1 John 1:1-3 SECTION ONE (1 John 1:1-4) PROOF OF THE THE WORD(1 John 1:1-3) The Epistle opens with an exordium, or introduction (1 John 1:1-4), in which the author sets out the personal experiences which had been his, thus enabling him to offer eyewitness testimony regarding the facts presented and to announce the purpose for which they were offered. This introduction consists of a lengthy and involved sentence, but it may be analyzed as follows: (a) beginning of the sentence in 1 John 1:1; (b) its temporary suspension and the insertion of 1 John 1:2 as a parenthetical statement to explain 1 John 1:1; (c) resumption of the original thought in 1 John 1:3 with enough of 1 John 1:1 repeated to enable the reader to resume the thought. Omitting the parenthetical statement of 1 John 1:2, we may gather up the thought set out in 1 John 1:1; 1 John 1:3 as follows: "That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen, which we beheld, and which our hands handled con-cerning the Word of life, we declare unto you also, that ye also may have fellowship with us." The striking resemblance between this exordium of the First Epistle of John and the "Gospel" which he wrote is immediately apparent, and will appear clearly in the following parallel:The GospelThe Epistle "In the beginning (en arche) was the Word." (John 1:1.)"That which was from the beginning" (ap' arches). (1 John 1:1 .) "And the Word was with God" ÷(pros ton Theon). (John 1:1.)"The Life. .which was with the Father" (pros ton Patera), (1 John 1:2.) 1 John 1:4 PURPOSE OF WRITING(1 John 1:4) 4 And these things we write, that our joy may be made full.--"These things" were the matters immediately referred to in the early verses of the chapter and, in a secondary sense, in all of the Epistle. The plural pronoun "we" is a common literary device and does not, of course, mean that others were joined with John in the authorship of this Epistle. (Cf. 2 Corinthians 1:1; Colossians 1:1; Philippians 1:1; Philem. 1:1; 1 Thessalonians 1:1.) The purpose for which "these things" were penned was that the joy of John might abound. Through the announcement of the testimony regarding Christ (verse 1) fellowship would obtain (verse 3), and the effect of this fellowship was joy. The same writer later said, "I re-joiced greatly, when brethren came and bare witness unto thy truth, even as thou walkest in the truth. Greater joy have I none than this, to hear of my children walking in the truth." (3 John 1:3-4.) In the foregoing verses is another of the many parallels which occur between this Epistle and the Gospel by the same writerThe EpistleThe Gospel "That ye also may have fellowship with us." (1:3.)"That they may all be one." (17:20.) "Our fellowship is with the Fa-ther and his Son, Jesus Christ." (1:3.)"That they also may be one in us." (17:21.) "These things we write, that our joy may be made full." (1:4.) "And these things I speak in the world, that they may have my joy made full in them-selves." Commentary on 1 John 1:4 by E.M. Zerr 1 John 1:4. That your joy may be full. The last word is where the emphasis of thought should be placed. Small or partial joy may be possible from many different sources, but the joy that can come from a faith in the only divine Son of God is full both in the sense of being complete in its extent, and perfect in its quality. It will leave nothing that can reasonably be desired further by a firm believer.Commentary on 1 John 1:4 by N.T. Caton1 John 1:4— And these things write we. I, it is true, write you, but in so doing you may feel assured that it is the same as though all the witnesses of the Lord were writing, and the object of writing to you concerning the things of the Lord and our fellowship with him is that your joy may be full and complete when you fully recognize the great honor that is thus bestowed upon you.Commentary on 1 John 1:4 by Burton Coffman1 John 1:4 --and these things we write, that our joy may be made full.We write ... It has been debated whether this applies primarily to the whole apostolic message just referred to in the prologue or to the epistle about to follow. Scott is likely correct in referring both to the apostolic proclamation "Declare we (1 John 1:3) and write we (1 John 1:4) refer to the same message."[20] Since the epistle itself is part of the apostolic message, this appears to be logical. A NOTE "ETERNAL LIFE" Before leaving this study of the prologue, a little further attention to the subject of eternal life is appropriate. It is well known that both in the gospel and the epistles John often speaks of eternal life as the present possession of Christians. J. W. Roberts has given a thorough discussion of this in his commentary. He cited many passages that indicate that, "In some sense, John sees the Christian as enjoying eternal life here and now,"[21] a proposition that is obvious to any reader or student of John. He concluded that, "The eternal life which the believer has (present tense) is to be interpreted not as quantitative (everlasting) but as qualitative."[22] Those qualities of the Christian's present "eternal life" are evident in the declarations that he "has passed from death into life," that he is a "partaker of the divine nature" (2 Peter 1:4), and that he arises from baptism to walk "in newness of life." No disagreement whatever is felt with regard to Roberts' analysis; but it seems appropriate to guard against any misunderstanding of it. The Christian's possession of eternal life now and here must be understood in the sense of his enjoying the blessed promise of it. The earnest of it (Ephesians 1:13) which he now sheds forth in his heart many qualities of the ultimate eternal life that shall crown the efforts of the faithful in heaven; and, in that possession of the earnest, the Christian certainly enjoys qualitatively the eternal life yet to come; but it should always be remembered that in no sense should the earnest (which of the whole is only a very small part) ever be equated with the entirety of that eternal life, which according to the blessed promise of the Christ himself is the ultimate reward of the faithful in Christ. Nor can it be thought even of those qualities of eternal life enjoyed in the present time, that they are in any sense to be equated completely with the ultimate "eternal life." The very term earnest forbids this. Not all the joys of eternal life are ours now; nor can it be thought, even of those fruits of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22 f) which we already possess, that they have the same fullness, quality, and intensity of the eternal life to come. Thus, in Roberts' statement about having eternal life qualitatively, it would be wrong to understand it as totally so. It is more accurate to view the present possession of eternal life as prospective. It is ours in the sense of our possession of the blessed promise and the confident expectation of receiving the fulfillment of it at "the last day." There is abundant testimony in the New Testament to the effect that not all of those qualities of eternal life ultimately expected are in the possession of the saints now. Even the apostle John's joy was not yet full when he wrote this epistle, as indicated by the last verse of the prologue (1 John 1:4) above. Paul's statement that it would be "better" to depart and be with Christ; John's declaration that "it is not yet made manifest what we shall be" (1 John 3:2); the absolute inability of any Christian ever to rise completely above all sin; the fact that it has never even entered into the heart of man (1 Corinthians 2:9) the things that God prepared for them that love him; the constant attendance upon human footsteps of sorrow, pain, and tribulations; - all such considerations deny the quality of that eternal life in Christians now as having any complete correspondence to the eternal life given on the last day to them who shall be invited to "enter thou into the joy of thy Lord" (Matthew 25:23). "Entering in" cannot be equated in any complete sense with "You have already entered." [20] Ibid. [21] J. W. Roberts, op. cit., p. 26,27. [22] Ibid. 1 John 1:5-7 1 John 1:5-7 SECTION TWO GOD IS LIGHT(1 John 1:5 to 1 John 2:28) OF WITH GOD(1 John 1:5-7) 5 And this is the message which we have heard from him and announce unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.--Again the apostle cites the sensible evidence which he had of the Lord's identity, emphasized so strongly in verse 1, as the ground. of his readers' acceptance of the "mes-sage" which he was announcing, viz., (1) God is light; (2) in him is no darkness at all. This message John and the other apostles had "heard" from "him," i.e., Christ. The affirmation, "God is light," is not the same as "God is the light" or "God is a light," but simply God is light, such is his essence he is of the character of light. The word "light" sums up the divine character on the intellectual side, as "God is love," similarly describes the fullness of his moral nature. He is the "author" of light (James 1:17) its creator (Genesis 1:3) he is bathed in perpetual light (1 Timothy 6:16); and the marvelous light in which Christians are to walk is his (1 Peter 2:9). Moreover, "in him is no darkness at all." "Darkness" is a figure of ignorance, superstition, and sin, as "light" represents truth, purity, and goodness. In this manner, God is contrasted with the heathen deities the worship of which promoted immorality, ungodliness, and gross sin. The devil and his agents are styled "the world rulers of this darkness" (Ephesians 6:12), and their domain is called "the power of darkness" (Colossians 1:13). Those formerly enmeshed in the mazes of heathenism were said to have been "once darkness," but now, as the result of their obedience to the gospel, "light in the Lord." (Ephesians 5:8.) Paul gave thanks unto the Father, "who made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light." (Colossians 1:12.) Though there is much darkness in the world, "darkness in him there is none whatsoever." This statement, in the Greek text, is an exceedingly emphatic one, the two negatives, ouk estin oude-mia, signifying "no, not even one tiny particle!" There is no discoloration, no admixture of darkness in the pure light which streams from the character of God. He is, indeed, "the Father of lights, with whom can be no variation, neither shadow that is cast by turning." (James 1:17.) 6 If we say that we have fellowship with him and walk in the darkness, we lie, and do not the truth:--This verse con-tains a conclusion drawn from premises in the verse preceding. The situation which he assumes is a hypothetical one: Should one say, "I have fellowship with God," and yet walks in darkness, his words are false, and he does not the truth. "Walk" is a figure of the Christian life, summing up its activities. The Lord said, "I am the light of the world; he that followeth me shall not walk in the darkness, but shall have the light of life." (John 8:12.) To be in fellowship with God, one must walk in the light; he who claims it, yet does not walk therein, sins both in word and in deed. Here, as often elsewhere in the sacred writings, it is made clear that theory and practice in religion are inseparably connected. Truth, properly held, always exhibits itself in obedience. Those who "walk in darkness" are not only sinful in conduct; their dis-position is one of hatred and envy. "He that saith he is in the light, and hateth his brother, is in the darkness even until now. He that loveth his brother abideth in the light, and there is no occasion of stumbling in him. But he that hateth his brother is in the darkness, and walketh in the darkness, and knoweth not whither he goeth, because the darkness bath blinded his eyes." (1 John 2:9-11.) 7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another,--The verb "walk" here (ean peripatomen) is present active subjunctive, thus literally, "If we keep on walking in the light . . ." It must be a continuing walk. Moreover, we are to walk in the light in which the Father is. We are in the light only when fellowship with him obtains; and in this light must we remain. It is conditional whether we are in it, but such is his constant habitation. His dwelling is in "light unapproachable." (1 Timothy 6:16.) If the element of our daily walk is the same as God's, "we have fellowship one with another." "Fellowship" (koinonia) is partnership, joint participation, com-munion. Thus only through fellowship with God is fellowship with the brethren possible. Fellowship with the brethren involves mutual assistance in all the difficulties of life; it includes the bear-ing of one another's burdens (Galatians 6:2), the sharing of all the sorrows and joys which constitute life. "And whether one mem-ber suffereth, all the members suffer with it; or one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it. Now ye are the body of Christ, and severally members thereof." (1 Corinthians 12:26-27.) And the blood of Jesus his Son cleanseth us from all sin. --This clause is coordinate with "we have fellowship one with an-other," and is a statement of the means by which it is possible for us to walk in the light. Thus, by walking in the light two results follow: (1) we have fellowship with each other; (2) the blood of Jesus cleanses us from all sin. Cleansing efficacy is thus attributed to the blood of Christ. Many important considerations follow from this passage: (a) It is not the mere example of Christ's dying that accomplishes our salvation; (b) it is not simply the contemplation of his death which delivers us from the guilt of sin; (c) it is not belief in the moral implications of Calvary which pro-duces the blessing; nor (d) faith in the suffering of Christ on the cross. It is the blood, the shed blood of the Son of God, that cleanses us from sin. Moreover, it cleanses from sin, not merely or solely the conscience, but sin (amartias), all sin, whether of thought, word, or deed, rash sins, sins of ignorance, of malice, of omission or commission, sins of the flesh, sins of the disposition, sins of pleasure or of pain, sins of every type and kind committed at any time or place. "Cleanseth" is from the verb katharizei, in the present tense, thus revealing that it is a constant process, conditioned on our walking in the light. As we thus walk the blood operates to keep us constantly cleansed from the defilement of sin and the condem-nation which attends it. This verse is an exceedingly significant and comprehensive one, in the light of the false doctrines which were in vogue when the Epistle appeared and which it was written to refute. Established beyond reasonable controversy are the following important propositions: (1) the reality of the body and blood of Jesus; (2) the sufferings which he experienced on the tree of the cross; (3) the efficacy of the blood which he shed. Commentary on 1 John 1:5-7 by E.M. Zerr1 John 1:5. The message which we (the apostles and others through them) have heard of him (the Son of God). The subject of the message is light, brought into the world by Christ which he received from his Father. God not only has light (spiritual truth) but He has nothing else; no darkness at all. Good men and angels have some light but it is limited, while with God it is light unmodified. 1 John 1:6. The Lord is all light and truth which is the opposite of darkness. For this reason no man can possibly be a partaker (have fellowship) with Him whose life is one of darkness which is a figurative name for that which is not the truth. Hence it is a logical conclusion that if a man claims to be on both sides of this proposition at the same time he is lying. 1 John 1:7. Walk in the light. No man lives who does not make some mistakes and commit sin incidentally. But this phrase means a man whose general life is one of godliness and whose motive principle is the light of the New Testament. This man can truly be said to be walking with the Lord because he is in the pathway that Jesus laid out for him. Being in the fellowship with God the source of all light, is like being constantly in the stream of the blood of His son. That blood is constantly flowing (figuratively) through the body or church of the Lord Jesus Christ. In the natural body of a man whose blood stream is healthy, if germs slip into the person that blood, being always present, will be like a disinfectant that will destroy the germ. Likewise the blood of Christ is ever present to cleanse away the mistakes and incidental sins that a true Christian does. Hence if a man is a worker in the Lord's vineyard and his life as a whole is one of obedience to the law of Christ, he does not need to worry about the mistakes he might make which he does not realize, for the blood of Christ will take care of it and wash them away. They will be cleansed by the "fountain opened to the house of David . . . for sin and for uncleanness" (Zechariah 13:1). "There is a fountain filled with blood, drawn from Im-manuel's veins; And sinners plunged beneath that flood, lose all their guilty stains." Commentary on 1 John 1:5-7 by N.T. Caton1 John 1:5— This then is the message. The message we heard of the Lord, and the one we declared unto you, I now repeat in another form, and this I do because I have spoken to you of our fellowship with the Father and with the Son. 1 John 1:5 --God is light. God is the source and the dispenser of light— all light, both physical and moral. God being the head of our fel­lowship and the source of all light, he is, therefore, the dispenser of all moral light. He is light absolutely. In him is no darkness at all, no evil, no mistake. Moral light is pos­sessed by him in infinite perfection. Bro. B. W. Johnson's notes here are especially clear. He says: "The term denotes luminous, clearness, the free and benevolent source from whence flow light, intelligence, purity and blessing, abso­lutely free from alien intermixture, since in him is no darkness at all. Light represents truth, knowledge, holiness; darkness represents ignorance, error, falsehood and sin." 1 John 1:6— If we say that we have fellowship with him. Should we claim to have fellowship with God, who is absolute light— light in infinite perfection— while we are walking in darkness— that is not doing right, not doing what we know God requires at our hands, acting wickedly; in so claiming we lie. This must be plain, and it is in accord­ance with the doctrine of the gospel, that if God is light and we walk not in the light, the fellowship is broken, we are not in accord, and we must be in accord with the will of God to have fellowship with him. 1 John 1:7 --But if we walk in the light. If we claim fellowship with God while we walk in the light, we lie not. If we practice holiness in our lives because we are assured that God is holy, we thus keep before us the desire of the head of our fellowship, that all should be holy, as he is holy; then and in that case we do have fellow­ship with God and with one another; and also in that case the blood of Jesus Christ, which was shed for the remission of sins, shed as an atonement for sins, cleanses us from all sins. That is walking in the light all our days. At the last we need fear no punishment for sin; from this punishment we are delivered. We are fitted to have a fellowship or communion with our God in the heavenly world. Commentary on 1 John 1:5-7 by Burton Coffman1 John 1:5 --And this is the message which we have heard from him and announce unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.It is not merely an abstract teaching with regard to the nature of God that John presented here (though some of that is in it). His general theme regarded the fellowship mentioned in the prologue; but as Roberts said, "John's thoughts are not arranged logically and symmetrically."[23] The most practical organization of the next few verses lies in the arrangement of his thoughts around such words as "if we say," which are undeniably addressed to the prevailing errors he was exposing. God is light ... Orr supposed that a similar grand pronouncement found in 1 John 3:11, introduced by words almost identical with the introductory clause here, might indicate that we have in the words "God is light" an actual saying of Jesus Christ repeated by him at various times.[24] He based this upon the fact that the statement in 1 John 3:11, that we should "love one another" was indeed an actual saying of Jesus recorded in the Gospels. It has the same authority either way. "To the Christians alone, God is revealed as light, absolutely free from everything material, impure, obscure or gloomy."[25] Light is a symbol of all that is lovely, beautiful, holy, good, desirable, righteous and lovable. To the pagans, God was hatred, vengeance and fear; to the ignorant, God was a God of darkness, an unknown Being to be propitiated, not a Person to be loved; to the philosopher, God was an abstraction, an idea, having no connection at all with man; to the Jew, God was a God that hideth himself and a consuming fire. However, John had a practical reason behind this statement about God. "The apostle intended that his words should emphasize the difference between the light which God is and purely intellectual enlightenment, so-called,"[26] which was claimed by the philosophical pretenders who were disturbing the church, and which even today has by no means disappeared from the earth. In high is no darkness at all ... Darkness, contrasting with light, is a symbol of all that is wicked, ignorant, gloomy, shameful, depraved and perverted. Paul described the deeds of the wicked as the "works of darkness." And there are several kinds of darkness. Plummer cited "physical, intellectual, moral and spiritual darkness."[27] Note too that John did not say that there is no darkness in God's presence, but that there is no darkness "in him." Now this verse has its application to the problem of fellowship because the false teachers were walking in a moral darkness of the worst intensity, while at the same time claiming to be "in God." The impossibility of their pretensions having any merit was proved by this very first sentence of the message proper. It is preposterous for one to claim fellowship with God while walking in darkness. The message which we have heard from him ... Commentators have difficulty deciding on who is the antecedent of "him," since both the Father and the Son Jesus Christ were mentioned together in 1 John 1:3. To one with John's exalted view of Christ, this was no problem. He most likely referred to the personal instruction which he and the other apostles had received from Christ himself. [23] Ibid., p. 28. [24] R. W. Orr, op. cit., p. 609. [25] A. Plummer, The Pulpit Commentary, Vol. 22,1John (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1950), p. 4. [26] James William Russell, op. cit., p. 597. [27] A. Plummer, op. cit., p. 4. 1 John 1:6 --If we say that we have fellowship with him and walk in the darkness, we lie, and do not the truth:In this verse, the apostle made the application of his remarks in the verse preceding. Smith identified the false teachers refuted by this as "the Nicolaitans who held to the heresy of antinomianism."[28] John did not honor their heresy nor the names of any of its advocates with any identification whatever. Plummer thought that the heresy in view was that of the "Carpocratian Gnostics, who taught that to the enlightened all actions are indifferent, because neither impurity nor filth Can change the nature of pure gold."[29]And do not the truth ... This is changed in the RSV to "do not live according to the truth," but Morris assured us that the ASV is the correct rendition.[30] This very statement is found in John 3:21 and in the Qumran scrolls. "Truth can be a quality of action as well as of speech."[31]The false claim in this verse is that of affirming that we walk with God even while we are walking in darkness. "Walk" in this passage, as frequently in the New Testament, is an idiom for the totality of human conduct. [28] David Smith, op. cit., p. 171. [29] A. Plummer, op. cit., p. 4. [30] Leon Morris, op. cit., p. 1261. [31] Ibid. 1 John 1:7 --but if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanseth us from all sinIf we walk in the light ... When the light from God, as revealed in Christ Jesus and the preaching of the apostles, is entered and walked in by the Christians, "Walking in the light shows up their sins and frailties, revealing the need for constant cleansing."[32]Roberts pointed out that John's teaching here "implies that only the sinless can have fellowship with a sinless God," adding that this involves a contradiction between our own "admitted sinfulness and the affirmation that we do have fellowship with God (1 John 1:3)."[33] Roberts resolved the "contradiction" in the considerations of: (1) Christ's propitiation for our sins; (2) the cleansing action in view in this verse; and (3) the intercession on our behalf of Jesus Christ our advocate. Here indeed is the achievement of that absolute perfection required of all who hope to enter heaven, as announced by Jesus Christ in the sermon on the mount (Matthew 5:48). The whole doctrine of Perfection requires a great deal more attention to it than is evident in current Christian literature. For a further study of it, see in my Commentary on Galatians, pp. 130-133. For those who walk in the light, the continual, ceaseless and effective cleansing through the blood of Christ is the means of their continuing in a state of absolute perfection. This cleansing, however, is not necessarily automatic. "It is based upon confession, penitence, renewal (1 John 1:9), and keeping his commandments (1 John 2:3)."[34] Even beyond this, however, the cleansing effect of Jesus' blood is operative unconditionally in instances of the believer's unawareness of sins that lie hidden from himself. Fellowship one with another ... Although not stated in this sentence, this fellowship is also with God the Father and his Son Jesus Christ (1 John 3). This fellowship stands for membership in the corporate spiritual body of Jesus Christ. Thus the cleansing here mentioned is not that from "old sins" prior to conversion, but from the accrual of sins daily by the Christian. The blood of Jesus his Son ... All forgiveness for mortals, in the last analysis, derives from this source. John's mention of it so early in the epistle shows the high priority of this fundamental truth. Cleanseth us from all sin ... "The singular sin sometimes denotes the principle of sin, but this cannot be the meaning here. All sin means `every act of sin.'"[35]This great verse is the source of incredible joy, assurance and consolation to the child of God. He never needs to fear that some impulsive, unintentional, or atypical conduct might overtake him with the result of eternal condemnation. His walking "in the light" can be established by the long term directional thrust of his whole life upon earth and cannot be contradicted and negated by any temporary or insignificant lapse. [32] Charles C. Ryrie, Wycliffe Bible Commentary, New Testament (Chicago: Moody Press, 1971), p. 1007. [33] J. W. Roberts, op. cit., p. 31. [34] Ibid., p. 32. [35] Leon Morris, op. cit., p. 1262. 1 John 1:8-10SIN AND ITS (1 John 1:8-10) 8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.--Inasmuch as there is no article before the word "sin" in this passage, it is contemplated in essence, ab-stractly considered. These words were penned to refute the pre-vailing notion of the heretics--and some to this day advocate the same view--that it is possible for one to live above sin. Those who so affirm (a) deceive themselves, and (b) exhibit the fact that the truth is not in them. Because of the weakness of the flesh and the ever-present problem of temptation, even the best of peo-ple inadvertently sin, and hence have need of the cleansing power inherent in the blood of Jesus. Aware of such, John was shortly to write: "My little children, these things write I unto you that ye may not sin. And if any man sin, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous." (1 John 2:1.) Those who deny that they have sin, add to the sin they already have, and sin in so affirming! The ever-present problem of sin is adduced by the apostle as the reason why children of God must have the cleansing power of the blood applied. This clearly refutes the notion that men have lived, or may live in this life, without sin. The truth is not in those who so allege. It may be around them or near them, but it is not in them; it does not constitute a part of their character. These to whom John wrote had been forgiven of their past or alien sins; thus reference here is not to any previous state of guilt prior to conversion, but to present sin, sin at the time he wrote, sins of omission and commission, sins of the flesh and of the disposition, all sin, any sin of which we may be guilty. The recognition and confession of sin is a prerequisite to our approval before God. To refuse such recognition and confession is simply to deceive ourselves and to demonstrate the fact that the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. --The phrase, "If we say . . .," a mere formal admission of guilt (1 John 1:8), becomes here "If we confess . . .," a much more vivid concept. One may indeed "say" (eipon) that he has sin without experiencing any deep or abiding sense of guilt or wrong and without being moved to repentance. The confession (homologe) here contemplated is a humble acknowledgment of wrong, a peni-tent attitude essential to forgiveness. The word homologeo, from which the word "confess" is translated, means to say the same thing, to speak together, and figuratively implies a dialogue be-tween God and the sinner, in which the Father describes the con-dition of the sinner, and the sinner finally accedes to the correct-ness of the description and thus confesses that God is right! The word "sin" of 1 John 1:8, an abstract concept of wrong, be-comes "sins," individual and specific acts of wrong-doing in verse 9. It follows, therefore, that the sins we are to confess are the specific and particular manifestations of the sin which all sincere believers of the Word know in their hearts they possess. The verb "confess" is translated from a present active subjunctive, thus literally, "If we keep on confessing our sins . . .," indicative of a continuous process. There are two definite and specific types of confession required of the erring in the New Testament (1) confession before the Father, as here (2) acknowledgement of sins before others, as in James 5:16. It is scarcely necessary to add that an additional confession before a priest on the pretext that such a one can absolve sins is wholly unknown to the New Testament, is contrary to the teaching of the scriptures, and inimical to the genius and character of the Christian religion. With Jesus as our Priest, Mediator, and Advocate, we need no other assistance in approaching the Throne of Grace. (Heb. 7:25; 10 19, 20; 1 John 2:1; 1 Timothy 2:5.) If we keep on confessing our sins, God "is faithful and righteeous to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." "Faithfulness" and "righteousness" are attributes of the great Jehovah; and when we confess our sins before him, we enter into and partake of the blessings which result from them. He has promised to forgive us on condition that we confess our sins; and since he is faithful, he will not fail in the performance of his promises. David joined these attributes in Psalms 143:1 "Hear my prayer, O Jehovah; give ear to my supplications; in thy faithfulness answer me, and in thy righteousness." It is God's nature to be faithful and righteous, and it is his purpose to cleanse when the conditions--confession and penitence--are met. "Unrighteousness," the opposite of "righteousness," is synony-mous with the word sin, of 1 John 1:8. Wrong-doing is set forth under various aspects in the scriptures. A collection of terms in-dicative of its different qualities occurs in Exodus 34:7. 10 If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.--Compare 1 John 1:8. Here, again, there is an advance in thought, as in 1 John 1:8-9. The "if we say we have no sin" (abstractly considered) becomes here, "If we say that we have not sinned . . ." (have not been guilty of specific and concrete acts of sin). Verse 10 designates specific acts of sin; in verse 8 sin is regarded as a state or condition. Those who insist that they have not sinned make God a "liar" and demon-strate the fact that God's word is not in them. Much emphasis is given here to the fact and reality of sin in the lives of us all. Those who deny this lie (1 John 1:6) deceive themselves (1 John 1:8) make God a liar (1 John 1:10). Taught here, in the most emphatic fashion possible, is the constant and recurring need of pardon on the part of all children of God. Not only is such essential to the alien sinner in order that he may be adopted into the fellowship of God; he must continue to seek it and avail himself of its benefits throughout life. As sin is evermore about us, and, alas, all too often in us, we must continually seek new pardons through the means hereinbefore set forth. This section of the Epistle, far from teaching that the Lord forgave us of all sins, "past, present, and future," as the advocates of the doctrine of the impossibility of apostasy allege, establishes the fact of an ever-present need of the cleansing power of the blood of Jesus Christ our Lord. Happily we have the assurance that "the blood of Jesus his Son keeps on cleansing us from all sin" (1 John 1:7) as we conform to the conditions on which such depends. Those who deny the fact of sin in their lives make God a liar by contradicting his express statements of man's sinfulness before him, and they demonstrate the fact that the truth is not in them by exhibiting ignorance of the truth in their allegation.Commentary on 1 John 1:8-10 by E.M. Zerr1 John 1:8. This verse does not contradict the preceding one or the comments made on it. To say we have no sin would be like saying we do not have any need for the blood of Christ. Hence even a faithful disciple should admit his weaknesses and understand his dependence upon the blood of Christ for his cleansing. 1 John 1:9. Confess our sins. This does not say that we are to confess that we have sins for that would be so general that it would be virtually no confession at all; the sins themselves is what we are to confess. Sometimes persons will come forward in a meeting saying they wish to make a confession, and when given the opportunity will say, "I have not been living as I should." That does not confess any sin as our verse requires. It may be replied that David made that sort of confession to the prophet because all lie said was, "I have sinned." That is true but it was after his sin had been pointed out so that his statement was an acknowledgment of the specific sin. It was like the action of a jury that says, "We find the defendant guilty as charged" without naming any particular misdeed. If a disciple does not know of anything wrong he has done then he has none to confess. Should he have some faults of which he is not aware, verse 7 of this chapter will take care of them. If he has committed sins which only he and the Lord know about, then he needs only to make his confession to Him. Faithful and just. The first word means He will keep his promise to forgive the sins of the penitent, and it is just for Him to do so since the sacrifice of Christ makes it possible for God to be merciful and just at the same time (Romans 3:26). 1 John 1:10. Have not sinned differs from have no sin in verse 8 because it goes back over the past of our lives. When the two are considered together they mean that there never has been a time since we were old enough to be responsible. that we were "as free from sin as the angels" as it is sometimes expressed; hence man has needed a Saviour all the years of his life. Make him. a liar. If a person makes an assertion that contradicts what another has said, it is equivalent to calling him a liar even though no direct reference is made to him. God has said in his word that all men are sinners (Ecclesiastes 7:20), therefore if a man says he has not sinned he contradicts the Lord and that is why John says such a man will make him a liar. His word is not in us because that word declares that all men have sinned. Commentary on 1 John 1:8-10 by N.T. Caton1 John 1:8— If we say that we have no sin. We can not, however, claim that we have reached a sinless state in this life. Should we so claim we deceive our­selves and possess no knowledge whatever of the truth on that subject, as taught by Christ and his disciples. The Nicolaitans in the days of John, the writer of this Epistle, made this claim. They claimed that they could do no wrong, and hence indulged in all sorts of excesses, and yet they were promptly repudiated by the Master. (Revelation 2:6.) All along the ages and in our own day there are those who, in one way or another, and to one extent or another, make the claim that they have attained to a state in which they sin not. Now the language of the apostle is in direct opposition to this claim. 1 John 1:9— If we confess our sins. Since it is that while we are in this life we are liable to sin, be it known to you brethren, that God is faithful and just to forgive our sins if we confess to him. Admitting our sins and our firm determination to forsake them, God will pardon. We obtain this pardon through the blood of Christ, coming to God in penitence. Note carefully, the con­fession of sins must be made by the sinning one directly to God. Since the pardon comes from him, the confession must be made to him, exhibiting at the time of such confession the other requisites indicative of true penitence. True penitence is followed, as a matter of course, by a reforma­tion in the matter wherein the sin occurred. 1 John 1:10— If we say that we have not sinned. We attempt to make God a liar when we say we have not sinned. This will appear evident to every mind when we reflect that on this subject God has spoken. He has said: "For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23). "They are all gone aside; they are alto­gether become filthy; there is none that doeth good, no, not one" (Psalms 14:3). Or, as this Psalm is quoted by the apostle Paul: "As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one There is none that understandeth; there is none that seeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way; they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one" (Romans 3:10-12). Thus, God has spoken by his servants, and should we in the face of these declarations declare our sinlessness, we make God a liar and his word is not in us. We must observe that the verses 8, 9 and 10 are addressed to and intended for Christians, and the impression is intended by the Apostle John, to be left indelibly upon their minds, their constant dependence upon God; their great necessity for God's pardoning mercy day by day. The alien is elsewhere taught how to obtain the pardon of his sins, and become, by adoption, a member of God's family and an heir of eternal life. But the apostle, in the ninth verse of this chapter, points out the law of pardon to the erring Christian. These distinctions kept in mind, all is plain. Commentary on 1 John 1:8-10 by Burton Coffman1 John 1:8 --If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.If we say that we have no sin ... This is the second false claim John refuted, the first being that of 1 John 1:6. Here the error is that of claiming inherent sinlessness, perfection, the absence of any need of cleansing through the blood of Christ. Such a claim is capable of deceiving the claimant, but not anyone else! Despite the effrontery of such a proposition, entire religions are founded upon just such claims. "There is no sin" - this is the proposition that underlies a great deal of current thinking. See under 1 John 1:9. Scott and others have supposed that John might also have had in mind "the Gnostic subtlety that sin was a matter of the flesh and did not touch or defile the spirit."[36]If we say ... is an expression of remarkable interest, because the apostle here identified himself with the false teachers, not through any agreement with them, but out of a delicate regard for his readers. This identification of an apostle with those addressed is prevalent in the New Testament. Hebrews 2:3 is a remarkable example of the same thing; and yet that instance of it has been perverted to mean that no first generation Christian could have written that epistle! Some have pointed out that the need for John's teaching here resulted from the most audacious immorality advocated, indulged, and rationalized by heretics such as Valentinus. Irenaeus has a description of such views, which although later associated with the heretic whose name was given to the error, nevertheless existed early in the first century. They hold that they shall be entirely and undoubtedly saved, not by means of conduct, but because they are spiritual by nature. It is impossible that spiritual substance (and by this they mean themselves) should ever come under the power of corruption, whatever the sort of actions they indulged. For as gold submersed in filth, loses not on that account its beauty, but retains its own native qualities, filth having no power to injure gold, so they affirm that they cannot in any measure suffer hurt, or lose their spiritual substance, whatever the material actions in which they may be involved.[37]This ancient heresy exists today in a much more sophisticated form in what is heralded as salvation "by faith alone," which has exactly the same meaning as salvation "not by means of conduct." Man's presumptuous blindness in denying the existence of sin, either as a principle, or as existent within himself, is self-deception at its worst. The Lord's Prayer which enjoined the petitions for daily bread and forgiveness, both assumed and implied the need of daily prayers for forgiveness. "Woe to that soul that presumes to think that he can approach God in any other way than as a sinner asking mercy."[38][36] John R. W. Stott, op. cit., p. 77. [37] Iraeneus, The Ante-Nicene Fathers, On Heresies I, 6,2 (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, n.d.), p. 324. [38] David Smith, op. cit., p. 172. 1 John 1:9--If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.If we confess our sins ... To whom shall sins be confessed? Certainly, the usual concept of a confessional in a church, where confession is a one-way street, is not what is meant here. Macknight paraphrased this: "If we confess our sins to God with a firm resolution to forsake them, etc." In any confession to other Christians, a mutual confession of sins "to one another" would be the requirement. Even the confession of sins by Christians to each other is a practice that can be very unrewarding and hurtful. Currently, there are outcroppings of a practice among fervidly religious groups of holding confessionals in which the most sensual and reprehensible conduct is unreservedly reported openly and publicly within such groups. In such a context, that is bragging about sins, not confessing them; and it cannot be possible that John had any such thing in mind. There are no New Testament examples of a religious service being built around any such orgy of self-revelation. Confessions of sins "one to another" among Christians means an admission of guilt where it exists as a barrier to their fellowship, a mutual sharing of blame, and a restoration of the broken harmony. It is difficult for man's ego to admit blame and guilt, society as a whole being hardly capable of any such admission. More and more, the trend is to deny sin exists. Drunkards have merely contracted an unfortunate disease, alcoholism! Adulterers and philanderers are schizophrenic! Thieves, murderers, outlaws, etc. are not criminals at all, but anti-social, a state induced by society itself. Sinful behavior is not that at all, but the natural response to one's heredity, environment, deprivation or other things beyond the sinner's control. The apostolic word for all such thinking is "self-deception." Our sins ... It is not the principle of sin merely that is to be acknowledged but the plurality of sins. This has been misunderstood as meaning "all of our sins publicly"; but no such meaning is in it. Rather the need for acknowledging and confessing sin again, and again, as multiple occasions arise requiring it, is the true meaning. The right course is not repetitious confessions of all the sins one can remember, but the admission of sin on the successive occasions when the believer stumbles. If this is done, the aggregate is "confessing our sins," no less than the indulgence of such things as the group confessionals mentioned above. (God) is faithful and just to forgive us our sins ... It is a false view that construes this as meaning that God would not be just and righteous if he did not forgive us wicked sinners! God does not prove his righteousness by forgiving sinners, who in any just frame of reference must be accounted as worthy of eternal death. No, that is not what John meant. Roberts has the truth thus: "He is faithful in that he will not go back on the promise he made in Christ Jesus."[39] Scott also has a wonderful word on this: "He is faithful to forgive us because he has promised to do so, and just because his Son died for our sins."[40] In the forgiveness of Christians of their sins and his continual cleansing them from such sins, God displays loyalty to the sacred covenant he himself established. Furthermore, the theoretical grounds, the rational basis, upon which it is just for God to forgive sins is established in the Person and sacrifice of the Son of God. God may justly forgive us, because Christ paid the penalty that was due. The justice of God in allowing our participation in the benefits of that sacrifice is vindicated and proved by the manner of incorporating those to be forgiven into the spiritual body of Christ, and then justifying them, not in their own sinful identities, but as Christ and in Christ. [39] J. W. Roberts, op. cit., p. 35. [40] John R. W. Stott, op. cit., p. 77. 1 John 1:10 --If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.If we say ... These repeated expressions (1 John 1:6; 1 John 1:8; 1 John 1:10) indicate the principal stream of the apostle's thought in this section. He is still dealing with evil heresies that had encroached upon the Christian fellowship. If we say that we have not sinned ... This is the most blatant and offensive of all the false theories. "To go to the length of denying past sin and present guilt, is not only to becloud ourselves with sophistry but to give the lie to God himself."[41] God gave his only begotten Son upon the cross that man might be saved from sin, a salvation that was impossible for any man apart from God's redeeming act. If man had not been sinful and utterly helpless to achieve salvation for himself, all of the heavenly outpouring of God's merciful visitation in the person of his Son was unnecessary; the crucifixion was a useless murder; and every promise of the gospel is essentially a lie. John's language here is certainly not too strong. People who deny their need of redemption from sin, through the pretense of not ever having sinned, are of all people most guilty and contemptible. "To say that we have not sinned is not just to tell a deliberate lie, or to be self-deceived, but actually to accuse God of lying, to make him a liar."[42]His word is not in us ... Characteristic of John's writings is his use of such words as "word" and "truth" to stand for the whole body of gospel teaching. Moreover, "the truth" or "the word" in John's view was not some indefinite and nebulous goal pursued by the Christians seeking to know it; it was something which they already knew, already had, already walked in, already obeyed. The reference, of course, is to the basic gospel of the New Testament which is perfect, complete, final, and sufficient. It is not to be added to nor taken from. Such is the Johannine conception of the message which he and other apostles delivered to people that they might be saved. [41] Amos N. Wilder, op. cit., p. 225. [42] John R. W. Stott, op. cit., p. 79. 1 John 2:1-2 JESUS OUR (1 John 2:1-2) 1 My little children, these things write I unto you that ye may not sin.--The words of this section are to be construed and considered along with the matters set forth in chapter 1. It should be remembered that when John wrote, the chapter and verse divisions now characteristic of the text were not there. This section was designated to show, (1) the means by which one is enabled to walk in the light; (2) the conditions upon which for-giveness is available, viz., (a) a confession of sins and (b) the forsaking of them. The chapter begins with a term of endearment: "My little children . . ." The apostle John, when he wrote these words, was an old man, and the mode of address is such as might be expected from an aged one to those near and dear and much younger. There are two Greek words translated by the phrase "little chil-dren" in the Epistle. The first of these, teknia, plural diminutive of teknon. occurs here and at 1 John 2:12; 1 John 2:28; 1 John 3:18; 1 John 4:4; 1 John 5:21, and only elsewhere, in the New Testament, in John 13:33, where the Lord used it, and which use likely occasioned John's adoption of it here. It is a word which, when figuratively used, designates the spiritual relation of children to a father in the faith. (See 1 Corinthians 4:15, where the idea, but not the word, occurs.) The second word translated by the phrase "little children" is paidia, occurring in `1 Joh 2:13; John 2:18. This word denotes the age and characteristics of childhood, and, as here used, conveys the kind and tender address of age to youth, of authority to subordinates, of wisdom to ignorance. "These things" embrace the matters which were written in the closing portion of chapter 1, the purpose of which was to lead the saints to forsake all sin. "That ye may not sin" is a negative pur-pose clause in the aorist tense, and the apostle thus warned against even isolated acts of sin. Fellowship with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ, and with all saints depends on walking in the light, and only those walk in the light who, as far as they are able, abstain from sinful conduct. Thus, those to whom John wrote stood in relation to him as his "little children" in the Lord. He has written to them for the purpose of warning against any participation in sinful acts. But what if some, in spite of such counsel, inadvertently fell into sin? Their case was not hopeless. And if any man sin, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:--Though the followers of the Lord are ever to strive to avoid any participation in sinful activity, when such occurs, they are not to despair; they have an "Advocate," Jesus Christ the righteous. The verb "have" here is, significantly, in the present tense (echomen), thus literally, "We keep on having" an ever-present remedy for the isolated acts of sin which, through weakness, ignorance, and inadvertence, we commit. An "Advocate" is a lawyer or an attorney, whose function it is to represent one in court. Jesus thus represents us in the court of heaven, pleading our cause and advocating our case before the bar of God's divine justice. As our Advocate, he is "with" (pros) the Father, thus at his side, and ever present to afford us adequate and constant representation. There is no article be-fore the word "righteousness" in the Greek text. The meaning is, Jesus, a righteous one, pleads the cause of unrighteous ones. Only the pleading of such an Advocate could possibly avail. An advocate himself in need of intercession could not hope to influence the great Judge in behalf of others. 2 And he is the propitiation for our sins; and not for ours only, but also for the whole world.--To "propitiate" is to appease and render favorable, to conciliate. The word "propitia-tion," in the text, occurs only here and in 1 John 40:10, in the New Testament, though other forms of it are in Luke 18:13 ; Romans 3:25; and Hebrews 2:17. Here is announced but one of the many aspects of the death of Christ in our behalf. (1) He propitiates (Hilasmos) the Father, thus rendering him favorable toward us. (2) He reconciles (katallasso) us to God, enabling us to be at peace with him. (Romans 5:11; 2 Corinthians 5:18-19.) (3) As a ransom (apolutrosis) for us, he paid the debt, permitting us to go free from the thralldom and bondage of sin. The blessings of this propitiation extend to the whole world and have been made available to all mankind. Here is positive and undeniable evidence of the falsity of any system of theology which would limit the benefits of the atonement, or deny its blessings to any portion of the human family. Martin Luther well said, "It is a patent fact that thou too art a part of the whole world; so that thine heart cannot deceive itself and think, the Lord died for Peter and Paul, but not for me." No man is outside the mercy of God, except as he deliberately places himself there through the repudiation of the plan which was evolved to save him. This entire section, 1:5-2:2, is a closely-knit and well-ordered argument, designed to reveal the blessings available to us through Christ. (1) There is no darkness in God, for he is light. (1 John 1:5.) (2) If we affirm that we have fellowship with him, yet walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth. (1 John 1:6.) (3) If we walk in the light, (a) we enjoy such fellowship, and (b) the blood of Jesus Christ constantly cleanses us from any sin which, through weak-ness of the flesh, or the infirmities of our nature we commit. (1 John 1:7.) (4) The truth is in us if we acknowledge our sins. (1 John 1:8-9.) (5) Shall we then disregard all warnings against sin on the ground that the blood of Christ operates to cleanse us? God forbid. (1 John 2:1-2.) The purpose of the entire section is to warn against this very thing. Avoid sin when possible. But if into it you fall, do not despair. Rely on your Advocate who effectively pleads your case in heaven! It is significant that John did not say, "Ye have an Advocate. ." nor "Ye have me for an Advocate," but "We have an Advocate. .," thus including himself among those in need of the interces-sion before the throne of grace which Jesus alone can supply. Walking in the light requires: (1) fellowship with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ; (2) acceptance of the propitiation pro-vided through the shed blood of the Lord; (3) obedience to the Lord's commandments. This third condition, of walking in the light, John develops in the section to follow.Commentary on 1 John 2:1-2 by E.M. Zerr1 John 2:1. My little children is a fatherly address to the disciples since John was an old man when lie wrote this epistle. Furthermore, notwith standing his strong language when treating of definite sins, he is known in history to have been a man of tender sentiments, so much so that he won a like feeling from Jesus, for it is said that he was the disciple "whom Jesus loved" John 13:23 John 19:26 John 20:2 John 21:7 John 21:20 John 21:24). Thus we have a number of endearing terms in the writings of this apostle. That ye sin not; if any man sin. These phrases do not conflict with each other although they may seem to. The disciples of Christ are expected to oppose sin and be constantly "striving against sin" (Hebrews 12:4), and to help them in their struggles the apostles have written instructions on the right ways of life. But in spite of all this they are going to make mistakes. (See the comments on verses 6-8 in the preceding chapter.) Hence the second phrase if any man sin is inserted to explain why the provisirn has been made for an advocate. That is from , which Thayer defines as follows: "One who pleads another's cause with one, an intercessor." 1 John 2:2. Propitiation means something that appeases or satisfies one who is (justly) making strong demands. God is violated by the sins of mankind and His justice demands the eternal condemnation of the offenders. Man was unable to furnish what was rightly required to pay the debt, but Jesus was able and willing to do so. That is what he did when He shed his blood as was shown in chapter 1:7. Not for ours only but also, etc. The pronoun stands for disciples who have already made use of the cleansing blood by obedience to the Gospel. But the blood is sufficient to cleanse the whole world if all will accept it on the same terms as the present disciples. (See the familiar passage in John 3:16.)Commentary on 1 John 2:1-2 by N.T. CatonANALYSIS. In the former chapter, having set forth the fact that God is light, and that those only who walk in the light have fellowship with the Father, and the great honor of such fellowship and the blessed privilege of being cleansed from sin, in this chapter he writes to them that these blessings are not to be taken as an encouragement to sin, but the contrary was intended, to present an inducement to them not to sin; but if any among them should be overcome by the allurements around them, not to despair, but to remember that they have an advocate with the Father— a powerful advocate, one who is essentially the righteous one. This righteous one made a sin-offering for you Christians, and not for them only, but for all the world who would be penitent and forsake their sins. A criterion is given whereby you may know whether you are God's children or not; that is, by keeping his commandments. He that says I know God, and yet does not keep, his commandments, simply tells a falsehood when he so speaks, and in such an one there is no veracity, while one who observes all of God's requirements truly loves God. By this rule you can judge. One that abides in the fellowship of God walks as God directs. In a sense, I write no new commandment, for God from the very beginning desired men to love one another, and yet in a sense I do write a new commandment. It is new in the rule by which to measure the love you entertain for your fellow-men. Formerly it was an eye for an eye. Now, it is to love even your enemies. This being so, you can not hate your brother. You must have love for him if you walk in the light and have fellowship with God. This Christian life is a new life. If you love not your brother, you are not in the light, but in darkness. I write 'you because your sins are forgiven you for the sake of Christ's name. I write to fathers because they have known Christ from the beginning, and to the young men because they have over­come the world in obeying the truth. Now, to all of you I say, Love not the world, for in so doing you show that the love of the Father is not in you. The things of the world, that is the lusts of the flesh and eyes, and the pride of life, are not of God. All these will pass away, while God's will abides forever. The false teachers you heard were to come are already come. Those went out from us because they were not of us. He is an anti-Christ or false ,teacher, who denies that Jesus is Christ. You believe in Jesus as the Christ, and the promise of eternal life is assured to you. I write to you that you may not be led astray by these false teachers. Now, abide in Christ, so that when he comes again you will not be ashamed before him. This will be doing righteousness, and those only so doing will be like him, for he is righteous.1 John 2:1— My little children, these things write I. The tender and affectionate manner observed by the writer is most striking. John regards them as his children,, and so far as authority is concerned, or it may be his advanced age, the persons addressed could and should look upon him as their father in the common faith. The author­ity, in either view he seeks to assert, is parental. To them he writes and the object of writing is given— that they sin not. It is as though he would say: While all are liable to sin you should strive to overcome all temptation to sin; and what I have written concerning God's faithfulness to for­give those that sin, I do not desire you should take as an encouragement to do wrong. Upon the contrary, God's mercy ought to be a strong reason why, in order to please him, you should strive not to commit sin. Since, however, you are liable to fall, let such one not despair; let him not throw away his hope of eternal life and continue to sin habitually and willfully; but if he sin, let him come to God, penitently confessing and seeking pardon, remembering all the time he has an advocate with the Father, even Jesus Christ the righteous, the just one. Christ is our advocate, and he is just. He committed no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth. He it is who intercedes with the Father for our pardon, as it was foretold by the Prophet Isaiah, in the following words: "And made intercession for the transgres­sors" (Isaiah 53:12). Paul also assures us of Christ's intercession for the pardon of the erring disciple, in these words: "Wherefore he is able to save them to the uttermost that come to God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them" (Hebrews 7:25). 1 John 2:2— And he is the propitiation for our sins.Christ is all this. It may appear great and exceedingly momentous, yet it is a fact in the economy of God and his system by which intelligent creatures are to be reconciled to him and saved. 1 John 2:2 --Propitiation.So much has been written upon the subject of the propitiation in Christ, and so much senseless speculation is afloat in the world, I am not at all surprised that the simple meaning of the term has been overlooked. On the ark of the covenant, placed by Moses in the Most Holy Place by the command of God, was a covering called the mercy seat (See Exodus 25:10-21, and Exodus 37:1-9, and Exodus 40:1-3). This was ordained by God's command and for the purpose, that there at the mercy seat God would meet man: "And there I will meet with thee, and I will commune with thee from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubims which are upon the ark of the testimony, of all things which I will give thee in command­ments unto the children of Israel" (Exodus 25:22). This was called the propitiatory. The high priest approached this mercy seat once each year with blood. God here met and communed with him for the people. Now, Christ is our mercy seat; he is our propitiatory; he is our altar and our high priest; his blood has been offered for us— for our sins. He is, therefore, our propitiation. Here it is that God meets the sinner, and nowhere else. In Christ, and not out of Christ, may pardon be expected. 1 John 2:2 --For the sins of the whole world. The blood of Christ, shed in his death, became a pro pitiation, not for our sins only who profess to be his chil­dren, but Christ is a mercy-seat, to be approached by every suffering son and daughter of Adam. The method of approach is made simple and easy. His blood must be applied, and can only be applied, when reached as he has commanded. Nowhere in the Scriptures can a declaration be found that Christ shed his blood for the elect only. The "whole world" means here just, what the language imports. All throughout the world, from the first even to the end of time may avail themselves of this gracious provision by accepting God's blessed Son, complying with his require­ments, living obedient lives, and receiving at the last the same blessed reward. Commentary on 1 John 2:1-2 by Burton Coffman1 John 2:1 --My little children, these things write I unto you that ye may not sin. And if any man sin, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:In this verse, John seems definitely to have had in mind the possible perversion of the teachings he had just written. "If we can never in this life be done with sin, why strive after holiness?" and "If escape is so easy, why dread falling into sin?"[1] The promise of forgiveness of sins (1 John 1:9) and the mention of its universality (1 John 1:8; 1 John 1:10) might indeed, on the surface, be thought to encourage a light view of sin. As Orr said, "Some might say, `I may as well commit sin; everyone else does; God will forgive me; what else is he for?'"[2] John contradicted all such false views. Furthermore, the force of this passage may not be diminished by the interpretation that "sin" in this passage means "a life of sin." "Both verbs are aorists; acts of sin, rather than a sinful course of life, are in view."[3]My little children ... Commentators are sharply divided on the meaning of this expression in this chapter. While it is generally admitted that John here used "little children" as a designation of the whole congregation, the repeated use of the word, especially the use of two different words for children, namely, [@paidia] and [@teknia] seems to suggest a different meaning later in the chapter. [@Paidia] is the word used in 1 John 2:13,1 John 2:18.[4] The other word is used in 1 John 2:12; 1 John 2:28; 1 John 3:7; 1 John 3:18; 1 John 4:4, and 1 John 5:21. See more on this under 1 John 2:13,1 John 2:18. By John's use of "little children" as a reference to the whole church, some have concluded that John was an old man when he wrote this. That ye sin not ... Despite the fact that John had just admitted that no one was able to be sinless, he nevertheless stated without equivocation that, "The hallmark of the Christian life is the absence of sin."[5]Advocate with the Father ... The word here rendered "Advocate" is exactly the same word translated "Comforter" in John 14:16; John 14:26; John 15:26 and John 16:7. Of course, in those passages, the Comforter refers to the Holy Spirit whom Jesus promised to send to be "with the Christians," especially the apostles; but here the Comforter is the Christ who is "with the Father." Dodd and other critics have tried to make a big issue out of this so-called difference; but there is no difference at all. In both cases, the Comforter is for the advantage and encouragement of the Christians, Christ with the Father, the Holy Spirit with the Christians. Furthermore, did not Christ himself make this perfectly plain when he said, "He shall give you another Comforter" (John 14:16)? Even in that passage, it is clear that Christ himself is the other one. [1] David Smith, The Expositor's Greek New Testament, Vol. V. (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1967), p. 172. [2] R. W. Orr, A New Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan Publishing House, 1969), p. 610. [3] Ibid. [4] John R. W. Stott, Tyndale New Testament Commentaries, Vol. 20 (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1964), p. 79. [5] Blaney, Harvey J. S., Beacon Bible Commentary, Vol. 10 (Kansas City: Beacon Hill Press, 1967), p. 359. 