truthproject777

2 John Lesson

2 John – Praise for obedience and warning about false teachers

 The Elder: 

To the elect  lady and her children: I love all of you in the truth—and not only I, but also all who have come to know the truth — 2 because of the truth that remains in us and will be with us forever. 

3 Grace, mercy, and peace will be with us from God the Father and from Jesus Christ, the Son of the Father, in truth and love. 

4 I was very glad to find some of your children walking in the truth, in keeping with a command we have received from the Father. 5 So now I urge you, dear lady—not as if I were writing you a new command, but one we have had from the beginning—that we love one another. 6 And this is love: that we walk according to His commands. This is the command as you have heard it from the beginning: you must walk in love. 

7 Many deceivers have gone out into the world; they do not confess the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh.  This is the deceiver and the antichrist. 8 Watch yourselves so you don’t lose what we have worked for, but that you may receive a full reward. 9 Anyone who does not remain in Christ’s teaching but goes beyond it, does not have God. The one who remains in that teaching, this one has both the Father and the Son. 10 If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your home, and don’t say, “Welcome,” to him; 11 for the one who says, “Welcome,” to him shares in his evil works. 

12 Though I have many things to write to you, I don’t want to do so with paper and ink. Instead, I hope to be with you and talk face to face  so that our joy may be complete. 

13 The children of your elect sister send you greetings. (HCSB)

I’ll be dividing this lesson into four parts.

  • Introduction – verses 1-3.
  • Christians must practice the truth – verses 4-6.
  • Christians must protect the truth – verses 7-11.
  • The farewell – verses 12-13.

Introduction

Before we start a deeper look at this epistle, let’s take a look at some introductory information.

  • The letter was sent to Christians in the general area of Ephesus.
  • It was written around or just after 1 John was written.
  • The theme is very similar to 1 John; encourage and strengthen Christians to walk in love with others and resist false teaching.
  • Emphasizes obeying God’s commands.
  • It is a highly personal letter reflecting John’s affection and concern for these believers.

Now, let’s take a deeper look at these three verses.

  • The overarching idea in the first three verses is “May God’s blessings be upon the people I love, people who let the truth live in them.”
  • John starts with the term “elder.”
    • The Greek word for elder is presbyteros.
    • The title of elder was used for someone in a position of authority and responsibility.
    • In the context of the letter, it indicated that John had authority and responsibility for the recipients of the letter.
    • The use of elder instead of John’s name is a further reflection of the relationship between the author and the recipients.
  • One word that John hammers home is the word “truth.”
    • It occurs four times in these three verses, highlighting its significance to John’s message.
    • The Greek word for truth is aletheia, which means “in truth,” “upon truth,” and “according to truth,” pertaining to being a real or an actual event or state.
    • It means reality as opposed to mere appearance.
    • Jesus is “the truth.” John 14:6 – Jesus told him, “I am  the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. 
    • God’s Word is truth. John 17:17 – Sanctify them by the truth; Your word is truth.
    • The Spirit of Truth teaches us. John 16:13 – When the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all the truth. For He will not speak on His own, but He will speak whatever He hears. He will also declare to you what is to come.
  • John used the theme of “truth” at the beginning of this letter because there were false teachers leading the sheep astray.
    • John never tolerated false teachers.
    • There is a deadly difference between truth and error, and John would not tolerate error.
    • The truth would appeal to the minds of the readers.
  • The other important word in these verses is “love.”
    • It occurs twice in this section.
    • The Greek word used here is agape.
    • It means to have a love for someone or something based upon sincere appreciation and high regard.
    • Love would appeal to the hearts of the readers.
  • The next issue we need to discuss is the identity of “the elect lady and her children.”
    • Among scholars and theologians, there are three main interpretations of this phrase.
      • It is a figurative reference to a local church and its members. If this is true, then verse thirteen would also be a reference to a local church.
      • It is a reference to the universal church of believers.
      • The recipient is an individual lady and her children.
    • The majority believe the first choice is the correct one. It’s a metaphorical or symbolic way of identifying a local church and its members.
      • The term “lady,” or kuria in Greek, is the feminine form of “lord.”
      • This hints at the idea of the church being the bride of Christ.
      • This idea also meshes well with verse thirteen; churches are “sister” of each other.
      • Those who come to faith in a local church are the “children” of the “elect lady.”
  • John concludes this section with words common in ancient Christian greetings; grace, mercy, and peace.

Christians Must Practice the Truth

  • The overarching theme in verses four to six is, “It is a joy that some of you are walking in the truth. We are commanded to love one another and to walk in obedience to God’s commands.”
  • In this section, we find another word that repeats itself. The words “walk/walking” occurs three times in this section.
    • In the original Greek, this would convey an action beyond simply understanding truth. It would require acting on the truth.
    • It’s not enough for believers to know the truth. We must demonstrate the truth through our actions wherever we are.
    • When someone “walks in the truth,” it means they are obeying the truth and allowing it to control their lives.
    • John 14:15 – If you love Me, you will keep My commands.
  • John is “very glad” that some of the believers are walking in the truth.
    • Although not apparent from the English rendering, John had met some of the members of the church during his travels and observed their obedience. John wasn’t saying that only a portion was walking in obedience.
    • It also makes the Father “very glad” when His children walk in obedience to His Word.
    • Shepherd leaders are also “very glad” when members of their flock walk in obedience to God’s Word.
  • Another word that occurs repeatedly is “command.”
    • Command occurs four times in these three verses.
    • The commands are given by the Father.
      • Each commandment is an expression of love.
      • The will of God is the revelation of God’s heart. Psalm 33:11 – The counsel of the Lord stands forever, the plans of His heart from generation to generation.
      • Obedience to God’s Word is a revelation of our love, not an expression of fear. 1 John 5:3 – For this is what love for God is: to keep His commands. Now His commands are not a burden.
      • False teachers try to make God’s commandments appear harsh and difficult, offering their followers “true” freedom, which is really false freedom. 2 Peter 2:19 – They promise them freedom, but they themselves are slaves of corruption, since people are enslaved to whatever defeats them.
      • The greatest freedom is obedience to God’s perfect will.
      • Those who are true followers of Christ and love God would never think His commandments are harsh or unbearable.
  • John now moves on to the command to love one another.
    • Loving others is not a new command; it goes back to the Old Testament, where Jews were told to love both their neighbors and strangers.
      • Leviticus 19:18 – Do not take revenge or bear a grudge against members of your community, but love your neighbor as yourself; I am Yahweh.
      • Deuteronomy 10:19 – You also must love the foreigner, since you were foreigners in the land of Egypt.
    • However, what is new is that with the incarnation of Jesus, there is a new emphasis on brotherly love, agape, as demonstrated in Jesus’ life, and the expectation that we follow His example and love others in the same manner. 
    • A reasonable question to ask is, “is it possible to command love?” The short answer is yes! But we need to understand what defines Christian love.
      • It’s not a feeling or special kind of “religious emotion.”
      • It’s an act of will that enables us to interact with and accept others.
      • Christian love is treating others in the same way God treats you.
      • It’s possible to extend love to others even when we really don’t like them.
        • People can be rude to us, but we can be kind in return.
        • People may persecute us, but we can pray for them, and when the opportunity presents itself, we can be kind to them.
        • If we followed our feelings, we would retaliate.
        • But if we allow the Holy Spirit to control our lives, we can act like Jesus would have acted in Christian love.
    • Love and obedience go together.
      • We can’t separate our relationship with God from our relationship with others.
      • If we say we love God, but we hate our brothers or sisters, how can we say we love God?
      • If we walk in obedience to God, His love is made perfect in us toward others.
  • When we look at these three verses together, we see the themes of truth, love, and obedience blended.
    • Believing in the truth, Christ, and the Word leads to our salvation.
    • The evidence of salvation is love and obedience.
    • Love and obedience are strengthened as we grow in the knowledge of the truth.
      • Ephesians 4:15 – But speaking the truth in love, let us grow in every way into Him who is the head—Christ.
      • John 7:17 – If anyone wants to do His will, he will understand whether the teaching is from God or if I am speaking on My own.
    • Obedience allows us to learn more truth, and the more truth we learn, the more we love Jesus, who is the truth.
    • Instead of living in a vicious circle of defeat, we live in a victorious circle of love, truth, and obedience.

