study and they will provide ice cream and hot fudge.  If some of you could bring some topping that would be great, so we will have a great ice cream party.

Here is the address

[email doulosnorthhollywood@gmail.com for more info]

Just in case you do not find it, here is the phone no.
(818) 515-7958

Blessings and see you there

Pascal

Proverbs 3 Study

This Friday, March 23rd, we will begin our study of Proverbs 3 at 7pm at the Moore's house.  [email doulosnorthhollywood@gmail.com for more info]  We will focus on verses 1-18.

The following questions should help keep things focused for next time. As always, if you have any questions or comments before the study, please feel free to call or email me.

Proverbs 3

Verse 1 - What is "not forgetting" contrasted with? What does it mean to keep commandments? 

Verse 3 - What might it mean to bind love and faithfulness around your neck? What would this mean if you weren't really loving and faithful?

Verse 5 - What is "Trust in the Lord" contrasted with?

Verse 7 - What is "Fear the Lord" contrasted with?

To summarize, what are three things we are called to do in verses 5 to 7? And two things we are not to do?

One thing we can learn from these verses is that acknowledging God in all our ways can be counter intuitive. In other words, what God knows to be best might not seem that way to us in our own understanding of things.

We're going to look at three examples of this counter intuitive wisdom. 

Example 1, verses 9-10
What is the main subject of these two verses?
What might it mean to "Honor the LORD with your wealth"?
What are "first fruits" and where else do you remember this term being used in the old testament? What is our natural tendency and how is God's wisdom here counter intuitive?

Example 2, verses 11-12 
What connection do you see in these verses between love and discipline/rebuke? Can you think of any other scripture that might speak to this? What is our natural tendency and how is God's wisdom here counter intuitive? 

Example 3, verses 13-18
How would you summarize the basic teaching in verses 13-18 if you had to do it in one sentence? What is our natural tendency and how is God's wisdom here counter intuitive?

I hope these questions help you to think through the first 18 verses.

We look forward to seeing you and please do email or call if you have any questions.

Jacob

Fellowship Night @ the Grosjeans this Friday March 16th

Dear fellow douloi of the Noho-Study

Everybody is welcome @ the Grosjeans-house this coming Friday for another fellowship night beginning at 7pm.  We plan to have a time of prayer, singing and fellowship.  Feel free to bring some snacks... we will provide lots of coffee and some other drinks...

We already missed having some time together with you all and looking forward to meet again!

Many blessings

Pascal

NO No-Ho Study this week!!! ;-)

Dear fellow douloi of the North Hollywood Biblestudy

Due to the Shepherds Conference all events for this week have been canceled, thus our Biblestudy too. (sadly ;-(...

But everbody is encouraged to visit some of the evening sessions on Wednesday, Thursday or Friday at the Shepherds Conference this week.

You will find a schedule here

Blessings and see you all soon on the 16th for another fellowship night...

Pascal