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1 João 4

William Barclay · Citado em PreceptAustin

1 João 4:3

Barclay - To be of (from) God a spirit must acknowledge that Jesus has come in the flesh. It was precisely this that the Gnostics could never accept. Since, in their view, matter was altogether evil, a real incarnation was an impossibility, for God could never take flesh upon himself. Augustine was later to say that in the pagan philosophers he could find parallels for everything in the New Testament except for one saying--"The Word became flesh." As John saw it, to deny the complete manhood of Jesus Christ was to strike at the very roots of the Christian faith… Nothing in Christianity is more central than the reality of the manhood of Jesus Christ. (Daily Study Bible)

1 João 4:4

Barclay - The Christian need not fear the heretic. In Christ the victory over all the powers of evil was won. The powers of evil did their worst to him, even to killing him on a Cross, and in the end he emerged victorious. That victory belongs to the Christian. Whatever things may look like, the powers of evil are fighting a losing battle. As the Latin proverb has it: "Great is the truth, and in the end it will prevail." All that the Christian has to do is remember the truth he already knows and cling to it. The truth is that by which men live; error is ultimately that by which men die. (Daily Study Bible) WHY IS EVERY BELIEVER AN OVERCOMER? Because (hoti) - Whenever you encounter this term of explanation pause and ask what the author is explaining? Most of the time the answer will be relatively straightforward but at times (especially in Pauline writings) the answer may not be as obvious. In this case the believers are overcomers because He Who is in you is greater. This is the secret of their (and our) victory! A T

1 João 4:7

Barclay - Beloved, let us love one another, because love has its source in God, and everyone who loves has God as the source of his birth and knows God. let: 1 Jn 4:20,21 1Jn 2:10 1 Jn 3:10-23 1Jn 5:1 love is: 1 Jn 4:8 De 30:6 Ga 5:22 1 Th 4:9,10 2Ti 1:7 1Pe 1:22 everyone: 1 Jn 4:12 2:29 3:14 5:1 knows: John 17:3 2Co 4:6 Ga 4:9 See comments on Born Again in John 3 1 John 4:7-21 - Hiebert 1 John 4 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries John Hannah's Outline The test of love (1Jn 4:7-21) The basis of love (1Jn 4:7-21) a) The origin of love (1Jn 4:7-8) i) Positively (1Jn 4:7) ii) Negatively (1Jn 4:8) b) The manifestation of love (1Jn 4:9-10) c) The fruit of love (1Jn 4:11-21) i) Love and others (1Jn 4:11) ii) Love and assurance (1Jn 4:12-13) iii) Love and confidence (1Jn 4:14-19) iv) Love and true profession (1Jn 4:20-21) Related Passages: John 13:34-35+ “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. 35 By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love (agape) for one another. Mark 12:30-31+ AND YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND, AND WITH ALL YOUR STRENGTH.’ 31“The second is this, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” 1 John 3:11+ For this is the message which you have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another; 1 John 3:23+ And this is His commandment, that we believe in the name of His Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, just as He commanded us. 1 John 2:29+ If you know that He is righteous, you know that everyone also who practices (present tense = their general direction, not perfection!) righteousness is born (gennao in the perfect tense) of Him." John 3:3-6+ Jesus answered and said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” 4 Nicodemus *said to Him, “How can a man be born when he is old? He cannot enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born, can he?” 5 Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. 6 “That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. John 14:7+ “If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; from now on you know (ginosko - present tense - spiritually, experientially, habitually, personally, intimately) Him, and have seen Him.” 1 Peter 1:22+ Since you have in obedience to the truth purified your souls for a sincere love of the brethren, fervently love (agapao aorist imperative see our need to depend on the Holy Spirit to obey) one another from (ek = out of, as the source) the heart (Pr 4:23+!!!), THE EXHORTATION TO LOVE ONE ANOTHER Matthew

1 João 4:7

Barclay - As A. E. Brooke puts it: "Human love is a reflection of something in the divine nature itself." We are never nearer to God than when we love. Clement of Alexandria said in a startling phrase that the real Christian "practises being God." He who dwells in love dwells in God (1 John 4:16). Man is made in the image and the likeness of God (Genesis 1:26). God is love and, therefore, to be like God and be what he was meant to be, man must also love. H A

1 João 4:9

Barclay - God's love is demonstrated in Jesus Christ (1 John 4:9). When we look at Jesus we see two things about the love of God. (a) It is a love which holds nothing back. God was prepared to give His only Son and make a sacrifice beyond which no sacrifice can possibly go in His love for men. (b) It is a totally undeserved love. It would be no wonder if we loved God, when we remember all the gifts He has given to us, even apart from Jesus Christ; the wonder is that He loves poor and disobedient creatures like us. (1 John 4 Commentary) As A E Brooke says "The true nature of God’s love has now been shown, in a way which men can understand and appreciate, in the fact and the purpose of the Incarnation. God gave His best, that men might be enabled to live the life of God." (1 John 4 Commentary) John's other uses of phaneroo explain WHY the Son was manifested -- "He appeared in order to take away sins" (1Jn 3:5+) and He "appeared for this purpose, that He might destroy the works of the devil." (1Jn 3:8+) When and where were these goals accomplished? Isaac Watts answers in his great hymn… At the cross, at the cross where I first saw the light, And the burden of my heart rolled away, It was there by faith I received my sight, And now I am happy all the day! Alas! and Did My Saviour Bleed That God has sent (apostello - perfect tense) His only begotten (monogenes - expresses uniqueness not origin of the) Son into the world (kosmos) - The manifestation of God's love was supremely seen when He sent His only begotten Son into the world. The fact that Jesus was sent implies His preexistence (sent from heaven). Sent is in the perfect tense signifying the permanent effect of the sending of the Son (an effect which will last throughout eternity!). The sending of the Son has lasting effect! Indeed, the results of the Father's sending the Son will abide throughout eternity in those who have received the Son as their propitiation and Savior. For example in context the result "that we might live through Him" will be everlasting! Hallelujah! Only begotten marks His uniqueness. Son marks His deity. Whereas sent indicates a sending of the Son from the Father with a mission and objective (salvation of mankind), into the world gives the Son's destination (cf Jn 3:16+). John adds that "God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world should be saved through Him." (John 3:17+) The sense of world is debated, some favoring the anti-god world and others favoring the neutral sense (as in Jn 3:16). “While the origin of love is in the being of God, the manifestation of love is in the coming of Christ.” -- John Stott Warren

