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2 Copyright 2013 by David Bearden – All Rights Reserved

Contents Introduction ............................................................................................................................................................................ 3

Walking in the Light ................................................................................................................................................................ 4

1 John 1:1-4 ......................................................................................................................................................................... 4

1 John 1:5-10 ....................................................................................................................................................................... 5

1 John 2:1-6 ......................................................................................................................................................................... 7

1 John 2:7-11 ....................................................................................................................................................................... 8

1 John 2:12-14 ..................................................................................................................................................................... 9

1 John 2:15-17 ..................................................................................................................................................................... 9

What is God’s Will? ....................................................................................................................................................... 10

Life Lessons ....................................................................................................................................................................... 10

Be Children of God ................................................................................................................................................................ 11

1 John 2:18-27 ................................................................................................................................................................... 11

1 John 2:28-29 ................................................................................................................................................................... 12

How do we practice righteousness? ............................................................................................................................. 13

What type of fruit are we producing? .......................................................................................................................... 13

1 John 3:1-3 ....................................................................................................................................................................... 14

1 John 3:4-10 ..................................................................................................................................................................... 15

1 John 3:11-15 ................................................................................................................................................................... 16

1 John 3:16-24 ................................................................................................................................................................... 17

Life Lessons ....................................................................................................................................................................... 18

Be Overcomers ...................................................................................................................................................................... 18


Introduction Who

Author: Apostle John

Audience: To believers (1 John 2:12-14, 21, 27; 5:13) probably the areas around Ephesus – Possibly the

same 7 churches identified in Revelation

What

Fellowship with God

Fellowship with other believers

Warning against false doctrines and false teachers

The false teachers were possibly making the people doubt that they possessed eternal life (see 1 John

2:25; 5:13)

When

Zane Hodges: Between AD 60 & 65

Tom Constable: Between AD 90 & 95

Where

If early date – Jerusalem

If late date - Ephesus


“After the death of Paul, about A.D. 67, a heresy arose in the church called Gnosticism. Gnosticism is the opposite of agnosticism. Agnosticism holds that the reality of God is unknown and probably unknowable... The agnostic says, “I do not know.” The Gnostic says, “I do know.” The Gnostics were a group which came into the church claiming to have a superior knowledge which simple Christians did not have. They considered themselves super–duper saints, knowing more than anyone else knew.” J. Vernon McGee, vol. 56, Thru the Bible Commentary: The Epistles (1 John), electronic ed. (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1991), 19.

Walking in the Light

1 John 1:1-4 Chapter 1 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we

looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life— 2 the life was made manifest, and we have

seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us—

3 that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed

our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. 4 And we are writing these things so that our joy may be

complete.

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2001), 1 John 1:1–4.

One of the reasons we know that the Apostle John wrote the book is the similarity with the Gospel of John (see

John 1:1-5, 14)

Jesus was “from the beginning” (He is eternal), but John may have been referring to the beginning of the Gospel

here (see 1 John 2:4, 2:7 and 3:11)

Notice the first hand details given by John – he saw, heard, gazed (implies contemplation & understanding) and

touched the Son

“The Gnostics came up with quite a few novel ideas… One of their heretical teachings was that Jesus was merely

a man when He was born. He was just like any other human being at the time of His birth, but at His baptism,

the Christ came upon him, and when He was hanging on the Cross, the Christ left Him. John refutes this teaching

in no uncertain terms when he said in his Gospel record, “The Word was born flesh.” And here in his first epistle,

he emphatically declares that after Jesus came back from the dead, He was still a human being. In essence John

says, “We handled Him—He was still flesh and bones.” You see, John is not talking about a theory. He is talking

about Someone he heard, he saw, and he handled.” - J. Vernon McGee

“Here, John is thinking of those people called the Docetists who were so spiritually minded that they insisted

that Jesus never had a flesh-and-blood body but was only a ghost in human form. They refused to believe that

God could ever degrade himself by taking human flesh and blood upon himself. John here insists that the Jesus

he had known was, in truth, a man who came among them; he felt there was nothing in all the world more

dangerous—as we shall see—than to doubt that Jesus was fully human.” - William Barclay, The Letters of John

and Jude

“Word of life” probably refers to the Gospel here


Fellowship implies the ability to interact with people of like beliefs

There are two types of fellowship

1. Vertical with God

2. Horizontal with man (specifically believers)

The latter is dependent with the former and implies that bad theology can lead to the inability to have true

fellowship (see 3 John 4)

“John’s verbs indicate progressively closer approach to the object of investigation. The essence of fellowship is

increasing intimacy. Our fellowship with God must involve drawing closer to Him and viewing Him more intently

all the time to be genuine fellowship. -Tom Constable

“As we study John’s letters, we shall see over and over again how he relates doctrinal truth to daily life, by

weaving the two strands together into one cord of Christian orthodoxy. He is not alone among the New

Testament authors in insisting on the marriage of learning and living. It is of course an implicit criticism of the

false teachers, who exalted ‘knowledge’ to the highest place, and a rebuke to much contemporary

evangelicalism which divorces a correct theology from a Christlike life. It is sadly all too possible to know the

truth without doing it, to profess the faith without expressing it in a consistent life. Some of the strongest

rebukes and warnings of the New Testament are reserved for such double-mindedness, which is at root

hypocrisy.” – David Jackman

Believing good theology leads to joy for our teachers

1 John 1:5-10 5 This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. 6 If

we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. 7 But if we walk in

the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all

sin. 8 If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and

just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we say we have not sinned, we make him a

liar, and his word is not in us.


Was John writing to Christians? If not, why does he use “we” so much?

God is “light” – He is 100% good, pure, truthful, holy, just, righteous. God is perfect. There is nothing bad or

impure in Him at all

We, on the other hand, are not 100% perfect

To walk in the light is to expose our hearts to the holiness of God. When we do this, we see how sinful we are

It is important for us who claim to be Christians to not only talk the talk, but also walk the walk

“It is significant that John talked of walking in the light, rather than according to the light. To walk according to

the light would require sinless perfection and would make fellowship with God impossible for sinful humans. To


walk in it, however, suggests instead openness and responsiveness to the light. John did not think of Christians

as sinless, even though they are walking in the light, as is made clear in the last part of this verse. “ – Zane

Hodges, Bible Knowledge Commentary

This explains why comparatively new Christians can sometimes become discouraged. Many times I have had to counsel those who have become depressed only a matter of months or a year or so into their Christian experience. This is because, as they often put it, ‘I seem to be more of a sinner than ever I was before.’ But notice what is happening. Their sense of sin is a result of walking in the light! They are seeing actions, words or attitudes as sin now which had never been sin to them before. Their consciences are being educated and sensitized by the Spirit through God’s Word. One of God’s projects in the life of every growing Christian is to peel back more and more layers of our hidden depravity and sinfulness (as we can bear it), so that we start to see ourselves as we really are, in God’s sight. This project has the glorious end-purpose that we should become clean deep down. Our danger is that we resist this process of conviction and cleansing, that we buck and bridle, or that we allow God to go so far and then no further. It is worth considering how we find ourselves reacting when God’s light exposes some specific sin in our lives. It is too easy to dodge the issue, to look for the first escape route, excusing it as ‘one of my little weaknesses’. That is the way into darkness. David Jackman, The Message of John’s Letters: Living in the Love of God, The Bible Speaks Today (Leicester, England; Downer's Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1988), 34.

