Pastors Jim and Marie Watt
(From: 1 JOHN #5 - 4:1-21)
IV. 4:1-5:21 SAFEGUARDS FOR DIVINE FELLOWSHIP
A. 4:4-6 GUARDED BY TRUTH
1. 4:1 WARNING AGAINST FALSE SPIRITS
A-ga-peTOI, mepanTI PNEUma-ti pisTEUe-te, alLA do-kiMAze-te ta PNEUma-ta, ei ek tou TheOU es-tin;
Beloved, believe not every spirit, but prove the spirits, whether they are of :God;
HOti polLOI pseu-do-proPHEtai [5578]e-xe-leLUtha-sin eis ton KOSmon.
because many false prophets are gone out into the world.
2. 4:2-3 WARNING AGAINST ANTICHRIST
En TOUtogiNOske-te to PNEUma tou TheOU:
Hereby know you the Spirit of :God:
pan PNEUma ho ho-mo-loGEI [3670]IeSOUN ChrisTON en sarKI e-le-luTHEnai ek tou TheOU es-tin:
every spirit that confesses thatJesus Christ is come in theflesh is of :God:
kai pan PNEUma ho meho-mo-loGEI ton IeSOUN ek tou TheOU ouk EStin:
3and every spirit that confesses not :Jesus is not of :God:
kai TOU-TO es-tin to tou an-tiCHRIStou [500],
and this is the spiritof the antichrist,
ho a-keKOa-te HOti ERche-tai; kai nun en toKOSmoesTIN Ede.
whereof you have heard that it comes; and is now in the world already.
3. 4:4-6 ENCOURAGEMENT TO OVERCOME
a. 4:4 OVERCOME THROUGH THE INDWELLING ONE
HuMEIS ek tou TheOU es-te, tekNIa, kai ne-niKEka-te [3528]auTOUS:
YOU are of :God, little children, and have overcome them:
HOti MEIzon [3187]esTIN ho en huMIN eho en toKOSmo.
because greater is theone in you than the onein the world.
b. 4:5 THEY are of the world: therefore speak they of the world, and the world hears them.
auTOI ek tou KOSmou eiSIN: diA TOUto ek tou KOSmou laLOUsin, kai ho KOSmos auTON aKOUei.
c. 4:6a OVERCOME: BECAUSE GOD’S VOICE IS RECOGNIZED IN HIS OWN
heMEIS ek tou TheOU es-men: ho giNOSkon to TheON a-KOUei heMON;
WE are of God: who knows :God hears us;
hos ouk EStin ek tou TheOU ouk aKOUei heMON.
who is not of God hears us not.
d. 4:6b From this we know the spirit of :truth, and the spirit of :error.
ek TOUtou giNOSko-men to PNEUma tes a-leTHEIas [225], kai to PNEUma tes PLAnes [4106].
B. 4:7-21 GUARDED BY GOD’S LOVE
1. 4:7-10 GOD’S LOVE GIVEN IN HIS SON
a. 4:7 LOVE OF BRETHREN: A TEST OF THE NEW BIRTH!
A-ga-peTOI, a-gaPOmen alLElous: HOti heaGApeek tou TheOU es-tin;
Beloved, let us love one another: for :love is of God;
kai pas ho a-gaPON ek tou TheOU geGENne-tai [1080], kai giNOSkei ton TheON.
and every one that loves is begotten of :God, and knows :God.
b. 4:8 Who loves not knows not :God; for :God is love.
ho mea-gaPON ouk EGnoton TheON; HOti ho TheOS aGApees-TIN.
c. 4:9 LOVE OF GOD: MANIFESTED IN LIFE FOR US THROUGH THE SON
en TOUtoe-pha-neROthe[5319]heaGApetou TheOU en heMIN,
Herein was the love of :God manifested in us,
HOti ton huiON auTOU ton mo-no-geNE[3439]aPEStal-ken ho TheOS
that :God has sent his :only begotten :Son
eis ton KOSmon HIna ZEso-men [2198]di’ auTOU.
into the world that we might live through him.
d. 4:10 LOVE: MANIFESTED BY GOD TOWARD US WHILE YET SINNERS
en TOUtoesTIN heaGApe, ouch HOti heMEIS e-gaPEka-men ton TheON,
Herein is :love, not that WE have loved :God,
all’ HOti auTOS eGApe-sen heMAS,
but that HE loved us,
kai aPEStei-len ton huiON auTOU hi-lasMON [2434]peRI ton ha-mar-tiON heMON.
and sent his :Son aspropitiation for our :sins.
2. 4:11-16a GOD’S LOVE INDWELLS BELIEVERS
a. 4:11 Beloved, if :God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.
A-ga-peTOI, ei HOUtos ho TheOS eGApe-sen heMAS, kai heMEIS oPHEIlo-men alLElous a-gaPAN.
b. 4:12-13 LOVE FOR ONE ANOTHER: A CONDITION FOR ABIDING
TheON ouDEIS POpo-te teTHEa-tai [2300]: eAN a-gaPOmen al-LElous, ho TheOS en heMIN MEnei,
No one has ever beheld God: if we love one another, :God abides in us,
kai heaGApeauTOU te-te-lei-oMEne[5048] en heMIN esTIN:
and his :love is perfected in us:
en TOUtogiNOSko-men HOti en auTOMEno-men kai auTOS en heMIN,
13hereby we know that we abide in him and he in us,
HOti ek tou PNEUma-tos auTOU DEdo-ken heMIN.
because he has given us of his :Spirit.
c. 4:14 LOVE WITNESSED TO: GOD’S SENDING HIS SON INTO THE WORLD
kai heMEIS te-theAme-tha kai mar-tuROUmen [3140]
And we have beheld and witness
HOti ho paTER aPES-tal-ken ton huiON soTEra [4990]tou KOSmou.
that the Father has sent the Son asSavior of the world.
d. 4:15 LOVE CONFESSION: KEY TO GOD’S INDWELLING
hos eAN ho-mo-loGEseHOti IeSOUS ChrisTOS es-tin ho huiOS tou TheOU,
Whoso shall confess that Jesus Christ is the Son of :God,
ho TheOS en auTOMEnei, kai auTOS en toTheO.
