Written to combat Gnosticism. A Preoccupation with deliverance from the flesh dualistic view of man [matter was evil and spirit was good]. · Matter is inherently evil.
It was Peter’s task to talk about the kingdom of God, Paul about the church of God, but John is concerned with the family of God, to bring them back to the basics of truth. He was a net mender
One is in the passage just read, Verse 4. “And we are writing this that your joy may be complete.”….Answers the fear of loneliness
Then in Chapter 2,...
Written to combat Gnosticism. A Preoccupation with deliverance from the flesh dualistic view of man [matter was evil and spirit was good]. · Matter is inherently evil.
It was Peter’s task to talk about the kingdom of God, Paul about the church of God, but John is concerned with the family of God, to bring them back to the basics of truth. He was a net mender
One is in the passage just read, Verse 4. “And we are writing this that your joy may be complete.”….Answers the fear of loneliness
Then in Chapter 2, Verse 1, he says, “My little children, I am writing this to you so that you may not sin.”… the problem of guilt.
And in Chapter 2, Verse 26, he gives us the third reason: “I write this to you about those who would deceive you.”… that we might be free from deception.
In Chapter 5, Verse 13, he gives us the fourth reason: “I write this to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life.”… I am writing this to assure you” – that you might find security,
At the close of this letter John tells us, “He who has the Son has life; he who has not the Son of God has not life,” {1 Jn 5:12 RSV}.
1John 1:1-4 is a defense of the authenticity of the humanity of Christ, or the Test of Believing that Jesus has come in the flesh
1Jo 4:2 By this you know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God, 1Jo 4:3 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.
He talks about A relationship, a fellowship, and a joy that follows.
- A relationship
V1 John does not refer here to the absolute beginning of creation (Ge 1:1) but to the beginning of the message of Jesus Christ to the apostles
Luke 24:39 “Behold My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself. Handle Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see I have.” 40 When He had said this, He showed them His hands and His feet.”
The “Word” is Christ manifested as God’s message. He reveals God.
Hebrews 1: God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, 2 has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds;
“Of life” means life-giving. Jesus is both the messenger and the message. The message and the messenger are identical.
V2 2 Peter 1:16 For we did not follow cunningly devised fables when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of His majesty.
John 14:6 “Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.’”
- A fellowship
V3 Entering the eternal life of the Son will produce two results: 1) fellowship with fellow believers, and 2) fellowship with the Father and the Son.
A Definition of fellowship
There is, first of all, a partnership, i.e., the sharing of mutual interests, mutual resources, mutual labor together. God and I, working together, a partnership.
All that I have is put at his disposal.
But it is not only partnership, there is also friendship. Friendship and partnership together spell fellowship. Have you ever thought of this, that God desires you to be his friend?
John 15:15 Jesus said to his disciples, “I have not called you servants, but I have called you friends,”
John 14:6 “Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.’”
Jesus shows us the life that man is intended to live – a continual dependence upon the life of the Father. Look at the earthly life of Jesus and this is exactly what you see. He keeps saying, “I don’t do these things, it’s not I who accomplishes these works, it is the Father who dwells in me,” {cf, John 14:10}. He is continually reminding people that he says only what the Father is saying through him that they are not his words, he simply looked to God and trusted God to be working through him, leading him to think the thoughts and to say the things that God wanted him to say. In doing this he expressed exactly the mind of God. It is that life that John is talking about, a new way of living, a new way of reacting to situations in dependence upon God.
And that is what makes a Christian, to share the life of God by relationship to a Person, the only Person who has that life, the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
- A Joy That Follows
V4
Then, when you have fellowship, you have the third thing that John mentions. These things we are writing, he says, “that your joy may be full.”
Joy is a kind of quiet inner excitement and this is what results when we really experience the fellowship that John is talking about. When we discover that God is actually
When we discover that God is actually using us, it is the most exciting and joy producing experience possible to men.
Jer. 15:16 Your words were found, and I ate them, And Your word was to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart; For I am called by Your name, O LORD God of hosts.
There is a difference between happiness and joy. Happiness depends on what happens; that is, it depends on circumstances. If our circumstances are good, then we are happy. However, if our circumstances are poor, then we are unhappy. However, joy is independent from circumstances. Circumstances cannot affect our relationship with God.
Song…It’s real, it’s real, thank God it’s real
John 14:6 “Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.’”
Mark 8:36 "For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?
John 14:6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. Have you trusted Him as your Savior? He can Save you if You ask Him based on His death, burial, and resurrection for your sins. Believe in Him for forgiveness of your sins today.
“And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” -John 8:32
Our mission is to spread the gospel and to go to the least of these with the life-changing message of Jesus Christ; We reach out to those the World has forgotten.
hisloveministries.podbean.com #HLMSocial hisloveministries.net https://www.instagram.com/hisloveministries1/?hl=en Don’t go for all the gusto you can get, go for all the God (Jesus Christ) you can get. The gusto will get you, Jesus can save you. https://www.facebook.com/His-Love-Ministries-246606668725869/?tn-str=k*F
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