Monthly Archive for August, 2001

1 John 5:13b

Published on August 31, 2001 in 1 John. 0 Comments
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“These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life, and that you may continue to believe in the name of the Son of God.”


that you may know that you have eternal life,

The purpose of 1 John is to prod us from doubt to certainty.  God wants us to “know” that we “have eternal life”, not assume or feel that we have it.  “Know” means to know with God imparted innate knowledge.  This is a settled knowledge that gives peace to the mind and heart. 

Eternal life is a lifetime of fellowship with God both in time and in the eternal state.  Eternal life is the same kind of life that God possesses.  God is willing to share His life with us. 

and that you may continue to believe

The present tense of “believe” suggests characterized by belief.  This is set in contrast to the non-Christian who does not possess ongoing trust in Christ.  Non-believers do not have and hold eternal life. 

in the name of the Son of God

The word “in” involves motion towards and repose upon.  We repose on the “name of the Son of God.”  “Name” stands for the person.  We rest in a person for salvation.  We trust in the unique person of the Son of God, Jesus Christ as God. 

The name “Son of God” refers to the unique deity of Jesus Christ that makes eternal life possible. 


PRINCIPLE:  Confidence comes from trust in God’s Word and promises. 


APPLICATION:  Assurance of eternal life is not presumption for presumption doubts God’s promises.  God makes it plain that we may know that we have eternal life, not that you might have it some day.  Physical life is not eternal life because we can lose it.  But eternal life is not like physical life in that we cannot lose it.  Eternal life is forever. 

Our feelings have nothing to do with whether we are truly born again; it is a matter of accepting God’s Word at face value.  It is who says it that counts.  It makes a great difference who says what.  If we receive a letter from a friend, we accept what they say at face value because it comes from a friend.  We have no reason to suspect that they would deceive us. 

On the other hand, we may receive a business letter from a company with whom we do business.  We may wonder whether their proposal is on the level.  They may over state the case in order to get our business; it may be exaggerated or a downright lie, business being what it is in some circles.  However, if we receive a communication from the Prime Minister of Canada you would accept at face value what he said because of who he is.

Jn 20: 30 “And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; 31 but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name.”

2 Ti 1: 12 “For this reason I also suffer these things; nevertheless I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep what I have committed to Him until that Day.”

Tit 1:2 “In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began.”

If we do not have assurance of salvation, we will not have the joy of our salvation.  How can you share eternal life with others if you are not sure whether you have it yourself?  How can you lead your children to Christ if you waffle about it yourself? 

1: 4 “And these things we write to you that your joy may be full.”

1 John 5:13

Published on August 30, 2001 in 1 John. 0 Comments
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“These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life, and that you may continue to believe in the name of the Son of God.”


John now summarizes his overall purpose for writing in 5:13-21.  This is the conclusion and epilog to the epistle.  He wants to assure believers of their possession of eternal life. 

These things

 “These things” refer the entire epistle of 1 John.  John wants to review the primary purpose of the epistle.  The primary purpose of the letter brings confidence of faith. 

I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God,

Assurance of salvation rests on God’s promise and testimony.  It relies on God’s Word, not our works. 

John looks at his writing of 1 John from the viewpoint of his readers.  Genuine Christians come to faith by believing. 

Jn 1: 12 “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name…”

Jn 6: 35 “And Jesus said to them, ‘I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.’”

Jn 6: 47 “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me has everlasting life.”

Jn 8: 24 “Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for if you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins.”

Jn 11: 25 Jesus said to her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. 26 “And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?’”


PRINCIPLE:  Belief is the basis for salvation, not our merit.


APPLICATION:  Eternal life is a quality and quantity of life that we cannot earn, deserve or buy.  We cannot go to some spiritual supermarket and purchase salvation.  If we could purchase it, we could never afford it.  The only way we can get eternal life is to have it conferred on us freely.  God gives it free of charge.

Ro 6: 23 “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

 “Believe” means simply to receive God’s promise or accept it.  Extend your spiritual hand out to God and receive it.  No gift can be yours until you reach out and receive it.  We insult God if we offer Him religion or morality in payment for salvation. 

Ac 13: 38 “Therefore let it be known to you, brethren, that through this Man is preached to you the forgiveness of sins; 39 “and by Him everyone who believes is justified from all things from which you could not be justified by the law of Moses.”

Ac 16: 30 “And he brought them out and said, ‘Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” 31 So they said, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.’”

Ro 4: 5 “But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness…”

Ga 3: 22 “But the Scripture has confined all under sin, that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe.”

1 John 5:12

Published on August 29, 2001 in 1 John. 0 Comments
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“He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.”


