NOTES  ON 1 JOHN
Compiled by
EDGAR LEE PASCHALL

Pastor, NEW HOPE BAPTIST CHURCH

1661 Griggstown RD (HWY 782)

Calvert City, KY 42029

Chapter 1

I. Introduction V. 1-4

1. The writer is the Holy Spirit (II Pet. 1:21) with the human instrument believed to be John the apostle.

2. John wrote 5 books: John, I, II, III John, and Revelation.

3. The time of the writing is not known exactly but believed to be about 90 A.D., which is about 60 years after the resurrection of Jesus.

4. The epistle was not written to a specific church but is written to "professing Christians", thus this epistle is referred to as a General Epistle and is practical to us in our day.

5. Nine times he addresses his instruction to "little children" who are professing babes in Christ. The term "little children" is a word used as a kindly address by a teacher to his disciples.

6. There are 4 purposes recorded for this epistle being written:

A. That we might have joy. (1:4)

B. That we might not sin. (2:1)

C. That we might overcome error. (2:26)

D. That we might have assurance. (5:13)

7. All of these purposes are to help a professing Christian examine himself to see if he is just a "professing" Christian or a "possessing" Christian also.

8. From 2:19 it is evident that some "professors" were not "possessors" because they were now apostates from the faith. Even though they had been members of the church, they had become teachers of error.

9. Therefore, John's pen is not a philosopher's quill, but a surgeon's knife, which tells it like it is and cuts right down to the point of the root problem.

10. John is not a fence straddler or compromiser. He calls black, black and white, white and declares there is not a "grey" area.

11. This epistle complements the Gospel of John, which was also written by John.

A. The Gospel was written that men might have life; the epistle that believers might know they had life.

B. In the Gospel we have Divine life as revealed in Christ; in the epistle the same life as realized in the Christian.

C. The Gospel declares the way of life through the incarnate Son; the epistle unfolds the nature of that life as possessed by the children of God.

12. Gnosticism was already an existing problem in the day John wrote this epistle, and it is even a greater problem today.

13. What is Gnosticism?

A. The word comes from a Greek word which means knowledge.

B. It is a name given to those who believe that they possess a secret, mysterious, and superior knowledge given to them by "Divine Revelation" over and above that of the Bible. (I Cor. 13:8-10)

C. The lives of the Gnostics are self-centered and full of pride.

D. Their beliefs cause them to lower their standards of conduct.

E. They have the idea that the secret, super revelation possessed by the "elite" lifted them above obligation to the standards of conduct of the Word of God into a superior "liberty". (Gal. 5:1,13)

F. They believe that the flesh is evil, and the spirit is good; therefore, the spirit can't sin while the flesh can't help it and the outcome is that they sin all they want and live like the devil.

G. They say that the Christ entered Jesus at His water- baptism, but left Him just before His crucifixion, as it was impossible for the Christ-Spirit to undergo crucifixion in an evil material body.  If this was so, then mere man was born and mere man died, thus having no virgin birth, no real atonement for sin, no resurrection, and no hope.

14. Gnosticism is still with us today but is not called by that name, and many Baptists are borderline gnostics in their beliefs and practices.

15. (II Tim. 4:3) We have turned from truth to error because:

A. Our schools are teaching that man evolved.

B. Man's wisdom with man's plans and programs, instead of God's are guiding our churches for the most part.

C. We have lost our zeal and joy.

D. We have believed error until we don't know what to believe, therefore, confusion reigns.

E. Our standards of conduct have been lowered until we are in a mess like the man who painted himself in a corner without a way out.

F. We have permissive attitudes because our minds have been captured. (Col. 2:8)

G. Therefore, we need I John to lay the line down where it needs to be laid so we may know, really know, (God's kind of knowledge) and have our hearts settled before God.

16. Because of all that was going on in John's day, he strikes back swiftly and powerfully at this false doctrine, without calling it by name, with this entire epistle, especially in the introduction.

V. 1

1. "That which" = a relative pronoun used in the neuter gender. 2. One would think that this should be translated "who" instead of "which" because it is speaking about the Lord Jesus who is the Word of life.

3. But the message here is not personal, it is referring to the attributes of the Lord Jesus.

4. The phrase, "of the Word of life" could also be "concerning the Word of life"; thus using the word "which".

5. "Was" = a verb meaning "to be" and the tense speaks of an abiding state in past time.

6. "From the beginning" = Here John could be saying that from the moment of creation Jesus Christ existed. In John 1:1, John goes a little further by saying, "In the beginning was the Word" = before all creation came into existence, Christ was.

7. It seems that John is speaking about the very commencement of his manifestation on earth, His incarnation (robed in flesh at virgin birth).

8. The Gnostics did not believe that Jesus was The Christ (Messiah) until His baptism and John is verifying the humanity of the eternal Word of life.

9. He does this by 4 proofs, building to a climax, making the meaning clearer with each step. For example: seeing is more than hearing, and handling more than seeing.

10. Note the use of "we" and "our" = John is doing the writing but refers to all of the apostles who walked with Jesus for 3 years.

11. "Heard" = to hear; to hearken; to listen. The tense of this verb is in the perfect and it tells us 3 things:

A. That his hearing the Lord speak was not confined to one single occasion, but that he heard Him speak at repeated intervals and at length.

B. That this process was completed in past time, in fact about 60 years before.

C. That the completed process of hearing the Lord Jesus speak had present results, meaning he could still hear His voice after 60 years.

12. "Seen" = refers to the physical act of seeing, giving prominence to the discerning mind, to mental perception, and to mental activity.

A. By using this word John assures his readers that he did not just see but he understood what he was looking at.

B. He again used the perfect tense thus saying that the things he saw concerning our Lord were indelibly retained in his mind's eye. "I saw Him and I can close my physical eyes and still see Him as He appeared to me 60 years ago."

