The word “advocate” in 1 John has nothing to do with losing or restoring one’s salvation. The following explanations tell us that Jesus stands at the right hand of God to pronounce us “not guilty” when the accuser (Satan) brings his accusations before God regarding any of our actions.
1 John 1:1-4 1That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life; 2(For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, bear witness, and show unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and unto us;) 3That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us; truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ. 4These things write we unto you, that your joy may be full.
1:1 Doctrinal foundation of all true fellowship is the person of the Lord Jesus Christ. There can be no true fellowship with those who hold false views concerning him. The first two verses teach his eternity and reality of his incarnation. The one who existed from eternity came into this world as a man. The apostles testify of the reality of his incarnation. The Word of life was a real person in a body of flesh.
1:2 The apostles reconfirm the first verse.
Unknown author: “I am glad my knowledge of eternal life is not built on speculations of philosophers or theologians, but on the unimpeachable testimony of those who heard, saw, gazed at, and handled him in whom God was incarnate. It is a solid fact, carefully observed and an accurately recorded”.
1:3 The apostles did not keep this wonderful news as a secret, and neither should we. All who receive the testimony of the apostles have fellowship with the Father, his Son, the apostles, and all other believers. How wonderful, as unworthy guilty sinners, we are brought into fellowship with God and his Son Jesus!
Jesus, the Son of God, is the Christ, the promised Messiah. Jesus is God incarnate in the flesh of mankind. Christ is fully God, and fully man in all respects, but still separate. God is incarnate in the flesh, but God is not man, neither is man God. However, Christ being fully God and fully man, bridges the gulf between us and God. He makes it possible through the free gift of his salvation and our faith to allow us access to God. Jesus is our advocate to keep us secure in God.
1:4 The world is not capable of providing lasting joy in our hearts. We can receive joy and peace in our hearts only from fellowship the God through his Son.
II. MEANS OF MAINTAINING FELLOWSHIP (1:5–2:2)
1 John 1:5-10 5This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. 6If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth:
1:5 God is light: in him is no darkness. God is absolutely holy, righteous, and pure. God cannot look with favor on any sin. Nothing is hidden from God.
1:6 If a man “walks” in darkness, he is not in fellowship with God. A Christian can make mistakes and still be in fellowship with Christ, but he is not in habitual darkness. A man who says he has fellowship with God and habitually walks in darkness does not have the light of Christ in him. The light in a Christian reveals our errors, we feel guilty, we confess our mistakes, and our fellowship is restored. If we fail to confess our mistakes, God will chasten us, but we do not lose the light in us.
1 John 1:7-10 7If we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanses us from all sin. 8If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.
1:7 If we are in the light, we see others with spiritual eyes that are also in the light. We have fellowship with Christ and other Christians, because we are all in the light of Christ. We are together and fellowship with one another. A man is either in the light or in darkness. We cannot fellowship spiritually with anyone in darkness, because we cannot see them spiritually. Light and darkness cannot abide together. Have you not noticed that the lost and wicked cannot see the same things we see?
1:8 If we say we have no sin (were not born in sin) and do not need salvation, we deceive ourselves, the truth is not in us, and we dwell in darkness.
1:9 However, if we confess we have sin and need a Savior, Christ is true to his promises. He is faithful to keep his promises; he will forgive our sins, and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Sin is misunderstood by many. Sin is eternal separation from God who is a spirit and must be worshipped in spirit and truth. Unsaved man is without a spiritual soul. He must be reunited with God by receiving a new spiritual soul from Christ.
Christ baptizes the believer with the Holy Ghost and he is born again into eternal life. He is once again reunited with God and is no longer separated from God. The Holy Ghost of Christ forever dwells in the born again believer. The Christian no longer is separated from God and has “no” sin. However, the Christian still dwells in the sinful flesh which will be in a continual fight with his spirit until he receives a new immortal body at the Rapture.
Christians can strain our relationship with Christ and grieve the Holy Ghost in us by allowing the sinful flesh to win battles against our desire to be good children of our Father. When we humble ourselves, forsake our foolish mistakes, tell him we are sorry, and seek his fellowship, he is always ready to receive our love. God never fails to love his children, but may chasten us to help us see our mistakes.
1:10 Verse 10 goes back to verse 8. Anyone that says he has no sin, and does not need a Savior, belongs to Satan and is a liar. The verse confirms this by saying the Word of God is not in this person. We know by God’s promises that the person who is born again has the Word of God dwelling in us. Therefore, this cannot be referring to a born again believer, but a lost person. We can never deny that we trespass against God’s wishes in our Christian lives, but we are free from sin, separation from God. We are in the light and the light is in us.