Christians Must Protect the Truth

  • The theme for this section is that believers must not be led astray by the world’s deceivers, those who don’t acknowledge Jesus. We shouldn’t help them in any way, which would be assistance to those practicing evil.
  • In this section, John warns about the deceivers in the world.
  • In the context of this letter, it addresses the false teaching of docetism or proto-Gnostics who denied the incarnation of God the Son.
  • The Greek word for deceiver is planos, and it means more than just teaching false doctrine.
    • It does mean teaching false doctrine.
    • It also means to lead people astray or to lead them into wrong living.
    • John had already taught that what we believe determines how we act. Wrong or false doctrine will lead to wrong living.
  • Where did the deceivers come from?
    • They came from inside the church.
    • They professed faith in Jesus but were false believers.
      • Jude 3-4 – Dear friends, although I was eager to write you about the salvation we share, I found it necessary to write and exhort you to contend for the faith that was delivered to the saints once for all. 4 For some men, who were designated for this judgment long ago, have come in by stealth; they are ungodly,  turning the grace of our God into promiscuity and denying Jesus Christ, our only Master and Lord. 
      • 1 John 2:19 – They went out from us, but they did not belong to us; for if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us. However, they went out so that it might be made clear that none of them belongs to us. 
      • Acts 20:30 – And men will rise up from your own number with deviant doctrines to lure the disciples into following them.
  • John also warns there are many deceivers.
    • 2 Peter 2:1-2 – But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, and will bring swift destruction on themselves. 2 Many will follow their unrestrained ways, and the way of truth will be blasphemed because of them. 
    • These deceivers are also the “antichrists” John warned about in 1 John 2:18-23.
  • To protect the truth requires a faithfulness to the basic doctrines of the Christian faith.
    • The deceivers had departed from the truth and church fellowship.
    • The deceivers were dangerous.
  • John points out three dangers the church and its members face from the deceivers.
    • The danger of losing what we have worked for.
      • John warns the readers to “watch yourselves.”
        • The deceivers will try and falsely offer something you don’t have.
        • In reality, they will take away what you do have.
      • Satan is a thief, and so are his minions.
      • The full reward John is talking about is an abundant entrance into the eternal kingdom.
        • Believers will receive rewards in heaven. Both John and Paul talk about that in Scripture.
          • Revelation 4:10 – The 24 elders fall down before the One seated on the throne,  worship the One who lives forever and ever, cast their crowns before the throne, and say.
          • 1 Corinthians 9:25 – Now everyone who competes exercises self-control in everything. However, they do it to receive a crown that will fade away, but we a crown that will never fade away. 
          • 2 Timothy 4:8 – There is reserved for me in the future the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me on that day, and not only to me, but to all those who have loved His appearing. 
    • The danger of going beyond what Scripture says.
      • The Greek term for “goes beyond it,” proago, means to go beyond the established boundaries of teaching or instruction, failing to obey properly.
      • The false teachers will try and come off as “progressive” in their thinking.
      • However, the progress they push actually abandons the doctrine that Jesus is God the Son, who came in the flesh.
      • We all know of examples today where pastors, churches, or denominations have “gone beyond” what is contained in Scripture to promote a “kindler, gentler, all inclusive” Gospel.
        • Same-sex marriages and non-binary genders are two of the more recent examples.
        • However, both go “beyond Scripture,” which is clear that God created male and female and that marriage is between a man and a woman.
      • Learning is good, but anytime it leads us away from the fundamental doctrines of the person and work of Jesus Christ, then we are on dangerous ground.
  • The danger of welcoming or receiving false teachers.
    • As we consider verse ten, we need to view it in the context of first-century practices of hospitality.
      • As opposed to today, there weren’t many inns for travelers to stay. This was especially true for traveling Christians who tried to stay away from the evil influences in the world.
      • Christians were encouraged to open their homes to visitors.
        • Romans 12:13 – Share with the saints in their needs; pursue hospitality.
        • Hebrews 13:2 – Don’t neglect to show hospitality, for by doing this some have welcomed angels as guests without knowing it.
      • Believers who showed hospitality to servants of God were helping those who were spreading the truth, the Gospel.
    • Those who were showing hospitality to false teachers were sharing in their evil works.
    • The true doctrine of Christ is a test of truth, a foundation for fellowship, and a bond for mutual cooperation.
    • The same principle applies today.
      • We may have Mormons or Jehovah’s Witnesses come to our door, spreading their false doctrine.
        • We should never be rude to them; see the section above about love.
        • But, we should point out their false teaching and show them the truth contained in Scripture.
        • One additional method of trying to limit their damage is to take as many of their resources as possible and then burn them so they won’t do any harm.
      • There are also false teachers on television, radio, youtube, etc., who spread false teaching. We need to be alert so that we don’t inadvertently aid them in any way.
    • Why was John so focused on not accidentally helping the wrong people?
      • It would give the false teacher the impression their heretical teaching was acceptable.
      • It would be possible to become influenced by them.
      • It would provide the false teacher with ammunition on their next stop that you supported them. Our disobedience could lead to someone else’s destruction.
    • John was not saying that only believers could/should enter your house.
      • Engaging the lost is required to lead them to Christ.
      • Often, a comfortable setting such as our home is a good place to do that.
    • John is saying we shouldn’t receive, enable, or encourage false teachers who represent antichristian groups.

The Farewell

  • John now closes this letter much in the same way he will close 3 John.
  • There are several points in these last two verses.
    • John emphasizes the importance of Christian fellowship.
    • John is saying we should experience joy when we gather with other believers.
    • Receiving letters from fellow believers is important but not as important as face-to-face meetings.
    • The letter that John wrote doesn’t contain all the things he wanted to discuss with them.
    • John was planning on visiting this family or church in person.
  • John concludes the letter by saying the children of their elect sister send greetings.
    • As previously discussed in the first section of this lesson, this most likely refers to a church and its members.
    • This demonstrates that Christian churches in the first century were concerned about other churches; there wasn’t any competition or disunity.

Applications

  • John commended the recipients of the letter for walking in the truth but also commanded them to walk in the truth. Examine your walk. Do you walk in the truth? Do you walk in love, which means following the commands the Father has given us? If you do, keep doing it. If you don’t, pray for the Holy Spirit to give you the strength to walk in God’s power and love others just as God loves us.
  • Be watchful for false teachers around your home, in your workplace, in your community, and your church. If you find some, don’t enable them in any manner. Confront them with the truth of the Gospel. Warn your spiritual brothers and sisters, so they don’t fall victim to their heresy. As believers, we must always confront and correct false teaching.
  • Engage in fellowship with other believers. While written and voice correspondence is important, they will never replace the importance of face-to-face meetings. We should meet often with fellow believers to encourage and support each other.
  • Pray for the other churches around you, regardless of their denomination or demographics. The one caveat is that they are a church that teaches the truth and doesn’t compromise to be socially acceptable in a fallen world.
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1 John Lesson Eleven

1 John Lesson Eleven: 1 John 5:6-13 – The Full Assurance of Our Relationship to God

Jesus Christ—He is the One who came by water and blood, not by water only, but by water  and by blood. And the Spirit is the One who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. 7 For there are three that testify: 8 the Spirit, the water, and the blood —and these three are in agreement. 9 If we accept the testimony of men, God’s testimony is greater, because it is God’s testimony that He has given about His Son. 10 (The one who believes in the Son of God has this testimony within him. The one who does not believe God has made Him a liar,  because he has not believed in the testimony God has given about His Son.) 11 And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. 

