1 JOHN 5
(All scripture references below are from the NASB, unless indicated otherwise.)
1 John 5:1 "Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and whoever loves the Father loves the child born of Him.
5:2 By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and observe His commandments.
5:3 For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments; and His commandments are not burdensome.
5:4 For whatever is born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that has overcome the world--our faith.
5:5 Who is the one who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?"
John says in this passage that anyone born of God loves God and keeps his commandments, particularly the commandment to love others who are born of God. By implication, we are commanded to love both Christ and his followers.
Verse 4 above is probably the most well-known verse in this chapter. The faith which overcomes the world may be thought of in two ways. In the context of this chapter, it means believing God's testimony that Jesus is the Christ, as well as the earth-borne testimony about Christ which we will discuss in later verses.
But it can also refer to the results of faith which are described in Hebrews 11 below:
Hebrews 11:32 "And what more shall I say? For time will fail me if I tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets,
11:33 who by faith conquered kingdoms, performed acts of righteousness, obtained promises, shut the mouths of lions,
11:34 quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, from weakness were made strong, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight.
11:35 Women received back their dead by resurrection; and others were tortured, not accepting their release, so that they might obtain a better resurrection;
11:36 and others experienced mockings and scourgings, yes, also chains and imprisonment.
11:37 They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were tempted, they were put to death with the sword; they went about in sheepskins, in goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, ill-treated
11:38 (men of whom the world was not worthy), wandering in deserts and mountains and caves and holes in the ground."
Obviously, the above passage confirms faith's power, but it also implies the willingness to suffer greatly for the cause of Christ. The Bible never teaches, as many of today's churches do, that overcoming faith is just about miracles and the mighty works of God. First and foremost, overcoming faith is the result of obedience, obedience which begins by believing in Jesus and continues to abide in him in all circumstances.
1 John 5:6 (NLV) "Jesus Christ came by water and blood. He did not come by water only, but by water and blood. The Holy Spirit speaks about this and He is truth.
5:7 There are three Who speak of this in heaven: the Father and the Word and the Holy Spirit. These three are one.
5:8 There are three who speak of this on the earth: the Holy Spirit and the water and the blood. These three speak the same thing."
I'm quoting the New Life Version here, because it best indicates that there are witnesses of Christ's deity in heaven, and there have been witnesses of his deity on earth. If we believe the testimony of two or more human witnesses, as we are instructed to do in Numbers 35:30 2 Corinthians 13:1 and 1 Timothy 5:19, the witness and testimony of God is greater and more important, and all of these witnesses agree in unison that Jesus is the Christ.
But what exactly does John mean when he refers to three witnesses on earth, the Spirit, the water and the blood? We are probably all familiar with the story of Noah and the flood in Genesis 7 and 8, in which all of Noah's generation perished, except for Noah's family, because of their sins. In a similar way, we bury our sins when we are baptized as Christians. Though he was without sin, Jesus was similarly baptized, as shown in the passage below:
Matthew 3:13 "Then Jesus arrived from Galilee at the Jordan coming to John, to be baptized by him.
3:14 But John tried to prevent Him, saying, "I have need to be baptized by You, and do You come to me?"
3:15 But Jesus answering said to him, "Permit it at this time; for in this way it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness." Then he permitted Him.
3:16 After being baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove and lighting on Him,
3:17 and behold, a voice out of the heavens said, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased.""
Note two things here. The water of baptism is supposed to cleanse us from sin, as the waters of the flood cleansed the earth from sin in the days of Noah. Also, God testified that Jesus was his Son, both here and in the descriptions of Christ's transfiguration found in Matthew 17:1-9 and Mark 9:2-10.
There is a similar passage in John's gospel when Jesus says publicly that he is about to suffer for the sins of mankind.
John 12:27 "Now My soul has become troubled; and what shall I say, 'Father, save Me from this hour'? But for this purpose I came to this hour.
12:28 "Father, glorify Your name " Then a voice came out of heaven: "I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again.""
