First John Chapter 3:17-24
Outline I. Love Expresses Itself in Deeds: 3:17-18 II. The Confidence Available to the Christian: 3:19-21 III. Such Confidence is Rooted in Loving Obedience: 3:22-24 IV. Testing False Teachers: 4:1-3 V. Why Such Teachers Gain a Following: 4:4-6 “But true love is not only revealed in the supreme sacrifice; it is expressed in all lesser givings. Not many of us are called to lay down our lives in some deed of heroism, but we constantly have the much more prosaic opportunity to share our possessions with those in need (cf. James 2:15,16). Love is ‘the willingness to surrender that which has value for our own life, to enrich the life of another’ (Dodd). The transition from the plural ( ‘the brethren’, verse 16) to the singular (‘his brother’, verse 17) is deliberate and significant. ‘It is easier to be enthusiastic about Humanity with a capital "H" that it is to love individual men and women, especially those who are uninteresting, exasperating, depraved, or otherwise unattractive. Loving everybody in general may be an excuse for loving nobody in particular’ (Lewis)” (Stott p. 143).
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1John 3:17 “But whoso hath the world's goods, and beholdeth his brother in need, and shutteth up his compassion from him, how doth the love of God abide in him?” “But whoso”: “John meets…one more possible objection. A man may say, ‘How can I follow in the steps of Christ? How can I show the love that He showed? He laid down His life upon the Cross. You say I ought to lay down my life for the brothers. But opportunities so vast and so dramatic as that do not come into my life. What then?’ John's answer is...when you see your brother in need, and you have enough, to give to him of what you have is to follow Christ...John insists that we can find plenty opportunities to show forth the love of Christ in the life of the every day” (Barclay p. 99). “Hath the world’s goods”: It is lawful for the Christian to have many material things (1 Timothy 6:17). Wealth isn't wrong, rather, our attitude towards such wealth can be righteous or sinful (1 Tim. 6:8-10). “Beholdeth”: “Steadily contemplates” (P.P. Comm. p. 74). “Deliberately contemplates” (Vincent p. 352). “Used of one who looks at a thing with interest and for a purpose, usually indicating the careful observation of details” (Vine p. 114). “His brother”: Another Christian. “In need”: “Present tense, ‘having need’” (Robertson p. 226). “Two factors place him, as they placed the Good Samaritan, in a position of inescapable responsibility. First, he must see a brother's need, ‘not merely cast a passing glance, but see, long enough to appreciate and understand the circumstances of the case’ (Brooke). Secondly, he must himself be better off. If he sees his brother's necessity and has the wherewithal to supply it, he cannot stand idly by” (Stott p. 144). God doesn't require the impossible. God doesn't require that we relieve the needs of every person on the planet or of people of which we have no knowledge concerning their situation. Like the rich man and Lazarus, the needs that we are responsible in caring for, are the needs which are often right under our noses (Luke 16:20 'was laid at his gate'). In the same way, in the account of the Good Samaritan, the man in need was in full sight (Luke 10:30-36). “Love must be practical. It is easy to ‘lay down one's life’: martyrdom is
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heroic and exhilarating: the difficultly lies in doing the little things, facing day by day the petty sacrifices and self-denials which no one notices and no one applauds” (Gr. Ex. N.T. p. 186). Not all life is tragic; and yet the same principle of conduct must apply all through. Thus it may call for the simple expenditure of money we might have spent upon ourselves, to relieve the need of someone poorer. It is, after all, the same principle of action...it is the willingness to surrender that which has value for our own life, to enrich the life of another”(Barclay p. 100). “And shutteth up his compassion from him”: “Closes” (NASV). Observe that the shutting here happens after contemplation. “To shut up compassion so that it is like a thing inaccessible to one, to be devoid of pity towards one” (Thayer p. 348). “Compassion”: “Kindness, compassion, benevolence” (Thayer p. 584). “How doth the love of God abide in him?”: “How is it possible for the love of God to be in him” (Bas). “The love of God”: That is, our Love for God. We cannot separate our love for God from our love for our brethren (1 John 4:20). “Abide in him?”: “One thing is certain, the love of God is not in him. As life does not dwell in the murderer (15), love does not dwell in the miser (17)” (Stott p. 144). Smaller sacrifices are just as important as 'giving one's life'. For they reflect the same principle of love (Matthew 25:31ff). “It is impossible to separate theory and practice. Our obligation to our less fortunate brethren is clear and unmistakable; we have the example of Christ (Matt. 20:28); we have the admonition of the inspired apostle (Gal. 6:10); only through compliance therewith do we exhibit the religion which is both pure and undefiled (James 1:27)” (Woods p. 283). 1John 3:18 “My Little children, let us not love in word, neither with the tongue; but in deed and truth” “Let us not love in word”: Clearly, nothing is wrong with expressing our love in words, such as saying “I love you”. Rather, John means “let us not love in word only”. “But in deed”: Such as the type of deed mentioned in 3:17. “A reminder that protestations of love are not enough. Actions speak louder than words. Love is essentially neither sentiment nor talk, but deeds” (Stot p. 144). Compare with James 2:14-17. From verses such as the above people