13. "With our eyes" = This phrase is added in order to be absolutely sure that his readers understood him to be referring to actual sensory impressions from our Lord's actual human body and not some optical illusion or hallucination.

14. "Looked" = involves more than merely seeing; to look closely at; to gaze upon; indicates the sense of a wondering regard, involving a careful and deliberate vision which interprets the object; contemplation that was a mingling of wonder, awe, and admiration.

15. "Handled" = to examine closely; to handle with a view to investigation:

A. The word is used in the Greek translation of the O.T. when blind Isaac felt the hands of Jacob (Gen. 27:22). The old man, puzzled at the voice of Jacob, handled his hands with a view to investigating whether the speaker was really Esau.

B. The same word is used in Luke 24:39 by our Lord.

16. "Word" = refers to the sum total concept of something. Our Lord is the Word of God in the sense that He is the total concept of God in a human body. (Col. 2:9)

17. "Life" = has a definite article "the" in front, thus referring to the particular life that God is and which was revealed in the humanity of our Lord.

V. 2

1. "Manifested" = to make visible or known what had been hidden or unknown.

2. This life (verse 1) which was invisible, was made visible to the human race through the humanity of our Lord.

3. John 1:14 says "the Word was made flesh" which gives the historical fact of the incarnation but the phrase "The life was manifested", sets forth the unfolding of that fact in the various operations of life.

4. "We have seen it" = John repeats the fact that he has seen with discernment and still has in his mind's eye the image of that life in the humanity of the Lord Jesus.

5. "Bear witness" = testify; to affirm that one has seen or heard or experienced something.

6. "Shew" = report; declare; to announce; public proclamation of the great news.

7. "Eternal" = perpetual; without beginning or end.

8. John declares that the life he is referring to was eternal, implying that the Word of life who became flesh was eternal and had always been with the Father.

9. "With" = facing; implies fellowship. This means that the life here referred to is a Person, for it requires a person to have fellowship, thus John is stating that the Lord Jesus was in fellowship with the Father.

10. The verse ends as it began, but not with a mere repetition; the life was manifested, and in particular "unto us".

V. 3

1. John takes up the thought here of verse one which was interrupted by the contents of verse two.

2. One of John's traits is to repeat for emphasis. This he does here still using the tense to show completed action with existing results; seen and still see; heard and still hear.

3 "Declare" = to report; relate; make known; to announce; same word as "shew" in verse 2.

4. John is reporting (declare) that which he had seen and heard = that Jesus Christ was a real person that walked upon this earth in John's day. He was not some phantom as some Gnostics believed.

5. The reason for reporting what he has seen and heard was "That ye also may have fellowship with us."

6. "Ye" = refers to the professing Christians.

7. "Us" refers to the apostles.

8. "Ye also" = those who have not seen Jesus in the flesh as well as those like John who have seen Him = they can fellowship together.

9. "Fellowship" = belonging in common to. The idea in the word is that of one person having joint participation with another in something possessed in common by both.

10. Common definition of fellowship = two fellows in the same ship sharing what they have in common.

11. One cannot have very intelligent fellowship with a person whom he has never seen but John is declaring unto his readers, Jesus Christ who is real, and as the child of God ponders the life of the Lord Jesus Christ, he can see Him in his spiritual eye by the aid of the Holy Spirit so that an intelligent fellowship can be enjoyed by the saints.

12. "Have with us" = means partnership; a joint participation on the part of the Christian in John's first-hand knowledge of the Lord Jesus, which will issue in a real, practical, intelligent fellowship with the Father and with His Son.

13. "Truly" = indeed; indicates that true fellowship of which he is talking, is only possible when we share the common ground of real salvation = having a relationship with the Lord.

14. The second fellowship has a definite article in front of it, "the fellowship" thus specifying that this type fellowship can only be experienced if we have the right relationship with the Lord. There is a "worldly fellowship" in which those who know not God can share what they have in common.

15. The lost know nothing about this kind of fellowship because they have nothing in common with the child of God.

16. It is these things held in common (I'm in Him and Him in me; I'm His and He's mine) that form the basis of the fellowship and make it possible. (Jude 1:3)

V. 4

1. John states that the purpose he had in writing these things (things about Him who was manifested in the flesh and the result of fellowship which flows from that) is that "your joy may be full."

2. "Your" = refers not only to his readers but also to himself as well; therefore, this word could be "our", thus could be written "that our joy may be full."

3. "Joy" = cheerfulness; gladness of heart; cause of rejoicing.

4. Gnosticism, by denying the atonement, cuts off one great sphere of God's love; thus cutting off the believer's joy.

5. "May be full" = to fill up; to complete; to bestow abundantly. The word is in the perfect tense meaning a completed action past time with existing results.

6. The joy is that of knowing that, though in the world, they are not of the world, but are one with one another, and with the Father and with the Son.

II. Fellowship V. 1:5-2:29

V. 5

1. Chapters 1-2 emphasize fellowship and John gives three basic "tests" for us to take to see if we are in fellowship with God through Christ.

2. For one to be in fellowship, he must be saved; have a right relationship = sonship.

3. Far too many professing Christians never test their lives to see if they are really saved.

4. John asks us to apply these tests that we might enjoy the Christian life to the fullest.

A. The Test of Obedience V. 1:5-2:6

5. "Message" = announcement. Refers to what he communicated as the sum of the revelation which the Lord made to man.

6. "Heard" = tense is perfect; therefore, John says we have heard (past time) from (of) him and at present is ringing in our ears (existing results).