The blood of Jesus cleanses us from sin, and God declares in this passage that he will continue to glorify his name, declaring it publicly as a direct response to the prayer of Jesus.
The Spirit, the water and the blood continue to be important in the lives of Christians today--the Spirit of truth as Comforter, Counselor and the presence of Christ in our churches, the water with which we follow Jesus in baptism, and the blood of Christ which continues to cleanse our sins as we confess them.
1 John 5:9 "If we receive the testimony of men, the testimony of God is greater; for the testimony of God is this, that He has testified concerning His Son.
5:10 The one who believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself; the one who does not believe God has made Him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has given concerning His Son.
5:11 And the testimony is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son.
5:12 He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life."
God responds to faith in Christ by placing the life of Christ in us, in the form of the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit is the down payment or the guarantee of eternal life. Earlier confirmation in this book that the Spirit has been given to believers can be found in 1 John 2:20, 1 John 2:27, 1 John 3:24 and 1 John 4:13. Unlike Paul, John never speaks about the baptism or the gifts of the Holy Spirit, so it would be impossible to tell from John's writings whether or not believers need to be subsequently baptized in the Holy Spirit. That subject needs to be discussed in regard to the book of Acts and Paul's epistles, but it's best to table that discussion for now. As is often the case, an adequate discussion about the ministry of the Holy Spirit needs to take all scripture into account, and that's beyond the scope of my efforts here.
The point here is that he who has Christ has eternal life, the eternal life which is in God's Son. Our life has never pleased God. It's the part of us which needed to be buried in baptism. It is only the life of Christ in us which pleases God.
1 John 5:13 "These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life.
5:14 This is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.
5:15 And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests which we have asked from Him."
Many translations do not explicitly say that our prayers are only answered when we pray within God's will, but that would seem obvious enough. Christians are still capable of sin, and God himself would become an agent of sin if our will took priority over his. Nevertheless, these verses should clearly encourage us to pray, and they echo what Jesus said in Matthew 7:7-11.
Matthew 7:7 "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.
7:8 "For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.
7:9 "Or what man is there among you who, when his son asks for a loaf, will give him a stone?
7:10 "Or if he asks for a fish, he will not give him a snake, will he?
7:11 "If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give what is good to those who ask Him!
A thorough study of the power and the proper role of prayer among Christians is far beyond the discussion of this chapter, yet it seems well worth emphasizing that God wants and expects to hear from us, he is listening to us, and he will respond favorably, at least within his own will and wisdom, to our petitions. Speaking critically of myself as a Christian, I'm very dedicated to reading and studying the scriptures, but I don't think I pray as often or as effectively as I should. I hope the reader will not make that mistake.
1 John 5:16 "If anyone sees his brother committing a sin not leading to death, he shall ask and God will for him give life to those who commit sin not leading to death. There is a sin leading to death; I do not say that he should make request for this.
5:17 All unrighteousness is sin, and there is a sin not leading to death."
Earlier in this book, in 1 John 2:1, John tells us that Jesus is our advocate with the Father when we sin. He now adds us to the ministry of intercession, and he promises that God will give life to the brothers and sisters we pray for. But who are we not to pray for?
When I was growing up in the Catholic church, we were taught that there is venial and mortal sin, and the Bible actually seems to support that concept. However, every Catholic priest and every catechism teacher seemed to have a different interpretation of what a mortal sin was. Furthermore, the Catholic concept of mortal sin was different, in that it was supposed to cause parishioners to go to confession as quickly as possible. Mortal sins were not unforgivable, as John indicates they are here. I remember a Catholic priest telling us one Sunday that missing mass was a mortal sin. It seemed to me, therefore, that departing from the church at all was inherently to risk hellfire and damnation, because there was a possibility of car trouble next Sunday and sudden death afterwords before the priest held confession. Of course, Christians should gather together and I don't mean to be Catholic-bashing, but no Christian should have a works-related fear about something such as a Sunday morning absence.
