14:1First John was written by John, one of Jesus’ original 12 disciples. He was probably “the disciple Jesus loved” (John 21:20), and along with Peter and James, he had a special relationship with Jesus. This letter was written between A.D. 85 and 90 from Ephesus, before John’s exile to the istand of Patmos (see Revelation 1:9). Jerusalem had been destroyed in A.D. 70, and Christians were scattered throughout the empire. By the time John wrote this letter, Christianity had been around for more than a generation. It had faced and survived severe persecution. The main problem confronting the church at this time was declining commitment: Many believers were conforming to the world’s standards, failing to stand up for Christ and compromising their faith. False teachers were plentiful, and they were accelerating the church’s downward slide away from the Christian faith. John wrote this letter to put believers back on track, to show the difference between light and darkness (truth and error), and to encourage the church to grow in genuine love for God and for one another. He also wrote to assure true believers that they possessed eternal life and to help them know that their faith was genuine—so they could enjoy all the benefits of being God's children. For more about John, see his Profile in John 13, p. 1783.
Life Application Study Bible1 JohnChapter 5
1 John 5
New Living Translation · Life Application Study Bible · Original pages: 2152, 2153, 2154
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3. God is life
Faith in the Son of God
1Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ* has become a child of God. And everyone who loves the Father loves his children, too. 2We know we love God's children if we love God and obey his commandments. 3Loving God means keeping his commandments, and his commandments are not burdensome. 4For every child of God defeats this evil world, and we achieve this victory through our faith. 5And who can win this battle against the world? Only those who believe that Jesus is the Son of God. 6And Jesus Christ was revealed as God's Son by his baptism in water and by shedding his blood on the cross*—not by water only, but by water and blood. And the Spirit, who is truth, confirms it with his testimony. 7So we have these three witnesses*—8 the Spirit, the water, and the blood—and all three agree. 9Since we believe human testimony, surely we can believe the greater testimony that comes from God. And God has testified about his Son. 10All who believe in the Son of God know in their hearts that this testimony is true. Those who don’t believe this are actually calling God a liar because they don’t believe what God has testified about his Son. 11And this is what God has testified: He has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 12Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have God's Son does not have life.
Conclusion
1313I have written this to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know you have eternal life. 14And we are confident that he hears us whenever we ask for anything that pleases him. SAnd since we know he hears us when we make our requests, we also know that he will give us what we ask for. 16]f you see a Christian brother or sister* sinning in a way that does not lead to death, you should pray, and God will give that person life. But there isa sin that leads to death, and] am not saying you should pray for those who commit it. 17All wicked actions are sin, but not every sin leads to death. 18We know that God’s children do not make a practice of sinning, for God’s Son holds them securely, and the evil one cannot touch them. '?We know that we are children of God and that the world around us is under the control of the evil one. 20And we know that the Son of God has come, and he has given us understanding so that we can know the true God.* And nowwe live in fellowship with the true God because we live in fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ. He is the only true God, and he is eternal life. 2\Dear children, keep away from anything that might take God’s place in your hearts.*
Textual footnotes
- brother.
- Word, and the Holy Spirit, and these three are one. And we have three witnesses on earth.
- 5:1 Or the Messiah.
- 5:6 Greek This is he who came by water and blood.
- 5:7 A few very late manuscripts add in heaven—the Father, the
- 5:16 Greek a brother.
- 5:20 Greek the one who is true.
- 5:21 Greek keep yourselves from idols.
Life Application Notes 7 notes
5:1,2When we become Christians, we become part of God's family, with fellow believers as our brothers and sisters. It is God who determines who the other family members are, not us. We are simply called to accept and love them. How well do you treat your fellow family members?
5:3,4Jesus never promised that obeying him would be easy. But the hard work and self-discipline of serving Christ is no that if he listens, he will give us a definite answer. Start praying with confidence!
5:16,17Commentators differ widely in their thoughts about what this sin that leads to death is and whether the death it causes is physical or spiritual. Paul wrote that some Christians had died because they took Communion unworthily (1 Corinthians 11:27-30), and Ananias and Sapphira were struck dead when they lied to God (Acts 5:1-11). Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit resuits in spiritual death (Mark 3:29), and the book of Hebrews describes the spiritual death of the person who turns against Christ (Hebrews 6:4-6). John was probably referring to the people who had left the Christian fellowship and joined the antichrists. By rejecting the only way of salvation, these people were putting themselves out of reach of prayer. In most cases, however, even if we knew what the terrible sin was, we would have no sure way of knowing whether a certain person had committed it. Therefore, we should continue praying for our loved ones and for our Christian brothers and sisters, leaving the judgment up to God. Note that John says, “I am not saying you should pray for those who commit it,” rather than, “You cannot pray for them.” He recognized the lack of certainty.
5:18,19Christians commit sins, of course, but they ask God to forgive them, and then they continue serving him. God has freed believers from their slavery to Satan, and he keeps them safe from Satan's continued attacks. The rest of the world does not have the Christian's freedom to obey God. Unless they come to Christ in faith, they have no choice but to obey Satan. There is no middle ground; people either belong to God and obey him, or they live under Satan’s control.
5:21Many things can take God’s place in our lives. This includes anything that substitutes for the true faith, anything that denies Christ's full deity and humanity, any human idea that claims to be more authoritative than the Bible, any loyalty that replaces God at the center of our life.
5:21John presents a clear picture of Christ. What we think about Jesus Christ is central to our teaching, preaching, and living. Jesus is the God-man, fully God and fully human at the same time. He came to earth to die in our place for our sins. Through faith in him, we are given eternal life and the power to do his will. What is your answer to the most important question you could ever ask: Who is Jesus Christ?
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burden to those who love him. And if our load starts to fee! heavy, we can always trust Christ to help us bear it (see Matthew 11:28-30). 5:6-8 At this time, there was a false teaching in circulation that said Jesus was “the Christ” only between his baptism and his death—that is, he was merely human until he was baptized, at which time “the Christ” then descended upon him but then later left him before his death on the cross. But if Jesus died only as a man, he could not have taken upon himself the sins of the world, and Christianity would be an empty religion. Only an act of God could take away the punishment that we deserve for our sin. 5:7-9 The Gospels twice record God's clear declaration that Jesus was his Son—at Jesus’ baptism (Matthew 3:16, 17) and at his transfiguration (Matthew 17:5). 5:12 Whoever believes in God's Son has eternal life. He is all you need. You don’t need to wait for eterna! life because it begins the moment you believe. You don’t need to work for it because it is already yours. You don't need to worry about it because you have been given eternal life by God himself—and it is guaranteed. 5:13 Some people hope that they will receive eternal life. John says we can know we have it. Our certainty is based on Gad’s promise that he has given us eternal life through his Son. This is true whether you feel close to God or far away from him. Eternal life is not based on feelings but on facts. You can know that you have eternal life if you believe God's truth. If you aren’t sure that you are a Christian, ask yourself: Have I honestly committed my life to him as my Savior and LORD? If so, you know by faith that you are indeed a child of God. 5:14, 15 The emphasis here is on God’s will, not our will. When we communicate with God, we don’t demand what we want; rather we discuss with him what he wants for us. {f we align our prayers to his will, he will listen; and we can be certain