12 The one who has the Son has life. The one who doesn’t have the Son of God does not have life. 13 I have written these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life. (HCSB)

As John nears the completion of this letter, he drives home a point that directly challenges the false teaching from the Gnostics that he was confronting; Jesus is God. 

I’ll be splitting this lesson into two parts.

  • Jesus is God – verses 6-10.
  • Believers have eternal life – verses 11-13.

Jesus is God

In the previous section of the passage, verses one to five, John placed emphasis on trusting in Jesus and overcoming the world. To believe that Jesus is the Son of God is fundamental to the Christian experience. But how do we know that Jesus is God? 

Some of those alive at the time called Jesus a liar and a deceiver – Matthew 27:63. Others said that Jesus was a religious fanatic, a madman, or perhaps a zealous Jew who was sincere but sadly mistaken. We also need to remember the false teaching the recipients of this letter were receiving from the Gnostics. The false teaching of the Gnostics had two main points.

  • The “Christ” came upon the man Jesus when He was baptized.
  • Before Jesus died on the cross, the “Christ” left Jesus, and He died like any other person.

John’s letter refutes this false teaching by presenting three infallible witnesses to prove that Jesus is God.

  • Before we look at the three witnesses, we need to remember Jewish law. In order to confirm testimony, at least two witnesses were required.
    • Deuteronomy 19:15 – One witness cannot establish any wrongdoing or sin against a person, whatever that person has done. A fact must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.
    • John 8:17 – Even in your law it is written that the witness of two men is valid.
  • The first witness is the water.
    • The water refers to Jesus’ baptism in the Jordan River at the beginning of His ministry.
    • Matthew 3:13-17 – Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan, to be baptized by him. 14 But John tried to stop Him, saying, “I need to be baptized by You, and yet You come to me?” 15 Jesus answered him, “Allow it for now, because this is the way for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he allowed Him to be baptized. 16 After Jesus was baptized, He went up immediately from the water. The heavens suddenly opened for Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming down on Him.  17 And there came a voice from heaven: This is My beloved Son. I take delight in Him!
  • The second witness is the blood.
    • Blood refers to the shedding of Jesus’ blood at His crucifixion and subsequent death.
    • As the time drew near for Jesus to die, God spoke from heaven.
      • John 12:28b – Then a voice  came from heaven: “I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again!”
      • This was a reference to both what had already occurred and Jesus’ ultimate sacrifice on the cross.
    • There are also Scripture references to the glorification of Jesus during His crucifixion.
      • Matthew 27:45 – From noon until three in the afternoon darkness came over the whole land.
      • Matthew 27:50-53 – Jesus shouted again with a loud voice and gave up His spirit.  51 Suddenly, the curtain of the sanctuary was split in two from top to bottom; the earth quaked and the rocks were split. 52 The tombs were also opened and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised. 53 And they came out of the tombs after His resurrection, entered the holy city, and appeared to many. 
      • Matthew 27:54 – When the centurion and those with him, who were guarding Jesus, saw the earthquake and the things that had happened, they were terrified and said, “This man really was God’s Son!”
  • The third witness is the Holy Spirit.
    • The Holy Spirit was sent to bear witness to Jesus. We can trust the Holy Spirit because it is the Spirit that is truth.
      • John 15:26 – When the Counselor comes, the One I will send to you from the Father —the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father—He will testify about Me.
      • John 16:14 – He will glorify Me, because He will take from what is Mine and declare it to you.
      • Romans 8:15-16 – For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption, by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father!” 16 The Spirit Himself testifies together with our spirit that we are God’s children, 17 and if children, also heirs—heirs of God and coheirs with Christ—seeing that we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him. 
      • 1 Corinthians 2:14 – But the unbeliever does not welcome what comes from God’s Spirit, because it is foolishness to him; he is not able to understand it since it is evaluated  spiritually.
  • John is showing that all three testify to the truth of Jesus being the Son of God, the incarnation of the divine, and the pathway to redemption and restoration with God.
  • If human testimony is accepted on the basis of two or more witnesses, how much more should God’s testimony be accepted?
  • John makes two points in verses nine to eleven.
    • Divine testimony should be accepted because it is greater than human testimony, which everyone accepts.
    • Willful unbelief is sin. If we trust human testimony, why shouldn’t we trust God, who is more trustworthy than people?
  • When we consider these two points, we see the following three facts, which lead to one conclusion.
    • The Father witnessed at Jesus’ baptism.
    • The Father witnessed at the cross.
    • The Holy Spirit witnesses today within each believer.
    • Jesus is the Son of God.
  • Those who reject these facts are calling God a liar.
  • There is no middle ground in this discussion.
    • You are either with God and part of His spiritual family, destined to spend eternity in heaven.
    • Or you are against God, excluded from His spiritual family, and destined to spend eternity in hell.

Believers Have Eternal Life

  • John makes this point clear in the final three verses of this passage.
    • Those who accept the truth of the Father’s testimony concerning Jesus have life.
    • The life John is referring to in verse eleven is eternal life in heaven.
      • Life is contained in accepting the testimony about Jesus.
        • Those who accept the testimony about Jesus have the Son.
        • Those who accept the Son have life.
      • Death occurs for those who reject the testimony about Jesus.
        • They will have a physical death.
        • They will have a spiritual death, eternity in hell.
    • John is reminding and encouraging the recipients of his letter that those who believe in the testimony about Jesus have eternal life.

Before we take a summary look at this passage, let’s remember the situation that John was addressing. False teachers had permeated the early church, teaching heresy and leading some astray. Let’s consider the modern-day church. Few would argue that false teachers promoting heresy have permeated the church, leading believers astray.

Now, let’s consider three points essential to John’s writings.

  • The “blood” must remain central to all we are and preach. The “blood” refers to the cross.
    • In 1 Corinthians 1-4, Paul talks about the “foolishness” of the cross. Paul isn’t saying the cross is foolish. He is saying it is foolishness to those who reject the truth. 
    • As believers, we can never demote the significance of the cross.
    • 1 Corinthians 1:23-24 – But we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to the Jews and foolishness to the Gentiles. 24 Yet to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ is God’s power and God’s wisdom, 25 because God’s foolishness is wiser than human wisdom, and God’s weakness is stronger than human strength.
      • Christ is the power of God.
      • Christ is the wisdom of God.
    • Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross is the gateway to redemption, forgiveness, and eternal life.
  • The Holy Spirit is the preserver of truth.
    • However, John isn’t clear on how this is done on a practical level.
    • It could be spiritual discernment.
    • However, since John references water and blood, it makes the most sense he is referring to “what was at the beginning.” This understanding would point not to personal creativity and innovation but to the foundations on which the church was built.
      • The confessions and traditions of the original church.
      • The recitation of creeds.
      • An alarming trend has been noted by theologians.
        • The foundations for all of what we believe are no longer recognized by many “believers.” One of the more common is the teaching that the first eleven chapters of Genesis are fictional.
        • The validity of belief for many now appears to be functional.
      • One enlightening example is from a commentary author talking about his last year of seminary. The students were required to read one sermon per day for ten weeks. An observation from that exercise is that older sermons, those from pre-1950, contained a higher level of theological sophistication, which is lacking in many modern sermons. I’m sure many, if not all, who are reading this, can remember examples where the sermon they heard was light on sin, hell, love, and sacrifice. At the same time, those sermons may have been heavy on how to feel better about yourself or that God was still “love” even when we are engaged in willful sin.
    • Theology is losing ground to false teaching because churches have stopped pursuing and teaching truth.
  • Any claim to being a genuine follower of Christ is illegitimate if it denies what God has said about Jesus.
    • Jesus is both fully human and fully divine during the entirety of His life.
    • Any theology that rejects incarnation Christology must be dismissed as false theology.
    • Anyone who teaches false theology, whether knowingly or unknowingly, is part of Satan’s attempt to undermine and destroy the church.

