#49a- How To Know You Have Eternal LIFE?
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(English Standard Version)
1Jn 1 - The Word of Life - Walking In The Light
1Jn 2 - Christ Our Advocate - The New Commandment - Do Not Love The World - Warning Concerning Antichrists - Children of God
1Jn 3 - Love One Another
1Jn 4 - Test The Spirits - God is Love
1Jn 5 - Overcoming The World - Testimony Concerning the Son of God - That You May Know
COMMENTS and QUESTIONS
by J Neil Evans:
Read 1 John yourself then …
Watch the Bible Project video 1,2,3 John
The Old Testament promised over and over again that God would send His Messiah to rescue His people from corruption in the world. The identity of This Messiah was always questioned. When Jesus appeared, the controversy was magnified as His followers gave their very lives for believing while others doubted or staunchly refused to believe. In looking for Life, Light, and Love people have always looked in all sorts of different places. John was writing to Jesus Followers to remind and encourage them as they too were seeking victory in their daily struggles.
John begins with a dynamic description of the subject and object of his attention. He is talking about Something, indeed Someone, Who: was “from the beginning”, was One with whom he and the other Apostles were “very personally acquainted”, was “The Word of Life”, was “with The Father” and “made Him and eternal life manifest”. In verse three of chapter one John makes it clear that he is talking about Jesus Christ. Then John clearly states the reason for writing: “so that you too may together with us have fellowship with The Father and The Son, which is complete joy”.
John and the Apostles (“we”) heard a message from “Him” (The Father and The Son) that “God is Light” with “no darkness at all”. Evidently there were people who claimed to have fellowship with God while living contrary Him. This is a clear demonstration of hypocrisy that needs correction which involves confessing sin and obediently walking in The Light that Jesus manifested. Anyone who claims to not sin is self-deceived. John then says something that is one of the most encouraging things in the Bible: “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1:9) He then goes on the explain how this forgiveness is accomplished. “If anyone does sin, we have an advocate with The Father, Jesus Christ the Righteous.” “He is the propitiation (payment) for our sins…” (2:1,2)
How can a person know that their sins are really forgiven? How can I know that I really know God? These questions imply a desire for a high level of confidence or certainty. We have all seen people who are deceived in their claim to really know something. And we’ve all been there ourselves.
Actually, “knowing” is one of the key themes of 1 John. Notice the two bold letters “g” and “o” in the verses quoted below. They represent two different Greek words that are translated by the english word “know” (or “be sure” in 2:5). The Greek words are ginosko and oida. Generally, oida describes knowledge that is had by intellect while ginosko describes knowledge that is had by experience. While both words influence our emotions, neither kind of knowing is gained simply by feelings. Truth has evidence and is often confirmed by experience.
“g Know Him Who is from the beginning” (1:13,14),
“g Know The Father” (1:13),
“we may o be sure that we are in Him” (2:5),
“o Know The Truth” (2:21),
“o Know that He is Righteous” (2:29),
“o the world does not o know God’s children because it does not
o know Him” (3:1),
“o Know that when He appears we shall be like Him” (3:2),
“o know that He appeared to take away sin” (3:5),
“g Know that we are of the truth” (3:19),
“God g knows everything” (3:20),
“Whoever g knows God listens to us (Bible writers)” (4:6)
“g Know the Spirit of Truth and the spirit of error” (4:6)
“whoever loves has been born of God and g knows God” (4:7)
“anyone who does not love, does not g know God, because God is love. (4:8),
“g Know that we abide in Him, and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit.” (4:13),
“g Know the love that God has for us.” (4:16),
“g Know that we love the children of God” (5:2),
“o Know that you have eternal life” (5:13),
“o Know that He hears us” (5:15),
“o Know that we have the requests that we ask of Him” (5:13),
“o Know that everyone who has been born of God does not keep on sinning,” (5:18),
“o Know that we are from God, and the whole world lies in the power of the evil one.” (5:19),
“o Know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may g know Him who is True, and we are in Him Who is True, in His Son Jesus Christ. He is the True God and Eternal Life. (5:20).
Our “knowing”, our “confidence”, our “certainty” as Christians is not based on our feelings but on the authority of the Bible. We can know the Bible is true because many of the amazing things it describes can be reasonably verified. The historicity of the Bible is increasingly verified with each passing year. The prophetic accuracy of the Bible is unparallelled. The absolutely unique life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ is perhaps the most verifiable event of ancient history. Many people disbelieve the Bible, but their objections are quite easily answered, and their disbelief is rooted in unwillingness not in a lack of credible evidence.
But 1 John is written to those who already believe in order to encourage and strengthen them with the knowledge that true belief is more than mere lip-service. John does this by repeated descriptions of how people who truly “know” God live. The old phrase “the proof is in the pudding” is actually “the proof of the pudding is in the eating.” Applied to 1 John we could say: “the proof of saying that I know God and have the LIFE He gives, is demonstrated in the way I live.” Two other words John repeats are “light” and “love”. If God is “light” and “love”, and He is, then those who claim to know Him ought to exhibit those characteristics in their daily life. They ought to live differently in a world that is often characterized by darkness, animosity and indifference.
