1 John
This letter is written by the apostle John, the same author of the Gospel of John and of Revelation. It is a general letter that covers a range of foundational issues which John tackles with clear apostolic authority. It was written to be distributed to congregations across Asia Minor (now Turkey) during the latter part of the first century. John sets the theme of his letter in the first paragraph which is a proclamation of the central and eternal nature of God’s Word, the Word of Life. This is Jesus and the gospel message that John proclaims and defends centres on Jesus.
Assurance of Salvation
It is clearly important to John that we are sure of our salvation and the benefits of it, so we can most fully live in the light of it. So how do we know that we are saved? We aren’t saved by works, so despite the numerous references in this letter to lifestyle changes that should be evident in God’s people, that alone isn’t enough. Neither can we know through our own logical reasoning, or human deduction. Ultimately, John tells us, we know through the testimony of the Holy Spirit within us (5:10), which is far greater than the testimony of man (5:9). This testimony is the testimony of eternal life (5:11). It is the Holy Spirit that enables us to know all truth (2:20-21).
Our souls have been awakened by God from death to life (5:12) - that is the vastness of what has been done for us. John also compares it to the difference between darkness and light (1:5-7). Both these comparisons point to one thing - the polar opposites of our status before and after salvation. We either know this or we don’t, but we can only know it through the inward testimony of the Holy Spirit. (4:24b).
Walking in the Light - Practising Righteousness
A number of times in the letter John refers to the ‘light’ – this speaks of revelation, but also of purity and righteousness. Thirteen times in the letter, John refers to his readers as children or children of God who are born of God’s seed. It tells us also “No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God’s seed abides in him and he cannot keep on sinning because he has been born of God.” (3:9). Their status as those born of God both calls for and enables righteous living. Even though Christ-like perfection awaits Christ’s appearing (3:2) that very hope is a motivation to purify ourselves (3:3).
Separate from the World
The seed of God makes us distinctive from the world. John clearly commands us not to love the world or the things of the world (2:15). The world represents the carnal desires of man - the cravings of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. (2:16). The antidote to such love of the world is the love of the Father, together with a recognition of the temporary nature of this world and the reality of our eternal calling (2:15-17)
John draws our attention to the difference between our viewpoint as people of God and the viewpoint of the children of the world. It can be tempting as Christians to compromise our views to “fit in” with the world. We should not be surprised if we experience a feeling of isolation from the people of the world - the world does not know us, because it did not know him. (3:1a)
Love one another
“Little Children, let us not love in word or talk, but in deed and in truth.” (3:18) Love is an-other major issue John deals with going as far as saying that anyone who hates his brother, is no better than a murderer (3:15). Loving someone in deed and truth means that our love for them is genuine and sincere and is worked out and proven through our deeds. Jesus gave us the ultimate example of this kind of love “that he laid down his life for us, and we should lay down our lives for the brothers” (3:16). This kind of love is radical, going as far as death. God had every reason to hate mankind, but instead he loved us. “In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him” (4:9). The world does not understand this kind of radical love - but in a church it is the mortar that ties us to-gether, an essential distinctive.
Conclusion
1 John is a serious and challenging letter. Its emphasis is on the transformation that true salvation brings. Salvation is not a change of ethos, it is a new life - things that are living always display life-signs, and we should expect those born again to display them. Despite the challenges, John makes it abundantly clear that we have the means by which to live in the way he describes - for everyone who is born of God overcomes the world (5:4a).
This background was written by Ian McNaught, a member of Community Church Huddersfield.