7. "Of" = means an ultimate source; thus, "from Him" what they received from His preaching and teaching, from all that He said; also this word implies that this message was not only heard by John but by others.

8. "Declare" = to announce in detail; disclose.

9. The message is "that God is light."

10. "Light" is without a definite article, and the rule of Greek grammar is that the absence of the definite article shows quality, nature, or essence.

11. John is saying that God, as to His nature, essence, and character, is light, not "the" light or "a" light, but light Himself. 12. He is the source and fountain of light in all heaven and earth.

13. Light is the emblem of purity, truth, knowledge, prosperity, and happiness:

A. He is perfectly pure, without any sin.

B. He is infinitely true, never stating error or giving even a look of approval of error.

C. He has all knowledge, with not one bit of ignorance on any subject.

D. He is prosperous in all His ways, never knowing the darkness of disappointment and adversity.

E. He is infinitely happy, with nothing to make Him miserable.

14. "God is light," and John adds "and in Him is no darkness at all", therefore guarding his language so that no mistake could possibly be made as to what he meant.

15. Darkness is the exact opposite of light and John says there is not one bit (at all) of darkness in God.

16. This expression is designed to state that God is absolutely perfect and there is nothing in Him which would dim or mar the pure splendor of His character, not even as much as the smallest speck would mar the sun.

V. 6

1. "If we " = John is making a hypothetical assumption and includes himself in this statement (we) and in so doing he deals gently and humbly with his readers.

2. If any of us, no matter who he is, at any time "say" = declare in words; profess to be saved, because being saved involves the idea of having fellowship with God.

3. "Fellowship" = to have joint participation with someone else in things possessed in common by both.

4. The person who professes to be saved is claiming to have things in common with God, common likes and dislikes, and a common nature (divine).

5. "Walk" = order one's behavior; conduct oneself; This verb speaks of habitual and continuous action.

6. "In darkness" = implies ignorance; error; sin; and misery; The case of this word means in the sphere of sin. (Eph. 2:1)

7. "We lie" = We utter an untruth; we speak falsely; we are false professors and are deceived if we think that we can have fellowship with God, and yet live in the practice of sin.

8. "Do not the truth" = do not practice naturally and habitually, the truth. The profession is a false one. We are false in word and deed.

9. Truth with John is not confined to language. It is exhibited in conduct also.

10. If we "say" and "do not" the truth, we fail the test of obedience.

V. 7

1. "But if" = a hypothetical contrast to verse 6 is made.

2. "Walk" = same word as verse 6 and tense also stresses habitual and continuous action; "walk and keep on walking."

3. "In the light" = in the sphere of light which God is and in which He dwells.

4. Walking in light could be expressed in one word = holiness and means:

A. Living a life "in sympathy with" holiness = the heart beating in harmony with the light.

B. Living a life "in the practice" of holiness which is the inward principle expressed in the outward conduct or the light of the heart shining in the life.

C. Living a life "progressing" in holiness = He who walks is not stationary but advancing.

5. "As He is in the light" = In the same kind of light that He has; the measure of light which we may have is not the same in degree, but it is of the same kind.

6. The change of verbs is significant: we "walk", God "is", in the light.

A. We move through time; He is in eternity.

B. Our activity involves change; His does not.

C. Like the sun, He both is Light and dwells in the light.

7. Result of walking in the light:

A. "We have fellowship one with another".

1) John is speaking about the believer having fellowship with God.

2) In verse 6 he identifies those who do not have fellowship with God, so here he is identifying those who do have fellowship with God.

3) It is true that when saints order their behavior within the sphere of the light they do have fellowship with each other, but John is not teaching that here.

4) "One another" = a reciprocal pronoun which means on both sides; not only do we have fellowship with God, but He reciprocates in having fellowship with us = not a one-sided affair.

B. "The blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin."

1) The blood of Jesus Christ is real blood and not a mere "phantom" or the mere example of Jesus that cleanses us from sin, as the Gnostics taught. Real blood = the atoning blood of the sinless Son of God shed for our sins. John was not ashamed to use this word. (Heb. 9:12-14,22)

2) "Cleanseth" = to make clean; to purify; to free from the defilement, faults, and guilt of sin. The tense of the verb means that His blood keeps

continually cleansing us from all sin.

3) "All sin" = sins of omission, sins of commission, sins of ignorance, sins we know nothing about in our lives simply because we have not grown in grace enough to see that they are sin.

4) This is true only if we are habitually ordering our behavior in the light.

V. 8

1. Walking in the light involves being conscious of the old Adamic sin nature in us.

2. "Sin" is singular in number and is used without the definite article, thus pointing to the fact that the nature is referred to, not acts of sin.

3. Again we have the hypothetical statement = that of a denial of the indwelling, totally depraved nature passed down to us from Adam.

4. Some then believed as some do today, that when one is saved, he can live a perfect life because his old sin nature has been eradicated.

5. The only problem with that is, as John said, "that man deceives himself."

6. "Deceive" = to be misled; to err; to believe what is not true; means we have a wrong view about our character.

7. This does not mean that the self-deception is willful, but that it in fact, exists. (Jer. 17:9)

8. One does not deceive others because others can see sin evident from his attitude and life, and that sin must come from the indwelling sinful nature.

9. "The truth is not in us" = refers to freedom from error; a man who says he does not have a sin nature within him reveals that he is in utter error, thus the truth of this subject is not in him.

10. He may hold the truth on other subjects, but he does not on this subject.

11. And if that individual continues to hold to his belief, after being exposed to truth, then that individual does not have the Holy Spirit living inside him = he is not saved.

V. 9

1. Walking in the light also involves confession of our sins.

2. "If" = still giving a hypothetical condition, yet opposite of verse 8.  Note: Not, if we confess "that we have sin", but if we confess "our sins".