Applications

  • Do you understand and believe in the absolute and unconditional truth that Jesus is who God the Father says He is? If not, examine why in light of what John wrote in this passage. Water, blood, and the Holy Spirit all testify about who Jesus is. 
  • If you hear or read about false teaching, confront it. Remember to always correct in a spirit of gentleness while not tolerating compromise.
  • Are you confident in your eternal destination? John is clear that if we believe the truth about Jesus and place our faith in Him, we have eternal life. If you have doubts in this area, determine why you doubt and pray for reassurance.
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1 John Lesson Six

1 John Lesson Six: 1 John 3:11-24 – Another Demand for Right Attitude

For this is the message you have heard from the beginning: We should love one another, 12 unlike Cain, who was of the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his works were evil, and his brother’s were righteous. 13 Do not be surprised, brothers, if the world hates you. 14 We know that we have passed from death to life because we love our brothers. The one who does not love remains in death. 15 Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life residing in him. 

16 This is how we have come to know love: He laid down His life for us. We should also lay down our lives for our brothers. 17 If anyone has this world’s goods and sees his brother in need but closes his eyes to his need—how can God’s love reside in him? 

18 Little children, we must not love with word or speech, but with truth and action.  19 This is how we will know we belong to the truth and will convince our conscience in His presence, 20 even if our conscience condemns us, that God is greater than our conscience, and He knows all things. 

21 Dear friends, if our conscience doesn’t condemn us, we have confidence before God 22 and can receive whatever we ask from Him because we keep His commands and do what is pleasing in His sight. 23 Now this is His command: that we believe in the name of His Son Jesus Christ, and love one another as He commanded us. 24 The one who keeps His commands remains in Him, and He in him. And the way we know that He remains in us is from the Spirit He has given us. (HCSB)

This passage deals with relationships. John talks about four levels of relationships, which is how I’ll be splitting up this lesson.

  • Murder – verses 11-12.
  • Hatred – verses 13-15.
  • Indifference – verses 16-17.
  • Christian love – verses 18-24.

Murder

Murder is the lowest level of any relationship. It’s the level on which Satan exists. John 8:44a, “You are of your father the Devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer  from the beginning and has not stood in the truth.” John goes on in this letter to talk about Cain. Let’s consider some facts about the passage in Genesis 4:1-16.

  • Cain and Abel were brothers.
  • They had the same parents.
  • They both brought sacrifices to God.
  • Cain is not depicted as an atheist but as a worshiper of Yahweh. 
  • This is the point of the passage.
    • Children of Satan often appear as true believers.
    • They attend church.
    • They may bring offerings.
    • None of these actions are proof of being born of God.
    • The real test is loving each other.
  • Each person has both a physical and spiritual lineage.
    • Our physical lineage comes from our parents.
    • Our spiritual lineage is linked to whether we follow darkness or light.
  • Cain murdered his brother and then lied about it.
  • The reason Cain’s sacrifice was rejected is that, in some way, Cain didn’t follow the proper instructions for worship. He rejected God and wanted to do it “his way.”
  • Cain’s envy of his brother turned to anger and hatred, and eventually murder.
  • Thousands of years later, the Pharisees did the same thing to Jesus, and Jesus called them children of the devil.

Hatred

While we may have never actually murdered someone, John makes it clear in verse fifteen that “Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer.” The only difference between murder and hatred is the outward act of taking someone’s life. The inward intent is the same. Let’s take a closer look at this issue.

  • Maybe we haven’t killed anyone because of the consequences.
    • The fear of arrest and shame.
    • The possibility of spending a long time in jail.
    • The possibility of the death penalty.
  • The issue isn’t “what did you do?” but “what did you want to do?”
    • If you had the liberty to do what you wanted without the fear of consequences, what would you have done?
    • Jesus equates hatred with murder (Matthew 5:21-26) and lust with adultery (Matthew 5:27-30).
  • This doesn’t mean that hatred or lust does the same amount of damage to others as murder and adultery. It won’t carry the same level of guilt. But in God’s eyes, it’s just as bad.
  • There are three options for the interpretation of what John is saying in verse fifteen.
    • The face-value view: If you hate another person to the point of being willing or actually killing them, you are not a Christian.
    • The abiding view: The Christian, as long as they are living in a conscious relationship with Jesus, would never kill anyone. If they do, it’s because they are not abiding in Christ.
    • The continuing-to-hate view: A Christian may hate or murder someone, but if this happened, they would be filled with remorse. If they harbor continual hate or have no remorse for their feelings or actions, they are not a Christian.
  • The passage isn’t saying murderers can’t be saved. Paul was involved in the stoning of Stephen (Acts 7:57-60) and admitted he had voted to put innocent people to death (Acts 26:9-11, 1 Timothy 1:12-15). But he was saved by God’s grace.
  • The point isn’t whether or not a murderer can become a Christian. The point is whether someone can continue being a murderer and still be a Christian. Verse fifteen emphatically states the answer to that question is “no.”
  • The continuing-to-hate view is the proper understanding of verse fifteen.

Indifference

The test of Christian love isn’t simply avoiding doing evil to others. Love involves doing good to others. In a way, Christian love is both positive and negative. Christian love involves stopping activities of evil and doing what is good (Isaiah 1:16-17).

  • Cain is an example of false love.
  • Jesus is the example of true love.
    • Jesus laid down His life for others (John 3:16).
      • Jesus didn’t just talk about sacrifice.
      • He willingly died to remove our sins.
    • We are to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters (1 John 3:16).
      • John isn’t telling us to sacrifice our lives for our brothers and sisters.
      • He is telling us to sacrifice to help those in need.
  • Self-preservation is the first law of physical life, but self-sacrifice is the first law of spiritual life.
  • We can talk about loving other believers, but when we fail to help them in times of need, our actions don’t mirror our words.
  • Christian love is personal and active.
  • As believers, we don’t have to be intentional to hate others. We can do it by ignoring them or having an indifferent heart.
  • To meet the needs of others, three conditions must be met.
    • Have the ability to meet the needs.
    • Know the need exists.
    • Be loving enough to want to meet the need.
  • A believer who doesn’t have the means to help or is unaware of the need is not guilty. But the believer who hardens their heart and chooses not to meet the need is guilty.
  • Meeting the needs of others can be satisfied in various ways.
    • Through monetary gifts.
    • Through material gifts.
    • Through serving gifts.
    • Through time gifts.
  • If we desire to experience and enjoy the love of God, we must love others, even if it requires a sacrifice on our part.
  • When we are indifferent to the needs of others, we rob ourselves of what we need, the love of God in our hearts.

