MY PERSPECTIVE, Gary Damron
Last week was an overview of the life of John, one of Jesus' twelve disciples, who wrote the Gospel of John, Revelation, and possibly three letters. Today we'll focus on 1 John, a letter (epistle) written near the end of the author's life. Both it and the Book of John share similar themes - life, love, light, witness, truth, belief, and knowing. Their vocabulary and style are consistent and leave little doubt of their shared authorship.
However, there are notable differences in the Gospel of John and 1 John. The key word in the Gospel is "believe", since it was written to persuade readers that Jesus is the Son of God, and to bring them to salvation: "These have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name” (John 20:31). John's Gospel emphasizes Jesus' divinity.
In the epistle, the key word is "know", since its readers were believers who needed assurance of their salvation: "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" (1 John 5:13). The emphasis in 1 John is on Jesus' humanity. Both aspects are essential, to show Jesus as the Son of God, yet one of us in our humanity, the perfect sacrifice who continues to stand before God, bringing together humans and our Creator.
The letter has a prologue (1 John 1:1-4), followed by five points that express wishes and instructions for believers who would read the letter through the centuries. Each section has similarities to verses found in the Book of John. John declared, as all early witnesses had, that he had seen, touched, and heard the Word of Life who was Jesus (verse 1, similar to John 1:1).
I. John desired that we have fellowship in Christ (1:3). That Jesus' life was manifested or revealed (verse 2), reminds of John 1:14 and John 17:3: "The Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory...". "'This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.'" Christian fellowship requires walking in the light (1:5-2:27), which reveals sins, but also drives out darkness. Fellowship comes when we walk in the light as He is in the light (verse 7).
II. Another desire is that we may not sin (2:1). 1 John goes on to say, "if anyone sins, we have an Advocate [Jesus] with the Father." The same word translated Advocate is the Greek Paracletos, a Helper identified in the Gospel as the Holy Spirit (John 14:26; 15:26; 16:7) who guides and enables us to walk in His likeness. Knowing Jesus, having a relationship with Him, we're able to keep His commandments (verse 3) and walk as He walked (verse 6). The rest of 1 John chapter 2 demonstrates that walking in the light means loving our brother (verses 9-14), walking away from the world (verses 15-17), and abiding in His light until Jesus returns (verses 18-27).
III. Those born of Christ are called to live in righteousness (2:28 to 3:24). "See how great a love the Father has bestowed on us, that we would be called children of God." This calling is marked by love given to children by the Father - it enables us to be pure "just as He is pure" (3:3) so that we can love one another in fellowship. A parallel is found in John 13:34-35. The epistle states that God's children do not practice sin or lawlessness (1 John 3:4-10); gives examples of their love (3:11-18); and provides evidence that instills confidence in our standing with God (3:19-24). 1 John 3:24 is a parallel to what Paul wrote in Romans 8:16, "The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God."
IV. We are to trust only those who teach that "Jesus Christ has come in the flesh" (4:1-16). The incarnation of Jesus is the basis of our faith. Christian assurance and fellowship are based on God's love. Verse 11 states plainly, "Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another." The abiding presence of the Holy Spirit (verses 13-16) is our witness to God abiding within. According to verses 17 and 18, love is being perfected in us, and perfect love casts out fear and brings boldness.
V. Assurance is found in a family born of and related to God (5:1-12). God assures eternal life through the birth, death, and resurrected life of His Son, sealed by the gift of the Holy Spirit. "He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life" (verse 12).
John's letter concludes with the benefits of Christian fellowship (1 John 5:13-21). His purpose is reaffirmed in verse 13, "that you might know" that in the Son of God "you have eternal life" (see third paragraph above). An added pledge, "if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us" (verse 14). We're promised protection from the "evil one" (verses 18-19) and that with Jesus, we will have the ability to discern who is true and good. His final verse is, "Little children, guard yourselves from idols [pursuits other than the Father]" (1 John 5:21).