3. "Confess" = to say the same thing as another; to agree with another. Means to admit the truth of an accusation, to own up to the fact that one is guilty of having committed the sin.

4. This verb tense speaks of continuous action. This teaches that the constant attitude of the saint toward sin should be one of a contrite heart, ever eager to have any sin in his life pointed out by the Holy Spirit and ever ready to confess that sin and put it out of his life by the power of the Holy Spirit. (Psa. 51:17)

5. We sin three ways:

A. Private.

B. Personal.

C. Public.

6. Therefore, we must confess as we sin, if we expect to have forgiveness and cleansing:

A. Confess only to God if our sin is private.

B. Confess first to the individual we sinned against personally and then confess to God.

C. Confess to the church and then to God if we have committed a public sin.

7. "Faithful" = trustworthy. Means fidelity to that nature of truth and light, related to His own essence, which rules in us as long as we confess our sin.

8. "Faithful" is applied to God as:

A. Fulfilling His own promises. (Heb. 10:23;11:11)

B. Fulfilling the purpose for which He called men. (I Thess. 5:24; I Cor. 1:9)

C. Not tempting (testing) us beyond our limits (I Cor. 10:13).

9. He abideth faithful and cannot deny Himself, (II Tim. 2:13); therefore, He is faithful to forgive and cleanse us when we confess our sins.

10. He is also "just" = righteous; right; impartial; rendering to each his due.

11. God who is absolute rightness must be faithful to His own nature.

12. His righteous dealing with men who partake of His nature and walk in fellowship with Him, is simply fulfilling His faithful devotion to His duty.

13. Not only is God's nature to be faithful and righteous but it is also His purpose to exhibit these attributes toward us.

14. "Forgive" = to send away; dismiss; to remit, as a debt; to put away.

15. The tense of the word "forgive" speaks of a single act = sins that are not habitual in the life of a believer; therefore speaking of a single act of forgiveness.

16. No child of God knowingly sins habitually (3:9).

17. When one is saved by faith, all sin is forgiven, past and future, as far as the law is concerned, because the Lord Jesus satisfied the law's demand when He died on the cross for our sins.

18. The forgiveness spoken of here does not primarily deal with the breaking of God's law, but the breaking of fellowship between a child and his Father.

19. It is not a matter between a lawbreaker and a judge, but a matter of grieving the Father's heart when a child of God sins.

20. The putting away of the believer's sin upon confession, is therefore a forgiveness granted by the Father and restoration to the fellowship that was broken by that sin.

21. Not only does God forgive the believer, but He cleanses him from defilement he contacted in committing that act of sin.

22. "Cleanse" = to purify; to declare clean; to free from the defilement and guilt of sin.

23. The tense again refers to a single act, for known sin in the life of a saint is not habitual, but "an out of the ordinary thing".

24. He will forgive and cleanse us from all (any, every, the whole) unrighteousness when we are willing to confess.

V. 10

1. In verse 8, we have the denial of the indwelling sinful nature, while in this verse we have the denial of specific acts of sin. (A hypothetical statement, "if we say")

2. The verb is in the perfect tense (completed action in past time having present results).  The denial here is of any acts of sin committed in past time with the implication that none are able to be committed at present.

3. This speaks of one who declares to have sinless perfection.

4. John says two things can cause one to come to this conclusion:

A. The stifling (suppress or check) of one's conscience = "We make Him a liar" = turn a deaf ear to His inward testimony (His voice in our soul); God will chasten this person and he will come to a point of understanding. (John 10:27,5)

B. Ignorance of His Word = "His word is not in us":

1) "Word" = the sum total of divine revelation.

2) Means we are cut off from all communication with Him, thus a "professor " and not a "possessor". (I Pet. 1:23; John 5:37-38;8:31)

5. Note the climax:

A. V. 6 = We lie.

B. V. 8 = We lead ourselves utterly astray.

C. V. 10 = We make God a liar.

Chapter 2

V. 1

1. John addresses his readers as an aged father would address his children, with tenderness and love.

2. He foresees the possibility of two false conclusions which could have been drawn from his teaching.

A. Some might say, "Why strive after holiness if we can't be perfect. Sin is an abiding necessity; therefore, I will get my quota of sin."

B. Others might say, "If all we have to do is confess and His blood will cleanse us, why dread falling into sin?"

3. So to combat these errors, he says, "I write these things unto you, that (in order that) ye sin not."

4. The mode and tense of this verb forbids the beginning of an action = don't start a certain sin.

5. John had no patience with professional perfectionists (V. 8-10), but he had still less with loose-livers like some of the Gnostics who went to all sorts of excess of sin without shame.

6. "And if any man sin" = as we are apt to do with hearts as corrupt as ours, and as much temptation as there is in this world we live in. Speaks not of habitual action, but of a single act.

7. We have an advocate = one called to your side; one who undertakes and pleads your cause.

8. "With" = facing, the Father. When saints sin, the Lord Jesus must face the Father with us and our sin.

9. The saint has been saved by His precious blood so that he may be able to keep from sinning, and when he does sin, he wounds the tender heart of the Saviour, and forces Him to face God the Father with that saint whom He has saved by His precious blood. This thought should keep us from committing acts of sin.

10. Our advocate is described as "Jesus Christ the righteous" = only the Righteous One, the guiltless, the One that is separate from sin, He is qualified to plead our case, and to enter the Father's presence. (Heb. 7:25)

11. He does not plead we are innocent, but acknowledges our guilt and presents His vicarious (taking the place of another) work as the grounds of our acquittal.

