Through the Bible - 1 John

That 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... that which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ. And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full. (1 John 1:1–4)

John, the last living eyewitness, writes that life and love are found only in the Son of God—and shows us, again and again, the way back home through confession.

A Letter of Life, Love, and the Son of God

We come tonight to 1 John, finishing up the Scriptures as we have a downhill run toward the book of Revelation. This letter, the next two, and the final book of the Bible were all written by John—four of the five books we'll look at over the next five weeks came from the Apostle John, along with his Gospel.

As you read through these five chapters, you notice certain words rising to the surface over and over again. John wrote from the city of Ephesus, after returning from his exile to Patmos, probably before 95 A.D.—because it was in 95 A.D. that Domitian began to persecute the church in a big way, and John doesn't really speak of that. As he encourages and strengthens believers, the themes of life, love, and the Son of God come up again and again. And where do life and love come from but from the Son of God? He is the one who has manifested God's love to us.

Combating the Gnostic Heresy

John and his contemporaries were beginning to battle a heresy that would become huge in the second century: Gnosticism. These people held a dualistic view of the world, regarding everything physical as evil and everything spiritual as righteous. But the Bible never teaches that dualism. The word Gnosticism comes from the Greek gnosko, "to know"—and that word appears 21 times in these five chapters. The Gnostics figured Christianity needed more, a hidden knowledge others didn't possess.

Because everything physical was evil in their eyes, the Gnostics taught that Jesus did not truly become a man. God, who is perfect, would never become flesh, so they said He was only a spirit. John combats that immediately. He says, in effect, "I have seen, I have heard, and I have handled the Word of life. For the life was manifested." Underline that word manifested.

The problem with denying Jesus' humanity is enormous: as we saw in Hebrews, if Jesus is not fully man, He is not a sufficient sacrifice for our sins. He had to be fully man to suffer completely for sin. He who knew no sin became sin for us, that we might receive His righteousness.

The Flip-Flop Across the Centuries

It's interesting that in the first century, the church battled a heresy that denied Jesus' humanity—they had no problem believing He was divine. They had seen His miracles, knew His mighty works, and had eyewitnesses of the risen Lord. Now, twenty centuries later, when you watch any documentary on Jesus, they don't diminish His humanity; they diminish His deity. They'll say He was a man, but certainly not God. We've had a complete flip-flop.

Against this, John says, "That which was from the beginning, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled." He held on to Him. He touched Him. This is the same John who, in his Gospel, laid his head on the chest of Jesus at the Last Supper. He was one of only three present when Jesus raised Jairus' daughter. He was close to Jesus in Gethsemane, watching Him sweat as it were great drops of blood. He was on the Mount of Transfiguration, seeing Jesus transfigured before him. If anyone knew Jesus was a true physical man and also God, it was John.

The Manifestation of Jesus

Twice in verse 2 John says the life was manifested. The Word who was from the beginning became flesh and came on the scene. In John 1:14 the word for "became" literally means to come onto the scene—like an actor who was always present, now stepping out onto the stage. Jesus was always there, and then He stepped out and was manifested.

This idea of manifestation runs through the letter, and always for a reason:

And ye know that he was manifested to take away our sins; and in him is no sin. (1 John 3:5)

Jesus didn't just come to hang out. Healing the sick and casting out demons were the byproducts of the good and gracious God appearing—but the prime purpose was to take away our sin.

For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil. (1 John 3:8)

He came to destroy the works of the liar who sinned from the beginning and first led man into sin.

In 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. (1 John 4:9)

As Romans 5:8 says, He demonstrated His love toward us, that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. The Gnostics believed Jesus was manifested only spiritually, but the Bible reveals He came as a man in the flesh 2,000 years ago—a truth affirmed by the Apostolic, Nicene, and Chalcedonian creeds.

God Wants to Be Known

The great themes of this letter are that the Son of God came to reveal the life God desires for us and the love of God displayed in Jesus' work—and that we can truly know God. The Gnostics claimed secret information others lacked, and we still have Gnostics today who say, "There are just some things about the Scriptures you don't know."

I get concerned when someone says that—not because I know all of God's Word, but because our God is not one to hide things from us. He wants us to know Him, to know who He is, to know His will. That's why He revealed Himself through 66 books passed down to us. He revealed Himself through nature and conscience, through the prophets, and finally He sent His Son to manifest the very character, nature, and will of God in our presence. As Jesus prayed in John 17, "This is eternal life, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent." That is why, when we share Jesus, we must share Him as He revealed Himself—not merely as a good teacher, prophet, or healer, but as He truly is.

Fellowship and Fullness of Joy

John declares what he has seen and heard so that we may have fellowship—fellowship with one another, and truly fellowship with the Father and His Son. Jesus came to establish communion between God and man, the communion God desired since creation, until sin entered in. Through one man sin entered, and death by sin, and sin always separates us from God. As Isaiah says, God's hand is not short nor His ear deaf, but our sin has separated us from our God.

