1st John Introduction and Overview
I. The Penman – Apostle John – The Beloved
A. Writings:
1. Gospel of John (Saint John)
2. 1st John
3. 2nd John
4. 3rd John
5. Revelations -- Written around 95 AD
B. John – from Hebrew Johanan – Yahweh has been gracious
C. History:
1. Son of Zebedee (Mt. 4:21) & Salomme (Mt. 27:56 & Mark 15:4)
2. Convert of John the Baptist
a. then of Jesus (John 1:35-42)
b. Matt. 4:21 Fisher of men
3. Brother of James
a. James was first and older
b. Martyred Acts 12:1-3
4. Chosen as one of the twelve
5. One of the Inner Circle – Peter, James, and John
a. Jairus’ daughter Mk. 5:37
b. Transfiguration Matt. 17:1
6. Beloved disciple – Apostle of Love --- John13:23
7. Commissioned to care for Mary as his own mother – John19:25-27
8. Bishop of Ephesus (In modern day Turkey) Polycarp and Ignatius – Disciples
9. Persecution:
a. Under Domitian (Roman Emperor) – Thrown into boiling oil – no harm
b. Exiled to labor in a mines on Patmos
10. Death:
a. Natural – Only of 12
b. Around 100 AD – 93 to 94 yrs. Old
II. Written:
A. When? One source = 85-100 when John was 80
If John was aware of the fall of Jerusalem and
the destruction of the Jewish Temple (that occurred in 70AD), it makes
sense he would have included Jesus’ predictions in this regard as a point of emphasis. So probably prior to 70AD.
B. Where? Ephesus
C. To whom – The churches established by John in Asia Minor (Turkey)
D. Reasons for writing
1. I John 1:4 that your joy may be full.
2. I John 2:1 that you sin not
3. I John 2:12 because your sins are forgiven
4. I John 2:13-14 ye have know Him
5. I John 2:26 concerning them that seduce you have eternal life and that ye may
Believe
I just don’t feel like I’m saved. How are you supposed to feel when you are
saved? I know we do have some feelings that help us to describe and understand
the relief of sin, but I don’t know of specific feeling that we should have as being
among the saved.
III. Current Facts Concerning time of writing:
A. Christians now 2nd to 3rd generation after Christ
B. Excitement Fading
C. No Persecution but Seduction:
1. Many false prophets (Mt. 24:11 & 1 John 4:1)
2. Grievous wolves enter among you (Acts 20:29-30)
3. The Spirit of Anti-Christ
D. The Contemporary Philosophy – Gnosticism gnosis = knowledge
1. Only spirit is good
2. Matter is essentially evil
3. Liberate the spirit from the body by elaborate, secret, knowledge and ritual and
initiation which only the true Gnostic that can supply.
4. Real incarnation of God in man was impossible (Phil. 2). Good (spirit) cannot
take on flesh (evil).
a. Docetism – no physical body but purely spiritual.
b. Cerinthus – “enemy of truth” Drew a distinction between the human
Jesus and the divine Christ. He said Jesus was a man, born in a perfectly
natural way (Joseph biological father). Jesus lived in special obedience to
God, and after His baptism, the Christ in the shape of a dove descended
upon Him, from that power which is above all powers, and then Jesus
brought to men news of the Father who had been as yet unknown. Nor did
Cerinthus stop there. He said that at the end of Jesus’ life, the Christ again
withdrew from Him, and that the Christ never suffered at all, but that it
was the human Jesus who suffered, died, and rose again, while the divine
Christ remained absolutely incapable of suffering, and in purely spiritual
existence.
E. Consequences of Gnosticism:
1. Implication of Matter being Evil.
a. Body Evil -- Fasting, celibacy, rigid control, and even deliberate ill-
treatment of, sex identified with sin.
b. Since the body is evil, it does not matter, therefore, its appetites and its
lusts might be gratified without control and without limit.
c. True Gnostic is an altogether spiritual man; having released his spirit
from the bondage of matter. Such Gnostics held that they were
completely above sin; that sin for them had ceased to exist; that
they were so spiritual that they were above and beyond sin, and
that they had reached spiritual perfection (1 John 1:8-10).
