Chapter 3

Referring back to that little poem maybe, this chapter opens by saying we should be called children of God.  As God's children, we are now in one state, but we are progressing to another state, which has not appeared.  Glorified bodies?  Yes.  When he appears we will be like him. 

2022 - This verse:

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. [1Jo 3:1 ESV]

The world does not know us because it did not know him.  Is this about how Jesus was here, and John knew him and others can know him through the Holy Spirit,  but the world, by John's day, had not known Christ, nor even heard about him?  

2023 - I think it means that when he was here the world didn't believe who he was, despite the signs.  But I don't think it is confined to just the days while he walked the earth.  The world does not know him today either...yet that first verse is in past tense.  Ahhhh....MSB says this is aorist.  It is therefore rendered in past tense in English because that is usually best, but in this particular case, it is critical to understand that the "world not knowing him" is unstuck in time - before John wrote this, when John wrote this, and forever after John wrote this.  This is a sort of characteristic state of the world as to the children of God.  We should see the world not knowing Christ as the current and ongoing state of things.  It is aorist.

2022 - This one:

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. [1Jo 3:2 ESV]

This seems to be a reference to what Paul says in Thessalonians about our bodies changing into something else at the rapture.  But in the phrase "when he appears", the word for appears is not rapturo but phaneroo.  To me, this is a persistent appearance, more than a quick glimpse.  Many times this word is translated "manifested".  Jesus, on earth the first time, was manifested to us.  He was here, we saw him, there was no wondering if that was a dream or vision because of its "now you see it now you don't" nature.  He was here and people touched him, saw his works, and so on.  No doubt he was here.  So in this verse, I think John speaks more of the second coming than the rapture...but why would that be what he means?  These he is writing to are "in Christ".  they "shall be like him" at that moment.  It has to be about the rapture.  And John would say that because the rapture is really an endpoint for those in Christ.  I think OT saints remain dead until the GWT, but at the rapture, if you are part of the church age, if you are saved during the church age, this is when you go to heaven.  It will be at the rapture or not at all.

2023 - If that is the case though, then we have to say that phaneroo CAN refer to the rapture, not just to the second coming, and each case will have to be argued based on context.  Do we really want to open up that can of worms?  MSB just sort of calls it "at his coming", so I think MSB is going with second coming, not rapture.

Here is a clear statement of doctrine:

4 Everyone who makes a practice of sinning also practices lawlessness; sin is lawlessness. 5 You know that he appeared in order to take away sins, and in him there is no sin. 6 No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him. [1Jo 3:4-6 ESV]

Direct, succinct, concise.  If you think continual sin in your life without repentance is ok, then you do not know him.  You are lost as a goose.  You have missed the boat completely.  This speaks to the lordship of Christ in the life of the believer.

2022 - In vs 5, John uses phaneroo again:

5 You know that he appeared in order to take away sins, and in him there is no sin. [1Jo 3:5 ESV]

This time, he is using it as I usually think of it, as a persistent, extended appearance.  Makes it very confusing as to what he really means in 2.  Why would he use it two different ways so closely together?  Does phaneroo ever describe a rapture like appearance or is it always persistent? 

KJV only translates it as some form of manifest, show, or appear.  Appear is used 12 times, manifest is used 18, so not as different as I thought.  But here is one of the "appears":

10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things [done] in [his] body, according to that he hath done, whether [it be] good or bad. [2Co 5:10 KJV]

I don't believe this is a wink of an eye kind of appearance.  This one though:

4 When Christ, [who is] our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory. [Col 3:4 KJV]  This is Paul, and it also looks like a reference to the rapture.  And this also:

4 And when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away. [1Pe 5:4 KJV].  Is this crown at the rapture, or at the second coming?  Is it a literal crown?  Is it the bema crown?  And again...

28 And now, little children, abide in him; that, when he shall appear, we may have confidence, and not be ashamed before him at his coming. [1Jo 2:28 KJV].  This has to be the rapture doesn't it?  Has to be, in that he would otherwise be addressing this statement to those alive at the end of Great Trib, when Christ comes back with his army to establish his kingdom.  But John knows full well, and it should be equally obvious to us, that he is writing to the people of his own day about what they may expect IN THEIR OWN DAY.  What they can expect is the rapture, and NOT the second coming.  So I am going with phaneroo sometimes meaning rapture and sometimes meaning the longer, more persistent first appearance of Jesus.  But does it ever mean second coming?  Hmm...Maybe in 1Pet5:4, above.  IF though, we say it is always either the last appearance of Christ on earth during his life, or it is the rapture and not the second coming, then we have to say that 1Pet5:4 is about the rapture and that crowns will be distributed at that time.  This is a long way around to find the bema judgment - and it is certainly not phrases as judgment but award ceremony. 

