First John is the first of three epistles (or letters) written to a general audience scattered around Asia Minor, or modern day Turkey. If you recall, John also wrote his story of the life and ministry of Jesus (the Gospel of John), and as we will see soon, he is also the author of the Book of Revelation. And so, there are five New Testament books attributed to John.

John was one of Jesus’ closest followers. Along with the two brothers Peter and Andrew, John and his brother James were called to follow Jesus following the miraculous catch of fish on the shore of Galilee at the beginning of Jesus’ ministry. As the Scriptures say, “they left everything and followed Him.” Furthermore, it was Peter, James and John who were with Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration, and it was the same three who prayed with Jesus on His last night on earth in the Garden of Gethsemane. And it was John who sat next to Jesus during the Last Supper.

John is associated with the Apostles in Jerusalem (Acts 8:14), and Paul refers to him as one of the “pillars of the Jerusalem church” (Gal. 2:9). This means that John was connected with the Church in Jerusalem for at least the first 20 years after the Church began on Pentecost. Church tradition tells us that John eventually left Jerusalem and settled in Ephesus, where he ministered to the various churches scattered throughout Asia Minor. The believers in these churches were established in the Christian faith, and his use of the terms “beloved” and “my little children” give it a very personal touch with those to whom he is writing.

The letter was likely written from Ephesus prior to the persecution under Nero (which broke out in AD 64), as there is no mention of having to deal with any intense persecution. However, they were confronted with false teachers promoting Gnosticism. The Gnostic heresy taught that matter is inherently evil, and that a divine being (Jesus) could not take on human flesh. This resulted in the distinction between the man Jesus and the spiritual Christ who came upon Jesus at His baptism but departed prior to His crucifixion. Gnostics also prided themselves in understanding “hidden knowledge” and made themselves out to be part of an elite spiritual class, placing themselves above the “earthly” distinctions between “right and wrong.” In short, they not only taught spiritual error, but also lived ungodly lives.

John stresses the fact that God is not only light, but also love and life, and he desperately wanted his spiritual children to experience these attributes of God. If we want to have fellowship with God, who Himself is light, John lets us know how this can be accomplished,

“God is light, and in Him there is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; but if we walk in the light as He Himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin” (1 Jn. 1:5-7).

He goes on to say that,

“If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 Jn. 1:8-9).

History tells us that a man named “Christos” died on a Roman cross in AD 30. God’s revelation tells us that He died for our sins, which could never be revealed by history alone. However, life transformation comes only when we “confess our sins” as John tells us to do. As a result, John expects us to live lives that are characterized by righteousness and not sin, but if we do sin, he tells us that we have Jesus Christ acting as our “defense attorney” before the Father. John puts it this way,

“My little children, I am writing these things to you that you may not sin. But if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous; and He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world” (1 Jn. 2:1-2).

The forgiveness of sins is “available” to all, but is only “effective” for those who “confess their sins.” John continues in his attack against the gnostic heresy by telling his “little children,”

“Do not love the world, nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world (the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the boastful pride of life) is not from the Father, but is from the world” (1 Jn. 2:15-16).

The “lust of the flesh” is the desire to “do” what God does not want us to do; the “lust of the eyes” is the desire to “have” that which He does not want us to have; and the “pride of life” is the desire to “be” what God does not want us to be. These desires find their source in the “spirit of the world” that is against God, and John calls us to turn away from them. As we turn away from the things of the world, John tells us to focus on loving one another,

“Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love. By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us, and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another” (1 Jn. 4:7-11).

God’s love was demonstrated when He sent Jesus to die for our sins, and if we have experienced His love, we need to love others. But notice how John also said that the Son came so that we “might live through Him.” This is what John focuses upon as he approaches the end of his letter,

“And the witness is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God, does not have the life. These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, in order that you may know that you have eternal life” (1 Jn. 5:11-13).

The “life” of which John is speaking is not “biological” life, but “spiritual” life (from the Greek word zoe). It is His life living in us. It is received as a “gift” from God the moment we “confess our sins” to Him. If we have the “Son” living in us, then we have His transforming “Life” in us. John says it plainly, that if we “have the Son,” then we have His life; on the other hand if we “do not have the Son,” then we do not have His life in us. And this life that He gives us extends into eternity.

And so, I ask you, do you have the Son in your life? If not, then you don’t have His “Life.” However, He can give you His life, spiritual life, as a result of confessing your sins, just as John wrote in the beginning of his letter. This is the “Life” that makes us new creations, which Jesus Himself called being “born again.” When we are “born again” by the Spirit, then we have His life within us, and this is the life that allows us to have genuine fellowship with God, and which allows us to genuinely love others.

May God bless you this Easter weekend. I pray that you will join with millions of others to celebrate the resurrection of Christ. By the way, without His resurrection, there would be no “Life” to give. A “dead” savior is no savior at all. He is the risen Savior, the risen Lord, who dispenses genuine “Life” to all who ask him.

Peggy and I pray that you’ll have a blessed Easter. We love and thank you all for being a part of our lives.