2. Implications of Special Knowledge – Divided men into two classes:
a. psuchikoi [soulish men]—men who could never advance beyond the
principle of physical life, men who could never attain anything else
than what was to all intents and purposes animal living.
b. pneumatikoi [spiritual men] – those who were truly spiritual, and who
were truly akin to God.
3. Consequences:
a. Fellowship –only within society (clique)
b. Love –only within a society
IV. Key Words:
A. know (31) = ginosko (ghin-oce’-ko)
1. to learn to know, come to know, get a knowledge of perceive, feel
2. to know, understand, perceive, have knowledge of
3. to become acquainted with, to know
B. Love (26) = agape (ag-ah-pay)
1. Brotherly love, affection, good will, love, benevolence
2. love feasts
C. Death (21) = (than-at-os)
1. The death of the body
2. that separation (whether natural or violent) of the soul and the body by which
life on earth is ended
3. with the implied idea of future misery in hell
D. Sin (16) = hamartia (ham-ar-tee-ah)
1. to miss the mark. To err to be mistaken;
2. to miss or wander from the path of the unrightness and honor, to do or go
wrong;
3. to wander from the law of God, violate God’s law;
E. Life (12)
1. psuche (psoo-khay) = to breath; the breath of life; the vital force which
animates the body and show itself in breathing; of animals; of men
2. bios (bee’-os) = life; life extensively; the period or course of life;
that which is sustained
3. zoe (dzo-ay’) = life, the state of one who is possessed of vitality or is animate;
Every living soul; the absolute fullness of life, both essential and ethical,
which belongs to God, and through Him
F. Fellowship (4);
G. Joy (1);
H. hate, lie, deny, deceive
V. Main Themes:
A. Light vs. Darkness
B. Love vs Hatred
C. Truth vs Error
VI. Purposes of the Epistle:
A. That ye also may have fellowship with us (1:3)
B. That your joy may be full (1:4)
C. That ye sin not (2:1-2)
D. Concerning them that seduce you (2:26)
E. That ye may *know* (5:13)
VII. Fellowship –In the beginning (arche) – the Word (Logos)
A. Experiencing Word Physically:
1. Heard Him:
a. Gracious words – Luke 4:22
b. Never spake like this man – John 7:46
c. Spoke not as scribes (Matt. 7:28-29)
d. means to give ear to, but also to conform to, to obey
2. Seen Him with our eyes –Behold the Lamb of God
3. Handled Him:
a. Leaning on His bosom –John 13:23
b. Reach hither thy finger and behold my hands –John 13:23
B. Significance of Physical Body:
1. Corrects Gnostic doctrine – not a phantom
John’s first answer to the heresy of Cerinthus who rejected the reality of
the incarnation. Not imagination but historical, tangible evidence.
2. Took upon Him flesh –Phil. 2:7
VIII. Declaring Him --- give witness sharing our experience
A. To shew unto you that eternal life
1. zoe – the absolute fullness of life, both essential and ethical, which belongs to
God
2. bios – the means of life. Not primarily life that lasts forever, but life which is
derived from God Himself.
B. That ye may also have fellowship (koinonia—koy-nohn-ee-ah) The share which one
has in anything, participation, communion)
1. Experience Christ with us. Fellowship is Christianity at its best.
2. Experience Christ for yourself.
IX. Fellowship with Christ – Fellowship is a matter of Light and Darkness.
A. Light vs Darkness (Warren Wiersbe pg 30)
1. God is light -- no darkness at all.
a. It tells us that God is splendor and glory –piercing darkness Mt. 4:16
b. It tell us that God is self-revealing.
(1) Nothing secretive
(2) Paul tells King Agrippa and Festus Acts 26:26 it was not done
in a “corner”
(3) Beware of secret fellowships!
c. It tells us of the purity and the holiness of God.
d. It tells us of the guidance of God. “A light and a lamp to my pathway.”
e. It tells us of the revealing quality in the presence of God. Light reveals
imperfections.
