This week is the concluding week in our study of 1 John in our Women's Bible Study. I have learned so much in this study and I have been so blessed to get to know the ladies. I have never gone through a Precept study by Kay Arthur before and I hope this will not be my last! The homework for this study always keeps me busy but I am amazed at how in depth this study has been.
The book of 1 John was written by John who also wrote the Gospel of John and the book of Revelation. John was also termed "the disciple whom Jesus loved" and he also wrote based upon what he saw firsthand. He had such a strong desire to urge the Christians to turn away from the teaching of the Gnostics and realize they were in fact saved by faith in Christ.
I loved this study because I never knew this much depth and importance was in the little book of 1 John. I guess I never have really studied it before so this was new to me. I enjoyed getting to know John's style of teaching and the heart behind this epistle. He also used many similiarites to his writings in the Gospel of John.
John spoke over and over and over..... on the concepts of sin and salvation. He not only urged people to embrace Christ, but to also understand what in fact salvation was, and how this related to the concept of sin. It seems there was a lot of confusion surrounding salvation and John wanted to clear this up by warning the people of the false teachers of the day who were trying to steer them from the truth. John also continually pointed them to the "evidences" of salvation.
John wanted the Christians to know what salvation looked like in the life of the believer. He continually spoke on love and obedience as key evidences of salvation in the life of the believer. I thought this was not only interesting but convicting...
John also contrasted the concept of sin vs. a life of habitual sin. John pointed out that Christians cannot continue to live in habitual sin because they are born of God's seed. They are not able to!
- "No one born of God will continue to sin, because God's seed remains in Him; he cannot go on sinning because he has been born of God." 1 John 3:9 (sin=infinitive)
The concept of continuing in sin is a different form of the word for sin which is found in 1 John 2:1. John points out that when a believer does sin, Jesus makes intercession for them to the Father. The sin in John 2:1 is the sinful nature that all believers will continue to struggle with until they go to be with the Father. This form of "sin" is different to the habitual sinful way of life that is found in 1 John 3:9.
- "But if anybody does sin(one point in time), we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense-Jesus Christ, the Righteous One." 1 John 2:1b
The difference among these two uses of sin is a lifestyle.
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