The next scripture deals with the word “Advocate”. Jesus is our Advocate, a lawyer to plead our case to the Father. The Son of the Father is our Advocate to the Father. Christians do sin in the flesh, but not in the spirit. Our spirits are perfect in Christ; our sin (separation from God) was taken care of by the shed blood of Jesus, the Son of God. He has become our Advocate.
When Satan accuses us to God each time we fail in the flesh, Jesus pleads our case as our Advocate. All Jesus does is say to the Father, he is not guilty, I have covered his sin with my blood and he is born again by my spirit and we are one. We are eternally secure and cannot lose our salvation since Jesus is our Advocate.
1 John 2:1-2 1My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. If any man sin, we have an ADVOCATE with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: 2He is the propitiation for our sins; not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.
2:1 Now we deal with the mistakes we make (transgressions) often called sin, but not the sin of disbelief that separated Adam from God. We still live in the sinful flesh and sin in the flesh. Once again, Jesus is our advocate before God, and announces we are not guilty as our sins are covered by the blood of Jesus.
However, these sins of the flesh (transgressions) do cause us to have strained relationships in our lives toward God. As stated previously, we tell God through Jesus that we are sorry and repair our relationship with God. We never lose our salvation in the process and remain children of God. As the 1st verse begins, “My little children”! Although we cannot lose our salvation, we must remember God is perfect, and he can expect no less than to urge us to be perfect.
We can only be perfect in his righteousness, but we must continually let the Holy Ghost dwelling in us overcome the sinful desires of the flesh. The ADVOCATED never tells God we are guilty, but that we are not guilty. All God sees is the blood and not our failures once we are born again Christians.
Jesus through the work of the Holy Ghost in us works with us at all times to maintain fellowship with him and the Father. If we continue to follow the sinful desires of the flesh, we can expect chastisement from Jesus to bring us in line with the spirit of Christ in us. If we do not respond to chastisement, he will turn us over to Satan (hazards of the world). We will probably suffer a shortened physical life through the destructive forces of the world and Satan, but we remain as children of God and eternally secure.
Verse 1 confirms we are still saved when it says “we have an ADVOCATE with the Father. He remains our Father even though we sometimes follow the flesh instead of the spirit.
2:2 Jesus is the propitiation (atonement) for our unrighteousness and for the unrighteousness of everyone, but this atonement is effective for salvation only when one accepts this atonement and the places himself at the mercy of Christ as a believer by faith. Even thought Jesus died for all mankind to have a way of escape from the condemnation of the Adamic sin, man has his free will to accept or reject this offer of atonement for his own sins.
If I need a lawyer (ADVOCATE), I must seek an ADVOCATE or accept one appointed by the court. If I reject the ADVOCATE, I am at the mercy of the Judge if I cannot defend myself. When a person remains in his unrighteous state, the Bible states he has no excuse when he stands before God, and since he has rejected Jesus as Savior and Lord, he has no ADVOCATE to represent him.
III. MARKS OF THOSE IN THE CHRISTIAN FELLOWSHIP: OBEDIENCE AND LOVE (2:3–9)
1 John 2:3-9 3Hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments.
2:3 There are certain characteristics reflective of a Christian. We are not under the law, but under a new commandment of love. Love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, soul, mind and strength. Love thy neighbor as thyself. Our love for Christ and our brothers will cause us to exhibit the proper aura indicating we are Christians. If we love God, we will shun evil practices bringing shame to his name, and exhibit a life in praise of his name.
1 John 2:4-9 4He that says, I know him, and keeps not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. 5Whoso keeps his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him. 6He that says he abides in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked. 7Brethren, I write no new commandment unto you, but an old commandment which ye had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which ye have heard from the beginning. 8Again, a new commandment I write unto you, which thing is true in him and in you: because the darkness is past, and the true light now shines. 9He that says he is in the light, and hates his brother, is in darkness even until now.
2:4 John does not imply the Christian life consists in faultless obedience to the will of God, but the Christian habitually desires to keep his commandments and to do those things that are pleasing in his sight. If someone says he knows God, but does nothing to keep his commandments, it appears he is not telling the truth.
2:5 The love of God does not refer to our love for God, but his love for us. God’s love toward us has been brought to its goal when we keep his word. It accomplishes its aim and reaches its end in producing obedience to him. This is not an instantaneous event, it is a growth pattern. We must grow in his love from a baby Christian to a mature Christian.