The plain purpose of verse 12 is to make patent that eternal life comes from the Son of God.  Christianity is more than acceptance of a proposition; it is the possession of Person of the Son.  The individual united to the Son is united to eternal life.  He who rejects the Son rejects eternal life itself. 

He who has the Son has life;

This is a logical inference that if a person has the Son of God he has eternal life because it is impossible to have one without the other. 

We see the Christian’s vital relationship with the Son by the word “has”.  “Has” carries the idea of possession.  The Christian currently has possession of eternal life in this life.  The present tense in the Greek indicates that Christians continually possess eternal life. 

John 3: 16 “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”

Jn 5: 24 “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life.”

he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.

The flip side is negative – a person who does not “have the Son of God does not have life”.  John directs this statement against the Gnostics who rejected Jesus Christ as the Son of God.  Gnostics do not have and hold eternal life.


PRINCIPLE:  Eternal life comes exclusively from the Son of God at the moment of salvation.


APPLICATION:  Eternal life does not come from our merit; it is an unmerited gift.  We find that gift solely in Jesus Christ.  Eternal life comes exclusively through Him.  The Christian receives eternal life as a present possession at the moment of salvation.  We receive eternal life at the moment we receive Jesus Christ as Savior.

Jn. 3: 36 “He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.”

Jehovah Witnesses do not “possess” eternal life because they reject Jesus Christ as the Son of God.  We find eternal life solely by belief in the Son and His finished work on the cross. 

1 John 5:11b

Published on August 28, 2001 in 1 John. 0 Comments
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“And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son.”


and this life is in His Son

The Son is the means to eternal life.  We can find eternal life nowhere else than in God’s beloved Son.  There is no compromise here.  This is because God’s Son is life (1:2; Jn 11:25; 14:6).  Eternal life testifies to the Son’s life with the Father, a qualitative and eternal life.  The possession of eternal life is a testimony to God’s Son.  This is because eternal life fundamentally rests in Jesus Christ (Jn 1:4; 11:25; 14:6). 

Note the sequence of John’s argument.  The Father possesses eternal life and gave it to the humanity of Christ (Jn 5:26).  So Jesus can say, “I live because of the Father” (Jn 6:57).  In turn, Jesus gives believers eternal life (Jn 3:36; 5:24; 20:31).  This is evidence that Jesus is the Son of God. 

Jn 1: 4 “In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.”

Jn 5: 26 “For as the Father has life in Himself, so He has granted the Son to have life in Himself, 27 “and has given Him authority to execute judgment also, because He is the Son of Man.”

Jn 6: 57 “As the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, so he who feeds on Me will live because of Me.”

Acts 3: 14 “But you denied the Holy One and the Just, and asked for a murderer to be granted to you, 15 “and killed the Prince of life, whom God raised from the dead, of which we are witnesses.”


PRINCIPLE:  Eternal life comes exclusively through Jesus Christ


APPLICATION:  The life of the Son of God both brings us into God’s presence in the eternal state and is a present possession.  Jesus is the only way into God’s life and presence.

Jn 14: 6 “Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.’”

1 John 5:11

Published on August 27, 2001 in 1 John. 0 Comments
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“And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son.”


Verses 11 and 12 are the climax to 1 John.  The Son of God is the “Word of Life”.  Possession of the Son of God is possession of eternal life and vice versa. 

And this is the testimony:

John now gives the content of God’s testimony in this verse.  We cannot separate eternal life from the person of Christ.  False teachers tried to split the two in 2:25-26.  It is not the truth of eternal life at issue here but rather only those who know God’s Son possess it.  False teachers do not enjoy eternal life. 

1: 1 “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, concerning the Word of life— 2 the life was manifested, and we have seen, and bear witness, and declare to you that eternal life which was with the Father and was manifested to us—…”

that God has given us eternal life,

The result of God’s witness about Jesus Christ is that God gives the believer in Jesus Christ eternal life.  The words “eternal life” are emphatic.  The testimony is that God gave eternal life when He gave His Son.  Eternal life is the final testimony to God’s Son.  Eternal life is more than a quantity of life that lasts forever; it is a quality of life, the highest spiritual life irrespective of time (Jn 17:2-3; 3:15,16; 5:24-26; 6:40,47,68; 10:10,28; 11:25-26).  This life is the very life of God Himself. 


PRINCIPLE:  Eternal life is as much qualitative life as much as quantitative life. 


APPLICATION:  Eternal life is qualitative life because God is absolutely free from corruption.  He is pure holiness.  God is peace so the eternal life He passes to us has symmetry.  Eternal life contains unconditional love so we have capacity for unconditional love.  God embodies eternal life in the person of the Son of God.  The person who embraces Jesus Christ as his or her Savior begins a new kind of life.  He or she will experience that life forever. 

Jn 11: 25 “Jesus said to her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. 26 “And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?’”

