1 John by Gary DeLashmutt (2015)

John, one of Jesus' disciples, wrote his first letter to the church at Ephesus for the two-fold purpose of exposing the Gnostics and their false teaching and strengthening the Ephesians' assurance of their salvation and spirituality. The first four verses of the letter explain the message about Jesus' identity, how we know this message is true, and why God gave us this message.

John, the last living disciple of Jesus, writes to the church in Ephesus to combat Gnosticism. Throughout his letter, John subjects the Gnostics' claims to three spiritual tests: the doctrinal test, the ethical test (based on Jesus' teachings on sex, money, and power), and the social test (based on Jesus' teachings on love). The latter two tests are the focus of these verses. These same tests can and should be applied to ourselves, spiritual leaders, and spiritual groups in order to discern hypocrisy and false spirituality. In Biblical Christianity, Jesus' ethical instruction and his command to love should coexist.

John, one of Jesus' disciples, writes his first letter to the church in Ephesus to combat Gnosticism and to assure the believers of their salvation. In these three verses, John describes the provisions given to believers in each of the three stages of spiritual development: 1) full acceptance by and a relationship with God in spiritual infancy; 2) victory over Satan, the power of the Holy Spirit, and the Word of God in spiritual young adulthood; and 3) a deep relationship with God and knowledge of His Word in spiritual maturity. Spiritual "birth" (salvation by believing in Jesus) must precede spiritual development. Spiritual development is a choice, cannot happen in isolation, and should be the ambition of every believer.

The apostle John commands his audience not to love the "kosmos" (i.e., the world system). This system includes three primary values: 1) the lust of the eyes (materialism); 2) the lust of the flesh (hedonism); and 3) the boastful pride of life (egotism). These values are authored and promoted by Satan and are designed to keep people away from God. John says believers should reject the kosmos because it stands in the way of our intimacy with God, it is temporal, and because if we do reject it, our investments in this life will last into eternity.

John, one of Jesus' disciples, writes his first epistle to the church in Ephesus to combat Gnosticism. In these verses, he gives his audience two additional tests to detect false teachers: 1) do the teachers agree with the Apostles' teaching about who Jesus is; and 2) does the Holy Spirit confirm their view of Jesus?

Once someone comes into a personal relationship with God, he is fully forgiven from his sins. But does that mean that Christians no longer sin? John answers this question by stating that those who claim to be Christians but continue to practice and advocate for a lifestyle of sin are not genuine followers of Christ. Moreover, he proclaims two important truths about Christians and their relationship to sin: 1) no Christian is sin-free but all Christians are forgiven, and 2) Christians cannot continue pursuing a lifestyle of sin without the Holy Spirit convicting their consciences. \r\n

Love is the distinguishing mark of the Christian, and this kind of love is exemplified by Jesus' death on the cross. It is supplied to us by God and manifested in concrete actions towards others. As we move towards actively loving people, God's Spirit supernaturally assures us of our new identity, gives us confidence in our prayers, and empowers us to serve more effectively.

God's will for Christians is to learn how to receive God's love for themselves and to freely give it to others. This kind of love is unique in its origin, nature, and experience, and Christians can experience God's love for them personally by choosing to understand and trust Him. As a result, God will grow our confidence in His love, and our experience of His love is truly complete when we learn to give it to others.

God's will for Christians is to learn how to receive God's love for themselves and to freely give it to others, and He promises to train Christians on how to love others the way that He has loved them. God's training uses five different methods: 1) Biblical instruction; 2) the Spirit's personal promptings; 3) positive and negative role models; 4) difficult people; and 5) rewards of personal fulfillment and happiness. When Christians choose to commit to God's training program in love, they will experience Him meeting their needs personally.

John makes the claim that Jesus is the Christ, which means that Jesus is the Messiah prophesied about in the Old Testament and that He is God, man, Lord, and Savior. This claim is supported by various lines of evidence including Christ's baptism, his death, and the Holy Spirit. Those who examine the evidence for Jesus must reach a conclusion for themselves about his claims, and those who accept that he is God have the privilege of serving him for the rest of their lives.