2:6 Again, this is a growth pattern. We should see a Christian becoming more mature in his Christian walk. Of course, this depends on his discipline to ingest the Word of God and let the Holy Ghost lead him in the Word of God. If a newborn baby does not receive the proper food and discipline, he does not mature into a proper adult. The same applies to a born again Christian. He will remain a child of God for eternity, but may not become a mature Christian.
2:7-9 Another important trait of a true believer is love for the brethren. Jesus taught his disciples to love one another from the very beginning of his earthly ministry. Gnostics parade their teachings as being new, but the apostle urges his readers to test everything by the teaching of the Lord Jesus when he was here on earth. “This is my commandment, that ye love one another, as I have loved you. 13Greater love hath no man than this that a man lay down his life for his friends”.
Why do we love the brothers and sisters in Christ? We are in the light and they are in the light with the light, Christ. We are all one in Christ and are part of one body. This does not mean we have to agree with the wrong-doing of a brother, but our correction from the scripture is in love so that he can see his wrong-doings and correct them.
There is a difference in those in darkness. It is evident they hate the Christians who walk in the light of God. There assaults are from hate and not love. A Christian’s presentations from God to the wicked are not of hate, but the love of God we have for them to escape the condemnation of an eternal hell.
Even a backslider does not hate his brothers in Christ, but he does sometimes avoid them due to embarrassment and shame. However, an apostate who has no love for the brothers generally shows disdain and hate for them proving he is still in darkness.
IV. STAGES OF GROWTH IN THE FELLOWSHIP (2:12–14)
1 John 2:12 I write unto you, little children, because your sins are forgiven you for his name’ sake.
2:12 Again, we are called his children. It is for Christ’s sake that God forgives us our sins, thus we belong to him eternally for his sake, we cannot get out of this promise, and it is in his hands, not ours.
1 John2:13-14 13I write unto you, fathers, because ye have known him that is from the beginning. I write unto you, young men, because ye have overcome the wicked one. I write unto you, little children, because ye have known the Father. 14I have written unto you, fathers, because ye have known him that is from the beginning. I have written unto you, young men, because ye are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and ye have overcome the wicked one.
2:13-14 Fathers are mature believers who have known the fellowship of Christ for a long time and are satisfied with him. Young men in the spiritual family are characterized by vigor and combat. This is the period of conflict and wrestling with the foe. Young men … overcome the wicked one because they have learned the secret of victory, namely, “not I, but Christ living in me.” The little children are the babes in the faith. They do not know very much, perhaps, but they do know the Father.
Again the young men are addressed as those who are strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Young Christians who are not babes in Christ, but have fought the battles against Satan are normally very active and strong in their activities of serving Christ and the church with their strength and enthusiasm.
V. TWO DANGERS TO THE FELLOWSHIP: THE WORLD AND FALSE TEACHERS (2:15–28)
1 John 2:15-28 15Love not the world, neither things in the world. If any man loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16All that are in the world (lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes, and the pride of life) are not of the Father, but are of the world. 17The world passes away and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abides for ever.
2:15 This first verse can be for both the saved and lost. If a person places his focus on the pleasures of the world, his love for God is not strong or is totally absent. If it is a Christian, he can become lax and backslide from his fellowship with God. God will work with the Christian in love and chastisement to help the Christian get back in fellowship with God and his brothers in Christ.
If this person has not been saved, he walks in darkness, has no love for Christ, and no fellowship with Christ. His love and fellowship is totally with the pleasures of the world.
2:16 This verse appears to be descriptive totally to the lost that walk in darkness and totally immersed in the pleasures of the world with no love of God in their heart. There are always some in the church, who have made a profession, but it was superficial, and they have never really loved God nor his Son.
2:17 Those never making the commitment and remaining in darkness and true to the pleasures of the world will pass away with the world and be separated from God at the end time. Those who abide in Christ and Christ in them have already passed from death unto eternal life in Christ.
There are also some in the church that have not yet committed their life totally to Christ, but if they continue in the will of God through the Holy Ghost among the church body, they will eventually make their choice for Christ and be happy in Christ as opposed to choosing the pleasures of the world.
In all churches, among those that have made professions, there are many who were sincere in heart, love God, and have totally committed themselves by faith to Christ. They are eternally secure in Christ. Others will not make the commitment, do not love Christ, and will apostate. Others will continue to waver, but finally choose Christ and become born again.
1 John 2:18-23 18Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now there are many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time. 19They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us: but they went out, that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us. 20But ye have unction from the Holy One and ye know all things. 21I have not written unto you because ye know not the truth, but because ye know it, and that no lie is of the truth. 22Who is a liar but he that denies that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist that denies the Father and the Son. 23Whosoever denies the Son; the same hath not the Father: (but) he that acknowledges the Son hath the Father also.
