Tag: 1 John
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Satisfied at Last – Revelation 22:4
Revelation 22:4And they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads. This may be one of the most tender promises in all of Scripture. John says, “They shall see his face.” Not merely His works. Not merely His glory reflected in the city. Not merely the light that comes from Him.…
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The Surety of Shiloh – 1 John 5:20-21
1 John 5:20, 21 And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life. Little children, keep yourselves from idols.…
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Our Hope Is Not Here – 1 John 5:19
1 John 5:19 And we know that we are of God, and the whole world lieth in wickedness. John is painfully realistic here. He does not pretend the world is basically fine. He does not tell us that with enough optimism, enough policy, enough education, enough effort, things will finally straighten themselves out. He says the…
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Kept by Jesus – 1 John 5:17-18
1 John 5:17, 18 All unrighteousness is sin: and there is a sin not unto death. We know that whosoever is born of God sinneth not; but he that is begotten of God keepeth himself, and that wicked one toucheth him not. John begins by saying all unrighteousness is sin. He does not blur the line.…
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He Hears What Is in His Heart – 1 John 5:13-15
1 John 5:13-15 These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God. And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask…
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Life or No Life – 1 John 5:12
1 John 5:12 He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life. John now reduces the whole matter to one clear dividing line. Not religion or irreligion. Not church background or lack of background. Not morality or immorality. Not education, effort, or sincerity. The dividing line…
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Life Is in the Son – 1 John 5:10-11
1 John 5:10, 11 He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself: he that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth not the record that God gave of his Son. And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is…
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God’s Witness Is Greater – 1 John 5:9
1 John 5:9 If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater: for this is the witness of God which he hath testified of his Son. John makes a very simple argument here. We believe people all day long. We believe the doctor when he reads the scan. We believe the banker…
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Three Witnesses, One Assurance – 1 John 5:8
1 John 5:8 And there are three that bear witness in earth, the spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one. John now brings the truth down from heaven to earth. He has spoken of the witness above, and now he speaks of the witness here below. The Spirit, the water,…
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The Spirit Bears Witness – 1 John 5:6-7
1 John 5:6, 7 And it is the Spirit that beareth witness, because the Spirit is truth. For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. John is finishing his letter the same way he has written all along, by holding the line…
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The Same Jesus All the Way Through – 1 John 5:6
1 John 5:6 This is he that came by water and blood, even Jesus Christ; not by water only, but by water and blood. John is still protecting the truth about Jesus. All through this letter, he has been answering false ideas about Christ, especially the teaching that matter is evil and therefore Jesus could not…
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Victory Through a Person – 1 John 5:4-5
1 John 5:4, 5 For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God? John now tells us something every believer needs to hear. The world can…
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Love That Does Not Feel Heavy – 1 John 5:3
1 John 5:3 For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous. John keeps things wonderfully plain. If I love God, I will keep His commandments. That is not complicated. Love is not merely what I feel when the music is right and the mood is warm.…
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Loving the Father Means Loving His Family – 1 John 5:2
1 John 5:2 By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his commandments. John keeps tightening the connection. You cannot separate love for God from love for God’s people. They travel together. If I really love the Father, that love is going to move outward toward His…
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Born of God, In Love With the Son – 1 John 5:1
1 John 5:1 Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God: and every one that loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him. John is bringing his letter in for a landing, and he does it beautifully. In the opening chapters, he talked about walking in the light. Then…
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The Love That Starts It All – 1 John 4:19-21
1 John 4:19-21 We love him, because he first loved us. If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen? And this commandment have we from him, That he…
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Where Fear Loses Its Voice – 1 John 4:18
1 John 4:18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love. John gives us one of the most liberating statements in all of Scripture. There is no fear in love. Not little fear. Not reduced fear. No fear. Why? Because perfect…
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Boldness Born of Love – 1 John 4:16-17
1 John 4:16, 17 And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him. Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we…
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The Confession That Keeps You Safe – 1 John 4:14-15
1 John 4:14, 15 And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world. Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God. John keeps bringing us back to solid ground. He knows there are a lot…
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When Love Starts Showing – 1 John 4:12-13
1 John 4:12, 13 No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us. Hereby know we that we dwell in him, and he in us, because he hath given us of his Spirit. John says something very simple, and very searching.…
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he Mercy We Must Pass On – 1 John 4:11
1 John 4:11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another. John makes it beautifully simple. If God has loved us like this, then love cannot stop with us. It must move through us. That is where this gets very practical, saints. It is one thing to sing about grace, talk…
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Loved First – 1 John 4:9-10
1 John 4:9, 10 In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him. Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. That…
