Author: Randy

In the middle of his final rebuttal of Gnosticism John inserts a teaching on the conditions for answered prayer.

¹⁴  Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. ¹⁵  And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him.

This section, as a whole, verses 9-21, is John’s final rebuttal of this Gnostic heresy. However there is a need to spend some time dealing with what John has to teach about answered prayer in verses 14-15. I remember, about the late 1980’s, reading some comments on prayer by A. W. Tozer. I was reading a lot of Tozer at the time and was greatly affected by his writing. One comment he made was in regard to a common teaching on prayer, ‘God always answers prayer, either yes, no, or wait a while.’ In referring to this teaching Tozer said it was harder to find a neater way to explain away unanswered prayer, and Tozer strongly disagreed with the teaching, as do I. If it is true then we can simply pray with no need to exercise faith and trust the formula. This in fact is fatalism, not faith. So if the formula is wrong, what is right? How should we approach prayer?

John teaches that if we ask according to God’s will then He hears and our prayers are answered. Let me break this down in a bit more detail. To help with that I will look at some other scriptures as we need to view things in the broader context of all of scripture. Look below at what Peter wrote, particularly the section I have placed in bold.

⁹  The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance. 2 Peter 3:9 (NKJV)

If we pair what Peter wrote with what John wrote, both inspired by the Holy Spirit, then we pray for someone to be saved and they are saved, after all it is God’s will. Yet we all know it is not that simple, so how do we reconcile these scriptures? I believe there are two factors, God’s general will and His specific will in a life, along with the matter of human will. Look at how John quotes Jesus about this matter.

¹⁸  “He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. ¹⁹  And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. ²⁰  For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. ²¹  But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God.” John 3:18-21 (NKJV)

Jesus said that people don’t come to the light, salvation, because they prefer darkness. How then do we pray for the salvation of others? Paul has some answers for us.

³  But even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, ⁴  whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them. ⁵  For we do not preach ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord, and ourselves your bondservants for Jesus’ sake. ⁶  For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. 2 Corinthians 4:3-6 (NKJV)

So, we can pray the eyes of the lost will be opened so they can see. They may still reject the light but we can pray in confidence that the Holy Spirit will bring them light and that the Holy Spirit will bring into their lives those who will speak truth. Thus I believe we can pray and know He hears and we receive what we have asked.

John now turns to the matter of sin. It has become popular in our church culture to say that ‘sin is sin and one is no worse than the other.’ In fact even a casual reading by any student of the scriptures refutes that position. A clear example is what John taught.

¹⁶  If anyone sees his brother sinning a sin which does not lead to death, he will ask, and He will give him life for those who commit sin not leading to death. There is sin leading to death. I do not say that he should pray about that. ¹⁷  All unrighteousness is sin, and there is sin not leading to death.

So as we look at these two verses a couple of things are clear. There are in fact different degrees of sin and all unrighteous acts are in fact sin. Though John expected his first century readers to know, we do not know what he meant by the distinction between sins leading to death and those not leading to death. We do know from the use of his term ‘brother’ that he was referring to fellow believers. Wisdom would dictate in our day that we need to do two things, seek the leading of the Holy Spirit when interceding for repentance and forgiveness for the sins of fellow believers. The other is that we need to be ‘our brother’s keeper’ and embrace our responsibility to speak out when our fellow believers are walking in sin. Nowhere in scripture are we enjoined to passively stand by and tolerate sin in the lives of fellow Christians, quite the opposite, we are to care enough about them to speak to them and to intercede for them. A key to dealing with this issue is trusting that if we pursue intimacy with our Father then He will not allow us to intercede where we ought not and will quicken our spirits to intercede where we should. That is walking in love.

In a seemingly strange manner right after talking about the sin of other believers John tells us that if we are truly believers we will not sin.

¹⁸  We know that whoever is born of God does not sin; but he who has been born of God keeps himself, and the wicked one does not touch him. ¹⁹  We know that we are of God, and the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one. ²⁰  And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us an understanding, that we may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life.

¹⁸  We know [absolutely] that anyone born of God does not [deliberately and knowingly] practice committing sin, but the One Who was begotten of God carefully watches over and protects him [Christ’s divine presence within him preserves him against the evil], and the wicked one does not lay hold (get a grip) on him or touch [him]. 1 John 5:18 (AMP)

The solution to the seeming problem of believers sinning is brought out in the Amplified above. What John has introduced that is new is the idea of the world being under the influence of Satan. This is like the old analogy of D-Day and V-Day in WWII. The war was in effect over on D-Day, yet the fighting continued until V-Day. In the spiritual realm Jesus has secured the victory yet we are still in enemy territory and He has left us here to enforce His victory (see Matt. 28:18-20) yet the final victory will only be fully manifest when He returns. We live in the world but are not of it, our new nature is contrary to the nature of the world. In spite of Satan’s influence we know we belong to God and not the world.

John then closes his letter with a statement of encouragement.

²¹  Little children, keep yourselves from idols. Amen. 1 John 5:14-21 (NKJV)

We will do well if we head this admonition and keep ourselves from idols – not the idols of wood and stone but the idols of our culture; fame, prestige, money, etc.

In wrapping up my commentary on 1 John I have some closing comments in terms of John’s teaching on ‘knowing.’