Summarizing phrases from 6-8:

No one who abides in him keeps on sinning.  No one who keeps on sinning has known him.  Whoever practices righteousness is righteous.  Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil.  The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil. 

Then vs 9 is a sort of therefore, though it doesn't have the word.

No one born of God makes a practice of sinning.  Those born of God have God's seed abiding in them (Jesus!) and he cannot keep sinning because he is born of God. 

This awesome conclusion:

10 By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother. [1Jo 3:10 ESV]

Simple.

2024 - This:

6 No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him. [1Jo 3:6 ESV].  Look at the logic here that leaves no middle ground at all.  If you're saved, you avoid sin as much as is possible.  It is not something you knowingly include in your routine.  But if you do decide that sleeping around is just a part of you that you won't give up, if you CHOOSE to go on with something you KNOW is a sin, you are still lost, you were not saved, are not saved.  This implies that repentance of ALL sin is necessary for salvation.

2022 - But not simple.  I spent years of my life, decades probably, doing whatever I wanted to do, knowing that it was sin, and doing it anyway.  Cussing, drinking, not even considering going to church.  I did not make a habit of lying, stealing, neglecting family, or taking advantage of others.  How does this work?  I believe I was saved all that time, yet anyone looking at me objectively would never have thought, well obviously he is saved.  Never would have happened.  So how does this work?  What kind of perception is required to tell which state is being evidenced by a person's behavior?  How?  How can it be as simple as vs 10?

2023 - I still don't know.  You just cannot tell whether a person is saved and woefully backslidden, or not saved at all.  There was a verse about being so far out that you've forgotten you were even saved.  I wanted to put that verse in here but I cannot find it.  I thought it was in 2Pet 2...but that doesn't seem to be it.  Maybe 1Pet 2.  I really want to connect these two.  I was thinking a couple days ago, as I began to read 1 Jn, that there was quite a contrast between what John is saying here and what Peter was saying in his books.  Peter seemed to think saved people could behave very badly.  John seems to be saying that is not possible.  So...how to resolve that?  Peter was on the inside, as was John, and James was killed by Herod so we have no book written by him.

Here is the verse from 2 Peter:  9 For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins. [2Pe 1:9 ESV].  

Hmm...going back to the context though, Peter is saying a saved person's life may not be characterized by that whole list of good qualities - faith, virtue, knowledge, self-control and so on, if that saved person has gone blind and forgotten....

By contrast, John is not talking about a lack of good things in a persons character, but the presence of continuous repeating sin. 

Maybe that it the thing.  Someone once saved who is not increasing in good works....not so great.  Someone once saved who's life is characterized by repeating sin...never saved in the first place. 

AND THAT DOES NOT FLY because by that measure...when was I even saved?  Losing my salvation and then getting it back three or four times would be the only way to explain my life! 

2025 - Vs 6.  Just a quick note on the verbs and the translation.  Here are a few versions:

6 No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him. [1Jo 3:6 ESV].

6 No one who abides in Him sins; no one who sins has seen Him or knows Him. [1Jo 3:6 NASB95].  I am reading it in the NASB95 this year.

6 Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not: whosoever sinneth hath not seen him, neither known him. [1Jo 3:6 KJV]. 

So list of the verbs:  There are five in fact.  Using the ESV as guide, we have:

abides - Present Active Participle (PAP)

keeps sinning - Present Active Indicative (PAI)

keeps sinning - PAP

has seen - Perfect Active Indicative (RAI)

known - RAI.

In English, present tense means something that occurs in actual time.  A real event.  Active means the subject is the one performing the action.  Here the subject is implied.  Let's say "One".  Participles end, very often, in -ing.  So abiding rather than abides.  So what we get for this first phrase is "One abiding".  See how it indicates a state in which we might be.  There is really no sense of when this might exist, but we see that this is about any time - whenever - we are truly abiding.  There is no implication that this a perpetual state, or that it happens once a year....we have no idea what percentage of the time we will be in this state of "abiding".  But John is going to tell us what happens when we ARE in this state. 