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The Fire That Warms or Burns – 1 John 4:7-8
1 John 4:7-8 Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love. After warning us about false spirits and deceptive voices, John now shifts the focus back to something central.…
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Two Voices in the World – 1 John 4:5–6
1 John 4:5–6 They are of the world: therefore speak they of the world, and the world heareth them.We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God heareth not us.Hereby know we the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error. John now draws a very simple line…
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Pressure From the Inside – 1 John 4:4
1 John 4:4 Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world. Think about the submarines that descend miles beneath the ocean surface into places like the Mariana Trench. The pressure down there is crushing. Engineers build those submarines…
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The Test of the Spirit – 1 John 4:2–3
1 John 4:2–3 Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God:And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it…
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Love That Knows the Difference – 1 John 4:1
1 John 4:1 Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world. John now moves into the theme of perfect love. In chapter 3 he has spoken of love in its purity and love in its practicality. Here in chapter…
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The One Work That Matters – 1 John 3:23
1 John 3:23 And this is his commandment, That we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us commandment. John brings everything down to its simplest form. After all the discussion about commandments and obedience, he tells us what God ultimately requires. It comes down…
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A Free Heart Before God – 1 John 3:21-22
1 John 3:21-22 Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God.And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight. John now shows what happens when the heart is at rest before God. When the heart is…
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When the Heart Accuses – 1 John 3:19-20
1 John 3:19-20 And hereby we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before him.For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things. John now speaks to something every believer eventually experiences. There are moments when the heart begins to accuse. A quiet…
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Love With Shoes On – 1 John 3:17-18
1 John 3:17-18 But whoso hath this world’s good, and seeth his brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him?My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth. John brings love down out of…
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The Kind of Love That Dies – 1 John 3:16
1 John 3:16 Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. John tells us that this is how love is recognized. Not by slogans. Not by sentiment. Not by saying the right things at the right moment.…
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Deadly Words or Living Love – 1 John 3:15
1 John 3:15 Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him. John does not soften his words here. He says plainly that hatred toward a brother is the moral equivalent of murder. That sounds severe until we remember what Jesus Himself taught. In Matthew 5:21–22,…
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Love in a Hostile World – 1 John 3:13-14
1 John 3:13, 14 Marvel not, my brethren, if the world hate you.We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death. John says something here that is both bracing and freeing. Do not marvel if the world hates you. Do…
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Love Does Not Smirk – 1 John 3:11-12
1 John 3:11-12 For this is the message that ye heard from the beginning, that we should love one another. Not as Cain, who was of that wicked one, and slew his brother.And wherefore slew he him? Because his own works were evil, and his brother’s righteous. John says this is not a new message.…
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Love Makes the Difference – 1 John 3:10
1 John 3:10 In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother. John keeps things very plain. He says there is a visible difference between the children of God and the children of the devil.…
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The Seed That Will Not Let Him Rest – 1 John 3:9
1 John 3:9 Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God. John is still driving home the same truth. Because Jesus came to take away sin and to destroy the works of the devil, the man who is…
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Why Jesus Came – 1 John 3:5-8
1 John 3:5-8 And ye know that he was manifested to take away our sins; and in him is no sin. Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not: whosoever sinneth hath not seen him, neither known him.Little children, let no man deceive you: he that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous. He that…
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Practicing Sin – 1 John 3:4
1 John 3:4 Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law. John is not talking here about the believer who stumbles, grieves, confesses, and gets back up. He is not describing the man who hates his sin even while struggling against it. The word translated “committeth” carries the…
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Living in the Hope of His Coming – 1 John 3:3
1 John 3:3 And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure. John makes it plain that hope is not just something a believer talks about. It has an effect. The person who truly believes Jesus is coming, the one who lives with the awareness that he may…
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Like Him When He Appears – 1 John 3:2
1 John 3:2 Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. John says something here that is both comforting and honest at the same…
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Loved Into the Family – 1 John 3:1
1 John 3:1 Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not. John is opening a fresh section here. In the first two chapters, he has been talking about walking in the light…
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Confidence at His Coming – 1 John 2:28-29
1 John 2:28-29 And now, little children, abide in him; that, when he shall appear, we may have confidence, and not be ashamed before him at his coming. If ye know that he is righteous, ye know that every one that doeth righteousness is born of him. John brings it down to something very personal.…
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The Spirit Bears Witness – 1 John 2:27
1 John 2:27 But the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him. John is…
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The Danger of Seduction – 1 John 2:26
