Chapter 7
1 John 2:28-3:3
1 John 2:28 And now, little children, abide in him, so that when he appears we may have confidence and not shrink from him in shame at his coming. 29 If you know that he is righteous, you may be sure that everyone who practices righteousness has been born of him.
These last two verses of the second chapter probably should have been the first two verses of chapter three as we see a strong break in the text with the use of an emphatic particle, ‘now’ (Greek word ‘nyn’). Even though the Greek word translated here as ‘children’ doesn’t necessarily imply ‘little children’ it is often translated as such. The word simply points to children of any age or level of maturity (just means offspring). John repeats the phrase “abide in Him” in verse 28 emphasizing the importance of this need for us as Christians. John essentially explains that if anyone who professes to believe the gospel message and then abandons the truth and faith (not abiding in Him), they cannot possess eternal life (see Colossians 1:21-23).
We are to abide in Him so that when He appears (His Second Coming) we may have confidence (the Greek word also implies boldness or a willingness to speak without reservation) and not be ashamed. John must have understood that to some Christians the thought of meeting their Lord and Savior may have made them a bit nervous, perhaps the idea gives them some form of high anxiety. Have you ever pondered that question for yourself? What will you do when you see Him? You know it’s going to happen, right? The Christian rock band MercyMe released a song back in 2001 titled “I Can Only Imagine” and it truly captures the potential emotion of this yet-future event of meeting Jesus. The song is truly worth listening to! I believe John understood that potential dilemma and wrote to us saying we have nothing to worry about (see also 1 Thessalonians 2:19; Titus 2:11-15).
John explains that if you know (the Greek word here ‘oida’ captures the idea that we know from perceived truth, such as something that is heard or seen) that Jesus is righteous (see 1 John 1:3:7), “you may be sure” (these four words are translated from one Greek word ‘gnosko’ which means that we know something from experience), that Christians who practice righteousness (see 1 John 3:9; 4:7; 5:1) received that righteousness from Jesus (read 2 Corinthians 5:17).
1 John 3:1 See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him.
I recognize that it can be very difficult to study the King James Version, however there are words such as the word ‘behold’ that are hard to replace. When someone loudly states ‘see!’ it doesn’t have the same impact as a good and hearty ‘behold!’ John is truly trying to call our attention to something that amazes him. “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.” (1 John 3:1, KJV) John has given us several examples of incredible love (read John 3:16; 1 John 4:10 for two other instances). Some translations will even clarify this verse by adding “great” to the sentence (such as NIV, NASB, HCSB, etc.)
So what made John so amazed? He was amazed that God adopted Christians as children of God. We may miss this if we read this passage quickly or casually, yes we are all children of God to some degree, but the Bible refers to unbelievers as children of man (Adam) and as a result all unbelievers are sinners and are condemned for eternity. However, since Jesus paid the price for our salvation, as believers, we are now considered children of God, co-heirs with Jesus! “So then, brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him. (Romans 8:12-17, ESV) As Christians we have all been adopted by God, hallelujah! (see also Romans 8:18-25; Ephesians 1:5; Galatians 3:26; John 1:12) So what’s keeping you from telling others? Isn’t that worth sharing?
John says the reason the world does not know or understand us is that they do not know or understand God, especially His unconditional love (read Ephesians 3:18-19 and 1 Peter 4:3-4). Our ways are not compatible with the ways understood by unbelievers. They may know of Him (perhaps heard about Jesus) but they do not know Him! Christians are to be holy, which in its simplest terms means that we are to be different, we are ‘separated’ or set aside for God’s use. We are not to be ‘undercover’ Christians, we are called to be bold and unashamed, reflecting Jesus wherever we go.
1 John 3:2 Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is.
John makes it clear that we are God’s children now, but what we are today is not the finished product. What we will be has not yet appeared (see 2 Corinthians 4:17-18), we are not yet in our glorified bodies. But we know that when Jesus appears we will be like Him. No, we will not be gods ourselves, John said we will be LIKE Him (read Romans 8:29; 1 Corinthians 15:42-49; 2 Corinthians 3:18; 4:22; Philippians 3:20-21 and 2 Peter 1:4). Luther would point out that one big difference (among many others) between Jesus and us would be that He is infinite (no beginning or end) and we are finite! We may not be identical to Jesus but we will have new bodies and we shall see Him as He is (read John 17:24; Revelation 5:11-14), I only know one word that captures this, wow!
1 John 3:3 And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.
The Greek word ‘echo’ translated here as ‘who’ implies someone holding on to something. We are holding on to hope. The Greek word ‘elpis’ is very different than the English word for ‘hope’ since it emphasizes expectation and confidence. While the English word can often relay the potential for doubt or potential disappointment such as “I hope I locked the door,” the Greek term implies an absolute. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9, ESV)
If we trust and thus hope in Him (see Romans 5:1-13), we will have been purified (pure from every fault and sin). John is not saying we can purify ourselves, nothing we can do will purify us, we need the Holy Spirit for that (read 2 Corinthians 3:18). John is calling our attention to the fact that God is pure and we need abide in Him to keep us from sinning and falling away from our fellowship with Him (read Matthew 5:8; Philippians 3:20-4:8; 1 Peter 1:3-5; Romans 5:14-21).