1 João 4:10

Barclay on propitiation - Jesus is the Restorer of the lost relationship with God. God sent Him to be the atoning sacrifice for sin (1Jn 4:10). We do not move in a world of thought in which animal sacrifice is a reality. But we can fully understand what sacrifice meant. When a man sinned, his relationship with God was broken; and sacrifice was an expression of penitence, designed to restore the lost relationship (Ed: But see caveat - Heb 9:22+, Heb 10:4+). Jesus, by His life and death, made it possible for man to enter into a new relationship of peace and friendship with God. He bridged the awful gulf between man and God.(1 John 4 Commentary) The Septuagint (Lxx), the Greek text of the Hebrew OT, uses hilasmos in Leviticus 25:9+ of the Day of Atonement - Yom Kippur - 'You shall then sound a ram's horn abroad on the tenth day of the seventh month (Tishri); on the day (yom) of atonement (kippur; Lxx = hilasmos) you shall sound a horn all through your land." Propitiation (2435) hilasterion Make propitiation (be merciful) (2433) hilaskomai Sins (266)(hamartia) literally conveys the idea of missing the mark as when hunting with a bow and arrow (in Homer some hundred times of a warrior hurling his spear but missing his foe). Later hamartia came to mean missing or falling short of any goal, standard, or purpose. Hamartia in the Bible signifies a departure from God's holy, perfect standard of what is right in word or deed (righteous). It pictures the idea of missing His appointed goal (His will) which results in a deviation from what is pleasing to Him. In short, sin is conceived as a missing the true end and scope of our lives, which is the Triune God Himself. As Martin Luther put it "Sin is essentially a departure from God." HAMARTIA USAGES BY JOHN - Jn. 1:29; Jn. 8:21; Jn. 8:24; Jn. 8:34; Jn. 8:46; Jn. 9:34; Jn. 9:41; Jn. 15:22; Jn. 15:24; Jn. 16:8; Jn. 16:9; Jn. 19:11; Jn. 20:23; 1 Jn. 1:7; 1 Jn. 1:8; 1 Jn. 1:9; 1 Jn. 2:2; 1 Jn. 2:12; 1 Jn. 3:4; 1 Jn. 3:5; 1 Jn. 3:8; 1 Jn. 3:9; 1 Jn. 4:10; 1 Jn. 5:16; 1 Jn. 5:17; Rev. 1:5; Rev. 18:4; Rev. 18:5 ILLUSTRATION - Our responsibility and ministry as Christians is to share the gospel with the lost, so that they too, might know Christ and receive His gift of salvation. We are to show the love of Christ to them. A lady Salvation Army worker found a homeless woman alone on the street and invited her to come into the chapel for help, but the woman refused to move. The worker assured her, “We love you and want to help you. God loves you. Jesus died for you.” But the woman did not budge. As if on divine impulse, the lady Christian worker leaned over and kissed the woman on the cheek, taking her into her arms. The woman began to sob, and like a child, was led into the chapel service, where she ultimately trusted Jesus Christ as her Savior. She said later that evening, “You told me that God loved me, but it wasn’t till you showed me that God loved me that I wanted to be saved.” May Christ be seen in us. Moravian Daily Texts - 1 John 4:10 Yes, Amen! Let all adore you high on your eternal throne; crowns and empires fall before you, claim the kingdom for your own; come, Lord Jesus, come Lord Jesus, everlasting Christ come down! James Smith - LOVE SUPERLATIVE. 1 John 4:10. 1. A Woeful Possession. "Our sins." 2. A Shameless Confession. "Not that we loved God." 3. A Blessed Revelation. "He loved us." 4. A Wonderful Condescension. "Sent His Son." 5. A Gracious Provision. "Propitiation for our sins." 6. A Joyful Acclamation. "Herein is love." Ray Stedman gives some illustrations of the truth not that we loved God as shown by our failure to love one another - Some time ago a mother said to me, "I've come to the place where I almost hate my son." Why? The evil in her own son had turned her against him. The evil in him had so offended her, that which was ugly and wrong in him had loomed as such a frightful thing, that she had found her love almost turned to hate. Some time ago a husband and wife who were in my study for counseling became so angry that the husband in rage stood up, and, right in my presence, spat in his wife's face. Yet he had promised to love, honor and cherish her until death shall them part. Why would he do such a thing? Well, because the evil and ugliness of sin in his wife (though he was not seeing the same in his own life) so enraged him that he struck out against it. It offended him. It was repulsive, revolting to him. How angry we get sometimes at the stubbornness and insolence of others, the rudeness and hate that is manifested toward us. It makes our blood boil and our tempers rise, we burn and writhe within. Why? Well, that is what evil does, that is how ugly it is. Yet that evil is in every single heart of those born of Adam. It is constantly revealing itself to the eyes of God. It may be hidden away from others, and even from our own eyes, but God, who sees all things, sees the whole world of men in all their blatant ugliness and evil. And what is his response? Is it anger? Is it rejection? Is it judgment? Did he pour out the fires of wrath upon a world so repulsively ugly as that? Oh, no. He responded with the most costly of all loves: He gave himself, he sent his Son. In the Person of his Son, God himself came and lived among us and died upon a cross of shame in the very world his hands had made. QUESTION -What is propitiation? ANSWER - The word propitiation carries the basic idea of appeasement or satisfaction, specifically toward God. Propitiation is a two-part act that involves appeasing the wrath of an offended person and being reconciled to him. The necessity of appeasing God is something many religions have in common. In ancient pagan religions, as well as in many religions today, the idea is taught that man appeases God by offering various gifts or sacrifices. However, the Bible teaches that God Himself has provided the only means through which His wrath can be appeased and sinful man can be reconciled to Him. In the New Testament, the act of propitiation always refers to the work of God and not the sacrifices or gifts offered by man. The reason for this is that man is totally incapable of satisfying God’s justice except by spending eternity in hell. There is no service, sacrifice, or gift that man can offer that will appease the holy wrath of God or satisfy His perfect justice. The only satisfaction, or propitiation, that could be acceptable to God and that could reconcile man to Him had to be made by God. For this reason God the Son, Jesus Christ, came into the world in human flesh to be the perfect sacrifice for sin and make atonement or “propitiation for the sins of the people” (Hebrews 2:17). The word propitiation is used in several verses to explain what Jesus accomplished through His death on the cross. For example, in Romans 3:24-25 