1 John 2:2 --and he is the propitiation for our sins; and not for ours only, but also for the whole world.The propitiation ... This rendition is to be preferred to "expiation" in subsequent versions. Although it is true that expiation is a synonym of propitiation, the latter meaning is a little different. Although this word appears frequently in the Septuagint (LXX), it is found only here and in 1 John 4:10 in the whole New Testament.[6] The objection to "propitiation" is purely "theological."[7] It is said to conjure up ideas of vengeful and vindictive pagan deities who had to be "appeased" by offerings and bribes, ideas which, of course, are foreign to any true ideas of God. Nevertheless, despite the scholars' support of their preference with "linguistic arguments,"[8] there is a sense in which the anger and wrath of Almighty God were indeed turned away by the sufferings of Christ. The Greek word to be translated by one of these words (propitiation, or expiation) is [@hilasmos], the primary meaning being "the removal of wrath."[9] It is this element of the meaning which some would like to get rid of. However, there is a divine wrath against every form of sin (Romans 1:18), and God's forgiveness is not merely the ignoring of this wrath. "Expiation" carries the meaning that Christ's blood indeed procured for people the forgiveness of sins, but it leaves out the connection with God's wrath. Full agreement here is felt with Stott, Morris, and others who preferred "propitiation." There are implications in the atonement wrought by the death of Christ that are completely beyond any total understanding by finite intelligence. "Propitiation" means the "removal of wrath," and "expiation" means the "removal of guilt"; but in view of the fact of God's wrath being a reality mentioned countless times in the New Testament, it would appear to be far better to retain the word that includes "removal of wrath" in its meaning. And not for ours only, but for the whole world ... The "sins of the whole world" is actually the meaning implied in the last clause,[10] Inherent in a statement like this is the fact that the same basis for forgiving one sin is also the basis for forgiving all sins. There was no limit whatever to the satisfaction that Christ provided as the basis for forgiving sins. Of course, it is not implied here that sins are forgiven unconditionally, either those of persons now saved, or of the whole world in general. We must therefore reject such a notion as this: "Multitudes may be saved through this redemption who never heard of Christ."[11] Universalism is an attractive thesis for many, but there is no hint of such a thing in the New Testament. [6] James Macknight, Macknight on the Epistles, 1John (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House, reprint, 1969), p. 40. [7] Stott, John R. W., op. cit., p. 85. [8] Ibid. [9] Leon Morris, The New Bible Commentary, Revised (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1970), p. 1263. [10] R. W. Orr, op. cit., p. 611. [11] W. M. Sinclair, Ellicott's Bible Commentary, Vol. VIII (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan Publishing House, 1959), p. 476. 1 John 2:3-6 TESTS OF THE (1 John 2:3-6)3 And hereby we know that we know him, if we keep his commandments.--"Hereby" (en toutoi), literally, "in this," a phrase often used by the apostle, and occurring at 1 John 2:5; 3:16, 19 4:2, 13; 5:2. It refers to the clause, "If we keep his command-ments." "Keep," here, is present subjunctive, thus, "If we keep on keeping his commandments." We are informed here that it is possible for us to "know that we know him." How, or in what way? If we keep his commandments! To know him is to have far more than an acquaintance with his nature it is to enter into the most intimate relationship with him as his child. It is possible to claim a knowledge of God and of Christ and to be deceived. Paul writes of those who "profess that they know God; but by their works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate." (Titus 1:16.) One does not know God who does not conform to his will. We may believe intel-lectually that there is a God; we may affirm the truth of his exist-ence, the facts of his attributes, the reality of his works in nature. But only those who have wholly committed their wills to his know him in his saving power. "And this is life eternal, but they should know thee the only true God, and him whom thou didst send, even Jesus Christ." (John 17:3.) If it be asked which commandments constitute the test here submitted, the answer is, All of them! Any commandment we are disposed to break because of our unwilling-ness to bend our wills to his provides the occasion which demon-strates lack of full knowledge of him. This is the "one thing" which we "lack" and which, like the young ruler's riches, will close the door of heaven in our face. 4 He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his com-mandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him; --A conclusion drawn from the foregoing premises, and a further affirmation of the truth above expressed. The Gnostics boasted of their superior knowledge and spiritual insight and maintained their ac-quaintance with the Lord despite the fact that they kept not his commandments. With reference to all such the apostle solemnly declares, "He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him." The verbs in the Greek text are in the present tense. He who keeps on say-ing, I know him, and yet keeps not on keeping his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. Far from actually and really knowing God, those who refuse to do his will are, in addition to being disobedient characters, liars and without truth. The words "He is a liar" are more emphatic than "we lie," of John 1:6, and "we deceive ourselves," of 1:8. His status is not simply that of one who is guilty of a single falsehood, or one who is innocently de-ceived; his acts of falsehood have become embedded in his character and he is, essentially, a liar. . Such a one is demonstrating the nature and character of his father, the devil, who is a liar from the beginning. (John 8:44.) It was evidently no uncommon thing for men, at the time John wrote, who had adopted the per-nicious doctrine of the Gnostics to affirm that they, though will-fully guilty of sinful acts, were not thereby corrupted. Some of these men maintained that they were no more polluted by sin than gold is by the mire into which it might fall. As shocking as the foregoing theology is, it has its modern counterparts: Those false teachers, while denying any contamina-tion from sin, did admit the fact of sin in their lives. There are those today who deny both the sin and the contamination. A prominent denominational preacher, in a tract entitled, "Do a Christian's Sins Damn His Soul?" wrote: "We take the position that a Christian's sins do not damn his soul. The way a Christian lives, what he says, his character, his conduct, or his attitude toward other people have nothing whatever to do with the salva-tion of his soul. . . . All the prayers a man may pray, all the Bibles he may read, all the churches he may belong to, all the services he may attend, all the sermons he may practice, all the debts he may pay, all the ordinances he may observe, all the laws he may keep, all the benevolent acts he may perform will not make his soul one whit safer; and all the sins he may commit from idolatry to murder will not make his soul in any more danger. . . . The way a man lives has nothing whatsoever to do with this salvation. Such theology, whether ancient or modern, is precisely in principle what John condemned when he affirmed that those who say they know him, yet do not keep his command-ments, are liars. 5. But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily hath the love of God been perfected.--"Keepeth his word," of verse 5, is synonymous with "keeping his commandments" of verse 4. Here, as in 1 John 1:7; 1 John 1:9, the opposite of that immediately preceding is stated, and the thought advanced one step further. The "love of God" here contemplated is not God's love for us, but our love for God, and the affirmation of the apostle is that he who keeps God's word has his love for God perfected. "Perfected" is perfect passive indicative of teleioo, to stand complete. Thus, he who keeps the commandments of God matures his love, for such is the way in which love for God manifests itself. "For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous." (1 John 5:3.) It is idle for one to claim love for God while neglecting or refusing to do his commandments. Such is the acid test of one's love. Hereby we know that we are in him:--i.e., by keeping his word. The words "in him" indicate a relationship of the most intimate nature. The phrase is a summary of all the blessings available from God. To know God we must keep his word; those who keep his word love him; but those who love him are in him. Fruit bearing produced as the result of love for God is evidence of our union with him. "Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; so neither can ye except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches: he that abideth in me, and I in him, the same beareth much fruit; for apart from me ye can do nothing." (John 15:4-5.) 6 He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also to walk even as he walked.--There is here, as in verse 4, a boast-ful attitude hinted at. He who represents himself as abiding in the Lord has the definite obligation to "walk even as he walked," i.e., in the light, in fellowship with God, in keeping his commandments. In this manner alone does one demonstrate the soundness of his claim and the validity of his profession. "Ought," from opheilo, to be in debt, denotes the moral obligation here to exhibit the basis of one's profession. To walk as Christ walked is to follow him as the perfect model and guide that he is. Nothing less than this will meet the demands of the case. The walk of the Lord which we are to imitate is, obviously, to be found in the reli-gious, moral, and spiritual activities of his life on earth. There is no reference here to the miraculous powers which Jesus exhibited on earth. As Martin Luther fittingly remarks, it "is not Christ's walking on the sea that we are to imitate, but his ordinary walk." The verb "walk" is figuratively used to denote the activity which must characterize us as children of God. Jesus used it in this sense (John 8:12; John 12:35), as did Paul (Ephesians 2:10; Colossians 3:7; Romans 6:4). But how did Christ walk? The answer is to be found in the whole of the things recorded concerning him in the sacred volume. These words sum up the life of Christ on earth.Commentary on 1 John 2:3-6 by E.M. Zerr1 John 2:3. Know is not used in view of some technical distinction between faith and knowledge. The thought is that if we keep his commandments (and we may know whether we have done so or not), then we may he sure or have the assurance that we have a saving knowledge of Him. 1 John 2:4. A knowledge of having kept the commandments is necessary to a knowledge of Him (see preceding verse). Therefore if a man asserts that lie knows the Lord when he has not kept the commandments (and he may know whether lie has or not), he is rightly classed with liars as the apostle here states. 1 John 2:5. The love of God perfected has virtually the same thought as Jesus expressed in John 14:21. To be perfected means to be made complete, and that will be accomplished when a man proves his love for God by keeping the commandments. On the same principle a man cannot truly claim to love the Lord who does not obey His word, even though he may sing "0 how I love Jesus" as vigorously as anyone. Know that we are in him. For comments on the word know see those at verse 3. 1 John 2:6. To abide in Christ is equivalent to walking with Him, for Christ is an active being and no person can continue with Him and not walk in the same way. "Can two walk together except they be agreed?" (Amos 3:3.)Commentary on 1 John 2:3-6 by N.T. Caton1 John 2:3— And hereby we do know. To gather the thought here intended, just take the last clause first, thus: "If we keep his commandments?' We by that means know— that is our evidence— that we know him. We know God, and the convincing evidence to our minds that we do know God is the fact that we observe, keep and do all that he has required at our hands. 1 John 2:4— He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not. Any one who asserts that he knows God, and does not keep his commandments, John says of such an one two things: 1. He is a liar. 2. The truth is not in him. These are fearful declarations. They come, however, from inspira tion. "He that heareth you, heareth me, and he that heareth me, heareth him that sent me." The plainness of speech here is specially significant. Evidently, God intended that his servant, John, should leave no ground for mistake or blunder. 1 John 2:5— But whoso keepeth his word. Any one who keeps God's word, is he that does what is therein required, and refrains from doing what is therein prohibited; in such an one the love of God is perfected. That is to say, we show our love to and of God by our obedience. It is the only possible method of proving our loyalty. It may be possible, since the singular number is here used, that it may have a special application. "Word" is singular. "While he yet spake, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them; and, behold, a voice out of the cloud, which said, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him." "Hear ye him" is a command of the Father, and I have no doubt that those who obey the Savior, are at the same time obeying God, and do thereby show their love of God. If one, however, obeys all God's com­mands imposed upon us in this age, it is very certain that such will obey the one given on the Mount of Transfigura­tion. 1 John 2:6— He that saith he abideth in him. One may say, I am in the fellowship of God and his Son. That being true, such an one ought to show by his godly life that he walks as the Savior walked while here on earth. The Savior's conduct was irreproachable. With it God was pleased. So one claiming to be in the fellowship— that is, abideth in him— must conduct himself as Christ did. His conduct is better proof than a simple profession. Commentary on 1 John 2:3-6 by Burton Coffman1 John 2:3 --And hereby we know that we know him, if we keep his commandments.Contrary to the criterion accepted by many for determination if they are or are not saved, this denies that a person's "feelings" in such a question can be trusted. "It is all too easy to fall into illusions about ourselves if we make too much of our religious feelings, even those of an elevated kind."[12] Keeping the commandments of God is the prerequisite and the test either of loving God (John 14:15) or of knowing God. Macknight supposed that John here was teaching against "the Nicolaitans and Gnostics who affirmed that the only thing necessary to eternal life was the knowledge of the true God."[13]Hereby we know ... Similar words are used several times in this letter to introduce "tests" by which the validity of one's faith might be tested (1 John 2:5; 1 John 2:29; 1 John 3:19; 1 John 3:24; 1 John 4:2; 1 John 4:6; 1 John 4:13, and 1 John 5:2). In the last analysis, it is keeping the commandments of the Lord, walking in the light, doing the truth, obeying the word, etc., which are the final determinator of whether one is saved or lost. Which commandments are meant? All of them. There is no way to limit these to the ethical or moral commandments; those relating to the worship of God are likewise included. To keep God's commandments is equivalent to keeping his word, "And this means the truth of God as it is in Christ."[14] The obligation extends to the entirety of the New Testament revelation. [12] Amos N. Wilder, The Interpreter's Bible, Vol. XII (New York: Abingdon Press, 1957), p. 226. [13] James Macknight, op. cit., p. 41. [14] Harvey J. S. Blaney, op. cit., p. 363. 1 John 2:4 --He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him;This is the negative of the same teaching given in 1 John 2:3. John's converse statement of the same principle here is blunt, powerful, and incapable of being misunderstood. It reminds one of Jesus' saying, "Not everyone that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father who is in heaven" (Matthew 7:21). All talk of knowing God, loving God, or even of "believing" or "having faith" is meaningless in the mouths of people who dishonor the commandments of the Lord through disobedience and failure to do the "work of faith." It is even more than meaningless; it is falsehood. 1 John 2:5 --but whoso keepeth his word, in him verily hath the love of God been perfected. Hereby we know that we are in him:Whoso keepeth his word ... This is identical in meaning with "if we keep his commandments" (1 John 2:3). The love of God has been perfected ... Here is another glimpse of that absolute perfection which is the goal of all Christian living, mentioned by Jesus in Matthew 5:48, and referred to by all the New Testament writers. Although unattainable by humans in their own strength, it will nevertheless be achieved in them and for them by means of their being "in Christ" and thereby partaking of the absolute perfection of the Saviour himself (Colossians 1:28). Significantly, the necessity of being "in him" is the concluding thought of this verse. Love of God ... This is objective, referring not to God's love of man, but to "man's love to God."[15]Hereby we know that we are in him ... Although the grammatical structure makes "God" the antecedent of "in him" in this place, still the meaning is "in Christ," no man ever having been "in God" by any other means than that of his having been baptized into the spiritual body of Christ. Being "in God" and "in Christ" are exactly one and the same thing. This thought comes to the foreground a number of times in this letter. Thus John placed the same importance and priority upon this conception that are given to it in the writings of the apostle Paul who used the expression "in Christ" or its equivalent some 169 times. The idea of the corporate body of Christ was not developed either by Paul or by John but is derived from the Lord himself who gave the foundation of it in such teaching as that of his being the vine, the apostles being the branches, and all Christians abiding "in him," that is, "in the true vine" (John 15). Since one enters "him" through primary obedience (baptism), it is the true continuity of that holy relationship that John here declared us to "know" if we keep his word. Before leaving this verse, we should note that love ([Greek: agape]) is one of the leading concepts, recurring again and again in John's work. In this letter alone, "it occurs 18 times, more than in any other New Testament book, 1Corinthians being 2nd with 14 times. In a book so short this is very significant."[16] As used in this place, the love to God is not a mere emotional response, "it is the response lived out in obedience. Love delights to do God's will."[17][15] J. R. Dummelow, Commentary on the Holy Bible (New York: The Macmillan Company, 1937), p. 1056. [16] Leon Morris, op. cit., p. 1263. [17] Ibid. 1 John 2:6 --he that saith he abideth in him ought himself also to walk even as he walked.Claiming to be "in Christ" carries the obligation of the claimant to exhibit the true likeness of Christ in his behavior. "Obedience, not feelings," is the true test of union; and the Christian who is really such has least to tell of experiences and special visitations."[18]In him ... These words in 1 John 2:3, at a glance, seem to refer to being "in God"; but as Morris noted: The reference to walking in this verse shows that "in him" means Jesus Christ. In any case John regularly associates the two in the closest possible fashion, and it is often difficult to be quite sure which is meant.[19][18] A. Plummer, The Pulpit Commentary, Vol. 22,1John (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1950), p. 21. [19] Leon Morris, op. cit., p. 1263. 1 John 2:7-11 NEW AND OLD(1 John 2:7-11) 7 Beloved, no new commandment write I unto you, but an old commandment which ye had from the beginning: the old commandment is the word which ye heard.--The apostle had just commanded his readers to walk as Christ walked. (Verse 6.) This walk was grounded in, and originated in, love. Hence, the commandment to love God was not a new one, i.e., a novel, unusual thing. These to whom John wrote had been aware of this obligation, yea, had in some measure followed it from the beginning of their Christian life. Far from being a new thing, this commandment was essential to their salvation from sin; they were already in possession of it; they had possessed it from the beginning. This commandment was the "word" which they had "heard." The "word" sums up the message they had received; "heard" indicates the manner of reception. They had "heard" it; it therefore came to them through preaching. They heard it, and it was at the beginning of their Christian experience . 8 Again, a new commandment write I unto you, which thing is true in him and in you; because the darkness is passing away, and the true light already shineth.---Through the commandment to love is as old as the race (1 John 3:1 ff, particularly verses 11, 12), from another aspect it is always new. To walk as the Lord walked and hence to comply with the requirements of the "old commandment" is as old as religion, but each new compliance therewith constitutes a new and fresh approach thereto. Love, as old as man, becomes new with each experience. It was the Lord himself who designated the command to love one another as a new one: "A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another; even as I have loved you, that ye also love one another." (John 13:34.) The newness was not merely or solely in the command to love; the law and the prophets required this. (Deuteronomy 10:19; Micah 6:8, etc.) It was the measure or extent of the love that made it new: "even as I have loved you." Never before the Christian age had such a love been required of man. It was henceforth to be a condition precedent to discipleship; indeed, the badge and token thereof: "A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another; even as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another." (John 13:34-35.) The darkness of ignorance, superstition, bitterness, and hate was passing; the "true light," which radiated from the Lord, was shining, thus dispelling the gloom and darkness of unbelief. The text does not affirm that the darkness had already passed. Then, as now, there was much error in the world. But, as the truth was preached, the light was extended, and the darkness receded as man came into the refulgence thereof. Jesus said, "And this is the judgment, that the light is come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the light; for their works were evil. For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, and cometh not to the light, lest his works should be reproved. But he that doeth the truth, cometh to the light, that his works may be made manifest, that they have been wrought of God." (John 3:19-21.) "Again, therefore Jesus spake unto them saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life." (John 8:12; cf. 1 John 1:4:10.) 9 He that saith he is in the light and hateth his brother, is in the darkness even until now.--Another hypothetical case, of which there are many in the Epistle (1:6, 8, 10; 2:9; 4:20), is stated, and the inconsistency between the profession and the fact pointed out. He who affects to be in the light, i.e., the light of truth about which the apostle had been writing, yet hates his brother is, notwithstanding his pretension, in darkness. The brother of this passage is a fellow believer. He who hates one of a common origin and with the same loving Father is, despite his claim to being in the light in darkness, "even until now," i.e., up to the present. Jesus commanded us to love one another (John 15:17); he made love the badge of discipleship (John 13:35); and without it, one remains in darkness--the element which characterizes all away from God. It is significant that the apostle leaves no middle ground either here or elsewhere in the contrasts which he draws between light and darkness, right and wrong, truth and error. With him, on the one side is God, and on the other, the world; here is life, there is death; here love, there hate; there is no common ground. Such is in harmony with the Lord's affirmation: "He that is not against you is for you" (Luke 9:50, and the converse, "He that is not with me is against me" (Luke 11:23). One is either for God, in which case the principle of .his life is love, the sphere in which he moves light, and the desire of his heart obedience; or, he is against him, in which event, though he may hide his hatred, and craftily conceal his worldliness and evil, the fountain from which his moral life emerges is not God, but the world--he is yet in death, he loves nothing but himself, and his proper element is darkness. The word hate (miseo) here does not indicate the degree, but merely the fact of such a disposition. When it exists in any degree, he who manifests it is yet in the darkness. Let him who holds malice in his heart against a brother in Christ recognize his position and see the folly of pretension which his conduct belies. He deceives no one by his allegation. 10 He that loveth his brother abideth in the light, and there is no occasion of stumbling in him.--The verb "abideth" means more than merely being in the light; to abide is to remain (Menei), and the tense (present indicative active) reveals a continuous action rather than a temporary state. He who loves his brother is evermore remaining in the light; the fact of the love guarantees continuation in the sphere. Moreover, the force of the tense indicates that he has not only entered upon this sphere he has settled down into it as if it were his home. It is, of course, unnecessary to add that love, with John, indeed with all of the New Testament writers, is much more than affection. Here, it is made to stand for all the graces which adorn the character of the Christian, all the duties owed to those who are our brethren in Christ. This comprehensive aspect of the term is observable throughout the apostle's writings. "My little children, let us not love in word, neither with the tongue, but in deed and in truth." (1 John 3:18.) "Hereby we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and do his commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous." (1 John 5:2-3.) The principle is the same as that alluded to by our Lord when he declared that to love God supremely and one's neighbor as one's self embraces (in principle) all that is in the law and in the prophets. (Matthew 22:34-40.) He did not by this mean that love for God or man is accepted in lieu of obedience; there is, indeed, no such thing as love apart from obedience. (1 John 5:3.) What is meant is that he who truly loves God and his neighbor will be prompted thereby to discharge his full duty to both. Not only does one who loves his brother abide in the light, in addition there is no occasion of stumbling in him. An occasion for whose stumbling? His own, or another's? The verb "stumble" (skandalon) is derived from a word which designates a snare or trap. In Matthew 18:7, it obviously refers to an occasion of stumbling in the way of others. Here, however, the context, and particularly the verse which follows, appears to indicate that John had in mind an occasion of stumbling in one's own self. The apostle thus emphasizes here that those who walk in the light and abide in the truth are protected from the snares and pitfalls into which they would otherwise fall: Certainly, one who loves his brother as himself will never find occasion to give expression to the evil passions of envy, malice, hate, and revenge: Those who walk in darkness stumble, because they are unable to see their way; those who walk in the light can recognize, and therefore avoid, the snares which beset their way. One who truly loves his brother will conduct himself in such fashion as to avoid any semblance of friction or difficulty, and will thus neither stumble nor fall in his relationship with him. "Owe no man anything, save to love one another:for he that loveth his neighbor hath fulfilled the law. For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, That shalt not covet, and if there be any other commandment, it is summed up in this word, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself: Love worketh no ill to his neighbor; love therefore is the fulfillment of the law:" (Rom:13:8-10). 11 But he that hateth his brother is in the darkness, and walketh in the darkness, and knoweth not whither he goeth, because the darkness hath blinded his eyes.--Three conditions are here affirmed of him who hates his brother: (1) he is "in the darkness"; (2) he "walketh in the darkness"; and (3) he "knoweth not whither he goes," the reason being that "the darkness hath blinded his eyes." Such is the fearful status of those who hate their brethren. The inner condition is one of darkness; the outward life is a walk in darkness. The element which is his natural sphere has possessed him; he has partaken of the realm in which he habitually moves: Moreover, he has lost his sense of direction; "He knoweth not whither he goeth:" His way is dark; he neither knows its direction or its end: He is like the insects of Mammoth Cave in Kentucky, which have no eyes, the faculty of sight being so long disused it is gone: The poet Tennyson, in vivid verse, though with reference to sorrow rather than sin, sets forth the fatal result "But the night has crept into my heart and begun to darken my eyes." The state which the apostle describes is all the more fatal because unrecognized by those in it. "They know not, neither do they understand; they walk to and fro in darkness." (Psalms 82:5.) "Blinded" here is from the same verb and form occurring in 2 Corinthians 4:4 : "In whom the God of this world bath blinded the minds of the unbelieving, that the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should not dawn upon them." Thus the blindness which characterizes the alien is that which possesses him who hates his brother. The grace of love is so basic that he who lacks it is deficient in all the virtues of Christianity. Where it does not exist, no other can.Commentary on 1 John 2:7-11 by E.M. Zerr1 John 2:7. The word new may mean with reference to its age or date. In that sense the divine law is not new because God has placed governing law before man ever since he has existed. On that basis it is the old commandment and they had heard it from the beginning.1 John 2:8. The commandments of the Lord are new in the sense of being fresh and vigorous (not infirm as with old age). The newness or liveliness of the laws of the Lord is manifested in their being able to dispel the darkness of ignorance, and shed the light of knowledge in the Lord. 1 John 2:9. This is the same in thought as several preceding verses, namely, that true love is manifested by showing an obedient spirit toward the law of God, and that law requires a disciple to love his brother. 1 John 2:10. Occasion of stumbling denotes being the cause of another's stumbling or committing error. If a man loves his brother he will not put any stumbling block in his way (Romans 14:13). 1 John 2:11. Darkness is figurative and means the absence of truth. The truth of God requires that the brethren love each other, hence if one brother hates another he is not walking according to the word of God but is walking in darkness.Commentary on 1 John 2:7-11 by N.T. Caton1 John 2:7— Brethren, I write no new commandment. It is no new commandment I write when I bid you to walk as Christ walked. This is an old commandment. Simply call up, in memory, what you heard from the beginning; how that the Father, at the baptism of his Son, declared himself well pleased with him, and that he again, at the Mount of Transfiguration, uttered the same words, with the additional injunction, to hear him. Now, we hear him when we walk as he walked, conduct ourselves as he conducted himself. From the very beginning of the proclamation of the gospel, these things you heard as coming from the Father on high in reference to his Son, and you heard them that they might serve as a guidance to your action in life. 1 John 2:8— Again, a new commandment. New in a sense not fully understood, and not so fully taught until Christ came. While in substance it was old, in the sense I here now refer to, it is new. Love is the theme. Now, Christ taught us, we should even love our enemies. He showed his love for us and for the whole world by laying down his life. This he did willingly. He died for his enemies as well as for his friends. 1 John 2:8 --Which thing is true in him and in you. As it was true in Christ, that he loved his enemies by dying for them, which was the strongest demonstration he could possibly give to the world, so this kind of love is true as applied to you, when you walk as he walked, and, in this regard, do as he did. 1 John 2:8 --Because the darkness is past. The time when it was considered proper to say, "An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth," has been suspended by a new era, when we are taught to love them who perse­cute us and revile us. That was comparative darkness. The teaching of Christ on this subject is light, which now shines. 1 John 2:9— He that saith he is in the light. When one asserts that he is in this light, governing him­self by this teaching of Christ. to love our enemies, and yet hates his brother, such an one is self-deceived. He is still in darkness. He is not in fellowship with God, for God is light. 1 John 2:10— He that loveth his brother abideth in the light. The proof that one is in the light— that is, conforming his conduct to the new teaching of Christ— is to be shown only by love for his brother. Brotherly love is proof that one abides in the light, and while so abiding no stumbling-block will appear. All cause or occasion for stumbling has been removed. 1 John 2:11— But he that hateth his brother. In this case the reverse is true. Occasion for stumbling is ever present. Here there is no light, all is darkness, and one hating his brother is walking in darkness; and so long as hatred for the brother remains, the darkness remains. Such an one can not know which way he goes; that is to say, the miserable end of such a course of life and con­duct, being contrary to Christ's teachings and example, it can only result in failure of that reward promised to the faithful disciples, and will end only in ultimate condem­nation. 1 John 2:11 --Darkness hath blinded his eyes. That is, the eyes of his understanding. He can not see the many dangers that beset him on every side. Safety only is assured in being governed by Christ in his commands. Doing as he did, obeying what he commands, is walking in the light; any other course is certain destruction, so far as Christan character and success are concerned. Commentary on 1 John 2:7-11 by Burton Coffman 1 John 2:7 --Beloved, no new commandment write I unto you, but an old commandment which ye had from the beginning: the old commandment is the word which ye heard.No new commandment ... but an old ... The old commandment is here identified as "the word which ye heard," meaning the gospel of Christ; and this automatically gives the meaning of "which ye had from the beginning." The beginning in view here is the beginning of the gospel. Despite this, which it seems is obvious, one finds some strange views on what the old commandment is. The New Catholic Bible makes the old commandment to be "love promulgated in the Old Testament";[20] but since John's addresses were largely Gentile, it is not likely that the thing they had heard "from the beginning" was the Old Testament. ENDNOTE: [20] New Catholic Bible (New York: Catholic Book Publishing Company, 1946), New Testament, p. 315. 1 John 2:8 --Again, a new commandment write I unto you, which thing is true in him and in you; because the darkness is passing away, and the true light already shineth.A new commandment ... The new commandment must almost certainly be identified with Jesus' words when he said, "A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another; even as I have loved you, that ye also love one another" (John 13:34). It is hardly possible that the apostle John could have meant anything else except this. Wherein was it a new commandment? The Old Testament had taught God's people to love each other, and the new element here is the qualifier even as I have loved you! The Old Testament knew nothing of such love as that, for Christ had not yet revealed it. Wherein is it an old commandment? It went back to Christ himself; and, also, some of the Christians might have been hearing this practically all of their lives, "From the beginning" here being best understood as "from the first of your Christian lives."[21]Why did John stress the newness of it? He may have had in mind the word of Christ himself who declared that, "The kingdom of heaven is like unto the householder, who bringeth forth out of his treasure things both new and old" (Matthew 13:52). The above view seems correct, since it answers all of the questions that naturally rise with reference to the verse; but, while holding to the above explanation, we also notice another. ANOTHER "The contrast between the old and new is partly a contrast between the old and new covenants."[22] To love God and one's neighbor summed up all the law and the prophets, according to Jesus himself (Mark 12:29-31); and, of course, our Lord bound upon all people the same basic obligations. "From the beginning" seems naturally to suggest a more remote past than the beginning of one's Christian life; and it is impossible, always, to tell from the context just how John used this word. As Orr pointed out, "In a single sentence, John used the word truth in three different senses (2 John 1:1-2)."[23] Paul also used the word "Israel" in two different senses in a single sentence (Romans 11:25-26). In any case, such a view does no violence to the Scripture. As Macknight said, "Such a view makes out the least alteration in the sense of the passage."[24]The thing John apparently had in mind was the proposition that what his readers needed was no new teaching, but a renewal of the teaching they already had. As Paul Hoon put it: The British statesman, Lord Morley traveled from England to give an address to a Canadian university. As he came to the rostrum to speak, his first words were, "Gentlemen, I have traveled four thousand miles to tell you that there is a difference between right and wrong."[25]Likewise, in the current era, the church needs no new doctrine or philosophy, but a renewal in people's hearts of those teachings received from the beginning of the church. And those great basics of the Christian gospel are always new, exciting and glorious in the hearts of those joyfully receiving them; and yet they are also ancient. What is older than the drama of birth or marriage? and yet how new such things always are in every experience of them! [21] J. R. Dummelow, op. cit., p. 1056. [22] Paul W. Hoon, The Interpreter's Bible, Vol. XII (New York: Abingdon Press, 1957), p. 233. [23] R. W. Orr, op. cit., p. 611. [24] James Macknight, op. cit., p. 44. [25] Paul W. Hoon, op. cit., p. 234. 1 John 2:9 --He that saith he is in the light and hateth his brother, is in the darkness even until now.John's style of balancing one statement against another is evident here and throughout the letter. "He that saith" introduces the error he was about to expose. Note also the contrast between light and darkness. Christians are the children of light and walk in the light, but the wicked are children of darkness and walk in darkness. He ... is in darkness even until now ... It is a mistake to understand John as merely refuting the erroneous teachings of Gnostics. While it may be true enough that Gnostics might have seduced many Christians of that era into receiving a lifestyle of "loveless arrogance,"[26] the great teachings of the apostle were not merely a reaction to such things. He was not merely reacting; he was proclaiming the tremendous truths already revealed by Jesus nearly a whole generation previously. In the sermon on the mount, Jesus said: "If thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness" (Matthew 6:23). Thus, the metaphor of light and darkness goes back to Christ himself. Paul likewise received and used the same metaphor, his message in Ephesians 4:17-18 reading thus: "For they live blindfolded in a world of illusion, and are cut off from the life of God through ignorance and insensitiveness."[27] He also wrote, "Cast off the works of darkness" (Romans 13:12), "We are not of the night, nor of darkness" (1 Thessalonians 5:5), "What communion hath light with darkness?" (2 Corinthians 6:14). He that saith ... "This is the fifth time in this epistle that John pointed out a possible inconsistency between profession and conduct (1 John 1:6; 1 John 1:8; 1 John 1:10; 1 John 2:4; 1 John 4:20)."[28] If people are troubled today because of the gap between people's profession and their performance, it might help to recall that the problem is indeed an old one. [26] Ibid. [27] J. B. Phillips, Letters to Young Churches, a Translation of New Testament Epistles (New York: The Macmillan Company, 1948), p. 106. [28] Charles C. Ryrie, Wycliffe Bible Commentary, New Testament (Chicago: Moody Press, 1971), p. 1010. 1 John 2:10 --He that loveth his brother abideth in the light, and there is no occasion of stumbling in him.He that loveth his brother ... This speaks of genuine love, the existence of that emotion and attitude called [Greek: agape] in the New Testament. Abideth in the light ... There can hardly be any doubt that John had in mind the great declaration of Jesus Christ that "I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness" (John 8:12), and that this means abiding in Christ, a thought recurring repeatedly in John 15:1-10. The love of brethren appearing in this verse is not a love tinged with passion or self-seeking; but it is "the pure disinterested seeking for another's welfare, of which Christ was the great example."[29] This is a far different thing from that humanistic love which is coming more and more to be the religion of our non-Christian world. Such love, cultivated for its own sake and without regard for Christ must ever prove to be artificial, powerless and disappointing. The fruit of the Holy Spirit cannot be nourished and kept alive apart from the life-giving Spirit himself. There is no occasion of stumbling in him ... One whose life is motivated and controlled by true love will not only walk in the light himself, but his actions will not be the cause of stumbling or failure in others. As Westcott said, "Want of love is the most prolific source of offenses."John 3 edition (London: Macmillan and Company, 1893), p. 56.">[30] [29] W. M. Sinclair, op. cit., p. 478. John 3 edition (London: Macmillan and Company, 1893), p. 56.">[30] Brooke Foss Westcott, The Epistles of St. John 3 edition (London: Macmillan and Company, 1893), p. 56. 1 John 2:11 --But he that hateth his brother is in the darkness, and walketh in the darkness, and knoweth not whither he goeth, because the darkness hath blinded his eyes.The threefold mention of darkness is an impressive comment upon hatred of a brother. Hatred deadens and destroys the soul itself, blinds the eyes, stops the ears, and hardens the heart and petrifies the central functions of reason and intelligence; and those who indulge in it receive "in themselves the recompense of their error" (Romans 1:27), becoming in their own persons the just reward of such wickedness. In this verse also appears the close connection between blindness, of which Jesus often spoke and the darkness which is another application of the same metaphor. Notice the progressive power of three successive antitheses in 1 John 2:9-11. The antithesis of 1 John 2:9 Isaiah 1 John 2:10, and the antithesis of 1 John 2:10 Isaiah 1 John 2:11, the argument growing stronger with each new antithesis. The conclusions are arranged in an ascending order of power. 1 John 2:9 has "is in darkness"; 1 John 2:10 has "abiding in light, and there is no occasion of stumbling"; and 1 John 2:11 has a triple predicate: (1) "is in darkness"; (2) "walketh in darkness"; and (3) "knoweth not whither he goeth." 1 John 2:12-14 1 John 2:12-14 LITTLE , YOUNG MEN,AND FATHERS (1 John 2:12-15) The verses which immediately follow, 12, 13, 14, involve matters admittedly difficult, and which have long taxed the ingenuity of Bible students, expositors, and commentators. An analysis reveals that there are six clauses, divided into two sets of three each by the different tenses of the verb grapho, I write. They may be arranged thus 20. I am writing unto you (grapho):(a)children (teknia) You are forgiven (b)fathersbecauseYou know the Lord (c)young men You have overcome 1. I have written unto you (egrapsa): (a)children (paidia) You know the Father (b)fathersbecauseYou know the Lord (c)young men You are strong, and have overcome Numerous questions arise, the answers to which are essential to the understanding of this section. (1) Why did John use the present tense, "I write" (grapho), in the first three clauses, and "I have written" (egrapsa), epistolary aorist, in the second three? (2) To what writing does he refer in the first instance? In the second? (3) What is the meaning of the word "children" in the first clause of each of the divisions? (4) Why did he use the word teknia in the first reference to children, and paidia in the second? (5) In what sense is the reference to "fathers" and "young men" to be taken, literal or figurative? Here, as often elsewhere in the Epistle, the opinions which have been advanced are many, and merely to list them would ex-tend the limits of this commentary far beyond that which the plan justifies. In seeking the answers to these questions, it is not our purpose to burden the reader with views which have accumulated across the years, only to refute them; those interested may exam-ine them at their sources. We shall, instead, set forth the grounds which, after much careful consideration and study, we have adopted as, on the whole, the most reasonable exegesis of the passage. Why did John use the present, "I write" (grapho), in the first three clauses, and "I wrote" (egrapsa), epistolary aorist, or as it may be rendered in English, "I have written," in the second? "I write" is from the viewpoint of the writer--as the matter occurred to John as he actually wrote. The "I wrote," or, as it may be translated, "I have written," is the viewpoint of the reader. The first reflects the author's position; the second, his readers. "I write" these matters to you; when you read them, your position will be with reference to that which is written. To what writing does he refer in the first instance? In the second? In both instances the reference is the same: to the Epistle which he was then writing. Efforts to make one refer to the Epistle, the other to the Gospel which he wrote; or, the first to the whole Epistle, and the second to that which preceded what he was then writing, we reject as unsound. A simpler and more satisfactory conclusion is that both words embrace the same com-position, the entire first Epistle. What is the meaning of the word "children" in the first clause of each of the divisions? All of John's readers, so most expositors think. And, that such is the significance of the word in 1 John 2:1 ("My little children, these things I write unto you . . .") seems certain. But that the word has this significance here, we are disposed to doubt. (a) The designations "children," "fathers," and "young men" appear to be a detailed analysis of all his read-ers. There was, it seems, evident definite design on the part of the writer to particularize those addressed. (2) On the assump-tion that "children" embrace the whom of those addressed, who are the "fathers" and the "young men?" (c) Why, if the term is used thus comprehensively, did the writer use two different Greek terms--teknia, paidia--to designate the children? Does not this fact lead to the conclusion that it was the author's purpose to assign a specific, and therefore, a limited meaning, to the terms used? On the whole, it seems more in keeping with all the facts to assign to the word "children" a limited significance, and to conclude that those thus addressed were the ones among John's readers who had but lately obeyed the gospel, and whose sins had accordingly but recently been forgiven. This view is supported by the fact that the reason given why John addressed them par-ticularly is "because your sins are forgiven you for his name's sake." Why were two different Greek words, teknia, paidia, used to designate this particular group? The reason is not immediately apparent. It is obvious, from the context, that both terms describe the same individuals; and this consideration leads to the conclu-sion that the variation was resorted to, not for the purpose of dis-tinguishing between two groups, but to emphasize the different characteristics of the same group. The answer to our question must, therefore, be sought in the difference of meaning in the terms themselves. Teknia, plural of teknion, designates the fact of childhood; paidia, the infancy of those thus designated. The words, in their literal sense, denote those of tender age; and, as here figuratively used, denote those who are babes in Christ. The first reveals that those thus designated were children the second, that they were infant children. Not literal babies, of course, but those lately born into the family of God. (John 3:3-5; 1 Pet. 2 1, 2.) In what sense are the words "fathers" and "young men" to be taken, as a literal designation, or a figurative one? If literal, then no elderly men, not fathers, were addressed in this connection by John. In such an instance, no women whatsoever were included. It must, therefore, be obvious that the words "children," "fathers," and "young men" were used to describe three different classes of people among John's readers. The children were the recent con-verts; the young men, those who had reached maturity and were possessed of great spiritual strength in the Lord; and the fathers were those who had been in Christ the longest, and had therefore attained to the greatest spiritual growth. 12 I write unto you, my little children, because your sins are forgiven you for his name's sake.--Those thus addressed were familiarly styled "little children"; the occasion for the address was that their sins had been forgiven them; and the reason as-signed for their forgiveness was "for his name's sake." "For his name's sake" means on the basis of his name, i.e., God, the Father, forgives on account of Christ's name and because of his advocacy of our cause. (1 John 2:1.) It is through the name of Christ that we are privileged to approach the Father. "Jesus said unto him, I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one cometh unto the Father, but by me." (John 14:6.) "And in none other is there salvation: for neither is there any other name under heaven, that is given among men, wherein we must be saved." (Acts 4:12.) The words "are forgiven" are translated from a Greek per-fect (apheontai), a tense pointing to past action with existing results. "You have been, and consequently stand forgiven of your past, or alien, sins." 13 I write unto you, fathers, because ye know him who is from the beginning.--As there was a special reason for ad-dressing those who had but lately obeyed the gospel, so John also felt it needful to include instruction for those of more maturity in the Christian life, and who had long been faithful disciples of the Lord. The fathers were, therefore, addressed because "ye know him . . ." The word "know," as here used, means far more than casual acquaintance. The verb is in the perfect tense (egnokate), "You came to know, and now know," and describes the rich and full experience which these fathers had with the Lord. He who is "from the beginning" was the word, the second person of the Godhead: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." (John 1:1.) I write unto you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one.--Here, and often elsewhere in the Epistle, as also through the New Testament, the personality of Satan is clearly indicated. Far from being merely or solely an influence, he is revealed as a definite and distinct agent who must be resisted, repelled, and overcome by the saints. (See comments on 1 John 3:8; 1 John 3:10.) Those thus addressed by the apostle had "overcome the evil one." This they had done by remaining stedfast in the faith and not succumbing to the seductions of the devil. "And this is the victory that hath overcome the world, even our faith." (1 John 5:4. I have written unto you, little children, because ye know the Father.--For a full discussion of the various terms used, an analysis of the passage, and reasons assigned for the change in tense here, see above at the beginning of this section. The word "know" here is of the same tense, and has the same significance as in verses 3 and 4, literally, "you have come to know, and now retain this knowledge of the Father." Such knew him as their Father, because they were his children; they had been adopted into his family, and were by him regarded as such. In verse 12, these alluded to as children are declared to have been forgiven, to know the father. The ideas are correlative and dependent; only those who are forgiven know the Father; only those who know the Father have been forgiven. 14 I have written unto you, fathers, because ye know him who is from the beginning.--He who is from the beginning is the Word (John 1:1-2 1 John 1:1-3); the reference is thus to the pre-existent Christ who occupies eternity. The nature, attributes, and characteristics of the Eternal One constitute a profound study; but these mature saints, from long and careful consideration of the facts available to them, had come to possess a knowledge of him who thus bridges the brief span of time before and after which is the eternity without end. It is a subject especially intriguing to those advanced in years and mature of mind. I have written unto you, young men, because ye are strong, and the word of God abideth in you, and ye have overcome the evil one.--Three characteristics of these young men are mentioned: (1) They were strong; (2) the word of God abode in them; and (3) they had overcome the evil one. The occasion of their strength was in the fact that the word of God was in them. and the consequence of this indwelling was their triumph over the evil one. In no other fashion may one achieve victory over Satan. Only as the word dwells in us richly (Colossians 3:16), do we become strong in the Lord and in the power of his might (Ephesians 6:10), and are we protected from sinning against God (Psalms 119:11). Commentary on 1 John 2:12-14 by E.M. Zerr1 John 2:12. In this and the two verses following the writer uses the different age groups in a natural family to compare the ones with different talents and experiences in the family of God. Little children, therefore, cannot mean those usually designated by the term, since they do not have sins to be forgiven. It is used in view of some of them who were recent additions to the divine family by the spiritual birth. 1 John 2:13. As fathers in the natural family would be mature and ripe with the experience of age, so there are those in the church who have that qualification over other brethren. Young men are more mature than little childdren and have lived long enough to have demonstrated their strength in the contests of life. In the preceding verse the little children are given mention because of their purification from sins. Now they are named because of their knowledge of the Father from whom they have received the forgiveness of their sins. 1 John 2:14. This verse adds no special thoughts to the preceding two, except to indicate their importance by the repetition for emphasis.Commentary on 1 John 2:12-14 by N.T. Caton1 John 2:12— I write unto you, little children. John calls all the followers of Christ little children. While to him they were a loving charge, I rather think the use of this phrase was designed by him to impress upon their minds his parental anxiety over their spiritual welfare, and his care for them in this respect. Taking the whole body of believers into account, this is the view he would impress upon them: The relation of the teacher and the taught of father and children. This view becomes the more apparent when we lay alongside of the common version the expression as it appears in the Syriac. It is, "dear children," or, as it is elsewhere, "children." John subsequently divides them into three classes, as we shall soon see. 1 John 2:12 --Because your sins are forgiven. The reason is here given for his writing to them, and the anxiety he manifests toward them. They were in cove­nant relation with God; they were in Christ Jesus. They had obeyed and thus came into Christ, and, as his children, their sins were forgiven; and through him, as their advocate, future sins would be forgiven upon confession, repentance and prayer. 1 John 2:13— I write unto you, fathers. Here, John begins the classification of those denomi­nated. Little children, or dear children, or simply, my children. First, it is to those of them somewhat advanced in age, if, in fact, it may not be said of them, fathers, as respect the time of their service in the cause of Christ; to you I write because you have known him, that is walked with him, recognizing, realizing, and enjoying his presence. 1 John 2:13 --I write unto you, young men. Those who became obedient to the faith at a later period than those whom I denominate fathers, I write to you, because you overcame the wicked one when you threw off his yoke and accepted the leadership of Christ, and now abide in him by resisting the temptations of your former master. 1 John 2:13 --I write unto you, little children. John's third classification of believers: These are later converts to the Master; they are the babes in Christ; they are written to because they have become acquainted with the Father, his great love for the children of men, mani­fested in the gift of his Son. 1 John 2:14— I have written unto you, fathers. A repetition to those fathers contained in 1 John 2:13. I fail to see, as some do, any additional injunction herein contained, over and above former exhortations. I take it to be simply a system of enforcement of the same thought common among Hebrews. 1 John 2:14 --I have written unto you, young men. Here, young men are again addressed, but additional reasons are given. Those reasons are three in number. 1. Because ye are strong. 2. Because the word of God abides in you. 3. Because you have overcome the wicked one. Here we have a magnificent commentary on the beauty, strength, and grandeur of the Christian religion. A power that can so transform our humanity is demonstrative of its divine origin. Youth is the vigor of manhood. These young Chris­tians were vigorous Christians. They embraced the teach­ings of Christ, abode in his love, and in his light; they were, therefore, strong in the faith and impervious to the shafts and evil machinations of the devil. Commentary on 1 John 2:12-14 by Burton Coffman1 John 2:12 --I write unto you my little children, because your sins are forgiven you for his name's sake.My little children ... is usually thought to be John's loving designation of the whole church to which he wrote. See more on this under 1 John 2:13. Because your sins are forgiven you ... The great purpose of redemption in Christ is precisely this, the forgiveness of sins. All of the wonderful social and environmental benefits of Christianity are tangential and not fundamental. Man's great problem is sin; and, with the sin problem fully resolved in Christ Jesus, man has the ability to solve other problems himself. The word for children here is [@teknia].[31]ENDNOTE: [31] John R. W. Stott, op. cit., p. 96. 1 John 2:13 --I write unto you, fathers, because ye know him who is from the beginning. I write unto you, young men, because ye have overcome the evil one. I have written unto you, little children, because ye know the Father.Having addressed the entire group of Christians in 1 John 2:12 as "little children," John here singled out three age groups: fathers, young men, and children, arranged quite logically in a descending order, and using a different word for "children" ([@paidia])[32] in order to distinguish the different meaning here from that in 1 John 2:12. Many scholars reject this interpretation, but the essential logic of it cannot be denied. Other scholars (including Westcott) "regard these words as indicating different age groups."[33] There has never been any other good explanation of why John used different words for children. The difference in "I write unto you" and "I have written unto you" is not clear at all and may be merely a variation of style. If "I have written" is understood as epistolary, the meaning of the various expressions is exactly the same. It is by no means clear why many object to understanding children (especially in 1 John 2:13) in the ordinary sense. Many children who have reached an age of accountability are still "little children"; and those who had obeyed the gospel when John wrote were here included with young men and fathers as full participants in the total benefits of Christianity. Certainly, such an objection as that made by Barclay can have little merit. He wrote: Literalism and poetry do not go comfortably hand in hand ... The fact that the passage is kin to poetry makes us think twice before insisting that so literal a meaning must be given to the words and so cut and dried a classification be taken as intended.[34]Well, there you have it. This passage is "kin to poetry"; therefore, we do not need to take "children" literally! It must be a weak case indeed that requires support from an argument like this. That the primary purpose of the whole passage is that of showing the full participation of various age groups is also derived from the synonymous nature of the affirmations made concerning each. There is no essential difference in them: Of children (meaning the whole church), "your sins are forgiven you for his name's sake." Of fathers, "ye know him who is from the beginning." Of young men, "ye have overcome the evil one." Of little children (literally), "ye know the Father."SIZE> The one and identical meaning of all these statements is that the persons indicated were walking in the light, enjoying salvation, possessed a knowledge of God and were abiding in Christ. John extended his declarations further, mentioning two of the three sub-classifications again, that is, the fathers and the young men; but, in this case, the two groups stand for all three. Paul also mentioned three charismatic gifts in 1 Corinthians 13:8, making the three stand for all nine mentioned in 1 Corinthians 12:8-10. John did a similar thing in the next verse. [32] Ibid. [33] R. W. Orr, op. cit., p. 612. [34] William Barclay, The Letters of John and Jude (Philadelphia: The Westminster Press, 1976), p. 52. 1 John 2:14 --I have written unto you, fathers, because ye know him who is from the beginning. I have written unto you, young men, because ye are strong, and the word of God abideth in you, and ye have overcome the evil one.It is no problem that the essential truth of this verse repeats what had just been written. Christ himself repeated over and over again the great messages of the kingdom, sometimes with slight variations; and it was that quality of our Saviour's teaching that fully accounts for the so-called "variations" in the synoptic Gospels. 1 John 2:15-17 LOVE OF THE WORLD (1 John 2:15-17) 15 Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world.--Those addressed in the verses immediately preceding --the children, fathers, and young men--though each is com-mended for having triumphed in his respective sphere, were nev-ertheless yet in the world, yet subject to its allurements and temp-tations, yet within the reach of the Evil One. There was, there-fore, need that such an exhortation be given. What is the "world" here contemplated? How do the "things of the world" differ from the world itself? What is the signifi-cance of the word "love" in this passage? In view of the fact that "God so loved the world" (John 3:16), does the world which he loved differ from that which we are not to love, or is the difference in the "love" which is to be exercised, or both? Obviously, the answers to these questions are essential to any proper exposition of this passage. The "world" which John's readers were forbidden to love was not the material universe, God's original creation (Romans 1:20), the people who inhabit it (John 3:16); the earth (John 1:9), or the visible and tangible elements of our surroundings which are in themselves neither good nor bad. By the world John did not mean the sunshine and the rain, the mountains and the seas, the sunset and the stars, the loveliness of the night, the sparkling freshness of the morning, the sweet song of the birds, or the fra-grance of the flowers. He did not mean the dust from which our bodies are composed, the earth which supplies us with our food, and in whose gentle embrace we must at last eventually rest. Nor does the word "love" denote the tenderness of affection and the warmth of heart which characterize God and man toward those whose attributes encourage and stimulate such feeling. The "world" of this passage is a sphere or cosmos (kosmos) of evil, an order which is opposed to God, and to whose pursuit those who abandon the Lord have dedicated themselves. The "love" which men entertain for this world is evil desire. The love contemplated in John 3:16 is that of divine compassion and redeeming mercy; here, it is the emotion of selfish desire, of avarice and worldly pride. The love of the Father is an affection grounded in utter selflessness; that which man cherishes for the world is a greedy reaching for its affairs. The "world" which God loves is man-kind that which man is forbidden to love is an evil order or sphere. But not only did the apostle's exhortation embrace the "world," it is extended to include the "things of the world." The prohibi-tion is exceedingly emphatic: "Love not the world, neither (mede) no not either the things of the world." The meaning is, Do not love the world, no, nor anything that may be in it. There is, therefore, a distinction drawn between the world and the things in it: a, distinction between the general and the specific, the whole and the particular. We are forbidden to love even a specific or par-ticular part of the world--an exhortation needful then and now. There are those who have repudiated the world, but for one par-ticular, as for example the rich young ruler, who but for his love of riches would have surrendered his life wholly to the Lord. The "one thing" which we "lack"--be it the love of pleasure, of riches, of ease; the attraction of a home, a farm, or a business ; the desire for fame, prominence, and worldly honor, is the particular or specific thing, though we may have repudiated the world as such, which will eventually close the door of heaven in our faces. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.--Love for the world and love for the Father are wholly incompatible; they cannot exist in any heart at the same time. "No man can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon." (Matthew 6:24.) The antithesis drawn is the same as that in Romans 8:5 : "For they that are after the flesh mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit." The warning is similar to one from James: "Ye adulteresses, know ye not that friendship of the world is enmity with God? Whosoever therefore would be a friend of the world maketh himself an enemy of God." (James 4:4.) On the principle here enunciated is the exhortation of Paul: "Wherefore come ye out from among them, and be ye sepa-rate, saith the Lord, and touch no unclean thing; and I will receive you, and will be to you a Father, and ye shall be to me sons and daughters." (2 Corinthians 6:17-18.) 16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the vainglory of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.--The things of the world have their ori-gin, not in the Father, but in the world of which they are a part and they are designated as (1) the lust of the flesh; (2) the lust of the eyes; and (3) the vainglory of life. The "lust of the flesh" is evil desire which finds its origin in the flesh and through the flesh finds expression. It is a lust after the flesh; but it is more ; the genitive is subjective, the flesh is thus designated as the seat in which the evil desire dwells. The word "flesh" as here used does not denote skin and muscle and tissue; it is used in that darker sense so often seen in Paul's writings of the animal nature, the source of evil appetites. (See Galatians 5:16-24; Ephesians 2:3; 2 Peter 2:18; Colossians 2:18.) The lusts of the flesh exhibit themselves in the works of the flesh, a catalog of which is listed in Galatians 5:19 ff. It is significant that John sums up, in this section, the three avenues of approach which Satan, in his efforts to seduce, follows. The appeal which he ever makes is based on (1) carnal desires; desires awakened through the appeal of objects of sight; and (2) vanity, pride, worldly honor. Such was, precisely, the course followed in the seduction of Eve and in the unsuccessful attempt on the Saviour. "And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food (the lust of the flesh), and that it was a delight to the eye (the lust of the eyes), and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise (the vainglory of life), she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat; and she gave also unto her husband with her, and he did eat." (Gen:3:6.) In similar fashion, and by follow-ing the same procedure, Satan suggested that Jesus, after forty days of fasting, should command the stones to become bread, thus appealing to the lust of the flesh; he showed the Lord all the kingdoms of the world and promised them to him on condition that he do him homage, an appeal to the lust of the eyes; and in bidding the Lord to exercise his powers of divine protection by flinging himself down from the pinnacle of the temple there was an evident appeal to a sense of pride and vainglory which such an achievement, in the breasts of some, would have been certain to create. 17 And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.--The world will pass, and with it every lustful pleasure; but he who does the will of God abides through the ages. The transitoriness of the one--the world--is contrasted with the permanence of the other, the one doing the will of God. God himself is eternal; and those who abide in his will share in his eternal nature. In view of the temporal nature of the world, it is supreme folly for one to cling tenaciously to it, when it will inevitably be dissolved and cease to be. The tense of the word "passeth" is present middle indicative, "is passing away," the process is even now in operation, and will continue until the present evil age is no more. But, notwithstand-ing its passing, he who does (literally, keeps on doing) the will of the Father, abides unto the ages. Commentary on 1 John 2:15-17 by E.M. Zerr1 John 2:15. World is from a word that means the inhabitants of the earth. Other passages require us to love our enemies and John 3:16 says God loved the world. The apparent difficulty is explained by the words things that are in the world. We should understand that Christians are not to love the things that the people in the world possess and use for their lustful pleasures. Of course no man can love such things and love the Father also, for He has condemned them and commanded His children to "abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul" (1 Peter 2:11). 1 John 2:16. The things named in this verse the apostle says are all that is in the world. That is not merely an arbitrary declaration made just because the apostle chose to sum it all up that way, but upon examination it will be seen that it is historically and logically true. In Genesis 3:6 we read; "When the woman saw that the tree was good for food [lust of the flesh], and that it was pleasant to the eyes [lust of the eyes], and a tree to be desired to make one wise [pride of life]," etc. Next we shall consider Luke 4:1-13. Satan suggested to Jesus a way to get food, which was an appeal to the lust of the flesh. (The obtaining of food was no sin if done by lawful means.) Satan showed Christ the kingdoms of the world which was an appeal to the lust of the eyes. Next he challenged Him to cast himself from the roof of the temple to show the greatness of His power, which was an attempt to get Jesus to yield on a point that would have shown the spirit of pride. Luke says after these three items that "the devil had ended all the temptations," which agrees with John that the three classes of evil are all that is in the world. 1 John 2:17. World is still from the word that means the inhabitants pf the earth, and the lusts are the practices of the same which confirms the comments on the preceding verse. Since this world and its practices are to pass away, it is great folly for a disciple to let his affections be attached thereto. But the doer of God's will abideth for ever and hence that is the proper subject to receive our sincere interests.Commentary on 1 John 2:15-17 by N.T. Caton1 John 2:15— Love not the world. This exhortation is intended for all three classes of believers before mentioned. Love not the world, meaning the wicked practices of men in the world; nor the things that are in the world, meaning not only the treasures and ambitions of the world, but also all the evils thereof, such as unrestrained desires of the flesh, pleasures of appetite and passion; in short, all evils that lead astray from the love of God, and the right way which he commands— that right way in which Christ, our great model, walked before God, doing his will 1 John 2:15 --If any man love the world. Here we have an unqualified declaration. One seeking the ambitions and things of this world, and the pleasures of life only, has no love of the Father. That love is not in him. Make no mistake here. "By their fruits ye shall know them." Love of God does not show itself in struggles for the things of this world, or in pursuit of its pleasures. 1 John 2:16— For all that is in the world. Here, as before, the word world comprehends the men of the world. This is apparent from the succeeding clause. 1 John 2:16 --The lust of the flesh. This expression is one component part of what the apostle calls the world, and since it applies only to man, I take it that, by the world, the writer desires us to under­stand him to mean the wicked men of the world— are not of the Father. These he embraces in the classification, as follows: 1. Lust of the flesh.2. Lust of the eyes.3. Pride of life. In the first may be included every desire which has its source in the appetite. In the second, every desire aroused by objects which make their appeal through our sense of sight. In the third may be included, what is displayed vainly in the world, such as ambitions for place and power, and thus gratify our own vanity to be great among men, without regard to virtue and merit. Avarice, greed, selfish­ness and pride are included in the third classification, and it is very doubtful whether even then we have exhausted all that is included in the pride of life. However, all these are not of the Father. They came not from him. They are not in consonance with his divine character. They are not such as his children exhibit. He is holy. His children must be holy. These are all evil. In the succeeding verse another view is to be had of they things, well to be pondered. 1 John 2:17— And the world passeth away. Here we are informed that the world and all the lust thereof is transient; nothing permanent or abiding about it. Certainly a poor foundation upon which to build. But he that doeth the will of God. Here quite a different foundation is presented. Doing God's will insures something abiding; something enduring; no danger of being swept away; the only foundation that is essentially permanent. Commentary on 1 John 2:15-17 by Burton Coffman1 John 2:15 --Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.Love not the world ... God so "loved the world" that he gave his only begotten Son (John 3:16), but "world" here has a different meaning. "It is an inclusive term for all those who are in the kingdom of darkness and have not been born of God."[35] It also regards the material and temporary character of it. It is "visible" and therefore must be classified among those things which "are seen," contrasting with the things which "are unseen" and designated by Paul as eternal (2 Corinthians 4:18). Bruce noted the difference thus: "It is the world-system organized in rebellion against God which is in view - the current climate of opinion, as we might say."[36] He also observed that the word "love" is different here from that used in John 3:16. "In John 3:16, it is self-sacrificing love; here it is acquisitive love."[37] John will further explain his meaning in the next verse. Love of the world ... love of the Father ... This strongly suggests the "love of God" contrasted with the love of mammon in Matthew 6:24; and John's statement that the love of the Father is not in one who loves the world corresponds with Jesus' declaration that "No man can serve two masters" (Matthew 6:24). Morris pointed out what he called John's little trick of "emphasizing a word by simply repeating it. He used world three times in this verse and another three times in the next two verses."[38] John used this word "more than twenty times in this epistle,"[39] and in more than one sense. Hoon thought that the "world" has the "sense of creation as contrasted with the Creator."[40] See under next verse. [35] John R. W. Stott, op. cit., p. 101. [36] F. F. Bruce, Answers to Questions (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan Publishing House, 1972), p. 132. [37] Ibid. [38] Leon Morris, op. cit., p. 1263. [39] Paul W. Hoon, op. cit., p. 238. [40] Ibid. 1 John 2:16 --For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the vainglory of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.For all that is in the world ... is not of the Father ... This has the effect of explaining what John meant by his use of "world" in 1 John 2:15. It is that aspect of it which is "not in the Father." It is therefore incorrect to accept "world" in these verses as meaning God's glorious natural creation, described by the Father himself as "good" (Genesis 1:10; Genesis 1:12; Genesis 1:18; Genesis 1:21; Genesis 1:25). Jesus said the world loves its own (John 15:19); Paul said, "Be not conformed to this world" (Romans 12:2); and John declared that, "The whole world lieth in the evil one" (1 John 5:19). In the light of these and many other passages in the New Testament, it is clear that John was here speaking of that phase of the world of people which is antagonistic to God. Lust of the flesh ... lust of the eyes ... vainglory of life ... For ages, students of the New Testament have seen in this triad suggestions of the triple temptation of Eve: the fruit was good to eat ... beautiful to see ... and would make one as God, knowing good and evil; and likewise the triple temptation of Christ: he was hungry ... Satan showed him all the kingdoms of the world ... such an exhibition of Jesus' power as that of leaping from the parapet of the temple unharmed would have been a vainglorious triumph. From such comparisons, the things mentioned by John in this verse have come to be called "the three avenues of temptation." The sins in view have been variously classified: sensuality, materialism, ostentation (C. H. Dodd);[41] voluptus (sensuality), avaritia (avarice), superbia (vain-glory) (B. F. Westcott);[42] appetites of the body ... desire to possess material things ... egotism, etc. A number of scholars are reluctant to allow that any correspondence of this passage with the temptations of Eve and of Christ is intended; but David Smith did not hesitate to affirm that, "Here is a summary of all possible sins, as exemplified in the temptations of Eve (Genesis 3:1-6), and of our Lord (Matthew 4:1-11)."[43]Lust of the flesh ... All temptations which have their roots in appetites and needs of the body are included in this; but the appetites of the body are not in themselves sinful. Therefore, "flesh" is used here in "the ethical sense, meaning the old nature of man, or his capacity to do that which is displeasing to God."[44]Lust of the eyes ... The eyes have been called the gateway to the soul, hence the point of entry for many temptations. 'tin John's day, the impure and brutal spectacles of the theater and the arena would have supplied abundant illustrations of these."[45] It is no less true of our own times. Pride of life ... The central lust of the ego itself is indicated by this. The utterly selfish instinct in all human life that insists upon achieving the fulfillment of the person itself, the inherent passion of the soul to do its own will, fulfill its own desires, glorify its own ego, and to occupy the inner control-center of life - that is the pride of life. Salvation in Christ requires that this be denied. Macknight's comment on this was: John means all things pertaining to this life, of which men of the world boast, and by which their pride is gratified: such as titles, offices, lands, noble birth, honorable relations, and the rest, whose efficacy to puff up men with pride and to make them insolent, is not of God.[46][41] R. W. Orr, op. cit., p. 612. [42] John R. W. Stott, op. cit., p. 101. [43] David Smith, op. cit., p. 178. [44] Charles C. Ryrie, op. cit., p. 1013. [45] A. Plummer, op. cit., p. 24. [46] James Macknight, op. cit., p. 50. 1 John 2:17 --And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth forever.All of the vain things that so charm, seduce and dominate the lives of people during their brief pilgrimage upon earth are actually endowed with no more permanence than a mirage. Whatever glory or eminence may come to man is only for the fraction of a moment; he builds for himself a house, a palace or an empire; but the whirling suns brush him into the grave, and where is he? Whatever achievement, success or honor may place upon his head for an instant some distinction or accolade, tomorrow cannot remember it. This tragic quality of all human glory is the reason why the apostles taught Christians to look to the unseen, the invisible realities of hope and faith in Christ for their true fulfillment. As Paul put it: We look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal (2 Corinthians 4:18). Paul's words are an excellent supplement to what John wrote in this verse. 1 John 2:18-29 (1 John 2:18-29) 18 Little children, it is the last hour:--Again we meet with the designation, "little children" (paidia), as in 2:1, 12, 13 ; and the meaning here, as in 2:1, is obviously, the entire body of disciples addressed by the apostles. For the reasons why a more limited significance is to be assigned to the expression in 2:12, 13, see the notes there. The words "It is the last hour" are to be closely construed with the verses which immediately precede them. The apostle had described the transient nature of the worldly sphere and had pointed out that only those who do the will of the Father shall abide unto the ages. Here, he continues his exhortation by sol-emnly directing attention to the fact that his readers were even then in the period of "the last hour," and that events known to foretoken it were already appearing. What is the last hour here referred to? The termination of the Jewish state, so many think; the last hour of the world before the consummation of all things, so others. Both views are erro-neus. The Jewish state had already ended when the Epistle was written, and thus could not have been the "hour" to which the apostle alluded. And, to understand John as affirming that the last hour of the world was imminent in his day is to ascribe to him a position which the passing of the centuries has proved to be un-true. The first view is thus historically incorrect; the second impeaches the inspiration of the writer; and we hence reject both.Three Greek words are variously used in the New Testament to indicate time, as such. Chronos is time with reference to dura-tion or succession; kairos is time contemplated with reference to events; and hora is time with reference to a fixed date or period. It is the last of these words--hors--which occurs in the text, and the meaning is, therefore, a fixed date or period. The word is of obvious figurative significance, and thus describes a determinate period fixed in the divine mind and the last of the events thus predetermined by the Father. The word designates time, time conceived of as a definite period, this period being the last in the succession of periods similarly determined by deity. It therefore designates the Christian dispensation, the last of the great periods or ages arranged by the Father. (Isaiah 2:2-4; Acts 2:17; Heb. :2.) And as ye heard that antichrist cometh,--The apostle's readers were already in possession of information regarding "anti-christ"; they had heard it through the preaching of the writer and others. Those who had been their teachers, among them John himself, had earlier warned of the appearance of this antichrist. Who, or What, is "antichrist?" The word itself suggests two possible meanings, accordingly as the preposition "anti" used in composition here, is understood to signify (a) over against, or (b) opposed to. If the former, the word denotes one who puts him-self in the place of Christ; if the latter, one who stands in opposi-tion to Christ. The word appears only in the writings of John; here, and in 2:22; 4:3; and 2 John 1:7. His characteristics, as indicated in those verses, are, (1) he is a liar; (2) a deceiver; (3) a denier that Jesus is the Christ; and (4) he refuses to acknowl-edge that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh. References to a similar individual, in the language of the Lord, and the writings of Paul, enable us to fix his identity more defi-nitely, and indicate that the word combines the two meanings suggested above, viz., one who not only opposes Christ, but who usurps the place of Christ. "For many shall come in my name, saying, I am the Christ; and shall lead many astray." "For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall show great signs and wonders; so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect." (Matthew 24:5; Matthew 24:24.) "Let no man beguile you in any wise; for it will not be, except the falling away come first and the man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition, he that opposeth and exalteth himself against all that is called God or that is worshipped; so that he sitteth in the temple of God setting himself forth as God." (2 Thessalonians 2:3-4.) The individual here described is designated as "the man of sin," and the "son of perdition." (a) He opposes his will to that of God; (b) he exalts himself against God; (c) he sits in the temple of God; and (d) he sets himself forth as God. He is, moreover, (1) the personification of sin; (2) the son of perdition; (3) a participant in signs and lying wonders, the pur-pose of which is (4) to deceive. Like the antichrist described by John, and the false Christs predicted by the Lord, he seeks to identify himself with deity; he, like them, seeks to deceive, and has arrayed himself against the Lord and his Christ, and opposes them. To the candid mind the conclusion is irresistible that the "man of sin," whom Paul describes, is identical with the "anti-christ," to which John refers. And, in the centuries which have passed since these words were penned, no character in history so nearly conforms in minute detail to the representation here given as the pope of Rome! To deny that these prophecies find fulfillment in him is to close one's eyes to the facts in the case, utterly to ignore the evidence which obtains, and to reduce Biblical exegesis to mere caprice. Even now have there arisen many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last hour.--If it be asked why John added that already there had arisen many antichrists (long before the development of the apostasy and the appearance of the first pope), the answer is obvious: while the great antichrist predicted by John and described by Paul had not come, many were evidencing and exhibiting the same spirit as would be haracteristic of him, and were, therefore, properly styled antichrists. We, today, refer to men as papists who evince the spirit of and support the papacy ; and with equal propriety those of John's day who preceded the popes but possessed his spirit were similarly designated. False and heretical teachers were then active, some of whom denied the deity of Jesus, and others his humanity, men who were clothed in the attributes of and possessed the spirit of the antichrist to come. If it be insisted that the pope does not today deny the Christ or oppose him but, on the contrary, supports his cause and defends his name, we deny it. As the so-called vicar of Christ, he affects to be the Lord's personal representative on earth; he blasphemously claims the prerogative of Christ in forgiving sins; and he alleges that he sits in the seat of Christ on earth. He is, therefore, a parody of the Christ, a counterfeit Christ; and though he imitates some of the characteristics of Christ, this is precisely what is ex-pected of one who seeks to deceive. The appearance of these antichrists was evidence that the "last hour" had been ushered in, such being tokens predicted by Christ to appear before the consummation of the age. (Matthew 24:5; Matthew 24:24-27.) 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 they might be made manifest that they are not of us.--The antecedent of "they" is the word "antichrists," of the preceding verse. The preposition ek, rendered "out from," indicates origin from the center; and these were, therefore, for-merly among the disciples, and members of the church. They became apostates from the fold by going out. They were not "of" the disciples, i.e., they did not possess the same spirit of obedience characteristic of the disciples, for if they had "they would have continued with" the disciples. In going out, i.e., in apostatizing from the faith, they were "made manifest" (shown to be), not of the disciples, and for the reason assigned above. This passage, often cited by advocates of the doctrine of the impossibility of apostasy for the purpose of showing that those who abandon the cause are mere professors or pretenders, and were never sincere, falls far short of the effort; for (a) they were once with the disciples; (b) they went out from them; (c) one does not go out from a place where he has never been; (d) had they possessed the same love for the Lord and equal desire to serve him as those from whom they went out, they would have continued with them; (e) they did, in fact, continue for a time, and then ceased to be faithful. (f) It follows, therefore, that they simply apostatized from the right way. We learn from this that (1) there was no necessity from without which made it impossible for these people to forsake the right way; (2) they were under no compulsion such as would have been true if the doctrine of decrees and predestination, as taught by Calvinists, is true. (3) Some obey the gospel and, like him of whom the Saviour spoke in the parable of the soils, "heareth the word, and straightway with joy receiveth it; yet hath he not root in himself, but endureth for a while; when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, straightway he stumbleth." (Matthew 13:20-21.) Others, like those of this text, adopt false and heretical doctrines, forsake the church, and make shipwreck concerning the faith. (1 Timothy 1:19.) 20 And ye have an anointing from the Holy One, and ye know all things.--This passage asserts that these to whom John wrote: (1) had an anointing; (2) this anointing they re-ceived from "the Holy One," Christ; (3) as a result of this anoint-ing they knew all things. The word "anointing" is translated from the Greek chrisma, a term originally signifying an oil or ointment rubbed on the skin, and later, the anointing itself. There is a play on words in the Greek Testament here, not observable in the translation. If the false teachers were anti-christoi, these to whom John wrote were christoi, anointed ones. The reference here is to a custom charac-teristic of the law of Moses of anointing with perfumed oils those elevated to positions of trust or power. In compliance with the will of Jehovah, kings (1 Samuel 10:10), priests (Exodus 29:7), and prophets (Isaiah 61:1) were anointed; and ointment is both figura-tively, and in the act itself, a symbol of the Holy Spirit. Jesus was the anointed one (Acts 4:27), and that with which he was anointed was the Holy Spirit (Acts 10:38). Some hold to the view that the anointing alluded to by John was the "ordinary measure" of the Spirit, believed by them to be vouchsafed to all believers. References cited in support of this view are Galatians 4:6; Ephesians 3:16; Philippians 1:19; and 2 Corinthians 3:17 ff. This conclusion is based on an unwarrantable assumption. It should be noted that the test makes no mention whatsoever of the time when, nor the manner in which the anointing was received It merely affirms the fact of its occurrence, and not the manner or mode thereof. To affirm that this is the "ordinary measure of the Spirit which all Christians receive in conversion" is to inject a meaning into the passage, rather than to draw out the meaning that is there. This was not an "ordinary measure" of the Spirit, and for the following reasons: (1) The context is against this view. Antichrists, formerly among the disciples, and now apostates, were advocating false and heretical doctrines designed to lead the disciples astray. These teachers were readily recognizable because the faithful had received an anointing from the Lord. In this anointing these saints had been supplied with an endowment en-abling them to discern false spirits, and their teaching--to detect those who falsely asserted their inspiration: "Beloved, believe not every spirit, but prove the spirits, whether they are of God; be-cause many false prophets are gone out into the world." (1 John 4:1.) This test they were able to make by comparing the teach-ing of the Spirit within them with the pretensions of those teachers who affected to be similarly led. (2) This anointing which they had received enabled them to know "all things." This phrase, "all things," is, of course, to be interpreted in the light of the context, and with reference to matters there considered. It was not the apostle's purpose to imply that such anointing made those who received it omniscient; otherwise, why was he, an inspired apostle, writing to them at all? If, through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, they had come into possession of all knowledge, why this Epistle to them? The "all things" must, therefore, be limited to include the things pertaining to the antichrists. (3) The anoint-ing supplied them with such information as they needed to recog-nize and refute the false teachers who had gone out from among them. So, the apostle later affirmed: "These things have I written unto you concerning them that would lead you astray. As for you, the anointing which ye received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any one teach you; but as his anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is no lie, and even as it taught you, ye abide in him." (1 John 4:26, 27.) We conclude, therefore, that the "anointing" which these to whom John particularly wrote had received a miraculous measure of the Spirit; that this measure enabled them to recognize and refute the false teachers which plagued the church at that time; and that the anointing is not to be confused with any so-called "ordinary measure" of the Spirit available to Christians today In the absence of a written revelation, it was needful that an in-fallible test be supplied the early saints by means of which they were able to discern and to expose the pretensions of those who sought to lead them astray. Such was the purpose of the "anoint-ing" here contemplated. See further on this in the comments on 1 John 2:27. 21 I have not written unto you because ye know not the truth, but because ye know it, and because no lie is of the truth.--Here, again, the reference is to the immediate context, and to the matters which had claimed the apostle's attention above. Certainly he is not to be understood as affirming that the reason he wrote the truth to them was because they already possessed all the truth which he wrote. If they already had it, why did he write? The "truth" which they possessed was with reference to the false teachers about them; the manner in which they received this truth was through inspiration, styled in the verse preceding, "an anointing," a miraculous gift enabling them to discern false and lying spirits. The "lie" which is opposed to the truth was that which the antichrists taught. (Verse 18.) 22 Who is the liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ--The "lie" had claimed the apostle's attention in verse 21; here, the one who originated it. Passing from the abstract to the concrete, John identified the liar as "he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ." Many false theories regarding the nature and the attributes of the Saviour were afloat when John wrote this Epis-tle. The Gnostics alleged that Jesus and Christ were two different persons; that Christ merely appeared to have flesh, but in reality did not; and that the one designated as Jesus was without divine origin. The effect of this heresy was, in the case of Christ, to deny his humanity; and in the case of Jesus, to deny his deity. (See under "Design of the Epistle," in the Introduction.) This is the antichrist, even he that denieth the Father and the Son.--Here, the word "antichrist" is used in the same sense as in its second occurrence in verse 18, to identify those who possessed the character and attributes of the great antichrist to come. He who taught the things attributed to him here was of the same purpose and spirit as antichrist, and thus might properly bear his designation. To deny the humanity and deity of Jesus was to repudiate his Messiahship; and to reject the Messiahship was, in effect, to reject the Father himself. "He that honoreth not the Son honoreth not the Father that sent him." (John 5 23.) The Son reveals the Father (John 1:18; John 14:9), and our only approach to the Father is through the Son (John 14:6). Thus to reject the Son is to repudiate the only method by which it is possible to reach the Father. This is the reason why an acknowledgement of the Son before men is a prerequisite to ac-knowledgement by the Father: "And I say unto you, Every one who shall confess me before men, him shall the Son of man also confess before the angels of God: but he that denieth me in the presence of men shall be denied in the presence of the angels of God." (Luke 12:8. Cf. Matthew 10:32.) 23 Whosoever denieth the Son, the same bath not the Father: he that confesseth the Son hath the Father also.--A conclusion drawn from preceding premises. He who disowns the Son, in the same act rejects the one who is his Father. Inasmuch as it is not possible to know the Father but by the Son, such rejection must inevitably extend to the Father also. This truth is stated both negatively and positively in this verse. It emphasizes what is often taught in the sacred writings that no man can have a clear knowledge of God the Father who does not learn of and familiarize himself with the attributes and characteristics of the Son. "No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him," i.e., revealed him, made him known. (John 1:18.) Since the appearance of the Son no one can truthfully object to the accept-ance of deity on the ground that such is unknowable. The Father has revealed himself to man through his Son. While these words were primarily written to refute the ancient Gnostics who plagued the church with these heresies at the time John wrote, they are not without a very definite and pertinent relevancy in our time. The seeds of the ancient Cerenthian heresy is to be seen in the modern rationalism which affects to believe in God but which rejects Christ as his Son and the Scriptures as a revelation from him. God, without Christ, is simply not! Such a being is utterly without existence. The attempt to visualize God, without Christ, is to reduce him to a metaphysical abstraction, eventuating in pantheism, or atheism. Voltaire, the famous French infidel, entranced by the unspeakable beauty in the Swiss Alps, shouted, "God the Father! I adore thee," and then, as if ashamed of his outburst, immediately added that he did not worship the Son, an illustration of the conclusion which the apostle draws that it is impossible to acknowledge the Father without confessing the Son also. It will of course be unnecessary to add, to the thoughtful reader, that to confess the Son is much more than merely saying that one believes that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God. The Lord himself said, "Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven but he that doeth the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy by thy name, and by thy name cast out demons, and by thy name do many mighty works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity." (Matthew 7:21-23.) Here, as in 1 John 4:2, to confess the Son is to acknowledge him for what he is, and to render to him the obedience such an acknowledgement implies. The apostle had earlier shown that the Gnostics, in denying that Jesus is the Christ, had, in so doing, repudiated the Father. Conversely, those who confess the Son, by implication, also acknowl-edge the Father. 24 As for you, let that abide in you which ye heard from the beginning.--That which they had heard from the begin-ning was the truth; the beginning was their earliest acquaintance with the gospel; and the manner in which it was brought to them was by means of preaching. This which they had thus heard they were to allow to abide in them, literally, to let it settle down and find, as it were, its permanent home in them. The exhortation is, therefore, one to steadfastness, an admonition to hold fast to that which had been taught them. If that which ye heard from the beginning abide in you, ye also shall abide in the Son, and in the Father.--Here, as in the clause immediately preceding, the word "abide" (meno) means to settle down and dwell, as in one's permanent home; if the truth is thus permitted to settle down in us, we shall, in turn, be privi-leged to settle down, and have our home in the Son and in the Father. The conditional particle "if" governs the sentence and determines the conclusion. If, i.e., on condition "that which ye heard from the beginning abide in you, ye also shall abide in the Son and in the Father." Here is another of the many passages in the scripture clearly establishing the conditionality of salvation and emphasizing the necessity of continued faithfulness. See this same truth taught John 6:56; John 15:1 ff; John 17:23; Ephesians 3:17; 1 Corinthians 3:16; 1 Corinthians 6:17. 25 And this is the promise which he promised us, even the life eternal.--From this verse ye learn, (1) eternal life is a promise; (2) this promise is conditioned on our holding fast to that which he heard from the beginning. It follows, therefore, that eternal life is not a present possession, but a promise, a promise conditional and dependent on our remaining faithful. Passages, such as John 5:24, apparently asserting that the believer is in possession of eternal life already must be understood as declaring that it is had in prospect only.. "In hope of eternal life, which God, who cannot lie, promised before times eternal." (Titus 1:2.) One does not hope for that which he already has. (Romans 8:24-25.) "Jesus said, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that bath left house, or brethren, or sister, or mother, or father, or children, or lands, for my sake, and for the gospel's sake, but he shall receive a hundredfold now in this time, houses, and breth-ren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands, with per-secutions; and in the world to come eternal life." (Mark 10:29-30.) The Lord often promised eternal life to those who abide faithful: "Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that the Son may glorify thee: even as thou gayest him authority over all flesh, that to all whom thou hast given him, he should give eternal life. And this is life eternal that they should know thee the only true God, and him whom thou didst send, even Jesus Christ." (John 17:1-3.) 26 These things have I written unto you concerning them that would lead you astray.--Those seeking to lead John's readers astray were the "antichrists" (verse 18), false and heret-ical teachers of that period who were exceedingly active in their efforts to lead the faithful away from the true faith. In view of this constant and persistent threat to the security and well-being of the saints, it was especially needful that John should pen these words of warning. False teachers early appeared in the apostolic church, and many warnings regarding them were given. To the elders of the church in Ephesus, Paul said: "I know that after my departing grievous wolves shall enter in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them. (Acts 20:29.) And to Timothy, the same apostle wrote, "But the Spirit saith expressly, that in later times some shall fall away from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of demons, through the hypocrisy of men that speak lies, branded in their own conscience as with a hot iron; forbidding to marry, and com-manding to abstain from meats, which God created to be received with thanksgiving by them that believe and know the truth." (1 Timothy 4:1-3.) And John, himself, to put his readers constantly on guard against false teachers affecting to be led by the Spirit, wrote, "Beloved, believe not every spirit, but prove the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets are gone out into the world." (1 John 4:1.) 27 And as for you, the anointing which ye received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any one teach you; but as his anointing teacheth you concerning all things, and is true, and is no lie, and even as it taught you, ye abide in him.--The meaning of this verse is identical with that of verse 24, except that what is set forth there as a command is stated here as a fact. Two things essential to the proper understanding of this must be noted (1) When the apostle said, "Ye need not that any one teach you." He is to be understood as having reference to the matters of the context, and including the things but recently under consideration, viz., the ability to discern between false and true teaching. (2) The ones who had no need of teaching were those who had been anointed, i.e., had received a miraculous measure of the Spirit, thus enabling them to exercise discernment essential in such instances. This gift, the discernment of spirits, as in the case of all the spiritual endowments of the apostolic age, was not a universal gift; and those who exercised it did so because they were specially endowed by the Holy Spirit for such a purpose. The ones exercising this gift were those referred to in verse 24, and not the entire body of believers. (Cf. 1 Corinthians 12:10.) It is an unwarranted extension of the apostle's remarks here, to apply them to all believers; to urge that one does not need to be taught the truth of the gospel today because he is already in possession of it; or to conclude that the "anointing" here contem-plated is the "ordinary measure" of the Holy Spirit, which all children of God, by virtue of their sonship, receive. (Galatians 4:6-7.) See the comments on verse 24, above. The meaning is that those thus endowed were able to weigh the claims of the teachers about them; they were in possession of the means with which to apply an infallible test thereto; and they could, therefore, know whether such men spoke for God or not. There is no support here whatsoever for the theory that all Chris-tians have the anointing of the Holy Spirit or that the inspiration of the Holy Spirit extends to all believers today; or that men are justified in setting aside the revealed and written word of God to follow the leading of the so-called revelations with which they affect to be endowed. Such a theory is a hurtful and dangerous one, and is responsible for the extreme and ridiculous fanaticism prevalent among those who profess to be thus anointed. This gift of discernment respecting the false doctrines then being propagated remained with those selected to exercise such at the time John wrote; the ability to judge of the claims of the teachers of such doctrines was not a passing thing, being necessary until the complete deposit of truth had been permanently embedded in a written record; and the anointing thus received rendered further apostolic teaching, with reference to this particular mat-ter, unnecessary. Here, again, is evidence of the correctness of our exposition that this information thus vouchsafed was lim-ited to the matters embraced "in all things" pertaining to the false teachers under consideration. If all the disciples were em-braced in these remarks; if all received the anointing of the Holy Spirit; if all possessed a knowledge of "all things"; and if none of them needed that any one should teach them, why the Epistle itself? On the assumption that the gift of the Spirit here contem-plated extended to include all believers, the Epistle itself is ren-dered superfluous, John's effort unnecessary, and indeed, the Bible itself a useless book! The conclusion is, therefore, irresistible, that the "anointing" was a miraculous gift; it was of limited duration; and it was, along with all the gifts of a miraculous nature, removed when the church reached maturity. "Love never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall be done away ; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall be done away. For we know in part, and we prophesy in part; but when that which is perfect is come, that which is in part shall be done away. When I was a child, I spake as a child, I felt as a child, I thought as a child; now that I am become a man, I have put away childish things." (1 Corinthians 13:8-11; cf. Ephesians 4:11-13.) The leading of the Spirit, received in the miraculous gift referred to as the "anointing," was true, it was no lie and it might, therefore, be safely depended on to guide in the right way. So long as those endowed therewith followed the direction of the gift which they possessed, they were able to "abide" in him --Christ. The mere possession of spiritual gifts did not guarantee to the possessor thereof the impossibility of apostasy. It is well to remember that the direction of the Spirit in mirac-ulous fashion was never designed to supplant the written word; it was, on the contrary, merely a temporary device, to supply the early church with the means of discerning false teaching until such time as the record was completed. The New Testament is the complete and final deposit of truth in this age, and an allegation of additional information from the Lord must be, regardless of its source, repudiated. (See comments of verse 20, above.) 28 And now, my little children, abide in him that, if he shall be manifested, we may have boldness, and not be ashamed before him at his coming.--Here is the tender ad-dress of 2:1, and the admonition and exhortation of 2:24, 27, repeated. It is an address of age to youth, an admonition essential to their continued well-being. The manifestation of Christ, and his coming is, of course, the same event. The conditional phrase, "if he shall be manifested," indicates John's uncertainty as to the time of the event, thus confirming the teaching of Christ with reference to the matter. (Mark 13:32.) The exhortation which this verse contains is grounded in the desire of the apostle that when such an event does occur both he and his readers might (a) have boldness, and (b) not be ashamed before the Lord. The word "boldness" (parresia), as here used, signifies "free-dom of speech; " the right to speak out as one thinks, and was used by the ancient Greeks of their privilege as free citizens. It was the apostle's hope that all those to whom he wrote as well as himself might live in such fashion as to be able to stand unafraid in the presence of the Lord, and to be free to express their confi-dence in their position. "Ashamed," from aischunomai, "to grow pale, to change color from shame," is used to indicate the effect which the coming of Christ will produce on those who are unpre-pared to meet him. Those who are ashamed will, in that day, shrink from the Lord in guilty fashion, fully aware of the fact that they are unprepared to meet him. Cf. 2 Thessalonians 1:7-9. 29 If ye know that he is righteous, ye know that every one also that doeth righteousness is begotten of him.--At first glance it would appear that the antecedent of the pronoun "he" of the first clause refers to Christ; but, in view of the fact that "of him," in the last clause must be referred to the Father, the refer-ence must be to the Father here. It is, therefore, God who is "righteous"; it is "of God" that every one that "doeth righteous-ness" is begotten. One is never, in the scriptures, said to be born or begotten of Christ, but always of God. (1 John 3:9; 1 John 3:18; 1 John 4:7.) The word "know" of the first clause is from the Greek oida, to know theoretically; the second is from ginosko, to know experi-mentally. The meaning is, if you know (i.e., recognize theoretically) that God is righteous, you have practical knowledge that he who does righteousness is begotten of God. If one intuitively recognizes God as possessed of such principles, reason suggests that whoever habitually does righteousness (ho poion, present linear action) as a mode of life is begotten of God. This inference the members of the apostle's proposition makes clear: (1) God is righteous. (2) As such, he is the source of righteousness. (3) When, therefore, one exhibits righteousness as a manner or mode of life, it follows that God is the source thereof. (4) Those who exhibit God's nature must receive it through regeneration. Hence, (5) "Every one also that doeth righteousness is begotten of him." Righteousness is right-doing, moral rectitude in all of the relationships of man, and obedience to the commandments of God. (Psalms 119:172.) Though the doctrine is clearly and positively taught elsewhere (e.g., Matthew 7:21; Mark 16:15-16; Revelation 22:13-14), this pas-sage cannot be properly cited in support of the view that doing righteousness, i.e., keeping the commandments, is a condition pre-cedent to salvation from past, or alien, sins. (1) The righteous-ness here contemplated is that which one does as a child of God, and not in order to become one. (2) The logical order of the premises leading to the conclusion of the apostle shows that it was his design to exhibit the fact that "doing righteousness" is evidence that one is a child of God, and is not offered as a condition on which one becomes a child. Nor is there any significance in the fact that gennao is rendered "begotten." rather than "born." Here the word is descriptive of the new birth, but is properly rendered "begotten," (a) because it is incongruous and awkward to predicate birth of a masculine personality; and (b) the scriptures, properly translated, never refer to a birth of God!Commentary on 1 John 2:16-29 by E.M. Zerr1 John 2:18. Little children is used in the sense that is explained at the first verse of the chapter. Last time could have a number of definitions on account of the second word, hence the thought must be gathered from the use that is made of it. The doctrine of Christ is not directly taught in the Old Testament while He is the central figure in the New. The verse speaks of antichrists (which means against Christ) so we understand John means we are living in the last Dispensation. Such is a logical conclusion because the basis of the whole system is belief in Christ (not Moses). 1 John 2:19. Went out from us signifies the antichrists were once associated with the true believers but apostatized from the faith. All this pertains to their outward movements only, for John says that they were not of us. Church workers are not mind readers, and if unconverted persons go through the motion of obedience to the Gospel there is no way to detect or avoid it. They obeyed the form of doctrine but not "from the heart" (Romans 6:17). Such persons will wait until some pretext appears when they will show their true sentiments by turning against the church and making false accusations. It is true that John is writing directly about antichrists which means those who oppose Christ. The principle is the same, for whoever opposes the church of Christ is an enemy of Him. At heart they are disbelievers in Christ but show their spite against Him by turning against his church. 1 John 2:20. Unction is used figuratively from the ancient custom of pouring oil on the heads of those who were to act in the service of the Lord. In its spiritual sense it refers to the enlightening that the Lord bestowed on the apostles, enabling them to impart the necessary information to the members of the body of Christ. Ye know all things means they know all that pertains to life and godliness (2 Peter 1:3). 1 John 2:21. Not all inspired writing was done to give new information but also to supplement what had been given (2 Peter 1:12-13 2 Peter 3:1). Another consideration is that people who have already shown an interest in the truth are glad to have it repeated to them. No lie is of the truth. Anything that denies a truth is bound to be a lie, and John was particularly concerned about the truth of the divinity of Christ. 1 John 2:22. This verse is virtually the same as verse 18 (See 1 John 2:18). 1 John 2:23. God and Christ are two distinct persons but are one in divinity, hence to reject the one is the same as rejecting the other. The last half of this verse is not found in some copies of the Greek text and for that reason some translations leave it out. However, it does not add anything that disagrees with the rest of the New Testament, hence no harm is done by retaining it at least to the extent of endorsing it. 1 John 2:24. Heard from the beginning refers to the truth given to the world through Him who is "from the beginning" (chapter 1:1). If this truth remains in us we will be in fellowship with both the Father and the Son. 1 John 2:25. The reward for being in fellowship with God and his Son is not of a temporal nature; it is eternal life. That reward will be given to those who are faithful until death, since it will not come in this world but in the next which will be "when earthly things have ceased to be."1 John 2:26. To seduce a person means to mislead him or cause him to stray from the truth. There were many deceivers in the world who were so expert in their false reasoning that the uninformed were easy victims. For this reason the apostle was writing the warning information to the disciples. 1 John 2:27. Anointing is from the same word as "unction" in verse 20. Need not that any man should teach you. This means that no uninspired man should be depended upon for teaching on the great story of Christ. They had the enlightening that had come to them from Christ through the inspired teachers. With such divine guidance they were able to abide in him who is Christ. 1 John 2:28. Little children is general and is the same endearing term that John uses in the beginning of the chapter. With the advantage of the spiritual enlightenment the disciples are exhorted to abide in him. This means more than merely being in Christ at times but it should be always. No man knows when Jesus is coming hence it is important always to be in His favor. In that case the disciple will not be taken unawares and be made ashamed, but will be confidently looking for Him. 1 John 2:29. The Lord is righteous and hence can beget righteous offspring only. The exhortation is for the disciples to honor their family reputation by being righteous.Commentary on 1 John 2:18-29 by N.T. Caton1 John 2:18— Little children, it is the last time. As to what is meant by the last time, different views are had. Dr. Macknight thinks it refers to the end of the Jewish commonwealth. With this view I can not agree. My reason is, the writer knew that the Jewish age had ceased when the Master said, "All authority is given unto me," and he could not refer to the fall of Jerusalem, because, if I be not mistaken, at the time of this writing that noted city was in ruins. In my judgment, he meant to have them understand, the Christian age would be the last dispensation of mercy God would vouchsafe to the world. Salvation must be had in this age, and in accordance with the provisions therein tendered, or not at all. No other presentation would be offered to the children of men. 1 John 2:18 --That antichrist shall come. They had been told that a certain thing would take place, and when it did, thereby they should know that it was in the last time or age. Christ means the anointed one. One claiming to be the Christ, and not being the one born at Bethlehem, would be a false Christ or an antichrist. Now, since the antichrist was foretold by the Master himself, and the time of coming being fixed in the last time, and John, affirming that already in his day there were many anti­christs, we may know assuredly that we live in the last time or age— an age which will continue until the final consum­mation of all things. From the time of Christ until the end of the world will the Christian age continue. 1 John 2:19— They went out from us. The meaning here is clear. All these antichrists are simply apostates. They sprang up from the Church of Christ; and yet, while this is true, they were not of us. They were not genuine converts; they were simply wolves in sheep's clothing. Their profession of faith in Christ was a mere pretense, for had they the whole-hearted faith in the Son of God, so requisite to citizenship in his kingdom, they would have continued humble, loving disciples. As it is, their going out from among us, and their bitter opposition to the doctrine of Christ, is an exhibition of the fact that they never were really and truly converted. They only made a pretense of conversion, the better to enable them to carry out their own designs. 1 John 2:20— But ye have an unction. Anointing is a better word than unction. The anointing is from the Holy Spirit; and, being so anointed, they are qualified to discriminate between the true and the false teachings and teachers. Because of this anointing or unction, they were enabled to know all these things. 1 John 2:21— I have not written unto you. It was not because they were ignorant of the truth that the Word was made flesh, but because they knew this as the truth, and that they were capable of discerning the differ­ence between the truth and a lie. If these false teachers or antichrists promulgated their heresies, they should be prepared to resist the same, and their utterances would be heresies if they denied that Jesus Christ had come in the flesh. 1 John 2:22— Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? To deny that Jesus is the Christ is to be guilty of false­hood. These apostates lyingly deny him. They reject the testimony he gave of himself in his teachings and in his miracles, and thereby deny both Father and Son. Such are antichrists. 1 John 2:23— Whosoever denieth the Son. Any one who shall deny that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, does not acknowledge the Father, but rejects his testimony given by him at the baptism of Jesus and on the Mount of Transfiguration. And anyone who acknowl­edges that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, thereby acknowledges both God and his Son. 1 John 2:24 ---Let that therefore abide in you. What the apostles preached from the beginning of the gospel age, that the Word was made flesh, which you believed, and by which you were controlled in your actions subsequent to your whole-hearted reception of this truth, let that abide in you. Continue to embrace trustingly that teaching; you heard it from the beginning. If this remain in you as your firm belief, you will continue in the fellow­ship of the Father and the Son. 1 John 2:25— And this is the promise. The result of this steadfastness in the faith preached from the beginning, and which is lovingly entertained in this fellowship with the Father and Son, is this eternal life; an unending enjoyment of companionship with the Father and the Son in heaven's blessed abode. 1 John 2:26— These things have I written. The things concerning antichrists, opposers of Christ, false teachers— those that would lead you astray— these things, so written, commence at the 18th verse and continue to the end of the chapter, and should be carefully studied, and the warnings therein mentioned implicitly observed and followed. 1 John 2:27— But the anointing which ye have received. The Lord had promised the Holy Spirit to guide the apostles into all truth. The apostles were empowered to confer spiritual gifts in the first age of the church. This was a necessity until all things should be perfected. Those to whom John wrote were possessed of these gifts— these anointings— and were thus provided with an infallible guide to know the truth and to detect the error, and needed no teaching from man. They had a teaching from on high, which was the very truth and no lie. Hence, all they needed was an exhortation to abide by this teaching. 1 John 2:28— And now, little children. The exhortation is earnest. Abide in him— that is, in Christ, in his teaching, doctrine, and precepts, for he shall appear once again to judge the world. At that time, if we abide in him, do his bidding, building up thereby characters fitted for companionship with God, and the Son, and the holy angels, and the good of all ages, we shall have con­fidence of our acceptance of him, and will not appear before him in fear, doubt, or shame. 1 John 2:29— If ye know that he is righteous. As through the apostle would ask a question: Do you know that God is righteous? He has promised that everyone who obeys his Son shall inherit eternal life. The doing of righteousness, then, is required of those who lay claim to this promise. They only are the heirs of this inheritance. You need make no mistake if you believe God to be right­eous, and that he has promised eternal life to those who do righteousness; such only are heirs of that promise, and all such are begotten of him, belong to his family, and none others. Commentary on 1 John 2:18-29 by Burton Coffman1 John 2:18 --Little children, it is the last hour: and as ye heard that antichrist cometh, even now have there arisen many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last hour.It is the last hour ... The apostles had asked Christ to tell them when the end of the world was coming, when the temple would be destroyed, and when the Christ would come. To these three questions, Jesus gave a composite answer (Matthew 24), but not distinguishing for them the fact that these events would not all occur simultaneously; however, Jesus did deny them altogether any answer as to the time of his Second Coming (Matthew 24:36; Matthew 24:42). It is therefore the height of presumption to construe John's words here as meaning that Christ was coming soon. "The last hour" here has no reference whatever to the Second Coming and must be referred either to the destruction of Jerusalem or the end of the world. Significantly, since Jesus failed (purposefully) to distinguish for his apostles that those two events (the end of all things and the destruction of the city of Jerusalem) would be separated in time by thousands of years, it may be legitimately supposed that the apostles might have thought they would come at the same time; but, even more significantly, no apostle ever said so. There is not a line in the New Testament that has any such declaration in it. However, in the providence of God, the destruction of Jerusalem was foreordained to be a type of the overthrow of the entire world; and in giving the signs that would precede the first event, Christ of necessity gave in those very signs the sign of the end of the world; but it was necessary for Christ to make the signs of Jerusalem's overthrow plain enough for the Christians to be forewarned and to enable them to escape from the city before its destruction. Otherwise, Satan might have accomplished the total destruction of the church itself in that disaster. Heeding those signs which Jesus had given, John here prophesied the destruction of Jerusalem (perhaps supposing also that the end of the world was at hand, a supposition that he did not state, even if he thought it). And what sign did he stress? That there were antichrists who had already appeared. This was the very sign that Jesus had definitely connected with the destruction of the temple (involving also, of course, the overthrow of Jerusalem): "There shall arise false christs and false prophets" (Matthew 24:24). It was also indicated by Christ as being a signal for the "elect" to "flee out of Judea" (Matthew 24:16), to avoid "the end of the world"? Certainly not! To avoid the destruction of Jerusalem? Of course! Thus it is absolutely certain that John in this passage was not warning the Christians to get ready for the end of the world, but to get ready to flee the city of Jerusalem. That this is exactly what John and the other apostles did in such statements as this is proved by the fact that the Christians did flee Jerusalem, not a single one of "the elect" losing his life in the holocaust that overthrew the city in A.D. 70. Despite the fact of "antichrist" being popularly understood as "a personal opponent of Christ at the end of time,"[47] and also being identified with Paul's "lawless one" (2 Thessalonians 2:8), there is absolutely no authority for such views. The "antichrists" in this passage are plural; the "lawless one" is singular; Christ associates the antichrists, or false christs, with the need for the "elect" to flee out of Judea (Matthew 24:16); whereas, Paul associated the "lawless one" with the "coming of the Lord," an association that John refrained from making here. Neither the "man of sin" nor "the lawless one" of Paul's writings has any connection whatever with what John wrote here. It was long after John wrote that "the name of antichrist was appropriated to that great adversary of Christ 'the man of sin' (2 Thessalonians 2:3)."[48] John's antichrist "falls far short of Paul's `son of perdition.'"[49]As ye have heard, antichrist cometh ... Although only the singular is used here, it is clear from what John at once wrote that there were many of these. Where had the Christians heard of this? From the teachings of Christ, as recorded in Matthew 24. It is the last hour ... Before leaving this, the error of the rendition should be noted. As Stott said: This phrase should be translated "a last hour." Westcott makes much of this and writes that the omission of the definite article "seems to mark the general character of the period and not its specific relation to `end.' It was a period of crucial change."[50]Morris also stressed the same thing, saying, "There is no article with hour. John is not saying it is the last hour, but that it is a last hour."[51] In the light of such truth, how ridiculous, therefore, it is for men to write such dogmatic opinions as the following: "The last hour ..." The apostles undoubtedly anticipated the coming of Christ in the near future, etc.[52]"The last hour ..." The expected immediate second coming of Christ to judge the world.[53]Nothing but the unwillingness of Christians to admit that the apostle John could seem to be much in error about the nearness of the day of judgment could have raised a question about language so plain. This can only mean "the last hour before the Second Coming of Christ."