Bible Groups - Gospel and Letters of John - navigation>
First Letter of John - Chapter 2
- 1 Wishes that they may not sin. The danger is not so much the ordinary temptations of the flesh,
although these are mentioned, but in the insidious view that sin does not matter. Presumably a view held
by the secessionists. The greatest weapon against sin is to recognise it and to accept our dependence on
redemption by Jesus. Here Jesus is the Advocate (Advocate is the Spirit in the gospel, except Jn 14:16
calls the Spirit ‘another Advocate’). ‘Children’ implies a person with special responsibility and authority
- different from the gospel where there are only disciples. But does not pretend that Christians are able to
avoid sin: the church is a community of people who believe that sins do not bring permanent
estrangement from God. Christ has fundamentally transformed our relationship with God: difficult to
describe, so several mataphors used, eg law court, with Christ as our advocate.
- 2 Eg Jewish sacrifice: expiation - not only for our sins, but for the whole world - by Jesus’ death is
emphasised here more than in the gospel, where Jesus' death was revelatory, but expiation was hardly
even implied.
- 3 Intimate knowledge of God comes from keeping his commandments. There is no other way, knowledge
alone is not enough. Disparity between moral life and the commandments proves improper belief.
- 4 ‘Whoever says’ - directed at false propagandists (also vv 6, 9), who said that all one needed was
'knowledge' (gnosis - hence gnosticism). This knowledge took many forms, some perhaps developing
later, but included that the true aim in life is to free oneself from the evil environment of the visible
world by means of 'knowledge' of the real and the good. To 'know' God was to be saved. Thus rising
above the earthly realm, the body and its passions - morality - are unimportant. This letter is written to
advise the community not to fall into this line of belief. Sin is real, and is important. Religion and morals
cannot be separated. As the Jews believed, the mark of true religion is obedience to God. At first this
meant the Jewish code, ie the commandments. But with Gentiles entering the church, this changed so
that the ultimate moral standard was the example of Jesus: we must walk as he walked ('walk' was a
standard term for moral conduct).
- 5 Love of God - two senses: love of God for us, and our love for God - is the perfection brought about by
keeping the commandments, and also indicates the extent of our union with God.
- 6 ‘abide in him’ - ie God; ‘live as he lived’ - ie Jesus; no distinction - Jesus and God are one.
Christianity is not simply ‘knowing God’ - knowledge only - but demands a life based on love of God,
challenging us to conduct ourselves as Jesus did.
- 7 The great commandment to love one another is not new - heard at first conversion, but not yet fully in
effect. It is as 'old' as Christianity. This mutual love constitutes 'living in the light'.
- 8 The expectation of a new age of living in the light requires that the darkness pass away. The new age is
coming into effect gradually by their self-sacrificing love for one another, banishing darkness. Yet it is
also new in the sense that the example of Jesus’ life must be constantly renewed in our lives.
- 9 Failure to keep this great commandment removes one from the light, and one is blind. There are only
two options: the light of reciprocal love, or stumbling in the darkness of hatred and sin.
- 12 Vv 12-14 difficult: word translated as ‘because’ could also be translated as ‘that’, giving different
meaning. ‘children’ appears to embrace all, ‘fathers’ appears to mean those who have been Christians
longer; ‘young men’ recent converts. Alternatively, ‘children’ could mean the spiritually immature,
‘fathers’ the mature, with secure knowledge of the Father, and ‘young men’ the spiritually proficient
whose God-given strength enables conquest of the evil one. Main difficulties by the false propagandists:
forgiveness of sins (v 12); and true knowledge of the Father (v 14). The Christian community that has
experienced the grace of God through forgiveness of sin and knowledge of Christ is armed against the
evil one. Our sins are forgiven because of Christ.
- 13 The ‘young’ - or recently converted - are more connected with temptation, recently overcome -
perhaps bearing the brunt of the attacks by the secessionists..
- 14 Poetic repetition.
