HE IS THE TRUE GOD AND ETERNAL LIFE
1 John 5:1-21
Key Verse: 20b
“And we are in him who is true - even in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.”
“Who Jesus is” has been main topics for Christianity. All cults and false teachings surround who Jesus is. It is the same in the book of 1 John. To know who Jesus is main issue in 1 John because antichrist teaches Jesus differently than the true Jesus. Today’s passage teaches Jesus’ identity in four ways: 1) Jesus is the Christ, 2) Jesus is the Son of God, 3) Jesus is the true God, and 4) Jesus is eternal life.
Read verses 1-5. Who is born of God? (1a) What does everyone who loves the father do? (1b) How can we know that we love the children of God? (2) What is love for God? (3a) Why are his commands not burdensome? (3b,4a) What is the victory that overcomes the world? (4b) Who overcomes the world? (5b)
1-1) Read verses 1-5.
1Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves the father loves his child as well. 2 This is how we know that we love the children of God: by loving God and carrying out his commands. 3 In fact, this is love for God: to keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome, 4 for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. 5 Who is it that overcomes the world? Only the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.
1-2) Who is born of God? (1a)
“Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ.”
“To believe that Jesus is the Christ” means that “Jesus saves man fully”. It is to believe that Jesus paid the price of our sin full. We need noting else other than Jesus in our salvation.
“To believe that Jesus is the Christ” means to believe that Jesus is God’s anointed promised Messiah. It means Jesus has official anointing from God to save men from sin. The Christ has official mission from God through the anointing of the Holy Spirit and it is to save men.
“Jesus” and “Christ” two of Jesus’ main names which show his identity. There are two more main identities, and they are ‘the Son of God’ and ‘Lord.’
‘The Son of God’ has meaning that Jesus is God because the Jews got upset when Jesus claimed he was the Son of God saying that Jesus was making himself equal with God. (Jn 5:17-18)
John 5:17-18
Jesus said to them, "My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I, too, am working." [18] For this reason the Jews tried all the harder to kill him; not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God.”
“Lord” refers to ‘authority’ or ‘ownership’. But we should remember that Jesus became our Savior and Lord at the same time. It is because Jesus saves us by becoming our Lord (owner). When Jesus saved us he paid the price of our sins. So we were bought at a price and Jesus became our new owner, Lord.
So Jesus saved us by becoming our Lord (owner). If we say “Jesus is my Savior, but I need to work more because Jesus is not my Lord’ we are in error.
c) Those who do not believe that Jesus is the Christ is antichrist. (1Jn 2:22)
1 John 2:22 reads, “Who is the liar? It is the man who denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a man is the antichrist--he denies the Father and the Son.”
Antichrist did not believe that Jesus came in the flesh because they believed that flesh is evil.
1 John 4:2-3
“This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, [3] but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world.”
d) “To believe that Jesus is the Christ” is “born of God”. So far in 1 John ‘born of God’ means ‘not to continue to sin’ (1Jn 3:9) and ‘to love one another’ (1Jn 4:7)
1 John 3:9
“No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God's seed remains in him; he cannot go on sinning, because he has been born of God.”
1 John 4:7
“Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.”
1-3) What does everyone who loves the father do? (1b)
“Love his child as well”. The father and his child have same character. So it is usually for us to love them both. If we love God we will love the children of God.
1-4) How can we know that we love the children of God? (2)
“By loving God and carrying out his commands.” “Loving God’s children” means “loving God”. “Loving God” and “carrying out his commands” comes together because Jesus said, “If you love me you will obey my commands.” (Jn 14:15)
1-5) What is love for God? (3a)
“To obey his commands.” “If you love me you will obey my commands.” (Jn 14:15)
1-6) Why are his commands not burdensome? (3b,4a)
“For everyone born of God overcomes the world.” “The world” is what makes
us difficult to obey God’s commands.
What is the world?
“The world” refers to unsaved people. (John 3:16)
John 3:16
"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
The world has its own desires and system. “The worldly desires” includes “the craving of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what one has and does” (1Jn 2:16)
The god (prince) of the world is ‘the devil’ (Satan). (Jn 14:30-31)
John 14:30-31
“I will not speak with you much longer, for the prince of this world is coming. He has no hold on me, [31] but the world must learn that I love the Father and that I do exactly what my Father has commanded me. "Come now; let us leave.”
The world persecutes Jesus and his disciples. (Jn 15:18)
John 15:18
"If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first.