1 John 5:10d

Published on August 26, 2001 in 1 John. 0 Comments
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“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.”


that God has given of His Son

We cannot excuse rejection of Jesus as the Son of God on the basis of ignorance because God made Himself abundantly clear on that subject.  Unbelief in Jesus as the Son of God is culpable because it rejects God’s testimony. 

It is not possible to confuse the nature of God’s witness to Jesus Christ as the Son of God.  God makes the witness possible.  He asserts the validity of the Son. 


PRINCIPLE:  We affirm God’s credibility by believing His testimony about Jesus Christ. 


APPLICATION:  Belief in Jesus as the Son of God is the irreducible minimum in becoming a Christian.  By accepting God’s testimony to the truth in Jesus, we affirm the credibility of the One who gave the testimony.  Lack of trust in God’s Word constitutes Him a liar. 

We may think we honor God when we say, “Well, I would like to believe, but somehow I don’t feel sure that I am a Christian.  If only I could have a different feeling come over me, then I would know that I am a Christian.”  But so long as we talk like that we make God a liar.  God has told us something in His Word that He expects us to believe. 

What does it imply if we do not believe Him?  This unbelief deals with more than the testimony; it looks beyond the testimony to the subject of the testimony. Our disbelief is a failure to trust Him.  There is a wide difference between believing a man and believing in a man.  If we believe a man, we do no more than accept the fact that whatever statement he may be making at the moment is true.  All that we are saying is that in a particular case we believe that he is telling the truth. 

However, if we believe in a man, we accept the whole man and all that he stands for in complete confidence and trust.  We are not only prepared to trust his spoken word but also to trust our lives to him.  Believing in the Father’s testimony is not simply accepting what He says is true; it is a commitment to all that He says is true; it is to place ourselves in His hands for time and eternity. 

When we put ourselves into God’s hands, the Holy Spirit within us testifies that we believe aright.  It is the Holy Spirit that gives us the conviction of the ultimate worth and value of Jesus Christ.  This trust assures us that we are right to make this act of commitment to Him.  The man who refuses to do that is refusing the promptings of the Holy Spirit within his heart.  He refuses to listen to God’s message.

1 John 5:10c

Published on August 25, 2001 in 1 John. 0 Comments
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“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.”


because he has not believed

“Believed the testimony” expresses personal trust and reliance on the Son and His ministry on our behalf.  This is more than believing the fact that He is the Son; it is relying on or resting in what God said about His Son.  We honor God when we trust Him.  God puts belief and unbelief in stark contrast. 

John combines the two words “believe” and “in” for the second time in this verse.  Christians put their trust or reliance in the Father’s “testimony” about the Son.  Disbelief assaults the character of the person disbelieved.  This is not simply believing a person but believing in a person. 

the testimony

God gave His testimony in verses 8 and 9.  The purpose of God’s testimony is to offer faith in His Son (Jn 1:7; 20:31).  “Testimony” is the cause of trust in the Son. 

Failure to believe in Jesus, the Son of God, is a two-fold failure: 1) failure to trust in Christ for salvation and 2) failure to believe in God as a credible witness.  Unbelief makes God out to be a liar.  The person who believes God credits His witness. 

Note the change of parallelism here.  It is not trust in Christ or even God but rather simply believing what God has to say.  We must believe what God says about Christ before we can believe in the Son of God Himself.  Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God.  We cannot separate the Son and the witness about the Son. 


PRINCIPLE:  We credit God’s witness to truth when we believe. 


APPLICATION:  We do not determine whether we are Christians by how we feel.  We will never gain assurance of salvation by emotions.  We gain assurance by accepting God’s Word as true.  It is the objective Word of God and not our subjective experience that gives us assurance of salvation. 

Ro 10: 17 “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”

1 John 5:10b

Published on August 24, 2001 in 1 John. 0 Comments
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“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.”


he who does not believe God

This phrase introduces the alternative to the faith of the previous phrase.  John writes against the Gnostics.  Gnostics believed that Jesus was an ordinary human at His birth but became the Messiah at His baptism.  According to them, Jesus received deity from His baptism until just before the cross when the Spirit left Him. 

has made Him a liar,

Anyone who does not believe what God says in the Word makes God a liar.  In verses 9-12, God gives testimony to Jesus Christ as the Son of God.  Anyone who rejects Jesus as the Son makes God a liar.  He brands God a liar.  It is one thing to call God a liar but it is another thing to “make” Him a liar. 

1: 10 “If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us.”


PRINCIPLE:  Assurance of salvation rests on God’s promise of salvation confirmed in His Word. 


APPLICATION:  Making God a liar is worse than calling God a liar.  If you call a person a liar, you get into trouble, but there is no way for you to make a person a liar.  The person who does not believe God brands God a liar, “because he believeth not the record, that God gave of His Son.”

