Preaching the Letter of 1 John in a Polarized Church

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Ruptures between fellow Christians and within our churches are too apparent and painful to ignore. Rather than pursue uncommon unity and fellowship among believers from different political stripes and racial-ethnic backgrounds, churches often mirror the divisions in their communities and in our nation and world. By studying the letter of 1 John, this workshop will equip preachers to promote a Christian culture of confession and visions of forgiveness and fellowship that hold their members accountable, while reconciling and uniting them in Christ's love. 1 John describes fellowship with God as being opposed to darkness and refers to its opponents as "anti-Christs." It even urges readers not to pray for those who have left their fellowship. On the other hand, 1 John also helps strengthen in-group cohesion, adherence to Christ, resistance to world, and commandment keeping--most notably the commandment to love. What good news…