When John uses the word “know” in verses 13 right through to the first part of verse 20 he is referring not to intellectual knowing, something we can reason out, rather he is referring to heart and spirit knowing, the inward witness of the Holy Spirit that we have Jesus, and thus eternal life, abiding within us (Rom. 8:16). We know we have eternal life abiding in us because there is something within drawing us to truth. When John says in verse 19 that he has written so we will “know” he is not referring to reasoning out our salvation. He is nurturing the reality that when we live a life of love based on an internal witness, we know Him. Similarly we know He hears our prayers and answers them because we have an internal witness and relationship with Him. In verse 18 the truth is brought out that we intuitively know that someone who is born again is not someone who wants to sin. There is a witness within that this is wrong.

In verse 20 the second use of the word know is ginosko in Greek (see below) and refers to perceiving or being aware of someone or something. This is a relational word that refers to intimacy. It is the word Paul uses in Philippians 3:10 to speak of his pursuit of further intimacy with Jesus and is the word used to refer to sexual intimacy between a man and his wife (Matt. 1:25).

γινώσκω ginōskō verb Know, become aware, perceive, understand, be conscious of. Complete Biblical Library Greek-English Dictionary, The

What John is teaching is that by following the inward witness of the Holy Spirit we can have our understanding enlightened to come into intimacy with Jesus. (See also Eph. 1:17-23).

Ultimately it all comes down to the posture of our hearts. If we are pursuing Him and desiring to walk in love He is faithful to lead us, sustain us, comfort us, and deliver us. As the song says, “Our God is an awesome God.”

The final chapter of 1 John continues to deal with significant issues affecting our faith and continues to refute Gnosticism.

¹  Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves Him who begot also loves him who is begotten of Him. ²  By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and keep His commandments. ³  For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome. 1 John 5:1-3 (NKJV)

John here again establishes how we are born again. It is by believing that Jesus is the Christ, the Anointed One of God. What John is pointing to, and the readers of his day understood, was that Jesus was the long awaited Messiah. The Greek word we translate as ‘Christ’ is the equivalent of the Hebrew word we translate as ‘Messiah.’ When we enter into this heart belief of Jesus as our Messiah, our Saviour, we can walk out our faith in love for those around us who are also born again, because we have the same Father. We can be assured we are His children when we keep His command to love. His commandments are not a burden because they are an exhortation to walk in who and what we truly are. An important point is that while John refers to the ‘children of God’ a number of times in his epistle he also is clear, as in 3:10, that those who do not know Jesus are children of the devil. This may offend some of our sensibilities but it is the truth of scripture.

John now moves into our basis for victory in our lives

⁴  For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world – our faith. ⁵  Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God? 1 John 5:4-5 (NKJV)

If we are born of God we have within us the capacity to overcome the values of the world that try to shape us into their mold. This happens just as surely as water flows downhill. The water does not work to flow downhill. It is natural for the water. So to it is natural for us to pursue and seek after Him if we are born again. Our applied faith in Him will consistently bring us through to victory. That is not to say it is always easy. I know in my own life the battles I have fought and continue to fight. I also know however that there is something within me that will not allow me to be anything but a believer. It is His nature, which has become my nature via the new birth. No matter how much my flesh may at times get the upper hand, and appear to be winning the battle, there is always something within that rises up and overcomes. That something is His nature within me that manifests as faith, a gift from Him! This happens because everything He is He imparted to me in seed form at my conversion. As I pursue a relationship with Him through prayer, fellowship, and the word He brings forth fruit from the seed of His nature that He planted within me.

John now turns to the inward witness we can possess. It is one thing to have someone tell us something, it is quite another to have an inner experience and awareness. I have been a few places in the backcountry in the mountains. It is one thing to have someone describe them or show me pictures, quite another to crest a mountain ridge and see a beautiful vista that someone had described. Reality far outweighs the description!

⁶  This is He who came by water and blood – Jesus Christ; not only by water, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit who bears witness, because the Spirit is truth. ⁷  For there are three that bear witness {in heaven: the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit; and these three are one. ⁸  And there are three that bear witness on earth}: the Spirit, the water, and the blood; and these three agree as one. 1 John 5:6-8 (NKJV)

A portion of this passage is has been disputed a great deal over the years and in most modern translations it is removed from midway through verse 7 to near the end of verse 8 (the text I italicized and placed in the fancy brackets above). Some believe the bracketed section was added to bolster the idea of the Trinity. I am not going to enter into some type of dispute, (though I do have some well thought out and researched reasons for my own position in terms of which New Testament manuscript stream is the most accurate). For those who are born again the issue need not be one of dispute. The Trinity is well established in other parts of scripture and this side of eternity we will never know conclusively whether the disputed words belong in the scriptures. Therefore the question we need to ask is what John was trying to communicate even without the disputed passage. His point is that the Spirit, water, and blood are in agreement. John is saying that in this agreement the Spirit bears witness. The word witness is a Greek word that means ‘to bear witness or testify’ (see below). What John is communicating is that if we are open to receive the Spirit’s witness and have a love for truth (2 Thess. 2:10) then the Spirit is ‘ready and able’ to testify within us to the reality of who Jesus is, the Son of God and Lord of glory.

μαρτυρέω martureō verb – Bear witness, be a witness, testify.

