These are the original teaching notes from this passage.
I John 1:1-10
Review…
- The Author – an IMPATIENT – TROUBLESOME man – who could not even catch a FISH…
- But full of the HOLY Spirit – God made him into an APOSTLE and LEADER…
- Who wrote FIVE books of the BIBLE – in HUMILITY not even mentioning his own name!
- The Audience – written to LITTLE children…
- A term used by Jesus for His disciples – John 13:33
- John is writing to ANYONE who is also DISCIPLE of Jesus – the book is written to us!
- The Theme – to KNOW – and LOVE Jesus…
- LOVE – used 71 time in 105 verses – builds to the amazing statement – God is LOVE – I John 4:8
- I John 4:11 – “Beloved – if God so loved us – we also ought to love one another.”
- The Division – THREE sections…
- Section 1 – God is LIGHT [mention 6 times] – I John 1-2
- Section 2 – God is LOVE [mentioned 57 times] – I John 3-4
- Section 3 – God is LIFE [mentioned 7 times] – I John 5
God is LIGHT…
- 1st – Seen and touched… vs. 1-4
- 1st – From the Beginning… vs. 1
- That which was from the beginning…
- BEGINNING [ἀρχή] – to be the FIRST or the ORIGIN…
- WHO [not that] was in the BEGINNING – Jesus Christ!
- John opens up this LETTER in almost the same way he opens his GOSPEL!
- John 1:1 – “In the beginning [ἀρχή] was the Word… and the Word was God.”
- Jesus is GOD…
- As John is going to be writing all about who Jesus is – LIGHT – LOVE – LIFE…
- He starts by telling us that Jesus was there in the BEGINNING of the world – Genesis 1:1
- Not that He was created in the beginning – Jesus is God – who CREATED everything!
- God SAID – the WORD of God – and the world was CREATED – Genesis 1:3
- Colossians 1:16 – “By Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth.”
- Hebrews 1:2 – “Through whom also He made the worlds.”
- John 1:3 – “Jesus created everything there is. Nothing exists that he did not make.”
- There is great diversity within the Body of Christ – I Corinthians 12:27
- And we can agree to disagree and a VAST collection of non-essentials…
- But the DEITY OF Jesus – is the RED line that cannot be crossed!
- 2nd – Word of life… vs. 1
- Which we have heard – which we have seen with our eyes!
- WHOM [not which] we have HEARD [perfect] and SEEN [perfect]
- When John HEARD and SAW Jesus – it left a permanent [perfect] impression on him…
- It was not just John – WE – there were others with him [up to 500] – I Corinthians 15:6
- The question is WHAT did they SEE – that was so POWERFUL!
- Which we have looked upon!
- LOOKED [θεάομαι] – to LEARN by seeing something new…
- Acts 1:11 – “Jesus… will come in like manner as you saw [θεάομαι] Him go into heaven.”
- John – LOOKED – as Jesus was taken up into heaven…
- Erasing ANY doubt as to who He was – He was God returning to His throne!
- And our hands have handled!
- HANDLED [ψηλαφάω] – to touch or feel
- Luke 24:39 – “Behold My hands and My feet… Handle [ψηλαφάω] Me and see…”
- John – TOUCHED – the risen Christ after He had been THREE days in the tomb…
- Erasing ANY doubt that He was physically resurrected from the dead!
- John was NOT talking about – something that happened to someone else…
- He was giving his PERSONAL firsthand account of what he had experienced!
- If I told you I HEARD that there was a good restaurant in Bacolod – you might go…
- But if I told you I had just BEEN – and experienced the most amazing food – you WOULD go!
- If we just talk about Jesus in terms of other peoples experiences – not very powerful…
- It is when we PERSONALLY experience the Lord – people are going to LISTEN!
- Concerning the Word of life!
- What John SAW – TOUCHED – HEARD – convinced him that Jesus was the WORD…
- WORD [λόγος] – the beautiful name John uses for Jesus…
- The WORD – our BIBLE – is the instructions from God on how to have LIFE…
- The WORD – our BIBLE – is all about one PERSON – Jesus – making Him the WORD of LIFE!