2:18 Satan will imitate the church with many cults. This is a danger to young Christians as they are not normally steeped in the doctrines of the scriptures, and may be swayed by the winds of false doctrines that sometimes blow through churches from false teachers and false preachers. Any doctrine is antichrist that does not focus on faith in Christ and grace from Christ as the only two components of salvation.
2:19 Some church members have made emotional decisions, but not a total commitment to Christ. They may last for years in the church, but never really loved God or his Son, and lead an unfulfilled empty life. They live on emotions and not faith that is required to trust Christ and his promises. These unsaved members eventually reach a point where they dislike God and his Son, and become unhappy in their pretensions.
These apostates have tasted of the love and power of the Holy Ghost in the church and seen his power and effect in others. They have been under the goodness and power of God and the Holy Ghost, but finally decide this is not for them. Since they have never been born again, they eventually turn from this way of life and return to the world, turn against God and his Son, and never return to Christ. They have blasphemed (rejected) God and his Son in the most bold and arrogant way and are lost for eternity. No born again believer can ever become an apostate, only those who were never born again of the Holy Ghost of Christ.
2:20 Now John tells the born again of the church that they are indwelled with the Holy Ghost and know all things. This is not to say, a Christian automatically has all the knowledge of the universe, but he now has the spirit of God and understands the things of the spirit and of God. The Christian has the capacity to learn the things of God, but the lost do not understand.
2:21 John continues to confirm that the born again Christian has the truth indwelling in him and speaks the truth from a heart of God.
2:22 Satan is the chief of all liars. Those who are not born again, walk in darkness and do not have truth in them. They are the children of Satan and thus have his characteristics. Those that deny Jesus is God incarnate are antichrist and children of Satan. Since they do not have the truth in them, they are liars like their father, Satan.
2:23 He that denies Jesus, denies God as he is God incarnate. He that is indwelt with the spirit of Christ is also indwelt with the spirit of God.
1 John 2:24 24Let that abide in you, that which ye have heard from the beginning. If that which ye have heard from the beginning shall remain in you, ye also shall continue in the Son, and in the Father.
2:24 The safeguard for young believers against false teachers is “let that abide in you which you heard from the beginning”. This refers to the teachings of Jesus and his apostles. Do not listen to new doctrines outside the Bible. Always match up the teaching with scripture from the Bible and in its proper context.
1 John 2:25-29 25This is the promise that he hath promised us, even eternal life. 26These things have I written unto you concerning them that seduce you. 27The anointing which ye have received of him abides in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teaches you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him. 28Now, little children, abide in him; that, when he shall appear, we may have confidence, and not be ashamed before him at his coming.
2:25 When we abide in the Christian doctrine, it reveals the reality of our faith. The promise from Christ, as a result of our faith, is eternal life. When we accept the Lord Jesus, we receive his own life, namely, eternal life, and this life enables us to test all new and questionable doctrines.
2:26-27 John warned the young believers regarding false teachers. The born again believer has received the indwelling of the Holy Ghost which seals him for eternity. He will never leave us and we cannot leave him. The Holy Ghost will guide us in our understanding of the scriptures.
This does not mean we should refuse to listen to others. Many devoted Christians who have studied the scriptures their whole lives under the tutorship of the Holy Ghost, have been through the trials, tribulations and understand the scriptures better than most of the younger ones. They are generally wiser because of their maturity in Christ and their long life in fellowship with him.
Verse 26 is the key. It is saying some will try to teach you and seduce you with false doctrines, but the Holy Ghost will help you see through their false teachings. Let the Holy Ghost guide you in understanding as you read the scriptures, but do not fall for false doctrines by listening to a teacher without testing the doctrines against the scriptures.
The Bible teaches us to seek counsel from the wise and learned, but not without studying the scriptures for ourselves and listening to the Holy Ghost.
2:28 Even though we cannot lose our salvation for “any” reason, we should be faithful as obedient children of God. We will not be ashamed when Jesus calls us home to be with him. We should strive to be like Paul, “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, and I have kept the faith: henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.
VI. MARKS OF THOSE IN THE CHRISTIAN FELLOWSHIP (CONT.): RIGHTEOUSNESS, LOVE, AND THE CONFIDENCE IT BRINGS (2:29–3:24)
1 John 2:29 If ye know that he is righteous; ye know that every one that doeth righteousness is born of him.
2:29 Another family trait is righteousness. We know in the physical realm that like begets like. So it is in the spiritual. Everyone who practices righteousness is born of God. Because God is righteous, therefore everyone born of him is righteous.