The Bible is God’s record.  We must believe the record that God gave concerning Jesus in order to go to heaven.  That is the essential, irreducible minimum to be right with God.

Are you greatly exercised about the assurance of your salvation?  We do not gain assurance of salvation by feeling, but by trust in God’s record of how we become Christians.  It is an issue of believing the trustworthiness of God’s Word.  Note the next verse:

5: 11 “And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son.”

1 John 5:10

Published on August 23, 2001 in 1 John. 0 Comments
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“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.”


In this verse we come to the experiential witness to the Son of God – the indwelling Holy Spirit in every true believer.

He who believes in

The phrase “he who believes in the Son of God” picks up the idea of belief in verse one.  John uses the grammatical construction “believe in” thirty-seven times.  This is the first occurrence of the word “believe” combined with “in” in 1 John.  The idea is that faith rests in an object.  Faith fully relies upon the person of the Son of God. 

the Son of God

The Son of God is the great object of 1 John. 

has the witness in himself;

The indwelling Holy Spirit is the internal witness to the heart of the true believer.  Every truly born again believer has the indwelling Holy Spirit in him.  The internal witness of the Spirit gives the Christian assurance that he was right in believing in Jesus as the Son of God. 

Faith brings to the believer a consciousness of the dynamic indwelling of the Holy Spirit.  The Holy Spirit inwardly witnesses to the truth of salvation.   Christians receive a conscious assurance of their salvation due to Him. 


PRINCIPLE:  We can not only be sure what we believe but that we believe. 


APPLICATION:  Assurance does not rest on our emotions but on an inner witness from the Holy Spirit.  Trust in the Son of God makes possible the inner witness of the Holy Spirit to our salvation. 

Ro 8: 16 “The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together.”

Ga 4: 6 “And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, ‘Abba, Father!’ 7 Therefore you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.”

Some Christians do not know that they have the indwelling Holy Spirit in them.  They know that they believe in Jesus but they do not know about the residing Holy Spirit.  Each person who believes in Jesus has the Holy Spirit in him.  The Holy Spirit takes up residence in each Christian at the point of salvation and stays there until he goes to be with the Lord (Ep 4:30). 

The Christian is a shrine or sacred place because of the indwelling Holy Spirit.  How we feel about this is irrelevant.  It does not make any difference whether or not you know, understand, or believe it.  The issue is whether the Holy Spirit confirms our faith in the Son of God.  Faith takes God at His Word. 

When a believer comes to the place where he knows that he has received the Holy Spirit, as well as the Lord Jesus, it is then that he permits the Holy Spirit to do something in him and for him.  He recognizes the Holy Spirit’s presence.  He ignored the Holy Spirit before but now he knows he is a Christian. 

1 John 5:9

Published on August 22, 2001 in 1 John. 0 Comments
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“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.”


If we receive the witness of men,

We accept the testimony of men in the normal course of everyday life.  We accept at face value what credible witnesses have to say.  This is standard practice among men. 

the witness of God is greater;

John argues the logic of the lesser to the greater.  If we accept man’s witness, God is a greater witness.  God Himself gives direct testimony that Jesus Christ is His Son, in verses nine through twelve.  Verses 9, 10 and 11 all end with an emphasis on Jesus as the Father’s “own Son.” 

for this is the witness of God which He has testified

The ultimate starting point of testimony about Jesus as the Son of God is from God Himself.  The words “has testified” mean that God testified in the past with the result that that testimony stands.  God testified about Jesus at His baptism and through His death on the cross (5:6). 

of His Son

“Of His Son” is literally concerning His Son.  God’s focus is the person and work of Christ.  God puts His focus on the centrality of Christ (Christocentricity). 


PRINCIPLE:  God Himself states that His message is centered in His Son. 


APPLICATION:  Recognition of God’s witness about His Son always involves accepting Jesus as the Son of God. 

We accept proof from teaches, eyewitnesses in accidents and Delta airlines’ commitment to the airworthiness of its planes.  This is the common, everyday practice of people.  Companies will lose credibility or business if they deceive us, so we generally do not doubt the accuracy of their witness.  It is normal to trust what people say.  How much greater is God’s credibility and witness to Jesus Christ?  We could have no greater source to the wonder of the Lord Jesus than the Father.

The most important reason why we should believe in the person and work of Christ is because God the Father is the witness to Him. 

Mt 3: 17 “And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, ‘This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.’”

Mt 17: 5 “While he was still speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them; and suddenly a voice came out of the cloud, saying, ‘This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him!’”

God expects Christians to testify of the Lord Jesus.  He arranged things in such a way that He incorporates us into the plan of worldwide evangelism. 

Ac 1: 8 “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”