[54]SIZE> A hundred other examples of the same kind of scholarly blindness could be cited. It never seems to have occurred to such commentators that there is no hint whatever of the Second Coming in this verse. It is true of course that those who suppose that the apostles "expected" the coming of Christ to take place concurrently with the destruction of Jerusalem are probably correct in that supposition. Why? Because Jesus himself so mingled the prophecies of the two events that such a supposition might easily have followed. However, true exegesis of the New Testament does not consist in reading into its sacred texts what people suppose the apostles thought, but rather consists in studying what they wrote; and John wrote nothing here, either of the judgment or of the second coming of Christ. [47] New Catholic Bible, op. cit., New Testament, p. 315. [48] John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (Naperville, Illinois: Alec R. Allenson, Inc., reprint, 1950), p. 908. [49] Harvey J. S. Blaney, op. cit., p. 372. [50] John R. W. Stott, op. cit., p. 108. [51] Leon Morris, op. cit., p. 1264. [52] J. R. Dummelow, op. cit., p. 1056. [53] James Russell Williams, Compact Commentary on the New Testament (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House, 1964), p. 600. [54] A. Plummer, op. cit., p. 25. 1 John 2:19 --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 they might be made manifest that they all are not of us.From this verse it is plain that the "antichrists" were Christians who had defected from the truth. Their departure from the apostles and from the church indicated their hostility to the truth. Many of these were no doubt teaching the most shameful errors, justifying, or rationalizing the most wicked and dissolute behavior on the basis of Gnostic or other false teachings they had adopted. Such a verse as this, of course, is made use of as a crutch for the proposition that a person "once saved is always saved"; however, it should be carefully noted that John did not here write of the false teachers that "they never had been of us," but that at an unspecified previous time, they were not. This is even more clear in the last clause where the word is not that they had never been of us, but that they are not of us. Their departure from the faith became final at some point prior to their leaving; but there is no suggestion by the apostle that those who departed had never been truly converted at the beginning of their Christian association. The fallen angels were not wicked from the beginning but became so; and Judas was not wicked when the Lord chose him as an apostle, but he fell "through transgression." 1 John 2:20 --And ye have an anointing from the Holy One, and ye know all things.As Morris said, "This is just another way of saying that all of them had received the gift of the Holy Spirit."[55] that is, the earnest of the Holy Spirit, which is given to all believers in Christ following their repentance and baptism into Christ (Acts 2:38 f). And ye know all things ... The marginal reading here, "you all know," is a better rendition because John did not mean they knew everything, else he would hardly have been writing to them. The thing he referred to here is apparent in other places in the letters of John, namely, that, as regards the basic doctrine of Christianity, called "the word" or "the truth" or "the light," the Christians had been adequately enlightened on all these things before they could become Christians. (Jeremiah 31:31-35). Thus he refuted the boasts of the false teachers that they had any vital new truth that could have benefited anyone. When people hear and obey the gospel of Christ, they have already reached the zenith of all knowledge as it regards the eternal redemption of the soul. There is another view of this passage which accepts it as a reference to one of the charismatic gifts mentioned by Paul in 1 Corinthians 1:8, that is, "the discerning of spirits."[56] The thought behind this is that congregations generally, at the time John wrote, had among their members certain persons endowed with that gift; hence there was no need for them to be led away by false teachers if they heeded the information already available to them from that source. Although the other interpretation is preferred here, this one may not be ruled out altogether as possibly the true one. [55] Leon Morris, op. cit., p. 1264. [56] James Macknight, op. cit., p. 54. 1 John 2:21 --I have not written unto you because ye know not the truth, but because ye know it, and because no lie is of the truth.This verse is the reason for preferring the first of two interpretations of the preceding verse. Jeremiah had prophesied that under the new covenant, "All would know the Lord, from the least to the greatest of them," the simple reason behind this being that one must know the truth in all of its essential aspects before he can even become a Christian (Jeremiah 31:31 ff). It is obviously this very truth that John had in mind here. The "lie" mentioned here is "any doctrine contrary to that taught by the apostles of Christ."[57]ENDNOTE: [57] Ibid. 1 John 2:22 --Who is the liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, even he that denieth the Father and the Son.A comparison with 1 John 4:15,1 John 5:1 f suggests that the type of denial was that of refusing to accept the complete union of God with Jesus Christ. Certain Gnostics and Docetists theorized that Jesus was only a man, the natural son of Joseph, and that "Christ" descended upon him and inhabited his body at the time of his baptism, deserted him for the crucifixion, etc. The exalted view of Christ in John's writings, and throughout the New Testament refutes such nonsense fully. The Christian believes and confesses that Jesus Christ is the only begotten Son of God, that he is one with the Father, that he, in fact, "was God," that of his own volition he entered our earth life by means of the incarnation, that he was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit in the womb of the virgin Mary, and that he was born and passed through all the phases of human life without sin, that the power of the Godhead dwelt in him bodily during his ministry enabling the mighty works which were done by him, that he gave his life a ransom for all in his crucifixion, and that he himself arose from the grave, commissioned his apostles, ascended to the Father where he was before, and that he will come again to judge the quick and the dead at the consummation of all things. All the Christians of all the ages have tenaciously held these basic views regarding Jesus Christ our Lord. John was saying in this verse that any denial of such things is falsehood, and that such liars are antichrist. No distinction between the Christ and Jesus is of the truth, but belongs rather to the heresy of the Cerinthians.[58]ENDNOTE: [58] David Smith, op. cit., p. 181. This entry is longer than a Bible module can hold. The rest is at https://www.sermonindex.net/commentary/ntrc/ 1 John 3:1-2 SECTION THREE GOD IS LOVE(1 John 3:1 to 1 John 5:12)GOD'S LOVE FOR MAN(1 John 3:1-2) 1 Behold what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called children of God; and such we are.--The first verses of 1 John 3 continue and advance the thought set out in the final verse of the second chapter of the Epistle. Having declared that those who exhibit righteousness in their lives evidence the fact that they are the begotten sons of God, the apostle proceeds to dwell upon the marvelous blessings which such a relationship suggests. "Behold" (eidete) means to see, to take notice of, to be im-pressed with. Its design, as in John 1:29; John 19:5; Mark 13:1, and often elsewhere in the New Testament, was to fix the attention of John's readers on the measure of the love which had been revealed in their behalf. "Manner of love" is a phrase descriptive of the quality of the love which the Father has vouchsafed to his children. In it is revealed not only the size, but the blessedness of it. "What glorious, sublime, immeasurable love the Father hath bestowed upon us . . ." Included in the manner of it is the freeness, the greatness, the preciousness, the scope, the duration--in a word, all that is summed up in the word, "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son . . ." (John 3:16.) This love God "bestowed" (literally, gave), eventuating in our being "called chil-dren of God." Inasmuch as the Lord makes us what we are, to be called his children by him is to be such, and to sustain this relation to him in all the affairs of life. "And such we are" is a positive affirmation of that which had just been said. For this cause the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.--The first clause of this sentence is a conclusion drawn from the premise which the second clause contains. The world knows us not. Why does the world know us not? Because it knew him not. Since the world does not know the Father, of course it does not recognize the Father's children! The word "know" here, as in many other instances in John's writings, is used to mean much more than merely superficial knowledge. The world knows, of course, that Christians are in it; they are aware of the fact that Christians worship God; but they do not approve of the lives of Christians, nor do they acknowledge the Christian's God as their Sovereign and King. Of similar import are the words of the Lord: "If the world hateth you, ye know it bath hated me before it hated you. If ye were of the world, the world would love its own; but because ye are not of the world but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you." (John 15:18-19.) 2 Beloved, now are we children of God, and it is not yet made manifest what we shall be.--We are children of God now, in spite of the nonrecognition of the world. Though the world about us refuses to recognize us for what we are, God does, and this is enough. And, the fact that "it is not yet made manifest what we shall be," does not raise a question regarding our present status. Grant that we do not possess a full knowledge of matters pertaining to the next life; let it be admitted that here is much with reference to the future which we do not know. Does this, in any fashion, raise a presumption of doubt regarding our present rela-tion to the Father? Certainly not. We are children of God; we are children of God now; and as such, all the blessings of sonship are ours. We know that, if he shall be manifested, we shall be like him; for we shall see him even as he is.--To "be manifested," is to be made to appear, to be brought to the light, to be known. The phrase, "if he shall be manifested," refers to the Lord's second coming. When this event occurs, our imperfect conceptions will vanish in the perfect knowledge of him which will then be ours. Then it is that we shall see him even as he is, and shall be like him. The meaning is: we are children of God now, as much so as we shall be when the Lord comes; but at the present we are waiting for an inheritance which we do not fully comprehend ; when he comes we shall still be children and, in addition, in pos-session of that for which we now wait. Moreover, we shall then have perfect understanding of matters with reference to our future state which now we do not fully understand. The glorious anticipation of being "like him" should prompt us to utilize every faculty we possess in his service, and thrill us with the prospect of awakening in his likeness. To be like him is to be as he is, in both spirit and body. It is to partake of his glorious characteristics of mind and heart, of soul and spirit; to come into possession of the spiritual graces which are his. It is to be like him in purity, in holiness, in kindness and in love; it is to share with him the complete approval of our Father and God. It is, further, to be like him in body; to possess the immortal nature which he possesses, and to be no longer, as he is no longer, subject to death. "For our citizenship is in heaven; whence also we wait for a Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ: who shall fashion anew the body of our humiliation, that it may be conformed to the body of his glory, according to the working whereby he is able even to subject all things unto himself." (Phile. 3:20, 21.) The wondrous blessing which this promise includes--of being like him--should not be lightly regarded or passed over hurriedly. It is a summary of all the good things which the Father has in reserve for his own. There is a story often told of a group of heathen converts who, when they came to this verse in translating into their language, unable to believe that such could possibly be in store for sinful man, stopped and said, "No! It is too much. Let us write that we shall be permitted to kiss his feet."Commentary on 1 John 3:1-2 by E.M. Zerr1 John 3:1. Behold is a term used as a call to attention, directing the minds of the readers to a matter the apostle regards as of special importance. It is the manner (sort, kind or quality) of love that the writer wishes to emphasize. God's love was so great that He was willing to demonstrate it by giving us the highest possible honor, namely, taking us into the divine family as children. It is like a very wealthy king who takes a poor man from the depths of poverty and humility, and makes him an heir to the royal estate, only the illustration but faintly compares the circumstance. Since the world knew not the Father it would not recognize those who have been redeemed from the regions of sin, and adopted into the family of the Heavenly King. 1 John 3:2. In beginning this verse with the word beloved, the apostle does so in the same sentiment that caused him to use the term little children; it is a term of endearment. Now signifies he is speaking of the condition in this life before he shall appear. Being a son of God is a spiritual relationship which does not make any change in our personal appearance. That is because we must retain our fleshly body while we live in this world. What we shall be pertains to what can be seen as the connection in the verse shows, and John is referring to what our appearance will be after the coming of Christ. He says what that. will be doth not yet appear. Yet he does know (by inspiration) that when Jesus comes we shall be like hint. But the apostle did know even as he was writing, what the appearance of Jesus was when he was on the earth, for he appeared as a man with a fleshly body. Hence He will be changed and John was not instructed as to what the new form would be in appearance. Another thing of which he was certain was that when he shall appear we shall be like him. If that is the case then we shall be alike since "things equal to the same thing are equal to each other." Then if the saved ones are all alike there will be no distinction between them. This is fatal to the carnal notion that we will recognize our "loved ones" (family relations) in heaven. There will be no male nor female nor other personal distinctions and hence no recognition of one person as to whether he is my father or your brother or the husband of this or that woman: all bodily or personal distinctions are for this life only.Commentary on 1 John 3:1-2 by N.T. CatonANALYSIS. God shows a great love to you in bestowing upon you the great honor of being called his children. You are the sons of God, and yet there are greater blessings for you in store. You shall be like him, and see him just as he is. This is a great hope and a strong reason for striving to be pure. A violation of law is sin. Christ came to take away sin; those who abide in him! do not sin. One who sins does not know Christ. To be righteous, you must act right. One who sins does so at the dictates of the devil, who sinned from the first. Christ came to destroy the works of the devil. One born of God does not commit sin habitually, and so long as God's will and desire are present with him, he will not sin. You can tell the children of God from the children of the devil in this; he that sins habitually and loves not his brother is not a child of God. From the beginning of the gospel of Christ, this is the message: "Love one another." Cain did not love his brother, for he slew him, because his brother's deeds were right in God's sight, and he thus condemned the works of Cain as evil. I give you a criterion by which you may know whether you have passed from death unto life, if you love the brethren. In this we see God's love. Christ laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. Such a love as this can not exist in one who refuses to administer to the needs of his brother. We must not love in profession only, but in fact, showing it by acts. Otherwise our hearts will condemn us, and God is greater than our hearts. But if we obey his commandments, believing on the Son of God, and loving the brethren, we know assuredly that God abides with and in us, and we with him, by this his Spirit which he hath given us. 1 John 3:1— Behold, what manner of love. Remembering that the last thought in the foregoing chapter introduced was the fact that we were born of God. How wonderful has been the love of God in permitting and making provisions whereby we might thus become his sons. Here is a wide field for meditation. It would be quite a condescension for an earthy king to make provisions, whereby his subjects might become members of his royal family; it would be quite an exhibition of love. How, then, can we comprehend that love,, whereby the King of all kings provides the means of earth's born subjects being inducted into his family, and becoming his sons and heirs of his glory. Well may the inspired writer exclaim, Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us! 1 John 3:1 --Therefore the world knoweth us not. It follows, as a matter of course, that if the world know not the Father— that is, did not recognize and acknowledge him— that it will not know us, who are his children. 1 John 3:2— Beloved, now are we the sons of God. The announcement that we have the exalted privilege of being the sons of God is followed by a still greater and more important fact, which is connected with that relation­ship, viz.: that it does not appear what we shall be. Our future reward and glory are not yet manifest, yet we know something great is to follow. The revelation already is assurance enough to us, that when the Lord shall come we shall be like him, both in body and in moral character. We shall see him as he is in glory, and just such image as he possesses will by him be conferred on us, that where he is we may be also. Commentary on 1 John 3:1-2 by Burton CoffmanThis entire chapter, including also the last verse of 1 John 2, is a discussion dealing principally with the children of God. We cannot find agreement with those who make this section a treatise on the "love of God," although, of course, that subject is prominently mentioned. Aside from the opening verse, love is not mentioned until 1 John 3:11, and there it is not the love of God, but God's command that we should love one another. Orr's outline is a practical summary: The Children of God[1]. I. The divine nature is manifested in God's children (1 John 3:1-18). A. In their being like Christ (1 John 3:1-3). B. In doing right (1 John 3:4-10). C. In loving the brethren (1 John 3:11-18). II. It is by practical obedience that we have reassurance and confidence (1 John 3:19-24). A. Our love should be genuine (1 John 3:19). B. A good conscience results in confidence (1 John 3:20-21). C. Answer to prayer depends on obedience (1 John 3:22). D. Three earmarks of true children: love, obedience, and faith (1 John 3:23-24). As Wilder said, "It is this conception (of the children of God) that here enters this epistle and dominates the whole present section (1 John 3:1-24)."[2][1] R. W. Orr, A New Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan Publishing House, 1969), p. 614. [2] Amos N. Wilder, The Interpreter's Bible, Vol. XII (New York: Abingdon Press, 1957), p. 251. 1 John 3:1 --Behold what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called children of God; and such we are. (1 John 3:1 a) Behold what manner of love ... Smith tells us that the Greek here has the implication "of what country,"[3] suggesting that such love is not of earth but of that heavenly country, as if he had said, "what unearthly love!"[4] A. Plummer, however, denied that this is a legitimate deduction from the Greek.[5]The Father hath bestowed upon us ... Christ used the expression "my Father," and taught his disciples to pray "our Father"; but the meaning here "includes both,"[6] with perhaps the additional thought that God is the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. That we should be called children of God ... The essential kinship of humanity with the Creator is glimpsed in such a concept as this, as it is seen also in the great truth underlying the doctrine of the Incarnation. God would not have become a man, unless it had been true that man had been created in God's image. The most glorious truth the world has ever received is in this invitation or "call" of God to become his children. And such we are ... It is no empty title. The believers "in Christ" are genuine children of the Father in heaven. The word rendered "children" ("sons" in KJV) is [@tekna], that is, related to God by the new birth; and this is a closer relationship than that indicated by [@huioi] (Paul's word, stressing the analogy of adoption)."[7] While no doubt true, in a sense, such a comment should not obscure the fact that "adoption" in Paul's usage carries all of the full benefits and privileges of sons by generation, having also the advantage of illuminating the truth that sonship is all of grace. For this cause the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not. (1 John 3:1 b) The reason for the world's hatred of Christians lies in their hostility to all truth and righteousness. They did not recognize Jesus Christ as the Son of God. John's statement here, that the world did not know him, means that, "Although they saw the human Jesus, they did not recognize him as the Son of God."[8] In connection with the rejection of himself, Christ foretold the hatred of his followers (John 16:3); and in the holocaust so soon coming upon the Christians, the same root hatred of the light was assigned here as the reason behind it. [3] David Smith, The Expositor's Greek New Testament, Vol. V (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1967), p. 182. [4] Harvey J. S. Blaney, Beacon Bible Commentary, Vol. 10 (Kansas City: Beacon Hill Press, 1967), p. 376. [5] A. Plummer, Commentary on the Greek Text, Epistles of St. John (Cambridge, 1886), p. 71. [6] James William Russell, Compact Commentary on the New Testament (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House, 1964), p. 601. [7] Harvey J. S. Blaney, op. cit., p. 376. [8] J. W. Roberts, The Letters of John (Austin, Texas: R. B. Sweet Company, 1968), p. 77. 1 John 3:2 --Beloved, now are we children of God, and it is not yet made manifest what we shall be. We know that if he shall be manifested, we shall be like him; for we shall see him even as he is.It is not yet made manifest what we shall be ... Sinclair thought that John made this statement in response to questions which Christians had raised regarding their future state; and it may well be true. People have always been curious regarding such things; "But we cannot say. It is not good for us to know."[9] We shall be like Christ, and that must be enough for us. If we shall be manifested ... "Grammatically, him should mean the Father; but it is impossible to think this is not a reference to Christ."[10] "What John is clearly saying is that our likeness to the Godhead will be realized in the coming of Christ."[11]We shall be like him ... for we shall see him ... "This does not mean that seeing God (Christ) is a proof of our being like him, but the cause of our being so."[12] Furthermore, "The Apostle is speaking of an abiding sight of Christ, because a transient view of him would not be a reason for our being like him."[13] All people shall see him in the final judgment, but the view of the wicked shall be transient. [9] W. N. Sinclair, Ellicott's Bible Commentary, Vol. VIII (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan Publishing House, 1959), p. 482. [10] Leon Morris, New Bible Commentary, Revised (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1970), p. 1264. [11] J. W. Roberts, op. cit., p. 78. [12] A. Plummer, The Pulpit Commentary, Vol. 22,1John (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1950), p. 71. [13] James Macknight, Macknight on the Epistles, 1John (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House, reprint, 1969), p. 66. 1 John 3:3-12 ORIGIN AND SINFUL CONDUCT(1 John 3:3-12) 3 And every one that hath this hope set on him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.--The "hope" which we have is in being like him when he shall appear; and he who is in possession of this hope keeps himself pure, even as Christ, whom we shall be like when he appears, is pure. The meaning is, we have a hope; this hope is to awake in the likeness of the Saviour; the possession of this hope leads one to keep himself pure, this being a condition precedent to its realization; the pattern for this purity is Christ, himself. The verb "purifieth" (hagnizei, present active indicative), is a continuous act, keeps on purifying, an essential prerequisite to the maintenance of the hope which we have in him. Taught here, in the most emphatic fashion is, (1) the con-ditionality of our salvation; (2) the necessity of abstaining from every form of impurity; (3) the encouragement to faithfulness which hope affords; and (4) the example of purity which Christ himself supplies. This passage may not be legitimately cited to sustain the view that it is possible for a child of God to live above sin here. (1) Such a view is opposed to other statements by the same writer. (1 John 1:8; 1 John 2:1.) (2) Such is a misapprehension of what is here taught. If this passage teaches that one can purify himself to the extent he is above sin, it teaches that every one who has hope in Christ can do so, in which case all who have hope in the Lord are above sin. We are purified by complying with the con-ditions on the basis of which the Lord forgives us: "If we walk in the light as he is in the light we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanseth us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." (1 John 1:7-9.) This passage, instead of teaching us that it is possible to live above sin, actually teaches the opposite of this, by indicat-ing the means by which we overcome the effect of sin in our lives. By striving for the purity which the Lord possesses we reach for the goal which will be finally realized when he appears. 4 Every one that doeth sin doeth also lawlessness and sin is lawlessness.--Here, again, the connection with what has gone before, in the Epistle, is immediately apparent, and should not be overlooked. The theme of this section is set forth in 2:29: "If ye know that he is righteous, ye know that every one also that doeth righteousness is begotten of him. Verses 1-3, of this chapter, in the development of this theme, emphasize the fact that the doing of righteousness is proof of the new birth; and when such evidence does not exist, there is no sonship. Verses 4-10, establish the utter impossibility of reconciling sin with the work of redemption, with fellowship with Christ, and with the new birth. These con-necting links are not to be ignored in the study of the Epistle; they are, indeed, essential to the understanding of the design of the author. Having shown, in the foregoing verses, what the fatherhood of God (and the consequent sonship which relates) includes, he then proceeds to show what it excludes. In the statement which constitutes a definition of sin, the apostle wrote, "Every one that doeth sin doeth also lawlessness and sin is lawlessness." It is easily possible that it was the purpose of the apostle to encourage his readers to refrain from sin by showing its essential and inherent nature, more than to set out a formal defini-tion thereof, but it still remains that his statement is a definition of sin, simply and plainly put. Sin is translated from the Greek hamartia, the literal meaning of which is "to miss the mark," and as here used, to veer away from that which is right. It is a general term embracing every form of wrong-doing, all divergence from that which is right. The verbs "doeth" in the first clause are both in the present tense, the force of which, in Greek, is to indicate continuous action. It is the habitual practice of sin which is here contemplated. "Lawlessness," (anomia) is that state or manner of life wherein one fails to conform to law, whether in positive disobedience thereto, or in failing to come up to its demands. It is action contrary to law, whatever the form in which the action takes place. It embraces si both positively and negatively; it in-cludes sins of omission as well as sins of commission. The meaning is that whoever practices sin is a lawless person; by his sinful life he has become a violator of the law for "sin is the transgression of the law." (1 John 3:4 AV.) This, John wrote, in order to impress his readers with the fact that all sin is a viola-tion of the law of God; and since the violation of his law leads to condemnation, no sin, however small or insignificant it may ap-pear to us to be, should be regarded lightly. In view of conditions which then prevailed this was a sorely needed lesson. Certain heretical sects of the time held that their superior knowledge (the Gnostics) made them immune from the demands of the law, and that God did not, in their case, impute to them wrongdoing even though their conduct was in conflict with God's law. The apostle here shows that the wickedness of sin is in the fact that it is dis-regard for, and disobedience to, the law of God, for sin, all sin, any sin, is lawlessness. It follows, therefore, that any sin is serious, because it puts one under condemnation of the law In the Greek text, both sin and lawlessness have the article before them; each term is the equivalent of the other and they are, therefore, interchangeable. Sin is lawlessness; and lawlessness is also sin. One who veers away from the right is a lawless person ; a lawless person is one who veers from the right. To "miss the mark," whether it be going beyond that which is right, or in failing to measure up to it, puts one in the position of being a law vio-lator, and one who violates the law of God is, of course, a sinner. The connection with the context thus becomes apparent: if we would sustain and preserve the hope which we possess, we must continue to purify ourselves. A failure to do so is to lapse into a life of sin; and a life of sin is lawlessness. 5 And ye know that he was manifested to take away sins ;and in him is no sin.--Two additional reasons are thus ad-vanced why Christians are not to engage in the practice of sin (1) Christ was manifested to take away sins (2) in him, who is our example, there is no sin. The manifestation of Christ here referred to was his entrance into the world, in the flesh, the purpose of which was to "take away sins." (Matthew 1:21.) The article (the) appears before the word "sins" in the Greek text, and the meaning is, Jesus came into the world to take away the sins of the world, all sin, not merely one sin here and another there.The design of the Lord's appearance was, therefore, in part, to take away sins. The verb take away is translated from arei, first aorist subjunctive of afro, occurring also in John 1:29. It conveys the idea of a burden or load which is lifted in order that it may not crush him upon whom it rests; and, as here figuratively used, it signifies the lifting and carrying away of sins that they may be upon us no more. Being in the aorist tense, the act is a once-for-all process, in which by one offering the Lord accomplished his purpose henceforth and forever. Implied in the word is the idea of atonement, reconciliation, expiation and sanctification, all of which the Lord accomplished in his death, though the primary meaning here is the bearing away of sin. The lesson the apostle desired to reach is that all sin must be shunned and voided for Christ came into the world for the purpose of removing sin from us, and to continue to participate therein would frustrate his pur-pose and thwart his plan for those for whom he suffered. Forms of the word thus translated occur in the Septuagint translation in Isaiah 53:11, and in Hebrews 10:4; Hebrews 10:11, in each of which the primary meaning "to take away" is retained. In taking away sin, the Lord abolishes the guilt, the power, and the punishment thereof, thus making it possible for his children to entertain an assured hope of salvation. Such Paul must have had in mind when he wrote, "Christ . . . gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a people for his own possession, zealous of good works." (Titus 2:14.) In view of the fact that the Lord became incarnate in order that he might take away our sins, the proper regard for this should serve as a mighty incentive to all Christians to refrain from all wil-ful participation therein. (1) To engage in sin, in view of the design which led to his death, is to thwart the purpose and plan of the Lord and to render his sacrifice in vain. (2) As disciples of his, it is proper that we should follow such a course as would result in the furtherance of his purposes and plans for men. (3) To indulge in sin is to practice that which was the occasion for the ignominy and shame which were heaped upon the Lord at his crucifixion. (4) To persist in such practices in view of what sin did to him reveals a perverseness and depravity of heart wholly inconsistent with that which characterizes those who love and serve him. The second clause, "and in him is no sin," is, if literally rendered, and sin in him is not." It is an emphatic and positive affirmation of the Lord's freedom from sin. Being himself ab-solutely free from sin, and without any admixture of wrong in him whatsoever, it is only as we "purify" ourselves, (verse 3), and abstain from all sinful practices, that we are able to approach the perfect standard his life constitutes. That our Lord was wholly free from sin every moment of his life is a fact clearly taught in the sacred writings. Jesus declared it himself (John 7:18; John 8:46) and it was often affirmed of him (2 Corinthians 5:21; Hebrews 4:15; Hebrews 7:26; Hebrews 9:13). It follows, therefore, that those who would imitate him in manner of life today must strive for the same inherent purity. "For hereunto were we called because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, that ye should follow his steps: who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth: who, when he was reviled, reviled not again, when he suffered, threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously." (1 Pet. 2 21-23.) 6 Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not; whosoever sin-neth hath not seen him, neither knoweth him.--The ideas which this verse contains were favorite ones with the apostle, and are repeated, in one form or another, throughout his writings. The word "abideth," for example, occurs (in one of its various forms) in John 5:38; 6:56; 14:10 15:4, 5, 6, 7, 9; 1 John 2 6, 10, 14, 17, 27; 3:6, 25; 4:12, 13, 15, 16. It was likely sug-gested to him by the Lord in the familiar and impressive statement of Joh 15:4-6 : "Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; so neither can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches he that abideth in me, and I in him, the same beareth much fruit for apart from me ye can do nothing. If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and they gather them and cast them into the fire, and they are burned." The word "abide" is translated from a word (Meno) which means to settle down and remain, as in one's permanent home. Here, in addition to its literal meaning, it denotes the intimate relationship which exists between the Lord and his disciples, the close and continuing connection which obtains between him and those who derive their life from him. Not only does the word itself suggest an abode in Christ; the tense necessitates this conclusion also, "whosoever keeps on abiding . . ." "Whosoever keeps on abiding in him sinneth not." Here, too, the apostle gives utterance to an idea which is often expressed in one way or another in his Epistles. (1 John 2:24; 1 John 3:9; 1 John 5:18 ; 3 John 1:11.) (1) Whosoever abides in him sins not (2) whoso-ever is begotten of God does not sin; (3) he that does evil has not seen God. These propositions are developed in much detail throughout the first Epistle; and the ideas which they contain were favorite ones with John. The apostle did not intend to af-firm that one who abides in Christ is not capable of commiting a single act of sin such a concept would be in conflict with his af-firmation of the universal prevalence of sin, even among the saints (1 John 1:8); moreover, the designation of the means by which to overcome sin through the intercession of Christ (1 John 2:1), implies its possibility. Thus to teach it is possible or even probable that one will attain to a life of sinlessness here, is in con-flict with his own teaching in the instances cited, and must not be attributed to him here. The meaning of this verse, and indeed, all of those of similar import in the writings of the apostle John (e.g., 3:9; 5:18; 3 John 1:11), is to be sought and found in the significance which attaches to the tense of the verbs which set forth the action involved. The word "tense" as applied to the Greek verb is misleading, if it be accorded its literal signification, for it is derived from the French temps, time, and originally the Greek tense had no reference to time, as such. This characteristic, so prominent in the English verb, is only incidental in the Greek, the tense of the Greek verb having to do with the state of the action, and not necessarily with the time when it occurred. Its function is to indicate the state of the action, accordingly as it is conceived of as an indefinite event, (aorist tense), an action in progress, (present tense), or a com-pleted action with existing results, (perfect tense). Other tenses, such as the imperfect, etc., are variation of one or the other of these types of action. In the English language the time element is the prominent feature of the verb, and we think of an act as either past, present, or future. The present tense, in Greek, indicates action in progress at the present time. It is thus distinguished from the aorist tense which is a single act indefinitely conceived of, without regard to time. The distinction between the present and the aorist tenses may be seen in the following manner..... In the passage under consideration, the verb sinneth not is the translation of ouch hamartanei, third person singular, of the pres-ent indicative active, of hamartano. Inasmuch as the chief char-acteristic of the Greek present tense is to indicate action in prog-ress contemporary with the time of speaking, whereas the English verb does not distinguish between such action in progress, and a single act occurring, the significance of the verb sinneth, as used by the apostle, does not fully appear in the translation. It can be brought to the attention of the English reader only by an expanded translation thus: "Whosoever continues to abide in him, does not keep on sinning" (i.e., habitually as he did before his conversion). Had the apostle intended to convey the idea that one who abides in Christ is incapable of committing a single act of sin, he would have utilized the aorist tense. In such a case, however, he would have been in conflict with his own previous statements which assert the fact of sin in the lives of Christians, and the means provided for their removal. The meaning of the verse is, He who has taken up his abode in Christ, and settled down to a permanent existence in him, has terminated his former manner of life and has ceased the practices then characteristic of him. He no longer engages in habitual and persistent sin. That he has broken the hold of sin- in his life, and no longer regularly yields to evil im-pulses as a manner of life, however, is far from asserting that there are never occasional lapses into sin through weakness or ignorance. (Cf. 1 Corinthians 9:27; Philippians 3:12.) For these inadvertent lapses, a plan has been provided. (1 John 2:1.) "Whosoever sinneth bath not seen him, neither knoweth him." The verb "sinneth" here, as in the first clause of the verse, is in the present tense. Whosoever sins following his conversion dem-onstrates the fact that he has neither seen nor known the Lord. This passage, as translated, appears to teach that sinful conduct on the part of one who affects to be a child of God is evidence of the fact that such a one is not only not saved at the time, but never has been! This conclusion is obviously erroneous, because it is in conflict with other statements in the same Epistle, and by the same author. He had earlier said that Jesus is our Advocate when we sin, and that "if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." (1 John 1:7-9; 1 John 2:1.) How is it possible to confess sins never committed? Why do Christians need an Advocate for them when they sin, if they never sin? The verb sinneth, as in the first clause, indicates a continuous practice. Whosoever keeps on sinning . . .," has neither seen nor known him. The verbs "seen" (heoraken) and "knoweth" (egnoken) are Greek perfects. The Greek perfect tense denotes action absolutely past, which lasts on in its effects. It is the function of the Greek perfect to indicate the result which follows the action, the action, meanwhile, dropping out of view. In this respect it differs greatly from the English perfect which keeps the action in view and in which the past idea predominates. When, for example, we say. "I have known," the mind instinctively at-tributes the time of knowing to the past; in this, the true function of the English perfect is seen. In the Greek perfect, however, the time element is lost sight of, and the force of the tense is to point to an existing state produced by the action which has already ter-minated. Thus, the significance of "I have known," regarded from the viewpoint of the Greek perfect, is, "I know" (now). Thus, in the study of this verse if we keep in mind that the verbs seen and knoweth, as here used, express result, the meaning becomes clear. "Whosoever continues to abide in him does not keep on living a life of sin; whosoever does keep on living such a life, does not see him or know him." Obviously, one who has lapsed into a life of habitual sin, such as characterized him before his conversion, no longer sees (enjoys) God, nor knows (recog-nizes) God in his life. In the implication that one who abides in Christ sees the Fa-ther, we do not, of course, infer from this that it is possible for one to look upon, with physical eyes, the likeness of the great Jehovah. "No man bath seen God at any time." (1 John 4:12.) The seeing which is thus possible is to exercise the knowledge and in-sight which such a relationship allows--the perception possible to the faithful. To see in the New Testament is a figure often used of such spiritual insight. (John 1:18; John 6:46; Hebrews 2:8.) 7 My little children, let no man lead you astray: he that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous:--The address here is the same, and the same ones are addressed as in 2:1 and 2:18. The warning, "Let no man lead you astray," appears, in one form or another, often in the Epistles. (1:8 2:18, 26; 4:1-3.) These words have particular reference to men who sought to deceive the saints of that day by alleging that it is pos-sible to live a life of habitual sin, and yet have the approval and approbation of God. Such views were progapated by false and heretical sects of the time, and many were deluded and led into a life of sin by them. (See under "Design of the Epistle," in the Introduction.) These false teachers advocated the view that they pleased God without living a life of righteousness, and that what-ever might be the case with others who were without their alleged superior knowledge (gnosis), there was no need for them to work righteousness, because they were eternally saved by the grace of God, regardless of what their works might be. The effect of this teaching was to lead those who accepted it into a life of gross and unrestrained indulgence, and that in the name of religion! To counteract such teaching the apostle laid down the maxim that "He who doeth righteousness is righteous, even as he (Christ) is righteous," i.e., the man who does righteousness is righteous, and no other is. It is a positive affirmation that character and conduct cannot be separated. It matters not how much one may assert his righteousness; it is of little consequence to what extent one may declare his love for the Lord; the acid test is, does he do righteousness? If yes, he is a righteous man; if no, his claims are false. Here, as in 2:29, the doing of righteousness is not a condition precedent to righteousness, but evidence that such salvation exists. However tempted we may be to cite these passages in support of the scriptural doctrine that obedience is essential to salvation from past, or alien, sins, such is an unwarranted use of them. It is never allowable to take passages from their context and use them in support of a proposition even though the proposition we seek to prove is taught elsewhere in the scriptures. A passage should never be used in any sense other than that for which it was orig-inally written by the sacred writer. The use of texts out of their contexts, so common to denominational preachers, has led people to the conclusion that it is possible to prove anything by the Bible. It is well to remember that "a text, taken from its context, becomes a mere pretext." It was John's design to show here that the doing (practice) of righteousness is the only test of a righteous (ap-proved) person, whatever his claims may be. Long ago Luther truthfully said, "Good works of piety do not make a good pious man, but a good pious man does good pious works . . . fruits grow from the tree and not the tree from the fruits." The verb "doeth" in this verse, as often elsewhere in the Epistles of John (e.g., 2:29; 3:4; 3:7; 3:9, etc.), is a present active participle in the Greek text (poion), and signifies to keep on doing. As occasional lapses into sin through weakness, inadvertence, or ignorance do not demonstrate that one has never been saved, so isolated and infrequent acts of righteousness (outward conformity to some of God's laws) do not justify the conclusion that such a one is a righteous man. To be righteous, one must practice righteousness as a settled habit in life. Such a one, the apostle, affirms, is a righteous man; no other is. "Even as he is righteous" is a reference to Christ. "Even as" does not signify that one attains to the same righteousness as that Christ possesses; it means that Christ constitutes the model or pattern of righteousness toward which all of his followers are ever to strive. As he is righteous, so are we to seek to be; and such righteousness is attained through right-doing. (Psalms 119:172 ; Acts 10:34; Matthew 3:14.) The right-doing essential to such righteousness includes the duties and responsibilities of the Chris-tian life. 8 He that doeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning.--He who lives a life of habitual sin is of the devil; he demonstrates his relation to satan by his conformity to the character which the devil possesses. The devil has sinned (has been sinning, ap' arches hamartanei, present active indicative) from the beginning, i.e., from the first sin which resulted in his becoming the devil. Being the first sinner, the devil is the source of sin, the fountain from which it springs, the father of all those who practice it. "Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father it is your will to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and standeth not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own; for he is a liar, and the father thereof." (John 8:44.) Inasmuch as the devil is the original sinner, and since he has persisted in sin with-out interruption from the occasion of the first sin, it follows that whoever sins thus persistently partakes of the character of him who is their spiritual father. Such being the pattern of his exist-ence, those who conform thereto must be regarded as his off-spring and imitators. But here, again, we must not confuse mere occasional lapses into sin with a life of persistent and willful transgression. (1) To affirm that this passage teaches that it is possible to live a sinless life here is to (a) ignore the significance of the terms employed and (b) to put the writer in conflict with himself in other passages in the same Epistle. (1 John 1:7-9; 1 John 2:1.) (2) Such a claim is refuted by the sober consciousness of all thoughtful persons who, though it may have been years since they have engaged in willful sin, are aware of defects of character, and the like, which occas-sionally lead them inadvertently into sin. (3) The wisest, greatest, and best characters of whom we read in the scriptures never laid claim to sinlessness in this life, but, on the contrary, exhibited the weaknesses- common to humanity, and often confessed them with penitence and shame. (Cf, the lives of Abraham, David, Peter, and Paul.) (4) It must not be overlooked in the consideration of this passage that the evil contemplated is that which flows uninter-ruptedly from an evil heart, and is deliberate, willful, and persist-ent. The steady stream of pollution unmistakably reveals that the source is equally corrupt. It follows, therefore, that the type of sin under contemplation here is that which is habitual. Those who live as the devil lives must be regarded as belonging to the devil; in exhibiting the traits and characteristics of the devil, they evidence the fact that they are his children. Here, incidentally, is additional proof of the personality of the devil--a fact often taught in the scriptures. (a) He exists; (b) he has existed from the beginning; (c) he is the spiritual progenitor of all who sin as he does; and (d) false teachers are his agents in seeking to seduce and lead astray the saints. To this end was the Son of God manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil. "To this end" indicates the purpose for which the Son of God was manifested (appeared in the world), that he might "destroy" (bring to naught) the "works of the devil." The "works of the devil" include his plans, purposes, designs, schemes, aims, and ends which he hopes to accomplish. These Jesus came to "destroy" (luso), literally, to weaken, deprive of power, abolish in principle. Included among the works of the devil are not only sins, but the consequences of sin--pain, sorrow, misery, and death. Christ has abolished death "and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel." (2 Timothy 1:10.) The eventual triumph over death will be realized in the resurrec-tion: "But when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is thy victory? O death, where is thy sting?" (1 Corinthians 15:54-55.) There, too, will all sorrow, pain, and misery be forevermore terminated: "And I heard a great voice out of the throne saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he shall dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God him-self shall be with them, and be their God: and he shall wipe away every tear from their eyes; and death shall be no more; neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain any more: the first things are passed away." (Revelation 21:3-4.) 9 Whosoever is begotten of God doeth no sin, because his seed abideth in him; and he cannot sin, because he is begotten of God.--The familiar rendering, "Whosoever is born of God loth not commit sin," of the King James' Version, has given place to the American Standard rendering, "Whosoever is begotten of God doeth no sin," and here, as often elsewhere, the Standard rendering is the preferable one, though it, too, as we shall later see, does not fully and adequately convey the meaning of the text. (1) The phrase "begotten of God" is a decided improvement over "born of God" (gegennemenos ek tou theou), for gegen-nemenos, from gennao, means to beget. (2) Correctly translat-ed, the scriptures never refer to a "birth of God." (3) It is absurd to predicate the act of birth of a masculine personality exclusively. We are not, however, from this to infer that the reference here, or in the numerous other instances where the phrase occurs, signifies an embryonic or prenatal state. Obviously, here and in 2:29 and 5:18, the reference is to children of God. While the context establishes the fact that children of God are contem-plated, accuracy of translation necessitates the rendering "begotten of God" rather than "born of God." Whosoever is begotten of God "doeth no sin." ("Doeth no sin" is translated from the phrase, hamartian ou poiei, present active indicative of polo, does not keep on doing sin (as a life habit.) The reference here is to persistent, continuous, willful sin, such as that contemplated in 3:6, and the remarks there (which see) apply with equal force here. But why does the one begotten of God refrain from habitual and persistent indulgence in sin? Because his seed remains in him and he cannot sin. Whose seed? God's. What is God's seed? The word of God: "The seed is the word of God." (Luke 8:11.) In whom does this seed abide or remain? In the child of God. What does the word "abide" signify? That the word of God has made its home, as it were, in the heart of the one begot-ten. Is this a scriptural concept? "Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom" (Colossians 3:16), which we translate more vividly, "May the word which Christ speaks to you have in your hearts in all its fullness its home." What is the result of such? The child of God cannot sin. Does this mean that it is impossible for a child of God, under any circumstances, to commit a single act of sin? No. The phrase "Doeth no sin" does not adequately convey the meaning of the original text. Here, as in 3 6, in order to discover the full significance of the verb doeth, it is essential to take into consider-ation the tense thereof, a better rendering of which would be, "worketh no sin." (See comments on 1 John 3:6.) What rea-sons have we for concluding that it was not the intention of the apostle to teach that it is impossible for a child of God to commit a single act of sin? (1) Such a conclusion is in conflict with 1 John 1:7-9; 1 John 2:1, and many other passages in the scriptures. (2) The words "he cannot sin" cannot be correctly construed to mean that one cannot commit a single act of sin after being begotten of God. Why is it alleged that such a conclusion is in conflict with what the apostle taught elsewhere? Because he affirmed, in the references cited, that children do sin, and he moreover revealed the conditions on which they may be forgiven. Why is it thought that the phrase "he cannot sin" may not be correctly interpreted to mean that it is impossible for a child of God to commit a single act of sin? "And he cannot sin" is trans-lated from the phrase "kai ou dunatai hamartanein. Hamartarein is a present active infinitive, the force of which is, "he cannot con-tinue to live a life of sin" (as before). But why cannot he continue to live such a life? The seed, which is the word of God, and which is in him, forbids it. How did David recognize and apply the principle taught here? "Thy word have I laid up in my heart, that I might not sin against thee?" (Psalms 119:11.) How did Jesus resist the seductions of Satan? By relying on the same power. Suppose one is tempted to steal. Such a one remembers that the Word says, "Thou shalt not steal." So long as this injunction remains in the heart and governs the life, one cannot steal. "It is written" is as effective in resisting the blandishments of Satan today as it was when the Lord utilized it on the mount of temptation. Why, then, cannot one thus begotten persist in sin? (1) The seed (the word of God), which forbids it, is in him, controls his life, and directs his energies. (2) A life of sin is inconsistent with the spiritual parentage of the one thus begotten. But does this mean that it is never possible for one possessed of this nature to sin? No. All, through weakness, error, ignorance, and inadvertence, occasionally sin; but children of God do not work sin as a life principle, for its author--Satan--they have repudiated and his nature abandoned. When, in such instances, sin occurs, it is a momentary lapse; it is due to an imperfect hold-ing of the word in the heart; it is recognized as contrary to the higher impulses of the person thus sinning, and it is confessed and put aside with shame. Paul and John are in strict harmony in their teaching on the difference between such occasional lapses into sin and a life wholly devoted to it. The former wrote, "What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? God forbid. We who died to sin, how shall we any longer live therein? Or are ye ignorant that all we who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him through baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we also might walk in newness of life. For if we have become united with him in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resur-rection; knowing this, that our old man was crucified with him, that the body of sin might be done away, that we should no longer be in bondage to sin." (Romans 6:1-6.) We are thus no longer to continue in sin, for (a) we have died (separated ourselves) from the practice thereof; (b) we have risen from the baptismal grave to walk a new life; (c) the body of sin has been done away; (d) we have been delivered from the bondage of sin. The careful dis-tinction which the inspired writers make between a life of contin-uous and habitual sin and the infrequent deviations of children of God who, while they ever reach upward toward a nobler life, now and then falter through weakness or error, may be seen by a com-parison between Romans 6:1, "Shall we continue in sin" (epimeno-men tei hamartiai, present active subjunctive) and 6:15, "Shall we sin" (hamartesomen, first aorist active subjunctive), "Shall we commit a single act of sin?" (because we are not under law, but under grace). Carefully and pointedly the apostle to the Gentiles make it clear that even isolated acts of sin were not to be indulged in on the assumption that the grace under which we live, instead of the law, would make provision for such. Properly interpreted, neither 1 John 3:9 nor any other scripture, countenances the view that it is impossible for a child of God to live above sin in this life; and theories to this end, whether drawn from this passage or some other, are clearly erroneous. 10 In this the children of God are manifest, and the chil-dren of the devil:--That is, in the matters immediately pre-ceding. We indicate by our manner of life our parentage. The word "manifest" means to make known, to reveal. Children of God and children of the devil are readily distinguished from each other by the fact that the former abstain from a life of unrelieved sin, whereas such a life is ever characteristic of the latter. The nature exhibits itself in the individual and reveals who is his father. As a life of constant and continuous sin justifies the conclusion that such a one is a child of the devil, so a life of righteousness is evidence of the fact that such a one is a child of God. "Ye know that every one also that doeth righteousness is begotten of him." (1 John 2:29.) "Every one that doeth sin doeth also lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness." (1 John 3:4.) Whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother.--The first clause of this verse relates to what had just been said; the second expands it and makes it applicable not only to the spiritual, but also to the social side of life. The love under consideration here is that which one brother in Christ should have for another and where it does not exist, there is an absence of divine parenthood. We are taught here that he who does not love his brother actually has no brother to love, for in his failure to comply with this normal and natural principle, he demonstrates that God is not his Father. In refusing to love one of God's family, he simply excludes himself from the family itself! 11 For this is the message which ye heard from the begin-ning, that we should love one another:--"For," i.e., with ref-erence to what had just been written, "Whosoever doeth not right-eousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother." John's readers had heard this "message" from the beginning of their acquaintance with Christianity, since this was a cardinal principle of the movement itself. (John 13:34-35.) It is called a message from a word which, in the New Testament, signifies things announced in order that they may be done. It is referred to here as a message, instead of a commandment, though such it was, and is, because it was announced in words, and conveyed by messengers. See further on this in the comments on 1 John 2:9. 12 Not as Cain was of the evil one, and slew his brother.--This statement is put in contrast with that of verse 11, and Cain is offered as an example of what children of God are not to do. The meaning is, We should love one another, and not be as Cain was, who was of the evil one, and slew his brother. (Genesis 4:1-17.) Those who do righteousness are "of God" Cain, who did not obey the commandment to love, was "of the evil one," i.e., the the devil. He demonstrated the fact that he was of the devil by killing his brother Abel. The word translated "slew" here (spha-zo) means, literally, to butcher, to slit the throat with a knife; and from this it may be inferred that this was the manner in which Cain took the life of Abel. If the word is to be taken in its literal import, this conclusion follows, though it is, of course, possible that it is used figuratively to kill, and thus without any indication of the method by which the murder took place. And wherefore slew he him? Because his works were evil, and his brother's righteous.--The question, "Wherefore slew he him?" is immediately answered, "Because his (Cain's) works were evil, and his brother's (Abel's) were righteous. The reason for God's rejection of Cain's offering and his acceptance of Abel's, though not detailed in the Genesis record, is made clear in the reference thereto by the writer of Hebrews: "By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, through which he had witness borne to him that he was righteous, God bearing wit-ness in respect of his gifts; and through it he being dead yet speaketh." (Hebrews 11:4.) Cain's offering was "of the fruit of the ground," Abel's "of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof." (Genesis 4:3-4.) "And Jehovah had respect unto Abel and his offering; but unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect." Inasmuch as Abel made his offering "by faith," it fol-lows that the Lord had specified the nature and the type of offering to be made, since faith comes by hearing God's word. (Rom. 10 17.) Cain's offering was rejected because it was in violation of express instructions from Jehovah. Though not stated in the Mosaic account, it is implied in the following statement: "And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell. And Jehovah said unto Cain, why art thou wroth?and why is thy countenance fallen? If thou doest well, shall it not be lifted up? and if thou doest not well, sin coucheth at the door; and unto thee shall be its desire ; but do thou rule over it." (Genesis 4:5-7.) Resentful because his brother's offering was accepted and his own rejected, and filled with envy at Abel because his brother enjoyed the approbation of Jehovah while he smarted under the rebuke which he had received, "it came to pass that when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother and slew him." (Genesis 4:8.) In this terrible deed, Cain acted from envy, he was influenced by the evil that was in him, and he was directed by Satan whose servant he was. In citing this well-known Old Testament instance of the first murder, it was evidently the apostle's design to show the extent to which one is led when under the influence of envy, bitterness, and hate. His reasoning appears to have followed this pattern: Cain murdered his brother; therefore Cain hated his brother; hate is a characteristic of those who are children of the devil; therefore, Cain was of the devil. (Verse 12.) His brother identifies himself as of the same spirit as Cain, and likewise demonstrates that his works are evil. Basic in every difficulty and dispute between brethren today is the ab-sence of brotherly love. Whatever may be the immediate occasion which prompts such, each difficulty and dispute may, in principle, be traced to the resentment which the evil feel toward the good. Why did Cain murder Abel? Because his works were evil, and Abel's works were righteous.Commentary on 1 John 3:3-12 by E.M. Zerr1 John 3:3. Hath this hope means the hope of seeing Jesus and being like him. With such an incentive it is expected that all who have become the sons of God will cleanse themselves of impurity in life and strive to be like his Son. 1 John 3:4. Since committeth is a key word in verse 9 I shall leave my comments on it until that verse is reached. Sin is the transgression of the law. It should be observed that John does not say transgression is the only thing that constitutes sin; it is the only phase of the subject being considered at this place. 1 John 3:5. In him is no sin. This is what is meant in John 14:30 where Jesus says the prince of this world (Satan) cometh "and hath nothing in me." No sacrifice could have atoned for the sins of the world if attempted by a person who was himself tainted with sin. 1 John 3:6. Abideth signifies a continuous life in Christ and not a wavering from side to side. Such a person sinneth not which is akin to the word committeth as to its ending which will be explained at verse 9. A person cannot abide in Christ until he first comes into Him, then if he continues in that relation it can be said that he is abiding in Him. By the same token if a man sinneth it is proof that such a person has not yet made his acquaintance with Christ. 1 John 3:7. Little children is general and is used as explained at 1 John 2:1. They are again warned against being deceived which evidently refers to the antichrists who are mentioned in the preceding chapter. The first he stands for the faithful follower of Christ and the second he means Christ himself. Doeth and is righteous are related and will receive some more light at verse 9. 