One further thought at the end of verse 7 is that as the light of God reveals our sin, we shall keep appropriating the cleansing that comes through Christ’s death, by our own repentance and faith. Notice that the present tense, purifies, denotes continuous action. ‘Keeps on purifying’ would be an equally good translation. Frequently we Christians are deprived of the enjoyment of walking in the light because we feel we have failed so often, perhaps in a recurring or besetting sin, that we dare not come back to God to ask for fresh forgiveness. We cannot say, as it were, ‘Lord, it’s me again and it’s that again.’ This is to fall for the devil’s lie. There is a glorious inclusiveness about this present tense and its application to all sin. We can never come too often to God when we come in humble penitence and active faith. It is because this blood (verse 7) is that of God’s Son that it has such virtue. Its purifying properties extend to each and every sin. To walk in the light means to become increasingly conscious of sin that would hinder our fellowship with God and our fellow Christians, and as that sin is revealed, not to run away into the darkness again. Rather we bring it, by faith, to the God whose Son gave his life that all our sins might be forgiven and removed. As we do so, the barriers to fellowship are removed and we continue in that relationship with God. David Jackman, The Message of John’s Letters: Living in the Love of God, The Bible Speaks Today (Leicester, England; Downer's Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1988), 31.

The blood of Jesus is the only thing than cleanses us from sin

No matter how hard we try, we will still sin

However, if we confess our sins, God is faithful and will forgive us our sins

Sin cannot cause us to lose our salvation, but it can hinder our fellowship with God and with others

Claiming to be without sin is not only deceptive, it makes God out to be a liar (Romans 3:23; 7) and proves that

we do not understand God’s Word

This is exactly something that a dualist would claim


“Some expositors teach that this verse cannot apply to Christians since God has already forgiven Christians and therefore we do not need to ask for what we already have. This viewpoint fails to distinguish between forensic forgiveness that we receive at conversion and family forgiveness that we need after conversion. For example, a judge could pay his own son’s fine in court but then discipline him when they got home. Jesus instructed His believing disciples to ask the Father for forgiveness (Luke 11:14). The fact that God has removed the penalty for our sins at conversion (Eph. 1:7) does not remove the necessity of confessing our sins frequently (cf. Matt. 6:11–12). Again, the issue is not acceptance by God but fellowship with God. Conversion (forensic) forgiveness makes us acceptable as members of God’s family. Continual (family) forgiveness enables us to experience intimate fellowship as sons within God’s family.” Tom Constable, Tom Constable’s Expository Notes on the Bible (Galaxie Software, 2003), 1 Jn 1:9.

“In modern times some have occasionally denied that a Christian needs to confess his sins and ask forgiveness. It is claimed that a believer already has forgiveness in Christ (Eph. 1:7). But this point of view confuses the perfect position which a Christian has in God’s Son (by which he is even “seated … with Him in the heavenly realms” [Eph. 2:6]) with his needs as a failing individual on earth. What is considered in 1 John 1:9 may be described as “familial” forgiveness. It is perfectly understandable how a son may need to ask his father to forgive him for his faults while at the same time his position within the family is not in jeopardy. A Christian who never asks his heavenly Father for forgiveness for his sins can hardly have much sensitivity to the ways in which he grieves his Father. Furthermore, the Lord Jesus Himself taught His followers to seek forgiveness of their sins in a prayer that was obviously intended for daily use (cf. the expression “give us today our daily bread” preceding “forgive us our debts,” Matt. 6:11-12). The teaching that a Christian should not ask God for daily forgiveness is an aberration.” – Zane Hodges John F. Walvoord, Roy B. Zuck and Dallas Theological Seminary, The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1985), 1 John 1:9.

1 John 2:1-6 Chapter 2 My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an

advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. 2 He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also

for the sins of the whole world. 3 And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments.

4 Whoever says “I know him” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, 5 but whoever

keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him: 6 whoever says he

abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.


“Little children” = spiritual children - believers

As Christians we are forgiven of our sins, but we are not to use that liberty to continue in sin (Romans 6:1-4)

John wrote this letter so that his readers would understand good theology so that they may not sin

McGee points out that John did not write that believers cannot sin. He wrote that they may not sin

How can we keep His Word if we do not know His Word?

“The Greek word translated ‘Advocate’ is parakleton that transliterated into English is ‘Paraclete.’ It means one

who gets called to the side of another to help. Jesus used this word four times in the Upper Room Discourse to


describe the Holy Spirit (John 14:16, 26; 15:26; 16:7). He called the Holy Spirit another Paraclete like Himself

(John 14:16). - Tom Constable

“Notice that John does not say that if anyone repents, he has an Advocate nor if anyone confesses his sins, he

has an Advocate. Neither does he say that if anyone goes through a ceremony to get rid of his sins, he has an

Advocate. What he does say is that if any man sin, we have an Advocate with the Father. Before we even repent

of that cruel or brutal word we said, the very moment we had that evil thought, and the moment we did that

wrong act, Jesus Christ was there at the throne of God to represent us as Satan was there accusing us.” - J.

Vernon McGee

“The glory of the gospel is that we have an advocate who pleads for mercy on the ground of his own righteous

action when he died the death that we deserve to die. Once the penalty has been paid, there cannot be any

further demand for the sinner to be punished. God has himself met our debt. He came in person to do so. The

cross is not the Father punishing an innocent third party, the Son, for our sins. It is God taking to himself, in the

person of the Son, all the punishment that his wrath justly demands, quenching its sword, satisfying its penalty

and thus atoning for our sins.” - David Jackman

If we love God we will keep His commandments and His words

“I get the impression from many folk that they want to live as much like the unsaved as possible and still be

Christians. I would never give an answer to a young person who asked me if a Christian could do this or that and

still be a Christian—because they were asking the wrong questions. The right question to ask is this: “What can I

do to please my heavenly Father?” You see, a genuine child of God wants to please Him; he does not try to live

right on the margin of the Christian life.” - J. Vernon McGee

We must pay attention to both sins of commission and sins of omission (see James 4:17)

Christian means “to be like Christ” – we are to walk in the ways He walked

1 John 2:7-11 7 Beloved, I am writing you no new commandment, but an old commandment that you had from the beginning. The old

commandment is the word that you have heard. 8 At the same time, it is a new commandment that I am writing to you,

which is true in him and in you, because the darkness is passing away and the true light is already shining. 9 Whoever

says he is in the light and hates his brother is still in darkness. 10 Whoever loves his brother abides in the light, and in

him there is no cause for stumbling. 11 But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and

does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.