1 John 2:26 These things have I written unto you concerning them that seduce you. John is not warning about people who are merely confused. He is talking about those who actively seduce, those who pull, charm, flatter, and persuade in order to cloud the truth about Jesus. That is what makes false teaching so…
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The Message That Must Stay – 1 John 2:24-25
1 John 2:24-25 Let that therefore abide in you, which ye have heard from the beginning. If that which ye have heard from the beginning shall remain in you, ye also shall continue in the Son, and in the Father. And this is the promise that he hath promised us, even eternal life. John keeps…
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The God Who Took the Blow – 1 John 2:21-23
1 John 2:21-23 I have not written unto you because ye know not the truth, but because ye know it, and that no lie is of the truth. Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist, that denieth the Father and the Son. Whosoever denieth the Son,…
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The Inner Witness – 1 John 2:20
1 John 2:20 But ye have an unction from the Holy One, and ye know all things. After warning about antichrists, false teachers, and people who drift away from the fellowship, John does something very pastoral here. He steadies the saints. He says, in effect, “Yes, deception is real. Yes, there are false voices. But…
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Staying With the Saints – 1 John 2:19
1 John 2:19 They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us: but they went out, that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us. John brings the warning down where we can feel…
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The Darkness That Tries to Replace Him – 1 John 2:18
1 John 2:18 Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time. John begins this section like a tender pastor talking to people he loves. “Little children.” There is affection in that. But…
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What Lasts Forever – 1 John 2:17
1 John 2:17 And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever. John has a way of cutting through the fog. After speaking of the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, he now tells us the…
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The Same Three Plays – 1 John 2:15-16
1 John 2:15-16 Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not…
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Growing Simpler in Jesus – 1 John 2:12-14
1 John 2:12-14 I write unto you, little children, because your sins are forgiven you for his name’s sake. I write unto you, fathers, because ye have known him that is from the beginning. I write unto you, young men, because ye have overcome the wicked one. I write unto you, little children, because ye…
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Fresh Light, Old Truth – 1 John 2:8-11
1 John 2:8-11 Again, a new commandment I write unto you, which thing is true in him and in you: because the darkness is past, and the true light now shineth. He that saith he is in the light, and hateth his brother, is in darkness even until now. He that loveth his brother abideth…
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No New Burden – 1 John 2:7
1 John 2:7 Brethren, I write no new commandment unto you, but an old commandment which ye had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which ye have heard from the beginning. John has a wise way of calming a nervous heart. By this point, after talking about obedience and walking as Jesus…
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Walking Where He Walked – 1 John 2:6
1 John 2:6 He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked. John now takes the whole matter out of the clouds and brings it down to shoe leather. If a man says he abides in Christ, that claim will show up in the way he lives.…
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Love Brought to Maturity – 1 John 2:5
1 John 2:5 But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him. John keeps bringing us back to something wonderfully simple. The evidence that a person is truly in Christ is not that he never struggles, never stumbles, or never feels his…
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Knowing Him for Real – 1 John 2:3-4
1 John 2:3-4 And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments. He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. John moves from communion into obedience, and that is exactly where he should go. Because if a…
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The Judge Who Paid the Fine – 1 John 2:2
1 John 2:2 And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world. John now tells us why Jesus can be our Advocate with the Father. It is not because He twists the facts. It is not because He makes excuses for us.…
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Tender Words, Serious Warning – 1 John 2:1
1 John 2:1 My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. There is such tenderness in this verse. John writes like an old shepherd speaking to those he loves dearly. He says, My little…
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Honest Hearts, Open Doors – 1 John 1:9-10
1 John 1:9-10 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. For years, these verses can trouble tender believers more than…
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Walking Clean in the Light – 1 John 1:7
1 John 1:7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. John ties two beautiful realities together in one verse. If we are walking in the light, there will be fellowship…
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When Light Fills the Room – 1 John 1:6
1 John 1:6 If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth. John does not leave much room for pretending. He brings it right down to street level. A man can say all the right things, sit in church, open his Bible, talk about…
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No Darkness In Him – 1 John 1:5
1 John 1:5 This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. John does not leave us guessing about the nature of God. He says this is the message he heard from Jesus Himself and now passes…
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Joy Beneath the Sorrow – 1 John 1:4
1 John 1:4 And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full. John tells us exactly why he is writing. He is not merely trying to fill our heads with information. He is not simply laying out doctrine for the sake of doctrine. He says he is writing so that our…
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The Jesus You Can Know – 1 John 1:1-3
1 John 1:1 to 3 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life;(For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and shew unto you that eternal…
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Background to 1 John
First John is a powerful epistle written by a very old apostle near the end of his life. John had walked with Jesus personally. He had heard His teaching, seen His miracles, stood near His cross, and watched the early church begin to spread. Though the other disciples, apart from Judas, were martyred, John was…