12. While Christ is man's Advocate with the Father, the Holy Spirit is God's Advocate (comforter) on earth with men. (John 14:16; Rom 8:26-27)

V. 2

1. John further describes Him as "the propitiation for our sins."

2. "Propitiation" = one who makes expiation (atones for; to make amends for); a means whereby sin is covered and forgiven; refers to Christ as the One who propitiates and offers Himself as the propitiation, therefore, He is both the sacrifice and the High Priest sacrificing Himself.

3. Basically this means that Jesus became our:

A. Sacrifice = the innocent One, the One who had no sin died on Calvary's cross. (Rom. 3:25)

B. Substitute = bore our sin and carried it away never to be found; thus fulfilling the picture of the scapegoat in Lev. 16:5-10.

C. Mercy Seat = by entering into the Holy of Holies in heaven and sprinkling His own blood upon the mercy seat (Heb. 9:11-12), He:

1) Fulfilled the type of the O.T. high priest entering the holiest in the temple on earth.

2) Provided a satisfaction for the demands of a broken law.

3) Caused, what would have been a judgment seat, become a Mercy Seat.

4. That satisfaction for the demands of the broken law is the "propitiation."

5. Christ was not only the propitiation for our sins only, but also for the whole world = all mankind (John 3:16)

6. "The sins of" is in italics, therefore not in the original, but is implied because the whole world (all of mankind) was placed in sin by one man, Adam. (Rom. 5:12)

7. And because of One, the Lord Jesus, and His finished work on Calvary, all mankind can find mercy. The choice is left up to them.

8. No man is outside the mercy of God unless he places himself there deliberately by choosing darkness instead of light. (John 3:19)

9. The propitiation by Christ provides for salvation for all (Heb. 2:9) if they will only be reconciled with God. (II Cor. 5:19-21)

10. Reconcile means to be in right relationship with God which requires one"s attitude to change (repentance) and receive the provision God has made, (faith) whereby his sins can be forgiven and he himself be justified in His sight in Christ = Salvation (justification).

V. 3

1. John foresees two questions which could be asked:

A. How can I be assured that Christ is all this to me, = my propitiation, my advocate?

B. How can I be assured that I have an abiding interest in Him?

2. These questions are answered by applying the test of obedience.

A. We know Him if we keep his commandments. (V. 3-5a)

B. We know we are in Him and He in us if we follow in His steps. (V. 5b-6)

3. "Hereby" = in this; by this; the expression points to what follows "if we keep His commandments".

4. "Know" = to know by experience. This knowledge that we know Him is knowledge gained by experience day by day; experiential knowledge gained from the experience of keeping His commandments.

5. The tense of the first "know" is present, thus speaking of a continuous action, while the tense of the second "know" is perfect which means that somewhere in past time there was a completed act (come to know Him as Lord and Saviour = at a point, place, and time) with existing results (that the state of knowing Him is true of us in the present time).

6. The Gnostics boasted of their superior knowledge of Christ, and John here challenges their boast by an appeal to experimental knowledge of Christ which is shown by keeping His commandments.

7. "Keep" = to attend to carefully; to guard; observe.  The word does not merely speak of the "act" of obeying His commands, but of an "anxious desire" not to disobey any of His commands.

A. It involves taking heed lest we fall. (I Cor. 10:12)

B. It involves a constant awareness of the deceitfulness of the heart, and of the craftiness and power of inward corruption. (Jer. 17:9)

C. It involves taking caution and avoiding everything that would offend and dishonor God and the Savior.

D. It causes the saint to love God's word and guard that word lest it be dishonored.

E. The verb tense shows continuous action, which means it is the habitual, moment by moment safeguarding of the Word by the saint lest he violate its precepts.

8. "Commandments" = an order; command; charge; precept. It is not the word used for law referring to the Mosaic law.

9. The precepts (commandments) are those given by our Lord either personally while on earth or through His apostles in the New Testament books.

10. This experiential knowledge is in contrast with and opposed to a mere intellectual knowledge of His Person.

V. 4

1. "He that saith" = he who keeps on saying, whether in the heart or with the lips.

2. Saying what? That I have come to know Him experientially with the present results that I am in that state. (In other words, saying that I have been saved and possess eternal life, thus still saved = eternal security.)

3. The Gnostics were guilty of this by standing up in testimony meetings and saying, "I know Him, I'm saved", and in so doing they were trying to convince themselves as well as others that they were saved.

4. John punctures their bubble with the sharp addition "keepeth not His commandments" = does not observe the commands and precepts of the Lord = "is a liar, and the truth is not in him."

5. "Liar" = a falsifier; just like Satan. (John 8:44) This means he not only speaks falsely, but he knows he speaks falsely.

6. "The truth is not in him" = no truth in him; not one true grace; not one true act of repentance and faith.

V. 5

1. "But whoso" = gives a contrast to verse 4 and means "whoever". This shows that a personal experiential knowledge of the Lord Jesus is open to all true believers, not just a select few Gnostics who thought they had a corner on God nobody else had.

2. "Keepeth" = to attend carefully; to guard; observe. The tense speaks of habitual, continuous action; thus, whoever keeps on continually keeping

(having a careful, watchful care for the Word so as to guard it from being disobeyed, but on the other hand, obeyed) the Word, verily (of a truth, truly) in him (word used says "in this one") the love of God is perfected.

3. The obedient child of God is characterized, not by any representative trait or quality of his own personality, but merely as the subject of the work of divine love.

4. "Love of God" = the love which God has made known and which answers to His nature.

5. "Perfected" = completed. The tense reveals this was a past action with existing results, "has been perfected or completed and stands complete".

6. The love spoken of there is not the love with which God loves us, but the love by which we love God, and that is perfected in us.

7. When man loves perfectly, his love is the love of God shed abroad in his heart (Rom. 5:5; Gal. 5:22-23) therefore, his love owes its origin and its nature to the love of God.