True Light I John 2:8, Ye are the light Mt. 5:14-16
2. Darkness is Satanic
a. Darkness stands for the Christ-less life.
b. The dark is hostile to the light. John 3:19-21
Evil hateth light Jn. 3:19-21
c. The darkness stands for ignorance of life apart from Christ. Jn. 12:46
d. The darkness stands for the chaos of life without God. II Cor. 4:6
e. The darkness stands for the immorality of Christ-less life.
Rom. 13:12-14; John 3:19 Immorality seeks shadows.
(1) We are not necessarily what we day we are.
(2) We should never accept people by what they say they are, but
by what they do, which is the true indicator.
(3) How we treat our fellow human beings shows our relationship
to God. (Spiros Zodhiates)
f. The darkness is unfruitful. Eph. 5:11
g. The darkness is connected with lovelessness and hate. I Jn. 2:9-11
h. The dark is the abode of the enemies of Christ and the final goal of
those who will not accept Him. Eph. 6:12; II Peter 2:9; Jude 13
B. The Pretense of Fellowship—Lying about Fellowship
1. If we say . . . . . Too many Christians have the talk but not the
walk. Liar #1 Lying about fellowship. I John 1:6-7
2. Hating your brother? I John 2:9-11
If a man say . . . I John 4:20-21
3. They were not of us . . . I John 2:18-19
C. The TESTS of True Christian Fellowship.
In these days when many Christians think they have fellowship with God but do
not; and when many religious people think they are true sons of God; it is
important that we apply these tests and examine our own lives carefully. (WW)
1. The test of obedience – Saying vs. Doing the truth.
a. To obey Him is to walk in the light. I John 1:6-7
b. To obey Him is to keep His commandments. I John 2:3-5
Liar #2 Lying about obedience. Professing vs. Practicing.
c. To obey Him is to walk even as He walked. I John 2:6
2. The test of love.
a. The new commandment. Not different, but in a new light. It is a basic
spiritual principle that when Christians are out of fellowship with
God, they cannot get along with God’s people. Liar #3 Lying
about love. I John 2:7-11
b. The new family. I John 2:12-14
c. The new danger. I John 2:15-17 There is a conflict between love for
the Father and love for the world. World – John means all that
belongs to our life that is opposed to Christ.
It is Satan’s system:
(1) Lust of the flesh.
(2) Lust of the eyes.
(3) Pride of Life
3. Regarding our fellow man:
a. We may regard our brother as negligible. Am I my brother’s keeper?
b. We may regard our brother with contempt.
It is no uncommon sight to see in any group of people a man
opposing a good and useful proposal, because he dislikes, or has
quarreled with the man who made it.
c. We may regard our brother as a nuisance.
d. We may regard our brother as an enemy -- competition.
e. We may regard or brother as our brother. We may regard him with
love. His needs are our needs; his interests are our interests; to
serve him is why we came into the world at all; and to be in
fellowship with him is the true joy of life.
*Somewhere we fit into one of the categories and that is simply to say that
in principle we either love or hate our brother.
4. The test of truth:
a. False Teachers:
(1) Left fellowship. Once in the church, departed from truth.
Tares among us. (WW) Telling on the tares.
(2) Deny Christ in the flesh.
(3) Seduce believers. We have teachers galore these days, and the
Christian must beware! I John 2:26; II Peter 2:1-4
b. Do we need teachers? The Spirit of God uses the inspired Word of
God to communicate God’s truth to us. I John 2:20, 27
What about Eph. 4:18-16? Believers ought to allow the Holy
Ghost to teach them personally through the Word, no always
depending on man. Holy Ghost teaches by bringing thing to
remembrance. Called teachers are used by the Holy Ghost.
5. Summary of Fellowship – I can know that I am in fellowship with God
through Christ if I have no known sins in my life. If I have love for the
brethren, and if I believe the truth and not some Satanic lie. If a Christian
want to have daily fellowship with Christ, he must obey the Word, love
the brethren, and believe in the truth. It is not enough to talk about the
Christian life; we must practice it.
X. Defining Sin – 16 times
A. According to Paul: Romans 14:23 Whatever is not of faith is sin.
B. According to James: James 2:9; James 4:17 Omission
He that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin. Personal?
