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1 John 4:13-17 ESV
Before I delve into this passage of Scripture this morning, I want to encourage you to read all of 1 John, and that you read each verse in the context of the whole, and that you don’t take any isolated verses and make a doctrine around them which does not agree with the book, as a whole. It is also helpful, as well, if you have access to a Greek interlinear, to look at the meaning of some of these words, for the English words don’t always capture the true meaning of the words in their original context.
Since this passage of Scripture is talking much of abiding in Christ, the first word I want to look at is this word “abide.” It means to follow, obey, keep to, hold to, conform to, act in accordance with, uphold, agree to/with, comply with, and pay attention to, as well as it means to continue with, remain in, and stay with. In context, with regard to us abiding in Christ and him in us, the second definition fits better. But the first definition fits biblically with how we are to respond to him and to what he did for us.
Now we can’t claim that we are abiding in Christ just because we believe he has given us his Spirit. We must keep reading. And we can’t just verbally confess him with our lips only, or only that Jesus is the Son of God. For one, this word “confess” means to speak the same as, to agree with, to speak to the same conclusion as, and to align with. And aligning ourselves with the fact that Jesus is the Son of God is more than just an intellectual assent to who he is/was, but it involves aligning our lives with him, with his life.
For if we testify that God the Father sent his Son Jesus Christ to be the Savior of the world, then we are agreeing with God, and we are aligning ourselves with God, not just intellectually, but spiritually, from the heart. But we have to understand what it means that he became our Savior, for he did not die just to forgive us our sins and to save us from hell and to promise us heaven. He died to deliver us out of our slavery (bondage, addiction) to sin, and he rose from the dead to empower us to follow Jesus with our lives.
And then it speaks of us knowing and believing the love that God has for us, and that whoever abides in love abides in God, and God in him. Now this is not human-based love, but this is love which comes from God, for God is love. It is agape love which centers in moral preference, and which means to prefer what God prefers. So, we prefer to live through Christ, to embrace God’s will for our lives, and to obey his will through his power. And what God prefers is all that is holy, just, honest, morally pure, upright, and faithful.
But let me just review a little bit from chapters 1-3 which leads up to this. In 1 John 1 we learn that if we say we have fellowship with God/Christ while we walk (in conduct, in practice) in darkness (sin, wickedness), we lie and we do not practice the truth. And we learn in 1 John 2 that if we say that we know God but we do not keep (obey) his commandments (New Covenant), in practice, we are liars. And in 1 John 3 we read that no one who abides in Christ makes sin his practice, for whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, but whoever practices righteousness is righteous, and is of God.
And then if we keep reading in 1 John 4, we read in verse 20 that if we say that we love God but we hate our fellow humans (or fellow Christians), we are liars. For if we do not love our fellow humans, whom we can see, then we cannot love God whom we have not seen. So, this agape love must be perfected in company with us, and it must be something that we abide in, so this means we are preferring to live through Christ and to obey his will in his power and to live holy, upright, godly, morally pure, honest, and faithful lives to the glory of God, and in the power of God, continuing to the end.
And then we can have confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is so also are we in this world. For Jesus died on that cross that we might die to sin and live to righteousness, and that we might live for him and no longer for ourselves. And he shed his blood to buy us back for God (to redeem us) out of our lives of slavery to sin so that we will now honor God with our bodies, and so that we will no longer obey sin, but so we will obey our Lord. For if sin is what we obey, and if we do not obey our Lord, we will not inherit eternal life with God, regardless of what our lips have professed.
[Matt 7:21-23; Matt 24:9-14; Lu 9:23-26; Rom 1:18-32; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14,24; Rom 12:1-2; Rom 13:11; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; 1 Co 1:18; 1 Co 15:1-2; 2 Tim 1:8-9; Heb 9:28; 1 Pet 1:5; Gal 5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:5-17; 1 Pet 2:24; Tit 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6,24-25; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb 3:6,14-15; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15]
Constantly Abiding
By Anne S. Murphy, 1908
There’s a peace in my heart that the world never gave,
A peace it cannot take away;
Though the trials of life may surround like a cloud,
I’ve a peace that has come here to stay!
All the world seemed to sing of a Savior and King,
When peace sweetly came to my heart;
Troubles all fled away and my night turned to day,
Blessèd Jesus, how glorious Thou art!
This treasure I have in a temple of clay,
While here on His footstool I roam;
But He’s coming to take me some glorious day,
Over there to my heavenly home!
Constantly abiding, Jesus is mine;
Constantly abiding, rapture divine;
He never leaves me lonely, whispers, O so kind:
“I will never leave thee,” Jesus is mine.