8. "Hereby" = by this (keeping His word) we know (experiential knowledge) that we are in Him.

9. This verse gives double comfort for all who keep the commandments of Christ Jesus:

A. God's love is perfect in them.

B. They know that they are in Him.

V. 6

1. "He that saith" = refers to "professors".

2. "Abideth" = to remain; to sojourn; tarry. This word is used of persons abiding in a home, which implies more than mere position, but rather fellowship.

3. Therefore to "abide" in Jesus implies not only position or relationship, but fellowship, friendship, dependence, harmony, and communion.

4. To abide means:

A. To have no known sin not judged and not confessed.

B. To have no interest into which He is not brought.

C. To have no part of one's life which He cannot share.

D. To take all our burdens to Him.

E. To draw all wisdom, life, and strength from Him.

F. To let nothing be allowed in one's life which separates us from Him.

5. "Ought" = be under an obligation; denotes personal and moral obligation.

6. "Walk" = to order ones behavior; to conduct oneself; speaks of the saint's manner of life; emphasizes habitual, continuous action.

7. "So" = in the manner spoken of; in the way described; in this manner; in such a manner. "So" used with "walk" gives a double emphasis of the saint's manner of life.

8. "Even as He walked" = just as that One conducted Himself; speaks of the whole life of Christ on earth.

9. The test of obedience allows us to see if we are "professors" or "possessors."

10. To know Him is to love Him, and to love Him is to have a desire and willingness to keep His commandments. (John 14:15)

11. Some try to justify their failure to be obedient by saying:

A. "It is what is on the inside that counts." Mat. 23:25-26 puts a halt to that excuse.

B. "We are not under law but grace." True, but Gal. 5:13 clarifies that statement.

12. Even though we are not under law, we still have some commands the Lord gave us in this day of grace:

A. Still says "dress in modest apparel". (I Tim. 2:9)

B. Still says "forsake not the assembling of ourselves together". (Heb. 10:25)

C. Still says, "be not conformed to this world". (Rom. 12:2)

D. Also says, "present your bodies a living sacrifice". (Rom. 12:1)

E. Also says, "be ye holy". (I Peter 1:16)

F. Also says, "study to shew thyself approved". (II Tim. 2:15)

13. We know we know Him if we keep His commandments, and His commandments are not grievous (burdensome). (I John 5:3)

V. 7

1. This verse begins a section that contains the second test we need to take = the test of love.

2. When a person is in fellowship with God, he not only walks in light (obedience), he also walks in love.

3. "Brethren" = from the same womb. John addresses all professors according to their profession, while he "tells it like it is".

4. "New" = this is not the word which means new in time, but a word which means new as pertains to quality, the new as contrasted with that which has been in service, the worn, or that marred through age.

5. John assures his readers that the commandment or precept he is giving them is nothing new in quality but "old" = antique; that which has been in existence for a long time.

6. "Ye had" = the tense speaks of continuous state or action in past time which John called, "from the beginning" = the beginning of the Christian experience of the readers.

7. The commandment was old because it was part of the Mosaic law. (Lev. 19:18)

8. John states again that the old commandment was the word that they had heard from the beginning of their Christian experience.

V. 8

1. "Again" = indicates another point of view = what in one sense was not new (fresh), in another sense it was.

2. The commandment of love is both old and new. (John 13:34)

3. This is a paradox (a statement that seems contradictory) but truth.

A. "Old" because John's readers have had it from the beginning of their Christian experience.

B. "New" because, in the unfolding of the Christian experience, it has developed new power, meaning, and obligation.

C. Old in teaching (as old as the story of Cain and Abel, I John 3:11-12), but new in practice.

4. To walk as Christ walked is to put into practice the old commandment and so make it new (ever new and fresh) as love is as old as man and fresh in every experience.

5. "True" = true morally; faithful; truthful; truth.

6. This truth is contained in the revelation of Jesus Christ (in Him) and proved in the experience of believers (in you).

7. "Because" = explanation of the paradox.

8. "Darkness" = moral insensibility to divine light; moral blindness. God is "light" and whatever is not in fellowship with God is therefore darkness.

9. "Is past" = to pass by; go past. The tense speaks of action going on in present time = "the darkness is passing away".

10. The picture is that of the darkness of sin and unbelief as passing by as a parade goes by on the street.

11. All parades have an end, and some day the parade of Satan and all his host will end.

12. Second "true" = different word from the first "true" and means genuine; reliable; no false flicker. Used as an adjective to describe "light" thus saying that "light" is genuine, reliable, and is all that it says it is.

13. "Now shineth" = already shining; already conspicuous; already seen; dawn is very near. John may be referring to the second coming of Christ or of the victory of truth over error, or of the slow but sure victory of Christ over Satan as shown in Revelation.  All are true.

V. 9

1. "He that saith" = for the fifth time John points out an inconsistency which is possible between profession and fact.

2. Men fall into two classes: those who are in fellowship with God and therefore walk in light and love; and those who are not in fellowship with God and therefore walk in darkness and hatred.

3. "Hateth" = to detest; to pursue with hatred.

4. "Until now" = up till this moment. In spite of the increasing light and his own testifying (He that saith), he is in the dark.

V. 10

1. "Loveth" = agape; God kind of love. I Cor. 13:4-8a kind of love.

2. This is produced by the Holy Spirit. (Rom. 5:5; Gal 5:22-23) 3. "Loveth his brother" = that of a self-sacrificial love that gives of itself for the happiness and well-being of the fellow Christian.

4. This kind of love is habitual and shows one's close fellowship with and dependence upon the Lord Jesus, for this supernaturally-produced love in his heart is present in an overflowing quantity only in the life of a believer who habitually abides in his Lord.