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have come up with the expression that the road to hell is paved with good intentions. We must learn to do more than simply talk about someone's need. “And truth”: Genuine or sincere as opposed to hypocritical. “As the Lord forbade words of hypocrisy in the Sermon on the Mount (Matt. 6:5), so, here, John forbids the mere babble of brotherly love” (Woods p. 283). 1John 3:19 “Hereby shall we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our heart before him” “Hereby”: “By this” (NASV). By what has just been said, i.e. if we are practicing love in deed and truth. “Shall we know that we are of the truth”: “The link between this new paragraph and what has gone before seems to be the word ‘truth’. John has urged upon his readers the necessity of loving ‘in truth’ (18) and immediately goes on to indicate that this is how we may ‘know that we are of the truth’ (19). Truth can only characterize the behaviour of those whose very character originates in the truth” (Stott p. 145). To be "of the truth" means that one is right with God. In fact it is equivalent to the expression to be "of God" (4:4). Therefore: (a) One cannot have a relationship with God unless one is following "the truth", hence fellowship with God is inseparately linked with believing and practicing the right doctrine. For the Word of God and the Truth are one and the same (John 17:17). (b) Loving the truth is also equivalent with loving and obeying God (John 7:17; 18:37 “Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice”) “Shall assure”: “Tranquillize” (Thayer p. 497). “To persuade, where the meaning is that of confidence toward God consequent upon loving in deed and truth” (Vine p. 85). “Conciliate, pacify, set at ease or rest” (Arndt p. 639). “Win the confidence, soothe the alarm of our heart” (Gr. Ex. N.T. p. 187). “Before him”: Notice that the "assurance" here isn't subjective and neither is it an assurance that arises from making excuses. It is an assurance "before Him". God realizes that there are times when the Christian needs confidence and reassurance. Observe: (a) One can be a faithful Christian. (b) Having confidence about your salvation is a good thing. (c) One can have confidence before God--without making any sinful excuses, i.e. nobody keeps the law of God perfectly, so I don't need to worry about my doctrinal deviations; if God
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doesn't overlook my sins, then he will just have to condemn everyone, for I am better than most; we can't understand the bible alike, therefore conformity with the Scriptures isn't essential, etc.. One can know if they are practicing true love or not. The Bible is sufficiently clear and our minds are sharp enough to determine and judge whether we are doing what God said to do or not (Romans 8:16). “Obedience to the injunction to love one another is the basis for knowing that we belong to the truth. Doing what is characteristic of the realm of truth is the sign that we belong to that realm” (Marshall pp. 196-197). 1John 3:20 “because if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things” “If our heart”: The real us, the inside, our conscience. “Condemn us”: And every conscientious and faithful Christian understands this statement. We all have felt the accusations of a tender conscience. “We suffer the uneasiness which springs from the realization of our own weaknesses and the consciousness of our own imperfections” (Woods p. 284). Those who defend error often try to use the "imperfections" of the faithful to excuse their beliefs and practices.The argument is often, “Well, you aren't doing everything perfectly, therefore you can't condemn me for this deviation”. John doesn't make that type of argument. John never argues that our imperfections and failings to live up to God's standard all the time--means that we can't condemn error or determine who is a Christian (1 John 4:1-5). “God is greater than our heart”: “It is asked whether this means that He is more merciful or more rigorous. Neither the one nor the other. It means that, although our conscience is not infallible, God is. Our heart may be deceived; He cannot be” (P.P. Comm p. 75). “And knoweth all things”: Which means that God won't deal with us according to the fallible standard of our conscience, but rather by an infallible standard. Thus, let us strive for that standard (3:22,24). This verse doesn't give any comfort to the person in error or for those looking for excuses. “An awful thought for the impenitent, a blessed and encouraging thought for the penitent. He knows our sins; but he also knows our temptations, our struggles, our sorrow, and our love” (P.P.