Notice that "keeps sinning", the third verb, is in this same verb form, but later in the verse.  What about the form in between.  The "keeps sinning" thing?  The only thing that has changed is that we are now in the indicative.  This is a simple statement of fact.  No "time" is associated with it.  I like it better translated as "sins".  Then the whole phrase would read "No one abiding sins".  Oh so very simple!  So while we are abiding - often or occasionally - we do not sin.  At all.  It doesn't say that sin won't characterize us during such a time, it says we will be characterized by NOT SINNING AT ALL while in that state.  This tells us that abiding is a very desirable state. 

That third verb starts a new phrase.  Using what we've said above, we get "No one sinning" sees or knows Him.  Notice how in all three translations above the past tense has been inserted here, though it does not exist in the Greek.  It does not say that a person "sinning" never at any time in the past saw or knew God.  It says that when we commit sin, we are NOT abiding - we are not in his presence as we sin, and at that moment we do not KNOW Him.  How could we, since He does not tolerate sin in his presence.  We are excluded from where He is when we sin.  When we sin, we are alone.  We do that ourselves, by ourselves, and God is not there when we sin.  Isolation.  It ought to pierce our souls when we sin.  It should feel like the fear when it is dark and we cannot see and we do not know where we are. 

John is contrasting the safety, the harmony, the contentment of abiding in God free from sin and the terrible isolated disconnected fear of not abiding.  We can see that this is addressed to the saved.  This is another corroboration of that.  The lost are always disconnected.  Always in darkness.  The saved are sometimes disconnected, when we choose to sin. 

2026 - So in verse 6, John is saying (might be saying) that Christians, saved people, can sometimes be very near God and sometimes very far away.  He is clear as to which state is desirable.  When we are really close to God, he labels that "abiding" in God.  I don't think he means some trance like euphoric state where all that is earthly is displaced and we sort of "live" in a spiritual state.  I don't think he means that at all.

Think of Sunday morning worship service.  Sometimes we truly worship.  The music moves us, the words move us, we experience being present with God sometimes.  It does feel like a different state of mind, though I would say it has more to do with being in the presence of God as we worship instead of anything that changes with us. 

At such a time, when we truly are worshiping in spirit and truth, we do not sin.  Because in the presence of God doing so is impossible.  Only a spirit being could say attempt to deceive God in his presence.  This is what Satan has done, probably is still doing.  But earthly physical beings can never do this. 

Perhaps John is trying to show us the contrast between the low places of our Christian lives and the peaks of that life. 

I would think this was the perfect place for the aorist tense.  Is that tense was used, I might interpret this as no one who's life, when viewed in it's overall chronological existence, is characterized by sin, is saved at all.  Only those who are characteristically abiding are really saved and these do not sin at all.  And I don't think that flies.  John already told us that anyone who claims he doesn't sin is a liar.  It can't be about that.  ...need to look further at 9b...he cannot sin???

The next two verses need this same kind of analysis in order to get John's whole idea.  I am out of time.  Putting it on my schedule for later.  I don't want to lose this.    I mean to analyze these three verses also...

7 Little children, let no one deceive you. Whoever practices righteousness is righteous, as he is righteous. 8 Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil. 9 No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God's seed abides in him; and he cannot keep on sinning, because he has been born of God. 10 By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother. [1Jo 3:7-10 ESV].  This is just an amazing passage!

Verbs in 7:

deceives - Present Active Imperative (PAM)

practices - Present Active Participle (PAP)

is - Present Active Indicative

Only the first one of these is new to is.  The Imperative.  John "commands", in the strongest terms, that his readers not be taken in by anyone about this next statement:

Practices is that PAP we saw before, which commonly ends in ing in English.  Lets change it to practicing.

It does not get much simpler than "is" in the PAI.  Whoever is practicing righteousness is, at the time he is doing that, a righteous man.  If you are saved, then being righteous is being home.  Who we are is saved Christians, and we are at that time doing what saved Christians are "born again" to do.  This need not be over-analyzed or complicated.