1 John 3:8. Committeth and sinneth will be explained by the comments on the next verse. Is of the devil refers to the practice of sin which was introduced into the world by the devil. From the beginning means the beginning of mankind on the earth. Not that he had not sinned before that, for he had, by reason of which he was cast out of heaven (Luke 10:18). But John is here concerned only with the devil's first attack upon man as the rest of the verse indicates. We know that the Son of God was manifested in the world to destroy the works of the devil, therefore the word beginning can apply only to the beginning of man on the earth. 1 John 3:9. The two key words in this verse are commit and cannot. Words, like people, "Are known by the company they keep," which is another way of saying that the meaning of words may be learned by their connection or by the use that is made of them. The first word is from POIEO and Thayer uses three pages of his lexicon with definitions and explanations, which indicates the wide scope of its meaning. Among his comments on the word are, "To follow some method in expressing by deeds the feelings and thoughts of the mind; carry on; describing a plan or course of action." Robinson gives as one explanation, "What one does repeatedly, continuedly, habitually." One of Webster's definitions is, "To pledge; to bind; as, to commit oneself to a certain course." The Englishman's Greek New Testament translates the word by "practice." All of these definitions and translations show the word has no reference to what a man does occasionally or incidentally, but it means what he makes a practice of. The term "practicing physician" does not mean a man who occasionally gives a dose of medicine to a friend. If a man "retires" from the occupation of a carpenter he may occasionally drive a nail or saw a board, yet we would not say he -has gone into the occupation again. Likewise a man who becomes a child of God ceases to commit sin as a "practice," but that does not mean he will never do anything that is wrong. (See the comments at chapter 1:7, 8.) We are certain an inspired man would not contradict himself, so John would not use the word commit in this verse to mean an occasional sin, when he taught in chapter 1:7 that even a man who "walks in the light" needs to be cleansed from sin by the blood of Christ. Cannot is from , which means morally unable and not that it is physically impossible. We will consider some other passages where the same word is used. Matthew 5:14 says "A city that is set on a hill cannot be hid." Yet all of us know that during the war many cities and other important places were actually hid by camouflage. In Mark 2:19 Jesus says of certain persons that "they cannot fast"; does this mean they actually could not refrain from eating? Luke 11:7 says the man who had retired but was asked to give a friend some bread replied, "I cannot rise and give thee." We know the man did not lack the physical ability of getting out of bed. And so the word in our verse does not mean that the child of God has come to the place where he is physically unable to do any wrong, but that he is morally restrained from it, just as a good man who is asked to join another in some crime would reply, "0 no, I couldn't do anything like that." Besides, to say a man has reached a condition where it is impossible for him to do anything wrong, would be like taking from him the necessity of watching his step, and would also make it unnecessary for him to seek the services of the Intercessor. The principle on which all these things are said of the child of God is the truth that he is born (begotten) of God. He has been conceived and born of a parentage that is spiritual and hence that holy characteristic is constantly in his spiritual person to urge him in the right course of life. 1 John 3:10. In this refers to the practice of sin as explained in the preceding verse. Doeth is used in the same sense as the word commit (or commiteth), meaning the continual or general manner of life. The children of the devil may occasionally perform some act that is good in itself but their life as a whole is devoted to the service of Satan. 1 John 3:11. From the beginning means from the start of man's existence on the earth. The message is the teaching that we should love each other. 1 John 3:12. This verse confirms the comments on the preceding one as to when the beginning occurred. The case of Cain and Abel is the first one in the divine record that pertains to the subject of love. Cain would not have slain his brother had he loved him. John's explanation of the cause of the lack of love is that his own works were evil while those of his brother were righteous. It seems strange that such a circumstance would cause the hatred. The basic or remote cause actually was envy which gave him a feeling of spite.Commentary on 1 John 3:3-12 by N.T. Caton1 John 3:3— And every man that hath this hope. Every faithful Christian has this hope. The hope of being like and dwelling with the Lord of glory will cause us to strive to be like him. Christ was, and is, pure; there­fore, every faithful Christian will strive to be pure. 1 John 3:4— Whosoever committeth sin. The idea is, habitually or continually does wrong. This idea must be borne in mind in order that we may fully understand other statements contained in this chapter and thereby insure perfect harmony. Doing, working, or com­mitting sin is a transgression of the law, and will surely be followed by punishment. 1 John 3:5— And ye know that he was manifested. One of the objects of Christ's coming into the world was to take away our sins, by remitting the same; but a second object had in that coming was, by his example and the course of instruction given by him, which, if pursued by us, would take away even our disposition to sin. He could be our example, and give this kind of instruction, because he was himself without sin. 1 John 3:6— Whosoever abideth in him. Keeping close to his example, trustingly, lovingly fol­lowing his instructions, we abide in him, and thus, abiding in him, sin not; have no disposition or desire to sin. 1 John 3:6— Whosoever sinneth hath not seen him. We cease to abide hi him when we engage in sinning. Such an one hath not seen Christ; that is to say, had no true insight into his character, or that of his doctrine, for no experimental knowledge is by such an one exhibited. It is safe to say of such that they have not known Christ, for if they had, the same would have been manifested in their conduct. 1 John 3:7— Little children, let no man deceive you. Exhortation is here made to prevent delusion or decep­tion. Those claiming to be righteous are those only who do righteousness. Works are demanded in the economy of heaven to show the existence of faith. Those who abide in Christ do righteousness because Christ was righteous. 1 John 3:8— He that committeth sin is of the devil. Since sin emanates from the devil, and is, therefore, of him, those who work sin, who exhibit a sinful life, give, thereby, all the proof sound reason can demand that they are under the dominion and control of the devil. From the very beginning of the world the devil sinned. 1 John 3:8— For this purpose the Son of God was manifested. That he might destroy sin and its punishment, which are the works of the devil, is the purpose for which the Son of God came into the world and appeared among men in the flesh. Dr. Macknight says: "Demolish that horrible fabric of sin and misery which the devil, with such art and industry and malice, hath reared in our world. From this text some have argued that all moral and penal evil will, at length, be extirpated from the universe." 1 John 3:9— Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin. Here some have failed to catch the apostle's idea. It is not that those born of God become so far out of the reach of sin that temptation can not assail them, but those who are born of God do not habitually sin or live a life of sin. One can not sin and at the same time remain a child of God. Yet, while in the flesh, the old nature may for a time exert an influence in the wrong direction, requiring the constant watch-care of the Christian. He, however, can not lead a sinful life while the principle of the divine life remains in him. Paul gives us a thought, throwing light along this line of investigation, well to remember for our good. "Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me." (Romans 7:20-21). 1 John 3:10— In this the children of God. Here, a sure mark of distinction is drawn between the children of God and the children of the devil. It is easy to tell one from the other. The child of God habitually per­forms good acts, deeds and works, and with a real affection loves his brother, while the children of the devil manifest no such fruits. The rule of measurement is plainly desig­nated. The children of God show by their pure lives, their constant endeavors to do good, their affection not only for the distressed, but for all, who their Father is. By the same rule the parentage of the evil may be easily determined. 1 John 3:11— For this is the message that ye heard. Christ brought from the Father, and we apostles pro­claimed the message from the establishment of the kingdom on earth, that we should love one another. This message is God-given; it came from him, and this was evidently God's will from the beginning of time. 1 John 3:12— Not as Cain, who was of that. This is the opposite of love— it is hate. Hate is of the devil. Cain was, therefore, begotten by the devil— that is to say, so controlled as to do the works of the devil. The child of God— one begotten of God— loves and does not hate. "This hater and murderer is condemned far more severely in the Scriptures than the disobedient Adam." (Johnson's Notes.) 1 John 3:12— And wherefore slew he him? Cain's offering was not accepted, because it was offered in disobedience. His works, therefore, were evil, while the works of his brother were righteous, because offered in obedience. His brother being accepted, and he rejected, he therefore hated him. So, the Savior foretold, would be the result to all righteous lives— hatred by the world. It hated him. Why should his followers escape? Commentary on 1 John 3:3-12 by Burton Coffman1 John 3:3 --And everyone that hath this hope set on him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.And everyone that hath this hope set on him ... The RSV is a better translation: "Everyone who thus hopes in him." This means, "everyone who hopes in Christ." The great obligation of every person "in Christ" is to exhibit the righteousness and purity so perfectly exemplified in him. There is another glimpse in this of the "perfection" that God requires of his children. Being as pure as Christ is pure is the same as being "perfect, as your Father in heaven is perfect" (Matthew 5:48), or being "holy, for I am holy" (1 Peter 1:15-16). This idea, or goal, of absolute perfection is unattainable in human strength; but it is achieved for Christians and ascribed to them by reason of their having denied themselves, being baptized "into Christ," and thus made partakers of his sinless perfection. People are saved, not in their own identity, but "as Christ," and "in Christ." This points up the great importance of the expression "in him" as used in this verse (RSV). This should not take away from the power of the exhortation that all Christians should strive to achieve and maintain the very highest state of purity and perfection of which they are capable. Sin can never be any casual business with the Christian. 1 John 3:4 --Everyone that doeth sin doeth also lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness.And sin is lawlessness ... Here the KJV is far better: "Sin is the transgression of the law." And what law is in view? "He is not thinking of the law of Moses."[14] Nor can we agree with Blaney that, "transgression of the law of love"[15] alone is meant. "It means the law of God in the fullest sense, not Moses' law, but transgression of the will of God."[16] Particularly, it is "the law of Christ" which sin transgresses; and that may not be limited to any classification of Jesus' commandments, but includes "all things whatsoever I have commanded you" (Matthew 28:18-20). Inherent in this is the epic truth that the grace of God has not abolished sin. The proposition that "we are not under law but under grace," while true enough as related to the law of Moses, does not relax any of the law of Christ (See more on this in my Commentary on Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, and Colossians, pp. 115,117). [14] W. N. Sinclair, op. cit., p. 483. [15] Harvey J. S. Blaney, op. cit., p. 378. [16] A. Plummer, op. cit., p. 71. 1 John 3:5 --And ye know that he was manifested to take away sins; and in him is no sin.In him is no sin ... Even the sins of Christians who are "in Christ" are cleansed automatically by the blood of Christ as long as they so remain. There is no compatibility whatever between Christ and sin. He was manifested to take away sins ... For more on what Christ came into our world to do, see under 1 Peter 1:19. And in him is no sin ... Although in the present tense and bearing the meaning noted above, this is also true in the past tense of our Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus committed no sin (1 Peter 2:22); he was holy, guileless, undefiled, and separated from sinners (Hebrews 7:26); he knew no sin (2 Corinthians 5:21); he was without blemish and without spot (1 Peter 1:19), etc. 1 John 3:6 --Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not: whosoever sinneth hath not seen him, neither knoweth him.From what John had already stated in 1 John 1, we know that he had no intention here of contradicting himself with any teaching to the effect any one having committed sin was in no sense a Christian. Many of the scholars assure us, based upon the Greek verbs used here, that "sinneth" in this context means "leads a life of sin." Abideth in him ... This is the key to the sinlessness of Christians, since their sins are forgiven continually through the power of the blood of Christ (1 John 1:7). It is only in such a sense as this that any child of God was ever sinless. 1 John 3:7 --My little children, let no man lead you astray: he that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous:In this verse, there is a strong suggestion that some of the false teachers who were troubling the church of that era were teaching that one could be saved without living a pure and godly life. Deceitful arguments to the same effect are current in our own times; and there has never been, perhaps, a period of church history when such deceitful heresies were not skillfully advocated. What John said here is: "Make no mistake about it, living the Christian life is the one and only proof of a person's being a Christian." Even as he is righteous ... This is possible only through perfect unity with and identification with Christ who is truly righteous. Nothing short of the perfect righteousness of Christ can ever save any one. Let every man decide, therefore, if he will dare to appear before God in judgment clad in his own personal righteousness alone, or if he will deny himself and be baptized "into Christ," thereby becoming a participant in that righteousness which alone is sufficient and efficacious. 1 John 3:8 --he that doeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. To this end was the Son of God manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil.The devil ... Any willful or continual commission of deeds which are contrary to the will of God reveals the sinner for what he is, a child of the devil. Significantly, John, like all of the holy apostles, accepted without question Jesus' teaching regarding the malignant ruler of this world's darkness. John's teaching here is clearly derived from Jesus' words in John 8:44, and is like Paul's denunciation of Elymas as, "Thou son of the devil." (Acts 13:10). It is a false view that explains away John's powerful words here as an "impression he received from the law of Moses," due to his Jewish background! As Plummer said, "For every single time the devil is mentioned in the Old Testament, he is spoken of twenty times in any gospel or epistle!"[17] Someone wrote a question to F. F. Bruce, asking, "How can a child of God be of the devil?" Bruce replied: "He cannot; that is the point John is making."[18] Of course, for a child of God who might commit a sin occasionally, John had already written of the provision that God has made for that contingency (1 John 2:1-2). Here again, "doeth sin" refers to deliberate choice and continuity in sin. The devil sinneth from the beginning ... This does not mean from the beginning of time, nor from the beginning of Satan's existence, nor from the beginning of the Christian age, but "from the beginning of human sin"[19] in the garden of Eden. Jesus said of Satan, that "he was a murderer from the beginning" (John 8:44); and these texts shed a great deal of light on the purpose of the evil one. By Christ's denomination of him as a murderer," the purpose of Satan to accomplish the death of Adam and Eve is evident; and from John's mention of the devil's sinning from that same time shows that Satan's deception of Eve was a diabolical and sinful act. It was for that sin that God pronounced the curse upon Satan. THE ORIGIN OF SATANThe Scriptures do not give a categorical answer to the question of Satan's origin; but Ezekiel 28:12-19 has the nearest approach to an answer. If, as usually thought, "King of Tyre" in that passage refers to Satan, who had been "in Eden," who was lifted up because of his beauty, who "was created," who was perfect in his ways "till iniquity was found" in him, whose heart "was lifted up" because of his beauty, who was "corrupted" because of his wisdom, etc., then the origin of Satan is revealed in that remarkable passage. Certainly, it is wrong to think of Satan's sharing, in any manner, the control of the universe with God. That he was the leader of a band of rebellious angels would appear to be a proper deduction from Jesus' mention of "Satan and his angels" (Matthew 25:41), leading to the supposition that Satan himself was, at first, an angel of God who led some of his fellow-angels into rebellion. This is an awesome subject, and little more than a few suggestions may confidently be offered. That there is indeed a being of great magnitude of powers, an inveterate enemy of mankind, the prince of this world, the ruler of the world's darkness, a prince of evil, who has organized and directed the wickedness of mankind is a fact so plainly set forth in the New Testament that only an unbeliever may deny it. The Lord's Prayer is a constant testimonial to the existence of Satan: "Deliver us from the evil one!" Like the rest of the New Testament authors, John had no doubt that behind the rebel wills of men there is a master-rebel, who sinned before they were in being, and who, as the enemy of all good, is called the devil, the slanderer, Satan, or the adversary.[20][17] A. Plummer, op. cit., p. 72. [18] F. F. Bruce, Answers to Questions (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan Publishing House, 1972), p. 133. [19] W. N. Sinclair, op. cit., p. 484. [20] Charles Gore, The Epistles of John (New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1920), pp. 144,145. 1 John 3:9 --Whosoever is begotten of God doeth no sin, because his seed abideth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is begotten of God.Whosoever is begotten of God ... This is a reference to the new birth, as indicated in the KJV, "born of God," and as rendered in the New Catholic Bible and the New English Bible (1961). Doeth no sin ... As long as one who has believed in Christ, repented of sin, and been baptized into Christ, and in consequence of such obedience has received the earnest of the Holy Spirit, - as long as such a person continues in that status, he will not sin. The evidence of this is visible in countless thousands of Christians in all ages who have turned their backs upon wicked conduct and have taken seriously the high claims of their holy religion, the same being exhibited for all people to see in the godliness of their new lives in Christ. What is the reason for such a change? John gave it in the next clause. Because his seed abideth in him ... The New Testament supplies abundant proof of what the "seed" is which is mentioned here. It is the word of God. Paul instructed the Colossians to let "the word of Christ" dwell in them richly, etc. (Colossians 3:16), and John had in mind the same thing here. The Lord Jesus himself said of the kingdom of heaven, "the seed is the word of God" (Luke 8:11). In speaking of the new birth, Peter also mentioned the "incorruptible seed" which he promptly identified as "the word of God, which liveth and abideth forever" (1 Peter 1:23). This entry is longer than a Bible module can hold. The rest is at https://www.sermonindex.net/commentary/ntrc/ 1 John 3:13-24 LOVE AND HATE (1 John 3:13-24) 13 Marvel not, brethren, if the world hateth you. "Marvel not," i.e., do not be surprised or astonished that the world hates you. The hatred of the good by the bad is nearly as old as the race; hence, it is not a thing to be surprised at, however much it may be regretted. This disposition was exhibited by Cain in the early morning of the race; and man's subsequent history has been filled with similar examples. Jesus, in teaching the disciples the obligation of love, referred to this attitude: "These things I com-mand you, that ye may love one another. If the world hateth you, ye know that it hath hated me before it hated you. If ye were of the world, the world would love its own; but because ye are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you." (John 15:17-19.). It is significant that only here, in the Epistle, does John refer to his readers as "brethren," the address being elsewhere, "little children," "beloved," etc. The designation "brethren," literally, brothers, was especially appropriate here, in view of his discussion of brotherly love. 14 We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brethren.--The connection which this verse sustains to the context in which it appears is very close, and must not be disregarded if the meaning of the text is to be deter-mined. Love of the brethren is that which distinguishes between the children of God and the children of the devil. (Verse 10.) The obligation of Christians to love one another is definite and positive, and has been taught them from their earliest acquaintance with Christianity. (Verse 11.) The feeling of hate which the world evidences toward the good is ever present, and is, therefore, to be expected, however much it may be regretted. (Verses 12, 13.) But, in spite of this, children of God have the blessed assur-ance of knowing that they have passed "out of death into life" because "they love the brethren." They thus have more about which to rejoice than to regret in this fact, since they are in life while the world remains in death. "Death" is the status of the unregenerate; "life," of the good. These terms, opposites in their reference to the condition of the good and the bad, are often used in this fashion in the scriptures. (Ephesians 2:1; Ephesians 2:5; Colossians 2:13.) Children of God "have passed" (migrated) from the spiritual death which formerly characterized them (and that which yet charac-terizes the world) into the life which is obtained through union with Christ. "He that hath the Son hath the life; he that hath not the Son of God hath not the life." (1 John 5:12.) The pro-noun "we" with which the verse begins is in the emphatic position in the sentence: whatever the world may do, or feel, toward us, we (in contrast with those of it) know (have certain, definite knowledge) that we have passed from a state of death into life because we love the brethren. Just here care should be exercised in avoiding an obvious and common misinterpretation of this text. It was not the apostle's purpose to affirm, nor did he affirm, that love of the brethren is the (or even a) condition of salvation from past, or alien, sins. Brotherly love is here declared to be the condition, not of our salvation, but of the certainty of our knowledge of it. It affords the evidence by which we may know that we have passed out of death into life. The test is human, not divine; it is one we are to apply to ourselves for the purpose designated. It is such a test by which the individual and (as John 13:34-35 shows) the world about him may determine the reality of his profession. "We know that we have passed out of death into life because . . . we have been baptized? Because . . . we meet on the first day of the week? Because . . . we give liberally of our means? However important these matters are, in their respective spheres, it remains that such do not constitute the test here set out. "We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brethren." "By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples . . ." (John 13 35.) Why? Because you say you are? Because there is outward conformity to the ceremonials of Christianity? Because you be-lieve that you are? These are not the tests which the Lord or-dained. "By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one for another."This does not mean that love alone is the basis of our accept-ance before God. What it does mean is that love is the base on which all other virtues rest; where it exists, the others may be implied; yea, they must exist. He who loves his brother will not only discharge his whole duty to him; he will be led, by the same considerations which prompt such love, to love God, and so to comply with all the requirements which such a relationship in-volves. He that loveth not abideth in death.--In the absence of love, the state in which one dwells is death. As the presence of love signifies life, so its opposite, hate, indicates death. The reference is not to future death; it already exists and will reach its con-summation in the next life. "He that believeth on him is not judged: he that believed not hath been judged already, because he hath not believed on the name of the only begotten Son of God." (John 3:18.) The absence of love is not the cause of his death, but the sign of it by which it is evidenced to others. "He that loveth not" is, literally, the not loving man; and "abid-eth" suggests a state into which one has settled down permanently. The death is spiritual death--separation from God and all that is good. 15 Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer:--The phrase "he that loveth not" (ho me agapon) is followed by "who-soever hateth" (pas ho mison), thus indicating that the two are of identical meaning: it was the design of the writer to show us that in the absence of love there is hate; there can be no middle ground. Not loving is hating; it is impossible to avoid one or the other of these opposites. In the teaching of the apostle, love and hate, as life and death, light and darkness, mutually exclude each other. He who has not the one must be regarded as possessing the other. It follows, therefore, that the only protection against hate in the heart is love. The affirmation of the text is that he who hates his brother is a murderer. This does not mean that he has committed the act of murder; or, that he is as guilty as if he had committed the act of murder; or, that God will hold him responsible for the act of murder. What is meant is, he has exhibited the disposition and spirit of a murderer; he has allowed passions to arise in his heart which, when carried to their ultimate ends, result in murder. The reason such a one does not commit murder is not that he lacks the disposition or desire the restraint which prevents it is not inward, but outward. Either the opportunity is lacking, or the courage or the means with which to accomplish it wanting. He refrains from the overt act, not from restraint which he himself has imposed, but a restraint from others. Murder is simply hate expressed in an overt act; and when it does not issue in this fashion, it is due to other causes than those which reside in the heart of the hater. If hate does not result in murder, the reason is to be sought, not in the hate, but in the lack of opportunity or means, or courage, of the hater. It was this which prompted the Lord to forbid that which leads to hate. In his explanation of the commandment, "Thou shalt not kill," he said, "Ye have heard that it was said to them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment: but I say unto you, that every one who is angry with his brother shall be in danger of the judgment; and whoso-ever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the coun-cil; and whosoever shall say. Thou fool, shall be in danger of the hell of fire." (Matthew 5:21-22.) Unnecessary anger and words of provocation are thus shown to violate, in spirit, the command to do no murder, since such often leads to it. Cain, who slew his brother Abel (1 John 3:12), affords an example of the fruits of Bate; and the devil, who was a murderer from the beginning (John 8:44), became such by sowing the seeds of hate in those whom he seduced. And ye know that no murderer bath eternal life abiding in him.--Obviously, spiritual life and spiritual death cannot abide in the same soul. Where hate is, there is death; where there is death, there can be no life. He who entertains hatred for another, whether it follows its normal course and results in murder, or from outward restraints imposed, stops short of the overt act, it still remains that such a one is utterly incapable of possessing life. Several phrases of similar import are discernible in the context. He is not of God who loveth not his brother. (Verse 10.) He that loveth not abideth in death. (Verse 14.) He who hates his brother has no life abiding in him. (Verse 15.) Thus, to be not of God, to abide in death, and to be without eternal life in the sense here intended, is the same. (1) In view of this, how impor-tant it is that we search our hearts diligently and purge from them every semblance of bitterness, hate, and envy. (2) How we should guard with ceaseless vigilance our own hearts lest such evil dis-positions possess us. (3) How grateful we should be that we have fallen under the influence of the glorious gospel of Christ, which enables us to subdue the feelings of hate and bitterness and envy, and to triumph over the dispositions of the flesh and carnal mind. 16 Hereby know we love, because he laid down his life for us:--Every word in this verse is of the utmost importance and justifies the most minute and careful study. "Hereby" is, literally, "in this," (en touto), i.e., in that which is about to be stated. "Know we" (egnokamen, perfect active indicative of ginosko, from an investigation of the facts we have come to possess certain knowledge of) "love," what it is, its nature, its sacrifices, its extent, and its design. This knowledge we have come to appre-hend, for the reason that Christ laid down his life for us (huper hemon), in our behalf, for our protection. The verb "laid down," is, significantly, the same mode of expression as that which the Lord utilized in his narrative of the shepherd and the sheep: "I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd layeth down his life for the sheep." . . "Therefore doth the Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I may take it again. No one taketh it away from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have the power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again." (John 10:11; John 10:17-18.) The meaning is, we have become acquainted with love we know what it is from having seen it displayed in Christ in his death for us. The preposition "for" here (huper) indicates the purpose of the death of Christ, and sheds much light on the nature and effects thereof. The picture in the preposition is of one who sees, for example, another who has fallen, wounded, in grave danger, and about to perish, and who rushes to him, stands over him, fights in his behalf, and enters the fray in his stead. This, and more, Jesus did for us in his death on the cross. He took our place; he suf-fered the penalty of law to be executed in his own person; "him who knew no sin he made to be sin in our behalf; that we might become the righteousness of God in him." (2 Corinthians 5:21.) We thus have, in both the Father and the Son, a clear demonstration of love, in all that it is and does. (John 3:16; John 5:13; Romans 5:8.) And we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.--In view of what Christ and God have done for us, we (the children of God) ought (are morally obligated) to lay down our lives (die) for the brethren (our brothers and sisters in Christ). The mean-ing is, Christ's death was the greatest possible proof of love; if, therefore, we imitate him as we ought, the same evidence of love which prompted him to die for others will be seen in us. "This is my commandment, that ye love one another, even as I have loved you. Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends." (John 15:12-13.) This, of course, does not mean that there is the same efficacy in the death of one Christian for another as there was in the death of Christ for the world; nor was it the writer's design to compare the effects which follow such sacrifices. The subject is love; the comparison which is drawn is designed to demonstrate what love is; and the example of Christ's sacrifice is offered for our emulation. Under what circumstances it is the duty of one child of God to die for another is not stated, but in any instance, we may assume, when more good would be accomplished for him by dying than by living. In any case, where a brother's welfare depends on such a sacrifice, love prompts it, without regard to the cost that might result. The contextual force of the apostle's teaching is clear: Cain is an example of hate; Christ, of love. Cain killed his brother Abel because of selfish-ness; Christ died for all men because of his unselfishness. If we are to avoid the hate which motivated Cain, we must adopt the love which influenced Christ. The willingness to give what one has, even his life, for the sake of others, is of the essence of true love. 17 But whoso bath the world's goods, and beholdeth his brother in need, and shutteth up his compassion from him, how doth the love of God abide in him?--In an argument from the greater to the less, the apostle shows, in the application of the principle taught in the verse preceding, that if a brother's welfare should require that we give up our life for him, we surely ought to make those smaller sacrifices involving only material things. A refusal to make such comparatively minor sacrifices is to demon-strate that the love of God does not abide in us. The "world's goods" here is, literally, "the life of the world" ton bion tou kos-mou); and the "world" contemplated is not the order of evil often set forth by this term (1 John 2:15), but the material sphere in which we live. The "life" of the world is not the higher spiritual life (zoe), but the organic life (bios), which is sustained by the things of the world. The meaning is, He who has in his possession the necessary means to sustain life and who sees his brother in need yet refuses to be touched by a feeling of sympathy for his unfortunate condition or be moved to supply the things needed, how does the love of God abide in him? The question is rhetorical for emphasis; its significance is, the love of God does not abide in him. The "love of God" here is not God's love for us, but our love for him. Here, as often elsewhere in the Epistle, and, indeed, throughout the sacred writings, we are taught the important lesson that it is impossible to separate theory and practice. Theology and religion are inseparable handmaids; theology without religion is an empty shell; religion without theology simply does not exist. Our obligation to our less fortunate brethren is clear and unmis-takable; we have the example of Christ (Matthew 20:28); we have the admonition of the inspired apostle (Galatians 6:10); only through compliance therewith do we exhibit the religion which is both pure and undefiled (James 1:27). 18 My little children, let us not love in word, neither with the tongue; but in deed and truth.--These words contain a summary of the ideas developed by the apostle in the verses im-mediately preceding. It was not his purpose to condemn affection-ate speeches, nor did he forbid us to express our love for others in word. The meaning is, "Let us not love in word only, neither with the tongue alone, but let us also love in deed and truth." It is an admonition to exhibit our love in such fashion as to demon-strate its reality. As the Lord forbade words of hypocrisy in the sermon on the mount (Matthew 6:5), so, here, John forbids the mere babble of brotherly love, when neither the word nor the tongue is attended by the fruits of brother love. 19 Hereby shall we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our heart before him:--Hereby, i.e., by what has just been said, we are enabled to know that we are of the truth, and have the means by which to assure our hearts before him. If our love is not merely in word or in tongue, but truly in deed and truth, in this (en touto) we shall know (come to possess the knowl-edge) that we are of the truth. "Of the truth" is, in significance, the equivalent of the phrase, "of God," so often occurring in the Epistle. These words of the apostle were likely an echo of the Lord's affirmation before Pilate: "Every one that is of the truth heareth my voice." (John 17:38.) Possessed of this informa-tion, we "shall assure our heart before him." The word "assure," from the verb peitho, means to still, persuade, placate; and the meaning here is, the knowledge of the reality of the love which we possess for others enables us to quiet the fears which arise in our own hearts and restrain the questionings which confront us from imagined deficiencies of life and conduct. 20 Because if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things.--If, in spite of the assur-ances provided, we yet suffer the uneasiness which springs from the realization of our own weaknesses and the consciousness of our own imperfections, let us remember that God is greater than our heart; he knows all things; and he will deal with us, not according to our conscience, but in harmony with the eternal and unchangeable principles of right. Knowing all things, he knows us better than we know ourselves, and he will deal with us ac-cordingly. Let us then not be disturbed by the promptings of conscience, but conform, as far as possible, to the standard of right, with the assurance that he will approve our course at the last day. 21 Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, we have boldness toward God; --If, in addition to the assurance we have from God that we are approved of him, we also have the approval of our own heart, we thus experience even greater confidence of the fellowship that is ours. It will be, of course, unnecessary to add, to the thoughtful reader, that John has under consideration here individuals whose hearts were fully attuned to the gospel and whose consciences were awakened to the relation which all sustain to God. Obviously the apostle does not hcre refer to men of wicked and depraved conscience whose hearts have been hardened to the influences of the truth and the restraints of right. The ref-erence is to a time of judgment; the court is that of the conscience ; and the judgment rendered is one of approval. The approval is that which the individual recognizes as bestowed upon him from the Father. 22 And whatsoever we ask we receive of him, because we keep his commandments and do the things that are pleasing in his sight.--In proof of the fact that the assurance alluded to above is well grounded, the Father is attentive to the prayers of his children and bestows upon them whatever they ask. Two rea-sons are assigned: (1) they keep his commandments; (2) they do the things that are pleasing in his sight. The promise of the pas-sage is, of course, to be understood within the limitations of his promises regarding prayer elsewhere set forth: viz., that the prayer must be in faith, in confidence, according to his will, and in keeping with his instructions regarding prayer. The truly faithful child of God seeks ever to learn what the will of the Father is, even in matters pertaining to prayer, and does not ask for those things which he discovers to be contrary to the Father's will. The verbs are all in the present tense here and emphasize continuous action; whatever we keep on asking, we keep on receiving, because we keep on keeping his commandments and habitually practice the things that are pleasing in his sight. 23 And this is his commandment, that we should believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, even as he gave us commandment.--It is significant that the word "commandment" here is singular; it sums up the duties involved in the injunctions which follow it: (1) to believe in the name of God's Son, Jesus Christ; and (2) to love one another. This emphasizes a principle needing constant attention, and one often taught in the Bible; it is impossible to separate faith and practice, duty and dogma. Belief, in order to bless, must eventuate in love; love, without belief, is an impossibility. Faith is the ground not only of love, but of all obedience; it is that which leads to and produces it. And obedience is that which perfects and validates faith. "But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith apart from works is barren." (James 2:20.) The name of Christ here is put for him and for all for which he stands to believe in his name is to accept him for what he is and all that he does. The command-ment, involving the duties herein set forth, was frequently on the lips of the Lord. (John 13:34; John 15:12; John 15:17.) 24 And he that keepeth his commandments abideth in him, and he in him.--Here is a reference to the Lord's own words, "If a man love me, he will keep my word:and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him." (John 14:23.) To "abide" in him is to have fellowship with him, to live and move in that realm of conduct which he approves, and thus to have the abiding presence of deity in the heart. While the context seems to require that the words "in him" refer to the Father (see verse 23), the affirmation is also true of the Son, and is so taught elsewhere. (Ephesians 1:7; Colossians 1:13-14, etc.) The apostle had earlier referred to this same fellowship. (1:3.) And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the spirit which he gave us.--This verse declares, (1) God abides in us (2) we have knowledge of his abiding presence; (3) we possess this knowledge by the Spirit which he has given. It should be observed that it is not the manner of entrance nor the mode of the Spirit's dwelling which is here referred to, but the fact of it. The Spirit assures of approval by motivating its possessor to do those things which enable the Father and the Son to abide in us. If it be asked how the Spirit does this, the answer is, Through the word of God, the only motivating force in immediate contact with the individual. Neither here nor elsewhere do the scriptures teach a direct operation of the Holy Spirit, either before or after conver-sion. It is as erroneous to assume an immediate impact of the Spirit on the Christian's heart as it is to argue similarly with reference to such impact on the sinner's heart. The fact of the Spirit's indwelling is often affirmed in the sacred writings. The manner or mode of such is an entirely different question. The two are not always distinguished; and the result is, a prepossession for some theory thereon creeps easily into our exegesis and colors our explanation, if we are not careful. The fact that the scriptures assert that the Spirit dwells in the Christian does not justify the conclusion that this indwelling is personal, immediate, and apart from the Word of God. Christ is in us (Colossians 1:25); from this we do not infer that in some mysterious, incomprehensible way he has, in his own person, taken up an abode in us. Why should we fall into similar error with reference to the third person of the Godhead the Holy Spirit?Commentary on 1 John 3:13-24 by E.M. Zerr1 John 3:13. Marvel not means not to be surprised or wonder at it, because such an attitude is to be expected. Jesus taught the same thing as recorded in John 15:18-19, and it is also taught in 1 Peter 4:12. The world will hate a faithful disciple of Christ on the same principle that Cain hated his brother. The righteous life is a constant rebuke to the unrighteous ways of the world and causes it to hate the righteous people. 1 John 3:14. The absence of love for the brethren is proof of one's being still out of the body of Christ. Those who actually enter the spiritual body will necessarily have a fellow feeling for the members. The act of entering the body is equivalent to passing from death unto life. John says we know in the sense that we have the direct evidence, namely, our mutual relation to each other in Christ. The last sentence of the verse is merely the reverse of the forepart. With this verse before us we may conclude that genuine evidence of brotherly love is not just the sentimental feeling, but it can be claimed only after a person has passed from death unto life. There will be more said on this subject when we come to 1 John 5:2. 1 John 3:15. Cain slew his brother because he hated him, so that the poison of murder was in his mind before he talked with him. Others may have the same kind of hatred in their heart but do not have the opportunity of carrying it out. The Lord can read such a mind and hence will regard that man as a murderer. Ye know that no murderer, etc. The Old Testament condemned a murderer and required that he be punished with death (Genesis 9:6 and many other passages). John is repeating the same condemnation except that he applies it to murderous intent as well as the actual deed. 1 John 3:16. The words of God have been supplied by the translators. The passage means that the Lord gave direct evidence of His love in that he laid down his life for us. This is a beautiful contrast with the man who hates his brother. Such a person not only does not make any sacrifice for another, but takes the other man's life from him. We ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. This cannot necessarily mean that we can literally die for the sake of another, except where the other person's life is in danger and we might lose ours in protecting him. The passage refers to the interest or devotion we would manifest for our brethren even to the extent of making great and trying sacrifices. (See Romans 16:4.) 1 John 3:17. In this verse the apostle gives a simple example (on the negative side) of what it means to be devoted to the interests of others. Bowels is used figuratively because people in old times thought that was the seat of the finer sentiments of the mind. John uses it to mean that when a man closes his sentiments of compassion against such an unfortunate creature as this, he cannot truly claim the love of God. 1 John 3:18. This verse means for our love to go farther than words; to be proven by our actions. It is a summing up of the preceding verse. 1 John 3:19. Nothing can give a disciple any stronger confidence than to know that he is proving his love by actions that benefit the brethren. He thereby manifests his relationship with the truth of the Lord which requires us to show practical love. 1 John 3:20. Our heart refers to our mind with its various attributes. Having been instructed to show our love by helpful works, if we do so we will feel assured in connection with the subject. If we fail to do our known duty we will have "a guilty conscience" and be self-condemned. If our own knowledge of neglect causes us to feel condemned, we may be sure that God will condemn us also because He knows our hearts. 1 John 3:21. This verse is virtually a repetition of the preceding one, except that it is considering a person who has carried out the teaching of practical love. 1 John 3:22. Because we keep his commandments is the condition on which we will receive what we ask. Keeping the commandments includes the obligation of consulting the scriptures to learn what would be right for us to receive. It also includes our doing the things that please Him. 1 John 3:23. Believing on Christ and loving the brethren (with practical love) sums up the qualities of an obedient child of God. That is because belief in Christ means more than a mere profession. It includes a working faith that will carry out the teaching in James 2:18, to show our faith by our works. 1 John 3:24. Dwelleth in him, and he in him. The matter of dwelling is a mutual affair between the Lord and his people. Since the subject is a spiritual one it is possible for "two persons to be at the same place at the same time"; it means they are dwelling with each other. Spirit which he hath given us enabled the apostles to speak with knowledge on the affairs of the kingdom.Commentary on 1 John 3:13-24 by N.T. Caton1 John 3:13— Marvel not, my brethren. The apostle here says: We should not marvel— wonder --­if we be hated by the world. While no reason is given, the former verse indicates the source of all hatred. The con­flict between good and evil had its origin early in the his­tory of the race. That conflict is still going on, and will to the end of time. It is the common lot of all the righteous to be hated by the wicked from the beginning. 1 John 3:14— We know that we have passed from death. While we are hated by the world, this should not be regarded by us, since we know that we have passed away from a state the final end of which is eternal death, into a state the end of which is life eternal. 1 John 3:14— Because we love the brethren. The reason is here given for the knowledge we possess of having passed from death into life. Love of the brethren is the test. This is the surest mark by which we can know our state. This disposition is enjoined by our holy religion. There is no danger that the humble disciple, because of the high encomiums bestowed on this virtue by the sacred Writers, shall ever conclude that love of the brethren exhausts all of his Christian duties. He knows better; he has always before him the example of his Master and his blessed teachings, and these unmistakably require at his hands many other duties which embrace those not of the brotherhood. 1 John 3:14— Abideth in death. The test by which one may know that the hope of eternal life is not entertained. When one hates his brother, the test is sure. Such an one is still under the condemnation of death; in other words, he is in that state which will ultimate in eternal death. 1 John 3:15— Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer. One who hates his brother is in a state or condition, under slight provocation influenced by his passion of hate, to slay him. His hatred is the seed or germ from which murder is produced. The instance of Cain, given in a for­mer verse, clearly illustrates this. It was his hatred which led him to slay Abel. As it influenced Cain, so hatred will, in like manner, influence others. 1 John 3:15— No murderer hath eternal life abiding in him. Here is the announcement of a great truth. It is simply impossible that one who cherishes such a hatred of his brother as will, under any circumstances, lead to the taking of his life, justly or unjustly, has, or can have, the capacity for eternal life abiding in him. The states of love and of hate are opposites. 1 John 3:16— Hereby perceive we the love of God. Christ, by the appointment of God, showed his love when he laid down his life on the cross. Having his example before us for our guidance, should occasion require it, we should lay down our lives for the brethren. 1 John 3:17— But whoso hath this world's goods. A plain contrast is here presented. If it be true that we should lay down our lives for the brethren, what shall be said of one who has an abundance, and yet refuses to furnish a needy brother those things necessary for his present succor? It is utterly impossible that the love of God could dwell in such a man. It can in no sense abide in him. 1 John 3:18— My little children, let us not love. We may claim to love our brethren, and many proper occasions present themselves where no outward manifesta­tion is given: If such a thing were possible, this would be loving in word or tongue. Such love is not acceptable. The love must be shown by deeds; if it be true love, it will so manifest itself; empty professions will not do. 1 John 3:19— And hereby we know that we are of the truth. When our love exhibits itself in deeds, when it is oper­ative or active, we may know assuredly that we are in the fellowship of God. 1 John 3:20— For if our heart condemn us. If we are deficient in love to our needy brethren, we know it; our own conscience so informs us. We thus con­demn ourselves. God is greater than our hearts, for he knows all things; his condemnation is therefore certain, because he is a more perfect and impartial Judge. 1 John 3:21— Beloved, if our heart condemn us not. But if our conscience does not condemn us— that is, does not accuse us of being deficient in love to our needy brethren — we have a conscience void of offense toward God, and we are assured that he will hear us, for he knows that we have not failed in duty. 1 John 3:22— And whatsoever we ask. Having kept Gods commandments, by loving our breth­ren in deed and in truth, and thereby acting in a way well pleasing to God, we know that whatever blessings we ask of him, agreeably to his will, we shall receive. 1 John 3:23— And this is his commandment. The commandment that we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another; believe that God sent his Son into the world; the same Jesus that was born in the manger; that he was sent to save us; take him, accept him as our Prophet, Priest and King; follow him as our Leader, trusting and relying upon him for salvation, and, in addition, love the brethren in deed and in truth. This is God's commandment. 1 John 3:24— And he that keepeth. By keeping God's commandments we have fellowship with him. We dwell with him, and he with us. 1 John 3:24— That he abideth in us. The spirit of the Master that is given to us manifests itself in our daily walk. If we be led by his spirit, we show its fruits in our lives, and by this spirit we know that we are the sons of God. Commentary on 1 John 3:13-24 by Burton Coffman1 John 3:13 --Marvel not, brethren, if the world hateth you.The apostle Peter wrote a similar warning (1 Peter 4:12), and Jesus Christ had repeatedly warned the apostles of the unyielding hostility of the world (John 15:18-19; John 15:25; John 16:1 ff; John 17:14, etc.). Cain with his murderous attitude toward his brother who was righteous is the prototype of all the unregenerated people who ever lived. Although it is natural for the non-Christian world to hate Christians, it is not the business or intention of Christians to seek or encourage such hatred; but, rather, it is the purpose of God's children so to live and deport themselves as to disarm such hatreds and win the lost to Christ. In keeping with that purpose, Christians should diligently eliminate from their lives all lack of amiability, carefully avoiding all behavior that might justly incur the world's hostility. The reason why the wicked hated the righteous is that, "The good man is a walking rebuke to the evil man, even if he never spake a word to him. His life passes a silent judgment."[33] Alcibiades, a debauchee, said to Socrates, "I hate you; because every time I meet you, you show me what I am."[34] "There is still a Cain, the world, hating its Abel, the church."[35][33] William Barclay, The Letters of John and Jude (Philadelphia: The Westminster press, 1976), p. 85. [34] Ibid. [35] A. Plummer, op. cit., p. 73. 1 John 3:14 --We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not abideth in death.We know that we have passed out of death into life ... The true test of Christian achievement is not world opinion, but holy love within the heart. "Passed out of" is from a word that means, "passing from one form of government to another, and was used of transition from one place to another."[36] It is akin to the word "migrated." Death into life ... This strongly reflects the teaching of Jesus who said, "The dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God, and they that hear shall live" (John 5:25). All of the New Testament writers reflect the same thought. The old sinful life is death; the new joy in Christ Jesus is life. He that loveth not ... One whose heart is not healed, opened and expanded by love is still abiding in the old life which is death. ENDNOTE: [36] David Smith, op. cit., p. 186. 1 John 3:15 --Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him.John here skipped a point or two in his argument, but it is nevertheless evident anyway. "His full argument is: where love is not, there is hatred; where hatred is, there is murder; where murder, there can be no eternal life."[37] An argument like this is squarely founded upon the teachings of the Master who equated the deprecatory word, the contemptuous epithet, and anger in the heart against a brother, with murder (Matthew 5:21-22). ENDNOTE: [37] W. N. Sinclair, op. cit., p. 485. 1 John 3:16 --Hereby know we love, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.In such a verse as this the unattainability of the full Christian ideal is starkly clear. John did not here command Christians to lay down their lives for each other, but he thundered the principle that they ought to do it. Why? Because Christ did so for us. If the exhibition of such a love as this is the final test to be met before one can be saved, we must be convinced that heaven is going to be sparsely settled! Such an ethic is very much like that set forth in the parable of the good Samaritan, being simply beyond that which the vast majority of Christian people have ever dared to attempt. It is perhaps intended in such Scriptures as these that Christians shall behold the truth of their being "unprofitable servants," and utterly incapable of achieving, in any complete sense, that righteousness which alone can save. In the light of this verse, who could ever imagine that he merited salvation, or that he had earned it? We believe that John's purpose here was primarily that of illuminating this truth. Knowing human weakness and inability to survive such a test (at least in the general sense), God, in his providence, has most infrequently made it a test of Christian fidelity. There are other tests of love, however; and John will immediately turn to one of them. 1 John 3:17 --But whoso hath the world's goods, and beholdeth his brother in need, and shutteth up his compassion from him, how doth the love of God abide in him?"This is a much more common and practical test, which all may be called upon to meet, Christian philanthropy."[38] A stingy Christian is a contradiction of terms. There is no use of one's imagining that he has the kind of love that would give up life for a brother, if the countless opportunities of aiding those in distress find no adequate response within him. In a sense, it is even more difficult to aid the poor and the needy than to suffer martyrdom. As Smith put it, "Martyrdom is heroic and exhilarating; the difficulty lies in doing the little things, making the petty sacrifices and self-denials which no one notices and no one applauds."[39] However, in a practical sense, no Christian can excuse himself from full compliance with the holy commandment in a matter like this. Translators and commentators have devised all kinds of ways to tone down the import of a passage like this. Note the following: "The well-to-do man who sees his brother in want, etc."[40]Doesn't this let most of us off the hook? In answer to the question of how far one should go in giving to the poor, although this is theoretical rather than practical, for the vast majority are in no danger at all of exceeding proper boundaries in the exercise of this grace, John Wesley wrote this: "Give to him that asketh thee ..." Give and lend to any so far (but no farther, for God never contradicts himself) as is consistent with thy engagements to thy creditors, thy family, and the household of faith.[41]Such a comment reveals the serious question of priorities which makes this one of the most difficult Christian commandments; and yet it is one that every child of God must receive and obey. The very great difficulty of implicit obedience to such commands as those in these verses has been "solved" in a number of devious ways. There are some who talk a good game of loving others, but whose lives show no evidence of it. John will deal with that in the very next verse. There are others who are masters of the art of doing good with "other people's money." They organize enterprises and institutions which they propose to support with contributions from others, feeling that in this they have obeyed the Lord. However, it is the clear intention of the New Testament that the personal element in giving should be dominant. A great many of the charitable enterprises in any community are run exactly like hard-nosed business establishments. [38] J. W. Roberts, op. cit., p. 93. [39] David Smith, op. cit., p. 186. [40] From the New English Bible in The New Testament in Four Versions (New York: Iverson-Ford Associates, 1963), p. 763. [41] John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (Naperville, Illinois: Alec R. Allensen, Inc., 1950), p. 34. 1 John 3:18 --My little children, let us not love in word, neither with the tongue; but in deed and truth.The prohibition here is not against expressions of love and concern for others; for, in their place, these are beautiful and helpful. What is forbidden is the substitution of loving words for needed assistance, which is here called loving "in word." An even worse error is that of merely using the vocabulary of love without any sincerity whatever, that is, talking of a love and concern for others without either the desire or any intention of doing anything except talking about it. This is called by John, "loving ... with the tongue." The world is loaded with "word" lovers and "tongue" lovers! Christians are expected to love "in deed and in truth." 1 John 3:19-20 --Hereby shall we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our heart before him: because if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things.In this verse, "heart" is used with the meaning of "conscience." "The heart in St. John's language is conscience; the word conscience is not found in his writings."[42]"Opinion is much divided on whether these verses are meant to inspire awe, or afford consolation."[43] There does not seem to be any way of arriving at an absolute certainty on this point, so both viewpoints (and translations) will be presented. AS Westcott's paraphrase is: "We shall then still our heart in whatsoever it may condemn us, because we are in fellowship with God, and that fact assures us of his sovereign mercy."[44]David Smith explained the meaning thus: The foregoing exhortation may have awakened a misgiving in our minds: "Am I loving as I ought?" Our failures in duty and service rise up before us, and "our heart condemns us." So the apostle furnishes a grand reassurance. The assurance is: (1) the worst that is in us is known to God, and (2) God sees the deepest things, and these are the real things. If our intention is to do his will, he takes account of that.[45]The translation in the New Catholic Bible also follows this pattern of thought: A probable rendering of the Greek is: "And in his sight we shall reassure our hearts, whatever our heart may accuse us of, because God is greater."[46]Orr wrote: When conscience brings its accusations, we may appeal to the higher and final tribunal of Omniscience. "Lord, you know everything; you know that I love, etc." (John 21:17).[47]Plummer in his comment on "God knoweth all things ..." has this: This is an awful thought for the impenitent, a blessed and encouraging thought for the penitent. God knows our sins, but he also knows our temptations, our struggles, our sorrow, and our love."[48]Despite the above, however, there is another viewpoint that must be considered. AS AWEIt could mean: since our hearts condemn us and God is infinitely greater than our hearts, God must condemn us even more. If we take it that way, it leaves us only with the fear of God and with nothing to say but, "God be merciful to me, a sinner."[49]Our conscience is but the faint echo of His voice who knoweth all things: if it condemns us, how much more He?[50]The main objection to this interpretation was stated by Stott who thought that the emphatic purpose of the paragraph was that of healing wounded hearts and not that of "opening the wounds wider ... and striking terror into their hearts."[51] Despite this, we cannot rule out the possibility of this second meaning, for in so doing we might be guilty of presumption. Nevertheless, we dare to hope that the first meaning is correct. It could be that the blessed Spirit who inspired these precious words intended a certain ambiguity. [42] Ibid., p. 912. [43] J. R. Dummelow, Commentary on the Holy Bible (New York: The Macmillan Company, 1937), p. 1057. [44] Ibid. [45] David Smith, op. cit., p. 187. [46] The New Catholic Bible, op. cit., p. 317. [47] R. W. Orr, op. cit., p. 616. [48] A. Plummer, op. cit., p. 75. [49] William Barclay, op. cit., p. 86. [50] John R. W. Stott, op. cit., p. 148. [51] Ibid. 1 John 3:21 --Beloved, if our heart condemns us not, we have boldness toward God;Whatever consolation may have been intended in the preceding verses, a greater consolation is promised for the Christian who will keep his conscience clean. 1 John 3:22 --and whatsoever we ask we receive of him, because we keep his commandments and do the things that are pleasing in his sight.Whatsoever we ask we receive ... "This declaration is limited by the conditions, which in other passages of Scripture, are made necessary to our petitions being granted by God."[52] There is in this verse the implied condition that it is the prayers of the obedient which are answered. ENDNOTE: [52] James Macknight, op. cit., p. 78. 1 John 3:23 --And this is his commandment, that we should believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, even as he gave us commandment.Believe in the name ... and love one another ... To believe and love - this is the greatest and most important command that ever issued from the throne of glory."[53] The inclusion here of faith "in the name" of Christ shows that, "the commandments" mentioned in the preceding verse are "not only, or chiefly moral."