- You may have noticed we talk a LOT about Jesus – EVERY Bible study…
- That is because the WHOLE Bible revolves around ONE person – Jesus Christ!
- Hebrews 10:7 – “The volume of the book [βιβλίον] it is written of Me.”
- 3rd – Declared to you… vs. 2
- The life was manifested – and we have seen – and bear witness!
- MANIFEST [φανερόω] – to reveal something that was previously hidden…
- WITNESS [μαρτυρέω] – someone who has experienced something personally
- John uses TWO more words to EMPHASIZE his firsthand encounter with Jesus!
- And declare to you that eternal life which was with the Father and was manifested to us!
- DECLARE [ἀπαγγέλλω] – to be a MESSENGER [ἄγγελος] from God…
- The MESSAGE – Jesus who is ETERNAL life – came down to die for our sins – the GOSPEL…
- John did not just SEE and HEAR – he was always [present] TELLING others what he saw!
- The work God does in our life – is not just for us – it is for others to hear as well…
- We might be nervous about sharing our faith with others…
- We think we need to have all the answers to all the questions…
- But it is God who speaks through us the words that are needed – Matthew 10:19
- All we need to do is be willing to open our mouths – and share Jesus!
- Acts 8:35 – “Then Philip opened his mouth…”
- 4th – Brings Fellowship… vs. 3
- Which we have seen and heard we declare to you – that you also may have fellowship with us!
- The REASON why John DECLARED [ἀπαγγέλλω] the Gospel…
- FELLOWSHIP [κοινωνία] – to have a connection or friendship – TWO ways…
- FIRST – we have a CONNECTION to other believers!
- The relationships we have in church – can be even closer than FAMILY…
- Perhaps you have noticed – brothers and sisters in the Lord are our closest friends…
- The bond we have in Jesus – the LOVE of Jesus – make us part of the FAMILY of God!
- And truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ!
- SECOND – we have a CONNECTION to the FATHER and JESUS…
- Because through the GOSPEL – we have been given access to the throne of God!
- Hebrews 4:16 – “Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace…”
- If I am busy studying – my door is closed – and my phone is off…
- But Hallel knows she can ALWAYS burst through the door any times she wants!
- God is NEVER too busy – He is always available and wants to spend time with us…
- No matter the question – no matter the time of day – we can bust into the throne room…
- And we can find GRACE – because we have FELLOWSHIP with the Father and Son!
- 5th – Full of Joy… vs. 4
- These things we write to you that your joy may be full!
- The FIRST of the TEN reasons why John wrote this LETTER…
- He was HOPING [subjunctive] that we might be FULL of JOY…
- JOY [χαρά] – from the same root as GRACE [χάρις]
- The only way to have JOY – is to receive the GRACE that comes from Jesus…
- Because apart from Him – there is only fearful JUDGMENT – Hebrews 10:31
- But when we have GRACE – we are FORGIVEN – and that FILLS us great JOY!
- 1st – From the Beginning… vs. 1
- 2nd – The LIGHT… vs. 5-6
- 1st – God is LIGHT… vs. 5
- This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you…
- That God is light and in Him is no darkness at all!
- John did not just SEE and TOUCH – he also HEARD a message…
- MESSAGE [ἐπαγγελία] 53x in NT – every other time translated as a PROMISE…
- The PROMISE John declared – was a CONTRAST between LIGHT and DARKNESS…
- LIGHT – is a representation of all that is GOOD – God is LIGHT [good]
- DARKNESS – is a representation of all that is EVIL – there is NO darkness [evil] in God!
- According to SCIENCE – DARKNESS does not exist – you cannot measure DARKNESS…
- DARKNESS – by definition – is simply the ABSENCE of LIGHT!
- By way of application this answers a powerful question – why is there EVIL…
- There is no questioning that there is EVIL – it is all around us…
- But EVIL was not created by God – it is the complete ABSENCE of God…
- But just as when you turn on a LIGHT – DARKNESS has no choice but to leave…
- The moment you bring JESUS into any equation – EVIL likewise has to FLEE!