Jesus gave His disciples a “new” commandment in John 13:34 and John 15:12

You cannot hate your brother and be in the light!

“If we love others, we are walking in the light, and there is nothing in us which causes us to stumble. The Greek

could mean that, if we love others, there is nothing in us which causes them to stumble—and, of course, that

would be perfectly true. But it is much more likely that John is saying that, if we love other people, there is

nothing in us which causes us to stumble. That is to say, love enables us to make progress in the spiritual life,

and hatred makes progress impossible. When we think of it, that is perfectly obvious. If God is love and if the


new commandment of Christ is love, then love brings us nearer to one another and to God, and hatred

separates us from one another and from God. We ought always to remember that those who have in their

hearts hatred, resentment and the unforgiving spirit can never grow up in the spiritual life.” - William Barclay,

The Letters of John and Jude

1 John 2:12-14 12 I am writing to you, little children, because your sins are forgiven for his name’s sake. 13 I am writing to you, fathers,

because you know him who is from the beginning. I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil

one. I write to you, children, because you know the Father. 14 I write to you, fathers, because you know him who is from

the beginning. I write to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have

overcome the evil one.


Again, notice the language is geared toward believers – “your sins are forgiven…”

Notice the emphasis John is placing on men here. We need godly men leaders today like never before!

“Now how are we going to know the Lord Jesus Christ? My friend, the only way you can know Him is in the Word

of God. That is where He is revealed. Many folk feel that if they go to a Bible study once a week, they will

become super–duper saints. But the Word of God is like food. I’ve conducted Bible studies once a week over the

years, and I certainly approve of them, but imagine going in and eating a good meal and then saying, “I’ll be back

for another meal in a week.” Well, if you don’t get any food in the meantime, you will be in bad shape.” - J.

Vernon McGee

1 John 2:15-17 Again, notice the language is geared toward believers – “your sins are forgiven…”

Notice the emphasis John is placing on men here. We need godly men leaders today like never before!

“Now how are we going to know the Lord Jesus Christ? My friend, the only way you can know Him is in the Word

of God. That is where He is revealed. Many folk feel that if they go to a Bible study once a week, they will

become super–duper saints. But the Word of God is like food. I’ve conducted Bible studies once a week over the

years, and I certainly approve of them, but imagine going in and eating a good meal and then saying, “I’ll be back

for another meal in a week.” Well, if you don’t get any food in the meantime, you will be in bad shape.” - J.

Vernon McGee

For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world, but lose his soul? – Mark 8:36

Do we get so caught up in being successful in this world that we lose site of the next?

“Worldliness is not just actions. It is an attitude that leads to actions. Worldliness is an attitude where we want

prestige, power, position, and possessions in the world system. All of these also affect Christians. We are to

reorient our priorities. (see also 2 Corinthians 5:9)” – Stan Toussaint, DTS class notes

We are told not to love this world because it is quickly passing away (see also Revelation 21:1)

“Keeping up with the Jones’” and our lust for stuff is not from God!


We are called to do the Father’s will

What is God’s Will?

For Himself to be glorified (Isaiah 42:8; 48:11; John 17:24;

1 Corinthians 10:31; 1 Peter 4:11)

For His Gospel to be proclaimed (Matthew 28:19-20; Mark 15:16; Acts 1:8;1 Corinthians 1:17; 15:1-8)

For His kingdom to be given top priority in our lives (Matthew 6:33)

For His Church to be equipped (Ephesians 4:11-12;

1 Corinthians 14:12, 26)

For His people to be cared for (Exodus 22:22-24; Psalm 68:5; Acts 20:28; James 1:27; 1 Peter 2:15)

For His people to be holy (Leviticus 19:2, 11:44-45)

For His people to have faith (Habakkuk 2:4; Hebrews 11)

For His people to be thankful (1 Thessalonians 5:18)

For His people to be content in Him alone (1 Timothy 6:6-8;

Hebrews 13:5; Philippians 4:11-13)

What we need to realize is that the world (and behind it the devil) cannot produce what it offers. Its attractions are fundamentally deceptive. That is why we all need to be warned of the heartbreak and misery that lie on the other side of every act of rebellion against God. It is like drinking salt water. Far from bringing satisfaction, the unquenchable thirst is in fact increased, and that is no way for a child of God to live. So the Christian has to learn to say ‘No’ to the world’s temptations… This leads us to John’s other great constraint which he voices in verse 17a. Not only do the world’s attractions fail to satisfy, but they cannot last. All of these desires feed on their own fulfilment, but ultimately none of them will remain. So why should those who are heirs of the eternal world concentrate their interests and ambitions on something that is so fleeting and unreliable? We need to realize the brittleness of this world. Even before death, people who have lived this way are often convinced of the emptiness and uselessness of their lives, and sometimes profoundly frightened. A millionaire who may have lived for money can take nothing of it beyond the grave. The social climber will never be high enough up the ladder. The good-time girl ends up as a spent alcoholic. The workaholic is made redundant, or forced to retire early. Why live for these things, when they cannot last? We should remember the ‘ultimate statistic’: one out of one dies. David Jackman, The Message of Johns Letters: Living in the Love of God, The Bible Speaks Today (Leicester, England; Downer's Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1988), 64.

Life Lessons Know the Word so you won’t be deceived by false teachers

Live your life like the faith you profess

Know God’s Word so you can keep God’s Word (Psalm 119:11)

Keep God’s commandments so that you might become more like Him


If you are a man, be a godly man and lead your family and your life as such

Don’t get caught up in the things of this world for they are passing away quickly

Seek to do God’s will with your whole life

Store up your treasure in Heaven (Matthew 6:19-21)

Be Children of God

1 John 2:18-27 18 Children, it is the last hour, and as you have heard that antichrist is coming, so now many antichrists have come.