Johannine Literature

John, in contrast to the Synoptics, made martureō a central term in his gospel. This term always has a legal meaning which carries over into his epistles as well. John considered his own role as that of “witness” to the wonderful story of Jesus (John 21:24; cf. 1 John 1:2; 4:14; 2 John 3; Revelation 1:2; 22:18). John the Baptist is portrayed as a “witness” to Jesus (John 1:7,8,15,32; 5:33), and Jesus himself “testified” to His identity by what He did (John 5:36; 10:25).

Complete Biblical Library Greek-English Dictionary, The – The Complete Biblical Library Greek-English Dictionary – Lambda-Omicron.

In the following verses John continues with his theme of the witness of God.

⁹  If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater; for this is the witness of God which He has testified of His Son. ¹⁰  He who believes in the Son of God has the witness in himself; he who does not believe God has made Him a liar, because he has not believed the testimony that God has given of His Son. ¹¹  And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. ¹²  He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. ¹³  These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life, and that you may continue to believe in the name of the Son of God. 1 John 5:9-13 (NKJV)

This passage flows from and clarifies the preceding three verses. The issue is whether we are walking by the internal witness of God or the external witness of God. This takes us right back to the Gnostic issue John was addressing. No matter how much someone may try to convince us that the truth is a lie, that is a lie, and if we will look to the Lord in our spirit we can know the reality of the truth that we are children of God. We do not need to go through some special “enlightenment” experience because we have the true light living within! Anyone who claims that Jesus is not the Son is lying and anyone who has been born again has the Son living within and the Son will not bear witness to a lie. John is really reaffirming the truth that Jesus spoke when He said that if our heart desires are right we will know whether or not any teaching is from the Father (Jn. 7:17). This is basically a restating of the truth of Deuteronomy 4:29, that if we seek Him wholeheartedly we will find Him and this includes finding Him in any manifestation of truth.

Let us both seek and know Him with our whole heart!

John begins chapter four with a warning, one that is especially pertinent in this hour. There are many conflicting teachings in the church that cannot all be true. I won’t go into all the examples, I invite you to do what John said, test the spirits, for he does tell us how.

¹  Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world. ²  By this you know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God, ³  and every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God. And this is the spirit of the Antichrist, which you have heard was coming, and is now already in the world. 1 John 4:1-3 (NKJV)

John’s teaching here builds on what he previously taught. He stated that we could experientially know Jesus through the inner witness of the Holy Spirit but goes on to warn his readers not to simply accept the prompting of any spirit. We need to test the spirits. This applies not only to finding out whether or not a certain speaker or teacher confesses that Jesus has come in the flesh. (This was what the Gnostic heretics he was contending against denied, that Jesus had come in the flesh). It also applies to spirits that speak to our mind and heart. We can address them in our mind and “test” them to see if they acknowledge that Jesus came in the flesh. Many believers have been deceived and gone astray because they listened to spirits other than the Holy Spirit and never tested the source. I have personal experience with walking down some wrong rabbit trails but being brought back to truth by the Holy Spirit taking me to the scriptures over and over again.

The term rabbit trails is interesting. I don’t know how many people have ever gone down a literal rabbit trail. I have been walking around the bush all of my life. Where I grew up in northern Alberta I could walk out the end of our vegetable garden, cross a dirt road, and be in the bush. The area was mainly willows and was littered with rabbit trails. When I was younger, and much smaller, I crawled down many of them. The never went straight from point A to point B. They were always filled with twists and turns and you could easily lose your sense of direction because they were at the bottom of the forest, making it difficult to know which direction you were going. False spirits are like that. They may hold some promise but generally lead to nothing or nowhere.

⁴  You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. ⁵  They are of the world. Therefore they speak as of the world, and the world hears them. ⁶  We are of God. He who knows God hears us; he who is not of God does not hear us. By this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error. 1 John 4:4-6 (NKJV)

John, with his shepherd’s heart, goes on to encourage his readers, and by extension us, by saying that we have overcome these false teachers and false spirits because the one who conquered all through the cross is the one who lives in us! This brings us back to abiding in Him because our victory is in the cross and His resurrection. As we rest in Him He gives us discernment and we know what is and is not from the Holy Spirit. Those who are of Christ reflect His nature. Those who are of the world will ultimately produce the fruit of the world.

⁷  Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. ⁸  He who does not love does not know God, for God is love. ⁹  In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. ¹⁰  In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. ¹¹  Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 1 John 4:7-11 (NKJV)

Here John expresses something that challenges our modern day definitions of both love and conversion. John states unequivocally that those who love are born again. This means two things. One, those who are not born again lack the capacity to truly love in the way scriptures defines love. Two, this love must be different than either our sentimental or emotional concepts of love or everyone is born again because any average individual has loved in the generally accepted sense of strong feelings of love/compassion toward another individual.

So how do we understand this? John defines God as love. What he is saying is that love is His nature, character, and essence. What we need to understand is that this is not merely a sentimental love. It is a very passionate and emotional love but it is also a love that expresses itself in discipline and wrath. It is our Father, who is love that commanded the killing of whole nations by Israel. It is our Father, who is love, that will pour out upon the earth the judgments described in the Revelation of Jesus Christ and other prophetic books. It is our Father who is love who will not, and cannot, tolerate sin in His kingdom so will ultimately completely expunge it.