Christian Love

John now goes on to discuss the difference between false and true Christian love. 

  • False love.
    • To love “with word” means to only talk about the need but not take any action to meet the need.
    • A believer may pray about the need but take no action to meet the need, even though they are capable of meeting the need.
  • True love.
    • Not just knowing or talking about a need but taking action to meet the need.
    • It often requires a sacrifice of some sort by the person meeting the need.
    • The greatest love sacrifice was Jesus going to the cross for each of us.
  • The actual test of our Christian love is when we are called on to make a sacrifice for a brother or sister and we willingly take that action.
  • A believer’s relationship with others affects their relationship with God.
    • When our relationship with others is not right, we need to fix that (Matthew 5:23-24).
    • A condemning heart or accusing conscience will rob us of peace.
    • When a believer practices “active love,” they grow in their understanding of God, and their heart is filled with peace.
    • A believer also needs to be careful not to allow the devil to accuse them and rob them of their confidence falsely.
      • Once a sin is recognized and confessed, it is forgiven.
      • They shouldn’t continue to beat themselves up over the sin.
      • Although we shouldn’t treat sin lightly, often, we are harder on ourselves than God is on us.
  • When we love others, and our relationship with them and God is right, it gives us confidence in coming to God with our prayers.
  • This confidence isn’t “earning answered prayers,” but an understanding that when we are living in a right relationship with God, our prayers will align with His will.
    • If believers aren’t obeying God’s Word, their prayer life will be hindered (Psalm 66:18).
    • One of the great secrets of answered prayer is obedience.
    • The secret of obedience is love.
      • John 14:15.
      • John 15:7, 10.
    • We must also remember that the reason why we are obedient is important.
      • Obedience shouldn’t be out of fear or servitude. This was the sin of the older brother in the parable of the prodigal son (Luke 15:24-32).
      • Obedience should flow from a spirit of love toward God. When we live to please God, we will find that God will find ways to please us (Psalm 37:4).
  • The last two verses of this passage sum up the obligations of a Christian.
    • Faith toward God and love toward man.
    • Christianity is faith working through love (Galatians 5:6).
      • It’s easy to focus on faith and neglect loving others.
      • At the same time, some may ignore sound doctrine and focus only on love.
      • Both faith/doctrine and love are vital.
    • Abiding in Christ is a key factor in a believer having confidence in God and enjoying answered prayers.
      • John 15:1-14.
      • Jesus is talking about bearing fruit, not salvation.
      • As long as the branch draws its strength from the vine, it will produce fruit. But if it is separated, it will wither and die.
    • When a believer walks in love, it is easy to obey God and maintain a close relationship with Him.
  • The Holy Spirit is also key.
    • The Holy Spirit empowers us.
    • The Holy Spirit guides and directs us.
    • The Holy Spirit reveals the truth.
    • The Holy Spirit will convict us when we stray.

Applications

  • Examine how you treat others. Do you exhibit murder, hatred, or indifference to them, especially when there is a need you can meet? Or do you exhibit Christian love? Although none of us will be perfect in this area, an evaluation of how often we fall into each category will reveal the condition of our heart.
  • Do your actions match your words/thoughts/prayers? Scripture is clear that only thinking or praying about a situation is not enough if you have the ability to act and help in a situation. We are called to act when someone has a need. Pray for the Holy Spirit to reveal these inconsistencies in your life. 
  • When we realize we have fallen short in meeting the needs of someone. Repent, confess, meet the need if it still exists, and take comfort in the fact that when we fall short, God knows our heart. Those who are followers of Christ are not condemned. Don’t let your past shortcomings weigh you down and keep you from moving forward. When that happens, we fall prey to the traps of the devil.
truthproject777

1 John Lesson Four

1 John Lesson Four: 1 John 2:18-27 – The Importance of Right Belief

18 Children, it is the last hour. And as you have heard, “Antichrist is coming,” even now many antichrists have come. We know from this that it is the last hour. 19 They went out from us, but they did not belong to us; for if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us. However, they went out so that it might be made clear that none of them belongs to us. 

20 But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you have knowledge. 21 I have not written to you because you don’t know the truth, but because you do know it, and because no lie comes from the truth. 22 Who is the liar, if not the one who denies that Jesus is the Messiah? This one is the antichrist: the one who denies the Father and the Son. 23 No one who denies the Son can have the Father; he who confesses the Son has the Father as well. 

24 What you have heard from the beginning must remain in you. If what you have heard from the beginning remains in you, then you will remain in the Son and in the Father.  25 And this is the promise that He Himself made to us: eternal life. 26 I have written these things to you about those who are trying to deceive you. 

27 The anointing you received from Him remains in you, and you don’t need anyone to teach you. Instead, His anointing teaches you about all things and is true and is not a lie; just as He has taught you, remain in Him. (HCSB)

I will split this lesson into two parts.

  • The Antichrist and false believers – verses 18-23.
  • Remaining steadfast and obedient – verses 24-27.

The Antichrist and False Believers

John’s letter was written to believers who were facing many of the same challenges we face today, false teachers (antichrists) who lead people away from the true Gospel and Scripture. These individuals, both then and now, tear apart the unity which should be present in the church. The antichrists follow and teach heretical Christology and lead believers astray and in opposition to Christ. Let’s look at the challenges facing the readers of John’s letter.

  • The antichrists were secessionists. Instead of maintaining unity, they left the church.
  • They taught a docetic Christology; Jesus’ human body was an illusion. They only believed in the divinity of Jesus and not the human element.
  • There were some who only believed in the human side, not believing that Jesus was also God.
  • Either interpretation is possible depending on how one understands verse twenty-two.

Today there are several false teachings that have risen in the church.

  • The idea of more than two genders.
  • The acceptance of same-sex marriage. 
  • The prosperity Gospel. 
  • Avoiding teaching the holiness of God and the dangers of sin.

There are more, but these are probably the main ones you may face in today’s church. However, John makes it clear these antichrists shouldn’t discourage us or make us surprised. Scripture is clear that in the “last days,” the period after Christ’s resurrection and before His return, there will be false teachers, and people will search after the “truth” that is attractive to them. 

Verse nineteen contains a two-pronged warning.

  • The shallow teaching and lack of discipleship prevalent in the modern church have created believers who will abandon the faith at the first sign of challenges or persecution.
    • Scripture is clear that following Jesus comes at a cost.
      • Believers aren’t guaranteed an easy life.
      • Sacrifice is often required of believers.
      • Believes may be sent to a location they wouldn’t choose.
      • Hardship, at some point, is to be expected.
    • Many modern churches don’t disciple believers, both new and mature.
      • When we look at how Jesus interacted with those around Him, we see a system where He taught, and then they applied the teaching. 
      • Discipleship isn’t a six or twelve-week course; it is a lifestyle that results in transformation.
      • Biblical teaching is often offensive and runs counter to the world. Yet, that is precisely how believers should live.
  • There are antichrists, wolves, in both leadership roles as well as in the general congregation.
    • Those in leadership roles are more dangerous.
      • They use their position to promote false teaching.
      • They will accuse those who disagree with them of being intolerant or not expressing “love.”
      • At times they can bring an entire church down or lead a large group away from the faith.
    • The congregational wolves may not create as much widespread damage, but they shouldn’t be underestimated. They can be just like cancer, slowly spreading their damage through the church.

What do we have to protect ourselves from these dangers? John talks about anointing and knowledge.