1 John 3:1 Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knows us not, because it knew him not.
3:1 God’s love is shown in that he accepted us into his family as children. The world does not recognize us as children of God. When Jesus was here, those who would not accept him by faith could never understand him. “He was in the world, and the world was created by him, and the world did not know him. He came to his own, and his own did not receive him.” We have the same characteristics as Jesus; we cannot expect the world to understand us, either.
1 John 3:2-10 2Beloved, now we are the sons of God and it doth not yet appear what we shall be; we know when he appears, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. 3Every man that hath this hope in him purifies himself, even as he is pure. 4Whosoever commits sin transgresses also the law; sin is the transgression of the law. 5Ye know that he was manifested to take away our sins; and in him is no sin. 6Whosoever abides in him sins not; whosoever sins hath not seen him, neither known him. 7Little children, let no man deceive you: he that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous. 8He that commits sin is of the devil; the devil sins from the beginning. For this purpose, the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil. 9Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remains in him. He cannot sin, because he is born of God. 10In this, the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil; whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loves not his brother.
3:2 We are the sons of God by the new birth. It is impossible to be unborn to God. Our submission to the Holy Ghost and the scriptures molds us into Christ like models, but we cannot be completely like Christ until we receive our glorified bodies.
3:3 Our faith and God’s grace has already transformed us into a new creature. We have a perfect new spiritual living soul dwelling in us, but our flesh remains unchanged by this new birth. We can bring the flesh under submission to the love of God in us as we mature in Christ. We become more like Christ as the Holy Ghost molds us. We cannot be perfect as Christ until we receive the new immortal glorified body.
3:4 He that is not a born again believer is still under the yoke of the law. If he disobeys any law, he sins.
3:5-6 Jesus who knew no sin became sin on the cross as an atonement to satisfy the penalty of the law for those disobeying it. When Christ fulfilled the penalty of disobedience to the law, he pardoned all who will receive it as a free gift. All who accepts Jesus by faith are born again of God’s grace and freed from the penalty of the law. We are united with God through Christ and can never be separated from him again. We are free from sin. He, who rejects Christ, lives in sin and does not know the truth (Christ).
3:7 Gnostics pretend to have great knowledge, but are unrighteous in their lives. Man does not have God in him if he does not possess the Holy Ghost of Christ. If you have the Son, you have the Father (God). If you reject the Son, you reject the Father (God). Those that tell you they have God in them and reject Christ are liars of Satan. On the other hand, a man can only practice righteousness through having the nature of him who is righteous.
3:8 Some children are so like their parents that you couldn’t lose them in a crowd. This is true of God’s children and of the devil’s children. He who practices sin is of the devil. Men become children of God through the new birth. There is no birth in connection with the children of the devil. A man becomes a child of the devil by imitating his behavior. No one is begotten as a child of the devil.
3:9 A person who is born of God is part of God. He has received his life from God, and he will always remain part of God. He is eternally secure in God. If a child of God errs, he will be chastised and corrected by God. He will always be a child of God and will inherit heaven
3:10 The key word is manifest. The righteous will manifest the characteristics of Christ. The unrighteous will reject Christ and manifest the characteristics of the world. The characteristic of the worldly is self reliance on one’s own capabilities as opposed to placing oneself in the will of the creator.
1 John 3:11-24 11This is the message that ye heard from the beginning, that we should love one another. 12Do not be as Cain, who was of that wicked one and slew his brother. And wherefore slew he him? His own works were evil, and his brother’s righteous. 13Marvel not, my brethren, if the world hate you. 14We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loves not his brother abides in death. 15Whosoever hates his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him. 16Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. 17But whoso hath this world’s good, and sees his brother have need, and shuts up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwells the love of God in him? 18My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but love in deed and in truth. 19And hereby we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before him. 20For if our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and knows all things.
3:11 One sign a person is born of God is that he loves his brother’s in Christ.
3:12 Why did Cain have hate toward Abel? It is the same reason the wicked hate Christians. Their works are unrighteous, and the works of a Christian are righteous works that condemn the unrighteous.
3:13 It is unnatural if the world does not hate you. If the world loves you, it is a sign you are not a Christian or not doing the work of a Christian. The wicked hates it when his wickedness is exposed. Instead of changing his wicked behavior, he seeks to destroy whatever shows it up clearly.
3:14 When a person is saved, he loves his Christian brothers. This is one of the ways he recognizes assurance of salvation. One, who does not love Christians, abides in death. He is dead spiritually.