Only the self-deceived would claim to live perfectly sinless lives. Neither John nor James (“faith without works is dead”) suggest that people who truly know God and His new Life live perfectly. What they do teach is that people who know God’s forgiveness overcome the downward pull of the world. Looking ahead to what John wrote in the book of Revelation, we see “what the Spirit says to the churches”:
Revelation 2:7 “To the one who conquers I will grant to eat of the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.”
Rev 2:11 The one who conquers will not be hurt by the second death.”
Rev 2:17 To the one who conquers I will give some of the hidden manna, and I will give him a white stone, with a new name written on the stone that no one knows except the one who receives it.”
Rev 2:26 The one who conquers and who keeps my works until the end, to him I will give authority over the nations,”
Rev 3:5 The one who conquers will be clothed thus in white garments, and I will never blot his name out of the book of life. I will confess his name before my Father and before his angels.”
Rev 3:12 The one who conquers, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God. Never shall he go out of it, and I will write on him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which comes down from my God out of heaven, and my own new name.”
Rev 3:21 The one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne.”
God promises amazing things, most of which are beyond our present understanding. And he makes these promises to churches none of which were perfect, but each had a combination of good and bad. So, what does it take to be a “conqueror”? What does it take to live in God’s Light and Love, rather than the worlds darkness and indifference? John explains it in 1 John. The word John uses for “conqueror” in Revelation is the Greek word “nika”. In 1 John he uses the same word “nika” and the ESV translates it with the word “overcome”. The thing to notice is that while in Revelation overcoming is admonished, in 1 John it is described and defined. 1 John 5:4 “For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.”
So, what about the age-old question of how can one be confident regarding their relationship with God? Does it involve trusting that our works are good enough? Or does it depend on Someone more faithful than ourselves? The question takes us back to the beginning of 1 John. John and the other Bible writers were eyewitnesses to the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus and they all knew and wrote about the fact that “if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1:9) The basis of and the accomplishment of our fellowship with God, our forgiveness, our overcoming, our Light, Love and life, is not our faithfulness but our faith in the faithfulness of God. Nothing motivates our faithful obedience like knowing the amazing Grace of God.
(English Standard Version)
1Jn 1 - The Word of Life - Walking In The Light
1Jn 2 - Christ Our Advocate - The New Commandment - Do Not Love The World - Warning Concerning Antichrists - Children of God
1Jn 3 - Love One Another
1Jn 4 - Test The Spirits - God is Love
1Jn 5 - Overcoming The World - Testimony Concerning the Son of God - That You May Know
COMMENTS and QUESTIONS
by J Neil Evans:
Read 1 John yourself then …
Watch the Bible Project video 1,2,3 John
The Old Testament promised over and over again that God would send His Messiah to rescue His people from corruption in the world. The identity of This Messiah was always questioned. When Jesus appeared, the controversy was magnified as His followers gave their very lives for believing while others doubted or staunchly refused to believe. In looking for Life, Light, and Love people have always looked in all sorts of different places. John was writing to Jesus Followers to remind and encourage them as they too were seeking victory in their daily struggles.
John begins with a dynamic description of the subject and object of his attention. He is talking about Something, indeed Someone, Who: was “from the beginning”, was One with whom he and the other Apostles were “very personally acquainted”, was “The Word of Life”, was “with The Father” and “made Him and eternal life manifest”. In verse three of chapter one John makes it clear that he is talking about Jesus Christ. Then John clearly states the reason for writing: “so that you too may together with us have fellowship with The Father and The Son, which is complete joy”.
John and the Apostles (“we”) heard a message from “Him” (The Father and The Son) that “God is Light” with “no darkness at all”. Evidently there were people who claimed to have fellowship with God while living contrary Him. This is a clear demonstration of hypocrisy that needs correction which involves confessing sin and obediently walking in The Light that Jesus manifested. Anyone who claims to not sin is self-deceived. John then says something that is one of the most encouraging things in the Bible: “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1:9) He then goes on the explain how this forgiveness is accomplished. “If anyone does sin, we have an advocate with The Father, Jesus Christ the Righteous.” “He is the propitiation (payment) for our sins…” (2:1,2)
How can a person know that their sins are really forgiven? How can I know that I really know God? These questions imply a desire for a high level of confidence or certainty. We have all seen people who are deceived in their claim to really know something. And we’ve all been there ourselves.
Actually, “knowing” is one of the key themes of 1 John. Notice the two bold letters “g” and “o” in the verses quoted below. They represent two different Greek words that are translated by the english word “know” (or “be sure” in 2:5). The Greek words are ginosko and oida. Generally, oida describes knowledge that is had by intellect while ginosko describes knowledge that is had by experience. While both words influence our emotions, neither kind of knowing is gained simply by feelings. Truth has evidence and is often confirmed by experience.