  • The anointing clearly points to the Holy Spirit.
    • Jesus was anointed by the Holy Spirit at the beginning of His ministry.
    • Scripture teaches that Jesus will send the “Spirit of truth” in John 14:17.
    • The Holy Spirit will teach believers all things – John 14:26.
  • The knowledge points to the Bible.
    • We are taught about God.
    • We are taught how to be obedient and what is expected.
    • We are warned about false teachers.
    • The Bible is the sole source of truth and instruction in a fallen world.

When John is talking about the truth, he is talking about Scripture. If we are followers of Christ, we should be immersing ourselves in reading the Bible. If we do that, we are constantly feeding on the truth. When believers don’t constantly immerse themselves in Scripture, they are in danger of falling for lies and falling away from God.

John now switches from believers who know and follow the truth to those who deny the truth contained in Scripture.

  • The main lie John addresses here is the false teaching that Jesus is not the Messiah.
    • Those who deny that Jesus is the Messiah are on the side of the antichrist.
    • John uses the word “liar” as a connotation for the devil.
    • In Johannine theology, the height of heresy is the denial of Jesus as the Messiah.
  • The designation of antichrist has a two-fold meaning.
    • In one sense, it is the specific apocalyptic figure who will arise at the end of time.
    • It also is a designation for anyone who opposes Jesus by rejecting His true identity.
  • In both cases, the end result is both the Father and the Son.
    • While the false teachers may not have denied the Father, their actions created a different consequence for them.
    • By denying that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, the Father is implicitly denied.
    • Therefore, by denying that Jesus is the Messiah, they demonstrate they never truly knew the Father.
    • Acceptance of denial of Jesus is equivalent to acceptance of denial of the Father – John 10:30 The Father and I are one.
  • A person who denies the Son has no child-parent relationship with God. A believer enters a relationship with the Father through their relationship with Jesus. Matthew 10:32-33 “Therefore, everyone who will acknowledge Me before men, I will also acknowledge him before My Father in heaven. 33 But whoever denies Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father in heaven.”

Remaining Steadfast and Obedient

As we begin this section, there are two important points to emphasize.

  • John hammers home the point of steadfast faithfulness with the word “remain.” He uses it three times in verse twenty-four.
    • The relationship where the believer remains firmly rooted with God through their relationship with Jesus can’t be underemphasized. It is key to the entire relationship.
    • John highlights the order, first through the Son and then through the Father. As mentioned previously, without a relationship with the Son, there is no relationship with the Father.
    • When the relationship is done according to Scripture, the believer gets a relationship with the Son and the Father.
  • The second point to discuss is the meaning of “what you have heard from the beginning.”
    • There are three possible interpretations of this phrase. Let’s look at each one in increasing relevance.
      • It could refer to Jesus’ preexistence with the Father.
      • It could refer to the possibility of the readers hearing Jesus’ message in person during His time of ministry.
      • It is most likely referring to the original apostolic message prior to and at their time of conversion.
    • This would contrast with the false message the heretics were speaking and which John was warning them about. 

Verse twenty-five begins with “and,” indicating a blessing we receive when we remain in what we’ve heard from the beginning. Let’s look at a couple of things from this verse.

  • The Greek form of the verb is present tense, indicating the promise is available now for those who believe Jesus is the Messiah.
  • Who does “the promise that He…made” refer to?
    • The structure of the grammar allows it to refer to both the Father and the Son.
    • However, from a functional standpoint, the promise of eternal life comes from the Father through the Son.
    • Through this section, John stresses the relationship with both the Father and the Son. Therefore, it makes the best sense to interpret that John is referring to both with the term “He.”
  • The promise is eternal life. The promise should be understood in a two-pronged meaning.
    • It refers to the future promise of eternal life with the Father and Son.
    • It also refers to the present experience of a relationship with the Father and the Son.
    • In both John’s Gospel and this letter, eternal life refers to both the present and the future.
      • The forgiveness of sins has moved the believer from darkness to light in the present age.
      • The defeat of sin and death through the cross and the resurrection of Jesus secures the believer a future dwelling place in the kingdom of God.

As John moves into verse twenty-six, he returns to the warning about the false teachers, the antichrists.

  • The false teachers believed and were teaching a false doctrine.
  • Their goal was to drag others away from the faith.
  • Not only was this a danger in John’s time, but it also a danger we face today with false teachers. Believers need to be on guard against false teaching, challenge it, and warn others when they identify it.

As John moves into the final verse of this passage, he tells the readers to remain rooted in the teaching and illumination of the Holy Spirit.

  • John is referring to a linking of the Spirit and the Word in this verse.
    • The Word is the source of absolute truth, and the Spirit enables us to understand this truth and gives us the strength to put it into practice.
    • When the two are combined, it gives the believer the ability to discern and avoid false teachers and teaching.
  • The reader might misunderstand and think John is telling them they don’t need human teachers.
    • John does not deny the importance of sound human teaching.
    • The fact John wrote this epistle to the readers is proof that John values human teaching.
  • John ends this passage with the phrase, “remain in Him.” This reminds us of Jesus’ words in John 15:4, “remain in Me.” To remain in Jesus is only possible when the believer has a close personal relationship with the Father through the Son.

Applications

  • Believers need to cling to the truth that Jesus is the divine Son of God. Jesus is both fully human and fully divine. Jesus was born of a virgin, lived a sinless life, was crucified, died, was buried, and on the third day, He rose and sits at the right hand of the Father.
  • Let the Spirit lead your life. The Spirit should both illuminate you to the truth in Scripture as well as those who spew false teaching. 
  • When we identify false teaching, we need to confront it and warn others about it. It’s not enough to do only one. Suppose we saw a criminal but didn’t warn others; that wouldn’t be right. The same idea applies to false teachers. It’s not enough to identify them. We also need to warn others, so they aren’t harmed by them.
truthproject777

1 Peter Lesson Two

1 Peter 1:13-25 – Holy Living

13 Therefore, with your minds ready for action, be serious and set your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 14 As obedient children, do not be conformed to the desires of your former ignorance. 15 But as the One who called you is holy, you also are to be holy in all your conduct; 16 for it is written, Be holy, because I am holy.

17 And if you address as Father the One who judges impartially based on each one’s work, you are to conduct yourselves in fear during the time of your temporary residence. 18 For you know that you were redeemed from your empty way of life inherited from the fathers, not with perishable things like silver or gold,  19 but with the precious blood of Christ,  like that of a lamb without defect or blemish. 20 He was chosen before the foundation of the world but was revealed at the end of the times for you 21 who through Him are believers in God, who raised Him from the dead and gave Him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.

22 By obedience to the truth, having purified yourselves for sincere love of the brothers, love one another earnestly from a pure heart, 23 since you have been born again—not of perishable seed but of imperishable—through the living and enduring word of God. 24 For

All flesh is like grass,

and all its glory like a flower of the grass.

The grass withers, and the flower falls,

25 but the word of the Lord endures forever.

And this is the word that was preached as the gospel to you. (HCSB)

There are three imperatives in this passage.

  • Unshakable hope in Jesus, verse 13
  • Holiness, verse 15
  • Live in reverent fear, verse 17

Verses 13-16

Verse 13

The word “therefore” reaches back to the first twelve verses in the letter. The readers are encouraged to live a godly life because they have a foundation in God’s saving work explained in verses 1-12. Order is essential here.

  • What God has done for us.
  • How we should live our lives.

If the order is reversed, we have a works-based righteousness instead of holiness being a result of God’s grace and power and our response to the love Jesus displayed by going to the cross.

