Eleventh in a series of valuable studies in the Word of God
The First Epistle of John T HIS month we will consider appear, it is generally agreed that it was the Apostle John, that the epistle was written about 98 A.D., in all prob ability at Ephesus where it is believed that John spent his last. days. There are several verses which re veal the purpose of the epistle. For example: In 1:3,4 we are told that John wrote these things that we might have fellowship with each other and with the Father and the Son and that in such fellowship our joy might be made full. In 2:1 John states that he wrote in order that we might not sin, while in 2:26 (R.V.) he declares that he has written these things that we might be kept from being led astray. Turning now to 5:13, we learn that John also wrote in order that we might have assurance of salvation. ‘‘These things have I written unto you . . . that ye may know that ye have eternal life [even unto you] that . . . believe on the name of the Son of God." It is interesting at this point to com pare John’s purpose in writing this epistle with his object in writing his gospel, which is stated in 20:30,31, where we are informed that the book is designed to lead us to a living faith in Jesus as the Christ and the Son of God, and that in believing we might have eternal life. In his first epistle, John writes that we may know that we have eternal life. There are many people who think it is presumptuous for us to say that we know that we are saved. But surely it is not pre sumptuous to believe what God says. Indeed, to deny that we can have this wonderful assurance is to deny the testimony of God’s infallible Word.
John A. Hubbard, D. D. for us is accepted by faith. Every sin ner who with the heart believes in the crucified, risen Redeemer has eternal life, and he may positively know this by simple faith in God’s Word. In First John a number of tests are given by which we can ascertain whether or not we really do have a saving faith in Christ. When a per son is born again, he will have a changed attitude toward God, toward sin and righteousness, toward the world, and toward Christians. Let us look briefly at the Scriptures in First John bearing on these points. The changed attitude toward God is described in 1:5,6,7. The test is our having fellowship with God, that fel lowship depending on our walking in the light. This involves obedience to God (2: 3,4). A new attitude toward sin and righteousness is revealed in 2:29 to 3:10, and may be summed up in this statement: The one who is born of God does not make a practice of sin ning; his practice is one of righteous ness. Because of lack of space, we will be able to touch only upon some of the salient points in this searching pas sage which has perplexed many be lievers. Note first of all what John means by “sin.” According to 3:4 (R.V.) he is speaking of sin as “law lessness,” that is to say, the conscious, intentional going contrary to the law of God. The one who has been bom of God will not be living that kind of life. The teaching is not that the Christian will never commit a single sin after being regenerated. The tense of the verb used in 3:9 indicates con tinued, repeated action. Dr. Torrey gives the following as a literal trans lation of the verse: "Every one begot- T H E K I N G ’ S BUS I NE SS
It may be said that “know" is the key word to this epistle since it oc curs some thirty times in different forms. The student will do well to read the book through carefully, un derscoring this word, and then medi tating upon each reference, for it will surely bring rich spiritual blessing in coming to see the things of which we can be absolutely certain. Our study w ill center largely around the truth dealt with in 5:13. “Are you certain that you are a Christian? Are you conscious of fellowship with the Father and with His Son? Are you confident that by faith in Christ you have been bom again and that you are a true child of God? To answer such questions this epistle was com posed.”—Dr. Erdman. First of all, note the context: 5:9-12. (These verses should be carefully read at this point.) God has borne witness concerning His Son and that witness is that He has given to us eternal life in His Son, and “he that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.” What ever else we may have of education, culture, morality, even of “religion,” if we do not have the Son, we are still dead in trespasses and sins. It is because all are spiritually dead that God “sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him” (4:9). This life is given to be lievers on the basis of Christ’s death in their behalf. God “sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins” (4:10). From Romans 3:25, we learn that this propitiation is found in the blood of Christ. That salvation is based upon the shed blood of a sub stitute is the uniform testimony of the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation. It is very clear that this provision made
briefly one of the most helpful of all the epistles, First John. While the name of the writer does not
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