Studies in 1st John: a Letter to the Children (Part 1)

© 2025 C. O. Bishop

Introduction:

The Apostle John wrote this letter (called “the first epistle general of John” in many Bibles.) Most people call it, simply, “1^st John”. He wrote the epistle near the end of his life, probably in about 90 AD. (Possibly just before his exile to the island of Patmos, where he wrote the Revelation, six years later.)

John addresses the believers as “teknia.” That is the Greek word meaning “little children.” He does not use “huioi,” meaning “sons… adult sons: heirs.” In this book, John only uses the word “huion” (singular) in the references to Jesus Christ, as THE Son of God.

The word “teknia” literally means “born ones.”. The word “huion” carries the additional connotation of a legal relationship as an heir. “Teknia” only carries a familial connotation, and is a term of tender care…we are His “offspring.”

Five Objectives

John states five purposes in writing the letter. These are effects he desires to accomplish in our lives by the means of this letter.

1. That you may have fellowship with other believers, the Father and the Son. (1:3)
2. That your joy may be full. (1:4)
3. That you will not sin. (2:1)
4. That you may KNOW (“eidēte”—meaning to “know now, as a fact”) that you have eternal life. (5:13)
5. That you may [continue to] believe on the name of the Son of God. (5:13) (The words “continue to” are not in the Greek. But the word “pisteuēte” is in the present tense, implying a generally continuous action in the present time.) (“Pisteuō”  is the infinitive verb, “to believe.”

If we can accomplish these five things in our study I will be happy, too. But this is the beginning place for a disciple. This is where we learn how to maintain our relationship with God and with His people.

Chapter 1

John Introduces His Grand Topic: Jesus, the “Word of Life”

The first two verses could almost be seen as the “subject line” on a report:

“That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, and our hands have handled of the Word of Life; (for the Life was manifested , and we have seen it and bear witness, and shew unto you that eternal life which was with the Father and was manifested unto us;)”

Notice that John leaves no doubt that he and the other apostles were valid witnesses. They had no collective “vision.” Nor was it a carefully crafted story, concocted, and agreed upon by all. Jesus lived and worked among them. They saw Him in person. They heard him speak, not only in sermons, and “teaching moments,” but in casual, everyday life. He was their personal mentor: they learned who He was, by full, daily contact, continually, for three years or more.

You can do this, too, in a way. The more time you spend with Jesus, in the Word, in prayer, and in your daily walk, the better you will know Him!

The Fellowship Objective

³ That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ.

John introduced the subject of the book: Namely, the message that God gave him to share with the other believers. Then he declares the first purpose: that we should have full fellowship with God and with one another. Some commentators break this into two separate issues. In a sense you could accurately do so. It is technically possible for you to be in fellowship with God, and out of fellowship with other believers. (Unusual, but it could happen.)

That is relatively rare, however. Usually, when we have a problem with other believers, it is not just “their problem.” We usually cannot just “go on fellowshipping with God,” and ignore the issue between us and the other brother or sister. We are also commanded to “endeavor to keep the unity of the Spirit in the Bond of Peace.” (Ephesians 4:3)

This subject “Sin versus Fellowship,” will dominate much of the first Epistle of John. But John introduces a second purpose for the book in the very next verse.

The Joy Objective: “That Your Joy May be Full”

⁴ And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full.

Don’t miss John’s second stated purpose in writing. “That Your Joy May be Full.” If we desire Joy, we need to prioritize fellowship. You will not experience the Joy of the Lord when you are not in fellowship with Him. Amos 3:3 poses the rhetorical question, “Can two walk together, except they be agreed?” (And, the implied answer is “No! They can’t!”)

If we are missing the Joy of the Lord, we need to ask “Why?” You can ask yourself, “Am I doing what God wants me to do right now? If so, am I simply under attack from the enemy? Do I need to use the shield of faith more diligently, and draw closer to the Lord in trust?”

Or, have you allowed other relationships or other pursuits to lure you away? Have you left behind the Centrality of Christ in your Life? This is the only mention of “joy” in this epistle. He mentions “joy” only once in each of his epistles. I don’t know why.

Fellowship with Others and with God

⁵ This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. ⁶ If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth:⁷ But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.

Initially, we may feel that our disagreement with someone else is “just their problem”. But we usually get frustrated or angry ourselves, and then we have sin to confess as well. Also, usually, whatever breaks fellowship between us and another believer will also break fellowship with God. So, what breaks fellowship between us and God?

What Breaks Fellowship With God?

Only Sin. We can’t rightly call it anything else. But bear in mind that the sin issues here in the book of 1^st John are things already dealt with at the Cross—these are believers he is addressing.

Only your fellowship with God, and your reward areat risk—you are not going to “lose your position in Christ.” The Forgiveness he will address in verse nine is relational, not positional. It has to do with “Keeping Peace in the Family of God,” not “Trying to maintain your position as His Child.”

