First John - Rey Reynoso's Bible Archive

reynaldo reynoso (admin)

The Purpose of the Letter

So that you know the truth in opposition to the seducers (2:26), so that your joy may be full (1:4) in understanding that being a believer in the name of the Son of God assures your eternal life (5;13) thus securing your understanding so you stand unashamed before God (2:28).

Major Theme

The Movement of the Letter or Thought-flow

The Life was Manifested (1:1-3)

The Life being manifested should also be Manifested in us

In Light

God is Light and if we have fellowship with Him we must walk in the Light (1:5-7)
Light manifests our sinful darkness (1:8-10) to deny this is to deny the Light
The Light is on our side… Christ our Advocate (2:1)
God is satisfied in Christ (2:2)

In Knowledge

Of His Commandments and effectively keeping it (2:3-4)
Of His Word effectively keeping it therein the Love of God being perfected (2:5)
Of His Walk effectively copying his walk (2:6)

In Loving not the World

Hating a brother embraces darkness (2:7-11) but believers are light and will love their brother.
God Loves us and forgave our sins, (2:12) and therefore we have overcome the wicked one (2:13), we know the Father (2:13) and His Word abides in us (2:14)
Loving not the world or the things thereof (2:15) because loving the things of the world is to not love the Father (2:15-16) for the things of the world pass away, unlike the eternal life of the Father (2:16-17)

In the Truth

In not denying Christ (2:18) as it will be in the end days that these people who leave and deny prove that the Life is not manifested in them because a person who has the Holy Spirit AA can not deny Christ (2:20)
As a believer you know the truth (2:22)
To deny Christ is to be a liar manifesting no truth (2:23,24)
To adhere to the things you’ve heard from the beginning (2:24)
To not be seduced but to stay with the promise knowing we have eternal life (2:25,26)
The Truth taught by the Spirit and not by seducers (2:27)
The Truth exemplified in Life so that you are unashamed before Christ at his coming (2:28)

In Righteousness

Knowing that he is righteous, results in doing righteousness and is a sign of being his (2:29)
God has enabled us (with such love) that we can be called Sons of God (3:1)
We shall eventually be like him (3:2)
The man with this hope in himself, purifies himself (3:3)
Committing sin, breaks the law. He takes away sin for in him is no sin (3:4,5)
Abiding in him, means abiding with no sin. Leading a life of sin speaks of not abiding in him (3:6)
One must do righteousness to be righteous (3:7)
One who embraces sin embraces the devil whose works are evil and Christ was manifested to destroy those works (3:8)
Being born of God means to be free of having to sin (3:9)

In Righteous Love

To Love in righteousness is to love your brother unlike Cain who did not love his brother (3:10-12)
To hate is to be a murderer and embracer of death (3:13,15)
A Righteous Love with perceptible compassion (3:16, 17)
A Righteous Love of action and not just word (3:18)

In our hearts before God

God is greater than our hearts (3:19,20) and knows all things
God looks at our hearts in all things (3:21)
And asks us that we do the things pleasing to him (3:22)
Which is to keep his commandments (3:23)
The Spirit who enables is the one who abides in us and by whom we know we abide in Him (3:24)

In the spirit of God

Test every spirit against to see if they are of God (4:1)
You can know the Spirit of God by the confession of Christ in the flesh is of God (4:2)
Careful to the ones who don’t confess this and deny…that is anti-christ (4:3)
The Spirit is in us and is greater than the world (4:4)
The Spirit shows us the spirit of Truth and the spirit of error (4:5,6)

In Loving

Love is of God (4:7) and God manifests love (4:8)
The Son was sent by love so that we may live (4:9)
The Son was sent as a propitiation (4:10) for our sins
If God loved us, we should love one another (4:11)
Love is perfected in us as being manifested in us by practicing it (4:12) so that we may bold in the Day of Judgment (4:17)
In a fearless love (4:18)
Without hypocrisy (loving your brother) (4:20,21)
Loving God and keeping His commandments (5;1-3)

This Life overcame the World

The Life bears witness of this truth of manifestation

By the Spirit which bears witness in truth (5:6)
By the witness of the Father, Son and Holy Ghost (5:7, 8)
which is the Witness of God (5:9)
The Witness in ourselves (5:10)
The Witness being the record that God has given to us eternal life by the Son for He is eternal life (5:11)
Who has the Son has life (5:12,13)
Of Confidence that he hears us (5:14) our petitions (5:15)
In Mercy with sins not unto death (5:16, 17)
In contrast to the world and in truth (5:18, 19, 20)
In contrast from the lie of idols (5:21)

If perchance you notice errors in this outline or wish to add insight, simply add to the comments section. Thank you and God bless you

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