- 15 Jesus’ followers should not be of the world - the evil one’s domain. They should treat it with cautious
discernment. Love of the world and love of God are mutually exclusive (Cf James 4:4).
- 16 Concupiscence, ie physical gratification, envy or avarice or covetousness (desire of the eyes), and
'pride of life' which represents willful independence from God and others, are representative of the 3
areas: the world, the flesh, and the devil. Cf the 3 temptations of Christ. They leave no place for the
Father’s love to dwell in us.
- 17 Of its nature the world - of darkness - is passing away, but those who do God’s will remain for ever -
in eternal life with God.
- 18 The Jews believed that God would bring a new age into effect in which his elect would be blessed, but
that this change would be preceded by a period of intense tribulation as the forces of evil made a last
stand, bringing unprecedented trials for the elect, forcing them to take one side or the other. The forces
of evil are now seen to be represented not just by the evil one, but by all heretics and schismatics, here
called antichrists. New is that some of them are sadly from our own community - an unprecedented
instance of apostasy, and so seen as ultimate evil. Hence the apocalyptic struggle between Christ and
Satan - the false propagandists - has already started, so the last hour has come.
- 19 Former nominal Christians are now against Christ and have left the fold. Their very exit proves their
insincerity. ‘Antichists’ may be compared to ‘false messiahs’ in Mk 13:22.
- 20 You do not need to be told all this, because you have been anointed by God - a divine anointing
(chrisma) in baptism which teaches all truth. Anointing in the OT sense of receiving the Spirit of God.
The 'Holy One' probably refers to Christ. True knowledge is a gift of the Spirit (Cf Is 11:2), and the Spirit
leads Christians to the truth (Jn 14:17,26, 16:13).
- 21 Through your anointing you know the truth.
- 22 Strong language - now we are told why. They are liars because they deny that Jesus is the Christ, and
so deny the Father and the Son. Difficult for us to understand how these individuals could have been
Christians. From later hints it appears that for them Christ was only a mythological symbol for a spiritual
reality, and that these abstract truths could not be identified with Jesus, whom they accepted as man, but
not as the Christ, 'come in the flesh' (4.2).
- 23 To deny the Son is to deny the Father, because the Son is our chief means of knowing the Father. Paul
would seek to refute these beliefs with arguments, but John's arguments are less sophisticated: no
doctrine which leads to immorality could be true. Above all, the truth is kept by the church, those in the
church can be sure what they are taught is true.
- 24 Seeks to combine the idea of the Spirit teaching the individual with the authoritative guide of
Tradition: anointing with the Spirit enables individuals to adhere to the truth of received teaching. If you
remain in tune with God, you will not be deceived. Continuity with the apostolic witness as proclaimed
in the prologue (1 Jn 1) is the safeguard of right belief.
- 25 The promise is eternal life, the intimate knowledge of the Father and Son, and an even greater sharing
in this.
- 26 Be aware of those who would deceive you.
- 27 Truly taught by God, the Christian does not need human teachers - and therefore can avoid the
secessionists. When we were anointed in baptism (2 Cor 1:21-22), we were brought into solidarity with
Christ, the anointed one, when we received the Holy Spirit who 'would teach us everything (Jn 14:26)
and so all 'have knowledge'. But the heretics were also baptised and so could also claim this knowledge.
For John the difference is the need to continue in solidarity with the Son through remaining in the
church, with the Spirit's guidance.
- 28 Full union with God is only possible at the judgement, in death or at the end of the world. Jesus’
presence in Christians now enables us to face this final coming with confidence and without fear. Final
eschatology here contrast with the realised eschatology of John's Gospel: Jesus, the righteous one, is
already present to all believers who do what is right, but the fullness of union is possible only with his
final return at the parousia. Present union with Jesus enables us the face with confidence his return in
judgement, either at our death or at the end of the world. Our confidence at his judgement is based on the
daily assurance of his salvation. Our actions reflect our true relation to him.
- 29 Acting righteously is based on being begotten by God: the Father’s love is always the source of
sanctification.