- 2nd – Response to the LIGHT…
- Having told us he had SEEN – TOUCHED – and HEARD the LIGHT…
- John is going to go on to give us FIVE possible responses [IF] to the LIGHT…
- They are broken up into TWO categories – POSITIVE and NEGATIVE…
- John will go back and forth between the TWO – as he looks at how we REACT to the LIGHT!
- 1st – God is LIGHT… vs. 5
- 3rd – Response to the LIGHT… vs. 7-10
- 1st – Evidence of LIGHT… vs. 6
- If we say that we have fellowship with Him – and walk in darkness!
- FIRST – we could have a NEGATIVE response:
- It is EASY to SAY [subjunctive] we are in the LIGHT – but what is the EVIDENCE…
- What do we DO – if we WALK [present] in DARKNESS – then we are NOT in the LIGHT!
- It is NOT about our WORDS – it is about our ACTIONS!
- If we SAY we are Christians – but still ACT like the world around us – where is the LIGHT…
- Our lives after we BELIEVE in Jesus should be DIFFERENT…
- Do we live in DARKNESS – ignoring the conviction of the Holy Spirit in our lives…
- If we are wondering where our WALK with the Lord is – we should EXAMINE ourselves!
- II Corinthians 13:5 – “Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves – that Jesus Christ is in you.”
- We lie and do not practice the truth!
- Those who LIVE like the WORLD – but THINK they are saved – are LYING to themselves…
- They are NOT in the LIGHT – because they do not PRACTICE the TRUTH!
- Too often we make EXCUSES for our SIN – but we only FOOL ourselves…
- The ONLY way we can be FORGIVEN – is to stop LYING to ourselves…
- The FIRST step to being BLESSED in life – is to ADMIT we need HELP…
- When we come to the LORD is HUMILITY – He responds with GRACE!
- I Peter 5:5 – “God resists the proud – but gives grace to the humble.”
- 2nd – Walk in the LIGHT… vs. 7
- But if we walk in the light as He is in the light – we have fellowship with one another!
- SECOND – we could have a POSITIVE response:
- We can RESPOND to the LIGHT – by letting it REVEAL our SIN…
- If [subjunctive] we are WALKING with Jesus – who is the LIGHT – John 8:12
- Then we will be in FELLOWSHIP – have friendship with Jesus!
- When we first get up in the morning – we might think we look pretty good…
- But when we turn on the LIGHT – get closer to a MIRROR – lots of imperfections!
- As we walk with Jesus – walk in the LIGHT – we can see clearly…
- The closer we get to Jesus – we get to SEE just how much of a sinner we are…
- Diving us to hold all that much tighter to Jesus – crying out for His GRACE!
- And the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin!
- The RESULT will be – His BLOOD will CLEANSE [purge] us from ALL of our SIN!
- Victory over sin in our life – is a direct result of our RELATIONSHIP with Jesus…
- The more TIME we spend with the Lord – the more we find we OVERCOME our sin…
- Jesus changes our desires – so we do not want to do the things that are wrong…
- Instead we will want to do those things that please the Lord!
- The LIGHT shows us how to WALK…
- How do we know what God has called us to do – He LIGHTS the way for us…
- We go to the WORD – His LIGHT for our path – so we can see how to WALK!
- Psalm 119:105 – “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.”
- 3rd – Avoiding the LIGHT… vs. 8
- If we say that we have no sin!
- THIRD – we could go back to a NEGATIVE response:
- We can RESPOND to the LIGHT – by JUSTIFYING our SIN…
- If [subjunctive] we are SAY we are NOT [present] sinning…
- Not that we DENY we are SINNERS – we just think we can take care of it on our own!
- We deceive ourselves – and the truth is not in us!
- We are DECEIVED [πλανάω] – where we get the word PLANET – the WORLD…
- We are AVOIDING the LIGHT – because we do not want to admit we are still in DARKNESS!
- People try all kinds of things to find VICTORY over their sin…
- Some think they can change their HEARTS – but our heart is WICKED – Jeremiah 17:9
- Some think they have the strength to CONTROL sin – but we are WEAK – Matthew 26:41
- Some think they can LOOK for answers in others – but we are BLIND – John 9:39
- They are only LYING to themselves – they are in DARKNESS!