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Comm. p. 75). “This is the opposite of the cocky, self-assured man. Deep respect for God has a humbling effect that makes us tremble in recognition of our unworthiness. The true saint is aware of his inadequacy” (Plain Talk 20/7/2). “Our conscience is by no means infallible; its condemnation maybe unjust...Stronger than any chemical tranquillizer is trust in our all-knowing God” (Stott p. 146). Unfortunately, some think this verse is saying: (a) We don't need to correct our faults or sins, such is not the case (1 John 1:7-10). (b) Or that God is going to be more merciful than what is revealed concerning God's mercy in the Bible (Titus 1:2). (c) Or that sincere motives make up for not doing (1 John 3:17-18). Robert Turner wrote, “Without backing off one bit from the context of the need for ‘doing’. I believe John meant God knows if we are TRYING” (Plain Talk. 20/7/2). 1John 3:21 “Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, we have boldness toward God” “If our heart condemn us not”: “It will be, of course, unnecessary to add, to the thoughtful reader, that John has under consideration here individuals whose hearts were fully attuned to the gospel and whose consciences were awakened to the relation which all sustain to God. Obviously the apostle does not here refer to men of wicked and depraved conscience whose hearts have been hardened to the influences of the truth” (Woods p. 284). The wicked man who has "seared his conscience" (Ephesians 4:19), which includes the person who hides their unfaithfulness behind various excuses, is not under consideration in this verse, even though their conscience may never "bother" them. Verses 21-22 go together. The verse infers: Imperfect human beings can have a clear conscience before the God of heaven, and such a conscience can be reflecting the truth, i.e. this person does stand before God in a righteous condition. They do so because they are sincerely trying to please God (3:18), they are following the right standard (3:22) and they are confessing and trying to correct their errors (1:8-10). “We have boldness”: “Confidence” (NASV). This confidence is linked with
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doing His will (2:29; 4:17; 5:14), and in the context such boldness in expressed in prayer (3:22). This confidence is not a fake or cheap confidence that we see in the denominational world. Rather, it is rooted in the reality that (a) We really have become Christians, have obeyed the gospel (3:1ff). (b) We are really trying (3:18). (c) We are in harmony with His will, and not just a fraction of it (3:22). 1John 3:22 “and whatsoever we ask we receive of Him, because we keep His commandments and do the things that are pleasing in His sight” “And”: The person under consideration in 3:21 is the same person described in 3:22. “Whatsoever we ask we receive of Him”: The word "receive" is in the present tense. “The verbs are all in the present tense here and emphasize continuous action; whatever we keep on asking, we keep on receiving, because we keep on keeping his commandments” (Woods p. 285). Other verses inform us that: (a) Such asking needs to be done in faith (James 1:6). (b) Such requests must be in accordance with His will (1 John 5:14). (c) And to receive a "no" answer to a prayer, is a still an answer. Be impressed that God hears every prayer offered by the sincere Christian! Our prayers do not get lost in the multitude of prayers that ascend to God on an hourly basis. “Because”: Our obedience to the will of God doesn't earn a hearing with God, rather, obedience is simply a condition to be heard. God doesn't heed the prayers of the rebellious (Isaiah 59:1-2; 1 Peter 3:12; 3:7). “We keep His commandments”: Present tense, “we keep on keeping”, the idea of habitual practice. Observe the plural "commandments", keeping just a few isn't enough. “Do the things that are pleasing in His sight”: Seeing that we can only know what is pleasing in His sight when He reveals what pleases Him (1 Corinthians 2:9-13),this expression is the same as “keep his commandments”. “We ought to ask for those things which are in accordance with God's will rather than for those things which arise from selfish motives” (Marshall p. 200), 1John 3:23 “And this is His commandment, that we should believe in the name of His Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, even as He gave us
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commandment” “This is His commandment”: This is what pleases Him. God hasn't left us in the dark concerning what does and what doesn't please Him. “Believe in the name of His Son Jesus Christ”: Believing in the “name” means believing everything about Jesus, all that Jesus is and everything that He stands for and opposes, which includes: (a) Believing that He really lived. (b) That He is God (John 1:1). (c) That He is the only way to the Father (John 14:6) and that salvation is found in no other (Acts 4:12). “And love one another”: Thus we find the two great commandments stated in different terms (Matthew 22:3739). To love God with all our heart means believing in everything that the Bible says about Jesus. “Faith" is not only the ground of all obedience, but it is also the ground of love (Galatians 5:6). “It is impossible to separate faith and practice, duty and dogma. Belief, in order to bless, must eventuate in love: love, without belief (the correct belief), is an impossibility” (Woods p. 285). 1John 3:24 And he that keepeth His commandments abideth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that He abideth in us, by the Spirit which He gave us “Keepeth His commandments”: Again, Christianity must be continually "practiced". “Abideth in Him”: John 14:23. This means that we have a favorable relationship with Him. “And He in him”: God (deity) abides in the person who is faithful. Jesus taught the same truth (John 15:4 “Abide in Me and I in you”). “Hereby we know”: Referring to what follows. “That He abideth in us, by the Spirit which He gave us”: “No-one may dare to claim that he abides in Christ and Christ in him unless he is obedient...’Abiding in Christ’ is not a mystical experience” (Stott p. 151). God doesn't abide in us in some mysterious fashion, and neither does God literally abide in us, i.e. God isn't personally dwelling in us, for we aren't personally indwelling in God. Rather, we are abiding in God, when we are allowing the Word of God to influence, direct and change our lives (Compare Ephesians 5:18-19 with Colossians 3:16). The test mentioned in this verse isn't subjective, for John
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always gives us an objective test. We know that we have a relationship with God (spoken in terms of Him in us and we in Him), because the Spirit revealed through the writings of the apostles how one enters into such a relationship and maintains it (John 16:13). “The fact of the Spirit's indwelling is often affirmed in the sacred writings. The manner or mode of such is an entirely different question....Christ is in us (Col. 1:25); from this we do not infer that in some mysterious, incomprehensible way he has, in his own person, taken up an abode in us. Why should we fall into similar error with reference to the third person of the Godhead--the Holy Spirit?� (Woods p. 286).
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