From the very beginning, it was God's plan to provide a perfect, sinless sacrifice so we could come into His presence. Jesus is the Lamb slain before the foundation of the world (Revelation 13:8). In the Old Testament, God called Israel out of slavery—because sin is slavery—and commanded a tabernacle, because He wanted to dwell among His people. When everything was built as commanded, the glory of the Lord filled it. Yet God could only be approached by sacrifice, and only one man, once a year, could enter inside the veil. Fellowship was still cut off—until Jesus cried Tetelestai, "It is finished," and the veil tore from top to bottom. There is no longer need for an earthly temple, because we are the temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 6). Christ in us, the hope of glory.

John adds, "These things write we unto you, that your joy may be full." Where does fullness of joy come from? Psalm 16:11 answers: "In thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore." John writes so we will know how to enter the presence of God.

Walking in the Light

This 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. (1 John 1:5)

If we say we have fellowship with Him and walk in darkness, we lie. But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.

Someone might say, "I want to walk in the light, but I'm a sinner." That's all right—every one of us is a sinner; we've all fallen short. But we come into the light only by faith, and there we find that His blood cleanses us from all sin.

This is exactly the issue in John 3, where Jesus told Nicodemus, "This is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil." Unregenerate man fears coming to the light because his deeds will be exposed. The enemy is constantly trying to scare people from approaching God, whispering, "If you come, you'll be exposed." Perhaps you remember living like that. But as we come to the light by faith, our sins are indeed exposed—and we discover His blood is greater than our sin.

"If We Say We Have No Sin"

Some people say, "I'm not a sinner; I'm a good person." John answers, "If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us." You aren't deceived when they say it—you know full well they're sinners—but they have deceived themselves. How do you turn back that deception?

Romans 3:20 says, "By the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin." The law exposes sin. So when someone claims they're not a sinner, don't call them a liar—take them back to God's law and let it reveal the truth.

This is why 1 Timothy 1 says, "The law is good, if a man use it lawfully." There's a wrong use of the law—trying to make yourself holy by it, which is impossible. The right use, verse 9, is that the law is made not for the righteous but for the lawless, the disobedient, sinners. The law is made to show sinners that they are sinners. When God's law bears witness with their conscience, it reveals their sin.

What happens when sin is revealed? "Blessed are the poor in spirit... blessed are they that mourn." Godly sorrow produces repentance unto salvation. That's a good place to be.

Go Back to Verse 9

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9)

Circle the word all. The word "confess" in Greek is homologeo—to say the same thing as, to agree. Confession means agreeing with God: "I am what You say I am. I am a sinner."

There's a beautiful picture of this in Genesis 32. Jacob wrestles with God all night. His name means deceiver, heel-catcher—he had deceived his brother, his father, his father-in-law. The last time Jacob heard the question "What is your name?" came from his blind father, and he lied: "I am Esau." But now, with his hip out of joint, lying in tears, holding on for dear life, God asks again: "What is your name?" This time he says, "Jacob." That was his confession. And God said, "Your name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel"—governed of God. When he confessed, God cleansed and transformed him. The consequence remained—he limped the rest of his life—but his name, his heart, was changed.

God is faithful to forgive—that speaks of justification, the removal of punishment. He who knew no sin became sin for us; He was wounded for our transgressions. And He is faithful to cleanse—the same root used in John 15, where the Father prunes the unfruitful branch. There are unfruitful branches in each of our lives, some we don't even recognize for years until His light exposes them. When we confess, He prunes—so that we may bear much fruit.

But "if we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us." Jesus is the Word, and if His Word is not abiding in us, the one who does not abide is cast into the fire.

That You Sin Not—and an Advocate When You Do

My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. (1 John 2:1)

Once justified and being sanctified, the believer should seek to walk in righteousness, as Peter taught—God has given us all things that pertain to life and godliness. Yet we all fail, so when we sin we have an advocate. We turn to Him and say, "Lord, I've sinned, forgive me"—which takes us right back to verse 9.

This is the ongoing work of sanctification. In Christ we are saved—a finished work. But Paul also says we are being saved, and we shall be saved. God justified us, just as if we'd never sinned. Right now He is sanctifying us, cleansing us from dead works. And there is coming a day when He will glorify us—we will see Him and be like Him; this corruption will put on incorruption. We have only one advocate—not Mary, not another saint, but Jesus Christ the righteous, who is the propitiation (the atonement) for our sins, and not for ours only, but for the whole world.

Knowing That We Know Him

And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments. (1 John 2:3)

Before you were a believer, you had no desire to obey God—"there is none that seeketh after God, no, not one." A new desire to obey is one of the first indications of the new birth. If tonight you have a desire to follow the Lord and keep His commandments, that is His Spirit bearing witness with your spirit that you are a child of God. If you have no such desire, go back to verse 9.