believers in Christ have been “justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed.” These verses are a key point in Paul’s argument in the book of Romans and are really at the heart of the gospel message. In the first three chapters of Romans, Paul makes the argument that everyone, Jew and Gentile alike, is under the condemnation of God and deserving of His wrath (Romans 1:18). Everyone has sinned and fallen short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). All of us deserve His wrath and punishment. God in His infinite grace and mercy has provided a way that His wrath can be appeased and we can be reconciled to Him. That way is through the sacrificial death of His Son, Jesus Christ, as the payment for sins. It is through faith in Jesus Christ as God’s perfect sacrifice that we can be reconciled to God. It is only because of Christ’s death on the cross and His resurrection on the third day that a lost sinner deserving of hell can be reconciled to a holy God. The wonderful truth of the gospel is that Christians are saved from God’s wrath and reconciled to God not because “we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins” (1 John 4:10). Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6). The only way for God’s wrath against sinful man to be appeased and for us to be reconciled to God is through Jesus Christ. There is no other way. This truth is also communicated in 1 John 2:2, “And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world.” An important part of Christ’s saving work is deliverance from God’s wrath; Jesus’ propitiation on the cross is the only thing that can turn away God’s divine condemnation of sin. Those who reject Christ as their Savior and refuse to believe in Him have no hope of salvation. They can only look forward to facing the wrath of God that they have stored up for the coming day of judgment (Romans 2:5). There is no other propitiation or sacrifice that can be made for their sins.GotQuestions.org Related Articles: What is the mercy seat? Why would the aroma of a sacrifice be important to God? Propitiation - Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible Propitiation - Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testamen Propitiation (2) - Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament Propitiation - Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary Propitiation - Bridgeway Bible Dictionary Propitiation - Charles Buck Theological Dictionary Propitiation - Easton's Bible Dictionary Propitiation - Fausset's Bible Dictionary Propitiation - The Hawker's Poor Man's Concordance And Dictionary Propitiation - CARM Theological Dictionary Expiation, Propitiation - Holman Bible Dictionary Propitiation - See Atonement - Baker's Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology What is expiation? What is regeneration according to the Bible? What is the substitutionary atonement? If the penalty for our sins is eternity in Hell, how did Jesus’ death pay our penalty if He did not spend eternity in Hell? Alan Carr - 1Jn 4:10 THIS LOVE WAS DEMONSTRATED AT CALVARY God’s love can never be fully understood, but it can be seen! It is best seen at the cross! He Stood In The Gap—2 Cor. 5:21 He Saved Us From Hell—It is His death on the cross, the death that released His precious blood, that opened the door of salvation for every sinner who will come to God. 1 Pet. 1:18–19; Rev. 1:5; Heb. 9:22; Eph. 1:7; Col. 1:14; Heb. 9:12–14. Thank God for the Blood of the Lord Jesus!!!!! God—the Aggressive Lover - Selwyn Hughes Love consists in this: not that we loved God, but that He loved us.—1 JOHN 4:10 When we perceive how much God loves us, an amazing effect is produced in our personalities—we begin to love like Him. We cannot help it. Love—agape love—is not the fruit of labor; it is a response. When we stand at the foot of Calvary, the place where the love of God is fully focused and caught up, the scales drop from our eyes, and our own love flames in response. We love Him because He first loved us. Teresa of Avila tells how one day, going into her private room, she noticed a picture of our Lord being scourged before His crucifixion. She must have seen it hundreds of times, but in that moment of revelation she saw it as she had never seen it before. She saw God suffering—suffering for love and suffering for her. The revelation sent her to her knees sobbing in pain and wonder, and when she arose, she was a changed woman. The revelation of Calvary's love was the great divide in her life. She said that she arose with a sense of "unpayable debt" and went out to share God's realized love with others. Don't try to manufacture love. Linger in the shadow of the Cross. The love of God finds its most burning expression there. Meditate on it. Contemplate it. Remember that heaven knows no higher strategy for begetting love in mortal hearts than by granting us a vision of how much we are loved, a vision strong enough to evoke a response in our hearts—and by that answering love begotten in us by the Holy Spirit, we are freed and purged and saved. Prayer Gracious Father, I see that before I can love, I must comprehend how much I am loved. Help me be aware that in my heart I have the most aggressive Lover in the universe. I am eternally grateful. Amen. (See HCSB Every Day with Jesus Bible - Page 1466) James Smith - THE LOVE OF GOD. "The love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost, which is given unto us" (Rom. 5 5). I. The Character of this Love. 1. IT IS GOD'S LOVE. It is the nature of love to seek out the helpless and the needy, and to pour into the lap of poverty all the wealth of its possession. Love cannot remain inactive. 2. IT MANIFESTS ITSELF. "God commended His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us" (Rom. 5:8). Love will not hide; it overleaps every barrier and shows itself. "Herein is love; not that we loved God" (1 John 4:10). II. The Sphere of its Operation. It is not enough to see the evidences of God's love; His love is not satisfied with that. It is to be— 1. IN OUR HEARTS. In the citadel of the soul, watering the roots of our affections and purifying the springs of the life. 2. "SHED ABROAD." The love of God is to fill and flood our being, as the light of the sun is shed abroad on the earth, scattering darkness and turning barrenness into fruitfulness. If the love of God possesses us we shall take pleasure, like Him, in loving sinners and making sacrifice for their salvation. Love is the most practical thing on earth (see 1 Cor. 13). III. The Divine Operator. This great work is done by— 1. THE HOLY GHOST. It is the Spirit's work to unveil the love of God to us in Christ Jesus, and to create that love within us. He sheds it abroad in our hearts by taking the things of Christ and showing them unto us. 2. THE HOLY GHOST