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“By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. By this is love perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is so also are we in this world.”
Before I delve into this passage of Scripture this morning, I want to encourage you to read all of 1 John, and that you read each verse in the context of the whole, and that you don’t take any isolated verses and make a doctrine around them which does not agree with the book, as a whole. It is also helpful, as well, if you have access to a Greek interlinear, to look at the meaning of some of these words, for the English words don’t always capture the true meaning of the words in their original context.
Since this passage of Scripture is talking much of abiding in Christ, the first word I want to look at is this word “abide.” It means to follow, obey, keep to, hold to, conform to, act in accordance with, uphold, agree to/with, comply with, and pay attention to, as well as it means to continue with, remain in, and stay with. In context, with regard to us abiding in Christ and him in us, the second definition fits better. But the first definition fits biblically with how we are to respond to him and to what he did for us.
Now we can’t claim that we are abiding in Christ just because we believe he has given us his Spirit. We must keep reading. And we can’t just verbally confess him with our lips only, or only that Jesus is the Son of God. For one, this word “confess” means to speak the same as, to agree with, to speak to the same conclusion as, and to align with. And aligning ourselves with the fact that Jesus is the Son of God is more than just an intellectual assent to who he is/was, but it involves aligning our lives with him, with his life.
For if we testify that God the Father sent his Son Jesus Christ to be the Savior of the world, then we are agreeing with God, and we are aligning ourselves with God, not just intellectually, but spiritually, from the heart. But we have to understand what it means that he became our Savior, for he did not die just to forgive us our sins and to save us from hell and to promise us heaven. He died to deliver us out of our slavery (bondage, addiction) to sin, and he rose from the dead to empower us to follow Jesus with our lives.
And then it speaks of us knowing and believing the love that God has for us, and that whoever abides in love abides in God, and God in him. Now this is not human-based love, but this is love which comes from God, for God is love. It is agape love which centers in moral preference, and which means to prefer what God prefers. So, we prefer to live through Christ, to embrace God’s will for our lives, and to obey his will through his power. And what God prefers is all that is holy, just, honest, morally pure, upright, and faithful.
But let me just review a little bit from chapters 1-3 which leads up to this. In 1 John 1 we learn that if we say we have fellowship with God/Christ while we walk (in conduct, in practice) in darkness (sin, wickedness), we lie and we do not practice the truth. And we learn in 1 John 2 that if we say that we know God but we do not keep (obey) his commandments (New Covenant), in practice, we are liars. And in 1 John 3 we read that no one who abides in Christ makes sin his practice, for whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, but whoever practices righteousness is righteous, and is of God.
And then if we keep reading in 1 John 4, we read in verse 20 that if we say that we love God but we hate our fellow humans (or fellow Christians), we are liars. For if we do not love our fellow humans, whom we can see, then we cannot love God whom we have not seen. So, this agape love must be perfected in company with us, and it must be something that we abide in, so this means we are preferring to live through Christ and to obey his will in his power and to live holy, upright, godly, morally pure, honest, and faithful lives to the glory of God, and in the power of God, continuing to the end.
And then we can have confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is so also are we in this world. For Jesus died on that cross that we might die to sin and live to righteousness, and that we might live for him and no longer for ourselves. And he shed his blood to buy us back for God (to redeem us) out of our lives of slavery to sin so that we will now honor God with our bodies, and so that we will no longer obey sin, but so we will obey our Lord. For if sin is what we obey, and if we do not obey our Lord, we will not inherit eternal life with God, regardless of what our lips have professed.
[Matt 7:21-23; Matt 24:9-14; Lu 9:23-26; Rom 1:18-32; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14,24; Rom 12:1-2; Rom 13:11; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; 1 Co 1:18; 1 Co 15:1-2; 2 Tim 1:8-9; Heb 9:28; 1 Pet 1:5; Gal 5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:5-17; 1 Pet 2:24; Tit 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6,24-25; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb 3:6,14-15; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15]
Constantly Abiding
By Anne S. Murphy, 1908
There’s a peace in my heart that the world never gave,
A peace it cannot take away;
Though the trials of life may surround like a cloud,
I’ve a peace that has come here to stay!
All the world seemed to sing of a Savior and King,
When peace sweetly came to my heart;
Troubles all fled away and my night turned to day,
Blessèd Jesus, how glorious Thou art!
This treasure I have in a temple of clay,
While here on His footstool I roam;
But He’s coming to take me some glorious day,
Over there to my heavenly home!
Constantly abiding, Jesus is mine;
Constantly abiding, rapture divine;
He never leaves me lonely, whispers, O so kind:
“I will never leave thee,” Jesus is mine.