Therefore we know that it is the last hour. 19 They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us,

they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us. 20 But you

have been anointed by the Holy One, and you all have knowledge. 21 I write to you, not because you do not know the

truth, but because you know it, and because no lie is of the truth. 22 Who is the liar but he who denies that Jesus is the

Christ? This is the antichrist, he who denies the Father and the Son. 23 No one who denies the Son has the Father.

Whoever confesses the Son has the Father also. 24 Let what you heard from the beginning abide in you. If what you

heard from the beginning abides in you, then you too will abide in the Son and in the Father. 25 And this is the promise

that he made to us—eternal life. 26 I write these things to you about those who are trying to deceive you. 27 But the

anointing that you received from him abides in you, and you have no need that anyone should teach you. But as his

anointing teaches you about everything, and is true, and is no lie—just as it has taught you, abide in him.


John, like the other writers of the NT books, believed that he was living in the “last hour”

False teachers are a sign of the end times (see

1 Timothy 4:1-3; 2 Peter 2:1-3)

“Antichrists are those who oppose Jesus Christ and His teachings, not just people who profess to be the

Messiah.” - Tom Constable

McGee states that the word “anti” can have two meanings: “against” and “instead of, an imitation of”. Jesus

taught that there would be many impostors who would claim to be Him (Matthew 24:5)

Where did the antichrists come from? “they went out from us” – Probably from the apostolic churches of

Jerusalem and Judea

Ultimately antichrists dissociate themselves from those who hold to orthodox Christian doctrine, but they are extremely dangerous just because they originate from within the church and often take a long time to surface. We may think of the contemporary sects and extremist groups which have done so much damage to the Christian cause. John points out that their eventual apostasy proves that they are not simply confused, untaught Christians. Because they so vigorously oppose the truth, they cannot co-exist with strong biblical teaching. Their behaviour confirms the heresy of their beliefs. Of course this does not mean that everyone who leaves a church is antichrist; but when a group separates itself into an élite, holier-than-thou huddle, claiming a deeper understanding or experience than other gospel people, beware. It will


not be long before unbalanced teaching begins to lead its adherents away into undisguised error. Once the central truths of the faith are denied, the appetite for Christian fellowship is lost. David Jackman, The Message of John’s Letters: Living in the Love of God, The Bible Speaks Today (Leicester, England; Downer's Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1988), 70-71.

“Heresy in the Christian church, whether on the part of its saved members or unsaved people in it, always

unmasks a fundamental disharmony with the spirit and doctrine of the apostles. A man in touch with God will

submit to apostolic instruction (cf. 1 John 4:6).” – Zane Hodges, BKC

People are often fooled by false teachings and false teachers

“If they had been of us, they would have continued with us” – Our salvation is assured because it is from God

and not man!

We cannot truly confess the Son without the aid of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:3)

God’s Spirit leads us into all truth (cf. John 16:13)

“This ought to cause every Christian, including this poor preacher who writes this, to ask himself the question: Have I really faced up to my sins in the light of the Cross of the Lord Jesus Christ? Have I come to God in repentance, owning my guilt and acknowledging my iniquity? Have I cast myself upon Him and Him only for my salvation? Have I evidence in my life of being a regenerate soul of God? Do I love the Word of God? Do I want the Word of God? Is it bread to me? Is it meat to me? Is it drink to me? Do I love the brethren? And do I love the Lord Jesus Christ? These are the things which we need to consider, my friends... God’s child must hate sin. This light view of sin which we have today is simply something that is not quite scriptural. I am afraid that there are many church members who are just taking it for granted that they are children of God because they are as active as termites in the church—and they have just about the same effect as termites.” J. Vernon McGee, vol. 56, Thru the Bible Commentary: The Epistles (1 John), electronic ed. (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1991), 64-65.

“The antichrists lie because they deny that Jesus is the Christ, God’s Son and our Savior. This would have been the position of Jews who rejected Jesus as the Messiah and other false teachers whom John alluded to elsewhere. Among these were the Gnostics who believed that anything material was sinful and therefore Jesus could not have been God’s Son. Docetists taught that Jesus was not truly a man and therefore not our Savior. Followers of Cerinthus believed that Jesus was not fully God but that God only came upon Him at His baptism and departed from Him before His crucifixion. These false teachers all claimed to have the truth from God. However, John pointed out that since the Son and the Father are one, a person cannot deny the Son without denying the Father as well (cf. Matt. 10:32–33; Mark 8:38).” Tom Constable, Tom Constable’s Expository Notes on the Bible (Galaxie Software, 2003), 1 John 2:22.

1 John 2:28-29 28 And now, little children, abide in him, so that when he appears we may have confidence and not shrink from him in

shame at his coming. 29 If you know that he is righteous, you may be sure that everyone who practices righteousness

has been born of him.



Notice the doctrine of the rapture here

We are to be ready always (Matthew 24:44)

We are to abide in Jesus. What does that mean?

15 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. 2 Every branch in me that does not bear fruit

he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. 3 Already

you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. 4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch

cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. 5 I am

the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for

apart from me you can do nothing. John 15:1-5 ESV

We are to practice righteousness. How do we do that?

How do we practice righteousness?

Have faith/believe (Genesis 15:6)

Practice justice (Leviticus 19:15)

Obey God (Deuteronomy 6:25)

Be thankful (Psalms 140:13)

Set a godly example (Proverbs 12:26)

Be an advocate for the poor (Proverbs 29:7)

Abhor evil (Isaiah 33:15-16)

Do what is just and right (Ezekiel 18:5-9)

Avoid anger (James 1:19)

Be peacemakers (James 3:18)

What type of fruit are we producing?

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. 24 And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2001), Ga 5:22–24.

19 Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, 20 idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, 21 envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2001), Ga 5:19–21.


1 John 3:1-3 Chapter 3 See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The

reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him. 2 Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we

will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is.

3 And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2001), 1 John 3:1-3.

Rightly to understand this concept of adoption, we have to remember that the choice lay entirely with the Father and was motivated only by his nature of love. Adoption is a legal action by which a person takes into his family a child who is not his own, who has no rights within that family, in order to give that child all the privileges of his own children. In Roman law, as in ours, an adopted child was entitled to all the rights and privileges of a natural-born child. What might motivate someone to do that, potentially at considerable cost to himself? Perhaps there might be something attractive about the child, or there might be an old friendship with his or her parents, who had died. But the basic motivation would be pity, compassion, love. Love gives. So it is with God, who ‘sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law, to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons’ (Gal. 4:4–5). In our case there was nothing attractive or even deserving in us to draw out that love, but God chose to love us, because he is love. David Jackman, The Message of John’s Letters: Living in the Love of God, The Bible Speaks Today (Leicester, England; Downer's Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1988), 81-82.