GIVEN UNTO US. If our hearts are to be filled with the love of God, the Holy Spirit must have His abode within the heart. The fruit of the Spirit is love. "Because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts" (Gal. 4:6). Beloved, if God so loved us, then, in the power and after the manner of that love we ought also to love one another (1 John 4:11). TGIF (Read: Romans 5:6-21) In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. —1 John 4:10 - We hear it often: “TGIF” (Thank God it’s Friday!). Although many people use this phrase carelessly, without reverence for their Creator, they’re grateful because Friday marks the end of the workweek. It opens the door to 2 days when they can relax and just do their own thing. On this Good Friday, millions of Christians around the world are especially thankful because it reminds them of what God accomplished through His Son nearly 2,000 years ago. But why do we call this day good? Was not this one of the blackest days in history? God’s sinless Son, who went about doing good, healing the sick, and bringing hope to sin-ruined lives, was nailed to a shameful cross by self-righteous religious leaders. That’s evil at its worst. That sounds more like God’s day of defeat. Where is the good in that? Paul gave us the answer. On this day centuries ago, God demonstrated “His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Ro 5:8). Such love is too profound for a genius to fully grasp, yet so simple that a child can accept it. And this love is experienced by all who repent of their sins and receive Christ by faith. See, from His head, His hands, His feet, Sorrow and love flow mingled down; Did e’er such love and sorrow meet, Or thorns compose so rich a crown? —Watts Christ endured the darkness so that we can enjoy the light. What’s Love? (Read: Psalm 103:1-14) - When asked “What’s love?” children have some great answers. Noelle, age 7, said, “Love is when you tell a guy you like his shirt, then he wears it every day.” Rebecca, who is 8, answered, “Since my grandmother got arthritis, she can’t bend over and polish her toenails anymore. So my grandfather does it for her all the time, even after his hands got arthritis too. That’s love.” Jessica, also 8, concluded, “You really shouldn’t say ‘I love you’ unless you mean it. But if you mean it, you should say it a lot. People forget.” Sometimes we need reminding that God loves us. We focus on the difficulties of life and wonder, Where’s the love? But if we pause and consider all that God has done for us, we remember how much we are loved by God, who is love (1 John 4:8-10). Psalm 103 lists the “benefits” God showers on us in love: He forgives our sin (Ps 103:3), satisfies us with good things (Ps 103:5), and executes righteousness and justice (Ps 103:6). He is slow to anger and abounds in mercy (Ps 103:8). He doesn’t deal with us as our sins deserve (Ps 103:10) and has removed our sin as far as the east is from the west (Ps 103:12). He has not forgotten us! Our God is God— His truth, His love remains each day the same, He’s faithful to His matchless name, For God is God—He does not change. —D. DeHaan The death of Christ is the measure of God’s love for you. Love Undeserved - Years ago in North Carolina, Judge Clara Warren served in the juvenile court system. She was known for her strict interpretation of the law, but also for her love and compassion. One day Judge Warren took reporter Phyllis Hobe on a tour of a correctional facility. Hobe was surprised by the judge’s sincere concern for many of the inmates. She was helping them to get into schools and find jobs when they were released. She even continued to care for them if they were readmitted. “How can you keep on loving them?” the reporter asked. “They don’t seem to appreciate all you’ve done for them.” The judge explained that she didn’t love them because she wanted to receive their thanks. She simply loved them, expecting nothing in return. Isn’t that how God loves us? The Bible tells us that He loved the world so much that He gave His Son to die for us (John 3:16; Ro 5:8). Though sinful and ungrateful, every man, woman, and child is the object of His love. Yes, He longs for our loving obedience. But when that doesn’t happen, He continues to love us no matter how unlovable we are. O Love that wilt not let me go, I rest my weary soul in Thee; I give Thee back the life I owe, That in Thine ocean depths its flow May richer, fuller be. —Matheson Nothing is more powerful than God's love. No Greater Love —1 John 4:10 - On our family-room wall, in a small shadowbox, hangs a “treasure” that belongs to my wife Carolyn. Oh, we have things more intrinsically valuable on the walls of our home —a handmade quilt from the Blue Ridge Mountains of Kentucky, antique mirrors, oil paintings, and a magnificent dulcimer from an artisan in the back-country of Idaho. Carolyn’s treasure, though, is far more valuable to her than any other possession, for it contains a gift from our granddaughter Julia. It was a present to her “Nana” on Valentine’s Day several years ago when Julia was only 6 years old — a small, red, clay heart. Inscribed on it in childish scrawl are the words“ I Luv U.” The little heart is crudely made, ragged on the edges, and bears a number of thumbprints and smudges, but Carolyn has enshrined it in a frame made especially for that heart. Each day it reminds her of Julia’s love. Love sent my Savior to die in my stead, Why should He love me so? Meekly to Calvary’s cross He was led, Why should He love me so? —Harkness God’s eternal love is the source of our eternal life. The Power Of Love Read: 1 John 4:7-10 In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the [atoning sacrifice] for our sins. — 1 John 4:10 Books on leadership often appear on best-seller lists. Most of them tell how to become a powerful and effective leader. But Henri Nouwen’s book In the Name of Jesus: Reflections on Christian Leadership is written from a different perspective. The former university professor who spent many years serving in a community of developmentally disabled adults says: “The question is not: How many people take you seriously? How much are you going to accomplish? Can you show some results? But: Are you in love with Jesus? . . . In our world of loneliness and despair, there is an enormous need for men and women who know the heart of God, a heart that forgives, that cares, that reaches out and wants to heal.” John wrote, “In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the [atoning sacrifice] for our sins” (1 John 4:9-10). Father, please show the wonder of Your great love through me to others today so that they might know they need not walk through life alone. Let my heart personally experience and display Your care. God’s love in our heart gives us a heart for others. Ray