3:15 The motive for murder is hatred. Hatred comes from those walking in darkness, however, hatred and murder can be forgiven the same as any other unrighteous act. Murder comes from hatred, but there may be many different reason’s for one person killing another that has nothing to do with hatred.
3:16 Jesus came to die for the sins of those who hate him, that is true love. Most Christians will not be required to lay their lives down for others, but are sometimes called upon to help our brothers in need.
3:17 The Bible rightly states that Christians do not withhold assistance from those in need. This in no way teaches the priority of the church is to take care of the physical needs of the world. This command is individual. The command to the church is to go into the world and preach the gospel to every creature.
The church is spiritual and its goal is spiritual salvation for all. As individuals, we are both physical and spiritual. We live in a physical world that needs our attention as well as in a spiritual world that needs out attention.
3:18-19 Words will only go so far. All Christians have friends, neighbors, and opportunities around us in the community and at work to show kindness and deeds. Truth is the most important aspect of our character. We should preach, teach, and live the truth regardless if it offends others.
3:20 God is greater than us in compassion. God understands us better than we
understand ourselves. We often feel unworthy of his forgiveness and retain guilt when God has forgiven us for the act. We need to put the past behind us and go forward in his grace.
1 John 3:21-24 21Beloved, if our heart condemns us not, then have we confidence toward God. 22Whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight. 23This is his commandment that we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us commandment. 24He that keeps his commandments dwells in him, and he in him. Hereby we know that he abides in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us.
3:21 This is the confidence that all Christians should have in Christ by faith. Those who try to live by works, endure to the end, trust in tongues, believe they are saved by water baptism, etal, and depend on their own works or ability to lead a righteous life are plagued with uncertainty of their salvation each time they make a mistake. Those who are saved by faith alone in the promises of Christ never worry about our salvation. We “know” it is secure in Christ, and all we do is trust his promises.
3:22 God is not a Genie in a bottle. When we love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, we do those things pleasing in his sight. We are wise in his will to know the things to ask him to keep from asking amiss, consume it upon our own lusts. When we ask in his will, he will grant our request. I have found there are few things to ask of God as he knows ahead of time and provides the blessings I need.
3:23 A repeat of the two commandments of the New Testament. Love the Lord our God with all our hearts, soul, mind, and strength. Also, love our neighbor as ourselves.
3:24 Since we love God, he has placed his spirit of grace in us. We are one with God in spirit. It is easier to be like Christ because we love him and imitate him through the spirit of Christ living in us.
VII. THE NEED TO DISCERN BETWEEN TRUTH AND ERROR (4:1–6)
1 John 4:1-6 1Beloved, you should not believe every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world. 2Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God: 3And every spirit that confesses not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world. 4Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world
4:1-3 There are many evil spirits (fallen angels) in the world and they can and will possess a person that does not resist them. There is only one spirit of God and he abides in the Christians as the Holy Ghost of Christ. These evil spirits influence and possess unrighteous men. There are “many” false teachers, preachers, modern day prophets, gurus, and self proclaimed Saviors in the world.
The Holy Ghost in a Christian allows us to sense many of the false spirits; however, it is up to us to try the spirits by matching their actions and words against the written scripture provided for us in the Bible. The most flagrant of the false spirits will deny that Jesus is God incarnate. The spirit that is of God will confess (admit) that God is incarnate in Jesus. The antichrist spirit is any spirit that takes away the focus of faith in Jesus and places it on man’s own works, self reliance, or self deity. The Holy Spirit always glorifies Jesus and not man.
4:4 True believers can overcome false teachers because the Holy Spirit within us detects false teaching. The Holy Ghost in born again Christians is greater than any false doctrine or evil-being we will face from the world.
1 John “Advocate 11”
1 John 4:5-6 5They are of the world: therefore they speak of the world, and the world hears them. 6We are of God: he that knows God hears us; he that is not of God hears not us. Hereby we know the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error.
4:5 The world is the well-spring of false teaching, and the world hears them because their teachings are soothing to their ears. If a Christian is faithful to God, he must face the disapproval of the world.
4:6 John speaks as representing the apostles. He says, “We are of God. He who knows God hears us.” This means that all who are really born of God will accept the teaching of the apostles found in the NT. On the other hand, those who are not of God refuse the testimony of the NT or try to water it down with worldly teachings outside the Bible.
VIII. MARKS OF THOSE IN THE CHRISTIAN FELLOWSHIP (CONT.) (4:7–5:20)
1 John 4:7-5:20 7Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loves is born of God, and knows God. 8He that loves not knows not God; God is love. 9In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him. 10Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. 11Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.12No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwells in us, and his love is perfected in us. 13Hereby know we that we dwell in him, and he in us, because he hath given us of his Spirit.