[54] They include the whole spectrum of Christian duty. It is a gross mistake to consider Christianity as chiefly an ethical code, though it is also that. Belief, or faith, in this passage also "carries an overtone of commitment"[55] and actually means fidelity, or faithfulness, as generally in the New Testament. These last two verses of the chapter (1 John 3:23-24) carry frequent references to the farewell discourses of Jesus (John 13, 15). Obedience to divine commands, continuity in faith and love, promised answer to prayer, abiding in God, and the gift of the Spirit are among these. His commandment ... Orr pointed out that "believe and love" as used in this verse have the meaning of "trust and obey."[56] Barclay also agreed to this: "When we put these two commandments together, we find the great truth that the Christian life depends on right belief and right conduct combined."[57][53] John Wesley, op. cit., p. 913. [54] Amos N. Wilder, op. cit., p. 270. [55] Ibid. [56] R. W. Orr, op. cit., p. 616. [57] William Barclay, op. cit., p. 88. 1 John 3:24 --And he that keepeth his commandments abideth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he gave us.Abideth in him, and he in him ... This refers to the Christian's abiding in Christ and Christ's abiding in the Christian, "a metaphor derived ultimately from our Lord's allegory of the vine and the branches (John 15:1 ff)."[58] It is not, however, some mystical experience which is meant by this; "its indispensable accompaniments are the confession of Jesus as the Son of God come in the flesh, and a consistent life of holiness and love."[59] In this connection, it is also appropriate to point out that no one was ever truly "in Christ" who was not baptized "into him," as the New Testament repeatedly affirms (Romans 6:3-5; Galatians 3:26-27; 1 Corinthians 12:13). And hereby we know that he abideth in us ... this is only another way of saying, "hereby we know we are truly Christians." By the Spirit he gave us ... In Christians, this refers to "the influence of the Spirit renewing their nature, sanctifying their wills, and directing their actions."[60] We have called this the "Gift Ordinary" of the Holy Spirit, given to Christians as an earnest in consequence of and subsequently to their being baptized into Christ (Acts 2:38 ff and Ephesians 1:13). This is also called in the New Testament the "earnest' of the Holy Spirit. In the wonderful words of this great chapter, the apostle John has revealed the true secret of the wonderful life in Christ, a life so glorious that it is appropriately described as a transfer from darkness to light, and as passing from death to life. The basics of it are profoundly simple. These are: the acceptance of Jesus Christ as God's only begotten Son, the confession of his name, being baptized into him, abiding "in him," having him "abide in" us, and responding to his great love by loving all people of the whole world, and "the brethren in Christ" with even a more fervent love. Such a life is the greatest adventure that human life on earth can offer, and those who dare to accept the challenge shall receive a final reward of eternal life with God in heaven. [58] John R. W. Stott, op. cit., p. 150. [59] John R. W. Stott, op. cit., p. 151. [60] James Macknight, op. cit., p. 79. 1 John 4:1-6 SPIRIT OF TRUTH OF ERROR (1 John 4:1-6) 1 Beloved, believe not every spirit, but prove the spirits, whether they are of God; --The fervent address of love with which this verse begins, "beloved," occurs three times in this chapter, verses 1, 7, and 11, and indicates the tender warmth of affection characteristic of the writer for those addressed. To it a warning is appended with reference to false teachers which then abounded. Such were the "spirits" referred to, and often elsewhere alluded to in the Epistle. (E.g., 2:18, 22, 26; 4:5, etc.) The sense of the admonition is, therefore, "Refrain from believing every teacher who claims to be from God, but prove (test) them and see whether or not they really are of God." This warning was especially needful at the time because Asia Minor generally, and Ephesus particularly, was rampant with magic and mysticism, heresy and error, and the advocates of each cult claimed supernatural direction and aid. Affecting to be led by the power of God, they sought to support their theories in the same fashion, and by means of the same claims as false teachers today. The readers of the Epistle were thus admonished to "prove" the spirits (dokimazete to pneumata) run an assay on them. as a metallurgist does his metals, and determine whether they were of God. This, they were able to do, either by exercising miraculous power in the discernment of spirits (1 Corinthians 12:4-11), or by comparing the claims of these men with the known teaching of the Holy Spirit through properly accredited representatives. (See the comments on 1 John 2:27 ff.) There was undoubtedly a wide diffusion of spiritual gifts during the miraculous age of the church in order to supply the deficiency obtaining in the absence of an infallible, documented report of the Spirit's teaching such as we have in the New Testament today. It is significant that it was John's readers who were to make the test and not some ecclesiastical dignitary or official head. Here, by implication, is positive proof of the falsity of the claim to infallibility by the pope of Rome and the consequent denial of the right of private judgment in matters religious as is done in the Catholic Church today. Because many false prophets are gone out into the world. --The reason for the injunction delivered in the earlier clauses of this verse. These false prophets are referred to by John in 2:18 as "antichrists," and the Lord, during his public ministry, warned that such would appear: "And many false prophets shall arise, and shall lead many astray." (Matthew 24:11.) It was, therefore, a time of crisis; and the welfare of the cause of Christ and the salvation of their own souls were dependent on the immediate repudiation of these deceivers and antichrists. Such still abound, and the injunction is equally applicable to us today. Men still affect to be led by the Spirit of God; still claim to be representatives of the Most High; yet attempt to propagate their doctrines on the basis of supernatural aid. These we are to prove (try, test) by the infallible standard we possess--the New Testament. It matters not how pious or religious a teacher may affect to be, he is worthy of belief only when his teaching is in complete harmony with the word of God. If it is not in harmony therewith, he ought to be, he must be, speedily repudiated. To do otherwise is to imbibe the poison of unbelief; it is to espouse false doctrine it is to become a party to the propagation of error. "If any one cometh unto you, and bringeth not this teaching, receive him not into your house, and give him no greeting: for he that giveth him greeting partaketh in his evil works." (2 John 1:10-11.) Because Satan ever attempts to counterfeit the work of the Lord, false prophets have ever abounded. (Luke 6:26; Acts 13:6; Revelation 16:13.) We must be constantly watchful, we must exercise ceaseless vigilance lest we, too, succumb to their allurements and surrender to their seductions. 2 Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God:--The test by which certain false teachers then prevalent might be discerned and identified is here indicated: "Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God." Conversely, any man who denied that Jesus had come in the flesh was not of God. Numerous false doctrines regarding the nature of Christ were then being propagated. Some of these questioned his deity (See underothers,;humanityIntroduction,his."The Design of the Epistle.") The apostle thus provided a test by which false and true teachers might be distinguished in the matters then confronting the church: those who confessed that Jesus had come in the flesh were of God. (a) Those who acknowledged such, confessed the deity of Jesus by admitting that he was the Christ, and thus the Messiah of the Old Testament prophets (b) in confessing that he had come in the flesh they repudiated the doctrine of the Docetic Gnostics who denied this. These men denied the humanity of Jesus by alleging that he only appeared to have a body of flesh but, in reality, did not. Thus, in acknowledging both the humanity and the deity of Jesus one vindicated his claim to the Spirit's direction. Paul similarly said, "Wherefore I make known unto you, that no man speaking in the Spirit of God saith, Jesus is anathema ; and no man can say, Jesus is Lord, but in the Holy Spirit." (1 Corinthians 12:3.) The verb "is come" in this verse is translated from a Greek perfect, thus indicating past action with existing results. The incarnation was past as to its occurrence, but its effects--benefits and blessing--yet remain, and will continue to do so throughout time and eternity, involving the sum of all that Christianity has vouchsafed to man. This confession embraces the basic truth on which Christianity rests, the foundation stone on which the church is built. (Matthew 16:13-20.) To deny it is the mark of the false teacher; to acknowledge it, with all that this involves, is to vindicate one's claim to the truth. It thus supplies an infallible test and by it the true may be separated from the false. 3 And every spirit that confesseth not Jesus is not of God: and this is the spirit of the antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it cometh and now it is in the world already.--This is a negative statement, embodying the same truth as that which is positively put in verse 2, with the additional information that to refuse to confess both the deity and the humanity of Jesus is to manifest the spirit of the antichrist. (See comments on 1 John 2:22, for the identity of the antichrist.) Warnings had been given that such would appear and now they were there. Though these false teachers were not the antichrist primarily designated in this fashion, they exhibited the spirit of the antichrist, in their opposition to Christ and his teaching. In this sense, all false teachers, including those in the world today, are of the antichrist. They are of the antichrist in that they are opposed to the teaching of Christ, his church, and his people; and though they pretend to be of him, they have, in reality, arrayed themselves against him. The fact that they teach much that is true does not justify their claim of being of the Lord; the error which they teach and the opposition which they exhibit establish their true spirit--the spirit of the antichrist. The Catholic Church teaches many things that are true; but this monstrous ecclesiasticism is so formidably arrayed against the truth and the cause of the Lord that it is on the side of Satan, and so of all the denominational and sectarian world. It is the spirit of the antichrist to do as they do, and all who manifest this spirit derive it from the same source. It originates from the love of error and from an unwillingness to abide in the truth. It is indeed possible for one to have the spirit of truth, i.e., a love for truth while in error; and, conversely, to have a spirit of error while holding much truth. The former repudiate, without hesitation, error as they learn the truth; the latter, though holding much truth, are often motivated by the same spirit as that which characterizes the world. Those of this class are sometimes met with in the church. Prejudice is not a peculiarity of the denominational world alone. 4 Ye are of God, my little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world.--"Ye" is in emphatic position in the Greek text which, literally rendered, is: "Ye out of God are, little children . . ." a clause indicative of John's love for them ("my little children"), his relation of a counselor and father ("my little children"), and their relation to God ("Ye are of God"). Emphasis is given to the pronoun for the purpose of setting his readers over against the false teachers under consideration in the context. They were thus sharply distinguished from each other, the saints were on one side, the false teachers on another; and thus the test provided might be easily applied. "Overcome" is translated from a perfect verb, thus indicating that John's readers had earlier reached a decision regarding the nature of these teachers and had rejected them; and an abiding conviction of the matter yet remained with them. They had overcome the false teachers by refusing to listen to their false doctrines, and by repudiating that which these teachers sought to impose upon them. The reason assigned why they were able to do this was that "He who was in them is greater than he that is in the world." God was in them and thus the power which motivated them was greater than that of Satan who is in the world. "We know that we are of God, and the whole world lieth in the evil one." (1 John 5:19.) Satan is the prince of this world. Hence, Christians are taught to "Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him." (1 John 2:15.) Satan is the guiding spirit of all those who are of the world, and hence "Whosoever therefore would be a friend of the world maketh himself an enemy of God." (James 4:4.) 5 They are of the world: therefore speak they as of the world, and the world heareth them.--These men who were teaching false doctrines were of the world; the world, therefore, was the origin and source of that which they were and taught. In a similar statement, and to Jews who were advocates of false doctrines, though not that here particularly contemplated, but possessed of the same spirit of error, Jesus said, "Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father it is your will to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and standeth not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father thereof." (John 8:44.) In this verse John may have been echoing words he had heard from the Lord: "If ye were of the world, the world would love its own: but because ye are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore, the world hateth you."(John 15:19.) The word "world" in these passages is a term used to denote unregenerate human nature and all that is in harmony with it--that sphere which is dominated by the devil and which willingly submits to his domination.To guard the saints against any disappointment they might experience in observing that the preaching of these men was attended with success, more success, perhaps, than that which followed the preaching of the true gospel, John pointed out that the popularity of their preaching was due to the fact that it was suited to the desires and inclinations of the world. Such is equally true today. It is a sad commentary on human nature that the masses of people prefer to listen to pleasing falsehoods, rather than unpleasant truth. This disposition has not always been exclusively of the world. Frequently, in the past, and occasionally in the present, members of the church have exhibited the same attitude. Having charged Timothy to preach the word, Paul assigned as the reason why he should "reprove, rebuke, and exhort," that "the time will come when they will not endure the sound doctrine; but having itching ears, will heap to themselves teachers after their own lusts and will turn away their ears from the truth, and turn aside unto fables." (2 Timothy 4:1-4.) 6 We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he who is not of God heareth us not.--"We" is emphatic, and those included in it are put in contrast with the false teachers earlier considered. It does not embrace all of the saints (if so, who were those who heard them?), but the apostles primarily, and in a secondary sense, those who taught the same truth. Those who are "in tune" with God are "in tune" with each other; hence, "He that knoweth God (recognizes him for what he is) heareth us" ; and, conversely, "He who is not of God heareth us not." Jesus said, "He that is of God heareth the words of God: for this cause ye hear them not, because ye are not of God." (John 8:47.) "Knoweth," in this verse, is translated from a present active participle, and designates "one who keeps on knowing God," i.e., an individual ever increasing in the knowledge of the one and only true God. Such a one, in knowing God, recognizes God's truth when it is preached, and hears it gladly; whereas, one who is not of God, hears it not. This, indeed, is one reason why some consider some sermons as uninteresting and dull, and others regard the same efforts as highly interesting and inspirational. The gospel was, to the Jews, a stumbling block, and to the Greeks, foolishness (literally, silliness); and to all who are not of God today, the gospel is a boresome, tiring thing. The reflection in all such instances is not on the message, or on him who presents it, but on the person exhibiting such a disposition. Of such, Jesus said, "Ye hear them not because ye are not of God." One may determine his spiritual level by measuring the degree of interest which he feels in the preaching of the gospel of God. How could such a one find the prospect of heaven inviting, when he experiences so little interest in the work of the Lord here? John knew what it was to be chilled and discouraged by the indifference and disdain of worldly hearers, even as every gospel preacher does today. By this we know the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error. --"By this," i.e., by the attitude people manifest toward the preaching of the truth it is possible to distinguish between those who held to the spirit of truth and those who are influenced by the spirit of error. The Holy Spirit is styled "the Spirit of truth" in John 14:17, and but for the fact that it is put here in contrast with "the spirit of error," the assumption would be that the Holy Spirit is directly referred to here. It appears, however here, that the "spirit of truth" is a disposition favorable toward the truth, as the "spirit of error" is a disposition friendly to error. In view of the fact that the word "spirit" in the text of the American Standard Version is spelled with a small letter "s," it follows that this was the view of that eminent body of translators. Inasmuch .as John had just been discussing the difference between those who hold to the truth and those who advocate error, the context supports this view. See the comments on verse 3. Commentary on 1 John 4:1-6 by E.M. Zerr1 John 4:1. The spirits means those men who profess to be speaking by inspiration, such as John mentions in the closing verse of the preceding chapter. The false teachers used that claim to obtain attention from the uninformed. The brethren are warned not to believe every man who makes such a claim, but first try them which means to test and examine them by the rule that is given in the next verse.1 John 4:2. Nobody denied that a person lived on earth by the name of Jesus Christ, but some denied that He was divine in a body of flesh. That was equivalent to saying that He was not the divine Son of God. That would also mean that Christ had no authority or saving virtue. It was generally known that a person was predicted to come into the world to fulfill the law and the prophets, and to effect a plan of salvation on the merits of His blood. But it was denied by some that the person known as Jesus Christ was the expected one. Hence if a man acknowledged the divinity of Christ it was evidence that he was inspired by the Holy Spirit. Paul teaches this also in 1 Corinthians 12:3 where he says, "No man can say Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost" or Spirit. 1 John 4:3. This verse merely sets forth the opposite of the preceding one, and completes the rule by which the brethren may try the spirits, thus avoiding the misfortune of being misled by the antichrists and other false teachers. 1 John 4:4. The disciples had overcome them (the antichrists) because they were the children of God. He will care for those who trust in Him, and that will insure them the victory over the enemy because God who is in them is greater than the "wise men" of the world who were trying to seduce them. 1 John 4:5. They (the antichrists) are of the world, which means they are interested in worldly practices. That is why they are opposing Christ because he condemns their evil ways. But the people of the world will hear their false teaching because it encourages their unrighteous life. 1 John 4:6. We has special reference to John and the other apostles because they had been inspired to write the truth. To know God means to have come into close fellowship with Him by obedience to the word that was given by the Spirit. All such persons would logically be inclined to hear the apostles. The conflict between truth and error still is the concern of the apostle. That conflict is determined by whether a man is of God or of the world.Commentary on 1 John 4:1-6 by N.T. Caton1 John 4:1— Beloved, believe not every spirit. Here a solemn injunction is laid upon the brethren to whom this epistle is addressed. We must first understand just what is exacted of us before we can comply with the injunction. What is it to believe but to have faith in? We are not to believe— what? Every spirit is the answer. But spirits exhibit their presence by acts. Cain exhibited the spirit of a murderer. Hence it is that we must watch the exhibitions of those we come in contact with, and, until known to be good, we must not have faith in them. The apostle says, try the spirits, and the reason is given, making all things plain. False prophets have gone out in the world. These may make loud pretensions of piety. In them we must not place our faith until tried. 1 John 4:2— Hereby know ye the spirit of God. There is, then, a spirit which is of God, and a spirit not of God. The former only are we to place faith in, and the latter reject. That we may know assuredly the spirit which is of God, this shall be the criterion, the crucial test— the spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh, is of God. None other is, and none other is to be believed. 1 John 4:3— And every spirit that confesseth not. The crucial test being given, and the spirit tried by this test refusing to confess that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh, you may know, beyond question, is not of God, but is of antichrist. It was not only foretold that antichrist would come, but be it known, such are already in the world. As it was in he days of John, so it is now in our age. Some of these false teachers claim to be inspired. They did then, and they do now. 1 John 4:4— Ye are of God, little children. These, here called little children, were the servants of God, had received God's spirit, were enabled to detect and refute these false teachers, because they believed in and relied upon God. The spirit that was in them was greater and mightier, being from God, than the spirit in the false prophets, which was from the wicked one. 1 John 4:5— They are of the world. These false teachers are of the world. They belong to the world, and, speaking only from the principles of the world, all of their own kind, the wicked in the world, listen to and receive their utterances with pleasure. 1 John 4:6— We are of God. Here, I think, the writer, by the word "we," means the apostles. They were clothed with miraculous or God-given powers, by which they could demonstrate that their message was from God. Now, a teacher who knows God, will hear us apostles and acknowledge our authority. A teacher that will not hear us as God's messengers is not of God. 1 John 4:6 --Hereby know we the spirit of truth. By this mark we can know whether the teachers that come among us are inspired by the spirit of God, or the spirit of the devil.Commentary on 1 John 4:1-6 by Burton CoffmanThere is a great deal of reiteration in this chapter, but additional truth appears with regard to testing the spirits (1 John 4:1-6), and there is more extended teaching on love. God is love, love as a test, love of one another, love of God, God's love of us, etc. are all stressed (1 John 4:7-21). One of the features of this whole epistle is the presentation of a number of tests regarding the genuineness of Christian life. These have been organized by some and classified as the tests of: (1) obedience; (2) love; and (3) faith.[1] However, they are not separate tests, but each partakes of the nature of the others. Note the following: The Test What is Proved Everyone that doeth Is begotten of him righteousness (1 John 2:29). (1 John 2:29). By the Spirit which he gave us We know that he abideth in us (1 John 3:24). (1 John 3:24). Everyone that loveth Is begotten of God, and (1 John 4:7) knoweth God (1 John 4:7). If we love one another God abideth in us, and his (1 John 4:12) love is perfected in us (1 John 4:12). Because he has given us of his We know that we abide in him Spirit (1 John 4:13). and he in us (1 John 4:13). Confessing Jesus as the Son of God abides in him, and he in God (1 John 4:15). God (1 John 4:15). Believing that Jesus is the That one is begotten of God Christ (1 John 5:1). (1 John 5:1). If we keep his commandments We love God (1 John 5:3). (1 John 5:3). It will be noted that such tests have a prominent place in this chapter. They are not separate tests, actually, but a composite, each of the above Scriptures being, in a sense, commentary on each one of the others. What is Proved in each test, for example, being exactly the same thing that is proved by all the others. Likewise, the unity of the tests is seen in the fact that "keeping his commandments," "loving one another, ... doing righteousness," "possessing the Holy Spirit," etc., all amount to one and the same thing. ENDNOTE: [1] R. W. Orr, A New Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan Publishing House, 1969), p. 617. 1 John 4:1 --Beloved, believe not every spirit, but prove the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets are gone out into the world. (1 John 4:1) Believe not every spirit ... "The literal meaning of this is stop believing; evidently some of John's readers were being carried away by Gnostic teaching."[2]Every spirit ... means every false prophet, or every false teacher pretending, or seeming, to be inspired. It is a gross misinterpretation of this passage to understand John here as "speaking not of men, but of spirits."[3] The final clause of the verse states flatly that the "false prophets" were in view. Such men pretended to be prophets of God speaking by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit; and the concurrent existence in the church of that period of true prophets (such as Agabus) tended at times to encourage Christians to listen to anyone claiming inspiration. Blaney was correct in identifying the false prophets of this verse with the antichrists of 1 John 2:18.[4] The problem of such men among God's people was nothing new; false prophets had often troubled the Israel of the Old Testament, and Christ himself warned of the "false prophets ... in sheep's clothing ... but who are ravening wolves, etc." (Matthew 7:15 f). Likewise, Paul had to contend with the same thing at Corinth (1 Corinthians 12:3). The test which Christ gave for recognizing such false teachers was, "by their fruits ye shall know them." That test should be added to the ones John was about to cite here. Whether they are of God ... The expression "of God" is used seven times in these first seven verses; and, "It is of the first importance to attach a precise meaning to this phrase ... it means has its origin in God.[5]Prove the spirits ... This admonition to establish the validity of the claims of any teacher claiming God as the origin of his message, was directed to the whole church. Every Christian is responsible for checking out the claims of allegedly inspired teachers, as noted by Sinclair: "This examination of truth and error is inculcated on all alike, not merely on an ordained or materially separate class."[6]The nature of the doctrine taught by the evil teachers is easy to read in the apostle's refutation of it in the following verses. Smith summed it up thus: The Cerenthian heresy had much to say about the "spirit," boasting a larger spirituality. Starting with the theological postulate of an irreconcilable antagonism between matter and spirit, it denied the possibility of the Incarnation, and drew a distinction between Jesus and Christ. Its spirit was not the Spirit of truth, but the spirit of error.[7][2] Charles C. Ryrie, Wycliffe Bible Commentary, New Testament (Chicago: Moody Press, 1971), p. 1022. [3] Amos N. Wilder, The Interpreter's Bible, Vol. XII (New York: Abingdon Press, 1957), p. 274. [4] Harvey J. S. Blaney, Beacon Bible Commentary, Vol. 10 (Kansas City: Beacon Hill Press, 1967), p. 387. [5] William Barclay, The Letters of John and Jude (Philadelphia: The Westminster Press, 1976), p. 92. [6] W. N. Sinclair, Ellicott's Bible Commentary, Vol. VIII (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan Publishing House, 1959), p. 487. [7] David Smith, Expositor's Greek New Testament, Vol. V (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1959), p. 189. 1 John 4:2 --Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God:"The confession here is a Christian creed in brief compass."[8] Orr affirmed that a "better translation" of this verse is: "Every spirit which confesses Jesus as Christ come in the flesh is of God."[9] Whether or not that is the correct translation, it is, in any case, a proper understanding of what the passage means. This is evident, as Morris noted; since, "The reference to flesh puts emphasis on the Incarnation."[10] Smith also preferred the translation advocated by Orr, adding that, "It is an accurate definition of the doctrine denied by the Cerenthians,"[11] and thus a perfect refutation of it. This verse is actually a thumbnail summary of Christian doctrine, a synecdoche standing for all of it, as was pointed out by Ryrie, "From this verse, we are not to suppose that this was the only test of orthodoxy; but it is a major one, and it was the most necessary one for the errors of John's day."[12]The true teaching of this verse was paraphrased by Stott: "Far from coming upon Jesus at the baptism and leaving him before the cross, the Christ actually came in the flesh and never laid it aside."[13] This echoes the great confession by Peter in Matthew 16:13 ff; and, properly understood, the great confession of the true identity of Jesus of Nazareth the Christ the Son of God includes the whole of Christianity. In this great fact, the entire Christian religion is unified and bound together. This is why the Lord Jesus Christ made this the dogmatic foundation of the church. [8] R. W. Orr, op. cit., p. 617. [9] Ibid. [10] Leon Morris, The New Bible Commentary, Revised (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1970), p. 1267. [11] David Smith, op. cit., p. 189. [12] Charles C. Ryrie, op. cit., p. 1023. [13] John R. W. Stott, Tyndale New Testament Commentaries, Vol. 19 (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1964), p. 154. 1 John 4:3 --and every spirit that confesseth not Jesus is not of God: and this is the spirit of the antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it cometh; and it is in the world already.That confesseth not Jesus ... The person of the Son of God is the center of all true religion. No matter how attractive a system may be, no matter how skillfully it may be advocated by personable and attractive personnel, no matter how imposing are the names of "authorities" associated with it, no matter how popular it may become - any and every religion or philosophy that is not anchored in both the eternal deity of Jesus Christ and in his historical humanity is false, having its origin in Satan, not in God. The New Catholic Bible translated this verse: "Every spirit that severs Jesus is not of God, but of Antichrist," admitting in the footnote, however, that this is not the best rendition of the Greek.[14] It is included here, however, as valid comment on the implications of the passage. The heresy of the age was that of making a "severance" between Jesus as a man, and the Christ. The church historian Socrates affirmed that this was the original reading of the letter,[15] but this is rejected by current scholarship. The spirit of the antichrist ... There is no need whatever to capitalize Antichrist. As Macknight said, "From this, as well as from 1 John 2:18, it appears that Antichrist is not any particular person, nor any particular succession of persons in the church."[16] It is thus clearly a mistake to identify this with Paul's "man of sin" in 2 Thessalonians 2, as so many have done. Both, however, share in the fact of originating in the devil, not in Christ, and also in this, that the spirit of both was already working in the world at the time the apostles wrote. [14] New Catholic Bible (New York: Catholic Book Publishing Company, 1949), New Testament, p. 317. [15] David Smith, op. cit., p. 189. [16] James Macknight, Macknight on the Epistles, 1John (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House, reprint, 1969), p. 88. 1 John 4:4 --Ye are of God, my little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world.Ye ... Stott pointed out that 1 John 4:4; 1 John 4:5; and 1 John 4:6 all begin with an emphatic personal pronoun: "(1 John 4:4) ye ([@humeis]), (1 John 4:5) they ([@autoi]), and (1 John 4:6) we ([@hemeis])."[17] These refer respectively to (1 John 4:4) John's readers in general, (1 John 4:5) to the false teachers, and (1 John 4:6) to John the apostle and other apostolic witnesses of Christ and the revelation of his doctrine to mankind. This distinction is important. Ye have overcome ... This ought to be understood as a statement of fact. "By refusing to listen to the false teachers, the sheep have overcome them, conquered them; the seducers have gone out, unable to hold their own within the fold."[18]He that is in the world ... is a reference to the devil, "the prince of this world."[19] It also includes the meaning that the indwelling God in Christian hearts is greater than any particular advocate of Satan's teaching. Morris was impressed that, "Apart from Revelation, where it is used 17 times, 1John uses the verb to overcome more often than any other book (6 times)."[20]He that is in you ... This is a clear reference to the fact of God indwelling, or being "in" Christians, a truth which is no different in any manner from Christ or the Holy Spirit dwelling in them. See more on this in my Commentary on Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, and Colossians, pp. 97-99. [17] John R. W. Stott, op. cit., p. 157. [18] A. Plummer, The Pulpit Commentary, Vol. 22,1John (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1950), p. 103. [19] W. N. Sinclair, op. cit., p. 487. [20] Leon Morris, op. cit., p. 1267. 1 John 4:5 --They are of the world: therefore speak they as of the world, and the world heareth them.They are of the world ... This is another in a series of tests by which evil teachers could be recognized and refused. Significantly, in the early church, there were persons supernaturally endowed with the ability to "discern spirits," that is, the ability to know which were of God and which were not (1 Corinthians 12:10); but it appears that John had the succeeding ages in mind here, a period when all who might have had that apostolic gift no longer lived. Other tests already stressed in this first paragraph of the chapter were: (1) the test of confessing that Jesus was the Christ who came in the flesh; (2) the test of whether or not they were indwelt by the Father (1 John 4:4); and (3) the test of their life-style. The false teachers were worldly, concerned chiefly with material and temporal things, living in pride and ostentation, being "of the world." These tests are still valid. And the world heareth them ... This is not surprising. "These false teachers speak from the same principle, wisdom, and spirit of the world; and, of consequence, the world approvingly hears them."[21] In our own times, the false teacher speaks the wisdom of the world, reasons from the worldly frame of reference, quotes its philosophers, heeds its authorities, accommodates to its theology, all the while neglecting to declare emphatically the precious teachings of the apostles of Christ as revealed in the New Testament. ENDNOTE: [21] John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (Naperville, Illinois: Alec. R. Allenson, Inc., reprint, 1950), p. 914. 1 John 4:6 --We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God heareth us not. By this we know the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error.We are of God ... us ... The apostle's high claim in this is that of "speaking for God in Christ," as one of the plenary representatives of the Son of God on earth and as one of the eyewitnesses of that full gospel which he declared, including his personal and first hand knowledge of the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The blunt point of this verse is: that if the false teachers do not agree with the apostles of Christ, they are liars. Everything that was ever advocated in the name of Christianity must pass this test. As Roberts expressed it: Notice that John sharpens the antithesis, the "us" (the apostolic teachers) and the "them," (the circle of the false teachers). They are two mutually exclusive groups with no neutral ground.[22]No private teacher could afford to say, as John said here that, "Whoever knows God agrees with me; and only those who are not of God disagree with me."[23] But as regards the holy apostles of Jesus Christ, this is the simple truth. In today's circumstances, this means that those who are of God and those who are not of God are revealed, absolutely, by whether or not their teaching agrees with the New Testament. By this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error ... This is a fourth test of the false teachers, to be considered along with the three tests mentioned in the preceding verse. There is nothing exhaustive about this list of tests; John's extensive teaching on the tests of determining genuine Christianity reveal others. [22] J. W. Roberts, The Letters of John (Austin, Texas: The R. B. Sweet Company, 1968), p. 109. [23] John R. W. Stott, op. cit., p. 158. 1 John 4:7-21 LOVE (1 Johm 4:7-21) 7 Beloved, let us love one another; for love is of God-- Again, the writer exhibits tenderness and genuine love in ad-dressing his readers as "Beloved." He was the "apostle of love," and the frequency with which he enjoins love reveals the impor-tance he attached to this characteristic of true saints. The regularity with which he taught it is not surprising; he often heard it from the lips of the Lord during the public ministry. (Cf. John 13:34-35; John 15:9-23.) Inasmuch as love is the foundation stone of all the commandments (Mark 12:29-30), it was imperative that each saint should be impressed with its essentiality. John was later to write, "If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, cannot love God whom he hath not seen." (4:20.) It is very possible that there were those in the early church, as among us today, who, despite the fact that they claimed to be Christians, yet exhibited hatred for their brethren, and thus the great emphasis which John gives to the theme in all his Epistles. "Love is of God," i.e., it finds its origin in him and proceeds from him; and one who loves God must, as a necessary conse-quence, love his brother. "He that saith he is in the light and hateth his brother, is in the darkness even until now." (1 John 2:9.) Everyone that loveth is begotten of God, and knoweth God. -- Love for others is so peculiarly Christian in its origin that where it exists there is evidence of the new birth. Only one who has received the spiritual life which comes through the birth from above exhibits such a disposition. Love, in this passage, is a sign and proof of the new birth, and not a condition precedent to it. The writer is here showing how the claim to the new birth may be tested. Does genuine love fill the heart of the one affirming it, and does such a one really know God? If the answer is Yes, the birth from above may be assumed; if No, whatever the claim, it is weighed in the balance and found wanting. Love is the one characteristic of the Christian religion which it is impossible to counterfeit! While deploring the phraseology, the following quo-tation from the theologian Augustine, made many hundreds of years ago, is a marvelous statement of truth: "A wicked man may have baptism. He may have prophecy. He may receive the Sacrament of the Body and Blood of Christ. (1 Corinthians 11:29.) All of these things a wicked man may have. But no wicked man can have love." How wonderfully true this conclusion is! How important it is that every child of God strive to exhibit this charac-teristic of the genuinely converted one! 8 He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love. --The verb here--loveth--is translated from the present active par-ticiple of agapao, "He who does not continue to love does not know (is without an acquaintance) God. "Knoweth not" is aorist active indicative (ouk egno ton theon), has not once known, hence, has never known, God. The meaning is that one who claims to be a child of God, but does not, and has not, felt the love which exists between true children of God, demonstrates the fact that he not only does not know God, he has never known him--was thus never genuinely converted. (See the comments on 1 John 3:6.) Love is an indispensable requisite of Christian character. Where it does not exist, there is no Christian love. God is love, and love thus becomes the infallible test of the birth from above. God is love because love originates with him; he is the very essence of love; and only those who truly love are born of him. (Verse 7.) This definition was not designed to be exhaustive; from John we learn that God is also light (1 John 1:5) and spirit (John 4:24). He is also a great many other things, such as power, and wisdom, and goodness; it is impossible for man to apprehend the divine nature. Inasmuch as love is a characteristic of his nature, it fol-lows that all who partake of his nature acquire the characteristic of love; in its absence, sonship itself is wanting. 9 Herein was the love of God manifested in us, that God hath sent his only begotten Son into the world that we might live through him.--From this we learn, (1) God's love for man exists; (2) it has been manifested, i.e., revealed, made known ; (3) it was revealed in the gift of God's Son; (4) the purpose of this gift was that we might live through him. Here is, (a) evi-dence of the falsity of the theory of the creeds that God was angry with man and that Jesus came to appease the wrath of a vengeful God; (b) proof that we did not first receive God's love in conse-quence of the death of Christ, but that the sending of the Son resulted from love already existing: "But God commendeth his own love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us" (Romans 5:8); (c) it is absurd to assume that the love of God was evoked by the prior love of man for him. God loved us ; loved us before we loved him; loved us while we were yet sinners, and gave his Son for us. The passage is reminiscent of that affirmed in John 3:16 : "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on him should not perish, but have eternal life." Of vital significance here is the phrase (also occurring in John 3:16), "his only begotten Son" (ton huion autou ton monogene), literally, "His Son, the only-begotten." Monogene, the word translated "only begotten," signifies the-only-one-of-its-kind, and was so used to distinguish Jesus from all other sons of God. All who are members of God's family are sons of God, and often so styled in the sacred writings; Jesus, alone, is the only begotten Son. He is a Son in a sense characteristic of no other being in the universe; and to assign to him a position inferior to this, as modernists do, is infidelity. Attention is directed to the unique position of Christ to sharpen and enhance our concept of the vast-ness of God's love--it being so great that he was willing to send such a Son into the world that we might "live through him." The life thus provided is spiritual life; and it is through him, be-cause in him only is life. "He that hath the Son hath the life; he that hath not the Son hath not the life." (1 John 5:12.) 10 Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.--"Herein," i.e., in the gift of the Son is love--a demonstration of its vastness, its comprehensiveness, its quality. And, as already indicated in the verse preceding, it was manifested, not because we loved God and thus provoked God to love us, but because prior love existed on his part toward us. "For we also once were foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, hating one another, but when the kindness of God our Saviour, and his love toward man ap-peared, . . . he saved us." (Titus 3:4-5.) The gift of God's Son was the highest possible manifestation of love, and in the nature of things could have issued only from a benevolent father. The contactual force of the apostle's reasoning should not be ignored. God is love. (Verse 8.) The love which God possesses has been revealed to us in the gift of his Son, the only-begotten (Verse 9.) This love was the result of no act on our part, but was antecedent to the love we now have for him. (Verse 10.) A consequence of this love was that Christ came as a "propitiation for our sins." The word translated "propitiation" (hilasmos) occurs only here, and in 1 John 2:2, in the Greek New Testament, though often in the Septuagint Version (Greek translation of the Old Testament), where it signifies a sacrifice of atonement. (Leviticus 6:6-7; Numbers 5:8-9; Ezekiel 44:27.) In referring to the death of Christ as a propitiation, John had reference to the sacrifice for sins which the Lord made in suffering himself to die upon the cross for our sins. (1 Peter 2:24; Matthew 26:28.) The essentials of a sacrifice are two: (1) a priest to offer, and (2) a victim to be offered. Christ was both, in that he offered up himself for our sins. (Hebrews 9:14.) The propitiation makes it possible for all men to be saved (Hebrews 2:8-9); and salvation becomes a reality to all who allow themselves to be reconciled to God (2 Corinthians 5:19-21). See the - comments on 1 John 2:2. 11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.--The particle "if" here raises no doubt, but directs attention to the inference based on that which had just been written. Inasmuch as, i.e., in view of the fact that, God loved us to the extent of giving his Son to die in our behalf, we also ought to love one another. The passage affirms not only that God loved us, but that he so loved us, i.e., in such measure as to give the priceless treasure of heaven as a sacrifice to die in our stead. The adverb not only indicates the immeasurable extent of the love, it also designates the quality of it. (Cf. Romans 8:32.) The word "also" establishes a basis of comparison: since God loved us to such an extent, and with such a selfless quality of love we, on our side, ought to love (agapain, keep on loving) one another. 12 No man hath beheld God at any time:--(John 1:18.) The noun God (theos) is without the article here, and thus refer-ence is made to the divine nature, and not to the first person of the Godhead, exclusively. The word God is properly applied to each of the divine persons of the Godhead, since it is the name of the nature which each possesses in common. By an ordinary figure of speech in which the whole is put for a part, each of the divine persons is so designated in the scriptures. E.g., 1 John 4:9, where the reference is to the first person; John 1:1-3, to the second; Acts 5:3-4, to the Holy Spirit, the third. The meaning is, no man has seen the divine nature, the real essence of the God-head, inasmuch as it is invisible to the physical eye. Deity (God) can be seen only through its manifestations, and the revelation which it has made of itself in the incarnation. "No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him," i.e., revealed him. (John 1:18.) Since the advent of the Son into the world, it can be no longer pleaded that God is unknowable; Jesus has revealed him, made him known. Though God, deity, the divine nature, is not seen with the eye, this does not mean that he is not near us on the contrary, he is so near he abides in us, providing we love one another and his love is perfected in us. Since there is but one divine nature, there is but one God. Each of the persons of the Godhead possesses the divine nature, and thus each is properly referred to as God. It is, hence, entirely in order to say, "God, the Father," "God, the Son," and "God, the Holy Spirit," since each is possessed of the one divine nature, and is styled God in the sacred writings. The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit do not constitute three separate Gods; there is but one God. (Deuteronomy 6:4.) These three divine personalities are of but one essence, one nature; and this one nature is God (theos). There are, therefore, three persons in one God. If we love one another, God abideth in us, and his love is perfected in us:--On condition that we love one another, two things result: (1) God abides in us; (2) his love is perfected in us. How does God abide in us? Not literally, physically, or bodily, but through that inward relationship which establishes fellowship with him. "That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: yea, and our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ. "If we say that we have fellowship with him and walk in the darkness, we lie, and do not the truth." (1 John 1:3; 1 John 1:5.) God thus abides in us as we conform to his will and walk in harmony with his precepts. And thus, though God, in his essence and divine nature is invisible to our eye, we may enjoy the blessed privilege of his abiding presence if we love one another! When we love one another, not only does God abide in us, his love is perfected in us. That which is perfected has been brought to maturity. We thus develop and make mature our love for God as we love one another more and more. Love for others is a token of the love which we have for God. "If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, cannot love God whom he hath not seen. And this commandment have we from him, that he who loveth God love his brother also." (1 John 4:20-21.) 13 Hereby we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he hath given us of his Spirit.--As a token by which we may know that we abide in him and he in us, he has given us "his Spirit"--the Holy Spirit. But how does the presence of the Spirit in us supply evidence of such an abiding presence? The first fruit of the Spirit is love: "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, meek-ness, self-control. . . ." (Galatians 5:22-23.) How may we know that the Spirit dwells in our heart? Because we love God and one another! Why does this love dwell in us? "And hope putteth not to shame; because the love of God hath been shed abroad in our hearts through the Holy Spirit which was given unto us." (Romans 5:5.) For the manner in which the Spirit dwells in the Christian, see the comments on verse 14. 14 And we have beheld and bear witness that the Father hath sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world.--Though no one had seen the divine nature, John and the other apostles had beheld (tetheametha, perfect middle of theaomai, to behold with adoring wonder), the Lord in the flesh (1 John 1:1-3), and were thus qualified to bear testimony to the fact that the Father had indeed sent the Son into the world. The perfect tense designates an act that is past the results of which continue to exist; John had, during the public ministry of the Lord, minutely scrutinized him, obtained clear and distinct impressions regarding him and these remained to convince him forevermore of the identity of Jesus as Lord. Such was, in part, the mission of the apostles; and to equip them for this, the Holy Spirit was given them. "But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall bear witness of me: and ye also bear witness, because ye have been with me from the beginning." (John 15:26-27.) Indicated also in this verse is the mission which prompted the Lord's advent into the world. He was sent; he was sent from the Father he was sent to be the Saviour he was sent by the Father to be the Saviour of the world. The world, which he came to save, embraces all accountable and responsible beings. And so here, again, is emphasized what is often taught in the scriptures the blessings of the atonement are available to all who will appro-priate them to themselves on the conditions on which they are offered. The sacrifice of Christ was neither partial nor limited in its scope. "And he is the propitiation of our sins, and not for ours only, but also for the whole world." (1 John 2:2.) We thus learn that the Spirit has been given; that through this divine person love has been shed abroad in our hearts. But how is the Spirit given to us? Paul inquired of the Galatians: "This only would I learn from you, Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?" (Galatians 3:2.) This is a rhetorical question, put in this manner for emphasis. The meaning is, "You did not receive the Spirit by the work of the law. You received the Spirit by the hearing (marginal reading, message) of faith. How does faith come? "So then belief (faith) cometh of hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ." (Romans 10:17.) Paul's affirmation is, therefore, that the Galatians received the Spirit through hearing the word or message of faith--that is, the gospel. The word of truth--the gospel--is the instrument by which the Spirit exercises his influence on both saint and sinner. Thus, as one receives the truth into his heart and allows it to motivate his life he is, to this extent, motivated and influenced by the Spirit, and enjoys his abiding presence. This is, of course, not to be interpreted as meaning that the Holy Spirit is the word of truth; the Holy Spirit uses the word of truth as the medium by which he influences; and his influence is limited to this medium. The Spirit prompts love for others through the instruction which he has given in the scriptures. The Epistles of John are filled with instruction touching the duty of the children of God to love one another, as indeed, much of the New Testament. If it is the Spirit, independent of the word of truth which produces such love, why was such instruction given? Why, indeed, is there teaching on any theme if all faithful children of God, then and now, possess a measure of the Spirit from which they derive (independently) such instruction? The question is not, Do children of God possess the Spirit? this, the verse before us and numerous others (e.g., Romans 8:9; Galatians 4:16), affirm. Neither is it, Are children of God influenced by the Spirit today? This, too, the scriptures abundantly assert. The question is the manner or mode of such indwelling, and not the fact of it, which we raise. This Paul settles in the rhetorical question alluded to above. The only impact of the Spirit on the heart of either alien or Christian is by means of the Word of truth. Unfortunately, some brethren, while denying the direct operation of the Holy Spirit on the alien sinner, contend for just such an immediate and direct operation on the Christian following his baptism. The only difference between the positions is the time when the operation occurs. The denominational world contends for a direct operation on the sinner in order to his conversion. Those who hold to the view of a personal and immediate indwelling of the Spirit in the Christian, maintain that the operation of the Spirit is immediately following conversion. The one is as unten-able as the other, and both wrong. The Spirit dwells in the heart of the Christian; the Father and the Son, likewise; with reference to the latter, it would be absurd to contend that this indwelling is literal, actual, in their own persons. But, because the denomi-national idea of a mysterious, incomprehensible, intangible being as the Holy Spirit is alleged to be has been adopted in some cir-cles, brethren have allowed themselves to fall into such an error respecting the Holy Spirit. 15 Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God abideth in him, and he in God.--Obviously, the apostle is not to be understood here as affirming that deity, actually, liter-ally, and bodily takes up his abode in a human being. One who confesses that Jesus is the Son of God confesses the truth. The truth thus abides in him. Since God is of the essence of truth, God abides in such a one. In similar manner does the Spirit abide. This verse, with many other similar ones in the first Epistle (e.g., 2:23; 3:10; 4:7; 5:18), must be interpreted in the light of conditions then prevailing. Certainly it was not the apostle's intention to teach that one who merely gives lip service to the deity of Jesus abides in God, and God in him. Supercilious believers and indifferent professors concede this without hesita-tion; and even the demons acknowledged Jesus as the Son of God. (Mark 1:24.) Moreover, the Lord said, "Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy by thy name, and by thy name cast out demons, and by thy name do many mighty works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity." (Matthew 7:21-23.) The Ebonites declared that Jesus was a mere man; the Cerenthians maintained that his body was, for a time, occupied by an aeon (or demon) called Christ; the Docetae argued that he only appeared to possess a body, but was, in reality, only a shadowy phantom. The confession, "Jesus is the Son of God," was a repu-diation of each of these heretical positions, and those who thus acknowledged him confessed (a) his humanity, (b) his deity, (c) his reality. Such a confession, therefore, established the fact that the one making it had not imbibed the poison of these positions, but did indeed accept him for what he is: the divine Son of God. Implied in the confession is, of course, the complete surrender of the will to the Lord, such surrender expressing itself in willing obedience to his commands. This confession evidences the dispo-sition of mind and heart which prompts to obedience. Jesus said, "If a man love me, he will keep my word: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him." (John 14:23.) Moreover, the aorist tense (homologesei, confesseth), the exact force of which is difficult to render into English, reveals that the confession is a once-for-all act by which the one making it is committed to this concept of Christ with all the faculties of mind and body. God abides in us as we allow his teaching to fill us and motivate our lives; we abide in him as we practice the precepts of the gospel and find fellowship with him and his children in life. 16 And we know and have believed the love which God hath in us.--"We know" (egnokamen, perfect, active), "We have arrived at this knowledge, and continue to possess it, and have believed (and continue to do so) the love which God has in us." How was this knowledge arrived it? Jesus had taught it during his ministry: "O righteous Father, the world knew thee not, but I knew thee; and these knew that thou didst send me and I made known unto them thy name, and will make it known; that the love wherewith thou lovedst me may be in them, and I in them." (John 17:25-26.) Note the three steps indicated: (1) God's name was made known; (2) the purpose for which the name was made known was to reveal that the love which the Father had for the Son was available to the saints; and (3) the indwelling of the life of the Son in them by which they were brought to the Father. God is love; and he that abideth in love abideth in God, and God abideth in him.--The clause, "God is love," is a repetition of that which occurs in verse 8. See the comments there. The second clause, "And he that abideth in love abideth in God, and God abideth in him," is similar to the latter portion of verse 15. This verse thus combines the ideas advanced in verses 8 and 15. The meaning is, One who abides in love abides in God, and God in him, because God is love. 17 Herein is love made perfect with us, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment; because as he is, even so are we in this world.--Herein is love made perfect in us, i.e., in the fact that he who abides in love, abides in God, and God abides in him. (Verse 16.) All of whom such may be affirmed may indeed have boldness (confidence, assurance), because in loving God and their brethren they may be sure that they will not be condemned by the judge of all at the last day. The more we in-crease in love and perfect it, the less we have to fear that in that day we shall be found wanting. Love expresses itself in service to others (James 2:1-6); and by this standard men are to be judged in the great day of accounts. "Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, come, ye blessed of my Father, in-herit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: for I was hungry, and ye gave me to eat; I was thirsty and you gave me drink; I was a stranger and ye took me in; naked, and ye clothed me; I was sick, and ye visited me; I was in prison, and ye came unto me. Then shall the righteous answer him, say-ing, Lord, when saw we thee hungry, and fed thee? or athirst, and gave thee drink? And when saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee? And when saw we thee sick, and in prison, and came unto thee? And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it unto one of these my brethren, even these least, ye did it unto me." (Matthew 25:34-40.) The occasion or ground of the confidence those who love feel is that they resemble Christ in this respect. In loving all men they imitate Christ; and in following his example they do that which will obtain his approbation, and not his condemnation, in the day of judgment. Certainly, he will not condemn those who strive to make themselves like him. He is the embodiment of perfect love those who follow him as their pattern and guide may be sure of his approval and acceptance in the day when all shall stand before him as their judge. 18 There is no fear in love: but perfect love casteth out fear, because fear hath puishment; and he that feareth is not made perfect in love.--Confidence excludes fear and since those who love have confidence, they have no fear. "Fear," as here contemplated, is not that which the Psalmist declares is "the beginning of wisdom" (Psalms 111:10), a reverential, godly fear, which shrinks from any action which would displease God, the fear which an obedient child has for a loving father, en phoboi, 1 Peter 1:17); but terror, dread, slavish fear, such as is characteristic of a slave in the presence of a cruel and heartless master. We are taught to perfect holiness "in the fear of God" (2 Corinthians 7:1); to submit ourselves to one another "in the fear of God" (Ephesians 5:21); and to work out our salvation with "fear and trembling" (Philippians 2:12). This is the true fear of God; an attitude of respect, or reverence, of holy awe. The fear that is absent from genuine love is the fear of the whip in the hands of the master; the dread of the chastisement which comes to the disobedient. Perfect (mature) love casts out such fear, because it cannot exist where genuine love is. "Fear bath punishment," because in the anticipation of the punishment expected in the future there is torment in the present. In the realization that it is impending, there is a fore-taste of it before it actually begins. The child, aware that punish-ment is deserved and is pending, suffers before the lash is felt. When, therefore, one entertains fear of the judgment, such evidences imperfect love; it indicates that there is not the development of Christian character which would have purged itself of such slavish fear, and eliminated all anxiety regarding the possi-bility of punishment. There are at least two kinds of fear re-ferred to in the sacred writings: that which possesses men as a result of their evil deeds and from the dread of God's anger; and that of which the Psalmist wrote, "The fear of Jehovah is clean, enduring forever." (Psalms 19:9.) Perfect (mature) love casts out (literally, throws out, exo balled) fear, a strong figure indicat-ing the vigor with which it is excluded. 19 We love, because he first loved us.--Love obtains in the regenerate heart. This love finds its object in both God and man. But why do we love? In order that we may induce God to love us? On the contrary, he loved us before we loved him. Our love for him is thus evoked by a prior love on his part for us. "First" is in emphatic position in the original text, and is a thorough refutation of the creedal statement that Jesus came into the world to appease the wrath of an angry God. John 3:16 and Romans 5:8 constitute effective proof, along with this statement, that such a position is at variance with the teaching of the scrip-tures, and is a base slander on the character of God himself! As Christians we love. In this, we do not obligate God. He loved us before we loved him, and expressed his love by giving his Son to die in our behalf. Only an ingrate would refuse to love him in return. 20 If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, cannot love God whom he hath not seen.--Taught here is a principle often emphasized in the sacred writings that it is im-possible to separate love for God and man. He who affirms that he loves God, and at the same time hates his brother, is a liar! Though John was the "Apostle of Love," the very thought of one claiming to love God who, at the same time, hated his brother, led the apostle indignantly to reject his claim, and to style such a one a liar. It is a characteristic of love to fix its attention on that which is visible and near; if, therefore, one does not love his brother whom he has seen, it is impossible to love God whom one has not seen. Ordinarily it is easier to love that which is seen and near; if, therefore, one fails in the easier task of loving that which is seen--his brother--he will obviously fail in the more dif-ficult task of loving God. The love which we feel for our brethren is produced by the qualities in them which they have acquired from God. It follows, therefore, that if one is repelled by the qualities of goodness in his brother which are derived from God, he will feel the same aversion toward these same qualities in God himself! It is thus literally true that one who does not love his brother cannot love God. The one may be verified by the other. If genuine love for man exists, there is a corresponding love for God. Conversely, where one does not love his brother, it is proof that he does not love God. If he says he does, he is a liar. 21 And this commandment have we from him, that he who loveth God love his brother also.