1st epistle/letter of John Ch3
A chapter of many one sentence short verses. Short verses are not without force or effect.
These short verses come in the middle of the letter.
1Jn 3 -ASV
1. Behold what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called children of God; and such we are. For this cause the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.
A relationship with the Father. Not with any priest. A direct link.
The Father made it possible for us to be children of God. Not our own merit. Not something born with. No lacking of Original Sin. No pure baby. No Godly sinless child.
And such we are now. Not sometime before.
The world never knew Him. We were born into this world that is alien to the commonwealth of the Most High. Babies alien to the father and son relationship with God.
2. Beloved, now are we children of God, and it is not yet made manifest what we shall be. We know that, if he shall be manifested, we shall be like him; for we shall see him even as he is.
We are all in the union of love.
WE are patiently, trusting in God the Father to manifest to us what manner we shall be in the future. He has planned it. We eagerly expect it.
There is the waiting to be changed into His appearance. He is unchanged. We are changing; ready to be transformed at the right time.
We shall then see Him as He really is. There will be no more separation between us. We will have even closer union.
All perishable things will pass away. No more hinderance. He has prepared for all these consequences.
3. And every one that hath this hope set on him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.
We got reach. We are active. We are not laidback.
We struggle to be like Him who is pure. We want to be pure. There is the desire to be like Him.
This hope can set christians apart with worldly people and desires, making them pure, holy, saintly. This hope makes christians Godlike - pure.
4. Every one that doeth sin doeth also lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness.
Sin is related to lawlessness.
Sin is the disobedience of law.
This is a definition of sin |0266| - lawlessness |0458|.
Strong's Ref. # 458
Romanized anomia
Pronounced an-om-ee'-ah
from GSN0459; illegality, i.e. violation of law or (genitive case) wickedness:
KJV--iniquity, X transgress(-ion of) the law, unrighteousness.
5. And ye know that he was manifested to take away sins; and in him is no sin.
He has little to do with us if we had no sin.
We were gods if there was no sin in us. Of course, this is not true.
God is righteous, He is the source of order; in Him is no disorder.
6. Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not: whosoever sinneth hath not seen him, neither knoweth him.
Those who are with Him can avoid sinning.
Christ is the solution. He is the answer to our outcry.
We also ought to be orderly conducting ourselves according to His will, which is good and wise.
Disorder do not appreciate order.
7. My little children, let no man lead you astray: he that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous:
My little children, you will also grow up one day. Follow the older brother, Jesus Christ.
Conduct righteously.
Be like God in one accord. Have unity and integrity.
You should be whatever your Father is. Be like Him.
8. he that doeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. To this end was the Son of God manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil.
He that sins, conducting disorderly is born of the devil.
The devil disregarded law from the beginning, showing that he indeed is lawless - of sin.
The Son of God manifested Himself to deal with sin. To overcome sin, which is the work of the devil.
The Son live with a purpose. To do the Father's will. The Father's will is, therefore, to destroy the works of the devil. We ought to do the same.
We must not be with the devil, sinning.
9. Whosoever is begotten of God doeth no sin, because his seed abideth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is begotten of God.
We will sin no more, no longer, if we are born of God.
We born once into God, through God/Christ.
We were not of God - Godlike.
Christ was begotten/born of God, and therefore abides in Him. We ought to be abiding in Him.
Christ brought us out of sin.
Christ is able to do that if we are begotten of God. Be like Christ.
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.
There is the marked difference of living in sin and living in righteousness.
The children of the devil are exposed by their deeds. It is easy to differentiate/judge/identify/see/notice/understand.
The children of the devil are of/in the dark, refusing to be exposed/seen/point out.
It is unrighteousness to avoid being seen right with God. This avoidance is not love.
Love is not avoiding righteousness, God, Christ.
Sin is.
11. For this is the message which ye heard from the beginning, that we should love one another:
There is only one message. No more new revelation.
No selfishness in doing good, expressing goodness.
12. not as Cain was of the evil one, and slew his brother. And wherefore slew he him? Because his works were evil, and his brother's righteous.
Cain sinned. He had a link to the evil one.
He did not just kill Abel his brother; he murdered Abel.
One evil leads to another.
Abel took no offense.
13. Marvel not, brethren, if the world hateth you.
The world hates christians, followers of Christ.
Pattern within disorder/lawlessness.
Hatred is the proof of death. A breath of death.
14. We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not abideth in death.
We were once dead. So we had passed out of death into the life we were not in.
We knew death. We as children did not pass into life again. We were dead.
WE were not in love. We did not love God or the brethren. Now having passed out of death into life, we can love the brethren.
We were in death because we were not in love (not able to love God's way).
Love is the proof of life.
15. Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him.
Thou shalt not hate his brother = Thou shalt not murder.
Such hatred is death. Such hatred has no eternal life.
he that murder has no eternal life.
The consequences of lawlessness/hatred/evil is death. They lead to death.
Live for a time, die of certainty.
The law is black and white. You either sin or you do not. No other area in between black and white.
You either murder or you do not. There is no such thing as "almost murdering, but not quite".
16. Hereby know we love, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.
We have an example for love. We know love from the example.
Infants and babies do not know such example.
We being born of God ought to act out just like God; loving to the death of the worldly/earthly body.
Love has no limit.
Love knows no limit.
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?
A test case.
Share with what you have. Give with what you have. No selfishness.
Give to the world what belongs to the world.
Love sees the need and act upon it.
Love repairs hurt; comforts the needy. Love repays evil/tragedy/sadness with good/gladness/joy.
18. My Little children, let us not love in word, neither with the tongue; but in deed and truth.
Not in deed alone; but in truth at the same time.
19. Hereby shall we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our heart before him:
Christ is the Truth. Are we of Christ? Are you?
To preach Christ is to preach the Truth.
No true preaching is bad/evil.
20. because if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things.
God knows our problems. Inflation cannot overcome the care/attention of God.
21. Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, we have boldness toward God;
A proof of confidence.
22. and whatsoever we ask we receive of him, because we keep his commandments and do the things that are pleasing in his sight.
Being righteous is a pre-condition to receiving good judgment.
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 commandment.
Do we believe in the Truth, and act upon the Truth?
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.
Like with like.
We have the Holy Spirit. We have Christ.
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