In high school I was visiting the girl who lived next door to my grandparents. A bit cliché I know, but she was very pretty and from a Christian family. Her cousin was visiting and, being into chess in a big way, he asked for a game while I was waiting for her to finish getting ready for our date. I’m not much of a chess player, but consented. He beat me solidly and afterward very logically told me why. It wasn’t a boast, he wasn’t trying to belittle me, he simply wanted to explain.
As previously mentioned, at this time in John’s life he is getting up in years. His writing reflects a circular reasoning, coming back to a few key elements again and again, constantly repeating what is most important. But like an aging grandparent, we know he is motivated by love. In fact, love gushes from the whole book. Here a restatement of the letters Big Idea is necessary: Fellowship with God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ cause believers to live in obedience to the Word and in love for their brothers and sisters in Christ. John tells us this Big Idea is important for two reasons:
Chapter two continues in the same vein. While many scholars have submitted chapter two verses one through 17 are a new context, I suggest otherwise. There is definitely a shift in literary style – a move to a softer tone of voice – but his content hasn’t made the kind of shift we see in verse 18. Chapter one is almost certainly addressing false teachers, Cerinthus in particular, while chapter two addresses true followers of Christ. John is on the offensive in chapter one, and shepherding his children in chapter two. John’s tone in chapter one is almost that of an angry parent addressing a stranger who was teaching the kids to play with matches.
Over the course of this study one of our readers asked about the name Yeshua. For the uninitiated, Yeshua (also Yehoshuah) is the Hebrew name of Jesus and it means “salvation.” If this is Jesus’ Hebrew name, how did we come to know the Son of God as Jesus? More scholarly men than I have tackled this question, but the simple answer is language. When the Hebrew name was translated into Greek it became Iesous (as anyone who has seen Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade knows, there is no letter J in Hebrew). When translated from Greek into Latin it became Iesus, and from Latin into English we derive Jesus. Simple? Well, kind of.
Today I’m taking a break from the usual flow of this site to mourn the loss of a spiritual giant: Dr. Jonathan Smith. Jonathan was a professor at Western Bible College (WBC), then Colorado Christian University (CCU) and a founder of Rocky Mountain Bible College and Seminary (RMBC). He was a founder of Faith Bible Chapel in Arvada, Colorado and a co-founder of Dare2Share Ministries. It was my honor to call him my teacher and my friend.
In this section of John’s epistle, he wants to make sure his point is not lost on his readers. At the end of verse 10, John states how one must love his brother if he is to be identified with Christ. Now in verse 11 he will state it positively, and this phrase he will use four more times in the book: “Love one another.” Look again to verse seven of chapter four, and you will find once more, “Love one another, for love comes from God.” Yet again, in verse 11, “Dear friends, since God so loved us, we ought to love one another.” In the very next verse, verse 12, he tells us once more what this action proves: “…if we love one another, God lives in us and God’ love is made complete in us.”
The book of 1 John was written by the apostle John to Christian readers so that their life might change to reflect the nature of the God they serve. It appears that He is writing the letter to clarify the true Christian faith, and to combat some distortions of meaning entering the faith from Cerinthus’ followers. Evidence for this lies in verses 1-7, which is a testimony to the true Christ and His teachings. In verse eight we see a shift from this testimony to a hypothetical situation. Examine the structural layout of the verses below.
Today we continue last week’s study of the names of God. Knowing God’s various names and their meanings can improve your prayer life and relationship with God. How can that be? Think of the names of God as a stark relief of God’s activities at the moment it is proclaimed. You may want to go back to yesterday’s post and re-read the names of God and visit the Old Testament references to see just what God was doing when that name came into being. This tells us something about the name itself, to be sure, but more importantly it tells us something about our Creator.
Why did John think it so important to teach believer’s how to identify false teachers? In large part, of course, it was to curtain a serious threat to sound theology. In some small part, however, it was to teach us how to become good teachers. Whether or not we teach professionally, we are all teachers. Some to their children, some to their siblings, and others to their friends and co-workers. Teaching isn’t something that comes naturally, so I thought it would be appropriate to share a paper I wrote when I worked at Valor Christian High School as a techie while working toward becoming a certified substitute teacher. The paper is a philosophy of education that reviews the most important aspects of teaching from a biblical perspective. Download and enjoy!
John now turns to a discussion of the nature of the antichrist (2.18-.27), and the character of children of God (2.28-3.10, after which he will give his readers a lesson in love, another context entirely, beginning in 3.10b and ending in 4.21). Below is a summary of the key characteristics of the two groups.
What better time of year than summer to take some time to discuss the first letter written by the apostle of love? Over the next couple weeks we’ll be looking at the book of First John from a cultural-historical perspective.
Today we continue learning about the compound names of God. If you have not read parts one and two of this study, you should start there.