--In support of the argument of the verse which precedes this, an argument supported by analogy, by common sense, by the inspiration of the writer him-self, there is added here the testimony of Christ. He had given commandment that he who loves God is to love his brother also. When and where was this commandment given? In principle, Jesus stated it often, viz., John 13:34-35; John 15:13; and in essence it is set out in the great summary of the law in the Lord's reply to the lawyer who said to him, "Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law? And he said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second like unto it is this, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thy-self. On these two commandments the whole law hangeth, and the prophets." (Matthew 22:35-40.) Though it may be difficult to love men as men, we are to love them because they are in the image of God, and to love this image as it is reflected in them, though often obscured by sin and impaired by depravity. And, we are to love them, not only because of our kinship to them, but also because of our relationship to God who is our common Father and federal head. Commentary on 1 John 4:7-21 by E.M. Zerr1 John 4:7. The apostle again comes to the subject of love which seems to have been very near to him. He has a sound reason for such interest in that subject, namely, love and God are inseparable. For that reason if a man is born (begotten) of God he is sure to exhibit love also since it is the family trait of God's children. 1 John 4:8. On the basis of the affirmative as shown in the preceding verse, if a man does not have love as a predominant factor in his life, it is proof that he has not yet become acquainted with God. 1 John 4:9. This verse corresponds with John 3:16. 1 John 4:10. The example of love was set by the Father and not by man. That is why we have the brief but comprehensive statement in verse 19. 1 John 4:11. If God was willing to love us first even when we were in sin, we ought to love each other since no one of us is any more worthy than another. 1 John 4:12. No man hath seen God literally, but we may exhibit evidences of spiritual knowledge of Him by having love for the brethren. If we do so it will cause God to dwell in us or in our midst spiritually. His love is perfected or made complete in us when we follow His example of loving the children of God, 1 John 4:13. This is the same in thought as chapter 3:24; see the comments there. 1 John 4:14. John and the other apostles could testify, because they had seen the evidences that the Father has sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world. 1 John 4:15. See the comments at verses 1-3. 1 John 4:16. Known and believed. There is no conflict between these words as might be concluded because of the difference technically between them. The things that were known were the evidences, and what they believed was based on those evidences, namely, that God had a great love for man. The latter part of the verse has been explained in a number of the preceding verses. 1 John 4:17. Love made perfect means it is complete, and God made it Possible for man to have that perfect (or complete) love, to give them boldness in view of the judgment day. As he is. so arc we. To be confident with reference to the judgment, we must be on good terms with God in this world. That can be accomplished only by manifesting that unselfish love that was first shown by the Lord for us. 1 John 4:18. The Bible does not contradict itself, and when it appears that it does there is always an explanation for it. We know we are commanded to fear God (1 Peter 2:17), but our present verse says that perfect love will cast out fear. The explanation is very simple which depends on the meanings of the original Greek word phobos. Thayer gives us two definitions of the word as follows: "1. fear, dread, terror," and "2. reverence, respect." As we have seen frequently before, the particular meaning of any word must be determined by the connection in which it is used. The connection here shows John is using it in its had sense which would made it read, "There is no dread or terror in love." If we love God and manifest it by loving our brother, we will not have any dread at the thought of meeting God in the judgment. 1 John 4:19. This is commented on at verse 10. 1 John 4:20. John has previously made this same charge, but he adds a logical reason for it here. It certainly is as easy to love a brother who is with us and whose fellowship we can enjoy, as it is to love God whom we cannot see now and must love on the basis of faith. 1 John 4:21. On the basis of the reasoning in the preceding verse, John commands the disciples not to attempt loving God it they will not love the brethren also, for their profession of love will be rejected.Commentary on 1 John 4:7-21 by N.T. Caton1 John 4:7— Beloved, let us love one another. We must not in any manner imitate the false teachers, for they would lead us astray, but be governed by the example and spirit of our Master. We show, as he did, by doing the will of God, our love of God. His command, repeated over and over again, is that we love one another, and we are assured that it is a certain evidence that we are begotten of God and that we know him, when we exhibit love, for love comes from God. Its source is in the Infinite One. 1 John 4:8— He that loveth not, knoweth not God. We may pretend what we please, and yet if we do not love our brother, we do not know God aright, for 1 John 4:8— God is love. God is essentially love. Here there is no mixture of malevolence whatever. As he is infinite in his other attri­butes, so in this— God is infinite in love. 1 John 4:9— In this was manifested the love of God. The highest and grandest possible demonstration God could give to the world of his love is the sending of his Son— his only begotten Son— that through him the world might be saved— might have life. "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). 1 John 4:10— Herein is love. The highest and grandest exhibition of love ever known, or that can be known in the universe, God manifested to man. While man loved not— while man was an enemy to God— God sent his Son into the world to die for man, that thereby a way might be opened up by which man— the enemy of God— might attain eternal life. Poets' loftiest strains afford but feeble conceptions of the divine love. The voice of description is hushed into eternal silence. Mortals can only hear, learn and adore. 1 John 4:11— Beloved, if God so loved us. Now, if God so loved us while we were sinners, we at least ought to show our gratitude for his matchless mercy by imitating his example in loving one another. 1 John 4:12— No man bath seen God at any time. By our mortal eyes we can not see God. He has not been so seen by any one at any time. He is invisible. We, however, may have a sense of his presence in us, and this we know when we are assured that we love the brethren, for this is of God. His nature abides in us. We partake of his nature as we follow his will, and become more and more like him as we carry out the virtues enjoined upon us to perfection. 1 John 4:13— Hereby know we that we dwell in him. The term "we," it would appear, more particularly applies to the apostles than to believers generally. I so conclude from the statement "he hath given to us of his Spirit." It is true, all believers have the Spirit, but when the next verse is consulted you discover the same "we" had special need for the gift of the Spirit in a different degree. Yet it is true that we know that God dwells in us, by the Spirit which is given to us, one of the fruits of this Spirit being that of love. "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, tem­perance: against such there is no law" (Galatians 5:22-23). 1 John 4:14— And we have seen and do testify. This is certainly personal. By the "we" John means himself and fellow apostles. They saw the Son when he was here on earth— saw his miracles; heard his teaching; saw him die. Saw him, and heard him, and handled him after his resurrection. Received from him power from on high, enabling them to testify with infallible accuracy, and "we do testify to all these things"; and they were further authorized to say, that there is "none other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved." 1 John 4:15— Whosoever shall confess, This is largely a repetition of verse 2; the only difference being that in verse 2, one coming and confessing that Jesus Christ had come in the flesh would be proof that the one so confessing did not possess the spirit of a false prophet; whereas, in the verse before us, the confession that Jesus is the Son of God is evidence to us that the one so confessing has God dwelling in him and he in God. God dwelling in us and our abiding in him is, I take it, practically the same thing. 1 John 4:16 --And we have known and believed. Whether we love God or not is a matter of knowledge. That God loved us we believed when we heard the message of love his inspired apostles brought to us. And keeping the divine model before, and observing all God's requirements, increase our confidence to such an extent that it is exalted in us to the height of personal knowledge. God being love, and loving God, that love binds us to God. So of a truth we dwell in God and he in us. 1 John 4:17— Herein is our love made perfect. By the operation of God's love in our hearts we are enabled to love our brethren and our neighbor, exhibiting the fruits of our love all around us, and so perfecting our love that when the great day of judgment shall come, we shall stand before him in all confidence. 1 John 4:17— Boldness. Want of fear; having observed his will by obeying his command to love, we shall have no fears in his presence, because as he is, so we are; for so we conducted ourselves while in the world. 1 John 4:18— There is no fear in love. The word fear is here used in the sense of terror. Now, this kind of fear is banished when love appears. There may be, and there is, and there ought to be the fear of reverence. 1 John 4:18 --Perfect love casteth out fear. Where one truly loves God and his fellow-man all fear is expelled. Where that sort of love exists, no fear of the judgment is present. Fear only exists where there is peril or danger of punishment. This is the torment mentioned herein. Now, where this fear exists, it is proof conclusive that love is not perfect; that is, that he does not truly love God and his fellow-man. 1 John 4:19— We love him, because he first loved us. Love begets love. God's wonderful love, exhibited through Christ, fills every redeemed soul with love, and we show our love and gratitude to God by loving our brethren. 1 John 4:20— If a man say, I love God. How can any one say he loves the unseen One, and yet hates his brother, whom he sees and knows. Such a claim is mere pretense. The one so claiming, the apostle says, is a liar. Here, then, we need not be deceived. Should one claiming to be a teacher, claim that he loved God and hated his brother, that teacher is a deceiver, an antichrist; should he be a private person, he is simply a hypocrite. The brother we see, and know by our natural senses all his excellencies of character; he is God's image; him we hate. Now, how can it be said, while we hate him, we love the unseen God, whom we know only by the manifestations of himself that he has seen fit to give?1 John 4:21— And this commandment have we from him. Besides, we all have God's will, expressed in a command given by him, that every one who loves God must love his brother also. This is the end of the matter. No command can be obeyed in part. A rejection of a part is the rejection of the whole, and is at the same time a rejection of the authority of the law-giver, and subjects the offender to his displeasure.Commentary on 1 John 4:7-21 by Burton Coffman1 John 4:7 --Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and everyone that loveth is begotten of God, and knoweth God.Here, of course, is another test, the love of "one another," such love being of God himself. One stands in amazement at a comment on this like the following: "Everyone" here includes all the human beings in whose nature love is or ever has been, whether they ever heard of God or Christ or not.[24]Such a comment is typical of much of the nonsense that has been written on this section of John's letter. "Love one another" is neither sexual love ([@eros]) nor animal affection ([@fileo]), but Christian love ([@agape]). This is a love known only "in Christ," being the gift of God himself, having no connection whatever with mere humanism. John's repeated stress of such Christian love in this epistle might have been due to the fact, as supposed by Macknight, that "some of the Jewish converts, retaining their ancient prejudices, still considered it their duty to hate the heathen,"[25] even those who had accepted Christianity. [24] James William Russell, Compact Commentary on the New Testament (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House, 1963), p. 603. [25] James Macknight, op. cit., p. 90. 1 John 4:8 --He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love.God is love ... This profoundly beautiful and encouraging statement about the Father must rank, along with others, as one of the grandest in all Scripture. Wesley said, "Love is God's reigning attribute that sheds an amiable glory upon all of his other perfections."[26] Barclay called this, "probably the single greatest statement about God in the whole Bible ... It is amazing how many doors that single statement unlocks and how many questions it answers."[27]However, Wilder cautioned that, "God's nature is not exhausted by the quality of love."[28] God is light (1 John 1:5), and spirit (John 4:24), and (considering the oneness of the Father with the Son) he is life, and truth (John 14:6). Moreover, "Our God is a consuming fire" (Hebrews 12:29). It is a failure to recognize that no single word is capable of describing the ineffable God which leads to a gross perversion of this marvelous text in the popular mind. Some hail this verse, as if it said, "Love is God; and here is a God we can all handle; bring on the love!" Many who read these precious words of John do not seem to be aware of the holy and self-sacrificing love about which John wrote. God's love for mankind and his glorious attribute of love do not in any manner alter or negate the revelation that "the wrath of God is revealed against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men" (Romans 1:18), nor the revelation concerning God that he "will judge the world in righteousness" (Acts 17:31). Furthermore, there is no conflict between John and Paul on this point. John's description of the final judgment in Revelation 6:15-17 is as soul-shaking a view of the wrath of God in judgment as any in the whole Bible. The proper view of God's love must be big enough to understand that his final judgment and overthrow of wickedness will be, in itself, a mark of eternal love. And yet such thoughts should not detract from the unique glory of this text. No one in the whole world ever knew that God is love until it was revealed from heaven and written in the New Testament. "It is here, and nowhere else; it is not found in all the literature of mankind."[29][26] John Wesley, op. cit., p. 914. [27] William Barclay, op. cit., p. 98. [28] Amos N. Wilder, op. cit., p. 280. [29] H. A. Ironside, Addresses on the Epistles of John (New York: Loizeaux Brothers, Inc., 1931), p. 138. 1 John 4:9 --Herein was the love of God manifested in us, that God hath sent his only begotten Son into the world that we might live through him.The marginal reading "in our case" instead of "in us" appears as the true meaning, since it is God's sending his Son to die for the sins of the whole world, which is the manifestation spoken of, that not being something "in us" but "in our case," or on our behalf. His only begotten Son ... This is a better rendition than that of making it read merely "only Son," because it is admitted by all scholars that "uniqueness" is an essential quality of meaning in this word.[30] "Only Son" would therefore mean that God has no other sons; yet all Christians are "sons of God." "Only begotten" conveys that essential meaning of "uniqueness," exactly in the sense of the word ([@monogenes]) as translated in Hebrews 11:17 where Isaac is called Abraham's "only begotten son," there being a uniqueness in Isaac's sonship not found in Abraham's many other sons. It is therefore a most happy and appropriate translation which reads "only begotten Son." While mentioning Buechsel in Kittel's Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, who defended this translation (only begotten), as "practically the only modern scholar" to do so,[31] Roberts went on to reject it. But the old rendition may not be disposed of so easily. W. E. Vine's Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words, Marshall's rendition of the Nestle Greek Text, the translation in the Emphatic Diaglott, Frances E. Siewert in The Amplified New Testament, the New Catholic Bible, to say nothing of that great galaxy of New Testament scholars who produced the American Standard Version (still referred to by F. F. Bruce as the most accurate of modern versions), and also Kenneth S. Wuest - all translate the word as meaning "only begotten." The present day meaning of "only begotten" exactly fits the legitimate meaning. "Only begotten" carries the meaning of "uniqueness" without denying the sonship of Christians, making it superior to the RSV, etc. The same word ([@monogenes]) was used of a man's son (Luke 9:38), of Jairus' daughter (Luke 8:42), and of the son of the widow of Nain (Luke 7:12). Roberts said, "It could hardly mean only begotten in that case (Luke 7:12), since begetting is a function of the male rather khan the female,"[32] apparently overlooking the fact that nothing is said about the widow's having done the begetting! Her son was the "only begotten" of whoever begot him, just as Jesus was Mary's son, despite his having been the "only begotten of the Father." Admittedly, this is a disputed translation; and the purpose here is to affirm appreciation and preference for the one that has come down through the ages. We simply do not believe that the modern scholars have any more information regarding this than did the translators of KJV and ASV, nor that the recent ones are any more competent. That we might live through him ... The great purpose of that visitation from the Dayspring from on High was that, through obedience to the Son of God, people might have the blessing of eternal life. [30] J. W. Roberts, op. cit., p. 115. [31] Ibid., p. 113. [32] Ibid. 1 John 4:10 --Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation, for our sins.Herein is love ... This carries the thought, "notice just what love actually is." John defined it, even in God's love, as being not merely a sentimental fondness for the human race, but a gracious, unselfish and unmerited act of divine giving of his "only begotten Son" to save people from eternal death. As Smith said: The love which proves us children of God is not native to our hearts. It is inspired by the amazing love of God manifested in the Incarnation, the infinite Sacrifice of His Son's life and death.[33]To be the propitiation ... For a discussion of this phrase, see under 1 John 2:2. The objection that "propitiation" leaves out of view the love of God is not well taken. As Denney observed: So far from finding any kind of contrast between love and propitiation, the apostle can convey no idea of love to anyone, except by pointing to the propitiation.[34][33] David Smith, op. cit., p. 191. [34] James Denney, The Death of Christ (London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1894), p. 152. 1 John 4:11 --Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.In this chapter, John repeated over and over again many of the closely related topics he had already mentioned, each time going a little further, giving a slightly different antithesis, stressing a little different aspect, or urging a closer attention, - all in such a marvelous way that, at last, his meaning becomes incontrovertible. In this verse, Christians' loving each other is motivated by the overwhelming majesty of the love of God himself. One another ... is incapable of meaning "everybody on earth," although of course, the love of every Christian reaches out to the ends of the world, but not in the intensity commanded here. 1 John 4:12 --No man hath beheld God at any time: if we love one another, God abideth in us, and his love is perfected in us:No man hath seen God at any time ... Blaney was probably correct in seeing this as a warning to Christians against "trying to know God in any other way than the one he is describing."[35] Some have sought, outside of Christianity, to know more about God, hoping for a clearer perception; but this apostolic warning declares all such attempts to be futile. However, "John is not here discounting the visions of God reported in the Old Testament, but meaning that those visions were partial and incomplete. It is in Christ that we see God (John 14:9)."[36]If we love one another ... Love of the brethren is the primary meaning of this. The humanistic philosophy that reads this "love of all mankind" is an inadequate conception. "Our love toward God is perfected and brought to maturity by the exercise of love towards our brethren in him (Christ)."[37]The warning in this verse to the effect that the revelation of God is available to people only in Christ is widely needed. All such things as astrology, spiritism, witchcraft and Satanism are basically ways of finding a so-called "reality" apart from Biblical revelation. This apostolic injunction states unequivocally that there is nothing out there which might enlighten or bless people. The true revelation has already been given through people who is "the way, the truth, and the life." Despite this basic truth, the spectacle of a high ranking ecclesiastic losing his life in a desert while trying to communicate with spirits, only recently, was spread on the pages of the newspapers. God abideth in us ... Why make excursions into deserts or dark rooms, or explore the mysteries of esoteric cults, or plunge into the abyss through drugs or alcohol? when all the while God himself will take up residence in the very soul of one who will through loving open up room for Him who is love. [35] Harvey J. S. Blaney, op. cit., p. 391. [36] Leon Morris, op. cit., p. 1268. [37] A. Plummer, op. cit., p. 104. 1 John 4:13 --hereby we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he hath given us of his Spirit.In this paragraph (1 John 4:12-16), the indwelling God is mentioned three times, and the reciprocal nature of it (he in us, we in him) is stressed twice. The evidence of God's indwelling is differently stated as follows: 1 John 4:13, He hath given us his Spirit.1 John 4:15, Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God. 1 John 4:16, He that dwelleth in love.Because he hath given us of his Spirit ... It should be carefully noted that the Christian's possession of the Spirit of God is an "evidence of," not an "antecedent cause" of God's indwelling our hearts. Furthermore, it is a mistake to suppose that there is even any microscopic difference between God's indwelling and the Spirit's indwelling. There are no less than eight different New Testament designations of that inner presence which differentiates Christians from the world (See my Commentary on Galatians, pp. 97-99), as set forth in Paul's writings; and John in this letter added to that list the fact that God's love abides in Christians, and Christians abide in God's love. This verse (1 John 4:13) is virtually a repetition of 1 John 3:24. With regard to the question of prior conditions to be fulfilled by the believer before the indwelling of God, the reception of the Spirit, the indwelling Christ, etc., Peter's summary of this on the Day of Pentecost stands as the eternal answer, binding both on earth and in heaven. To believers who desire the forgiveness of their sins and the indwelling Spirit, the commandment of God is: "Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ unto the remission of your sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit" (Acts 2:38 f). In the introduction to this letter, it was pointed out that John follows no classical outline. Roberts has another beautiful word regarding 1John, which, in a little wider sense, is applicable to all the New Testament books. He wrote: John's thought pattern continues to retrace ideas and to pick them up like an orchestra does the strains of a melody in order to develop them more fully.[38]ENDNOTE: [38] J. W. Roberts, op. cit., p. 118. 1 John 4:14 --And we have beheld and bear witness that the Father hath sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world.And we ... This might be an epistolary, or editorial "we," for the apostle John, or, as Smith thought, "a reference to John and the rest of the apostles who were eyewitnesses."[39] The words "bear witness" indicate that the latter meaning is the true one. As Plummer said, "The language of this verse would be strained and unreal in one who had not seen Christ in the flesh."[40]A tremendous weight of Christian truth is concentrated in this verse. The Father sent the Son ... The entire story of the Bible from Genesis to Revelation is here reduced to one line. To be the Saviour of the world ... The world's being lost in sin is implied; otherwise no Saviour would have been required. Many do not seem to realize that they are lost without Christ. It is wrong to think of being saved, as if it meant, merely, to go to heaven when one dies. People are lost now; they need redemption now; We (all people) need salvation from ourselves, from our habits, our temptations, anxieties, fears, frustrations and uncertainties. One does not have to wait until he dies to be lost; every man without Christ is already lost. Only in the world's Saviour can human life be endowed with that purpose, significance and vitality, without which, human life tends to wretchedness and misery. In Christ all is changed. Life in him is so exceedingly rich that John called it "eternal life," thus naming it after the ultimate reward which is the central hope of that life, and the great motivator of it here and now. [39] David Smith, op. cit., p. 192. [40] A. Plummer, op. cit., p. 104. 1 John 4:15 --Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God abideth in him, and he in God.Confess that Jesus is the Son of God ... There is a form of metonymy (synecdoche) in a statement of this kind. The primary pre-requirements of salvation, the so-called "plan of salvation" is meant by this. The New Testament reveals that "obeying the gospel" as the New Testament writers called it, meant believing in Christ, repenting of one's sins, confessing the Son of God, and being baptized "into Christ." As a consequence of such primary obedience, and subsequently to it, the Holy Spirit was given, not to make men sons of God, but because upon such initial faith and obedience they became sons of God (Galatians 4:6). There are two possible meanings of John's words here, and both of them may be correct. (1) He refers to the Christian's obedience of the gospel at the time he became a Christian, the confession of faith in Christ, of course, being a prominent part of conversion. If this is what was in the apostle's mind, the meaning of it is almost identical with Peter's words on Pentecost (Acts 2:38 f), Peter's "gift of the Holy Spirit" meaning exactly the same thing in that passage that John meant by "God abideth in him" here. There can be no difference in these. (2) If, as Roberts thought, John was speaking of a time in the lives of Christians long after their conversion, then he may be "saying that if this confession can be sincerely repeated by the believer, that God abides in him, and he in God."[41]In either view, it is conversion itself, and primary obedience of the gospel to which this verse undoubtedly refers. This somewhat sudden mention of initial Christian obedience, after all John had been saying, and continued to say about "love," reminds us that: With John, love always includes obedience to all God's commandments; and where obedience is not manifested, love is not. Even with God, love was not mere sympathy, but sending his Son to be the propitiation.[42][41] J. W. Roberts, op. cit., p. 119. [42] William Hurte, Restoration of New Testament Christianity (Rosemead, California: Old Paths Publishing Company, 1964), p. 489. 1 John 4:16 --And we know and have believed the love which God hath in us. God is love; and he that abideth in love abideth in God, and God abideth in him.Know and have believed the love which God hath in us ... As Morris declared, "Believing and knowing the love is certainly a very unusual expression."[43] It is perhaps John's way of referring to one's knowing and believing the whole thesis and system of Christianity, which might be summed up, really, as "knowing and believing the love of God." What a beautiful way to express it! Abideth in love ... is in this verse equated to "abideth in God," making the expressions synonymous. It is an exercise in futility to attempt to make some kind of distinction between those and a dozen other similar expressions in the word of God. Note: It is undeniable that the New Testament teaches that Christians are in God, in Christ, in the Holy Spirit, and in love (in the sense of abiding in love); and at the same time the New Testament reveals that each of these: God, Christ, the Holy Spirit, and love all abide, indwell, or reside in Christians. There are other significant additions to this list, such as "the mind of Christ" (Philippians 2:5), and "the word of Christ" (Colossians 3:16), both of which are flatly represented as dwelling "in Christians." It is the conviction repeated several times in this series of commentaries, that it is absolutely impossible to distinguish such expressions as indicating different states or conditions of the soul; on the other hand, they are clearly multiple designations of a single condition, that is, the saved condition, that which belongs to every Christian. ENDNOTE: [43] Leon Morris, op. cit., p. 1268. 1 John 4:17 --Herein is love made perfect with us, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment; because as he is, even so are we in this world.Have boldness ... One grand dividend received from a love-oriented and love-motivated life is a dramatic diminution of fear, both with reference to earthly fears and those regarding the ultimate summons of all people to the judgment of God. In the day of judgment ... John, like the Lord Jesus, did not speak of many judgments, but only one. There are literally dozens of places in which the New Testament makes reference to the event of final judgment; and in all of them, the reference is invariably in the singular: the day ... the day .... etc. Even as he is ... so are we ... It is Christ whom the Christians resemble, and therefore he is the one referred to here. Since all Christians are in the business of being like Christ, to the extent of denying themselves and seeking total identity with him "in Christ" and "as Christ," to the extent that this is achieved, through having love like him, it becomes also a pledge of our likeness to him in glory, the same being the firm ground of overcoming fear. 1 John 4:18 --There is no fear in love: but perfect love casteth out fear, because fear hath punishment; and he that feareth is not made perfect in love.The apostle John here presents one after another "all but impossible levels of Christian attainment";[44] (1) the love of all people with a self-sacrificing love like that of Christ; (2) the living of a life free from every sin; (3) confidence in the hour of the final judgment when people are pleading for the rocks and the mountains to fall upon them; and (4) the banishment of all fear; and notice that last phrase made perfect in love. Is this anything less than the total God-like perfection enjoined by Jesus Christ in Matthew 5:48? Indeed, it is the same thing, exhibited, even as it was by the author of James, as God's basic requirement of all who would be saved! Impossible for people? Certainly, except in the manner revealed in Christ. To those who are "in Christ" and who abide in him, loving him, following him, obeying him to the fullest extent of human ability - to all such persons shall be given and certified the very blessings in view here; and thus "in Christ" they may attain the unattainable! ENDNOTE: [44] Amos N. Wilder, op. cit., p. 286. 1 John 4:19 --We love, because he first loved us.Inherent in this epic declaration is the fact that Christ was not crucified in order to persuade God to love people, but because God already loved mankind, the divine love preceding the entire program of redemption, and even more, existing in the heart of God even before the world was. One great purpose of the cross was that of persuading people to receive the salvation God was so willing to give. Another truth evident in this is that, "Our love (whether of God or man) is a plain duty to us, since God first loved us."[45] It should be considered by all that the very fact of God's loving sinful and fallen humanity provides a powerful incentive for all perceptive souls to do likewise. Why did God love fallen and sinful men? Even their being sinful did not change the fact that they had been designed and created in the image of the Father; and through God's provident mercy, all of the moral and eternal consequences of their sins were potentially removable, through the means God revealed. Moreover, the disaster which had fallen upon humanity in the events of the Fall, had actually been brought upon them by the seduction and skillful cunning of their inveterate enemy, Satan. This entry is longer than a Bible module can hold. The rest is at https://www.sermonindex.net/commentary/ntrc/ 1 John 5:1-12 TESTS OF FAITH AND LOVE(1 John 5:1-12) It is fatal to correct exegesis to ignore, as is so often done, the context here, and the theme under consideration by the apostle in this section of the Epistle. Unfortunately, many in total disregard of the context, lift the first clause of 1 John 5:1 from its setting, and cite it in support of views which were never in the writer's mind. It should be remembered that the chapter and verse divisions were no part of the original composition of the Apostle and are, therefore, to be disregarded in the study of the Epistle. At the close of chapter 4, John was enjoining the duty of brotherly love. One who loves God must, as a necessary consequence, love his brother. Who is one's brother? Answer: "Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is begotten of God: and whosoever loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him. Hereby we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and keep his commandments." (1 John 5:1-2.) The thought, developed here, is this: He who believes that Jesus is the Christ is begotten of God; one begotten of God is a son of God those who love him who begets--God--must necessarily love him who is begotten--one's brother. How do we know that we love those who have been thus begotten? Answer: (1) because we love God; and (2) because we do God's commandments.1 Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is begotten of God:--"Whosoever believeth," is, literally, "Whosoever continues to believe," (pas ho pisteuon), i.e., whose faith is firmly fixed and abiding in the proposition that Jesus is the Christ. It is, obviously, not a speculative belief; it is not simply or solely intellectual assent to the truthfulness of the proposition; it is such persuasion of the truth of the matter that the one exercising it is influenced to, and actually does act upon, the principle involved, and becomes obedient to him who is the object of the faith exercised. It is faith which includes obedience, since such is the only kind of faith that avails: "But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith apart from works is barren? Was not Abraham our father justified by works, in that he offered up Isaac his son upon the altar? Thou seest that faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect: and the scripture was fulfilled which saith, And Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned unto him for righteousness; and he was called the friend of God. Ye see that by works a man is justified, and not only by faith . . .For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, even so faith apart from works is dead." (James 2:20-26.) Inasmuch as faith, apart from works, is barren; and since the faith under contemplation here is such that results in sonship, it must follow that it includes obedience to the commandments on the basis of which one becomes a child of God. (Galatians 3:26-27.) No other faith avails. It was not the design of the apostle here to announce a condition of salvation, nor were the words of this verse addressed to alien sinners. It was his purpose instead to supply the test by which one might determine whether one is a child of God. One claims to be a son of God. Is he, really? The test is: Does he believe (with all such belief involves) that Jesus is the Christ? Only those who thus do, measure to the divine standard of what is required to be a child of God. The proposition, "Jesus is the Christ," was such as effectively sifted out the heretics with reference to whom John was writing. See the comments on 1 John 4:15. Some denied that Jesus was Christ, thus repudiating his deity; others, said that Christ was not Jesus, hence denying his humanity. Still others maintained that his fleshly body was merely an apparition, thus denying his reality. To confess that Jesus is the Christ is to acknowledge his deity, his humanity and his reality. It was therefore just such a test as would reveal the true believers and expose the heretics which then plagued the church with their false teaching. Those who truly believed this proposition were begotten of God. (For an explanation of the phrase, "begotten of God," see the comments on 1 John 3:9.) And whosoever loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him.--"Whosoever loveth," of this clause is exactly parallel with the "Whosoever believeth," of the first clause of the verse, and embraces the same individuals. It is the same idea as that already advanced by the apostle in 1 John 4:20, where see the comments. The reasoning of the apostle here is in the logical form of a sorites, an abridged series of syllogisms in a group of propositions arranged in such fashion that the predicate of the first becomes the subject of the second, the conclusion uniting the subject of the first proposition with the predicate of the last. The order follows To believe that Jesus is the Christ is evidence that one is begotten of God. To be begotten of God necessitates loving God. To love God requires one to love God's children. Those who love God's children have been begotten of God. Therefore, to believe that Jesus is the Christ requires one to love God's children, and evidences the fact that one is begotten of God. But how are we to know that we truly love God's children? 2 Hereby we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and do his commandments.--"Hereby," i.e., in this, the test to be supplied, we are able to know that we love the children of God. What is the test? When, (1) we love God and (2) keep his commandments! Here is additional and corroborative evidence of the correctness of the interpretation above. There, it was pointed out that the faith by which one accepts the proposition that. Jesus is the Christ, the evidence of sonship, must include obedience. There, faith is declared to be the test of sonship; here, love of God and obedience. It follows, therefore, that the love and obedience of this verse are embraced in the faith of that. So intimately associated is love for God and man that as 1 John 4:20 teaches that love for brethren is a token and necessary condition of our love for God, so here the relationship is reversed and this passage teaches that our love for God, exhibited in the keeping of his commandments, is proof of our love for his children. We thus learn that love of God and love of the brethren are inseparable duties, and each becomes the test of the other. But why is such a test offered or needed? Is not one capable of knowing whether he loves his brother or not? In what way does the fact that one loves God and keeps his commandments supply evidence that one loves his brother? One may entertain affection for others from many considerations not related to religion, such as kinship, friendship, business relations, etc.; but such do not afford the motives for the love under contemplation here. This love is such an emotion which springs from a heart filled with good wishes for others, genuine regard based on a common parentage, common interests, common responsibilities and a common reward. How may we know that we possess such? When (1) we love God, and (2) do his commandments, one of which is to love one another! "A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another; even as I have loved you." (John 13:34.) 3 For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.--In what way is it possible for us to exhibit and demonstrate our love for God? By keeping his commandments. The verb "keep" in the text is present active subjunctive; it is the love of God that we keep on keeping his commandments! Here is the acid test of love for him. Do we persist in keeping his commandments and in doing his will to the extent of our ability? If such be characteristic of us, we have the evidence of our love for him. If such be lacking, whatever may be our pretensions thereto, they are weighed in the balance and found wanting. These commandments from a kind and benevolent Father are not grievous, (bareiai), heavy, burdensome, distressing. Love lightens them, makes them easily borne. A nine year old lad, struggling to carry his crippled five year old brother smiled and said, "He's not heavy; he's my brother!" Love truly lightens the load, makes us anxious to assist those of our brethren who struggle under heavy burdens. "Bear ye one another's burdens and so fulfil the law of Christ." (Galatians 6:2.) 4 For whatsoever is begotten of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that hath overcome the world, even our faith.--To indicate to us why the commandments of God are not grievous, (weighty, galling, burdensome), these words were penned. The argument of the apostle follows this pattern The commandments of God are not burdensome for, despite the difficulties, the hardships, the privations necessarily suffered as Christians, all such will eventually result in victory; those who triumph over all such, conquer the world; and hence, none need fear failure or contemplate defeat. For the meaning of the phrase, "begotten of God," see the comments under 1 John 3:9. For an explanation of the word "world," as here used, see under 1 John 2:15. We have here, as often elsewhere in the scriptures, evidence of the conquering power of faith. It is faith which enables men to resist temptation, to avoid the entanglements of the world, to reject false teachers and the doctrines of men. It was faith which guarded the ancient worthies, enabled them to triumph over the seductions of Satan, and filled them with determination to serve the great Jehovah whatever the difficulties, obstacles, impediments in their way. Chapter 11, of the Book of Hebrews, is Inspiration's Hall of Fame. Enshrined in that memorial are the records of grand old men out of an ancient past, worthy patriarchs, prophets, priests and kings who, through faithfulness and courage, earned for themselves imperishable honor, and serve for all succeeding ages as examples of undying faith and tremendous courage. They overcame the world. They overcame the world by their faith. They thus serve as worthy examples for our emulation. The verb "overcometh," is in the present tense, (nikai ton kosmon), and thus denotes a continuous struggle. There is constant victory only because there is continuous struggle. The faithful one continues to overcome because "his seed" (the Word of God, Luke 8:11), continues to abide in him. (1 John 3:9.) 5 And who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the son of God?--It may be asked, What is involved in the proposition which one must believe in order to overcome the world? The answer is: "Jesus is the Son of God." Here, again, attention is fixed on both the humanity (Jesus) and the deity (the Son of God) of the Lord. The two natures, the human and the divine, were united in one personality. Those who accept this proposition (with all that it implies), overcome the world, by escaping its guilt, its pollution, its power, and in large measure, its presence. 6 This is he that came by water and blood, even Jesus Christ; not with water only, but with the water and with the blood.--This verse, and the ones immediately following, have been rightly regarded as the most difficult of the Epistle; and they have given rise to a vast number of interpretations through the years since the apostle John penned these words. Their importance deserves and demands the most careful consideration. An analysis reveals that (a) one came; (b) the one who came was Jesus Christ; (c) Jesus Christ came by water and blood; (d) he did not come by water only, but with the water and with the blood. Essential to the understanding of this passage are the answers to the following questions: (1) What coming of the Lord is referred to here? (2) What is meant by his coming "with the water," and "with the blood"? There appears to be little doubt that the "coming" under consideration here was his advent into the world. In coming into the world, he came with the water and with the blood. Why did the writer cite his coming in this fashion? From verse 8, we learn that it was for the purpose of establishing witnesses to the fact of his coming, the witnesses being water and blood. It seems clear, therefore, that the reference to the water is an allusion to his baptism; and that of the blood to his death. He came with water at his baptism (Matthew 3:15).; with blood, in his death on the cross (John 19:34). To these facts, the Spirit bears witness. (Verses 7, 8.) The Spirit was manifested at the Lord's baptism; the Spirit recorded and thus bore witness to both his baptism and his death. Some have seen in the "water" and the "blood," of this passage, a reference to the blood and water which flowed from the "riven side" of the Saviour on the cross. (John 19:34.) There, however, the order is (1) blood (2) water; but here, (1) water; (2) blood. Moreover, it was the design of the writer to point out historical facts in the life of the Lord established by the testimony of the Spirit and designed to serve as evidence of his coming. It seems unaccountable that as proof of his coming the evidence would be limited to events occurring almost at the moment of death. We conclude, therefore, that the water here refers to his baptism; the blood to that shed in his death--the first witness being at the beginning of his public ministry, the other at its close. These two instances in the life of our Lord were doubtless cited, because in the first, his baptism, he publicly received acknowledgement from heaven as the Son of God; and there entered formally upon his public ministry; and on the cross his work was terminated, and the announcement made, "It is finished." (John 19:30.) If it be asked, Why the repetition, "not by water only, but with the water and with the blood," the answer must be found in the desire of the writer to emphasize both witnesses, and perhaps to distinguish him clearly from John the Baptist, who baptized in water only. (John 1:26.) 7 And it is the Spirit that beareth witness, because the Spirit is the truth.--The Spirit here referred to is the Holy Spirit; the function which he is said to perform is that he bears witness, because the Spirit is the truth. 8 For there are three who bear witness, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and the three agree in witness; that to which he witnesses is the deity of Jesus; his testimony is reliable because the Spirit is the truth (i.e., of the essence of truth); and that to which he bears testimony were the matters primarily under consideration in the verse preceding this--the water and the blood. As indicated both here and in the verses which follow, the Spirit becomes the third witness to the identity of the Lord, the first and second being the water and the blood. The Spirit bore witness to Jesus at his baptism by descending in the form of a dove and lighting upon him. (Matthew 3:15.) John the Baptist accepted this as a token of the Spirit's witness to Christ, when he said, "I have beheld the Spirit descending as a dove out of heaven; and it abode upon him. And I knew him not but he that sent me to baptize in water, he said unto me, Upon whomsoever thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and abiding upon him, the same is he that baptizeth in the Holy Spirit. And I have seen and have borne witness that this is the Son of God." (John 1:32; John 1:34.) See additional note at the end of the chapter. 8 For there are three who bear witness, the Spirit, and the water and the blood: and the three agree in one.--The Spirit (the Holy Spirit, the third person in the Godhead), the water (of baptism) and the blood (which flowed from the Lord's side on the cross), are here declared to bear witness, i.e., to testify. That to which they bear witness is the deity of Jesus, the lordship of him who was baptized in Jordan and from whose side the blood flowed. These three--the Spirit, the water and the blood--agree in one, i.e.. their testimony harmonizes, and points to the same end. The Spirit is mentioned first, because he is the only living witness, and the testimony of the water and the blood depend on the revelation of the Spirit. As there are three divine persons in one God, so there are three witnesses on earth testifying. The testimony which these witnesses give is constant; the Spirit's revelation in the scriptures speaks to all generations; the act of baptism, for nearly twenty centuries, has been picturing the central fact of redemption--the burial and resurrection of Christ--and the blood is that which makes redemption possible. (Hebrews 10:1-4.) Compare 1 John 5:10; Romans 6:1-6; 1 Corinthians 11:23-29. Wherever the people of God assemble on the Lord's day, there is, in the Lord's supper which they observe, a memorial of the blood which was shed. (For additional notes and an explanation of the variation in the text here and that which is characteristic of the King James' Version, see the "Additional Note" at the end of the chapter.) 9 If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater: for the witness of God is this, that he hath borne witness concerning his Son.--This is an argument a fortiori, styled in logic a minori ad majus, reasoning from the less to the greater, a conclusion which, when compared with some other, is even more necessary. We do accept the testimony of men ; thus we should the more readily accept the testimony of God which is greater. That to which particular reference is made is the witness which God has borne concerning his Son. The mean-ing is, We ordinarily believe the testimony of men; inasmuch as God is infinitely greater and better than the best of men, we are logically bound to accept his testimony; and since he has testified that Jesus is the Son of God, this we ought to believe. 10 He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in him:--Literally, "He that keeps on believing in the Son," (ho pisteuon eis ton huion), "continues to have (echei) the wit-ness in him, i.e., in himself. We have earlier seen that one of the witnesses to the reality of the Christian religion is the Holy Spirit. (Verse 8.) This Spirit, whose abiding presence is in all be-lievers (Acts 5:32; Romans 8:9; Galatians 4:6), is thus an ever-present witness to the facts on which faith rests. The word, the instru-ment of the Spirit, is the basis of our faith; this faith supplies us with confidence that the witness is true; and this confidence is ever with us. We thus have a continual witness to the reality of that to which we have committed our lives. He that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he hath not believed in the witness that God hath borne concerning his Son.--To reject the deity of Jesus--the Sonship of the Lord--is to make God a liar; for, to this fact he has testi-fied in his word. He who does not believe this testimony implies, in the rejection of it, that all God has said of his Son is false. Thus, to deny the deity of Jesus is not only unbelief it is a studied insult to the veracity of God! Inasmuch as the Christian religion is founded on the truth of the proposition that Jesus is the Christ, to reject this is to repudiate all that God has said. Such a one has rejected prophecy, miracle, the character and life of the Lord, the resurrection, the marvelous spread of Christianity, and every other proof that may be adduced in support of the cause for which Jesus died. 11 And the witness is this, that God gave unto us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.--God gave us testimony; the testimony which he gave is with reference to eternal life; this eternal life to which he testified is in his Son. This testimony is abundant: John 10:10; John 14:6; John 17:3. To this end Paul also testified: "For ye died, and your life is hid with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, shall be manifested, then shall ye also with him be manifested in glory." (Colossians 3:3-4.) The man-ner in which this life is possessed is indicated in the verse which follows 12 He that hath the Son hath the life; he that hath not the Son of God hath not the life.--Only those who have the Son have the life; and since having the Son is conditioned on faithful-ness and devotion to him, it follows that the life here contemplated is conditional. It is in this sense only that one has eternal life here. Eternal life is not a present possession of the Christian: it is a promise: "There is no man that hath left house, or brethren, or sisters, or mother, or father, or children, or lands, for my sake, and for the gospel's sake, but he shall receive a hundredfold now in this time, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands, with persecutions: and in the world to come eternal life." (Mark 10:29-30.) "In hope of eternal life, which God, who cannot lie, promised before times eternal." (Titus 1:2.). One does not hope for that which he already has. (Romans 8:24.) "And this is the promise which he promised us, even the life eternal." (1 John 2:25.) Those passages which apparently as-sert the possession of eternal life here, e.g., John 5:24; John 6:47; John 17:3, etc., areandtobeunderstood as referring prospect, to it in not in reality. The believer has eternal life in prospect and promise, but not in realization. He possesses life, as he possesses the Christ, who is the life, i.e., the source, the origin, the pre-server of life. The believer however, may cease to believe; he may forsake him who has the life. "Having damnation because they have cast off their first faith." (1 Timothy 5:12 AV.) "But shun profane babblings: for they will proceed further in ungodli-ness. And their word will eat as Both a gangrene: of whom is Hymenaeus and Philetus men who concerning the truth have erred, saying that the resurrection is past already, and over-throw the faith of some." (2 Timothy 2:16-17.) "He that hath not the Son hath not the life." He may have money, fame and fortune; intelligence, education and talent; in-fluence, reputation and honor; but, if he has not the Son, he has not the life! He who would have life, must have the Son; there is no substitute.Commentary on 1 John 5:1-12 by E.M. Zerr1 John 5:1. In the New Testament there is only one original word for either born or begotten which is gennao, hence the connection has to be depended upon in each case to determine which is the proper translation. Since the act of begetting is that of the father, it should be the proper translation in passages where the connection shows that lie is the parent being spoken of. On that ground the word born in this verse should have been translated "begotten" just as it is in the others. The seed of reproduction is the word of God and it tells us that Jesus is the Christ. Whenever a man believes that truth, he is begotten of the Father. Therefore it says that everyone who loves him who begat (who is the Father) loveth him also who is begotten (and that is the child). All this is logical, for if we love a man we should love his children. 1 John 5:2. In 1 John 3:14 it is stated that we know we have passed from death unto life because we love the brethren. But that passage does not deal with the question of how to know that we actually do love the brethren, while the present. verse does tell us how, namely, that we love God and keep his commandments. And so a man's mere assertion that lie loves the brethren is not to be accepted. He cannot truthfully make the claim unless he has obeyed the commandments, including repentance, baptism and the others which God has given in the New Testament. 1 John 5:3. Our love for God is proved only by keeping His commandments. Grievous means heavy or burdensome and it certainly should not seem burdensome to obey the commands of the One whom we love. 1 John 5:4. The world means the evil practices of mankind. (See the comments on 1 John 2:15.) If a man truly loves God of whom he was begotten, the love he has for his Father will induce him to overcome the evil practices of the world. That is because his love is directed by his faith that was produced by the word of God. 1 John 5:5. This is the same as the preceding verse except it states how and when one is born (begotten) of God. That is when he believes in Jesus as the Son of God as was stated in verse 1. 1 John 5:6. The pronouns this and he refer to Jesus as the Son of God. The verse deals with three items that testified to that claim. He came means his introduction to the world especially into the public ministry. The water refers to his baptism because it was then John the Baptist said he learned that Jesus was the one who was to come after him. The Spirit also is mentioned because lie appeared in the form of a dove in connection with the voice of God that acknowledged the Son. The blood was in evidence when Jesus shed it on the cross, thus concluding the long blood line that began with Adam and ran down through the ages. (Read Luke chapter 3.) 1 John 5:7. Most translations omit this verse on the ground that it is not in the oldest Greek manuscripts. I will make remarks similar to what were said at chapter 2:23. The passage does not add anything that is different from the other passages on the same subject, nor will anything be lost if it is left out. With these comments I shall proceed with the next verse. 1 John 5:8. This verse differs from verse 6 as to date only; each has to do with the threefold testimony for the divinity of Christ. However. verse 6 pertains to the time of His stay on the earth, while this one is continuous and applies to what has been going on since Christ left the earth. The testimony of the Spirit is that which is recorded in the New Testament and written by the inspired men. The water is in evidence every time a person is baptized, because there is no way to account for the continuation of this plain ordinance other than the fact that it originated in the time of Christ. The blood testifies every time the Lord's supper is observed in which is the fruit of the vine, for Paul says (1 Corinthians 11:26), "As often as ye eat this bread and drink this cup. ye do show the Lord's death till he come." Three agree in one means they all bear testimony to one fact, namely, Jesus is the divine Son of God. 1 John 5:9. If we receive the witness of men means that we do receive such witness. It is as if he said "since we receive such witness," etc. It is true treat human testimony when confirmed is an established rule of mankind in dealing with each other. The apostle is making the point that we should receive the testimony of God, for it is much greater than mere human testimony. That which God gives establishes the fact that Jesus is His Son. 1 John 5:10. Hath the witness in himself. Not that he produced it by his own mind, but it is testimony that can be received by the mind and hence can be retained there. (See Hebrews S:10.) Made him a liar. When a man rejects a statement made by another he thereby makes that man out a liar. Otherwise if the other person is not regarded as a liar, there would be no pretext for the first one to disbelieve him. All of this pertains to the declaration of God that Christ is his Son. 1 John 5:11. Record is from the same word as "evidence." John means that in giving to us the evidence of the Son-ship of Christ, we are thereby given assurance that we may have eternal life through Him. 1 John 5:12. The foregoing important truths are summed up in the conclusion that to have life one must have the Son by sincere belief in Him as the source of that life.Commentary on 1 John 5:1-12 by N.T. Caton1 John 5:1— Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ. The history of apostolic preaching given by the sacred penmen shows that the burden of their message was to induce belief in God's Son. The belief that Jesus is the Christ, accepted whole-heartedly, confessed with the mouth, followed by obedience to the command to be immersed, as the same Jesus enjoined, makes one a child of God— is born of God. If we love the father by whom we are begotten and have thus become his children, we love also all those like­wise begotten. 1 John 5:2— By this we know that we love. To test the question whether we love our brethren or not, and to know the truth of the same, we can ask this question of ourselves— do we love God and keep his com­mandments, one of which is that we love the brethren? If we are assured that we do love God and keep his command­ments, then we may feel assured that we love the children of God. 1 John 5:3— For this is the love of God. The natural expression of our love of God— that is to say, its outward expression— is in obedience. We obey the commands; this shows our love. By this standard we can measure our love of God. This is the sure test. 1 John 5:3 --Not grievous. His commandments are not burdensome; that is as much as to say they are not difficult for God's children to observe, generally speaking, and the difficulty only appears to our human nature when we are called upon to suffer for his name's sake; and, even in this case, the early disciples rejoiced when they were required to so suffer for the cause of Christ. 1 John 5:4— For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world. The Syriac has: "Because whoever is born of God," in the place of "For whatsoever is born of God." The allusion is to persons, so no mistake need be made. Persons born of God overcome the world in the sense that they do not obey the dictates of the world— work iniquity. We are here represented as in a conflict— the children of God against the world. A victory is achieved by the former; they have over­come and discomfited the world, and that victory is attrib­uted to their faith. Faith was the cause of victory. It was faith that enabled the children of God to become victors in that great struggle. 1 John 5:5— Who is he that overcometh the world. Here a question is asked and the answer given. The victor was a man of faith— faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, God's only begotten Son. 1 John 5:6— This is he that came by water and blood. He, through whom the victory over the world was achieved, the Son of God— he came by water. He was first announced by the Father as his Son, at his baptism. As he came up out of the water, then it was that the heavens were opened, and God spake from his throne: "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased" (Matthew 3:17). 1 John 5:6— Blood. On Calvary's mount he shed his blood. Without his death there could be no resurrection. By that resurrection he was "declared to be the Son of God, with power" (Romans 1:4). But it was while on this cross both water and blood flowed from him. "But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced his side, and forthwith came there out blood and water" (John 19:34). Hence, we have two rites, both of which are commemorative and monumental, and so long as time shall be, both give their testimony to the Lord Jesus. We are baptized into his death, and we partake of the Lord's Supper. "Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?" (Romans 6:3.) "For I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, That the Lord Jesus, the same night in which he was betrayed, took bread: and when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat; this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me. After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying: This cup is the New Testament in my blood; this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me. For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord's death till he come" (1 Corinthians 11:23-26). Both these institutions are monumental and bear testimony — not one, but both. Besides these, the Spirit also testified. He came on Pentecost, and spoke through the apostles, and his testimony we have now of record for our study and guidance. 1 John 5:7— For there are three that bear record in heaven. This verse is omitted in the Revised Version, by Rotherham, and by the Syriac. Dr. Macknight contends for its authenticity, and after a long citation of proofs, he decided to retain it, as being contained in St. John's autograph let­ter. At all events, he retains it. The Father, Word, or Son, and the Spirit are represented in John's time in heaven, and while there, bearing record, or as giving testimony. The best I can gather, is this: That the Father testified that Jesus was his Son; that the Son likewise so testified, as also the Spirit; and that their testimony was one, or agreed— was alike, so far as the question of the Messiahship of Jesus was concerned. 