Most evangelical Christians would guess that we should not pray for anyone who has blasphemed against the Holy Spirit, attributing the miraculous works of God to Satan. Anyone who wants to study blasphemy against the Holy Spirit can read about it in Matthew 12:24-33, Mark 3:22-30 or Luke 12:8-10. In Matthew and Mark's gospels, it is clear that those who committed blasphemy against the Holy Spirit were Pharisees, who had never accepted Christ at all. I'm not saying it couldn't occur, but there is no clear scriptural proof that any Christian has ever blasphemed against the Holy Spirit. Of course, it may seem likely to us that some have, but I don't think that is what John is talking about here.
What I think John means here can be understood by reading the last verse of this chapter, which tells us to keep ourselves away from idols. John does not want us to pray for people who have renounced Jesus and departed from the faith. This is not about having a couple of beers or watching a raunchy movie, though we would be well advised not to do so. When I was a young Christian, I was told, "If you're concerned that you may have committed a mortal sin, you haven't, because you still care about your standing with God. Those who have actually committed mortal sins couldn't care less what God thinks about it." I'm not trying to give anyone a license to commit evil. On the other hand, no one should be frightened that they are beyond the reach of prayer.
1 John 5:18 "We know that no one who is born of God sins; but He who was born of God keeps him, and the evil one does not touch him.
5:19 We know that we are of God, and that the whole world lies in the power of the evil one.
5:20 And we know that the Son of God has come, and has given us understanding so that we may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ This is the true God and eternal life.
5:21 Little children, guard yourselves from idols."
John cannot mean in verse 18 that no Christian ever sins, because that would contradict verse 16 and the passage from 1 John 1:8 to 1 John 2:2, where he says we should confess our sins, and Jesus is our advocate with the Father. John must, therefore, be indicating that anyone who is born of God will be sanctified by God and will live less and less sinfully, as Paul indicates in his letter to the Philippians.
Philippians 1:6 "For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.
We have a role to play in our sanctification, but God also has a hand in it, and he is faithful. Rather than causing us to be concerned about our standing with God, verses 18-20 should remind us that we know Jesus, and he has the power and the desire to keep us from the evil one. This passage should remind us of another passage from the gospel of John.
John 10:27 "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me;
10:28 and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand.
10:29 "My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand.
10:30 "I and the Father are one."
With regard to verse 21, it should remind us of the passage below, taken from the New English Translation:
1 Kings 19:15 The Lord said to him, “Go back the way you came and then head for the Desert of Damascus. Go and anoint Hazael king over Syria.
19:16 You must anoint Jehu son of Nimshi king over Israel, and Elisha son of Shaphat from Abel Meholah to take your place as prophet.
19:17 Jehu will kill anyone who escapes Hazael’s sword, and Elisha will kill anyone who escapes Jehu’s sword.
19:18 I still have left in Israel seven thousand followers who have not bowed their knees to Baal or kissed the images of him.”
Nothing endangers our lives or our spiritual well-being as much as idolatry. We generally think of idolatry as paganism, based on stories like this from the Old Testament, but idolatry can really be anything which effectively lessens our devotion to Christ.
I believe the primary messages of this letter are as follows:
1. God is good, completely, unimaginably and incorruptibly good. The essence of his nature is love. God cannot be the author of anything evil, no matter how much evil we see around us. On the contrary, he has a plan to bring all evil to an end.
2. We can become God's children and receive eternal life by obeying him and keeping his commandments. He commands us to believe in his Son Jesus, who he sent into the world to atone for our sins. We must rely fully on Christ for our salvation, absolution from sin, access to God the Father, and for the very life we must lead in order to be separated from the anti-Christian world around us.
3. God also commands us to love him and to love our fellow believers in the same way Christ loved us when he was on earth.
It's time to tie up First John and put a bow on it for now, but we should return to it frequently. A simple, uneducated man named John uses simple language to communicate the simple truths of what God requires from us.