The minds of people in the world is blind to the gospel. (2Co 4:4)
2 Cor. 4:4
“The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so t hat they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.”
1-7) What is the victory that overcomes the world? (4b)
“Our faith in Jesus”.
1 John 5:4
“For everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith.”
1-8) Who overcomes the world? (5b)
Only he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.
The Son of God has already overcome the world. (Jn 16:33)
Believers will overcome the world through the Son of God who has overcome the world and who lives inside of believers. (1Jn 4:4)
John 16:33
"I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."
1 John 4:4
“You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.”
Read verses 6-12. How did Jesus Christ come by? (6a; Jn 19:34) What are the three which testify about Jesus Christ? (6b-8) Why should we accept the testimony of God about his Son? (9) Who has this testimony in his heart? (10a) What does someone do when he or she does not believe God? (10b) What is God’s testimony about his Son? (11) Who has life? (12)
2-1) Read verses 6-12.
6 This is the one who came by water and blood —Jesus Christ. He did not come by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. 7 For there are three that testify: 8 the Spirit, the water and the blood; and the three are in agreement. 9 We accept human testimony, but God’s testimony is greater because it is the testimony of God, which he has given about his Son. 10 Whoever believes in the Son of God accepts this testimony. Whoever does not believe God has made him out to be a liar, because they have not believed the testimony God has given about his Son. 11 And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 12 Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.
2-2) How did Jesus Christ come by? (6a; Jn 19:34)
i) By water and blood.
“Water” may refer to ‘baptism of water’ and ‘blood’ to ‘baptism of death’ (crucifixion). ‘The baptism of water’ is the beginning of Jesus’ mission as Christ and ‘baptism of death’ (blood) is the end of his mission as Christ.
ii) Some false teachers must have claimed that Jesus came by water alone because verse 6b reads, “He did not come boy water only, but by water and blood”.
“Jesus came by water only” could mean that some people (Gnostics or antichrist) believed that the one who was crucified is not a man (human being) but like a ghost. So the author John testified so strongly in John 19:34 that Jesus who was crucified is man.
John 19:34-35
“Instead, one of the soldiers pierced Jesus' side with a spear, bringing a sudden flow of blood and water. [35] The man who saw it has given testimony, and his testimony is true. He knows that he tells the truth, and he testifies so that you also may believe.”
2-3) What are the three which testify about Jesus Christ? (6b-8)
The Spirit, the water, and the blood. The Holy Spirit testified that Jesus is the Son of God by coming upon Jesus when he was baptized by John the Baptist.
“The water” refers to ‘the water’ which was used to baptized Jesus.
“The blood” refers to Jesus’ blood shed on the cross or seen at the side of Jesus.
2-4) Why should we accept the testimony of God about his Son? (9)
Because we even accept man’s testimony.
Because God’s testimony is greater than that of man’s testimony. Man like apostle John testified about Jesus. God also testified about Jesus. For example God spoke at the time of Jesus’ baptism (Mt 3:17) and at the mountain of transfiguration. (Mt 17:5)
Matthew 3:17
“And a voice from heaven said, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased."
Matthew 17:5
“While he was still speaking, a bright cloud enveloped them, and a voice from the cloud said, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!"
2-5) Who has this testimony in his heart? (10a)
Anyone who believes in the Son of God. It may refers to the testimony of indwelling Holy Spirit.
2-6) What does someone do when he or she does not believe God? (10b)
He or she ends up making God to be a liar by not believing God’s testimony about his Son.
2-7) What is God’s testimony about his Son? (11)
1 John 5:11
“And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.”
Two things are mentioned in verse 11.
a) God has give us (believers) eternal life. People are not interested in eternal life because they do not know the power of life. Life has such power to drive out the power of death. We see even a little plant growing out of a rock where we can see the power of life.
b) The eternal life is ‘in his Son’. It means there is no other place which has eternal life. If we do not know where the life is we may look for wrong places.
John 1:4
“In him was life, and that life was the light of men.”
In fact many people seek life from money, pleasure, easy life, and financial security. But they are not life but idols.
2-8) Who has life? (12)
Verse 12 is emphasis of what is said in verse 11. It is repetition.
1 John 5:12
“He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.”
Read verses 13-17. What does the author want us to believe? (13) What confidence do we have in approaching God? (14) How do we know we have what we asked of God? (15) Who should we pray for? (16-17)
3-1) Read verses 13-17.