When we realize how great God is compared to us, we also realize how great His love must be for us

It is only because of God’s great love for us and grace toward us that we can be called His children

We have nothing to offer God – He does not need us, but He can use us if we allow Him to

The people of the world do not know us because they do not know the Father (John 1:12-13; 7:28; 16:3)

When Jesus returns, we will be made like Him

(1 Corinthians 15:52-57; Philippians 3:21)

We should strive for purity – not because we have to (legalism), but because we love God

“John has emphasized that we are God’s children right now. This brings me to say that our salvation is in three tenses: I have been saved; I am being saved; and I shall be saved.

1. I have been saved. The Lord Jesus said, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life” (John 5:24). The moment you trust Christ you receive everlasting life, and you will never be any more saved than you are the moment you trust Him. You are born again, born into the family of God. John is addressing “little children”—these are God’s children. He says, “What manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us.” Why? Because we are His children. He has bestowed His love upon His children, and they respond to that love by obedience unto Him and by living a life that is well pleasing to Him.

2. I am being saved. Paul said, “… work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure” (Phil. 2:12–13). Peter said, “But grow in grace, and in the


knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ …” (2 Pet. 3:18). John is talking to us along the same lines here. If we are the children of God, we are going to be obedient unto Him, we are going to grow, we are going to develop, and we are going to go on in the Christian faith. Therefore, we can say that we are being saved.

3. I will be saved. When the Lord Jesus comes again for His own, we will experience the final stage of our salvation. Sin no longer will have power over us, and we will be with the Lord forever.”

J. Vernon McGee, vol. 56, Thru the Bible Commentary: The Epistles (1 John), electronic ed. (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1991), 85.

1 John 3:4-10 4 Everyone who makes a practice of sinning also practices lawlessness; sin is lawlessness. 5 You know that he appeared

in order to take away sins, and in him there is no sin. 6 No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on

sinning has either seen him or known him. 7 Little children, let no one deceive you. Whoever practices righteousness is

righteous, as he is righteous. 8 Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from

the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil. 9 No one born of God makes a

practice of sinning, for God’s seed abides in him, and he cannot keep on sinning because he has been born of God. 10 By

this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice

righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother.


“practice of sinning” – John is not talking about sinless perfection here. He is talking about the attitude that

embodies ongoing, willful, non-repentant sin

“No one who abides in him keeps on sinning”

Habitual sin?

Sinless perfection possible?

Sin is a product of ignorance of God?

A sinless life is dependent on abiding?

“…if we were able to abide in Christ without interruption, we would never sin. The sinless nature of Christ

controls the abiding Christian whereas the sinful human nature controls the non-abiding Christian.” – Tom

Constable

It all depends on our attitude and understanding of God’s grace

I have “fire insurance” so I can live any way I want

I love God and am grateful for His sacrifice so I do not want to sin, but when I do, I know I have His

forgiveness.

Love is a key indicator of our progress toward sanctification


“It is important to remember that John is not for one moment saying that a true Christian never sins. He has already warned us against that error (1:8, 10) and reminded us of the means God has provided for our cleansing and restoration (1:9; 2:1). Although Christians fail and fall, Christians can be forgiven. But we are to remember that such forgiveness is at the expense of the life-blood of the Son of God. Grace is free, but it is not cheap. The mark of true gratitude is that we do not keep on sinning. Professor F. F. Bruce has a helpful illustration at this point. ‘When a boy goes to a new school, he may inadvertently do something out of keeping with the school’s tradition or good name, to be told immediately, “That isn’t done here.” A literalist might reply, “But obviously it is done; this boy has just done it”—but he would be deliberately missing the point of the rebuke. The point of the rebuke is that such conduct is disapproved of in this school, so anyone who practises it can normally be assumed not to belong to the school. There may be odd exceptions, but that is the general rule, which has been verified by experience.’ The implications for us are clear. Fellowship with a sinless Saviour and continuance in our sins (keeping on sinning) are mutually contradictory. No compromise is possible. And the logical conclusion we are to draw is that we cannot expect to be confident on that day when we see Christ, if we are complacent about sin in our lives here and now.” David Jackman, The Message of John’s Letters: Living in the Love of God, The Bible Speaks Today (Leicester, England; Downer's Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1988), 88-89.

1 John 3:11-15 11 For this is the message that you have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another. 12 We should not

be like Cain, who was of the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own deeds

were evil and his brother’s righteous. 13 Do not be surprised, brothers, that the world hates you. 14 We know that we

have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers. Whoever does not love abides in death. 15 Everyone

who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.


Jesus told His disciples that by showing their love for one another, they would demonstrate that they were His

true followers (John 13:34-35)

We are not to hate our brothers and sisters

Cain’s actions were very selfish and prideful; whereas, Abel’s actions were righteous

Hatred of one’s brother, in God’s eyes, is on the same level as murder (Matthew 5:21-22)

Christians oftentimes try to kill their wounded in an attempt to make themselves look “better”

“An evil person will instinctively hate a good person. Righteousness always provokes hostility in the minds of

those whose actions are evil. The reason is that the good person is a walking rebuke to the evil person. Even if

they never speak a word to one another, the good person’s life passes a silent judgment.” - William Barclay, The

Letters of John and Jude

“John does not say that someone who hates his brother does not possess eternal life, but rather that he does

not have it abiding in him.” – Zane Hodges, BKC


“Envy and jealousy among believers in the church hurt the cause of Christ today probably more than anything else. It is that old secret sin that many believers cover up. How many soloists are jealous of another soloist? How many preachers are jealous of another preacher? A great deal of backbiting that goes on in the church has its root in one thing: jealousy. Boy, that is a mean one! And jealousy is the reason that Cain killed Abel—God had accepted his brother’s works and not his own.” J. Vernon McGee, vol. 56, Thru the Bible Commentary: The Epistles (1 John), electronic ed. (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1991), 102-03.

1 John 3:16-24 16 By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. 17 But if

anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide

in him? 18 Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth. 19 By this we shall know that we are of

the truth and reassure our heart before him; 20 for whenever our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and

he knows everything. 21 Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence before God; 22 and whatever

we ask we receive from him, because we keep his commandments and do what pleases him. 23 And this is his

commandment, that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he has commanded us.

24 Whoever keeps his commandments abides in God, and God in him. And by this we know that he abides in us, by the

Spirit whom he has given us.


13 Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. – John 15:13 ESV

Whenever you doubt God’s love for you, just remember the cross (Romans 5:8)

If God has blessed us materially, He expects us to care for our brothers and sisters who are in need (see also Acts

2:42-47; James 2:15-16)

Who are my brothers and sisters?