1 João 4:12

Barclay - It is by love that God is known (1Jn 4:12). We cannot see God (THE FATHER), because He is spirit; what we can see is His effect. We cannot see the wind, but we can see what it can do (Jn 3:8). We cannot see electricity, but we can see the effect it produces. The effect of God is love. It is when God comes into a man that he is clothed with the love of God and the love of men. God is known by His effect on that man. It has been said, "A saint is a man in whom Christ lives again" and the best demonstration of God comes not from argument but from a life of love. John MacArthur -. Nobody can see God loving since His love is invisible. Jesus no longer is in the world to manifest the love of God. The only demonstration of God’s love in this age is the church. That testimony is critical (Jn 13:35; 2Co 5:18–20). John’s argument in 1Jn 4:7–12 can be summed up as: love originated in God, was manifested in His Son, and demonstrated in His people. (See The MacArthur Bible Commentary) D Edmond Hiebert explains the surprising statement that no one has seen God - The assumed logic is that since it is easier for us to love someone whom we can see and know directly than one whom we have never seen personally, how can they profess to know and love God whom they have never seen and yet hate the brother who is visibly present with them? For those who disparage the obligation to love the brethren, no vaunted mystical visions of God will ever enable them to attain to a vital relationship with God. John has already informed his readers that a direct vision of God awaits the time of the Parousia (1Jn 3:2+).(1 John 4:7-21) “God dwelleth in us” though we do not see him. The nearest approach we can have to God is by this golden way of love. -- C H Spurgeon David Guzik on no one has seen God - In speaking of God the Father, Paul wrote in 1 Timothy 1:17: Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible. Jesus declared of God the Father, God is Spirit, (John 4:24) meaning that God the Father has no tangible body which may be seen. Knowing God the Father is invisible should make us more humble in our relationship with Him. God the Father is not completely knowable by us; we can't completely figure out God, or know all His secrets. He is beyond us. Of course, no one has seen God the Holy Spirit at any time either, though He has represented Himself in various ways. And just as certainly, God the Son, Jesus Christ, has been seen - John himself testified to this in 1 John 1:1-3+. But of God the Father, it can truly be said, no one has seen God at any time. The unseen God, Who was once revealed in His Son, is now revealed in His people if and when they love one another. John Stott explains why John brings up the point that no one has seen God writing that "the unseen God, Who was once revealed in His Son, is now revealed in His people if and when they love one another. God's love is seen in their love because their love is His love imparted to them by His Spirit (1Jn 4:13). The words do not mean that when we begin to love, God comes to dwell in us, but the reverse. Our love for one another is evidence of God's indwelling presence." (Borrow The Letters of John THOUGHT - This begs the question dear child of God - Can others "see" the unseen God Who abides in you by the way you love others? This is a very convicting question, because I look in the mirror every morning! RESULT OF BELIEVERS LOVING ONE ANOTHER If (3rd class condition - potential action) we love (agapao - present tense - habitually) one another (allelon - reciprocal Christian love), God abides (meno - present tense - continually dwells) in us - What John is showing now is that there is a direct relationship between our practice of love and our experience of God. Love one another occurs 3 times in this "love" section (1Jn 4:7-21) - 1Jn 4:7+, 1Jn 4:11+, 1Jn 4:12+. It was also used in 1Jn 3:11+ and 1Jn 3:23+. As Hiebert explains "The practice of mutual Christian love confirms that “God dwells in us”. John asserts that whenever believers practice mutual love, God’s love becomes visible in the lives of those in whom He abides. The love which He has implanted in the heart of the believer through the Holy Spirit (1Jn 4:13; Ro 5:5+) is thus visibly expressed and confirms the reality of God’s indwelling presence. The practice of mutual love further signifies that “His love is perfected in us”" (1 John 4:7-21) If we love one another the unseen God is in a sense seen by the Spirit enabled supernatural love we show to others. God abides (meno - present tense - continually dwells) in us - To Whom might God refer? While the Trinity indwells believers (even the Father - "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him, and make Our abode with him." Jn 14:23+), this is probably best interpreted as a reference to the indwelling Holy Spirit, the Third Person of the Holy Trinity, the Helper Jesus would ask the Father to send (Jn 14:16), Whom the Father promised (Lk 24:49, Acts 1:4, Acts 2:33) and would Himself would send (Jn 14:26), and also Whom Jesus would send (Jn 15:26, Jn 16:7). Paul says we were "sealed (sphragizo) in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise, Who is given as a pledge (arrabon = deposit, down payment) of our inheritance." (Eph 1:13-14+) In 1Jn 4:13 John says God "has given us of His Spirit." In short, the fact that God abides in us (continually - present tense) is a clear reference to the permanent relationship which God has with each believer. You cannot lose your salvation (but of course you must be genuine saved and that is part of John's purpose of this epistle - 1Jn 5:11-13) Note that our loving one another does not make or cause God to abide in us, but shows that He abides in us for we could only love one another as His Spirit abiding in us enables us. In 1Jn 3:17+ he alludes to the "love of God" abiding in those who take care of the needs of their brethren.

