1 John

Despite not naming himself, there is ample evidence of John's authorship of this letter. His eyewitness knowledge of the events he recorded, his intimate acquaintance with the thoughts and feelings of the Twelve, and the authority with which he spoke to the church refute any arguments to the contrary. Likely written in 90-95 AD, John was writing in response to the emerging threat of Gnosticism, which taught that "matter is inherently evil, and spirit is good." This threat denied the incarnation of Christ in two basic forms. "Docetists" taught that Jesus' body was not a real physical body but only appeared to be so. See John's rebuttal in v1. Others taught that while Jesus' body was real, Christ's spirit descended on the man Jesus at His baptism but left Him before the crucifixion. Both heresies undermine the biblical teaching of Jesus' true humanity and His atonement for our sins. Gnosticism taught that the body was merely a prison in which the spirit was incarcerated; therefore, sin committed in the body had no effect on the spirit. See John's direct rebuttal to this heresy in vv8,10. Look for the following truths in John's writings here that you will find consistent with what he also wrote in his Gospel - Jesus is one with God as well as with us; Love and righteousness are indispensable for the believer who seeks, as a child of God, to walk in the Light; and Unity is a demand laid upon all the churches.

Elsewhere in the New Testament, the word "propitiation" is seen in the Greek word "hilasterion," meaning - covering (Rom.3:25, Heb.9:5). This is the same word used from the Hebrew (kapporoth) in the LXX for the lid of the ark of the covenant, the covering of the "mercy seat" in Exodus 25.17. Propitiation does not procure God's love for us nor pardon the sinner, but it renders it consistent for God to do so as we respond - if we respond. 1 John 2:2 uses a different word for propitiation (hilasmos). Here, Christ is the "propitiation for our sins" because by His becoming our substitute and assuming our obligations, He covered our guilt by the vicarious punishment He endured on the cross. "for those of the world" (v2) is not a distinction between saved and unsaved, or those of the Kingdom of God versus those of this world, but rather between Jews and all other peoples of the world. The Hebrew people have long known that they are God's chosen people. But Christ's Salvation was never delivered to be exclusive to the Jews. We, too, are part of the eternal inheritance.
Often, people of the church will seek reassurance of their Salvation. Obedience is the singular reassurance by which we can find manifest evidence of our relationship with Christ. He is our King and, as such, has all authority to command. Our response to that authority is the acknowledgment of our knowing Him. "And by this we know that we have come to know Him, if we keep His commandments." 1 Jn 2:3 "If you know that He is righteous, you know that everyone also who does righteousness has been born of Him." 1 Jn 2:29

In chapter one, John laid a foundation for a group within the church that was claiming an improper separation between the spirit and the flesh. "If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us." 1 Jn 1:8. In chapter three, we find John steering us in what seems to be a critically opposite direction. "No one who abides in Him sins; no one who sins has seen Him or has come to know Him." 1 Jn 3:6. "Everyone who has been born of God does not sin, because His seed abides in him; he cannot sin, because he has been born of God." 1 Jn 3:9. Yes, you should wrestle with these verses. No, John is not suggesting a group of "super Christians" living a life of higher character than is possible for the rest of us. We can easily accept that God's intention is for the believer to be free from sin. This is not incompatible with vv.6,9. We also can agree that sin "IS" incompatible with being a child of God. If anyone is following after sin, we know that person is not following after Christ - God and sin are incompatible. Therefore, if anyone continues in sin, he is not abiding in Christ, he is not living a life of righteousness, and he has not come to know God. John, by the Spirit of God, is compelling us to live purposefully opposed to the continual threat of sin. We must live free from sin on the condition of abiding in Christ, keeping His commandments. Recall vv2:3,29 noting the same affirmation of our salvation in Christ that John delivers in vv23-24.

We can read a fuller description of the "final Antichrist" that is coming in 2 Thessalonians 2:3-4, 8-9, but the "spirit of the antichrist" is already in the world (v3); and "even now, many antichrists have come" (1 Jn 2.18). Knowing this and having Paul's convicting testimony that many will prefer to believe what people say as long as it makes them (us) comfortable with who they (we) already are, RIGHT NOW is the time to be sure of the source of your "truth." "For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths." 2 Timothy 4:3–4. Satan began immediately after creation with a 3-fold plan to deceive the world: 1) Doubt (Gen 3:1), 2) Denial (Gen 3:4), and 3) Distortion (Gen 3:5). He is still using this original plan today. Because Satan knows we are more apt to blindly trust those who appear to come from God, who do you presume he and his demons will disguise themselves as? "And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light." (2 Cor. 11:14). Abiding in God's Word enables us to accomplish what John is admonishing in the opening verses of chapter 4 - "but test the spirits to see whether they are from God" (v1). To counter Satan's plan, Christians must guard the truth by "knowing it." Firmly holding to the truth of God's Word as a conviction, we will be able to recognize the difference between the Spirit of truth and the spirit of error. Failing to do so results in not only being confused and unable to discern for yourself but also an inability to accurately convey the truth to others.

How do we know that we love God? We love His children (v1). How do we know that we love His children? By loving God and observing His commandments (v2). How do we add God's commandments to all the other rules we have to follow in life? His commandments are not burdensome (v3). Who overcomes the world? The one born of God (v4). Who is the one born of God? He who believes that Jesus is the Son of God (v1,5). What is the victory that has overcome the world? Our faith (v4). John writes all of these things and the assurance of the life we have in Jesus Christ, the Son of God (vv11-12), to make sure we know that we have eternal life (v13). The topic of sin leading to death (v16) leads to questions about whether this is referring to a believer or a non-believer. If this is referring to a non-repentant person, it is consistent with the nature of God's law in Numbers 15:30. “But the person who acts defiantly, whether native or resident alien, blasphemes the LORD. That person is to be cut off from his people." The writer of Hebrews also provides clarity for this in Heb 6:4-6 "For it is impossible to renew to repentance those who were once enlightened, who tasted the heavenly gift, who shared in the Holy Spirit, who tasted God’s good word and the powers of the coming age, and who have fallen away. This is because, to their own harm, they are recrucifying the Son of God and holding him up to contempt."; and in Heb 10:26, "For if we deliberately go on sinning after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins." If v16 is referring to a believer, then we see this as a Christian's sin that is so serious that God takes the life of the one committing it, such as with Ananias and Saphira when they lied to the Holy Spirit in front of the church (Acts 5:1-11). Both interpretations find biblical support and are appropriate. The final verse of this book echoes a critical theme of the Old Testament and the crucial significance of worshiping the true God exclusively (v21).