Where are my brothers and sisters?

Love is a verb! We must not only talk the talk, but also walk the walk!

Isn’t it interesting that an “ask/receive” promise is right in the middle of a “love/provide for others” section?

We can rationalize our sin to others, but remember God knows our hearts and our reasons for not helping

others

How can we abide in Him – by keeping His commandments

“JOHN goes on to speak of the two things which are well-pleasing in God’s sight, the two commandments on obedience on which our relationship to God depends. (1) We must believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ… To believe in the name of Jesus Christ is to accept him for what he really is. (2) We must love one another, even as he gave us his commandment. This commandment is in John 13:34. We must love each other with that same selfless, sacrificial, forgiving love with which Jesus Christ loved us. When we put these two commandments together, we find the great


truth that the Christian life depends on the combination of right belief and right conduct. We cannot have the one without the other. There can be no such thing as a Christian theology without a Christian ethic; and equally there can be no such thing as a Christian ethic without a Christian theology. Our belief is not real belief unless it is translated into action; and our action has neither authority nor force unless it is based on belief. We cannot begin the Christian life until we accept Jesus Christ for what he is; and we have not accepted him in any real sense of the term until our attitude to others is the same as his own attitude of love.” William Barclay, The Letters of John and Jude, 3rd ed., The New Daily Study Bible (Louisville, KY; London: Westminster John Knox Press, 2002), 98-99.

Life Lessons Be alert and about God’s business for He is coming soon!

Never be ashamed about the exclusivity of Jesus Christ – He is the only way! (John 14:6)

Make it your ambition to abide in Christ daily

Thank God daily for His great love that He has bestowed on us all

Remember that God’s grace is free, but it is not cheap

Don’t compare your righteousness with others. It will lead to pride or jealousy

Love one another

Bless other believers who are in need from the ample blessings our Father has given to you. (Remember Luke

12:48)

Be Overcomers

1 John 4:1-6 Chapter 4 Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false

prophets have gone out into the world. 2 By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ

has come in the flesh is from God, 3 and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the

antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already. 4 Little children, you are from God and have

overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. 5 They are from the world; therefore they

speak from the world, and the world listens to them. 6 We are from God. Whoever knows God listens to us; whoever is

not from God does not listen to us. By this we know the Spirit of truth and the spirit of error.


Anyone who teaches that Jesus is not fully God is a false teacher!

Anyone who teaches that Jesus was not fully man is also a false teacher!


Jesus is who the Bible says He is not who human beings say that He is no matter how well meaning or educated

they may be

The only people who really know Jesus Christ have been enabled to through the power of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor.

12:3)

Those of the world simply cannot truly know Jesus Christ

“The antichrists’ teachings have an appeal to worldly minds because they come from the world and share the

viewpoint of the world (cf. John 3:31).” -Tom Constable

It is only by the power of the Holy Spirit that we can overcome Satan

If we know God we will listen to and obey the teachings of His prophets and apostles which are recorded in

Scripture

Scripture is the “say all”, “be all” and “end all” to what we believe

“God said it and that settles it. It really doesn’t matter if people believe it.”

“In our relativistic age, we constantly need to be reminded that some things are always true and others always false. Truth is not just the present consensus of opinion; it is defined by the character of God. Today’s false prophets are just as persuasive and just as lethal as those of the first century. They will say the Bible has authority, but is not the supreme authority. They will affirm belief in the resurrection, but not that the body of Christ was actually raised on the third day. The spirit of falsehood is a spirit of deceit. It is only by receiving the apostles’ teaching and living a life that accords with this truth that we can know God. We are not to accept substitutes.” David Jackman, The Message of John’s Letters: Living in the Love of God, The Bible Speaks Today (Leicester, England; Downer's Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1988), 116.

1 John 4:7-12 7 Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God.

8 Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9 In this the love of God was made manifest

among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. 10 In this is love, not that we

have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. 11 Beloved, if God so loved us,

we also ought to love one another. 12 No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is

perfected in us.


God expects us as believers to love each other because as Christians we are to reflect His love

A lack of love is an indication of a lack of intimate fellowship with God

How do we know that God loved us? (see Romans 5:8)

Whenever you doubt God’s love for you, remember the cross!


Jesus, the perfect God-man paid for our sins – not because we asked God to, but because He loves us. How

much more love could God show us?

What does God ask from us? To love Him and to love others (Mark 12:28-34; John 13:34-35; 15:12, 17; Romans

12:10; 13:8; Galatians 5:13; Ephesians 4:2; 1 Thessalonians 4:9; Hebrews 10:24; 1 Peter 1:22; 4:8; 1 John 3:11,

23; 4:7, 11, 12; 2 John 5-6)

How does the world “see” God?

God’s love is perfected in us when we become His hands and feet

“Twice in this chapter John gives us the definition, ‘God is love’ in verse 8 and again in verse 16. This is a very wonderful thing, but I would have you notice something about it. You cannot say God is mercy. You cannot say God is grace. You cannot even say God is justice. You can say God is holy because that is what ‘God is light’ means. But you can also say God is love. However, I must add that God does not save us by love. He loves us, and we don’t want to lose sight of that, but God just cannot open the back door of heaven and slip us in under cover of darkness because He loves us. And God cannot let down the bars of heaven and bring us in the front door. God cannot do that, and God will not do that because He is a holy and righteous God. My friend, even though God loves you, He does not save you by love, and He cannot save you by love. God had to do something about the fact of sin because He is holy and righteous, and what He does is right. So God gave His Son to die on the Cross for you and me, to pay the penalty for our sin so that a holy God can now reach down and save us. It is only on that basis that a holy God can save us. Christ is the mercy seat, and that is where God reveals His love. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16). ’Herein is love, not that we loved God’—we didn’t love Him first. God didn’t give His Son for us because we were attractive, or because we were good, or because we promised to do something. God loved us ‘while we were yet sinners.’ We need to recognize that you and I today are sinners and that ‘… God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us’ (Rom. 5:8). God did it at that time, and God loved us at that time. He has made a way for us, if we will accept it. Jesus said, ‘… I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me’ (John 14:6). You either come His way, or you don’t come, my friend. It is nonsense to think that because God is love, everything will work out all right and everyone will ultimately go to heaven. “ J. Vernon McGee, vol. 56, Thru the Bible Commentary: The Epistles (1 John), electronic ed. (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1991), 199-130.

1 John 4:13-17 13 By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. 14 And we have seen and

testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. 15 Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God,

God abides in him, and he in God. 16 So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love,

and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. 17 By this is love perfected with us, so that we may

have confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is so also are we in this world.


