Grace Baby, Grace

1 John 3:16-24

1 John 3:16-24 emphasizes the nature of true love, sacrifice, and the believer's confidence in God. It begins by defining real love as Jesus laying down His life for us, which sets an example that we should also be willing to sacrifice for others. The passage underscores the importance of not merely loving in words but showing love through actions and truth, which assures us that we are living in the truth and will set our hearts at ease.

The text also discusses how our hearts may sometimes condemn us, but God is greater than our hearts and knows everything. This is reassuring, as it means that even when we doubt ourselves, God's understanding and presence transcend our self-judgment.

The latter verses focus on the confidence believers can have before God. This confidence is rooted in obeying God's commands—believing in the name of His Son, Jesus Christ, and loving one another. When we follow these commands, we live in union with God and His Son, and He with us. This relationship is confirmed and strengthened by the Spirit God has given us. Through this connection, we have the assurance that our prayers and petitions align with His will and are more likely to be answered.

Authorship

The First Epistle of John is widely attributed to John the Evangelist, traditionally identified as one of Jesus' original twelve apostles and also the author of the Gospel of John. This attribution is based on the style, language, and theological content that closely mirrors the Gospel of John. Scholars like Stephen S. Smalley support this traditional attribution due to the "internal evidence" presented in the text itself (Smalley 22).

Audience

The epistle addresses a community of early Christians, likely located around Ephesus, where John was active in his later years. This community was grappling with doctrinal disagreements, especially concerning the nature of Jesus Christ. John writes to affirm the core beliefs of Christianity against the rising influence of Gnostic ideologies, which posed a significant threat to the orthodox Christian views of the nature of Jesus (Brown 720).

Key Themes

1 John 3 emphasizes several critical themes:

  • Love as an essential nature of God: This epistle underscores that God is love, and thus, his followers must demonstrate this through loving actions towards one another ("If we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us" (1 John 4:12)).
  • Sin and righteousness: The text makes a clear distinction between the children of God and the children of the devil; those who do not practice righteousness and do not love their brothers are not of God (1 John 3:10).
  • Christ's true identity: It counters early heresies denying Jesus' humanity and divinity, emphasizing that acknowledging Jesus as the Christ is crucial to genuine faith (Kostenberger and Kellum 141).

Historical Context

Written in the late 1st century AD, around 85-95 AD, 1 John aims to consolidate Christian doctrine within the internal strife and external pressures of Gnosticism. The community John addresses had been influenced by beliefs that saw the spiritual as wholly good and the material as evil, contradicting the Christian doctrine of Jesus as fully human and divine (Coogan).

Exegesis

1 John 3:16

"This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters."

  • Exegesis: This verse defines divine love through the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus Christ. The implication for believers is clear; they are to emulate Christ's selflessness, even to the point of sacrificing their own lives for the good of others. Smalley notes that this introduces the theme of sacrificial love as the essence of Christian living (Smalley 145).

1 John 3:17

"If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person?"

  • Exegesis: John directly challenges believers to reflect on their commitment to love in practical terms. The rhetorical question emphasizes that failing to help others despite having the means to do so contradicts the claim of living by God’s love (Brown 1051).

1 John 3:18

"Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth."

  • Exegesis: This verse emphasizes the need for tangible expressions of love rather than empty declarations. It challenges believers to demonstrate their faith authentically and actively, aligning their deeds with their words (Kostenberger and Kellum 673).

1 John 3:19-20

"This is how we know that we belong to the truth and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence: If our hearts condemn us, we know that God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything."

  • Exegesis: These verses address the assurance of salvation and the role of conscience. They suggest that while self-doubt may arise, believers can be comforted by God's supreme knowledge and mercy, which surpass human understanding (Coogan 1912).

1 John 3:21-22

"Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God and receive from him anything we ask, because we keep his commands and do what pleases him."

  • Exegesis: John links the assurance of a clear conscience with confident prayer. Obedience to God's commands and living in a way that pleases Him are conditions for effective prayer, underscoring the relationship between ethical living and divine favor (Brown 1053).

1 John 3:23

"And this is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he commanded us."

  • Exegesis: This verse crystallizes the central commandments of the Christian faith: faith in Jesus and love for one another. It reinforces the inseparable link between belief in Christ and the practice of love, as taught by Jesus himself (Kostenberger and Kellum 674).

1 John 3:24

"Those who keep his commands live in him, and he in them. And this is how we know that he lives in us: We know it by the Spirit he gave us."

  • Exegesis: The presence of the Holy Spirit in believers is given as the assurance of God's indwelling. Obedience results in a mutual abiding of God and the believer, highlighting the experiential aspect of faith through the inner witness of the Holy Spirit (Smalley 150).

1 John 3:16-24 Through the Lens of Wesleyan/Methodist Theology

Examining 1 John 3:16-24 through the lens of Wesleyan/Methodist theology involves understanding how John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, and his theological successors interpret these verses, focusing mainly on their emphasis on sanctification, Christian perfection, and the practical application of love in the life of believers. Here is a breakdown of the passage with Wesleyan insights:

1 John 3:16

"This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters."

  • Wesleyan Interpretation: Wesley emphasized the sacrificial nature of Christ’s love as a model for Christian behavior. For Wesley, the act of laying down one's life was not only literal but also metaphorical, encompassing acts of mercy, charity, and self-denial for the welfare of others. This aligns with his doctrine of Christian perfection, which involves loving God and neighbors fully (Collins 112).

1 John 3:17

"If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person?"

  • Wesleyan Interpretation: Wesley often spoke against the dangers of wealth and advocated for the responsible use of resources to assist those in need. In his sermon "The Use of Money," he outlines a method of earning all you can, saving all you can, and giving all you can, reflecting this verse's practical application (Wesley, Sermon 50).

1 John 3:18

"Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth."

  • Wesleyan Interpretation: Action-oriented love is a crucial aspect of Wesleyan theology, which underscores the importance of not just professing faith but living it out through concrete actions. Wesley's teachings on social holiness highlight this commitment to active service (Outler 45).

1 John 3:19-20

"This is how we know that we belong to the truth and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence: If our hearts condemn us, we know that God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything."

  • Wesleyan Interpretation: Wesley would interpret this assurance in light of God's omniscience and grace. Even when believers feel unworthy or guilty, Wesley's doctrine of assurance teaches that God's understanding and grace surpass our own self-judgments (Heitzenrater 139).

1 John 3:21-22

"Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God and receive from him anything we ask, because we keep his commands and do what pleases him."

  • Wesleyan Interpretation: Wesley viewed this confidence as stemming from a life of holiness and obedience to God's commands. His emphasis on prayer as a means of grace fits well with the idea of receiving from God as a result of faithful living (Maddox 87).

1 John 3:23

"And this is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he commanded us."

  • Wesleyan Interpretation: Belief in Christ and love for others are foundational to Wesleyan theology. Wesley preached that faith should manifest in loving actions, a reflection of his understanding of faith as inherently active (Wesley, Sermon 17).

1 John 3:24

"Those who keep his commands live in him, and he in them. And this is how we know that he lives in us: We know it by the Spirit he gave us."

  • Wesleyan Interpretation: The indwelling of the Holy Spirit is a confirmation of God's presence in a believer's life. Wesley often spoke of the Holy Spirit's role in providing the assurance of salvation and enabling believers to live out God’s commandments effectively (Maddox 105).

Works Cited

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