Our Father revealed His love by sending Jesus to die a tortuous death on a cross and to receive the sins of the world upon Himself in our place. This is the greatest act and example of love on the part of Father, Son and Spirit. The Holy Spirit had to endure the same terrible loss and separation as the Father when He departed from Jesus. This is the example set before us that we might choose. The choice is one of loving others with His love and laying down our lives for others, not because we will feel better, but because it is what is best for them. Jesus did not go to the cross because it felt good, but He did go because of love (see Jn. 3:16, for God so loved the world….). He went knowing that ultimately He would experience the joy of seeing many of us set free and being conformed to His image through receiving His nature (Heb. 12:2). We need to do what is best for others so they can come into a relationship with the world’s greatest lover, Jesus. This is what it means to love.

¹²  No one has seen God at any time. If we love one another, God abides in us, and His love has been perfected in us. ¹³  By this we know that we abide in Him, and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit. ¹⁴  And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son as Savior of the world. ¹⁵  Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. ¹⁶  And we have known and believed the love that God has for us. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him. 1 John 4:12-16 (NKJV)

The ‘point’ of this passage is very much to the point! The only opportunity people have to see God is to see Him in His people, us! If we love one another He abides in us because this love is an expression of His nature in and through us. We further abide in the Father by confessing the Son. The Gnostics denied the Son and yet claimed to have the Father. It is impossible to deny the Son and possess the Father. If we confess, not just with our lips, but by our lives, that Jesus is the Saviour, then we abide in love, which means we abide in Him. We know this not by reason of ‘reason’ but through the internal witness of the Holy Spirit. We have the abiding inner witness of the Spirit when we are walking in the light in Him; abiding in love.

¹⁷  Love has been perfected among us in this: that we may have boldness in the day of judgment; because as He is, so are we in this world. ¹⁸  There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love. ¹⁹  We love Him because He first loved us. ²⁰  If someone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen? ²¹  And this commandment we have from Him: that he who loves God must love his brother also. 1 John 4:17-21 (NKJV)

John here sums up his previous point. If we are walking in love then we will have confidence on the day we stand before the Judgment Seat of Christ. This is not because we are focused on our deeds but because we are focused on “Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will,” (Eph. 1:11). When we pursue a true love relationship with Him He produces through us that which He delights in here and will honour on that day. As we focus on loving Him we will know Him and His character will be manifested through us in concern for others. Our love for Him is a response to His first loving us. Not a response to His feelings for us but a response to His supreme act of sacrifice on the cross, based on how He felt about us. If we have come to the place of perfect, that is, mature love, we will have no fear of appearing before the Judgment Seat.

In closing this section John is clear that if our love does not lead to action it is not truly love. We cannot love God and hate our brother. They are mutually exclusive attitudes. That is not to say we will never be angry or struggle with these feelings. It says we will exercise our will to draw on His grace and act in love toward our fellow believers no matter how we may feel. Ultimately this will lead to our feelings coming into agreement with our behaviour when our behaviour is based on His written word and agrees with His heart.

In the last portion of chapter 3 John begins to open up our hearts, spiritual open heart surgery if you will.

¹⁸  My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth. ¹⁹  And by this we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before Him. ²⁰  For if our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and knows all things. ²¹  Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence toward God. ²²  And whatever we ask we receive from Him, because we keep His commandments and do those things that are pleasing in His sight. ²³  And this is His commandment: that we should believe on the name of His Son Jesus Christ and love one another, as He gave us commandment. ²⁴  Now he who keeps His commandments abides in Him, and He in him. And by this we know that He abides in us, by the Spirit whom He has given us. 1 John 3:18-24 (NKJV)

In laying this out John follows in the footsteps of Jesus and deals with the fact that not only do we need to manifest the right behavior, it needs to come from a right heart. John leaves no room for a person to claim to be a believer when they do all the right “religious” things with all the wrong motives. Our hearts need to be right and out of a relationship of intimacy with Jesus we need to discern how to invest the time and goods He has invested in our lives. We are called to be good stewards.

A good way to assess whether we are walking in love, this will come up again shortly in chapter 4, is our motive. The great evangelist Charles Finney defined love as ‘disinterested benevolence.’ Terms we don’t normally use today so what do they mean? What Finney meant was that Christian love sought what was in the best interest of the other party without any regard to a personal agenda or personal gain. That is, we seek to do what is right simply because it is right and will help others.

A key aspect John addresses here is that our heart is not always a reliable guide. Our subjective feelings and experiences need to be measured against the word. If we have repented and committed our lives to Him then we can use John’s test of obedience to see if we are truly born again. Then even if our heart has been condemning us we can stand on the truth of His word until we come through to the place of assurance. The words translated condemns and condemn in verses 20 and 21 are the same Greek word and literally mean to “note against” or blame.

Kataginōskō, from <G2596> (kata) and <G1097> (ginosko); to note against, i.e. find fault with :- blame, condemn.  Strong’s Talking Greek & Hebrew Dictionary.

What John is trying to do here is reassure those who believe they have failed. He is trying to bring us back to a place of confidence in our prayer lives and relationship with Jesus. He closes this line of thought by saying that, whether we feel like it our not, if we do what He says with a right heart attitude we will come to the place of experientially knowing we are born again via the Holy Spirit’s indwelling inner witness. When we pair an obedient life with abiding in intimacy with Jesus we can then be confident that our prayers are heard and will be answered if we are praying in the Spirit (that is, as He leads). For those of us with many unanswered prayers (yes I have my hand raised) I believe we need to seek to learn how to more deeply lean into His heart and then pray what He lays on our hearts rather than what we would like to see happen, often out of noble motives. After all, this same John wrote of Jesus.