1 John 5:1 "Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and whoever loves the Father loves the child born of Him.
5:2 By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and observe His commandments.
5:3 For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments; and His commandments are not burdensome.
5:4 For whatever is born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that has overcome the world--our faith.
5:5 Who is the one who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?"
John says in this passage that anyone born of God loves God and keeps his commandments, particularly the commandment to love others who are born of God. By implication, we are commanded to love both Christ and his followers.
Verse 4 above is probably the most well-known verse in this chapter. The faith which overcomes the world may be thought of in two ways. In the context of this chapter, it means believing God's testimony that Jesus is the Christ, as well as the earth-borne testimony about Christ which we will discuss in later verses.
But it can also refer to the results of faith which are described in Hebrews 11 below:
Hebrews 11:32 "And what more shall I say? For time will fail me if I tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets,
11:33 who by faith conquered kingdoms, performed acts of righteousness, obtained promises, shut the mouths of lions,
11:34 quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, from weakness were made strong, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight.
11:35 Women received back their dead by resurrection; and others were tortured, not accepting their release, so that they might obtain a better resurrection;
11:36 and others experienced mockings and scourgings, yes, also chains and imprisonment.
11:37 They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were tempted, they were put to death with the sword; they went about in sheepskins, in goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, ill-treated
11:38 (men of whom the world was not worthy), wandering in deserts and mountains and caves and holes in the ground."
Obviously, the above passage confirms faith's power, but it also implies the willingness to suffer greatly for the cause of Christ. The Bible never teaches, as many of today's churches do, that overcoming faith is just about miracles and the mighty works of God. First and foremost, overcoming faith is the result of obedience, obedience which begins by believing in Jesus and continues to abide in him in all circumstances.
1 John 5:6 (NLV) "Jesus Christ came by water and blood. He did not come by water only, but by water and blood. The Holy Spirit speaks about this and He is truth.
5:7 There are three Who speak of this in heaven: the Father and the Word and the Holy Spirit. These three are one.
5:8 There are three who speak of this on the earth: the Holy Spirit and the water and the blood. These three speak the same thing."
I'm quoting the New Life Version here, because it best indicates that there are witnesses of Christ's deity in heaven, and there have been witnesses of his deity on earth. If we believe the testimony of two or more human witnesses, as we are instructed to do in Numbers 35:30 2 Corinthians 13:1 and 1 Timothy 5:19, the witness and testimony of God is greater and more important, and all of these witnesses agree in unison that Jesus is the Christ.
But what exactly does John mean when he refers to three witnesses on earth, the Spirit, the water and the blood? We are probably all familiar with the story of Noah and the flood in Genesis 7 and 8, in which all of Noah's generation perished, except for Noah's family, because of their sins. In a similar way, we bury our sins when we are baptized as Christians. Though he was without sin, Jesus was similarly baptized, as shown in the passage below:
Matthew 3:13 "Then Jesus arrived from Galilee at the Jordan coming to John, to be baptized by him.
3:14 But John tried to prevent Him, saying, "I have need to be baptized by You, and do You come to me?"
3:15 But Jesus answering said to him, "Permit it at this time; for in this way it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness." Then he permitted Him.
3:16 After being baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove and lighting on Him,
3:17 and behold, a voice out of the heavens said, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased.""
Note two things here. The water of baptism is supposed to cleanse us from sin, as the waters of the flood cleansed the earth from sin in the days of Noah. Also, God testified that Jesus was his Son, both here and in the descriptions of Christ's transfiguration found in Matthew 17:1-9 and Mark 9:2-10.
There is a similar passage in John's gospel when Jesus says publicly that he is about to suffer for the sins of mankind.
John 12:27 "Now My soul has become troubled; and what shall I say, 'Father, save Me from this hour'? But for this purpose I came to this hour.
12:28 "Father, glorify Your name " Then a voice came out of heaven: "I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again.""