  • Minds ready for action – means to be ready to undertake serious work.
  • Be serious – some translations have “sober” here. Sober is to be understood as having clear minds not impaired, distracted, or controlled by the things of the world.

Verse 14

There are several ideas flowing beneath the surface of this verse.

  • Even as followers of Jesus, we struggle with the temptation of this world and the danger of falling away from God.
  • However, as God’s children, we are to fight those temptations by living a life of obedience through faith and in God’s power and strength.
  • Just as children often have similarities with their earthly parents, we are to be similar to our heavenly Father.

Verse 15

  • The idea of being “called” should not be viewed as an invitation. Instead, it is a picture of God’s power in drawing people from a life in darkness to a life of light, from death to life.
  • Once again, the order is important. God’s power has pulled us from darkness and now equips us to live in holiness if we are obedient.
    • God’s people are to live differently from the world.
    • God’s people separate themselves from the evil desires of the world.
    • To be holy means to be apart from evil.

Verse 16

  • Why are we to be holy?
  • Because God is holy, and if we are God’s people, we should reflect God’s character.
    • Leviticus 11:44-45 For I am Yahweh your God, so you must consecrate yourselves and be holy because I am holy. You must not defile yourselves by any swarming creature that crawls on the ground. For I am Yahweh, who brought you up from the land of Egypt to be your God, so you must be holy because I am holy.
    • When thinking about Old Testament covenants, before Israel could be a blessing to other nations, they first had to be holy.
    • Holiness is the starting point for God’s covenant people.
  • Holy doesn’t mean sinless perfection. That is impossible in this life. It does mean to be set apart. If we are God’s children, then we should be acting like Him.

Verses 17-21 Theme is to live in reverent fear.

Verse 17

  • Believers are to live in fear of Yahweh.
  • The question is, what type of fear is Peter talking about?
    • Reverent fear – a feeling of utmost respect and honor towards Yahweh.
    • Terror fear – a feeling of trepidation and apprehension.
    • From the context of the passage and the general concept of the Christian life as being a life filled with joy, it seems clear that Peter is talking about reverent fear.
    • At the same time, we need to examine whether our reverent fear is still…reverent or if it has become dull over time.
    • A responsible and confident driver also has a healthy fear for the damage that their vehicle could inflict on others through reckless behavior.
  • Our loving Father will also be our impartial judge on the last day.

Verse 18

The first idea to note is that verses 18-19 together form a negative/positive couplet. First, Peter illustrates what does not redeem someone with what does redeem someone.

  • Redeemed
    • Signifies liberation.
    • In this verse, it signifies leaving the emptiness of life they inherited from their fathers.
    • In the Old Testament emptiness is often associated with the idol worship practiced by pagans.
    • In the New Testament, it illustrates pre-Christian life.
      • Romans 1:21  For though they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God or show gratitude. Instead, their senseless minds were darkened.
      • Ephesians 4:17  Therefore, I say this and testify in the Lord: You should no longer walk as the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their thoughts.
    • The life of unbelievers is a life characterized by futility, emptiness, and chasing after false gods.
      • Pursuing money.
      • Pursuing possessions.
      • Both are temporary.

Verse 19

The details of the purchase price are now revealed.

  • In contrast to the temporary things the lost pursue, believers are purchased with the everlasting and infinitely precious blood of Jesus.
  • Jesus poured out His life to redeem sinners.
  • Early Christians believed that Christ’s sacrifice as the sinless lamb fulfilled:
    • The Passover.
    • The prophetic suffering servant.
    • The entire Old Testament sacrificial system.

Verse 20

There are two main thoughts here:

  • Before the foundation of the world.
    • It was not mere chance that brought Jesus into the world at that particular time and place.
    • It was part of God’s plan.
    • Ephesians 1:4  For He chose us in Him, before the foundation of the world, to be holy and blameless in His sight.
  • Revealed at the end of the times.
    • Followers of Jesus enjoy the blessing of living at the time God is fulfilling His saving promises.
    • “The end of the times” signifies the time that started with the ministry, death, and resurrection of Jesus.
    • This does not mean, and should not be confused with, the eschatological end times.
    • Peter indicates that Jesus’ birth, life, and death ushered in “the end of the times.”

Verse 21

  • We are believers in God through Jesus, not through any other means. John 14:6b  No one comes to the Father except through Me.
  • Believers put their faith in God because of the finished work of Jesus.
  • Jesus’ resurrection is the foundation of the living hope found in 1:3.
  • A holy life is a life that trusts in God’s promises.
  • A holy life is one in which God is prized above all things, in which believers trust and hope in His goodness.

Verses 22-25 The theme is a command to love each other.

Verse 22

  • Purpose of their conversion is to love fellow believers.
  • It is achieved by obedience to the truth – faith in God’s promises of salvation.
  • It rises from a pure heart that has been cleansed by the blood of Jesus.
  • Peter uses two different Greek words for love in this verse.
    • One is brotherly love.
    • One is divine love, agape.
    • Unbelievers can display brotherly love to each other. However, it takes a Christian controlled by the Holy Spirit to show agape love.

Verse 23

  • Peter explains the origin of their birth.
    • Not of a perishable seed – human birth.
    • But of an imperishable seed – the Word of God.
      • Romans 10:17  So faith comes from what is heard, and what is heard comes through the message about Christ.
      • Galatians 3:2  I only want to learn this from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law or by hearing with faith?
    • A seed and the Word have similar characteristics.
      • A seed is small but, once planted has the power of life in it and produces fruit.
      • The Word is small and seemingly insignificant. Yet, it has power and life within it. The Word must be planted to do good, but when it is planted in a person’s heart, it produces good fruit.
      • Fruit produced by the Word is lasting, eternal fruit, but things of the flesh don’t last.

Verse 24

  • Peter quotes the text from Isaiah 40:6-8 here.
    • Israel will be restored from their exile in Babylon.
    • Babylon was viewed as invincible at the time that Israel was taken into exile.
    • Those persecuting the recipients of Peter’s letter may have been viewed as invincible.
    • In both cases, Peter is saying that their power is short-lived and that Yahweh and His people endure forever.

Vese 25

  • God’s Word is enduring.
  • It is imperishable.
  • Nothing can overpower God.
  • The promises contained in Isaiah are fulfilled in the proclamation of the Gospel.

Applications.

  • Do you take your faith seriously and prepare yourself for spiritual work? Peter’s words at the beginning of this passage exhort us always to be prepared and to have the proper attitude towards our salvation.
  • Do you take the holiness of God seriously and have a reverent fear of God? We love to read the passages that tell us how loving and merciful God is, which is true. But we often neglect or ignore the passages that tell us that God is also our judge. An infinitely holy God can’t be in the presence of sin. Will our lives allow us to enter into God’s presence or will we be cast out of His presence? We would do well to remember Matthew 7:23 Then I will announce to them, “I never knew you! Depart from Me, you lawbreakers.”
  • Do we immerse ourselves in the Word? We need to be reading the Bible daily, feeding on the truths contained in it. Those seeds of truth will plant themselves in our hearts and grow, producing fruit in our lives.
  • Do we have agape love for our brothers and sisters? Many countries have large megachurches, which in themselves are not necessarily bad. However, they often feel impersonal, and there is little to no connection with other believers. When we look back at the church in the book of Acts, we see a church that closely connected believers together. Make sure you are connected with a church that promotes connecting in smaller groups, replicating the intimacy that is found in the early church.

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Sermon on the Mount Lesson Eight

The Truth About Oaths – Matthew 5:33-37

This is the eighth part of the series as we continue our journey through the Sermon on the Mount, covering Matthew 5:33-37.