C. According to John I John 3:4 Transgression – lawlessness (anoinia)
I John 5:17 Unrighteousness according to God’s standard.,
D. Simply put – hamartia (ham-ar-tee-ah) – to miss the mark
E. My opinion of Missing the Mark:
1. Failing to tithe.
2. Forsaking the assembling of ourselves.
3. Treating people differently – respect of person.
4. To discourage a brother or a sister Num. 32:19-23
XI. The Principle of Sin
A. I John 1:8-10
1. Past or Present? Never did? Never will? Rom. 3:23 “All have sinned”
2. Sin Extremes
a. Before Salvation – Perfectionist – Never sin again?
b. Daily Sin – After Salvation – Once in grace. Rom. 6:1 “God forbid”
3. For some
a. Sin never did exist – Never Sinned? By what standard? Not so!
b. Sin has ceased to exist – True Gnostics
4. John says “We” not “ye”
5. But I John 3:5-9 says cannot sin – and I John 5:18
6. I John 2:1-2 Why an advocate? v. 2 not ours only, but the whole world
Why say sin not, cannot sin, and then if any man sin?
7. And then I John 5:16 If any man see his brother sin a sin? A brother? Sin?
8. One single act of sin? Or continually, habitually transgressing the law
“I’m just a sinner saved by grace.” If practicing sin daily – not saved
9. If we are absolutely sinless, then we make ourselves just like Christ, and also
equal to Christ in purity.
a. In reality, we are claiming that we are living the same perfect life which
Christ lived, which is blasphemy. A believer who is self-deceived
by thinking he or she is sinless must be an extremely difficult
person to live with. (Spiros Zodhiates)
b. Christ was sinless, perfectly, absolutely pure. We are cleansed by
being forgiven we are washed in the blood.
c. Here is one difference between Christ and the Christian. Christ
had one nature only; the Christian has two natures. When we
became partakers of the divine nature, the old sin nature is
not eradicated. Romans 7:14-25 Two natures at war.
d. “I keep under my body” I Cor. 9:27
e. No true Christian will deliberately and repeatedly defy God’s
Word and disobey Him. (SZ)
f. The fact that sin made Christ suffer and die ought to be reason
enough for the Christian to hate sin and flee from it. (WW)
10. So then, I John 3:16 “Whosoever abideth in Him” does not commit
sin as a way of life. One who practices sin does not know God.
B. The seed of God I John 3:9
1. First, the Gnostics said that God sowed seeds into the world, and through the
action of these seeds the world was being perfected; and they claimed that
it was the true Gnostics who had received these seeds.
2. Seed implied physical relationship such as Abraham’s seed.
3. Seed applied spiritually – the Word James 1:18; I Peter 1:23
4. Therefore, the Christian is preserved from a life of sin by the indwelling power
of the Word of God.
C. Death I John 5:16-17
1. “Sin not unto death” – Repentance and renewal is still possible whether the
death is spiritual or physical – pray for renewal
2. Sin unto death
a. Spiritual? A man who has listened to sin so often, and refused to listen
to God so often, that he has come to the state when he loves his
sin. There would be no point of renewal possible. Heb. 6:4-6;
Heb. 10:26-27 No other sacrifice.
b. Physical? Acts 5:1-11; I Cor. 11:27-32
c. Why don’t pray (petition God)? Questioning God when He decides to
impose physical death is absolutely prohibited and we have no
right to question the wisdom of His actions. There are reasons for
His actions which we cannot comprehend. (SZ)
XII. God is Love – Agape
A. Occurs
1. Once in Matt.
2. Once in Luke
3. Seven times in John’s gospel
4. 21 times in John’s epistles
B. God’s Wonderful Love
1. It is an obedient love. I John 2:5 perfected = fulfilled
2. Unique I John 3:1 It is a love which, when given and accepted, effectively
changes the recipient.
3. Adopting Love – sons of God – undeserved love
a. Whether or not we are recognized by the world as the children of God
really makes no difference. What counts is that we are children of
God. We should not expect the world to recognize us since it does
not recognize God. (SZ)
b. What we are now is only a foretaste of what we shall be.