5. "Abide" = defined in verse 6.  He has not just entered the light, but made it his home.

6. "Occasion of stumbling" = the movable stick or trigger of a trap; any obstruction placed in the way and causing one to stumble or fall; a stumbling block. The meaning is not that he gives no occasion of stumbling to others, even though that is true, but that there is none in his own way. (II Peter 1:10b)

V. 11

1. John recognizes no neutral (middle ground) attitude between love and hatred.

2. Love is active kindness, and less than this is hatred, just as indifference to the gospel invitation amounts to rejection of it. (Mat. 12:30)

3. Notice the progressive climax of one that hateth:

A. Is in darkness.

B. Walketh in darkness.

C. Knoweth not whither he goeth.

4. "Knoweth" = absolute, immediate knowledge of a fact once for all.

5. Therefore, to "knoweth not" means that one has no understanding of the facts because "that darkness hath blinded his eyes."

6. "Blinded" = to make blind; obscure; dull of apprehension; tense indicates a past, definite act; same word in II Cor. 4:3-4.

7. The penalty of living in the darkness is not merely that one does not see, but that ones goes blind.

8. An example of this is the fish in Echo River in Mammoth Cave of Kentucky which have eye sockets, but no eyes.

9. When darkness overtook, it blinded. (See the progression of Rom. 1:21-28)

10. This person (v. 11) is an unsaved person, professing Christianity. (Note "hateth his brother", so called).

11. Habitually conducting oneself in the sphere of darkness indicates an unsaved state = failing the test of love.

V. 12

1. "I write" = tense refers to the apostle's immediate act of writing. (This also applies to the first two times "I write" is mentioned in verse 13).

2. "Little children" = a little child; a term used as a kindly address by teachers to their disciples; this term emphasizes the birth relationship; this term includes: 1) fathers, 2) young men, 3) babes in Christ (little children). (verse 13 = different word than verse 12)

3. The reason John says he writes is because your sins "are forgiven" = to send from oneself; to send away; to bid go away or depart.

4. God's forgiveness includes the putting away of our sins, their guilt, defilement, and penalty, at the cross. (Psalms 103:12; Isa. 38:17;44:22; Micah 7:19, Heb. 10:17)

5. The tense of the verb "forgiven" speaks of a past completed action having present results and in this case, permanent results.

6. The permanent putting away of sin was "for His name's sake" = Christ. Refers to all that is true of Christ in His glory, majesty and might.

7. Because of what our Lord was in His Person as very God of very God, God the Father put away our sins, recognizing and accepting the atonement He offered on the Cross.

V. 13

1. "Fathers" = the older men; mature in the Christian life, having lived in fellowship with the Lord Jesus for many years, and thus having gained much personal knowledge of Him by experience.

2. "Because" = reason for writing = "Ye have known" Refers to experiential knowledge; knowledge gained by experience; the tense shows that this knowledge was a well-rounded, matured knowledge possessed at this present time which was a result of a past experience.

3. "Him that is from the beginning" = Refers to Jesus who was in the beginning. (John 1:1)

4. "Young men" = The younger Christian in contrast to the fathers, full of vigor and conflict and victory.

5. "Overcome" = to conquer; to subdue; to be victorious. Tense reveals a completed action past time with existing results.  Refers to a permanent victory over conflict.

6. "The wicked one" = the hurtful one; the evil one; Satan.

7. They overcome when saved. (I John 5:4-5)

8. "Little children" = babes in Christ; this is a different word from verse 12.

9. Even babes in Christ know (to know by experience) God as their Father.

10. The third "I write" in this verse is a different tense than the first two. This tense reveals the writer as he looks at his present act of writing as the recipient of his letter will look at it when he receives it, as a past event. This is also true twice in verse 14 both of which are translated such.

V. 14

1. "I have written" = does not refer to a previous letter but has reference to the present letter he is writing (see V. 13, #10)

2. It is John's style to repeat himself with slight variations.

3. "Strong" = refers to power as an endowment; strength to overcome Satan is part of the salvation given the believer.

4. "Abide" = to dwell in as a home; The word of God, residing in their hearts in an unhindered welcome state, was that which, together with the power of the Holy Spirit, gave these young men victory over Satan, the wicked one, who sought to drag them down with himself into the ruin that some day will be his.

V. 15

1. "Love not" = is a prohibition; speaking of the act of forbidding the continuance of an action already going on. Some of John's readers were still loving the world system, out of which they had been saved.

2. "Love" = is same word used of God's love for a lost sinner (John 3:16), but here it is used merely in its classical (Greek) meaning = that of a love called out of one's heart by the preciousness of the object loved; refers to a fondness, an affection, for an object because of its value.

3. "World" = refers to an ordered system. Here it is the ordered system of which Satan is the head, his fallen angels and demons are his emissaries (those sent on a special mission), and the unsaved of the human race are his subjects, together with those purposes, pursuits, pleasures, practices, and places where God is not wanted.

4. Much in this world system is religious, cultured, refined, and intellectual; but it is anti-God and anti-Christ.

5. "Things" = Refers to those things the love of which rivals and excludes the love of God, namely three listed in verse 16: 1) lust of the flesh; 2) lust of the eyes; 3) pride of life.

6. He is not saying:

A. That we are to feel no interest in flowers, streams, forests and fountains. (Mat. 6:28)

B. That we are to have no admiration for what God has done as the Creator of all things.

C. That we are not to have a love for any of the inhabitants of the world, our friends and kindred.

D. That we are not to pursue none of the objects of this life in making provisions for our families.

7. But we are not to love the things which are sought merely to pamper the appetite, to please the eye, or to promote pride in living. These are objects sought by the people of the world, not the objects to be sought by the Christian. (Mat. 6:33)

8. "If any man love the world" = A hypothetical condition with the tense stressing continuous habitual action.