1 João 4:13

Barclay - One other thing emerges in this passage. It has taught us of God and it has taught us of Jesus; and it teaches us of the Spirit. In 1 John 4:13 John says it is because we have a share of the Spirit that we know that we dwell in God. It is the work of the Spirit that in the beginning makes us seek God at all; it is the work of the Spirit that makes us aware of God's presence; and it is the work of the Spirit that gives us the certainty that we are truly at peace with God. It is the Spirit in our hearts which makes us dare to address God as Father (Ro 8:15-16). The Spirit is the inner witness who, as C. H. Dodd puts it, gives us the "immediate, spontaneous, unanalysable awareness of a divine presence in our lives." THE GIFT OF GOD'S SPIRIT That we abide (meno - present tense) in Him and He in us, because He has given (perfect tense) us of His Spirit (pneuma) - John repeats the truth of "reciprocal abiding," we in God, God in us (3x - 1Jn 2:24, 1Jn 4:13, 1Jn 4:15), only possible by His Spirit. Notice that has given is in the perfect tense which speaks of the permanence of the Father's Gift given at the moment of regeneration. He is in us to stay, as James says “The Spirit Who He has been caused to take up permanent residence in us.” (James 4:5+) Do you "wrestle" with the doctrine of eternal security? If so, notice how even the tense of the verb (perfect tense) underscores the assurance we can have regarding our salvation. We cannot lose the gift of the Spirit. In John 14:16+ Jesus promised the disciples that the Father would "give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever." In short, genuine believers cannot lose their salvation! On the other hand, if you are continually plagued with doubts about whether you are truly saved, you might want to ponder Paul's words in 2Cor 13:5+. H A Ironside on God has given us of His Spirit - He has Himself implanted within us something that He has given us from His Spirit. That is the new nature. His Spirit is that of love, and this is the very essence of the new nature. All you and I have to do is to let the Spirit of God control us (Eph 5:18+ - filled = controlled) and we will manifest the love of Christ. C H Spurgeon on He has given us of His Spirit - And His Spirit is the spirit of love. Wherever it comes, it makes man love his fellow man and seek his good; and if you have that love in your heart, it came from God, and you dwell in God. (1 John 4) Herschel Hobbs - “The indwelling Spirit, therefore, is not an extra experience coming at a subsequent point in the Christian’s life. At the outset, He serves as evidence that we are Christians—that God dwells in us and we in Him.” (Borrow The Epistles of John) Belief and love are not the conditions of the indwelling, however, but the tests and evidences of it. John Stott observes that "It is by the Spirit that we come to acknowledge the incarnation of the Son (cf. 1Jn 4:1–3+ and 1Cor. 12:3), and by the same Spirit that we are enabled to love (1Jn 4:12–13; cf. 1Jn 3:23–24+). In our fallen and unredeemed state we are both blind (unable to believe) and selfish (unable to love). It is only by the grace of the Holy Spirit, who is the Spirit of truth (Jn 14:17+) and whose first-fruit is love (Gal. 5:22+), that we ever come to believe in Christ and to love others. Emphasis on the Holy Spirit is, in fact, ‘the predominant idea of this section’ (Ebrard). This, then, is the sequence of thought: we know that we live in God and God in us ‘because he has given us of his Spirit’ (1Jn 4:13), and we know he has given us of His Spirit because we have come to ‘acknowledge that Jesus is the Son of God’ (1Jn 4:15+), and to live ‘in love’ (1Jn 4:16+). Some commentators make the mistake of seeing in this paragraph the conditions of our living in God and of His living in us. Belief and love are not the conditions of the indwelling, however, but the tests and evidences of it. John writes not ‘by this we live in Him’, but ‘by this we know that we live in Him’. The theme of this section, as of the whole letter, is ‘the grounds of assurance’ (Dodd). (Borrow The Letters of John) NET Note on of His Spirit - The genitive of His Spirit here, like the phrase in 1Jn 3:24+, probably reflects a partitive nuance, so that the author portrays God as ‘apportioning’ His Spirit to individual believers. D Edmond Hiebert - The expression of His Spirit conveys a partitive sense, that “Christians receive from God a share (only) in the Spirit Who fills the whole church.” Only of the incarnate Son could it be said in the fullest sense that He received “the Spirit without measure” (John 3:34 NASB). (1 John 4:7-21) David Jackman on of His Spirit the partitive sense of the Spirit (as in the NET Note above) does not imply that the Spirit is divisible into parts - "This is the same mistake as thinking of the fullness of the Spirit as somehow getting more of the Spirit into us than we now have, as though we could receive Him by installments. He is a Person, one and indivisible; though we must also observe that the fact that He indwells one Christian does not mean that He cannot equally indwell all. So it is impossible for one to have 60% of the Spirit, but not at all impossible that He has less than all of us." (BORROW The message of John's letters) Indeed, we each have all of the Spirit of Christ (cp Col 2:10+) we are ever