“We shall be like Him” suggest a glorified body like His.
4. Exemplary Love – Christ left us an example. I John 3:16-18
Unselfish I John 4:19
5. Other-centered Love I John 4:7
6. Love is a natural demonstration of having been born of God.
7. This is a love that the world or the false prophets or anti-Christ cannot
interrupt.
XIII. We can make it – we can overcome
A. Children Manifested – The Word of God as a whole, and more specifically
I John, presents us with a key to be used by the spiritual (mature) children
of God to help key out and discern some certain things pertaining to the
kingdom of Christ and the kingdom of Satan.
1. He that committeth sin is of the devil vs. whosoever is born of God doth not
commit sin.
2. We know that we have passed form death unto life, because we love the
brethren vs. Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer.
3. Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God vs.
every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not
of God.
4. Hereby know we the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error.
5. Scriptures; I John 2:29; 3:1-12; 4:4-8; 5:1-6
B. Born of God
1. We must first define “born of God” and examine the characteristics that
identify those who are “born of God” and differentiate between those
whose father is the devil.
2. I John 5:1 Whosoever believeth that Jesus is Christ is born of God.
It seems but natural that he who loves the Father should love the children
also, and that in some proportion to their resemblance to their Father and
to the Father’s love to them. (MH)
3. Spirit beareth witness Rom. 8:13-17 Abba; I John 4:13
4. Knoweth God I John 4:7 To know does not mean just an awareness of God
but an awareness that causes action. The devils know and believe and
tremble.
5. I John 5:2 and manifest this love by keeping his commandments.
6. Doeth righteous I John 2:29; 3:7
7. Sinneth not I John 3:6; 3:9
The expression, “he cannot sin,” simply means he cannot sin habitually,
deliberately, easily and maliciously as Cain did out of hatred of goodness.
The divine nature of man, of course, cannot sin.
8. Purifieth himself I John 3:3
And when we are in the presence of God, when God is working mightily
in our midst, there comes a great fear, a reverence, a holiness of
life, a purity that fears to displease God. (Smith)
C. Born of Satan
1. Denies that Jesus is Christ. May involve action more than verbal as man
children of Satan profess to be children. *Gnostic Doctrine
II Cor. 11:13-15; False apostles I John 4:1-3
2. Follows the spirit of the flesh and manifests the works of the flesh.
Gal. 5:10-25
3. Loveth not I John 4:8; hateth his brother I John 3:15
True Christians are to be loved for God’s and Christ’s sake. Those who so
love them not, but despise and hate, and persecute them have the
serpentine nature still abiding in them. (Matthew Henry)
4. Knoweth not God I John 4:8
5. Are not subject to the laws of God Rom. 8:7
6. Doeth not righteousness I John 3:10
7. Commiteth sin I John 3:8-12
Cain was vexed with the superiority of Abel’s service, and envied him, the
favor and acceptance he had with God. Ill will will teach us to hate and to
revenge what we should admire and imitate.(MH)
8. Has pleasure in uncleanness filthiness of the flesh Rom. 1:32
“Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his
servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of
obedience unto righteousness?” Romans 6:16
Whose servant are you?
XIV. I John 4:4 “Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is
he that is in you, than he that is in the world.”
A. Who is he that is in the world? The spirit of the antichrist is manifested in those who:
1. Despise His name.
2. Neglect His word.
3. Avoid His people.
4. Delight in worldliness.
5. Make light of sin.
B. Who is He that is in us? The Holy Spirit. God dwelleth in us.
1. The Spirit of wisdom.
2. The Spirit of truth.
3. The Spirit of power.
4. The Spirit of holiness
C. How is He greater?
1. As light is greater than darkness.
2. As truth is greater than falsehood.
3. As the king is greater than the subject.
4. As the Creator is greater than the created.
Many of life’s failures are me who did not realize how close they were to success
when they gave up. (Pulpit Helps Feb. 92)
XV. Jesus came by water and blood. I John 5:6 “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.”
A. Different Viewpoints:
1. William Barclay
a. Water – Baptism Mk. 1:10
b. Blood – Cross Col. 1:20
c. Remember the Gnosticism
d. Jesus was really divine.
