The Message From 1 John

When John, apparently the apostle, did his writing, he was an older man and thought to be in Ephesus. He wrote the gospel of John, 1, 2, and 3rd John and Revelation. I will present here a few thoughts from 1 John, a book that is so helpful to us as Christians. There is no way to cover everything here, but a few thoughts might help us all.

The book begins with the reminder that John and his companions were eyewitnesses of Jesus and all that He did. We can't be witnesses in that sense, so it helps us to hear from an actual eyewitness.

He talks a lot about light and life and truth, all characteristics of Jesus, and about the importance of confessing our sins and keeping His commandments. 1 John 2:16 says, "For all that is in the world--the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life--is not of the Father but is of the world. And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever."

Major emphasis is given to love; love for God...and love for the brethren. 3:16 says, "By this we know love; because He laid down His life for us. And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. But whoever has this world's goods, and sees his brother in need, and shuts up his heart from him, how does the love of God abide in him? My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth."

Finally, John concludes with this: "Little children, keep yourselves from idols. Amen." He isn't speaking to literal children but to his children in the faith; he taught them and helped them mature. God has always hated idols, worshiping anything that is other than God Himself. There certainly is a lot of that today. We need to be sure to keep our focus on what matters, remembering that this life is short and eternity is forever.

Thanks for reading. May God bless you this week!