- 4th – Confess to the LIGHT… vs. 9
- If we confess our sins!
- FOURTH – we could have the best POSITIVE response:
- We can RESPOND to the LIGHT – by CONFESSING our SIN…
- If [subjunctive] we are WALKING in the LIGHT – and as a RESULT see our SIN…
- The CURE for SIN is as easy as CONFESSING it to the Lord…
- CONFESS [ὁμολογέω] – to say the same thing – or to agree…
- God says we are NOT good – we are lost SINNERS – Romans 3:23
- CONFESSING is AGREEING with God we are in DARKNESS – and need HELP!
- I do not have a LOT of hair – most of it has abandoned me…
- But I can recall when I was a younger man – being in DENIAL…
- I would comb my hair a certain way – I would wear a hat so you could no see it…
- But the PROBLEM with DENIAL – until you admit there is problem – there is no SOLUTION!
- In order for God to CHANGE us – we have to ADMIT we need to be CHANGED!
- He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins – and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness!
- FAITHFUL [πιστός] – the adjective form of the noun – FAITH [πίστις]
- JUST [δίκαιος] – someone who follows the LAW…
- The LAW say there has to be a PRICE paid for SIN – and the price is death – Hebrews 9:22
- Therefore God was JUST – and paid the PRICE for us – by DYING on the cross…
- So we could be FORGIVEN [ἀφίημι] – to send away – or to remove a DEBT!
- Psalm 103:12 – “He REMOVED our SINS as far from us as the east is from the west.”
- I love that it is the EAST from the WEST – and not the NORTH from the SOUTH…
- Because if you go SOUTH – you will eventually go NORTH – and vice versa…
- But if you go EAST – you will NEVER go west – and vice versa…
- Meaning God sent our sins one way and us the other – NEVER to meet again!
- We are sinners – we have made countless mistakes – but we have NO DEBT…
- When God looks down on us – He does NOT see our MISTAKES…
- He instead sees the perfect life of His Son Jesus – He sees us as PERFECT!
- Hebrews 10:17 – “Their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.”
- 5th – DENYING the LIGHT… vs. 10
- If we say that we have not sinned!
- FIFTH – we could have a final – devastating – NEGATIVE response:
- We can RESPOND to the LIGHT – by DENYING our SIN…
- If [subjunctive] we SAY we have NEVER [perfect] sinned…
- The suggestion is someone will ARGUE – there is NO sin!
- Did you ever WONDER why people are SO determined to DENY God today…
- People have come up with elaborate ideas like EVOLUTION – to deny God exists…
- The reason is because if there is no LIGHT – then there is no DARKNESS…
- People want to ERASE the standard – so they can deny their SIN!
- People will try to convince themselves they are GOOD…
- They try and JUSTIFY their lifestyle – EVERYONE is doing it…
- They may even pass LAWS – to try and normalize SIN!
- We make Him a liar – and His word is not in us!
- To SAY there is no SIN – is to call God a LIAR – Romans 3:4
- But the TRUTH is – if we DENY there is SIN – it is because Jesus [λόγος] is not in us…
- We DENY the LIGHT – because we LOVE the DARKNESS!
- John 3:19 – “This is the condemnation – that the LIGHT has come into the world – and men loved [ἀγαπάω] DARKNESS rather than LIGHT – because their deeds were EVIL.”
- Like a LIGHT shining in the DARKNESS – Jesus reveals the SIN of the world…
- Therefore the world hates Jesus because He convicts the world of their SIN…
- If it were not for Jesus men could do whatever they wanted without consequence!
- Because men LOVE [ἀγαπάω] sin they hate the LIGHT that reveals it…
- They do not want to stop SINNING – they do not want to come into the LIGHT…
- They would rather have their SIN – than eternal life with God in Heaven!
- LOOKING at the options – lets come out of the DARKNESS – and WALK in the LIGHT
- Admit we NEED Jesus – and be filled with JOY – as we are FORGIVEN of all our SINS!
- 1st – Evidence of LIGHT… vs. 6