:God abides in him, and he in :God.
3. 4:16a. And WE know and have believed the love which :God has in us.
kai heMEIS egNOka-men kai pe-pisTEUka-men ten aGApen hen Echei ho TheOS en heMIN.
3. 4:16b-21 GOD’S LOVE MANIFESTED THROUGH BRETHREN
a. 4:16b :God is love; and who abides in :love abides in :God, and :God abides in him.
Ho TheOS aGApeesTIN; kai ho MEnon en teaGApeen toTheO MEnei, kai ho TheOS en auTOMEnei.
b. 4:17 BOLDNESS IN DAY OF JUDGMENT: PURPOSE OF LOVE
En TOUtote-teLEIo-tai [5048]heaGApemeth’ heMON,
Herein is :love made perfect with us
HIna par-reSIan [3954]Echo-men en teheMEra tes KRIse-os [2920];
that we may have boldness in the day of :judgment;
HOti kaTHOS eKEI-NOS es-tin, kai heMEIS es-men en toKOSmoTOUto.
because as HE is, even so are WE in this :world.
c. 4:18 NATURE OF LOVE: TO CAST OUT FEAR AND PERFECT US
PHObos ouk EStin en te aGApe: all’ he teLEIa [5046] aGApe Exo BALlei [906] ton PHObon,
No fear is in :love: but :perfect love casts out the fear,
HOti ho PHObos KOla-sin [2851]Echei; ho de phoBOUme-nos ou te-teLEIo-tai en teaGApe.
because the fear has punishment; and who fears is not perfected in :love.
d. 4:19 WE love, because HE first loved us.
HeMEIS a-gaPOmen, HOti auTOS PROtos eGApe-sen huMAS.
e. 4:20 CONTRADICTION OF LOVE: TO HATE OUR BROTHER
eAN tis EIpeHOti A-gaPOton TheON, kai ton a-delPHON auTOU miSE[3404],
If one say that I love :God, and hates his :brother,
PSEUStes [5583]esTIN: ho gar mea-gaPON ton a-delPHON auTOU hon heOra-ken,
he is a liar: for who loves not his :brother whom he has seen,
ton TheON hon ouch heOra-ken ou DUna-tai a-gaPAN.
cannot love :God whom he has not seen.
f. 4:21 LOVE’S COMMANDMENT: TO LOVE BOTH GOD AND MAN
kai TAUten ten en-toLEN Echo-men ap’ auTOU,
And this :commandment we have from him,
HIna ho a-gaPON ton TheON a-gaPA kai ton a-delPHON auTOU.
that who loves :God love his :brother also.
NOTE: God has provided two safeguards as guardians for us: Truth and Love! It is interesting to note the order for these two that the Holy Spirit gave to John – Truth precedes Love!
Truth comes from two Greek words – LEtho: to hide; and “a” – the removal of that which caused the hiding.
For instance: God hid from His Old Testament saints a truth – and also from the beginning church – until He released the apostle Paul for his unique ministry to the uncircumcised nations. In Galatians and Ephesians he shows that in the church, Jew and Gentile have the middle wall of partition broken down – and they become “One New Man.” This truth wasa hidden mystery;but from the time of Paul’s ministry to the Gentiles, it became an open truth. It is one of the greatest revealed truths in New Testament times.
The lid of this hidden mystery came off, and Paul valiantly in the Spirit contended for this truth. See the difficulty for Peter, the apostle to the circumcision – the Jews – to receive this truth himself. Paul had to openly rebuke him in his letter to the Galatians, for his withdrawal from this truth at Antioch.
But in Romans 9-11, especially the first verses of chapter 9, the Holy Spirit through Paul not only shows the privilege of Jews receiving the 8-fold blessing recorded there, but he wonderfully reveals that all blessings for Jews, are nowan inheritance of the uncircumcision also, through being grafted into their Jewish Roots!
Possibly it is because of this tremendous revelation of “The One New Man,” that hearts of Gentiles especially opened up in thanksgiving to God. Loveis the outflow of these New Testament revelations opened up especially by the Spirit through Paul.
And what of the Jews as an integral part of the “One New Man,” and now joined with Gentiles as outlined in Acts 10 and 11? Well, the 11 apostles received this revelation from Peter, and rejoiced at the goodness and mercy of God in receiving Gentiles on the same basis of grace through faith, that allowed them, Jews, to come into God’s Kingdom.
So here we can see the possible sequence that made both Truth and Love guardiansfor both Jews and Gentiles in the “One New Man.”
James through Jude are transitional letters to prepare Jews especially for the strong meat of Paul’s 14 epistles. These 7 letters are like Senior High School, while Paul’s letters are like College and Graduate School in University. J.A.W.