1 John 3:23-24

Introduction:

No one likes to be told what to do. We prefer to be told facts or asked questions over receiving imperatives. We'd rather take a suggestion than receive a command. But when we hear the word "commandment," we often consider the moral dimension, being reminded of the 10 Commandments. Therefore, when John speaks of "His commandment" we may be led to think such things as not blaspheming, not coveting or not stealing. Perhaps, having been reminded of The Great Commandment, we may expect something a little different.

John says that His Commandment is faith. And after defining what faith looks like, he helps us assess whether we have that kind of faith. After all, if He has commanded it, we should seek to obey.

Commentary

v 23
John lays out that His commandment is to believe. Belief may appear an odd commandment to us, but John has heard Jesus say similar things before.

In John 6, the apostle recorded the feeding of the 5,000. The crowd is so excited, they would like to install Jesus as King by force. Jesus withdraws alone for the evening, but then travels across the sea by foot. The crowd eventually makes their way across the sea as well, and seeks out Jesus. Then Jesus confronts them about their desire to simply fill the stomachs, rather than do the works of God.

Therefore they said to Him, "What shall we do, so that we may work the works of God?" Jesus answered and said to them, "This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent."--John 6:28-29

Our belief is actually the first phase of obedience. "Without faith it is impossible to please God" (Hebrews 11:6). Also, Paul said: "Whatever is not from faith is sin" (Romans 14:23). Due to our sinful condition, it is impossible for us to please God on our own. We must depend on a righteousness outside of our own, therefore we must seek out that "alien" righteousness through faith alone. Therefore, Jesus instructs the crowd that if they choose to do the works of God, they must enter through faith. Likewise, John instructs us that His command is belief.

But we live in an age of pluralism. Belief is equated to sincerity, therefore most people do not worry about what you believe, as long as your belief is strong. But belief is not graded on the quantity of belief, but upon the object of our belief. And John makes this clear to us. He does not say that His commandment if for us to believe, but he states the commandment is to believe in...

His Son Jesus Christ
Let's consider the specifics of the object of our faith (in reverse order):

Christ. It is His title, meaning "Messiah" or "Anointed One." When John tells us we must believe in Christ, he is reminding us that we must acknowledge that Jesus is the long anticipated One, sent by God. He has come to atone for our sins.

Jesus. This is the name given to Him by an angel to Joseph (Matthew 1:21). This name reminds us that Jesus was born of a virgin, conceived by the Holy Spirit. He truly became incarnate, taking of the form of a man. This name is also the name given to Joshua (Jesus is simply the Greek derivative) meaning, "Jehovah is salvation." Again, His name speaks to His humanity and His purpose.

His Son. In America, the concept of sonship loses the controversy. We simply don't see the offense. However, one trip to the Dome of the Rock reveals the statement: There is no God but Allah alone. Praise be to Allah who hath not taken to himself offspring. This can also be seen in John 8, when the Jews become offended that Jesus calls God His Father. As the conversation escalates, we see the nature of the offense. The Jews understood, as Jesus intended, that to say God is His Father is to claim unity with God. Thus Jesus ends the conversation by referring to Himself as the "I AM" and the Jews pick up stones to kill Him. To declare the Sonship of Christ is to declare His divinity.

It is important to realize we cannot unite with others simply under the umbrella of monotheism. There are those who claim to worship God, but deny Jesus' divinity and/or humanity. But a person misidentifies Jesus, they have misidentified God. I heard a pastor recently speak of this difference, offering that two men in a 30-year class reunion begin discussing a classmate. As they continue to share, there are enough discrepancies that they can't tell if they are speaking of the same person. Finally, one grabs a year book and finds a photo of the student. At this point, the student is identified and they can figure out if they were both talking about the same person. In the same way, Jesus Christ becomes our identity marker. If a person declares Jesus without His divinity, or a Jesus who was commissioned as the Messiah only after His baptism, then we are speaking about a different Jesus...and thus a different God.

What's in the name?
It's interesting to note that John does not simply say, believe in His Son Jesus Christ but inserts "believe in the name of His Son Jesus Christ." To our ear, this can sound a little foolish. Is John simply telling us that we must believe that the Messiah's name is Jesus? What is the difference between saying we should believe in Jesus and we should believe in the name of Jesus?

To speak of the name is to speak of the authority. When we speak of the name of Jesus, we are actually speaking of the authority and Lordship of Jesus Christ. In the same way that a king's signet ring carried the authority of the king, so speaking in one's name carries like authority. We see this play out practically even in our homes today. When I send my daughter to gather the other children for dinner, she has not authority over her brothers or sisters on her own. However, if I send her in my name (ie: "You tell them daddy said come to dinner."), she now has the authority to call for action. Therefore, John is calling us to believe more than in Jesus' existence, he's calling us to place our faith in His Lordship, His Sovereignty as well.

1 + 1 = 1?
John's commandment seems to include two imperatives. Knowing that John did not miscount, nor did he add another commandment as he remembered it (both of these concepts would create problems for our understanding of inspiration), John must have something else in mind. It appears the command to love one another actually falls within the understanding of believing in the name of His Son Jesus Christ.