“g Know Him Who is from the beginning” (1:13,14),
“g Know The Father” (1:13),
“we may o be sure that we are in Him” (2:5),
“o Know The Truth” (2:21),
“o Know that He is Righteous” (2:29),
“o the world does not o know God’s children because it does not
o know Him” (3:1),
“o Know that when He appears we shall be like Him” (3:2),
“o know that He appeared to take away sin” (3:5),
“g Know that we are of the truth” (3:19),
“God g knows everything” (3:20),
“Whoever g knows God listens to us (Bible writers)” (4:6)
“g Know the Spirit of Truth and the spirit of error” (4:6)
“whoever loves has been born of God and g knows God” (4:7)
“anyone who does not love, does not g know God, because God is love. (4:8),
“g Know that we abide in Him, and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit.” (4:13),
“g Know the love that God has for us.” (4:16),
“g Know that we love the children of God” (5:2),
“o Know that you have eternal life” (5:13),
“o Know that He hears us” (5:15),
“o Know that we have the requests that we ask of Him” (5:13),
“o Know that everyone who has been born of God does not keep on sinning,” (5:18),
“o Know that we are from God, and the whole world lies in the power of the evil one.” (5:19),
“o Know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may g know Him who is True, and we are in Him Who is True, in His Son Jesus Christ. He is the True God and Eternal Life. (5:20).
Our “knowing”, our “confidence”, our “certainty” as Christians is not based on our feelings but on the authority of the Bible. We can know the Bible is true because many of the amazing things it describes can be reasonably verified. The historicity of the Bible is increasingly verified with each passing year. The prophetic accuracy of the Bible is unparallelled. The absolutely unique life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ is perhaps the most verifiable event of ancient history. Many people disbelieve the Bible, but their objections are quite easily answered, and their disbelief is rooted in unwillingness not in a lack of credible evidence.
But 1 John is written to those who already believe in order to encourage and strengthen them with the knowledge that true belief is more than mere lip-service. John does this by repeated descriptions of how people who truly “know” God live. The old phrase “the proof is in the pudding” is actually “the proof of the pudding is in the eating.” Applied to 1 John we could say: “the proof of saying that I know God and have the LIFE He gives, is demonstrated in the way I live.” Two other words John repeats are “light” and “love”. If God is “light” and “love”, and He is, then those who claim to know Him ought to exhibit those characteristics in their daily life. They ought to live differently in a world that is often characterized by darkness, animosity and indifference.
Only the self-deceived would claim to live perfectly sinless lives. Neither John nor James (“faith without works is dead”) suggest that people who truly know God and His new Life live perfectly. What they do teach is that people who know God’s forgiveness overcome the downward pull of the world. Looking ahead to what John wrote in the book of Revelation, we see “what the Spirit says to the churches”:
Revelation 2:7 “To the one who conquers I will grant to eat of the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.”
Rev 2:11 The one who conquers will not be hurt by the second death.”
Rev 2:17 To the one who conquers I will give some of the hidden manna, and I will give him a white stone, with a new name written on the stone that no one knows except the one who receives it.”
Rev 2:26 The one who conquers and who keeps my works until the end, to him I will give authority over the nations,”
Rev 3:5 The one who conquers will be clothed thus in white garments, and I will never blot his name out of the book of life. I will confess his name before my Father and before his angels.”
Rev 3:12 The one who conquers, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God. Never shall he go out of it, and I will write on him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which comes down from my God out of heaven, and my own new name.”
Rev 3:21 The one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne.”
God promises amazing things, most of which are beyond our present understanding. And he makes these promises to churches none of which were perfect, but each had a combination of good and bad. So, what does it take to be a “conqueror”? What does it take to live in God’s Light and Love, rather than the worlds darkness and indifference? John explains it in 1 John. The word John uses for “conqueror” in Revelation is the Greek word “nika”. In 1 John he uses the same word “nika” and the ESV translates it with the word “overcome”. The thing to notice is that while in Revelation overcoming is admonished, in 1 John it is described and defined. 1 John 5:4 “For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.”
So, what about the age-old question of how can one be confident regarding their relationship with God? Does it involve trusting that our works are good enough? Or does it depend on Someone more faithful than ourselves? The question takes us back to the beginning of 1 John. John and the other Bible writers were eyewitnesses to the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus and they all knew and wrote about the fact that “if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1:9) The basis of and the accomplishment of our fellowship with God, our forgiveness, our overcoming, our Light, Love and life, is not our faithfulness but our faith in the faithfulness of God. Nothing motivates our faithful obedience like knowing the amazing Grace of God.
Check out these LINKS:
Watch Bible Project summary of 1-3John
Read "Bible Words to Ponder" related to this week study
Read "The Gospel"