33 “Again, you have heard that it was said to our ancestors,  You must not break your oath, but you must keep your oaths to the Lord. 34 But I tell you, don’t take an oath at all: either by heaven, because it is God’s throne; 35 or by the earth, because it is His footstool; or by Jerusalem, because it is the city of the great King. 36 Neither should you swear by your head, because you cannot make a single hair white or black. 37 But let your word ‘yes’ be ‘yes,’ and your ‘no’ be ‘no.’  Anything more than this is from the evil one. (HCSB)

Before digging into the passage itself, we need to define one term and understand how it was interpreted in 1st century Israel and why Jesus is focusing on it in this passage.

Oath – A solemn vow or promise to fulfill a pledge. Any breach of one’s undertaking affirmed by an oath would be attended by a curse. An example is the Lord affirmed that he had established a covenant and a curse with Israel; that is, a breach of the covenant would be followed by a curse (Elwell).

Deuteronomy 29:14-15 14 I am making this covenant and this oath not only with you, 15 but also with those who are standing here with us today in the presence of the Lord our God and with those who are not here today.

The oath was a manner of guaranteeing a promise in Israelite society and the ancient Near East. The parties of the covenant invoked their deity, or deities, to witness the agreement, then bound themselves with specific sanctions, curses and blessings, symbolized by melting substitutionary wax figures or cutting animals in half, as seen in 1 Samuel 11:7  He took a team of oxen, cut them in pieces, and sent them throughout the land of Israel by messengers who said, “This is what will be done to the ox of anyone who doesn’t march behind Saul and Samuel.” As a result, the terror of the Lord fell on the people, and they went out united.

Oath-taking became quite complicated in intertestamental Judaism. The system of binding vows was so complicated as to allow the initiator to deceive anyone not familiar with the system. The net result was that the oath became a primary means of defrauding outsiders, hence Jesus’ condemnation of the system as examined in this passage (Myers).

This may seem like a long-winded discourse on the definition of an oath, but since it is the main point of the passage, it is important that we completely understand the setting and circumstances that Jesus is addressing here.

In various places in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus is reminding the Jews about things they should already know or understand. That applies to this passage. The Jewish teachers had always insisted on the paramount obligation of telling the truth. The Rabbis had various saying about the obligation of telling the truth.

  • The world stands fast on three things, on justice, on truth, and on peace.
  • Four persons are shut out from the presence of God—the scoffer, the hypocrite, the liar, and the retailer of slander.
  • One who has given his word and who changes it is as bad as an idolater (Barclay).

This is especially true if the truth was guaranteed by an oath. Exodus 20:7 – Do not misuse the name of the Lord your God, because the Lord will not leave anyone unpunished who misuses His name. This verse is not talking about the use of bad language. Instead, it is talking about breaking an oath promised in the name of Yahweh. Numbers 30:2 When a man makes a vow to the Lord or swears an oath to put himself under an obligation, he must not break his word; he must do whatever he has promised.

Jesus was speaking not against oaths themselves but against the abuses of oaths and the corresponding abuse of the truth that went with them. We see this most clearly when we look in the broadest way at the positive teaching about oaths throughout Scripture. In the Law, the Jews were instructed to make oaths in the name of Yahweh. Deuteronomy 10:20 You are to fear Yahweh your God and worship Him. Remain faithful to Him and take oaths in His name.

We also read where Yahweh took oaths. The Abrahamic Covenant is an example. God promised that the land would be Abrahams’ and would belong to his seed forever.

What Jesus is talking about is a two-fold situation that had become commonplace in 1st century Israel.

  • Taking an oath when it was neither necessary nor proper. People who did this swore by their life or any other “thing.” The result was that even the most solemn statements appeared to be on this level also. It was exactly as if a servant who lived in the household of an honorable state official should go around talking about the honorable house, the honorable chair, the honorable mop, or the honorable dishpan. His speech would then have much less meaning when he called the lord of the house, “your honor.” In opposition to this, Jesus often insisted, as many of the rabbis did also, that the use of an oath to substantiate a simple statement was wrong.
  • The second perversion of the proper use of oaths by the people of Christ’s time was worse. It was evasive swearing. People who were afraid to swear by the name of the Lord because they were not telling the full truth began to swear by things, and because mere things were not thought to be as significant as the name of God, this second class of oaths was not considered to be binding. Some persons swore by:
    • Their own life 1 Samuel 1:26  Please, my lord,” she said, “as sure as you live,  my lord, I am the woman who stood here beside you praying to the Lord.
    • Their health Psalm 15:4  who despises the one rejected by the Lord but honors those who fear the Lord, who keeps his word whatever the cost.
    • Others swore by the king 1 Sam. 17:55 Then the woman said to Elijah, “Now I know you are a man of God  and the Lord’s word from your mouth is true.”
    • Others swore, as Jesus indicates, by their head, the earth, heaven, the temple, or Jerusalem, Matthew 5:34–36.
    • All such oaths were evasive (Boice).

Yahweh hates false oaths.

  • Zechariah 8:17  Do not plot evil in your hearts against your neighbor, and do not love perjury, for I hate all this”—this is the Lord’s declaration.
  • Ecclesiastics 5:5  Better that you do not vow than that you vow and not fulfill it.

What is Jesus talking about in the last verse, the reference to the evil one? There are likely two ways to view this.

  • If it is necessary to take an oath from someone, that necessity arises from the evil that is in the individual. If there were no evil in that person, an oath wouldn’t be necessary. The fact that it is sometimes necessary to make someone take an oath is a demonstration of the evil in Christless human nature.
  • The fact that it is necessary to make people take an oath in certain situations comes from the fact that this is an evil world. In a perfect world, in a world which was the kingdom of God, no taking of oaths would be necessary. It is necessary only because of the evil in the world.

What Jesus is saying is this, a truly good person will never need to take an oath; the truth of the sayings and the reality of the promises of that person doesn’t need a guarantee. But the fact that oaths are still necessary is the proof that people are not good and that this is not a good world. This places two obligations upon the Christian.

  • To make ourselves such that others will so see our transparent goodness that they will never ask an oath from us.
  • To seek to make this world such a world that falsehood and infidelity will be so eliminated from it that the necessity for oaths will be abolished (Barclay).

Jesus is addressing here, as He does in many places of Scripture, an issue with our hearts. Jesus understands the deceitfulness of the human heart, for people sometimes invoked an oath in order to conceal an attempt to deceive. By contrast, Jesus’ disciples should be people of such integrity of character and truthfulness of heart that whatever they say is absolutely believable and dependable. A person of integrity is one who, in daily conversation, is so truthful, dependable, genuine, straightforward, and reliable that his or her words are believed without an oath.

Jesus’ point is that a disciple’s simple word should be considered as trustworthy as a signed document or contract. When he goes further to suggest that “anything beyond this is evil,” Jesus indicates that swearing by something in order to deceive can only have one source—the evil one, Satan (Wilkins).

How do we apply this passage to our lives?

  • Examine our lives. Are we truthful and trustworthy? If not, we need to start there and change our behavior.
  • Do we trust our Christian brothers and sisters? If not, is it because of something they did previously? If that is true, we need to discuss that with them to clear the air.
  • Our lives and words should confirm our trustworthiness and preclude the need to make promises to our Christian brothers and sisters.
  • Our internal “heart condition” will manifest itself in our external action. There is an indestructible link between the two. Obedience to Jesus and His teachings will shape our heart condition, which in turn will lead to a fruitful life. If you are not producing fruit have you done a heart examination lately?