4:7-8 John emphasizes love is consistent with the character of God. John is not defining love common to all men, but the love of God implanted in those who are born again. The origin of love is God. At the end time when we enter eternity all love will be in heaven. There will be no love in hell. Everyone will hate everyone else in hell.
4:9-10 The nearest we can come to describing God’s love is John 3:16, “For God so loved the world, he gave his only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. God loved us while we were still in sin and against his righteousness. He sacrificed his only begotten Son for all of those who reject him and hate him. Those who go to hell go there in spite of God, not because of God.
4:11 Since God loved us and saved us while we were wicked and unrighteous, then we should love those who are unrighteous and proclaim the gospel of Christ to them to provide them with the opportunity to avoid everlasting damnation. This does not mean we should love their nature of sin, nor their sins, but have the overwhelming desire for them to come to accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior.
4:12-13 All men have seen plenty of evidence of God, but he is too enormous in his deity for us to see him. God is a spirit and those that worship him must do so in spirit and truth. The Christian has the spirit of God/Christ dwelling in us, and we are in union with God through the Holy Ghost of Jesus. We feel the love of God and we love God in return.
We love the essence of God and are completely willing to turn our lives over to his spirit to guide us. We realize God created man and knows more about our needs than we can fathom through our futile efforts. God’s love is perfected in us as we strive to bring the gospel of Christ to the lost in our effort of love to allow them to avoid their self inflicted eternal damnation.
1 John 4:14-21 14We have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Savior of the world. 15Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwells in him, and he in God. 16We have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwells in love dwells in God and God in him. 17Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the Day of Judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world. 18There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear: because fear hath torment. He that fears is not made perfect in love. 19We love him, because he first loved us. 20If a man says, I love God, and hate his brother, and then he is a liar: for he that loves not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen? 21We have this commandment from him, that he who loves God loves his brother also.
4:14 Apostles are valid witnesses God came in the Son to be the Savior of the world.
4:15 This co-existence with one another makes us one in God’s spirit. To do away with one would be to do away with both. Christians are as eternally secure as God himself.
4:16 God is love, and that love must find an object. The special object of God’s love is the company of those who have been spiritually born into his family. If I am to be in fellowship with God, then I must love those he loves. Those who choose to refuse God’s love cuts themselves out of eternal life in Christ, and opt for eternal life in the Lake of Fire.
4:17 It is not our love that is made perfect, but God’s love is made perfect with us. John is now taking us to that future time when we will stand before the Lord. We will stand before him in confidence. The reason is his promise. “Because he is, so are we in this world. We are just as sure we are eternally secure in this world as Jesus is with the Father. We are beyond the reach of condemnation.
4:18 We have come to know God’s love, so we have no fear of perishing. I am assured of the Lord’s love first, because he sent his Son to die for me. Secondly, he indwells me eternally. I cannot fear the one who keeps me secure and safe.
4:19 God shows his love for us, and we respond with love for God. It is a mutual union where we love each other.
4:20-21 It should be obvious why we should attend church and worship God with our brothers in Christ. We love each of our brothers because we love God and he loves us. We can feel the love among the brothers in Christ. We cannot hate our brothers and still love God.
1 John 5:1-21 1Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God: and every one that loves him that begat loves him also that is begotten of him. 2By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his commandments. 3For this is the love of God, “that we keep his commandments and his commandments are not grievous.
5:1 The results of faith are love for God, being born again, and love for one’s fellow believer, and obedience to God’s commandments. The belief that Jesus is born of God is a committal by the believer of his life to Jesus. Those who are born of God will love him and our brothers in Christ.
5:2-3 The born again believers, have a desire to do the will of God. Our love for God is expressed in willing obedience to his commands. The commandments of Christ are not grievous to us as they are the desires of our new spiritual soul. Christ’s commandments are written into our hearts in love. These commandments become easy for us as they are commandments of love.
1 John 5:4-8 4For whatsoever is born of God overcomes the world: and this is the victory that overcomes the world, even our faith. 5Who is he that overcomes the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God? 6This is he that came by water and blood, even Jesus Christ; not by water only, but by water and blood. It is the Spirit that bears witness, because the Spirit is truth. 7For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. 8And there are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one.
5:4-5 Through faith, we accept the free gift of grace and eternal life in Christ. We are born again of the spirit of Christ and secured for eternity. This faith and God’s grace has given us victory over the world.
5:6 Jesus came by water and blood. Water sometimes represents the spirit. Jesus came by the Spirit into the world. John 1:14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.