This is one reason I recommend 1 John to new believers. People often recommend the Gospel of John, but honestly, when I was young in the Lord it confused me to no end. 1 John starts right at the basics: Jesus is our atonement, and we know we know Him by our Spirit-given desire to keep His commandments—a power you didn't have before you received the Spirit of God.

John then systematically takes us through every stage of our walk. He that says he abides in Him ought to walk even as He walked. If you say you're in the light but hate your brother, you're in darkness even until now—what should you do? Go back to verse 9. He lays out reasons for writing—"I write unto you, little children... fathers... young men"—and then exhorts:

Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. (1 John 2:15)

All that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is passing away. It's all going to burn. If your heart is set on this place, you'll lose everything, including yourself. But he that does the will of God abides forever. And if you read this and realize you love the world? Go back to verse 9.

They Went Out From Us

They 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. (1 John 2:19)

This verse often comes up with questions about losing salvation. Someone walked with the Lord, and now he's out in the world. Is he saved? John's answer: that person went out to reveal he was not truly of us. Was he ever saved? God alone knows—it's not for us to chime in.

I don't think you lose your salvation like you lose your keys. I heard Pastor Chuck on the radio say, "I don't think you can lose your salvation, but you can leave it." The Scripture speaks so much of abiding in Christ; if you won't abide, don't expect any salvation in Him.

The Old Testament pictures this. If Noah had refused the ark, would he have been saved? If Lot had stayed in Sodom—remember his wife who looked back. If Rahab had left her house, the spies said her blood would be on her own head. In the cities of refuge, the manslayer was safe only as long as he stayed inside; leave, and his blood was on his own head. Abiding in Christ is essential.

Yet God told Ezekiel the watchman: go and seek to turn the righteous back from sin. Confront them, call them back, and you'll be innocent of their blood. If they confess—if they go back to verse 9—God is faithful. And whoever denies that Jesus is the Christ is an antichrist; whoever denies the Son does not have the Father, but he that acknowledges the Son has the Father also.

A Note on 1 John 5:7

For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. And there are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one. (1 John 5:7–8)

Many read this and think they've found the perfect proof text for the Trinity. But I may break some hearts. The phrase about the three bearing record in heaven is not in any Greek manuscript until the 14th century; the earliest it appears is the 11th century, written in the margin. It appears a zealous scribe wrote it in the margin, and it was later added to the text.

So in the original manuscripts this reads: "This is he that came by water and blood, even Jesus Christ; not by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit that beareth witness, because the Spirit is truth. For there are three that bear record, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one."

Some ask, "Then how can we trust the Bible?" The great blessing is that we have an abundance of manuscripts to compare—you can even examine them online today. The evidence is clear. I point this out because if you use this verse with a Jehovah's Witness or Mormon who denies the deity of Christ, they will show you very quickly it isn't in the original text, and you'll come back saying you got shown up. Don't worry—you can prove the Trinity from Genesis to Revelation; this simply isn't one of the honest texts to use. We should be honest students of the Scriptures.

You May Know That You Have Eternal Life

He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself. (1 John 5:10)

Romans 8:16 says His Spirit bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God. The indications we've already named—a new desire to obey, a new conviction of sin—are evidence of that witness. If you don't have it, go back to verse 9.

And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life. These things have I written unto you... that ye may know that ye have eternal life. (1 John 5:11–13)

John, and Jesus before him, desires that we know we have eternal life. Some say, "I hope so." The Scriptures reveal you can know so—through the witness of His Spirit. We also have confidence in prayer: if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. It is His will that none should perish; so if tonight you ask, "Lord, I desire to know You," He will answer.

John mentions a "sin unto death." I think the best understanding is that some sins lead directly to death—think of Ananias and Sapphira—and one sin leads to eternal death: the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit, the rejection of God's work by His Spirit. But all unrighteousness is sin, and there is a sin not unto death, because we can receive forgiveness in Christ Jesus. His blood is enough to forgive all sin. We are safe only when we come to Him for it.

We know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is true... This is the true God, and eternal life. Little children, keep yourselves from idols. (1 John 5:20–21)

Knowing Him is eternal life. This whole letter carries you through every situation you may confront—denial, hatred, walking in darkness—and at each one it brings you back to verse 9: confess your sins, and He is faithful and just to forgive and to cleanse.

Closing Prayer

Father, thank You for this great letter. Lord, I pray You would stir the hearts of this group to study slowly through 1 John. And Lord, if by Your Spirit and Your Word You reveal an area in our lives that's not right, may we come and confess our sins, knowing that You are faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. We praise You that You have opened the door so we can come into fellowship with You, walk in the light as You are in the light, have fellowship with one another, and know You—and for eternity be with You. We praise You in Jesus' name. Amen.