¹⁹  Then Jesus answered and said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner. ²⁰  For the Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself does; and He will show Him greater works than these, that you may marvel. John 5:19-20 (NKJV)

I pray we all see well what our Father is doing so we can come into agreement with His strategic purposes.

In verses 10-17 John continues to teach on what identifies a true Christian.

¹⁰  In this the children of God and the children of the devil are manifest: Whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is he who does not love his brother. ¹¹  For this is the message that you heard from the beginning, that we should love one another, ¹²  not as Cain who was of the wicked one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his works were evil and his brother’s righteous. ¹³  Do not marvel, my brethren, if the world hates you. ¹⁴  We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love his brother abides in death. ¹⁵  Whoever hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him. ¹⁶  By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us. And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. ¹⁷  But whoever has this world’s goods, and sees his brother in need, and shuts up his heart from him, how does the love of God abide in him? 1 John 3:10-17 (NKJV)

Here John highlights the fruit of true conversion and provides a test to measure whether we are really born again. This once more takes us back to his refutation of the Gnostic heresy that teaches that what we do with our bodies does not really matter. John shows that if we are born again it will be manifested in love toward other believers. Not the love of saying “God bless you,” but the love of doing that ministers to the spiritual and material needs of others. We can know that we have passed from death to life, that is, we have been born again, if ‘we love the brethren.’ What does it mean to ‘love the brethren?’ having compassion on them and ministering to their needs. Which in practice is laying down our lives.

If we want to lay down our lives it helps to understand what it means. If we think in terms of military or law enforcement someone may lay down their life by losing it in the exercise of their duty. That is one aspect and a very significant one. Yet in most of our day to day lives we will never be in this situation. Yet Paul said, ‘I die daily.’ It helps to think of our lives as having a bank account with a set amount of money in it that we can spend. If we spend it on ourselves it is gone. If we spend it on others it is gone from our current account but is then deposited in an eternal bank account, an investment that goes on ahead. We choose where to spend our life but only one way of spending is a true investment. This does not mean spending every waking moment seeking to help others; that in general becomes legalism. It does mean living with a larger purpose so that all our time and energy is ultimately connected to a larger life purpose and goal, serving Jesus and His kingdom.

If we reflect on this, is there a better way to invest our lives?

As we move further into chapter 3 we encounter some difficult sayings. Hard truths that can lead us to doubt our conversion. At the same time John wrote these hard truths to be clear that the Gnostic position that what we did with our bodies did not matter was untenable. He wanted his readers to know that our lifestyle as a believer is critical in demonstrating our faith. To help clarify this section I have included the same few verses from the Amplified translation as it captures some of the tense in the Greek.

⁴  Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness. ⁵  And you know that He was manifested to take away our sins, and in Him there is no sin. ⁶  Whoever abides in Him does not sin. Whoever sins has neither seen Him nor known Him. ⁷  Little children, let no one deceive you. He who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous. ⁸  He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil. ⁹  Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God. 1 John 3:4-9 (NKJV)

⁴  Everyone who commits (practices) sin is guilty of lawlessness; for [that is what] sin is, lawlessness (the breaking, violating of God’s law by transgression or neglect—being unrestrained and unregulated by His commands and His will). ⁵  You know that He appeared in visible form and became Man to take away [upon Himself] sins, and in Him there is no sin [essentially and forever]. ⁶  No one who abides in Him [who lives and remains in communion with and in obedience to Him—deliberately, knowingly, and habitually] commits (practices) sin. No one who [habitually] sins has either seen or known Him [recognized, perceived, or understood Him, or has had an experiential acquaintance with Him]. ⁷  Boys (lads), let no one deceive and lead you astray. He who practices righteousness [who is upright, conforming to the divine will in purpose, thought, and action, living a consistently conscientious life] is righteous, even as He is righteous. ⁸  [But] he who commits sin [who practices evildoing] is of the devil [takes his character from the evil one], for the devil has sinned (violated the divine law) from the beginning. The reason the Son of God was made manifest (visible) was to undo (destroy, loosen, and dissolve) the works the devil [has done]. ⁹  No one born (begotten) of God [deliberately, knowingly, and habitually] practices sin, for God’s nature abides in him [His principle of life, the divine sperm, remains permanently within him]; and he cannot practice sinning because he is born (begotten) of God. 1 John 3:4-9 (AMP)

Two key verses in the passage above are 6 and 9.

⁶  No one who abides in Him [who lives and remains in communion with and in obedience to Him—deliberately, knowingly, and habitually] commits (practices) sin. No one who [habitually] sins has either seen or known Him [recognized, perceived, or understood Him, or has had an experiential acquaintance with Him].

⁹  No one born (begotten) of God [deliberately, knowingly, and habitually] practices sin, for God’s nature abides in him [His principle of life, the divine sperm, remains permanently within him]; and he cannot practice sinning because he is born (begotten) of God. 1 John 3:4-9 (AMP)

What John says in chapter 3 needs to be consistent with what he wrote in chapter 1, and it is. There John wrote the following.

⁸  If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. ⁹  If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. ¹⁰  If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us. 1 John 1:8-10 (NKJV)

John cannot on the one hand tell us that if we sin after conversion we can repent and receive forgiveness and on the other hand tell us that if we sin after conversion we are not a Christian. His point is brought out in the Amplified. If we deliberately and intentionally sin, without any sense of conviction from the Holy Spirit we should in fact question the validity of our conversion. There is a great difference between struggling against sin and pursuing it.