1 John 5:8— And there are three that bear witness in earth. That the Spirit, and the water, and the blood testify here on earth, we endeavored to show in our exposition of verse 6. They all bear testimony that Jesus of Nazareth is God's beloved Son. Their testimony fully agreeing, being just alike, they are one therein. 1 John 5:9 -if we receive the witness of men. As reasonable creatures we receive, trust and fully rely upon our fellowmen. This, for a distinction, we call human testimony. Now, if this kind of testimony is accepted, is there not less ground for questioning divine testimony? Divine testimony is the greater. God testified concerning his Son; we have it on record, and it is being constantly borne and repeated in his transforming grace. Every new convert to the cause of Christ is a new and further demon­stration of God's testimony. The apostle then proceeds to tell us what God testified concerning his Son. 1 John 5:10— He that believeth on the Son of God. Every man who is brought to believe on the Son of God has the witness in himself. In this he knows that a change occasioned by that belief has taken place in his own heart, life and conduct. One who disbelieves what God has declared concerning his Son, thereby rejects his testimony and regards God as a liar, or attempts to make God a liar by his rejection of his testimony. 1 John 5:11— And this is the record, that God hath given. The important part of God's testimony, the most impor­tant to man, is that God bestowed upon us eternal life through his Son. We know that we possess this, because we know that we possess a new life; one entirely dissimilar to the one possessed before believing in the Son of God and taking him for our Savior and guide. 1 John 5:12— He that hath the Son hath life. Life is bestowed when we believe on and accept the Son. It is then begun in us, and it is made sure to us by the practice of those virtues which he enjoins. One not accept­ing the Son, has no reason to expect eternal life. Commentary on 1 John 5:1-12 by Burton Coffman Throughout this epistle, John repeatedly emphasized the three tests: faith, obedience and love. All three were stressed in 1 John 2, and most of 1 John 3 was devoted to obedience and love. 1 John 4 emphasized faith and love. The three go together, however, as is evident throughout this letter. In the opening paragraph of this chapter (1 John 5:1-5), "faith" (or belief) occurs in 1 John 5:1; 1 John 5:4-5; "love" occurs in 1 John 5:1-3; and "obey" (keep his commandments) occurs in 1 John 5:2-3. Faith in Jesus Christ as the Son of God, however, is established upon testimony, the testimony of three witnesses, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood; and the second paragraph (1 John 5:6-12) lays strong emphasis upon these. Another paragraph is related to boldness in prayer (except in cases where "sin unto death" is present) (1 John 5:13-17); and the letter is concluded by a brief summary and exhortation (1 John 5:18-21). 1 John 5:1 --Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is begotten of God: and whosoever loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him. (1 John 5:1) Whosoever believeth ... also implies obedience or fidelity, there being no intimation whatever in a statement like this that mere faith, or faith only, is equivalent to the new birth. "Believeth" in this place, as frequently in the New Testament, is a synecdoche for a number of closely related actions involved in conversion. That Jesus is the Christ ... Christianity is grounded in the absolute proposition that Jesus of Nazareth was (is) the Dayspring from on High, God incarnate in human flesh, the promised Messiah of the Hebrews, the "seed of the woman" (Genesis 3:15) who would crush the head of the serpent, whose "goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting" (Micah 5:2). That incarnate deity identified in the New Testament as "Jesus Christ" is man's unique Saviour, and only those who manifest an obedient faith in him can receive the inestimable privilege of the new birth. Is begotten of God ... has the meaning of "is born of God," that is, has received the new birth, being raised "to walk in newness of life" (Romans 6:3-5). Whosoever loveth him that begat loveth also him that is begotten ... In other words, whosoever loves God, being himself a child of God, loves not God alone but all of God's other children also. John's argument here is a type of compound syllogism called "sorites," but with some of the steps omitted. The entire argument would be something like this: Everyone with obedient faith in Christ is a child of God. Every child of God loves the Father. Therefore, everyone with obedient faith loves God. Everyone that loves God loves God's children. Therefore, everyone with obedient faith loves the children of God. 1 John 5:2 --Hereby we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and do his commandments.John echoed here the teachings of the Master who declared that, "If ye love me, ye will keep my commandments" (John 14:15). Love of God, therefore, is the type of regard for the Father that issues in keeping his word and obeying the commandments that he gave. The same is true of love for the brethren. "It is practical and active, and expresses itself in deed and in truth, in sacrificial service."[1] "True Christian love, therefore, is that which proceeds from love to God, and leads us to obey all his commandments."[2] Both with regard to love, as here, and with regard to faith, John's usage of either term always carried inherently the concept of obedience. [1] John R. W. Stott, Tyndale New Testament Commentaries, Vol. 19 (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1964), p. 173. [2] James Macknight, Macknight on the Epistles, Vol. VI (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House, reprint, 1969), p. 103. 1 John 5:3 --For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.There is no need here to defend John with the declaration that, "he was not a legalist";[3] or to oppose him by alleging that Paul's teaching is opposed to this. It is not opposed to it in any manner; although it is quite true that some of the alleged teachings of Paul are denied by this passage. For example, the notion that, "In Paul's terms Law of Christ means freedom from law,"[4] is nothing but a popular error. Not only John and Paul, but Christ and all of the holy apostles constantly reiterated the fundamental thesis of the New Testament that the people who do the will of God will be saved; and the people who do not do it will be lost. The verse before us is in perfect harmony with the whole New Testament. If people believe that they can bypass this fundamental truth by means of some theological device, they are mistaken. And his commandments are not grievous ... Wilder suggested that this is contrary to Jesus' words regarding the strait gate, the narrow way, etc.; and it is possible that many have wondered just how to take the words here. There are at least three ways in which John's words are profoundly true: (1) As compared with the onerous burdens of the Law of Moses, called by the apostles themselves "a yoke of bondage which neither we nor our fathers were able to bear" (Acts 15:10), the Law of Christ is one of incredible freedom. (2) For that soul who is truly born again, the Lord's commandments are in complete harmony with the natural impulses of his new life in Christ. As Sinclair said: Were we perfect, we should not find them commands at all, for they would be our natural impulses. The more sincerely we serve God, the more enjoyment we shall derive from obeying him. Only to those whose inclinations are distorted, perverted and corrupted by sin can God's laws seem irksome.[5](3) Despite the fact of there being genuine obligations in Christian service, called by Jesus himself "my yoke" (Matthew 11:19), it is in the nature of those precious obligations that they make all other burdens lighter. Christ's service is the "yoke," the carrying device, which enables the wearer to carry unavoidable burdens of life which otherwise would be impossible and would destroy him. See a fuller illustration of this in my Commentary on Matthew, pp. 161,162. Concerning this whole verse, Barclay said, "John reverts to an idea that is never far from the surface of his mind. Obedience is the only proof of love."[6] We might add that it is likewise the only proof of faith. [3] Leon Morris, The New Bible Commentary, Revised (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1970), p. 1268. [4] Amos N. Wilder, The Interpreter's Bible, Vol XII (New York: Abingdon Press, 1957), p. 291. [5] W. M. Sinclair, Ellicott's Bible Commentary, Vol. VIII (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan Publishing House, 1959), p. 490. [6] William Barclay, The Letters of John and Jude (Philadelphia: The Westminster Press, 1976), p. 103. 1 John 5:4 --For whatsoever is begotten of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that hath overcome the world, even our faith.Whatsoever is begotten of God ... We might have expected John to write "whosoever" etc., but he was speaking not so much of individuals here, as of the new birth. "It is not the man but his birth from God which conquers."[7] The new birth gives one entry into the kingdom of God (John 3:5 f). In order to enter, one must be born of water and of the spirit, that is, be baptized into Christ and receive the Holy Spirit. For a more complete discussion of this, see in my Commentary on James, pp. 83-88. The victory that overcometh the world ... How daringly incredible must such a claim as this have appeared to unbelievers who might have been aware of it! "The world" of that era was the domain of the Caesar's. To all outward appearances, imperial Rome must have looked like the victor. There was not a force on earth (except that of which John wrote) which could stand against Rome, all the nations of the known world of that day being merely the slaves and vassals of the tyrant on the Tiber. Between that organized oppression and the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ there could be no neutrality; either Christ was Lord and would prove himself so to be, or the self-appointed "Gods" of the imperial purple would win the field. Moreover the conflict was very near to being joined when John wrote these words. The terrible persecutions would soon begin under Nero and would last intermittently for nearly 250 years. Eusebius tells us of the final outrage that occurred in the reign of Galerius Augustus: Christians were flogged until the flesh hung from their bones ... salt or vinegar was poured in their wounds ... their flesh was cut off bit by bit to feed waiting animals ... they were eaten piecemeal by starved beasts ... their fingers were pierced with sharp reed under their nails ... their eyes were gouged out ... they were suspended by a hand or foot ... some had molten lead poured down their throats ... they were beheaded, beaten to death with clubs or crucified ... some were torn asunder by being tied to bent branches of trees (This quotation is from Eusebius by Will Durant, who complained that this could not be verified by pagan sources). Why should pagans have admitted such deeds? There can be no doubt whatever of the truth of these records[8]Durant stated that the persecutions mentioned above lasted for eight years, involving the death of at least 1,500 people and the brutal abuse of many thousands more; but: As the brutalities multiplied, the pagan population was stirred ... good citizens expressed themselves against the most ferocious oppression in Roman history ... the people turned against the government ... many pagans risked death to hide or protect Christians ... (and then it happened!) In Galerius, suffering from a mortal illness, convinced of failure, and implored by his wife to make his peace with the undefeated God of the Christians, promulgated an edict of toleration, recognizing Christianity as a lawful religion, and asked the prayers of the Christians in return for "our most gentle clemency!"[9]Durant summed up the terrible conflict that lasted nearly a quarter of a millennium with the words, "Caesar and Christ had met in the arena, and Christ had won!"[10] History demonstrated the truth of what the apostle John wrote in this verse. [7] J. R. Dummelow, Commentary on the Holy Bible (New York: The Macmillan Company, 1937), p. 1057. [8] Will Durant, Caesar and Christ (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1944), p. 652. [9] Ibid. [10] Ibid. 1 John 5:5 --And who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?It was the basic, fundamental conviction of Christians regarding who Christ was (and is) that fed the springs of their courage and determination. They did not believe, merely, that Christ was some great and wonderful teacher, but that he Was God come in the flesh, the lawful ruler of heaven and earth, the Holy One who would at the last day raise all the dead who ever lived and appoint every soul his everlasting destiny. The very expression "Son of God" carries with it the idea of equality with God; and so the Jews of Jesus' day understood it. For example: Therefore the Jews sought the more to kill him ... because he said that God was his Father, making himself equal to God (John 5:18). Christ confessed under oath that he was the Son of God (Mark 14:62), and the Pharisees mad that the crime for which they demanded his crucifixion (John 19:7). Knowing that he would be put to death for this claim, Jesus carefully avoided making it until he would choose to do so before the Sanhedrin, except in circumstances where his enemies were powerless to use it as the basis of a legal charge of blasphemy. Thus, he spoke freely to the woman at the well of Samaria (John 4) and to the man healed of congenital blindness (John 9), flatly declaring to the latter that he was indeed the Son of God (John 9:35-37). In those two cases, the woman being a Samaritan, and the erstwhile blind man having been thrown out of the synagogue, neither could be recruited by the Sanhedrin as a witness against Christ. By far the favorite designation of himself, on Jesus' part, was "Son of Man," by which he meant everything that Son of God means; but the occasional use of "Son of Man" in the Old Testament to mean any ordinary person (Psalms 8:4) prohibited the Sanhedrin from making a charge based on the title "Son of Man," despite the fact that Christ and his followers, as well as his enemies, perfectly understood that Jesus used the title in the sense of Dan 10:16, where the title is suggested for one who is divine. For fuller discussion of these two titles, see in my Commentary on James, pp. 54-56. 1 John 5:6 --This is he that came by water and blood, even Jesus Christ; not with the water only, but with the water and with the blood.From the times of Tertullian, the more discerning scholars have referred these words to the baptism of Christ in water (as the Greek reads here), and to his crucifixion (aptly described as his coming "in the blood"). Some have seen a reference here to John 19:34; and, as Bruce stated it, "I should not care to deny this."[11] It undoubtedly refers to all of these events; and, even beyond this, it undoubtedly suggested to the apostle the two grand ordinances of the Christian religion: baptism and the Lord's Supper, as indicated by his specific reference to them two verses later. However, the matter at hand in this verse related to the heresy of the Cerinthians who admitted that Jesus was the Christ after his baptism, but denied that he was the Christ in his crucifixion. Again from Bruce: From their point of view, Christ came by water, but not by blood. Therefore, John emphasized that he came "not with water only, but with the water and with the blood"; with the clear meaning that Jesus was proclaimed as the Son of God as truly in his death as he was in his baptism.[12]John's refutation of that heresy was as precise and devastating as any that could have been given. [11] F. F. Bruce, Answers to Questions (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan Publishing House, 1972), p. 133. [12] Ibid., p. 134. 1 John 5:7 --And it is the Spirit that beareth witness, because the Spirit is the truth.It is not possible to tell exactly what the apostle had in mind here. He could have been referring to the witness of the Holy Spirit descending in the form of a dove and alighting and remaining upon him at the time of Jesus' baptism, thus witnessing to the divinity and Godhead of Jesus; or, he might have reference to his own inspired testimony. It should be remembered that he was one of the Twelve to whom Jesus promised that the Spirit would guide them into all truth (John 16:13). As Orr noted, "The present tense might be significant here";[13] and that would seem to make the second alternative the preferable view. ENDNOTE: [13] R. W. Orr, A New Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan Publishing House, 1969), p. 619. 1 John 5:8 --For there are three that bear witness, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and the three agree in one.There are three that bear witness ... Note the use of the present tense, contrasting with the past tense of 1 John 5:6, a fact that indicates the three agreeing witnesses as giving their testimony at the time of John's writing and continuously thereafter. The Spirit ... There is no doubt regarding the identity of this witness, the same being the inspired testimony of the holy apostles of Jesus Christ as revealed in the New Testament; and apart from that New Testament, there is no other authentic written source of the historical events which are the foundation of Christianity. Of the many claims in our own times regarding people claiming to "have the Spirit," not any one of them, nor all of them put together has ever produced a single line of intelligible teaching regarding the holy religion of Christ. In a lesser sense, of course, the earnest of the Holy Spirit given to all believers in Christ on condition of and subsequent to their repentance and baptism imparts the blessed fruit of love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, etc. (Galatians 5:22). And the water ... At the time John wrote, the baptism of Christ could hardly have been spoken of as "witnessing" anything. It was a past event, by a whole generation; and John here spoke of the water as "witnessing" in the present tense. How could this be true? The grand initiatory rite of the Christian religion is a continual witness in all generations of the essential facts of the gospel; namely, the death, burial, and resurrection of the Son of God. The very form of the ordinance with its burial and resurrection to "walk in newness of life" was designed for that very purpose; and how Satan does hate it! In all ages and communities, a believer's baptism "into Christ" declares the gospel message. It is a continuing witness of almost cosmic dimensions, taking place thousands of thousands of times in every place and at every time throughout history. As Macknight stated it: "The water is the rite of baptism regularly administered in the Christian church to the end of the world."[14]And the blood ... "The blood signifies the commemoration of the shedding of the blood of Christ for the remission of sins, in the Lord's Supper."[15] As the apostle Paul declared, "As often as ye eat this bread, and drink the cup, ye proclaim the Lord's death until he come" (1 Corinthians 11:26), thus clearly designating this grand ordinance of the religion of Christ as a continuing witness of the holy gospel until the end of time, "until he come." How could there be any doubt that John spoke of the same thing here? [14] James Macknight, op. cit., p. 112. [15] Ibid. 1 John 5:9 --If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater: for the witness of God is this, that he hath borne witness concerning his Son.Here again, there is a dramatic shift of tense, back to the past perfect, and contrasting the witness of people (presently going on when John wrote) with the witness of God (past perfect) delivered by the Lord Jesus Christ to the apostles, and through them to all mankind. The meaning would appear to be that: dramatic and powerful as are the witnesses of the great Christian ordinances to the validity and authenticity of the Christian religion, the greater witness is that of God himself through the word of Christ and the apostles, the witness which is the heritage of all people in the New Testament. The witness of God (the New Testament) requires that all people accept Jesus as the Son of God, a fact that John would state immediately. 1 John 5:10 --He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in him: he that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he hath not believed in the witness that God hath borne concerning his Son.Hath the witness in him ... The earnest of the Spirit in Christian hearts is indicated by this (Ephesians 1:13), that holy influence which issues in love, joy and peace. The practical meaning of this is that the Christian experience corroborates the validity of Christianity in the lives of those who accept it and walk in the light of it. He that believeth not hath made God a liar ... It is no light matter to refuse to believe the divine testimony of the holy Scriptures. "He that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed on the name of the only begotten Son of God" (John 3:18 KJV). Profound deductions flow out of a passage like this: (1) The testimony of God regarding his Son is sufficient. (2) Rejection of it is equivalent to giving God himself the lie. (3) The wrath of God is revealed against unbelief. 1 John 5:11 --And the witness is this, that God gave unto us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.The sum and circumference of the religion of Christ are encompassed here in a single sentence. All of God's witness for thousands of years in the Bible, all the messages through the holy prophets, all the typical significance of Judaism, and whatever else God did in his dealings with the human race were all directed to a single purpose: the identification of Jesus Christ as his only begotten Son and that priceless gift of eternal life which he brought to people. Eternal life ... How utterly beyond all human comprehension is such a thing as eternal life! To live forever in joy in God's very presence, to know the Creator, to see the Saviour face to face, to know as we are known - such conceptions can be understood only in part. And yet, this is the essential central message of the faith in Christ. This life is in his Son ... Here is the Johannine equivalent of the apostle Paul's "in Christ," having exactly the same meaning as a reference to the corporate body of Christians who have believed God's testimony that Jesus is indeed the Son of God, and who have been united with Christ in baptism, being baptized "into him" (Galatians 3:26-27). Neither Paul nor John, however, developed or invented this doctrine. It began with Christ himself (John 15:1-10). In this series, a liberal amount of space was devoted to the discussion of "in Christ" in Romans 3; and a much fuller treatment of the doctrine is found there. In a word, eternal life for mankind is promised only to those who are "in Christ" and who shall be "found in him" (Philippians 3:9) at the end of probation. See also Revelation 14:13. 1 John 5:12 --He that hath the Son hath the life; he that hath not the Son of God hath not the life.He that hath the Son ... means "he that is a Christian." "Hath the life ... This means "eternal life," but the present possession of it must not be understood as the totality of it. See discussion of "Eternal Life" under 1:4, above. The eternal life promised the faithful followers of Jesus Christ is a life uninterrupted by death. Certain qualities of the life eternal, however, are experienced by Christians in the fruits of the Holy Spirit (Galatians 5:22). Plummer has this: Eternal life is not granted to the whole world, or even to all Christians en masse; it is given to individuals, soul by soul, according as each does or does not accept the Son of God.[16]ENDNOTE: [16] A. Plummer, The Pulpit Commentary, Vol. 22,1John (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1950), p. 141. 1 John 5:13-15 OBJECT IN WRITING(1 John 5:13-15) 13 These things have I written unto you, that ye may know that ye have eternal life, even unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God.--In a general sense, the entire Epistle was written with the design here indicated, though it ap-pears probable that the reference is, particularly, to that of the immediate context, e.g., 5:1-12. These words are very similar to those occurring in John Z0:31. For the manner in which one possesses eternal life here, see the comments on verse 12. The meaning here is, John wrote; he wrote that men may know that they have eternal life; those who have eternal life in prospect and promise (2:25), or those who believe (literally, keeping on be-lieving (tots pisteuousin eis) in the name of the Son of God. The "name," as here used, sums up the characteristics which make up the personality of Christ. 14 And this is the boldness which we have toward him, that, if we ask anything according to his will, be heareth us:--See 1 John 3:21, and the comments there. The conjunction, and, with which this verse begins, associates the ideas which it contains with the verse preceding, and the meaning is: We have the promise of eternal life; the realization of this assures and gives us con-fidence; this confidence expresses itself, for example, in the as-surance we have that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. His will is set out in the sacred writings; to ask ac-cording to his will, is to ask in harmony with what he has taught regarding prayer. Jesus recognized this condition, and hence prayed: "My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass away from me: nevertheless, not as I will, but as thou wilt." (Matthew 26:39.) The Father wills for us only that which is for our good. If we, through ignorance, greed, avarice or some other evil motive, ask for that which we should not have, the Father, in kindness, with-holds it. "Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find ; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: for every one that asketh receiveth and he that seeketh findeth and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. Or what man is there of you, who, if his son shall ask him for a loaf, will give him a stone; or if he shall ask for a fish, will give him a serpent? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your chidren, how much more shall your Father who is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?" (Matthew 7:11). 15 And if we know that he heareth us whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions which we have asked of him.--The assurance which we have that God does indeed answer the prayers of his faithful children encourages us to ask, and enables us to know that we receive the things for which we ask. If we know that God hears our prayers we know that the peti-tions which we make are granted, though we may not be able to see them supplied in the particular way we had expected. The Father sometimes says, Yes!, by saying No! That is, he answers a prayer for our good by denying the petition made but by sup-plying, in his wisdom, our need otherwise. Three times Paul besought the Lord to remove the thorn from his flesh; and though this was denied him, the prayer was answered in a fashion which Paul was himself later to approve. (2 Corinthians 12:7-10.) Commentary on 1 John 5:13-15 by E.M. Zerr1 John 5:13. Written unto you that believe again, sets forth the idea that not all of the apostolic writings are given as new information. The purpose for repeating it is stated that you may know or that they may have their faith for eternal life confirmed. 1 John 5:14. The proviso according to his will is important and shows that we are not at liberty to make just any kind of wild request and expect God to grant it. 1 John 5:15. This verse explains what it means to be heard for our prayers. When we have the petitions (granted) then we know that they were scriptural or God would not have granted them.Commentary on 1 John 5:13-15 by N.T. Caton1 John 5:13— These things have I written. The object the apostle had in writing these things to the believers in Christ is to make them fully understand how they may know of a certainty that they have eternal life. In this letter he gives them many infallible tests and examples by which they can, with certainty and accuracy, determine this matter. 1 John 5:13— That believe on the name of the Son of God. Not only that they may continue to believe, but that they may, with absolute safety, put the fullest possible trust in the name of Christ. 1 John 5:14— And this is the confidence. Whether the word should be confidence or boldness, will make but little difference, as I view it, for if we be God's children and ask for blessings, the petition being according to God's will, we have the word of the Father, that none should doubt, that he will hear. We may, there­fore, come with boldness, and in all confident assurance, to his throne of grace designed for his children. 1 John 5:15— And if we know that he hear us. That is, if we know that he hears us as with open ears, then we know that he will grant our petitions; the things that we asked will be by us received. Commentary on 1 John 5:13-15 by Burton Coffman1 John 5:13 --These things have I written unto you, that ye may know that ye have eternal life, even unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God.These things have I written ... This has reference to the epistle. At the beginning of the letter, John explained the purpose of his writing thus, "These things we write, that our joy may be made full" (1 John 1:4); but the meaning is closely related to this. Their joy (both John's and that of his readers) would be made full in the certain knowledge of the possession of eternal life. Unto you who believe on the name ... "This is the only place in the whole letter where he speaks of believing on the name, in His full Person, all that the name stands for."[17] This variation, however, conveys no different meaning, really, from that of believing in Christ, or believing on Christ. With this verse, the final section of 1John begins. ENDNOTE: [17] Leon Morris, op. cit., p. 1269. 1 John 5:14 --And this is the boldness which we have toward him, that, if we ask anything according to his will, he heareth us;And this is the boldness ... This is the fourth mention of boldness in this epistle: as pertaining to the judgment in 1 John 2:28; 1 John 4:17, and as pertaining to prayer, here, and in 1 John 3:21-22. In a large degree, the Christian is himself responsible for maintaining a confident and winning attitude, an attitude to which he is fully entitled by the glorious endowments and promises of the faith. It is therefore incumbent upon him to speak enthusiastically of his faith and of the joyful service in the Lord, much in the same manner of a good athlete who "talks a good game" with his associates during a contest. The grounds of such confidence which John cited in connection with his admonition is that, after all, our God will answer our prayers! No greater promise could be imagined. If we ask according to his will ... God's promise of answering prayer, however, is not a blank check, the qualification laid down here being only one of a number of Scriptural limitations on it. Others are: prayers must be offered in faith (Mark 11:24), in the name of Jesus (John 14:14), and by one abiding in Christ (John 15:7). Furthermore, only those who have forgiven (Mark 11:15); and only those whose prayers flow out of an obedient life (1 John 3:22), and who will not use their blessings for the gratification of their lusts and passions (James 4:3), may properly claim in confidence the answer of their prayers. 1 John 5:15 --and if we know that he heareth us whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions which we have asked of him.The meaning of this is only slightly different from Jesus' words, "All things whatsoever ye pray and ask for, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them" (Mark 11:24). Perhaps the principal confidence to be derived from this promise is simply that, "We simply know that from all that he has promised that he does not ignore our requests."[18] When it may appear that our prayers have not been answered, we can be positively certain that the reason is harmonious with God's love of his children, and that it is grounded in what God knows is best for them. ENDNOTE: [18] J. W. Roberts, The Letters of John and Jude (Austin, Texas: R. B. Sweet Company, 1968), p. 139. 1 John 5:16-17 THE SIN UNTO DEATH(1 John 5:16-17) 16 If any man see his brother sinning a sin not unto death, he shall ask, and God will give him life for them that sin not unto death. There is a sin unto death: not concerning this do I say that he should make request.--The connection between this statement and the verse which precedes it is close, and should be carefully considered in determining the significance of this passage. We have boldness (confidence) toward the Father. (Verse 14.) This boldness prompts us to make our petitions with the assurance that if we ask according to his will, he hears us. Though we are unable to "see" the answer to our prayers, in some instances, the confidence which we have in him enables us to know that "we have the petitions which we have asked of him." (Verse 15.) As an instance of this, if we see a "brother sin a sin not unto death," we are encouraged to ask in his behalf, assured that God will give us life for "them that sin not unto death." We are not, however, from thence to infer that God will give us life for "them that sin unto death." There is such a sin; and though we are not forbidden to pray in behalf of one thus sinning, we are not commanded to do so, and there is no assurance that God will hear and answer our petition if we do. This passage is not to be confused, as is often done, with Matthew 12:31-32,--"the sin against the Holy Spirit." Here, reference is to a brother who sins; there, the Pharisees were primarily in the mind of the Saviour, these being the ones particularly addressed. (Matthew 12:14-24.) "Any man," of the first clause is to be understood only of those who are members of the body of Christ and approved of God; it follows, therefore, that the "brother" contemplated as sinning is an erring child of God. The rendering of the King James' or so-called Authorized Version of the New Testament reads, "If any man see his brother sin a sin which is not unto death he shall ask . . .," The American Standard Version, however, has it thus: "If any man see his brother sinning a sin not unto death, he shall ask . . ." This appears, at first glance, to mean that if one sees a brother in the actual commission of sin, he may ask and God will forgive such a one while sinning. Such a conclusion is alike repugnant to reason and revelation; opposed both to scripture and to our own sense of the fitness of things, and is obviously false. Jesus said, "Except ye repent, ye shall . . . perish." (Luke 13:3.) There is no offer of amnesty to the rebellious and impenitent. We may be sure that John did not intend that such a conclusion should be drawn from his words here. Why then, the present active participle hamartanonta (sinning) here? The participle agrees grammatically with adelphon (brother), and with the cognate accusative hamartian (sin); it is a sinning brother who stands, as it were, before our very eyes. This is, therefore, not to be construed to mean that the brother is engaged in sin at the moment prayer is made in his behalf. An analysis of the passage reveals, (1) a child of God can sin; (2)thereisasinnot"untodeath";(3)we are instructed to pray for those thus sinning, with the assurance that our prayers will be heard and answered; (4) there is a sin "unto death"; (5) for those guilty of such it is useless and futile to pray. What is the sin thus contemplated? (a) It is obvious that no single sin, contemplated as an overt act, was in the apostle's mind. Correctly rendered, the passage does not designate the sin, or even a sin, but mere sin, sin in essence, sin abstractly considered. (b) The sin was such that a brother could discern it, i.e., identify it: "If any man see . . ." The death referred to was not bodily death, the loss of physical life; but spiritual death, separation from God and all that is good. (d) It was such a sin as only children of God could be guilty of. Any interpretation that is correct must take account of each of these considerations, and embrace them. (1) The sin contemplated here is not such as is usually classified as capital, i.e., such sins as idolatry, murder, adultery, blasphemy, etc. (2) The effects of it were visible and obvious--such as could be seen. (3) It was possible for one who prays to distinguish between the sin unto death, and the sin not unto death. To what type of sin then, did John refer? There is much about sin and its forgiveness in the first Epistle of John. Its fact, in the lives of all Christians, is affirmed (1 John 1:8-10), its origin indicated (3:8), the means by which it may be avoided revealed (3:9). In the event of sin in one's life, there is "an Advocate, with the Father, Jesus Christ, the righteous" (2:1), and the promise that "if we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness" (1:8). The apostle's teaching on the theme is thus abundant, and the significance thereof clear. It is susceptible of being reduced to logical form: The Lord will forgive every sin, of whatever nature, that a brother confesses. (1 John 1:8.)There is, however, a sin which the Lord will not forgive. (1 John 5:16.)Therefore, the sin which the Lord will not forgive, is simply a sin, any sin, all sin that a brother will not confess! If this conclusion does not follow, it is because either the major or minor premise of the syllogism is defective. The major premise is that the Lord will forgive every sin a brother confesses. This is stated in 1 John 1:8. The minor premise is obviously implied in 5:16. It follows, therefore, that since the Lord will forgive every sin, of whatever nature, that a brother confesses and turns away from; and as there is a sin which the Lord will not forgive, the conclusion is irresistible that the sin which the Lord will not forgive is a sin which a brother will not confess. The context corroborates this view. If my brother sins, and manifests penitence, I not only may, it is my duty to, pray in his behalf: "Confess therefore your sins one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed." (James 5:16.) If, however, my brother exhibits stubborn impenitence and persistent rebellion, following the commission of his sin, it is useless to petition the Father in his behalf. The sin unto death is thus a disposition of heart, a perverseness of attitude and an unwillingness of mind to acknowledge one's sin and from it turn away. Such a disposition effectively closes the door of heaven in one's face. 17 All unrighteousness is sin: and there is a sin not unto death.--Here, sin is negatively defined. Sin is unrighteousness. God's commandments are righteousness. (Psalms 119:172.) A failure, therefore, to keep God's commandments, is to be guilty of sin in his sight. A positive definition of sin is set out by the apostle in 3:4: "Sin is lawlessness." Sin thus consists of doing (a) that which is wrong; and of (b) neglecting to do that which is right. The former we classify as the sin of commission; the latter, the sin of omission. "Unrighteousness," is that state or condition which is opposed to righteousness. It is a general term indicative of the absence of righteousness for whatever cause.Commentary on 1 John 5:16-17 by E.M. Zerr1 John 5:16. Sin unto death. Not that the man has reached the state of eternal death but is healed unto it; his conduct is in that direction. The condition described in Hebrews 6:4-6 is a clear case of this kind of sin; let the reader see the comments at that place. Paul says it is impossible for another person to renew that kind of sinner to repentance. It would therefore be inconsistent to engage in a prayer service with a brother who has gone so far in deliberate sin that he could not be induced to repent by anyone else. John says he would not ask anyone to pray for such a brother. The kind of sin that is not unto death would be like that mentioned in Galatians 6:1 where the brethren are told to work for the restoration of the one overtaken. He shall ask sounds as if John means for the brother discovering sin in another to do the praying for him, when Peter told Simon to pray for himself. That it true but it is also true that brethren can pray together on behalf of the erring one. Then if he repents the Lord will grant him life (forgiveness) for his sins. (See James 5:15-16.) The pronouns may be a little confusing the way they are used. The first he means the man who sees his brother sin, and the second he means the Lord from whom all forgiveness must come. (See Ephesians 4:32 as to the source of forgiveness.) 1 John 5:17. All unrighteousness is sin. (See the comments at 1 John 3:4.) John makes this statement that it might not seem he is underestimating the seriousness of any sin. He wishes only to show that not all sins are as fatal as others; that there is such a sin not unto death.Commentary on 1 John 5:16-17 by N.T. Caton1 John 5:16— If any man see his brother sin a sin. Along this line there has been much speculation. We will give our exposition in numerical order. 1. Brother sin. This shows that a Christian is liable to sin; liable to be overtaken by sin, notwithstanding the idea of some, that no child of God can sin. 2. Not unto death. Then there is a sin that is unto death, and a sin that is not unto death. 3. He shall give him life. That is to say, the brother who has sinned a sin that is not unto death, may be restored. This restoration is to be secured by prayer. "He shall ask, and he Shall give him life." Thus, we have the assurance that a brother can be restored by prayer. 4. I do not say he shall pray for it. That is, pray for the brother who has committed the sin which is unto death. John says: "I do not say, that for this sin you shall pray." Of course, it is understood that in that class of sins for which prayer may be offered, with the hope of the restora­tion of the offender, the offender must first be reached, as in the case of Simon, the sorcerer, mentioned in the eighth chapter of Acts. The prayer must be according to the will of God. The will of God is, that a sinner must repent and turn. If this does not exist, prayer for the restoration of the sinning one would be useless, because not according to the will of God. 5. An example of each of the two classes of sins. While this is not strictly in line with the duty of the expositor of this epistle, being suggested by the verse in hand, it may not be out of place. (a) Sin not unto death. "Brethren, if any man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such a one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted" (Galatians 6:1). See also 1 Corinthians 5:1-13, 2 Corinthians 2:7-10, and Revelation 2:4. (b) Sin unto death. "For it is impossible for those who were once enlight­ened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, and have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come, if they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame" (Hebrews 6:4-6). "Wherefore I say unto you, all manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men, but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men" (Matthew 12:31). Many are the speculations upon what is called the unpardonable sin. What it is, and the danger in this age of committing it, are questions that have engaged the thoughts of many. My own notion is that all such discussions are unprofitable. Striving to know and to do God's will is more important. 1 John 5:17— All unrighteousness is sin. All wrongdoing is sin; every coming short of that which is right is sin, and, of course, if persisted in, must result in death. Where one steels his heart against the right, against Christ, who alone can bestow life, such an one can never attain eternal life; and yet, as there is a sin not unto death, such may be restored. Commentary on 1 John 5:16-17 by Burton Coffman1 John 5:16 --If any man see his brother sinning a sin not unto death, he shall ask, and God will give him life for them that sin not unto death. There is a sin unto death: not concerning this do I say that he should make request.If any man see his brother sinning a sin not unto death ... Presumably, this would be any kind of sin except apostasy; but what makes this passage difficult is the problem of Christian brothers monitoring each other's behavior. The ability always to know when a brother is sinning is not in Christians; and that fact limits the admonition here to what is clearly visible to all and unmistakable. And God will give him life for them ... Before Christians may be forgiven of their sins, they themselves must repent and ask the Father's mercy and pardon; therefore, God's giving life for them that sin cannot be solely upon the grounds of another's asking it. Perhaps that limitation is understood in John's promise here of such great efficacy in the prayers of Christians for one another. For them that sin not unto death ... There are a number of New Testament passages that deal with the "sin unto death," namely, the passage here, 1 Corinthians 11:30; 1 Thessalonians 5:19; 1 Timothy 5:6; Hebrews 6:4-6; Hebrews 10:26-27; 2 Peter 2:20-21, and Mark 3:29 with parallel in Matthew. For a complete discussion of this question see in my Commentary on Mark, pp. 65-67, and, in my Commentary on Matthew, pp. 173-175, and, in my Commentary on Hebrews, pp. 125-128. Briefly stated, the sin unto death is that which results in the total apostasy of the sinner, leading to a state which is hopeless, not because of any limitation on God's part, but because of the will of the sinner not to accept pardon. I do not say that he should make request ... This carries the meaning of, "Let him not pray for it."[19]We have already pointed out that in all ordinary circumstances, no Christian could possibly know whether or not one had committed a sin "unto death" or not; and, with that in mind, the interpretation of Bruce on this difficult passage is certainly entitled to be studied. He wrote: I suggest that the sin unto death is quite literally a sin with death as its consequence; and the only way in which it may be known that a sin is "unto death" is if death actually ensues. What John is doing, in that case, is to make it plain that he does not advocate praying for the dead.[20]Bruce's understanding of this seems to this writer the most reasonable of all the explanations encountered. Bruce admitted the possibility that apostasy could be the thing in view, adding "but this I doubt." The explanation advocated by him would certainly solve the problem of a brother's "seeing" whether or not sin was "unto death"; and, in the context, this would appear to be determinative. Plummer, and others who favor the view that apostasy is meant, have written some very helpful words regarding the power of apostates to rebel against God and spurn his love. For example: The prayer of one human being can never cancel another's free-will. If God's will does not override man's will, neither can a fellow-man's prayer. When a human will has been firmly and persistently set in opposition to the Divine will, our intercession will be of no avail.[21]Macknight limited the meaning of this verse to those situations in the early church which were analogous to that mentioned in James 4:14 f, affirming that this verse is directed not to ordinary Christians at all, but to: Any spiritual man (endowed with the charismatic gift of healing diseases); and that the brother for whom the spiritual man was to ask life, was not every brother who had sinned, but the brother only who had been punished with a mortal disease; but who having repented of his sin, it was not a sin unto death; and that the life to be asked and received on behalf of such a brother was not eternal life at all, but a miraculous recovery from the mortal disease from which he was suffering.[22]In support of his thesis, which may indeed be correct, Macknight argued that the clause, "And God will give him life for them" could not possibly refer to eternal life, since "Nowhere in Scripture is eternal life promised to be given to any sinner, at the asking of another."[23]Having given three different interpretations of this difficult Scripture, we shall leave it as one that might reasonably bear any of the three explanations. There are difficult questions connected with any view of it. Before leaving this verse, it should be pointed out, however, that: To divide sins, on the authority of this passage, into venial and mortal classifications, is to misunderstand the whole argument of the Epistle and to seduce the conscience. St. John only means that though prayer can do much for an erring brother, there is a willfulness against which it would be powerless: for even prayer is not stronger than free-will.[24][19] John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the New Testament (Naperville, Illinois: Alec. R. Allenson, Inc., reprint, 1950), p. 919. [20] F. F. Bruce, op. cit., p. 134. [21] A. Plummer, op. cit., p. 142. [22] James Macknight, op. cit., p. 118. [23] Ibid., p. 119. [24] W. M. Sinclair, op. cit., p. 493. 1 John 5:17 --All unrighteousness is sin: and there is a sin not unto death.After all that John had written in this letter regarding the divine prohibition against Christians' sinning, it is clear from this that he fully allowed for the fact of sin, even in the most devoted heart. Ryrie is no doubt correct in seeing this verse as a "warning against the lax thinking that some sins are permissible and others (unto death) not."[25] Any sin is unrighteousness, contrary to the will of God; and any sin, however mild it may be thought to be, is potentially capable of causing the death of the soul; and the manner of the two major clauses of this sentence being balanced against each other indicates that John had that very thing in mind here. In connection with this, it will be remembered that "an eternal sin" (Mark 3:28-29) indicates a multiplicity of transgressions that must be considered potentially "eternal sins." In fact, any sin whatever that might be loved more than the Lord, could prove to be "eternal." ENDNOTE: [25] Charles C. Ryrie, Wycliffe Bible Commentary, New Testament (Chicago: Moody Press, 1971), p. 1028. 1 John 5:18-21 DIVINE (1 John 5:18-21) 18 We know that whosoever is begotten of God sinneth not; but he that was begotten of God keepeth himself, and the evil one toucheth him not.--Verses 18, 19 and 20, each begins with the verb "we know," (oidamen). Compare also, 3:2, 14; 5:15. It is a term which indicates full persuasion and complete confidence. For the meaning of the phrase, "begotten of God," see the comments on 1 John 3:9. For the meaning of the verb "sinneth not," see the notes on 3:6. For the manner in which one who is begotten of God keeps himself from sin, see on the phrase, "and his seed remaineth in him, and he cannot sin." (3:9.) The "evil one," of this passage is the devil. See notes on 3:8. 19 We know that we are of God, and the whole world lieth in the evil one.--"Of God," is, literally, "from God" being begotten of him, we are his offspring. (1 John 3:10; 1 John 4:6.) The word "world" here is not the material universe in which we live, but the race of wicked men about us. These, because they have abandoned themselves to a life of sin, are in the "evil one." The evil one--the devil--is the prince of this world, the ruler of its citizens. (Ephesians 2:2; 1 Peter 5:8; Ephesians 6:11; Colossians 1:13.) 20 And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ.--"Is come," of the first clause is in the present tense, but it has the force of the perfect, has come, and such is its significance here. By supplying us with credible testimony, the Father has enabled us to know him, to accept him as true, and thus also to accept his Son Jesus Christ, and to be in him. (Romans 6:3 Galatians 3:27.) This is the true God and eternal life.--To know--to have an understanding of the true God, and to be in his Son, Jesus Christ,--is to have the assurance of eternal life. (1 John 2:25.) These words are an echo of those in his prayer in the shadows of Gethsemane. "And this is life eternal, that they should know thee the only true God, and him whom thou didst send, even Jesus Christ." (John 17:3.) And thus, at the close of the Epistle, the apostle reemphasizes that with which it began: the eternal life which has been manifested: "That which was from the beginning, that which we have heard, that which we have seen with our eyes, that which we beheld, and our hands handled, concerning the word of life (and the life was manifested, and we have seen, and bear witness, and declare unto you the life, the eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us.") (1 John 4:1-3.) This is the paramount theme of both the Gospel and the epistle of John.21 My little children, guard yourselves from idols.--Idolatry was rampant in the land and age when John wrote, and the danger exceedingly great that some of the saints would succumb to the seductions and allurements of the worship which attended it. They were thus admonished to be evermore vigilant against any effort which would involve them in this awful evil. Though the apostle must have had primarily in mind graven images, those fabricated by men, we must not overlook the fact that anything is an idol which supplants the place of deity in our hearts whether persons, property or pleasure.Commentary on 1 John 5:18-21 by E.M. Zerr1 John 5:18. See the comments at 1 John 5:1 for the meaning of born and begotten. For the verse in general see the comments on 1 John 3:9. 1 John 5:19. We means those who have been begotten of God. Whole world lieth in wickedness. World means the inhabitants of the earth as it does in 1 John 2:15. The italicized words mean the same as "all that is in the world" in 1 John 2:16, which explains why the world is said to lie in wickedness. 1 John 5:20. The word know is frequently used by inspired writers to mean a strong assurance, not that it is intended to take the place of faith. It is true that the apostle John could use the word in its technical sense concerning Christ. That is because he was with Him in person during all of his personal ministry. He also knew that Christ had given him the (inspired) understanding which he promised, for just before leaving this world Jesus told his apostles he would send the Spirit upon them which would guide them into all truth (John 16:13). The true God is said in contrast with the false ones that were worshiped by many people. He also is the source of eternal life in that He gave his only begotten Son into the world for that purpose. 1 John 5:21. Little children is explained at 1 John 2:1. Even the best of disciples need to be cautioned against evils that we would not ordinarily expect them to commit. John tells his readers to keep themselves from idols which is one of such warnings. Paul told the brethren in Corinth to "flee from idolatry" (1 Corinthians 10:14).Commentary on 1 John 5:18-21 by N.T. Caton1 John 5:18— We know that whosoever is born of God. One born of God sinneth not; that is, does not sin habitually, does not live a life of sin. He will not sin the sin which is unto death because overtaken in a fault. Being begotten, he guards himself, and the wicked one can not lay hold upon him, so as to enslave him, or make him his subject. Such an one may be restored. 1 John 5:19— And we know that we are of God. By keeping ourselves from sin, we know that we are of God, that we are God's children, belong to his family, the church of Christ. While this is true, the world, those who refuse to confess Christ, and accept, obey and follow him, are under the dominion of the wicked one. 1 John 5:20— And we know that the Son of God is come. That Christ is come in the flesh we know, not only from the testimony of men, but by the testimony God has fur- nished us, by himself, his Son, and the Holy Spirit. Thus we have the witness of ourselves that we have life in Christ, and that Christ dwells in us. We have this understanding. All this we know to be true, because we are in him who is true, and we know from these immovable sources, that in Christ Jesus the only true God is revealed to the children of men, and that in him, and in him alone, is eternal life, and that through him alone God's children have eternal life bestowed upon them.1 John 5:21— Little children, keep yourselves from idols. Amen. Keep yourselves from worshiping idols is the thought. Flee from it! There have been idols in every age of the world's history; there are idols now; these, the Christian must shun. Whatever leads us away from the true worship of God is an idol to be avoided. John, having so spoken, concludes his letter with a solemn Amen.Commentary on 1 John 5:18-21 by Burton Coffman1 John 5:18 --We know that whosoever is begotten of God sinneth not; but he that was begotten of God keepeth himself, and the evil one toucheth him not.Keepeth himself ... The ASV marginal note on this is: "Some ancient authorities read him instead of himself." This change from the KJV was adopted in RSV, Phillips, New English Bible (1961), Weymouth, and Goodspeed. The New English Bible, although not a translation in the strict sense, nevertheless appears to give the meaning thus: We know that no child of God is a sinner; it is the Son of God who keeps him safe, and the evil one cannot touch him. Sinneth not ... This may not, in any absolute sense, be said of any Christian; and yet John affirmed it here. How then is it the truth? Simply because, in the broad outlines of the Christ-centered life it is profoundly true in the relative, if not in the absolute sense. "The heathen is the man who has been defeated by sin and has accepted defeat. The Christian is the man who may sin but never accepts the fact of defeat."[26]He that was begotten of God ... The importance of this change from "himself" to "him" as noted above is seen here. If "him" is the right reading, then this clause is a reference to the Son of God; but if "himself' is correct, this clause refers to Christians. The meaning given by the change is far better, because it is only in a very limited way that any man can "keep himself." The concept of Jesus keeping them whom he has received from the Father is fully in harmony with John 17:12. It is the Son of God who keeps him safe ... This rendition (New English Bible) stresses that the Christian's safety is not of himself but of the Lord. Jesus promised that he would be with his followers "even unto the end of the world" (Matthew 28:20), and a glimpse of that providence is in this. And the evil one toucheth him not ... On almost every page of the New Testament, the spiritual foe of Christians is identified, not as a mere principle, but as personal, intelligent, malignant and cunning. Current theology which does not take this into account is hopelessly crippled. In the modern departure from New Testament teaching on this subject lies much of the incompetence which has fallen upon so-called "Christianity" today. ENDNOTE: [26] William Barclay, op. cit., p. 121. 1 John 5:19 --We know that we are of God, and the whole world lieth in the evil one.We know ... This is the second of three great certainties stressed by the apostle in 1 John 5:18-20 : (1) We know that we are guarded from the evil one by Jesus Christ our Lord. (2) We know that we belong to God in a hostile, Satan dominated world. (3) We know the great basic of divine revelation, especially the Incarnation of God in Christ. That we are of God ... To what other source, indeed, could the joyful life in Jesus Christ be attributed? Those who have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come are in no doubt whatever regarding the fountain source of their blessings. The whole world ... Here the word "world" does not apply to the natural creation at all, but to the evil inhabitants of the world who continue under the dominion of the evil one. Macknight defined these as, "the idolaters, infidels and wicked men, who having made themselves the subjects of the devil ... they lie under the wicked one, and are under his dominion."[27]Lieth in the evil one ... Calvin's comment on this was: "By saying that it lieth in the evil one, he represented it as being under the dominion of Satan."[28] Of particular interest is the word "lieth" as used here. Because Homer used the word (lieth) to denote the bodies of men lying on the ground slain, Doddridge thinks the apostle, by using the word here, represents the wicked men of the world as lying slain by the devil, to give us an affecting idea of the miserable and helpless state of mankind fallen by the stroke of that malicious merciless enemy.[29]Paul's references to being dead in trespasses and sins, etc., are also fully in harmony with this conception. The following New Testament references regarding Satan are examples of the extensive Biblical teaching regarding the devil: The prince of the power of the air, the spirit which now inwardly worketh in the children of disobedience (Ephesians 2:2). The god of this world (who) blinds the eyes of unbelievers (2 Corinthians 4:4). Our adversary going about as a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour (1 Peter 5:8). (Wicked men) are held in the snare of the devil (2 Timothy 2:26). We are not ignorant of (the devil's) wicked devices (Ephesians 6:11). Through his subtlety (Satan) seduced the mother of all living (Eve) (2 Corinthians 11:3). Christians are delivered from the power of darkness and translated into the kingdom of the Son of God's love (Colossians 1:13).SIZE> [27] James Macknight, op. cit., p. 124. [28] John Calvin (quoted by A. Plummer), op. cit., p. 143. [29] James Macknight, op. cit., p. 125. 1 John 5:20 --And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life.This is the third of the three great certainties with which John concluded his epistle; and it is rather an extensive certainty. Note: We know that the Son of God is come in the person of Jesus of Nazareth. He hath given us an understanding (of all things that pertain to life and godliness). We know Christ who is the true one. We are "in Christ," having believed in him and having been baptized into the "one body," Christ's spiritual body. This is the true God (an unqualified designation of Jesus Christ as God). As a result of Christ's redemptive work, we enjoy eternal life (presently, in the joys of Christian service, and ultimately, throughout all eternity).SIZE> The dispute among scholars as to whether the last sentence of this verse is an affirmation of Christ's deity or not may be resolved quite easily: (1) Grammatically, there can hardly be any doubt the "true God" is a reference to Christ. (2) Theologically, it is absolutely in keeping with all that John wrote, both here and in the Gospel, to read it as a reference to Christ; and that is exactly the meaning this writer has always understood as being in the verse. Due to the extensive New Testament teaching elsewhere affirming in the most unequivocal manner the deity of the Son of God, we are compelled to agree with Plummer who wrote that, "It is of not much moment whether this particular text contains the doctrine of the Divinity of Christ or not";[30] and, of course, this is surely true in a sense. However, the very prevalence of the doctrine so frequently in view throughout the rest of the New Testament should also enter into one's willingness to see it here. It is exactly what one should have expected from the apostle John. The very discerning scholar, J. W. Roberts, pointed out the use of "eternal life" in this whole paragraph. Indeed, throughout the epistle, the fact of Jesus himself being "eternal life" is reiterated. "Jesus is eternal life."[31] With that in mind, we may view the affirmation of Christ's deity here as "the climax of John's claim for the person and work of Jesus Christ in this epistle, just as Thomas' exclamation, My Lord and my God (John 20:28) is the climax of the Gospel."[32][30] A. Plummer, op. cit., p. 143. [31] J. W. Roberts, op. cit., p. 147. [32] Ibid., p. 148. 1 John 5:21 --My little children, guard yourselves from idols.The simple and obvious meaning of this is, "Keep yourselves from the pollutions of heathen worship."[33] Some of John's readers probably lived in Ephesus (where John himself labored); and all of the great pagan cities of that period (including Ephesus) were strongholds of paganism. As Plummer said, "Where the literal interpretation makes good sense, the literal interpretation is probably right."[34] And, taking Ephesus as an example of all the great cities of that era, such an exhortation certainly makes good sense. Ephesus was dominated by the Temple of Diana of the Ephesians, that temple being the center of immorality and licentiousness. The temple institution was a force of incredible power in pagan civilization. The right of sanctuary for criminals of all classes had crowded it with the vilest men on earth. It was the financial center of the pagan culture, occupying about the same status in that ancient culture that the Bank of England enjoyed during the 19th century. "To have anything to do with the Temple of Diana was to be associated with the very dregs of society ... and to be brought into contact with commercialized superstition and the black arts."[35]Beyond the literal and immediate application of this final apostolic edict, however, the spiritual overtones of such an admonition are universal and timeless. No Christian must ever set up in his heart any idol which usurps the place rightfully belonging to the Lord. The gods of the ancients lie buried under the debris of millenniums; but people still worship sex, gold, wealth, power, fame, "success," youth, humanity, self, pleasure, wine, or even their families, instead of the Lord Jesus Christ. The citadel of the heart belongs to the Son of God who died for us and loosed us from our sins in his blood. The final word of this epistle is directed to the guardianship of that citadel. May the child of God never forget that it belongs to the Lord Jesus Christ. [33] William Barclay, op. cit., p. 123. [34] A. Plummer, op. cit., p. 143. [35] William Barclay, op. cit., p. 125.