going receive, but now the Spirit is in the process of sanctification seeking to get all of us (daily fully surrendering, giving wholehearted obedience, daily dying to self, etc), a process that will not be completed until we are glorified! O blessed day when we see Him face to face for then we will be fully, forever like Him (1Jn 3:2+)! Henry Alford on of the Spirit - We each have the indwelling of one and the same personal Spirit, but each according to our measure, 1Cor. 12:4, 11. One only had the Spirit without measure, in all His fullness: even Christ; John 3:34. And the presence of the Holy Spirit is most aptly adduced here where love is in question, His first fruit being love (Gal 5:22+), and His presence being tested by His fruits The world is but a fleet­ing dream, A pass­ing cloud, a me­te­or beam; Its bright­est joys like sha­dows glide, And leave my heart un­sa­tis­fied. Refrain O dwell with me, Thou hea­ven­ly Guest, In whom alone is per­fect rest; O dwell with me; no love like Thine Can fill this long­ing heart of mine. The hopes of earth are born to die, ’Tis Hea­ven alone can sa­tis­fy, I long to see that home above, Celestial ci­ty that I love. Refrain When friend­ships fail and all seems dark, The God of Heav’n will steer my bark; In His own time I’ll reach the shore, And dwell with Him for­ev­er­more. --Fanny Crosby Kenneth Wuest on of His Spirit - “Of His Spirit” is literally, “out of His Spirit.” Paul’s words in 1Cor 12:4–11 are of help here. John in using ek “out of,” does not mean to infer that the individual saint receives only part of the Holy Spirit, for a person cannot be divided and parceled out in parts. Each saint receives the Holy Spirit Himself in His entirety. John is here referring to that which the saint experiences of the indwelling Holy Spirit, namely, the operation of the spiritual gifts. No saint is given all of them. The individual saint who is the recipient of these spiritual gifts of the Spirit receives certain ones (ek) out of the total number. But the presence of these gifts in him, shown by their outworking in his life, is also an evidence of the presence of the Spirit in him, and this latter, a proof of the fact that God dwells in that saint and that saint dwells in God. (Eerdmans Publishing - used by permission) Just a reminder - Every believer has the Spirit. We do not need to pray for the Spirit. He is present, personal and permanent. Persons lacking the Spirit are not believers as Paul plainly states in Romans 8:9+ "However, you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him." Dear believer, do not let anyone confuse you about the Spirit. He is your personal, permanent possession! God sent His Son to die for us. God sent His Spirit to live in us Warren

1 João 4:14

Barclay - Jesus is the Savior (soter) of the world (kosmos). When He came into the world, men were conscious of nothing so much as their own weakness and helplessness. Men, said Seneca, were looking ad salutem, for salvation. They were desperately conscious of "their weakness in necessary things." They wanted "a hand let down to lift them up." It would be quite inadequate to think of salvation as mere deliverance from the punishment of hell. Men need to be saved from themselves; they need to be saved from the habits which have become their fetters; they need to be saved from their temptations; they need to be saved from their fears and their anxieties; they need to be saved from their follies and mistakes. In every case Jesus offers men salvation; He brings that which enables them to face time and to meet eternity. Kenneth

1 João 4:15

Barclay - Jesus is the Son of God....it certainly means that Jesus Christ is in a relationship to God in which no other person ever stood or ever will stand. He alone can show men what God is like; He alone can bring to men God's grace, love, forgiveness and strength. C H

1 João 4:18

Barclay - Fear is the characteristic emotion of someone who expects to be punished. So long as we regard God as the Judge, the King, the Law-giver, there can be nothing in our heart but fear for in face of such a God we can expect nothing but punishment. But once we know God's true nature, fear is swallowed up in love. The fear that remains is the fear of grieving His love for us. Marvin Vincent on involves punishment - Involves is present tense. The punishment is present. Fear by anticipating punishment has it even now. The phrase involves punishment (see on Jn 16:22) indicates that the punishment is inherent in the fear. Fear carries its own punishment. Augustine, commenting on the expulsion of fear by love, says: “As in sewing, we see the thread passed through by the needle. The needle is first pushed in, but the thread cannot be introduced until the needle is brought out. So fear first occupies the mind, but does not remain permanently, because it entered for the purpose of introducing love.” Vine says 1 John 4:18 "describes a process, not merely an effect; this kind of fear is expelled by perfect love; where God’s love is being perfected in us, it gives no room for the fear of meeting with His reprobation; the punishment referred to is the immediate consequence of the sense of sin, not a holy awe but a slavish fear, the negation of the enjoyment of love. (Vine's Expository Dictionary) We won't fear God's judgment when we know His forgiving love. C H