If we have been converted we can lean into 3:9. The word translated as ‘seed’ in the NKJV is sperma.

σπέρμα sperma noun Seed, offspring, posterity.

The Complete Biblical Library Greek-English Dictionary – Sigma-Omega.

When we turn to Jesus in repentance we can trust in the accomplished fact of Jesus carrying away our sins at the cross. The implication of this is that because He has carried away our sins we will obviously not continually practice sin because we have a continuing relationship with Him instead of sin. It brings home the truth Paul taught that when we were born again our spirit received a new nature “created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness” (Eph. 4:24). This is where the ‘sperma’ comes in. A seed carries within it the DNA that will be reproduced in the person or plant. In our case we received a spiritual seed, Jesus DNA in our spirits. So to paraphrase what John is saying. If we continually, deliberately, and habitually sin it shows that we have never really come into a relationship with Him. We have never been born again. The ‘sperma,’ the nature of Jesus is not in us. Again, this is not referring to someone who is striving against sin but rather someone who habitually sins without concern for the consequences. That is, sin is their habit or practice. It is in fact their nature. For those of us who have His ‘sperma’ within us let us cooperate with His Spirit to see this nature manifest in our daily lives.

We are on to chapter 3, which John opens with encouragement.

¹  Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God! Therefore the world does not know us, because it did not know Him. ²  Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. ³  And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure. 1 John 3:1-3 (NKJV)

John brings in this passage right after dealing with the issues related to the judgment seat. First he emphasizes how amazing it is that ‘we should be called children of God!’ I recently began watching movie where a poor man is working in a village. He was an illegitimate child and not well respected in the village. One day a man comes along who is a lord in the land and tells the young man he is his father. He immediately shifts from being the poor blacksmith to having a new identity. In the world’s eyes he is now important. Much more, at conversion we received a new identity from a much more important source, from whom we have a new nature.

John then brings home his point that no matter how things look now, when Jesus steps back into our world in all His glory we will be like Him because we shall see Him as He really is, the Lord of glory. Does this contradict what Paul taught about the judgment seat? No, just as all diamonds are diamonds, they still differ in the brilliance they reflect. Look below at what Paul tells us.

⁴¹  There is one glory of the sun, another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for one star differs from another star in glory. ⁴²  So also is the resurrection of the dead. The body is sown in corruption, it is raised in incorruption. 1 Corinthians 15:41-42 (NKJV)

  ⁴⁵  And so it is written, “The first man Adam became a living being.” The last Adam became a life-giving spirit. 1 Corinthians 15:45 (NKJV) ⁴⁹  And as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly Man. 1 Corinthians 15:49 (NKJV)

In these excerpts from 1 Corinthians we see that while we will all bear Jesus image, just as the stars differ in degrees of glory, so also our resurrection bodies will also differ. We will all be diamonds, just with different degrees of brilliance. How do we respond to this? John said if we truly embrace this hope we will purify ourselves. How we do that?

This passage points to the reality Paul highlighted in 2 Corinthians 3:18.

¹⁸  But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord. 2 Corinthians 3:18 (NKJV)

We can begin to be changed into His image here and now and the process that will be completed when He appears. If we fix our hope on Him and let this hope anchor our soul (Heb. 6:19) we will be changed here and now to a much greater degree and reflect more of His glory to those around, so that they in turn will be changed by Him. If we truly have our hope anchored in Him we will purify ourselves.

Our purification comes about not by self-effort but by looking to Him. It is not a matter of works we do to sanctify ourselves. Our sanctification grows out of our relationship with Him, it is a by-product, an end. The means is focused time spent in His presence. The result is we have strength in our inner being to choose and walk in right behaviour. So while we do need to purify ourselves, this purification comes about not through a great exertion of willpower, but through a great relationship with Jesus. Again, this comes about through intentional time spent in His presence.

Think about natural relationships. If we spend a lot of time with someone and get to know them we understand something of their habits and ways of acting. I have been married for over three decades. I recognize my wife’s footsteps. Someone else could walk around in my house and try to mimic my wife, I would recognize it wasn’t her.

When we learn to recognize His presence and the way He moves in our life, which we can always do as a believer, we can learn from Him at any time. I find when I am close to Him my thoughts are drawn to prayer and a sense of intimacy during the days. I have a song in my heart and find myself humming or quietly singing and often awaken with a worship song on my lips and running through my mind.

So, are we listening for His footsteps? Are we attuned to His presence? He is here and wants to be known.

John completes chapter 2 with two small verses, verses packed with significance. Imagine purchasing a beautiful painting and desiring a frame that would beautifully display it. These two verses display a beautiful truth that we generally miss in reading them. While it is not explicit, and this scriptural truth is generally neglected, verses 28-29 are about the judgment seat of Christ. John did not have to be explicit because this was a foundational truth taught by the early church. In our day we need to be clear because this is rarely addressed. An egalitarian spirit has arisen in the church that says all Christians get in and enjoy everything equally. To teach this is to ignore what Jesus taught in the gospels about different rewards and punishments. It also ignores what Paul plainly taught. Jesus is fair and just, it would be unfair of Him to treat everyone the same because His judgment is based on how we respond to His drawing after conversion. So on to our verses.