The blood of Jesus cleanses us from sin, and God declares in this passage that he will continue to glorify his name, declaring it publicly as a direct response to the prayer of Jesus.
The Spirit, the water and the blood continue to be important in the lives of Christians today--the Spirit of truth as Comforter, Counselor and the presence of Christ in our churches, the water with which we follow Jesus in baptism, and the blood of Christ which continues to cleanse our sins as we confess them.
1 John 5:9 "If we receive the testimony of men, the testimony of God is greater; for the testimony of God is this, that He has testified concerning His Son.
5:10 The one who believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself; the one who does not believe God has made Him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has given concerning His Son.
5:11 And the testimony is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son.
5:12 He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life."
God responds to faith in Christ by placing the life of Christ in us, in the form of the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit is the down payment or the guarantee of eternal life. Earlier confirmation in this book that the Spirit has been given to believers can be found in 1 John 2:20, 1 John 2:27, 1 John 3:24 and 1 John 4:13. Unlike Paul, John never speaks about the baptism or the gifts of the Holy Spirit, so it would be impossible to tell from John's writings whether or not believers need to be subsequently baptized in the Holy Spirit. That subject needs to be discussed in regard to the book of Acts and Paul's epistles, but it's best to table that discussion for now. As is often the case, an adequate discussion about the ministry of the Holy Spirit needs to take all scripture into account, and that's beyond the scope of my efforts here.
The point here is that he who has Christ has eternal life, the eternal life which is in God's Son. Our life has never pleased God. It's the part of us which needed to be buried in baptism. It is only the life of Christ in us which pleases God.
1 John 5:13 "These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life.
5:14 This is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.
5:15 And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests which we have asked from Him."
Many translations do not explicitly say that our prayers are only answered when we pray within God's will, but that would seem obvious enough. Christians are still capable of sin, and God himself would become an agent of sin if our will took priority over his. Nevertheless, these verses should clearly encourage us to pray, and they echo what Jesus said in Matthew 7:7-11.
Matthew 7:7 "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.
7:8 "For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.
7:9 "Or what man is there among you who, when his son asks for a loaf, will give him a stone?
7:10 "Or if he asks for a fish, he will not give him a snake, will he?
7:11 "If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give what is good to those who ask Him!
A thorough study of the power and the proper role of prayer among Christians is far beyond the discussion of this chapter, yet it seems well worth emphasizing that God wants and expects to hear from us, he is listening to us, and he will respond favorably, at least within his own will and wisdom, to our petitions. Speaking critically of myself as a Christian, I'm very dedicated to reading and studying the scriptures, but I don't think I pray as often or as effectively as I should. I hope the reader will not make that mistake.
1 John 5:16 "If anyone sees his brother committing a sin not leading to death, he shall ask and God will for him give life to those who commit sin not leading to death. There is a sin leading to death; I do not say that he should make request for this.
5:17 All unrighteousness is sin, and there is a sin not leading to death."
Earlier in this book, in 1 John 2:1, John tells us that Jesus is our advocate with the Father when we sin. He now adds us to the ministry of intercession, and he promises that God will give life to the brothers and sisters we pray for. But who are we not to pray for?
When I was growing up in the Catholic church, we were taught that there is venial and mortal sin, and the Bible actually seems to support that concept. However, every Catholic priest and every catechism teacher seemed to have a different interpretation of what a mortal sin was. Furthermore, the Catholic concept of mortal sin was different, in that it was supposed to cause parishioners to go to confession as quickly as possible. Mortal sins were not unforgivable, as John indicates they are here. I remember a Catholic priest telling us one Sunday that missing mass was a mortal sin. It seemed to me, therefore, that departing from the church at all was inherently to risk hellfire and damnation, because there was a possibility of car trouble next Sunday and sudden death afterwords before the priest held confession. Of course, Christians should gather together and I don't mean to be Catholic-bashing, but no Christian should have a works-related fear about something such as a Sunday morning absence.