2. Warren Wiersbe
a. Water – Brass laver Ex. 30:18; Eph. 5:26
b. Blood – Brasen Altar Ex. 38:30; 2 Kings 16:14
Blood – Altar – Cross
3. Spiros Zodhiates
He came:
a. Voluntarily – to His own
b. To save sinners – I Timothy 1:15
c. To give eternal life
d. By Water:
(1) Conceived of the Holy Ghost
(2) 9 months in water – Gal. 4:4
(3) Amniotic fluid; Amnos – a lamb for sacrifice
e. He came by blood
(1) Blood – Redemption Eph. 1:17
(2) His own blood Heb. 9:12
B. The Spirit Makes the Difference
1. To Lead John 16:13
2. To Feed Acts 20:28
3. Christ is a partaker of flesh and blood
XVI. I John 5:6-8 According to William Barclay: 6 “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.” 7 “For there are three that bear record in
heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one.” 8 “And there
are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these
three agree in one.”
A. Plummer says: “This is the most perplexing passage in the epistle, and one of the
most perplexing in the N. T.”
B. Barclay:
1. No doubt, if we knew the circumstances in which John was writing, if we had
full knowledge of the heresies against which he was defending his people,
if we could reconstruct the whole background of thought, the meaning
would become clear, but, as it is, we can only guess.
2. Water and blood has a very mystical and symbolic meaning.
3. He says, water and blood can only refer to two events in Jesus’ life.
a. Water – His baptism Mark 1:10
b. Blood – His Cross Col. 1:20
4. Gnosticism again taught Jesus became divine at the baptism, and that divinity
left Him before the Cross, and he died as simply a man.
5. Gnostics, by seeking to protect God from all contact with human pain and
human situation, remove God from the act of redemption and empty the
cross of its value.
6. John says, God was in the death of Jesus every bit as he was in his life. God
really and truly lived and suffered for man.
C. Warren Wiersbe says
1. The symbolism speaks of the brass laver (Ex. 30:18-21) between the
tabernacle and the altar for washing – Eph. 5:26 washing of water by
the word.
2. And, the brazen altar Ex. 38:30; II Kings 16:14 – blood – cross
XVII. The Trinity in Heaven I John:7 “For there are three that bear record in heaven, the
Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one.”
A. This verse is omitted from the revised version, NIV and NASB. Apparently it does
not occur in any Greek manuscripts earlier than the 14th century. Originally it
must have been a scribal gloss or comment in the margin.
B. Although it does not appear in any Greek manuscript or N. T. translation before the
16th century, the truth it proclaims is in full agreement with the teaching of the
N. T. concerning the trinity. (S. Z.)
C. We find:
1. Heaven is the permanent dwelling place of the Triune God the Father, God the
Son (the Word) and the Holy Ghost.
2. All three personalities of the Trinity is God.
3. Jesus Christ is the Logos, the Word, as John calls Him in John 1:1.
4. The three complement the function of each other in their work in the universe
and the world of mankind.
XVIII. Witness (affirmation, testimony, confirmation of facts) in the Earth
I John 5:8 “And there are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, and the water,
and the blood: and these three agree in one.”
A. Heavenly work must be done on earth. “Thy will be done in Earth, as it is in heaven.”
The cleansing of earthly man must be accomplished by the life and death, water
and blood, of the second Adam.
B. The work of Christ on earth is cleansing from sin. This cleansing by Jesus Christ is
possible because of His blood that He shed for man’s sin.
C. The Spirit, the water, and the blood have one purpose—to reconcile man to God while
man is on earth. The Trinity is thus operative on earth.
XIX. Heaven’s witness is greater. I John 5:9 “If we receive the witness of men, the witness of
God is greater: for this is the witness of God which he hath testified of his Son.”
A. Jesus received witness as humans testified of Him. At the mouth of two or three
witnesses . . .
B. He was affirmed directly by the Father on more than one occasion.