1 João 4:19

Barclay - Human love is a response to divine love. We love because God loved us. It is the sight of His love (ED: AND THE EXPERIENCE OF HIS LOVE AS THE SPIRIT POURS THIS LOVE OUT IN OUR HEARTS - Ro 5:5+) which wakens in us the desire to love Him as He first loved us and to love our fellow-men as He loves them. Danny Akin says Alfred Plummer "gives three reasons why this fact is significant: (1) Our love owes its origin to God’s love. (2) Love is characterized by fear when there is a doubt it will be returned. We have no fear of this since God’s love was prior to ours. (3) Affection can easily flow from a heart filled with gratitude for God’s initiation of love toward us." (See 1,2,3 John: An Exegetical and Theological Exposition) John Stott - John makes a general affirmation about God’s people. Our great characteristic, he says, is not that we fear, but that we love. (Borrow The Letters of John) Paul describes how God first loved us For we also once were foolish ourselves, disobedient, deceived, enslaved to various lusts and pleasures, spending our life in malice and envy, hateful, hating one another. 4 But when the kindness of God our Savior and [His] love for mankind appeared (IN THE PERSON OF HIS SON), 5 He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit (Titus 3:3-5+) The reason for our love is found in free grace. God first loved us, and now we must love him; we cannot help it. C H

1 João 4:20

Barclay - Love of God and love of man are indissolubly connected (1John 4:7+; 1John 4:11+; 1John 4:20-21). As C. H. Dodd finely puts it: "The energy of love discharges itself along lines which form a triangle, whose points are God, self, and neighbor." If God loves us, we are bound to love each other, because it is our destiny to reproduce the life of God in humanity and the life of eternity in time. John says, with almost crude bluntness, that a man who claims to love God and hates his brother is nothing other than a liar. The only way to prove that we love God is to love the men whom God loves. The only way to prove that God is within our hearts is constantly to show the love of men within our lives. Spurgeon gives a good explanation of brother and specifically emphasizes this does not identify a brother in Christ (as some evangelical commentators attest in order to support a false interpretation of what John is saying!) - And the word “brother” is to be understood in the widest possible sense. We are all brothers, springing from the same common parent; and therefore we ought to be philanthropists, lovers of man, loving even the guilty and the worthless, having an earnest desire to do good even to those who do us ill. If we have not yet reached that spirit, we had need begin our true Christian life, at the foot of the cross, by trusting and loving him who there died out of love for sinners; for there only can we learn, in the person of Christ Jesus our Lord, this divine philosophy of love to God and men. (Exposition on 1 John 4) John Stott notes that "It is obviously easier to love and serve a visible human being than an invisible God, and if we fail in the easier task, it is absurd to claim success in the harder. ‘It is a false boast when anyone says that he loves God but neglects His image which is before his eyes’ (Calvin). As Dodd points out, this ‘cannot’ expresses not so much the person’s incapacity to love God, as the proof that he does not. It is easy to deceive ourselves. The truth, however, is plain. Every claim to love God is a delusion if it is not accompanied by unselfish and practical love for our brothers and sisters (1Jn 3:17–18)." (Borrow The Letters of John) Love for God and hatred for a brother cannot coexist in the same heart -- Danny Akin He is (present tense) a liar (pseustes); for (gar) the one who does not love (agapao - present tense) his brother (adelphos) whom he has seen, cannot (ou - absolutely + dunamai - can, able = cannot) love (agapao - present tense) God Whom he has not seen - The verb "is" (estin) is present tense signifying this man as a habitual liar. Truth be told (pun intended) we all lie from time to time (remember "little white lies" are black as night before a God Who is perfect light!), but because believers possess the Spirit of truth (Jn 14:17, Jn 15:26, Jn 16:13), they cannot habitually lie. A lying Christian is a conscience smitten Christian, and cannot continue in the state ad infinitum. Either he confesses and repents or he is sorely disciplined by the Lord. And as John makes clear, if he persists indefinitely in lying, then he is living a lie and is forever lost. For (gar) is a term of explanation should alway prompt the question "What is the author explaining?" In context, John is explaining how the professor of "I love God" is a liar and does not truly love God Who is invisible. Why? Because he does not love his brother who is visible! The verb has seen in in the perfect tense signifying that this liar has seen his brother at some point in time and "continues to feel the influence of that sight." (Alford) In other words, this was not a passing glance like a fleeting shadow, thus the verdict failure to love was fully justified. If we refuse to love the tangible (brethren), we cannot claim to love the intangible (God)! John describes eternal punishment as the fat of all habitual liars.... "But for the cowardly and unbelieving and abominable and murderers and immoral persons and sorcerers and idolaters and all (ALL WHO MAKE LYING A LIFESTYLE) liars, their part will be in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death." (Revelation 21:8+) Like father, like son. Jesus explains who is the father of habitual liars (addressing Jews who actually professed faith in Jn 8:30-31+ but clearly did not possess faith Jn 8:45-47+) You are of [your] father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own [nature;] for he is a liar, and the father of lies." (Jn 8:44+) You can never judge a man’s character by his books.