Sermon Notes
Introduction
John, the apostle, wrote this letter amid the rising false teaching, an early form of Gnosticism. This early form denied Christ's humanity. The false teaching confused the believers. The apostle wrote to defend the doctrine that Christ, even though God, was also human. He also assured the believers of their salvation and instructed them to walk in truth and love. John affirmed the incarnation, which rejected the early Gnostic teachings. The author also claimed to have been an eyewitness to Christ Himself. John would also emphasize the fellowship of believers in Christ.
1. Word of Life
John begins by writing about the word of life, referring to Christ Jesus our Lord. His introduction is similar to his gospel account, where he refers to the Word as coming from the beginning. The writer also mentioned that “In Him was life and the life was the light of men…” In the epistle, John calls Him “Word of life.”
1 John 1:1: That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life.
2. Testify and Proclaim
In the gospel account, John stated that they beheld His glory when the Word became flesh and lived among them. In the opening of his epistle, John makes a parallel statement of the Word that was manifested, and the Word came from the Father. However, there is a progression from the prologue of the Gospel account to the epistle.
1 John 1:2: the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us. At the end of the prologue, John declared that only God can reveal God, and that was the purpose of the Word who became flesh, that is, to reveal God. In the epistle, John refers to himself and the others who testify and proclaim the eternal life. In essence, those who were with the Word of life are now the ones proclaiming eternal life.
3. Fellowship
The result of the proclamation was fellowship with one another, especially with the Father and Son, Jesus Christ. Of course, that is assuming that the readers of the letter genuinely believed the testimony and proclamation about the Word of life, who gives eternal life.
1 John 1:3-4: that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. And we are writing these things so that our joy may be complete.
Application
- Believe in the testimony of the apostles about the Lord Jesus Christ. Where may we find their testimony? In the New Testament, which we consider to be Holy Scripture. The apostles directly encountered the Word of life, whom John declares as God who took on the nature of man.
- Recognize the fellowship through faith in Christ. By believing what the apostles proclaim, we have fellowship with the Father and Son, and we have fellowship with one another. He has brought us together through the message of the gospel.
- We must proclaim the testimony of the apostles about Christ. For those who believed, we invite them into our fellowship. Fellowship with the Creator and with believers is God’s gift to us. Let us not take it for granted. Instead, let us value it.
Study Guide
- Search for parallel truths from the prologue of John’s gospel (Jn 1:1-18) and the introduction of his epistle (1 Jn 1:1-4).
- Show and explain the divinity and humanity of Christ in this introduction (1 Jn 1:1-4).
- Discuss the concept of fellowship and its implications to believers (1 Jn 1:3- 4).