Jesus was both fully God (born of the spirit of God) and fully man (born of the flesh). The blood in Jesus was not from the tainted flesh of Mary, but was a newly created blood from the Father that was righteous and pure.
5:7 When Jesus was baptized there were three unique witnesses from heaven confirming his identity. The Father announced from heaven that Jesus was his Son in whom he was well pleased. God speaks and it is done. The Word of God confirmed that Jesus was God’s son. The Spirit of God came from heaven and lit on Jesus in the form of a dove (love).
5:8 There were three witnesses on earth to confirm Jesus was the Son of God. John the Baptist was filled with the Holy Ghost from his mother’s womb. He made it clear that God the Father sent him as an ambassador to announce Christ. The Holy Ghost (Spirit of God) in John identified Jesus as the “Lamb of God”, who takes away the sin of the world. Also, the “spirit” of God lighting on Jesus like a dove.
John baptized (water) Jesus identifying Jesus as the atonement sacrifice on the cross. Jesus (untainted blood of the Father) confirmed he was God many times during his birth, life, death, burial, resurrection, and ascension.
1 John 5:9-15 9If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater: for this is the witness of God which he hath testified of his Son. 10He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself: he that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth not the record that God gave of his Son. 11And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life and this life is in his Son.
5:9 We know the apostles were eye witnesses of all the works of Jesus and knew him personally during his ministry. There are many more witnesses in the Bible. God from heaven on two separate occasions voiced his witness regarding Jesus, plus the many prophecies from God’s Word in the Old Testament.
5:10 We have already established that God gave witness of Jesus as the Messiah and his Son. We now look at our witness of Jesus. We Christians have believed by faith that Christ is God incarnate. Christ has proven this to us by indwelling us with his Holy Ghost as his witness within ourselves due to our act of faith. Those who refuse Christ say God is a liar because they do not believe the record provided by God (Bible).
5:11 God’s recorded promises from the Bible assures us of eternal life in Christ because of our faith in his promises.
1 John 5:12-15 12He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life. 13These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God. 14This is the confidence that we have in him that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he hears us: 15If we know that he hears us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him.
5:12 Even though both the righteous and unrighteous are eternal creations, those in hell are the living dead, they have no life, only torment and misery. The born again of Christ have eternal blissful life.
5:13 John assured us of the witness of God, his Son, as the author of eternal life. He assures us these promises of God are true. Those who believe in the Lordship of Christ and Jesus as God incarnate have eternal life in Christ. We know this and need never doubt this Biblical fact from God.
5:14-15 We have this promise from God; when our petitions are in the will of God, he always hears us. He grants our wishes when asked in his will and not for our selfish desires. These are blessings from God. However, he cannot force our loved ones to be saved. That is an individual choice, but we should still pray that our loved ones will make their choice to accept Christ. The power of prayer has an effect on individuals, but they can still refuse the urging and power of prayer exerted in their behalf.
1 John 5:16-21 16If any man see his brother sin a sin which is not unto death, he shall ask, and he shall give him life for them that sin not unto death. There is a sin unto death: I do not say that he shall pray for it. 17All unrighteousness is sin: and there is a sin not unto death. 18We know that whosoever is born of God sins not; but he that is begotten of God keeps himself, and that wicked one touches him not. 19We know that we are of God and the whole world lies in wickedness. 20We know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may 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. 21Little children, keep your-selves from idols.
5:16-17 Some profess to be Christians, but have never been born again. They sit for years under the preaching of the Holy Ghost, taste the goodness of Christ under the umbrella of the church, but eventually turn against God and become apostates to Christ. They have tasted the knowledge and goodness of God, and have rejected him totally in their final decision. They never return to God, and deny him arrogantly in the end. We need not pray for these individuals, but turn them over to God and let him deal with them.
There are legitimate members who have become weak in their faith and have backslidden, we should pray for them and attempt to plead with them to renew their fellowship with God. They are still his children, but might suffer severe chastisement or physical death if they continue to grieve the Holy Ghost indwelling them.
5:18-20 All, who are not saved, are unrighteous and dwell in darkness. Christians walk in the light, have the righteousness of Christ dwelling in us, and cannot sin unto spiritual death. Satan cannot touch our spiritual soul. The Holy Ghost dwells in us and is more powerful than Satan.
We are confident and assured by God that we are born again of the spirit of Christ, his spirit dwells in us and gives us spiritual understanding which the world does not possess. We are in Christ and he is in us.
5:20 Salvation is by faith and God’s grace. Do not let works or any ritual of the church take the focus off our faith in Christ and his promises of grace to us.
Father Time