²⁸  And now, little children, abide in Him, that when He appears, we may have confidence and not be ashamed before Him at His coming. ²⁹  If you know that He is righteous, you know that everyone who practices righteousness is born of Him. 1 John 2:28-29 (NKJV)

How does this relate to the judgment seat? John warns of the danger of Christians being ashamed when they see Jesus. Why would any of us be ashamed? Look at the scriptures below and then I will come back to these two verses.

¹⁰  But why do you judge your brother? Or why do you show contempt for your brother? For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ. ¹¹  For it is written: “As I live, says the LORD, Every knee shall bow to Me, And every tongue shall confess to God.” ¹²  So then each of us shall give account of himself to God. Romans 14:10-12 (NKJV)

This first passage affirms the reality of the judgment seat of Christ and the need to give an account of our lives. The passage below speaks to what John is addressing but in more detail.

¹  For we know that if our earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. ²  For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed with our habitation which is from heaven, ³  if indeed, having been clothed, we shall not be found naked. ⁴  For we who are in this tent groan, being burdened, not because we want to be unclothed, but further clothed, that mortality may be swallowed up by life. ⁵  Now He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who also has given us the Spirit as a guarantee. ⁶  So we are always confident, knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord. ⁷  For we walk by faith, not by sight. ⁸  We are confident, yes, well pleased rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord. ⁹  Therefore we make it our aim, whether present or absent, to be well pleasing to Him. ¹⁰  For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad. ¹¹  Knowing, therefore, the terror of the Lord, we persuade men; but we are well known to God, and I also trust are well known in your consciences. 2 Corinthians 5:1-11 (NKJV)

Paul above addresses his desire to step from time into eternity and be clothed with his spiritual body. However he does not want to be naked. What does this mean? In Revelation John said our clothing is our righteous acts.

⁸  And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints. Revelation 19:8 (NKJV)

To appear naked and ashamed before Jesus is to bring nothing that we have done after salvation. This judgment is not about salvation, it is about Jesus assessing how we have used the gifts (think of the parable of the talents) He has given us. We are each judged on the basis of what we could have done with what we have, how well we fulfilled our calling and purpose. None of us will get it completely right, we will all fall short to some degree, yet we need to press on pursuing His purpose for our lives. We do not want to be those Paul referred to in 1 Corinthians 3 who are barely saved. This is so significant that Paul concluded this teaching in 2 Corinthians by speaking of the ‘terror of the Lord’ as a motivator.

So how do we stand unashamed and clothed before Jesus when He appears? John said we practice righteousness. We simply commit to following Jesus and being obedient to the leading of the Holy Spirit. If we are sincere in our faith and our commitment to Jesus we have nothing to fear at the judgment seat. Again, we come back to the Gnostic heresy John was refuting, the idea that what we did with our body did not matter. We are called to walk the path of life and the two ditches on either side of this path are legalism and license. The first is an unhealthy focus on laws, rules and regulations that bring us into bondage. The other is a false belief in ‘grace’ and believing that now that we are saved we can do anything with impunity.

Time as we experience it is linear and today’s opportunities will not be available tomorrow. So each day we should set our heart to follow Him and press on. The judgment seat really is a manifestation of His grace. He is worthy of it all!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fff1c-HZf50

As we continue in chapter 2 John again addresses the errors of Gnosticism.

²²  Who is a liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist who denies the Father and the Son. ²³  Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father either; he who acknowledges the Son has the Father also. ²⁴  Therefore let that abide in you which you heard from the beginning. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, you also will abide in the Son and in the Father. ²⁵  And this is the promise that He has promised us – eternal life. ²⁶  These things I have written to you concerning those who try to deceive you. ²⁷  But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will abide in Him. 1 John 2:22-27 (NKJV)

In verses 22-27 John informs us that we have an anointing. If we deny the Anointed One it shows that we are antichrist, opposed to the Anointed One. We cannot claim to be a Christian, an anointed one, and at the same time deny the Anointed One. In dealing with this early Gnostic heresy John brings out this truth and reinforces it by affirming who Jesus is, that He came in the flesh and was/is God. He also points out that to know Jesus is to know the Father. John in essence tells his readers to hold on to what they were first taught.

So what is they/we to hold on to? When we come to the end of this passage it is helpful to remember who John addressed in verse 18 because he is still addressing that audience, and by extension all future hearers. He wrote to the most immature believers (the meaning of ‘little children’ in verse 18) and assured them of an amazing truth. There is an anointing abiding within them that will teach them. John warned them about those who were trying to deceive them. One of the tenets of the Gnostics was the need for an ‘enlightened’ teacher to mentor others into this place, effectively supplanting the Holy Spirit. I am not negating the value of teaching since that is what I am doing by writing. The qualifier is that the true teacher in the body of Christ seeks to point fellow believers to the scriptures, Jesus and the Holy Spirit and in the process release them into their purpose and calling. Control is never an end or means for true teachers walking in their calling. The Gnostics sought to control and create dependency. The true believers sought to help one another learn to lean on and into the Holy Spirit.

This is one reason I reject the role of priests that we have in some segments of His body. They stand in opposition to scripture when they seek to be the go between in the relationship between Jesus and another believer. I see the potential for the same problem in the growing role of ‘spiritual directors’ in the evangelical church. This is further clarified in verse 27 which I have repeated below.

