As the youth group is coming to an end in our series in 1 John, I thought it would be helpful to unpack the heart of John’s message in this letter.
The letter has traditionally been explained as a series of tests to determine if you’re saved or not. While this view is true to an extent, it doesn’t line up with the actual contents of the letter. We get a better grasp of John’s intent when we look at the beginning and end of the letter.
1:1-3 is about John’s firsthand interaction with the incarnate Christ. 5:18-20 is about three gospel-facts that believers know. 1:4 ends with John stating that he’s writing the letter so that our joy may be made complete. 5:13, the purpose statement of the whole letter, syncs up with 1:4 by stating that the letter is written so that believers may know that they have eternal life.
In between, John unfolds Christ: His nature, His work on the cross, and their implications for our lives. There are only thirteen imperatives in the letter. Most of the commanding occur implicitly (e.g., 3:3 - “And everyone who has this hope purifies himself, just as He is pure”).
That approach fits with the overall focus of the letter on the person and work of Christ. Certainly, if you fail to believe truths about Christ or you don’t love believers at all, you’re not a believer. But John’s push is for us to grasp the grandeur of Christ the God-Man and His propitiating, love-sacrifice for our sins (1:7; 2:1-2; 3:5, 16; 4:2, 9-10; 5:5-8). Because when we grasp these truths, we will abide in Christ and love one another for a lifetime.
So, we need to “let that [the gospel] abide in you which you heard from the beginning” (2:24). When that occurs, we abide in the Son and in the Father (2:25) – we have fellowship with the Godhead, which is what we were made to experience (1:3). And when we abide in Christ, we will practice righteousness (2:28-29).
Obedience is not burdensome; it’s liberating; it’s joyful. Because we want to give ourselves to the One who gave Himself to us. Think of it - the true God and eternal life (5:20) died for my sins. How can I not do whatever He asks of me?