Where Does Sin Begin?

We sometimes may say we are just “out of sorts”…(and that may be true.) But how we respond to fatigue, frustrating circumstances, etc. determines whether we go on walking with God, or we get “off in the weeds” somewhere, wondering what happened.

John puts it this way: “God is Light, and in Him is no darkness at all. If we say we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth.” John makes it the difference between day and night…the difference between light and dark. He says there is no middle ground. I am either in complete obedience to Him, or I am out of fellowship.

He makes it clear that if I am walking with Him, I have to be walking in the Light as He is in the Light. Here is the question: Am I doing now what I know He wants me to be doing, right now?” We might protest, “But I’m not always sure I know what He wants me to be doing!”

How Do I Determine God’s Will?

Consider God’s stated priorities in the Bible to be your “General Handbook for the Child of God” and see whether you can find some “General” instructions that could give you direction. It might not be any “earthshaking” revelation: It might be something as simple and “mundane” as prioritizing the things you need to do in a day, and then “doing the next thing” on that list.

In my case, if I know that I am going to be teaching soon, then I need to make certain that all the preparation is complete before I can “go do other things I would like to do.”

But, sometimes a “home task” is time-sensitive, and must be done immediately or not at all. In that case, I may choose to do that first, knowing that the result may be that I will be up late that night, completing the studying for the next class. In either case, if I am doing what I believe God wants me to do, I can confidently call on Him for help and inspiration, etc. to get things done in a timely manner.

But I do not agree with the preachers I have known who boasted, “I don’t need to study! I just open my mouth and let God fill it!” That is grossly irresponsible. (Yes, God can do that! But He commands us to “Study to show yourself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the Word of Truth.”) So, I choose to study!

We All Sin!

“⁸ If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.”

John says that we all have a sin problem. He says, “if we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.”  

But there are whole branches of Christendom who claim that you can “achieve sinless perfection” in this life. In fact, some even teach that “you lost your sin nature when you became a believer.” If that were true, the majority of the New Testament would be pointless, because believers would never need instructions as to how to avoid sin: Without a sin nature, they could never be tempted, let alone sin and need to restore fellowship.

(In Romans 7:17-25, Paul taught very clearly that he had his old sin nature, and that his new nature desired only to follow God, but his old nature rebelled. He saw his only hope for victory in the Person of Christ.)

How To Restore Fellowship With God

⁹ If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

John goes on to give the means by which to regain fellowship…he says, “if we confess out sins, He is faithful and just, to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

I learned this verse fairly early as a believer, but I still did not understand how important and how simple it truly is: It does not say, “as a last resort, come crawling to God begging for forgiveness!” He says, confess (agree with God concerning) your sin, and He will immediately forgive you and you can begin walking with Him again!

When I was in Bible School, a friend told me that he had not known of this verse at all, for about two years: So anytime he was out of fellowship, it felt to him as though he had lost his salvation. He encountered a couple of older Christians who taught him about the issue of fellowship, and showed him this passage. He told me, “Chet, it was just like getting saved all over again! I finally knew how to get back on my feet after having stumbled!”

If you have not memorized this verse, I would encourage you to do so, as it is one we tend to use often. As we grow in our relationship with the Lord, our conscience becomes more refined, and we find ourselves confessing sin that we once would have completely overlooked, in our ignorance. It may seem that we are actually “sinning more,” but usually it is just a matter of “seeing” things we never saw before.

A Practical Example

I had a friend at work, from El Salvador, who had to go back to El Salvador for a few days. He had been gone for ten years, so he thought it would be wonderful to “be home again.”

But he found out that it was no longer “home.” He was sweating profusely, in the heat and humidity, and he was constantly aware of the lack of cleanliness around him, both in terms of personal hygiene and in food preparation. There were times when he could hardly stand being there, even though he knew that the place had not changed: HE had changed. Before emigrating, he had lived with all those realities without a problem. But, he no longer fit there: he had been in the United states too long.

How About Our Lives With God?

That old song, “This World is not my Home” is true. We are no longer citizens of this world.

As you learn to walk with God, you will become aware of things like that in your old life: sins that once were amusing to you or even pleasant and thrilling, have become not only repugnant, but grief-inspiring, as you remember that you were once a willing participant in that life.

That is why 1^st John 1:9 is so important: It allows us to quickly regain our walk with the Lord and continue to grow strong and stable in our relationship with Him.

Next week we will move on, into our study of 1^st John. You can read ahead, but we will begin with 1^st John 1:10. (Give that one some thought.)

Lord Jesus, help us to internalize Your Word, so that we keep short accounts with You as our Savior and Master. Help us to learn the reality of walking in the light, as You are in the Light, Teach us to be Your true disciples!