13 I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life. 14 This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. 15 And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him. 16 If you see any brother or sister commit a sin that does not lead to death, you should pray and God will give them life. I refer to those whose sin does not lead to death. There is a sin that leads to death. I am not saying that you should pray about that. 17 All wrongdoing is sin, and there is sin that does not lead to death.
3-2) What does the author want us to believe? (13)
This is another repetition about the truth that “God has given us eternal life and this life is in his Son”.
1 John 5:13
“I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.”
3-3) What confidence do we have in approaching God? (14)
“If we ask anything according to his will he hears us.” This assurance of prayer also may be related to ‘eternal life in the Son of God’. It is God’s will to give us eternal life through faith in his Son. So if we pray for eternal life through faith in Jesus we have eternal life.
So this teaching about confidence through prayer can also be a part of repetition of ‘God has given us eternal life and this life is in his Son’.
3-4) How do we know we have what we asked of God? (15)
By asking anything according to God’s will. So far ‘the will of God’ revealed in 1 John chapter 5 is ‘believing that Jesus is the Christ’, ‘love God and love the children of God’, ‘overcoming the world’, ‘to believe that Jesus came by water and blood’ and ‘eternal life through faith in Jesus’.
3-5) Who should we pray for? (16-17)
We should pray for our brothers whose sin does not lead to death. Believers have privilege and obligation to pray for their brothers who sin.
“The sin that leads to death” could refer to sin which brings immediate judgment of God. It happened for Ananias and Sapphira. (Acts 5:1-11)
Read verses 18-21. Why doesn’t anyone born of God continue to sin (18)? What do we know? (19) What has the Son of God given us and why? (20) What is the author’s last warning? (21)
4-1) Read verses 18-21.
18 We know that anyone born of God does not continue to sin; the One who was born of God keeps them safe, and the evil one cannot harm them. 19 We know that we are children of God, and that the whole world is under the control of the evil one. 20 We know also that the Son of God has comeand has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true. And we are in him who is true by being in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.
21 Dear children, keep yourselves from idols.
4-2) Why doesn’t anyone born of God continue to sin (18)?
Because ‘not to continue to sin’ is one of evidence of ‘born of God’. “New life’ in him and the indwelling Spirit will empower him to overcome his sin.
“Born of God” means ‘God saved him through Jesus Christ.’
Even evil one (the devil, Satan) cannot harm the one born of God. He is under God’s protection. It doest not mean that he is free from the temptation of the evil one. It probably means that the evil one cannot harm or take away ‘the new life’ given to him when he is born of God.
4-3) What do we know? (19)
Two things.
We are children of God.
The whole world is under the control of the evil one. It means the whole world is under lies because the evil one is the father of lies.
John 8:44
“You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father's desire. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.”
So the whole world is under lies such as ‘Jesus is not the Christ’ ‘you cannot love God and his children’, ‘you cannot overcome the world’, ‘Jesus did not come by water and blood’, ‘God did not give us eternal life and this life is not in his Son’, ‘God does not answer our prayers’, etc.
4-4) What has the Son of God given us and why? (20)
Two things.
The Son of God has come. Jesus came in human history and it is a fact.
The Son of God has give un understanding so that we may know him who is true. Here the key word is ‘true’. While the whole world is under lies believes who have faith in the Son of God can know the true God and the truth. Jesus said that if anyone believes in him by obeying his teaching he can know the truth.
John 8:31-32
“To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, "If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. [32] Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."
Praise God who saves us from all lies. Remember that the whole world is under the control of the evil one and that is why the whole world is full of lies and deception.
One of major deception is ‘to seek easy life is our true desire’. Many people want to live an easy life with a lot of money. Is it our true desire? No. Our true desire is ‘the kingdom of God’ and ‘eternal life’. But the evil one deceives us and the people in the whole world purse easy life with death not knowing where they are going.
Jesus, the Son of God, is the true God and eternal life. Now ‘the Son of God’ means God is full manifested in the life of his Son. “The Son of God” means he is the exact representation of God’s being. So Jesus is the true God.
Hebrews 1:3a
“[3] The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being”
Not only eternal life is in Jesus but also Jesus is the eternal life.
4-5) What is the author’s last warning? (21)
1 John 5:21
“Dear children, keep yourselves from idols.”
Everything except Jesus who is the true God is idols. So we should not seek it.
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