Therefore, John is not giving another command, but is instructing as to the quality of his first command. What does it look like to believe in the name of His Son Jesus Christ? Well, for one, you will love one another, since Jesus commanded us to do so.

Love is not to be defined as an emotional or social response. John is not calling us, nor did Jesus command us, to simply feel better about others. No, John 15 reminds us what this love looks like:

"This is My commandment, that you love one another, just as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends. You are My friends if you do what I command you. No longer do I call you slaves, for the slave does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I have heard from My Father I have made known to you. You did not choose Me but I chose you, and appointed you that you would go and bear fruit, and that your fruit would remain, so that whatever you ask of the Father in My name He may give to you. This I command you, that you love one another."--John 15:12-17

John has already told us not to love with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth (3:18). He illustrated this in meeting another's physical needs to express love. We see that when Jesus commands love, He commands the same kind of love He offered. Therefore our love for one another is to be sacrificial, serving one another. John reminds us here that we are to love one another, because Christ commanded it.

Working through the verse, we see that John is saying that we should believe that Jesus Christ is truly Lord. Therefore, if we believe He is in authority, it will play out in our obedience to Him. One area of obedience will be our response to one another. We will love one another, because He has commanded we do so.

v 24
In this letter, John has already stated: "If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth" (1:6). John has narrowed it down to a more specific area, but he is essentially making the same claim here. If we are not obeying His commands then we cannot claim we are abiding in Him. We either do not obey His commands because we do not see Him as Lord, or because we know He is Lord but choose to rebel against Him. Either perspective placing you in a fractured position with Christ, thus making it inaccurate to claim you are abiding.

It is important at this point to be reminded that all sin is an act of a lack of faith. Not only is all that is done without faith a sin (as we noted above) but all sin is an evidence of a lack of faith. We do not believe Jesus Christ to be supreme (therefore, viewing His commands as optional). Or, we believe Him to have faulty information (when we believe our situation is a genuine exception to what the Word says). Possibly, we see Him as unable to act (evidenced when we choose to sin to "get out" of a situation). Many times, it is the doubt that Christ can truly be our satisfaction (as when we choose the easy way out, rather than the right way). Each of these evidence a lack of faith working out in our disobedience.

Therefore, each time we disobey Christ, we must realize we are actually doubting His who He is, or what He can do. We cannot claim to be abiding in Him while we view Him with a skeptical eye.

However, we do not have to fear that He will cease abiding in us. John reminds us that Christ abides in us is not conditional upon our actions. God has granted His Spirit as an earnest payment to us, guarding us to the day of redemption (Ephesians 1:13-14). We do not obey in fear, worrying that too many sins will cause God to cast us out. Instead, we obey in confidence, knowing He has given us His Spirit and will never leave us nor forsake us. Therefore, I seek to abide in Christ, knowing that He abides in me. The Spirit has been given to assure me of this.

Conclusion

God commands belief:

From the unbeliever--it is important that you realize God is not impressed with any of your activities. No amount of "good works" , no trying harder, and certainly not claiming to have sinned less than your neighbor will make you right before God. God sent His Son Jesus Christ to die on a cross for sin, and that payment can only be received by placing your life's trust upon the work of Christ for your salvation. You must believe that you sin against God. You must see that sin as deserving of eternal punishment. You must realize that Jesus Christ is your only means of forgiveness and call upon God to save you. There is no work or ritual. You cannot invent another way. You must believe.

To the "lip-service believer"--you must understand it is not enough to simply believe facts about Jesus. In a way, a person could affirm the paragraph above and still miss out on heaven. If you identify a Jesus other than the One who sits supremely over all, then you have identified another Jesus. Belief is not simply to accept some intellectual, historical facts. A believe that Jesus Christ is Savior and Lord of all will manifest itself in an obedience to Him. Do not claim to see Jesus as Lord if you refuse to submit to His commandments. John did not call you to simply believe that Jesus walked the earth, died and rose again. John calls you to believe in the name...believe in the authority of Jesus Christ. This is the faith which saves.

To the believe in sin--please see that you deceive yourself when you claim to abide in Christ. So often we cry out to God for greater faith to equip us to do the impossible or the risky. However, often we are not showing the faith required to obey. If you claim to be abiding in Christ and if you desire to have a greater faith, obey Christ now in what He has already revealed to you. Specifically, one must consider how well he is loving his brother/sister. Consider your marriage, as an example. Are you crying out to God for greater faith, all the while you neglect your spouse, treat one another with hate, or even consider divorcing one another? First, exercise your faith in obeying Christ's desire for your marriage.

To the believer who sins(all of us)--do not merely settle for behavior modification. Do not deceive yourself into believing you were a victim of your circumstances. Understand your sin flows from sinful desires that still war within you. Go to the heart and deal with those issues. Ask God to reveal to you the breach in your faith which caused you to sin against Him. Go to His Word and search for His promises to you, and trust that He will fulfill them. Release not only that His mode of fulfillment may be different than yours, but release that His will be better than yours as well. And rest in the fact that your confession of sin is again a God glorifying gospel act!

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An mp3 file of the sermon preached on this passage, as well as small group questions and children's material can be found at Grace: Resources.