“By this…” – If we love one another

Do you ever feel distant from God? Maybe it is because you are not loving a fellow believer

“We have seen and testified” – John was an eyewitness of Jesus and His death, burial and resurrection


“The witness of the Spirit and the apostolic testimony belong together, for there can be no separation between

the Spirit and the Word. The one who wrote the Word, inspiring its human authors, uses his specially designed

tool to bring us to life and to build us up in the faith. The vindication of the reality of the Spirit’s work in our lives

is seen in commitment to the revelation of God, in the Scriptures.” -David Jackman, The Message of John’s

Letters

We cannot abide in God without love, because God is love

Verse 17 “might be rendered, literally, ‘In this respect love is made complete with us, namely, that we should have boldness in the day of judgment.’ The writer was not referring here to a final judgment in which the eternal destiny of each believer hangs in balance. There is no such judgment for a believer (John 5:24). But a believer’s life will be assessed at the judgment seat of Christ (1 Cor. 3:12-15; 2 Cor. 5:10). Yet even on that solemn occasion, a believer may have confidence (parrēsian; cf. 1 John 2:28; 3:21; 5:14) that God will approve the quality of his life if, through love, that believer while in this world becomes like Him. An unloving Christian is unlike his Lord and may anticipate rebuke and loss of reward at the judgment seat. But a loving believer is one in whom the work of God’s love has been made complete (cf. the same words in 2:5; 4:12), and the fruit of that is boldness before the One who will judge him. In this way he achieves the goal of confidence and no shame before Him, expressed in 2:28.” – Zane Hodges John F. Walvoord, Roy B. Zuck and Dallas Theological Seminary, The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1985), 1 John 4:17.

1 John 4:18-21 18 There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has

not been perfected in love. 19 We love because he first loved us. 20 If anyone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother,

he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. 21 And this

commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother.


“Fear and love are mutually exclusive (verse 18a). If we are afraid that God is going to punish us, we cannot yet be aware of the fullness of his everlasting love. Often the problem is that we transfer the model of parenthood derived from our experience as children directly on to God. If our parents withheld love as a means of conditioning or disciplining us, or if we never had the security of knowing that nothing could shake their love, we can easily regard God with a mixture of fear and gratitude, always wondering when the blow will fall. But that is not love. How many Christians are caught up in this web of fear! Often they are the most sensitive and lonely people, but they live in the anticipation of some calamity being visited upon them as judgment for their past sins, or retribution for not making more progress in holy living. The result is usually paralysis. They imagine that God is waiting with a big stick to beat them every time they fail. They precondition themselves to do just that. Not surprisingly, the devil is all too ready to pile in with his accusations and whisper that they cannot expect God to spend any more time on such hopeless, useless specimens. Perhaps they are not really Christians at all! But the God who is love wants his children to have confidence. Look back again to 3:1–2 and drink it in! We can have complete confidence in Jesus, God’s Son. Because he shed his blood for our forgiveness, we can call God ‘Father’, and know that we are fully accepted for the sake of his beloved Son. Punishment is quite foreign to someone who is forgiven and loved. So, as the Amplified New Testament beautifully expresses it, ‘The perfect love of God in Christ turns fear out of doors and expels every kind of terror.’ When we are in Christ, we are as he is. Does the Lord Jesus cringe in terror before the Father? Of course not. Then, humbly but sincerely, we may share his boldness, his confidence and freedom of speech. He has loved us with an everlasting love (Je. 31:3), which will never let us down and never let us go. If we are always afraid of what Father may do to us, we do not really love him, and if we do not love him it is because we do not really believe that he loves us.”


David Jackman, The Message of John’s Letters: Living in the Love of God, The Bible Speaks Today (Leicester, England; Downer's Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1988), 130.

We obey God not because we have to, not because we are afraid of what He might do to us if we don’t - We

should obey God because we love Him and because He first loved us!

If we cannot love a brother or sister who is created in God’s image then we cannot love the invisible God

If we love God we must love our brothers and sisters

Life Lessons 1. Know that Jesus is indeed the perfect God-man

2. Read, reflect on and obey the teachings of the Apostles of Scripture.

3. Love God and love other believers!

4. Don’t wait for others to love you – love them first

5. When you feel distant from God, examine your own heart to see if you are harboring anything other than love

for your fellow believers. If so, go to your brother or sister and work it out

6. Regardless of the type of earthly father you had, remember that he was imperfect and loved imperfectly. Our

Heavenly Father, on the other hand is Perfect and loves perfectly. Rest peacefully in this truth!

1 John 5:1-5 5 Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father loves

whoever has been born of him. 2 By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and obey his

commandments. 3 For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not

burdensome. 4 For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome

the world—our faith. 5 Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?


How are we born of God?

We, as believers, are to love other believers

“This love does not spring from something lovable in the person himself, but from his paternity, since everyone

who loves the Father loves His child as well. Moreover, love for God’s children is not mere sentiment or verbal

expression (cf. 3:18), but is inseparable from loving God and obeying His commands (5:2; cf. 2:3; 3:22, 24; 5:3).”

– Zane Hodges, BKC

We demonstrate our love to others and to God by obeying His commandments – not because we have to in

order to earn favor, but because we want to out of our love for God

When we truly love God, it is easy to obey His commandments. True love changes our “want to’s” (see also

Matthew 11:30)


“Obedience is the only proof of love” – William Barclay

We overcome through our faith in what God has promised

When we believe in Jesus Christ, we have already conquered the world

“John defines this conquering faith as the belief that Jesus is the Son of God. It is belief in the incarnation. Why should that be able to give us power to overcome? If we believe in the incarnation, it means that we believe that, in Jesus, God entered the world and took our human life upon himself. If he did that, it means that he cared enough for us to take upon himself the limitations of humanity, which is the act of a love that is beyond human understanding. If God did that, it means that he shares in all the many different activities of human life and knows the many and varied trials and temptations and sorrows of this world. It means that everything that happens to us is fully understood by God and that he is in this business of living along with us. Faith in the incarnation is the conviction that God shares and God cares. Once we possess that faith, certain things follow. (1) We have a defence to resist the infections of the world… (2) We have a strength to stand up to the attacks of the world... (3) We have the indestructible hope of final victory. The world did its worst to Jesus. It relentlessly pursued him and slandered him. It branded him a heretic and a friend of sinners. It judged him and crucified him and buried him. It did everything humanly possible to eliminate him—and it failed. After the cross came the resurrection; after the shame came the glory. That is the Jesus who is with us, one who saw life at its grimmest, to whom life did its worst—who died, who conquered death, and who offers us a share in that victory which was his. If we believe that Jesus is the Son of God, we always have Christ the Victor with us to make us victorious.” William Barclay, The Letters of John and Jude, 3rd ed., The New Daily Study Bible (Louisville, KY; London: Westminster John Knox Press, 2002), 118-20.

