Christ in 1 John

~ Jesus Christ Is The Word of Life and Our Advocate ~

The Bible is about Jesus Christ  ~  “Jesus said to them, ‘How foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken!  Did not the Christ have to suffer these things and then enter His glory?’  And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, He explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning Himself” (Luke 24:25-27).

Jesus Christ in John’s Three Letters  ~   He is everlasting love in all three epistles.  He is the Great Lover coming for His Bride (His true Church).  But also note that the Apostle John wrote many familiar words in his account of the life of Jesus Christ.  One of the more familiar verses is amplified in these three epistles.  “Jesus said to him [Thomas], ‘I am the way [3 John], the truth [2 John], and the life [1 John].  No one comes to the Father except through Me’” (John 14:6).

Jesus Christ in the Epistle of 1 John  ~  He is The Messiah, the Word of Life, our Propitiator, and our Advocate.  This little letter explains how we can grow to be more like Him.  “But you have an anointing [remember that Messiah mean “Anointed One”] from the Holy One, and you know all things.  I have not written to you because you do not know the truth, but because you know it, and that no lie is of the truth.  Who is a liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ?  He is antichrist who denies the Father and the Son.  Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father either; he who acknowledges the Son has the Father also” (1 John 2:20-23). 

Fellowship With God  ~  As children of God we become members of God’s family and therefore have fellowship (meaningful intimate communion) with God.  “That which we have seen and heard we declare to you, that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ” (1 John 1:3).  “This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all.  If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.  But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:5-7).  

Comment  ~  We have only touched the surface of Christ in 1 John.  The Apostle Paul told us the Scriptures present many shadows of things to come but the reality is found in Jesus Christ (Colossians 2:17). 

~~~ EXPLANATORY “JESUS CHRIST IN EVERY BOOK OF THE BIBLE” SERIES ~~~   

(1)  Approximately once a month ALN posts an overview of how Jesus Christ is seen in a specific book of the Bible.

(2)  In most cases these posts only scratch the surface regarding Jesus Christ in the particular book.

(3)  These posts will typically be in the same order as the books are found in the Bible.

(4)  These serial posts are in addition to our other ALN postings.

(5)  Subscription to ABUNDANT LIFE NOW blog is simple—just use the link on the left sidebar.  Once subscribed you will not miss future posts.

~ Robert Lloyd Russell, ABUNDANT LIFE NOW

NOTES:

(1)     The current TOP 10 ALN posts are listed at the very bottom of this home page.

(2)     There is an INDEX of all ALN posts accessed by scrolling down the left column.

(3)     You may LINK to any ALN posts on your own blog or website. 

(4)     You may COPY any ALN post, but please credit ALN as the source by prominently displaying the following statement:  Reprinted from “Abundant Life Now,” a free blog which offers inspiring moments, thought-provoking comments, and solid Biblical insight at http://RobertLloydRussell.blogspot.com/ .

Eternal Security, 8of15

~ Eternal Security in 1 John ~

The doctrine of “eternal security” (sometimes described as “once saved—always saved”) is widely accepted with Christianity.  There are however some who deny this important teaching of Scripture—by pulling verses out of their context to make them say something other than intended.  In this series we look at what the Word of God has to say about the subject.  “Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy” (Jude 24).

The believer has full assurance of eternal life with God based upon what God has promised and the internal assurance the Holy Spirit provides.

God Has Promised  ~  “Therefore let that abide in you which you heard from the beginning.  If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, you also will abide in the Son and in the Father.  And this is the promise that He has promised us—eternal life” (1 John 2:24-25).

Internal Confirmation  ~  “These things I have written to you concerning those who try to deceive you.  But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will abide in Him” (1 John 2:26-27).

The Result  ~  “And now, little children, abide in Him, that when He appears, we may have confidence and not be ashamed before Him at His coming.  If you know that He is righteous, you know that everyone who practices righteousness is born of Him” (1 John 2:28-29).

Further Confirmation  ~  Chapter 5 of 1 John reiterates the point.

God Has Promised:  “If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater; for this is the witness of God which He has testified of His Son” (1 John 5:9).

Internal Confirmation:  “He who believes in the Son of God has the witness in himself; he who does not believe God has made Him a liar, because he has not believed the testimony that God has given of His Son” (1 John 5:10).

~ Robert Lloyd Russell, ABUNDANT LIFE NOW

NOTES:

(1)     The current TOP 10 ALN posts are listed at the very bottom of this home page.

(2)     There is an INDEX of all ALN posts accessed by scrolling down the left column.

(3)     You may LINK to any ALN posts on your own blog or website. 

(4)     You may COPY any ALN post, but please credit ALN as the source by prominently displaying the following statement:  Reprinted from “Abundant Life Now,” a free blog which offers inspiring moments, thought-provoking comments, and solid Biblical insight at http://RobertLloydRussell.blogspot.com/ .

3 Tests, 3of3

~ The Test of Doctrine ~

There are three main tests in the Epistle of First John.

The first was the Moral Test or the Test of Righteousness.

The second was the Social Test or the Test of Love. 

The third is the Doctrinal Test or the Test of Belief. 

The Problem  ~  Little children, it is the last hour; and as you have heard that the Antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come, by which we know that it is the last hour.  They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us; but they went out that they might be made manifest, that none of them were of us.  But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you know all things.  I have not written to you because you do not know the truth, but because you know it, and that no lie is of the truth.  Who is a liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ?  He is antichrist who denies the Father and the Son.  Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father either; he who acknowledges the Son has the Father also” (1 John 2:18-23).  The problem is the devil’s deceptiveness. 

The Solution  ~  “Therefore let that abide in you which you heard from the beginning.  If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, you also will abide in the Son and in the Father.  And this is the promise that He has promised us — eternal life.  These things I have written to you concerning those who try to deceive you.  But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will abide in Him” (1 John 2:24-27).  The solution is to know the truth of God’s Word and to act upon it through the power of the Spirit of God dwelling in you. 

“Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world.  By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God, and every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God.  And this is the spirit of the Antichrist, which you have heard was coming, and is now already in the world.  You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.  They are of the world.  Therefore they speak as of the world, and the world hears them.  We are of God.  He who knows God hears us; he who is not of God does not hear us.  By this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error” (1 John 4:1-6). 

~ Robert Lloyd Russell, ABUNDANT LIFE NOW

NOTES:

(1)     The current TOP 10 ALN posts are listed at the very bottom of this home page.

(2)     There is an INDEX of all ALN posts accessed by scrolling down the left column.

(3)     You may LINK to any ALN posts on your own blog or website. 

(4)     You may COPY any ALN post, but please credit ALN as the source by prominently displaying the following statement:  Reprinted from “Abundant Life Now,” a free blog which offers inspiring moments, thought-provoking comments, and solid Biblical insight at http://RobertLloydRussell.blogspot.com/ .