Most evangelical Christians would guess that we should not pray for anyone who has blasphemed against the Holy Spirit, attributing the miraculous works of God to Satan. Anyone who wants to study blasphemy against the Holy Spirit can read about it in Matthew 12:24-33, Mark 3:22-30 or Luke 12:8-10. In Matthew and Mark's gospels, it is clear that those who committed blasphemy against the Holy Spirit were Pharisees, who had never accepted Christ at all. I'm not saying it couldn't occur, but there is no clear scriptural proof that any Christian has ever blasphemed against the Holy Spirit. Of course, it may seem likely to us that some have, but I don't think that is what John is talking about here.
What I think John means here can be understood by reading the last verse of this chapter, which tells us to keep ourselves away from idols. John does not want us to pray for people who have renounced Jesus and departed from the faith. This is not about having a couple of beers or watching a raunchy movie, though we would be well advised not to do so. When I was a young Christian, I was told, "If you're concerned that you may have committed a mortal sin, you haven't, because you still care about your standing with God. Those who have actually committed mortal sins couldn't care less what God thinks about it." I'm not trying to give anyone a license to commit evil. On the other hand, no one should be frightened that they are beyond the reach of prayer.
1 John 5:18 "We know that no one who is born of God sins; but He who was born of God keeps him, and the evil one does not touch him.
5:19 We know that we are of God, and that the whole world lies in the power of the evil one.
5:20 And we know that the Son of God has come, and has given us understanding so that we may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ This is the true God and eternal life.
5:21 Little children, guard yourselves from idols."
John cannot mean in verse 18 that no Christian ever sins, because that would contradict verse 16 and the passage from 1 John 1:8 to 1 John 2:2, where he says we should confess our sins, and Jesus is our advocate with the Father. John must, therefore, be indicating that anyone who is born of God will be sanctified by God and will live less and less sinfully, as Paul indicates in his letter to the Philippians.
Philippians 1:6 "For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.
We have a role to play in our sanctification, but God also has a hand in it, and he is faithful. Rather than causing us to be concerned about our standing with God, verses 18-20 should remind us that we know Jesus, and he has the power and the desire to keep us from the evil one. This passage should remind us of another passage from the gospel of John.
John 10:27 "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me;
10:28 and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand.
10:29 "My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand.
10:30 "I and the Father are one."
With regard to verse 21, it should remind us of the passage below, taken from the New English Translation:
1 Kings 19:15 The Lord said to him, “Go back the way you came and then head for the Desert of Damascus. Go and anoint Hazael king over Syria.
19:16 You must anoint Jehu son of Nimshi king over Israel, and Elisha son of Shaphat from Abel Meholah to take your place as prophet.
19:17 Jehu will kill anyone who escapes Hazael’s sword, and Elisha will kill anyone who escapes Jehu’s sword.
19:18 I still have left in Israel seven thousand followers who have not bowed their knees to Baal or kissed the images of him.”
Nothing endangers our lives or our spiritual well-being as much as idolatry. We generally think of idolatry as paganism, based on stories like this from the Old Testament, but idolatry can really be anything which effectively lessens our devotion to Christ.
I believe the primary messages of this letter are as follows:
1. God is good, completely, unimaginably and incorruptibly good. The essence of his nature is love. God cannot be the author of anything evil, no matter how much evil we see around us. On the contrary, he has a plan to bring all evil to an end.
2. We can become God's children and receive eternal life by obeying him and keeping his commandments. He commands us to believe in his Son Jesus, who he sent into the world to atone for our sins. We must rely fully on Christ for our salvation, absolution from sin, access to God the Father, and for the very life we must lead in order to be separated from the anti-Christian world around us.
3. God also commands us to love him and to love our fellow believers in the same way Christ loved us when he was on earth.
It's time to tie up First John and put a bow on it for now, but we should return to it frequently. A simple, uneducated man named John uses simple language to communicate the simple truths of what God requires from us.
posted by TAPIOCA at 6/15/2007 02:12:00 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home