²⁷  But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will abide in Him.

John’s point is that via the Holy Spirit Jesus is within us, in our spirits. As we learn to lean into and on Him we are taught by Him. When we do this consistently we are in a place of ‘abiding’ in Him. To illustrate this think of John’s exhortation to ‘walk in the light’ at the beginning of chapter 1. Have you ever walked down the same path in the dark and in the light? How different is the walking experience? Are you more careful in the dark?

Walking in the dark can be a scary thing. I am heading off backpacking this weekend and I know that if I get up during the night and need to go outside I minimally need a flashlight or headlamp. Even then things do not look the same as during the day and it is very easy to experience a sense of unease. We would be wise to consider our day to day walk in a similar ‘light.’ The way we abide in Him is by recognizing throughout our normal day to day activities the danger of functioning in our own wisdom and understanding, independently of the Holy Spirit. When we do this even though we think we are walking in the light our activity is more akin to being out on a mountain peak in the dark with no headlamp. It takes humility to lean into Him. Do we know we need Him?

How do we continue to grow and walk in Jesus? John gives us some ‘do not’s.’

¹⁵  Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. ¹⁶  For all that is in the world–the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life–is not of the Father but is of the world. ¹⁷  And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever. 1 John 2:15-17 (NKJV)

This passage points out the danger of living from a natural perspective. We cannot serve two masters (Matt. 6:24). The ‘world’ here refers to the natural perspective and system rooted in lust and pride which are byproducts of the fall. The lust of the flesh was stirred up by the serpent when he enticed Eve to desire the forbidden fruit by gazing upon it with her eyes. Pride was sown in man when the choice was made to follow natural reasoning rather than God. These things will perish and we must choose to follow the Father or the worldly system. Everything needs to be evaluated from this perspective (see Mat: 6:33). Many things are enticing and appear to be good, but when looked at from the perspective of eternity they lose both their appeal and value. John is here exhorting us to live with an eternal perspective and pointing out that if our first love is a worldly perspective then the love of our Father is not in us. He is not negating a struggle against sin, rather the embracing of sin.

What John is dealing with here is those who claimed to be born again but lived for the world and rejected the Lord’s values. A clear refutation of Gnostic views. John is showing that the two are incompatible and it is a lie to claim to love the Father but reject His value system. Bear in mind the Gnostic idea that we can sin and love the world because we are above it and what we do with our bodies does not matter. John is showing very clearly that it not only matters, it has eternal consequences.

What John doesn’t talk about here, but something that is a spiritual reality, is that when we love and pursue the world it creates veils over out heart. Yahweh explained this to Ezekiel.

¹  Now some of the elders of Israel came to me and sat before me. ²  And the word of the LORD came to me, saying, ³  “Son of man, these men have set up their idols in their hearts, and put before them that which causes them to stumble into iniquity. Should I let Myself be inquired of at all by them? ⁴  Therefore speak to them, and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: “Everyone of the house of Israel who sets up his idols in his heart, and puts before him what causes him to stumble into iniquity, and then comes to the prophet, I the LORD will answer him who comes, according to the multitude of his idols, ⁵  that I may seize the house of Israel by their heart, because they are all estranged from Me by their idols.” ’ Ezekiel 14:1-5 (NKJV)

What Ezekiel points out is that if we have idols in our hearts they act as a filter through which we hear from Yahweh. The result, our hearing is distorted.

Having told us what not to do John shifts focus.

¹⁸  Little children, it is the last hour; and as you have heard that the Antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come, by which we know that it is the last hour. ¹⁹  They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us; but they went out that they might be made manifest, that none of them were of us. ²⁰  But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you know all things. ²¹  I have not written to you because you do not know the truth, but because you know it, and that no lie is of the truth.

Here we come back to the significance of how John refers to our spiritual maturity. The phrase ‘little children in verse 18 refers to immature believers. In verses 20-21 he again strongly refutes Gnostic influences. These verses show that even at our most immature, as believers we have an inward anointing, the presence of the Holy Spirit, to lead and guide us into truth and away from deception. The other fact is that those who truly have a heart to follow Him will continue in this inward anointing and remain in fellowship with other believers. One thing that it is very helpful to understand here is that Christ literally means ‘the Anointed One.’ Jesus is the Anointed One. The antichrist is literally one who is against (anti) the Anointed One, or opposed to the anointing in us. This applies to both the anointing of intimacy and our call to walk in His power and authority. Through opposition and distraction the enemy (antichrist) does everything he can to stop us from walking in an anointing of power. The enemy also opposes and works against the inward anointing of our relationship with Jesus the Anointed One.

This passage brings out the crucial importance of faith. Whether or not we believe it, we have an anointing, the Anointed One lives within us in our spirit. When we choose to believe and act on this glorious truth we experience the results. When in faith we look to Him we experience the reality of His presence, I and many others can attest to this over and over. He is then able to teach us (1 Cor. 2:10-12). Sitting in His presence to be taught is intentional. When my children were little we live on an acreage next to 80 acres of forest. I used to take them into the forest, have them be quiet and ask them what they could hear. In a similar manner this spring I was in a kayak on a lake. I was aware of birds around me but when I intentionally just became quiet and listened in 2-3 minutes I detected the call of 7 different types of birds. This awareness came from being internally quiet and focused. This is how spiritually we access the inward anointing all believers have.

Are we listening?