1 John 5:6-12 6 This is he who came by water and blood—Jesus Christ; not by the water only but by the water and the blood. And the

Spirit is the one who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. 7 For there are three that testify: 8 the Spirit and the water

and the blood; and these three agree. 9 If we receive the testimony of men, the testimony of God is greater, for this is

the testimony of God that he has borne concerning his Son. 10 Whoever believes in the Son of God has the testimony in

himself. Whoever does not believe God has made him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has

borne concerning his Son. 11 And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.

12 Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.


“Water” probably referred to Jesus’ baptism and “blood” His death

“Really there are three witnesses to the truth. These witnesses are the Holy Spirit teaching through the apostles

and prophets, the water of Jesus’ baptism, and the blood of His crucifixion. John personified the latter two in

this verse. The testimony of eyewitnesses and prophets as well as that of the historical events affirmed the

divine and human character of Jesus Christ.” – Tom Constable

“For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are

one.” - KJV

Jesus is the only way – “Whoever has the Son has life. Whoever does not have the Son does not have life”

If you believe in the Father, you have to believe in the Son and vice versa


“And it is the Spirit that beareth witness, because the Spirit is truth.” It is the Spirit who can make these truths live. May I make this rather startling statement: The Lord Jesus told the disciples that between His death and resurrection and the day of Pentecost they were to tarry in Jerusalem and to do nothing—they were not to witness. Why? They could not witness effectually without the Holy Spirit. Therefore, if anyone is to be saved, not only is Christ’s redemptive death essential, but also that the Spirit of God work in hearts and lives. I am encouraged by letters from listeners to our Bible–teaching radio broadcasts because they demonstrate that the Word of God taken by the Spirit of God can apply the blood of Christ to hearts and lives. Christ died for our sins, but the Spirit of God must make that real to us. Only the Spirit of God can make the death of Christ real to you, and only the Spirit of God can make the resurrection of Christ real to you.” J. Vernon McGee, vol. 56, Thru the Bible Commentary: The Epistles (1 John), electronic ed. (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1991), 150-51.

“John goes on to use a phrase which is a favourite of his in his gospel. He speaks of the person who ‘believes in the Son of God’. There is a wide difference between believing someone and believing in that person. If we believe someone, we do no more than accept whatever statement that person may be making at the moment as true. If we believe in someone, we accept the whole person and all that that individual stands for in complete trust. We would be prepared not only to trust the spoken word, but also to trust ourselves to that person. To believe in Jesus Christ is not simply to accept what he says as true; it is to commit ourselves into his hands, for time and for eternity.” William Barclay, The Letters of John and Jude, 3rd ed., The New Daily Study Bible (Louisville, KY; London: Westminster John Knox Press, 2002), 126-27.

1 John 5:13-15 13 I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life.

14 And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. 15 And if

we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him.


Here we have a great promise of Scripture – that we can know that we have eternal life. How?

By believing in Jesus Christ (see vv. 9-12)

“Our assurance of salvation rests on the testimony of God, His promise (v. 12). It does not rest on the presence

of spiritual fruit (cf. John 15:12). It rests on God’s Word, not on man’s works.” - Tom Constable

God hears our requests when we ask according to His will

God also answers our requests when we ask according to His will (see also James 4:3)

“ ‘If we ask any thing according to his will’—our prayer must be according to the will of God. If you and I are in fellowship with Him, walking with Him, then our prayer would be for God’s will in every circumstance. George Muller put it like this: ‘Prayer is not overcoming God’s reluctance. It is laying hold of His willingness.’ It is not trying to get God to do something which He is reluctant to do, but prayer is to be our thinking His thoughts after Him. This is the thing which gives us confidence when we turn to God in prayer. ‘He heareth us.’ You can be sure that He not only hears our prayer, but He also answers our prayer. God will hear the prayers of His children, but He will not always answer them by giving us what we ask. John is saying here that we can have the confidence that He will answer our request according to the way we


pray—when we pray in His will.” J. Vernon McGee, vol. 56, Thru the Bible Commentary: The Epistles (1 John), electronic ed. (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1991), 157-58.

1 John 5:16-17 16 If anyone sees his brother committing a sin not leading to death, he shall ask, and God will give him life—to those

who commit sins that do not lead to death. There is sin that leads to death; I do not say that one should pray for that.

17 All wrongdoing is sin, but there is sin that does not lead to death.


Is John implying here that a believer can lose his or her salvation?

No!

John is referring to physical death – not spiritual

Remember Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5:1-11)?

“John explained that prayer should extend to the needs of others. He did this to clarify further what loving one’s

brethren involves. The general subject of this verse is prayer for a sinning Christian. We can clarify the sense of

this verse and the next by inserting the word “premature” before each instance of the word “death.” Some sins

bring God’s swift judgment and result in the physical premature death of the sinner (e.g., Acts 5:1–11; 1 Cor. 5:5;

11:30). Others do not. The fact that it is very difficult, if not impossible, for us today to distinguish these types of

sins should not lead us to conclude that a distinction does not exist (cf. Heb. 6:4–6; 10:26–29).” – Tom Constable

1 John 5:18-21 18 We know that everyone who has been born of God does not keep on sinning, but he who was born of God protects

him, and the evil one does not touch him.

19 We know that we are from God, and the whole world lies in the power of the evil one.

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. He is the true God and eternal life. 21 Little children, keep

yourselves from idols.


“Christians are set free from the power of sin. We must be careful to see what this means. It does not mean that

Christians never sin; but it does mean that they are not the helpless slaves of sin. As A. Plummer put it, ‘A child

of God may sin, but his normal condition is resistance to evil.’ The difference lies in this. The Gentile world had a

deep sense of moral defeat. It knew its own evil and felt there was no possible escape… But Christians are men

and women who can never lose the battle. Because they are human, they will sin; but they can never experience

the absolute moral defeat felt by non-Christians.” – William Barclay

Who did John think Jesus was?


Anything that we love as much or more than God is an idol and we are to keep ourselves from that distraction

Life Lessons 1. Obey God’s commandments – not because we have to, but because we love Him

2. Believe in Jesus Christ

3. When you pray, ask for God’s will to be done and not your own

4. Pray for brothers and sisters who are caught in sin

5. Don’t harden your hearts toward the conviction of the Holy Spirit

6. Realize that because of the Holy Spirit living within us, we have the power to overcome sinful tendencies

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