9. "The love of the Father is not in him" = This marks a person (who loves the world as a habit of life to the exclusion of any love for God) as an unsaved person. In this person, the love of the Father does not exist. This means more than that he does not love God, but that the love of God does not dwell in him as the ruling principle of his life.

10. It is as impossible for love of the world to co-exist with love of God, as it is impossible for light and darkness to co-exist.

V. 16

1. "For" = because. Reveals reason why the "love of the Father is not in him." (V. 15) = because all that is in the world "is not of the Father, but is of the world," which means everything that is in the world has as its source the world and not the Father.

2. "All that" = refers to the three things listed in this verse. These three things could not only be examples but they also could cover all sin that is in the world.

3. "Lust" = an evil craving; an evil, passionate desire.

4. "Flesh" = Refers to the totally depraved nature as governing the individual's reason, will, and emotions. Here it does not refer to the physical body except as that body is controlled or energized by the evil nature.

5. Therefore, the lust of the flesh is the passionate desire or the craving that comes from the evil nature.

6. The physical body and its members in themselves have no evil desires except as controlled by the totally depraved nature.

7. "Lust of the eyes" = the passionate cravings of the eyes for satisfaction, these cravings finding their source in the evil nature.

8. "Pride" = vainglory; an insolent (disrespectful of authority) and empty assurance which trusts in its own power and resources and shamefully despises and violates divine laws and human rights.

9. "Life" = the outward life, or livelihood. Refers to that which sustains life; namely, food, clothing, and shelter.

10. The pride of life refers to whatever there is that tends to promote pride, or to that which is an index of pride, such as a showy display of dress, furniture, automobiles, houses, and etc.

11. This list of sins are the three channels Satan used to tempt Eve and through which he tried to tempt Jesus. (Gen. 3:6; Mat. 4:3-10)

12. All of this is out of the world as a source and not out of the Father as a source.

13. The problem for the believer is always, how to be in the world and not of it. (John 17:11,14; Titus 2:12)

V. 17

1. "Passeth away" = to pass alongside; to pass by; transient.

2. The world is being caused to pass by; that is, God is causing the world to come to its end. Even the lust which belongs to the world passes also.

3. "Doeth" = tense means to keep on habitually doing.

4. "Will of God" = the exact antithesis (opposite) of "all that is in the world."

5. "Abideth for ever" = continues unto the age amid the flux of transitory things.  "Age" refers to the coming of Christ's eternal kingdom.

6. To love the world is to lose everything, including the thing loved. (Example = Lot)

7. To love God is to gain Him and His kingdom forever.

V. 18

1. "Little children" = babes in Christ; "professors".

2. "Time" = hour. The emphasis is not upon the fact of a particular, definite time, but upon the character of that particular, definite time.

3. "Last" = final.

4. "Last time" = refers to the closing period or dispensation; that dispensation in which the affairs of the world are ultimately to be wound up. That period might continue through many ages or centuries, and still be the last dispensation.

5. A dispensation is a period of time during which God deals in a particular way with man in respect to sin and man's responsibility. We are now in the last dispensation = that of "grace."

6. "As ye have heard" = when you were instructed in the faith that the Antichrist shall come.

7. Antichrist has a definite article, thus signifying a person whom Paul calls "man of sin" and "the son of perdition." (II Thess. 2:3)

8. "Shall come" = is destined to come; is about to come.

9. "Antichrist" = means against Christ; adversary of Christ; one who denies that there is a Christ; not pretending to be Christ, but proposing to do the work of Christ.

10. John says that even in his time (even now) there are "many antichrists." The verb tense indicates that they have arisen and are on the scene (have established themselves in the midst of the church).

11. What will be true of the personal Antichrist when he comes is true of these men in a lesser sense, or in a lesser degree.

12. Those who proclaimed the Gnostic teaching were really Antichrist, just as many modern deceivers deserve that title today. The Gnostics didn't believe that Christ came in the flesh. (I John 4:2-3)

13. "Whereby" = for which reason; wherefore. Because there were many Antichrist in John's time, it stands to reason that it is the last hour (time).

14. "Know" = to know by experience.

V. 19

1. "They" = Refers to the antichrists of verse 18.

2. "They went out from us" = These antichrists went out from the true believers in the sense that they departed doctrinally from the position of the Church as to the Person of the Lord Jesus, a position which they had held only in an intellectual way. They had mental assent and not a heart commitment to the Lord Jesus.

3. "They were not of us" = They were merely members of the local church, but had never been saved.

4. John then states that if these antichrists really possessed divine life they would have remained (continued) with the true believers in matters of doctrine.

5. But, he says, they departed (went out) from the doctrinal position of the church so that it could be made manifest that they did not belong to the company of the saints.

6. "They were not of us" = means that "all the antichrists were not a part of the true saints."  This statement does not imply that part of the antichrists were saved, instead all were not saved. (John 10:27-29; Mat. 24:24)

7. If they had been saved they would have remained.

8. We tend to think of the damage done when one professes to be saved and then falls away to error (this is what is called "apostasy" of which Paul said would come in the last days; II Thess. 2:3), but a far greater damage is done if such a person remains in the church. (I Cor. 5:6; One rotten apple will spoil the whole barrel if it remains in the barrel.)

V. 20

1. "But ye have" = compares the saints with the antichrists; The antichrists have the spirit of Antichrist, but the saints have an unction from the Holy One.

2. "Unction" = anointing; word refers to that with which the anointing is performed; means reception of the Spirit.

3. "Holy One" = refers to the Godhead.