Verbs in 8:

There are five this time:

practices - PAP

is - PAI

We have just seen this construction in vs 7 and don't need to do it all again.  Read it as whoever is practicing, but in this case we see that it is sin being practiced.  And the one doing this is, at that time, of the devil.  Now.  This tells us a couple of things.  Even as Christians, we can do the work of the devil.  We need to admit freely to ourselves that this is what we are doing.  This is not "natural" for us, but we all do it.  We need to realize that we have "rented ourselves out" to Satan WHILE we are sinning.  Next verb:

has sinned - PAI.  Remember that the indicative does not tells us the when.  It is just a done deal that the devil has sinned.  John adds a prepositional phrase to give us the information we want about the "when" of the devils sin.  FROM THE BEGINNING.  With the devil, it is not a momentary one time thing.  The devil lives in a constant state of sin.  Knowing, purposeful, rebellion against God.  This is how many lost people live also.  They have heard and rejected the gospel.  They know.  And they choose to reject.  Constantly rejecting salvation is a constant state of sin.  Christians only "touch" this kind of thing when they temporarily - or for a time - fall into sinning because they want to do.  They rebel.  But the lost live here.

appeared - Aorist Passive Indicative

to destroy - Aorist Active Subjunctive

Well it had to happen.  We have no aorist in English.  It cannot be directly translated.  Here is one definition:  Is characterized by its emphasis on punctiliar action; that is, the concept of the verb is considered without regard for past, present, or future time. There is no direct or clear English equivalent for this tense, though it is generally rendered as a simple past tense in most translations.  What it means, to me at least, is that it is the event, the action, that is important and the when is of no importance.  We can see how that would be true of both appeared and to destroy.  The aorist here encompasses everything from OT prophecy to the ascension.  That is all included in appeared.  It is not about the instant of Jesus' birth, but about the reason for his whole life.  He came to destroy that constant state of rebellion, that separation, that intentional sin that characterizes Satan, the lost, and sometime the sin into which even the saved can fall.  We know the indicative is an accomplished fact.  Here is what the subjunctive is about:    Is the mood of possibility and potentiality. The action described may or may not occur, depending upon circumstances.  Why would "to destroy" the work of Satan be "possible" but not done?  Let's not forget Armageddon and that last battle at the end of the Millennial.  We know who will win, but we know it isn't completed.  His appearance is indicative - an accomplished fact - but there is still the physical defeat of Satan before he is destroyed.

Verse 9 has 5 more verbs:

is born - Perfect Passive Participle (RPP).  A new one.  Perfect passive participle.  The perfect means something that occurred in the past, once and for all, and which never needs to be repeated.  Think of the implications of this tense in this phrase.  Those who are now "born of God", that is, saved, were saved in the past, once and for all, and will never require saving again.  Here is perseverance of the saints presented unarguably by the last living apostle.  The Passive voice of this verb means that the "no one" who is born is not the causer of that birth, but the receiver.  More implications...being born of God is NOT what WE cause to happen, but what God himself causes to happen.  A decent argument for Calvinism over Arminianism.  And finally, a participle, to which up to now we have always managed to add the requisite -ing ending.  Can we do that here?  A closer reading says that participles end in EITHER 'ing or -ed.  -ed is past tense, as is born, so in this case, we use that past tense, which is how this is translated.  So we have "No one who is once for all and still saved...

practices (sin) - PAI.  This one is back to simple.  We have seen that PAI is just a stated fact, in this case negated.  It ought to be interpreted just as it stands.  Practices.  The indicative tells us that this is outside any particular time.  It doesn't say no one born of God sins, but that such a person does not PRACTICE - make a habit, learn to, get better at, sin.  We ought to look at ourselves, and look at those around us.  Perpetual unrepentant sinful lifestyles are not compatible with the claim of salvation.  John says these two are mutually exclusive, and he gives us NO exceptions.  Even those who have strayed far from the church should not exhibit continuing sin.  If they do, we are told to treat them as lost.  We ourselves cannot judge hearts, but we can very well see a lifestyle of sin.

abides - PAI.  Here is the "why" of it all, coming after "because".  Because it is God's seed - Jesus Christ - who abides in a saved person.  Any saved person, every saved person.  Jesus said all this in so many words: 4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. 5 I am the vine, ye [are] the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. [Jhn 15:4-5 KJV]. 

cannot - Present Middle Indicative (PMI).  New.  So we have seen all these before, just not put together like this.  Middle voice because the subject is not the one who causes this condition of not being able to sin, but because it is externally caused.  That is, if the seed of God abides in us, then we, because of his presence, cannot....what?  And here in this next verb, in another new form, that pulls it altogether:

sin - Present Active Infinitive (PAN) New.  We know what present is, we know active, but what does the infinitive tell us?  This applies to things like "to be", "to do", "to achieve".  But "cannot to sin" doesn't work in English.  Note that we see all these verbs with "to" as ongoing, perpetual, divorced from time.  Cannot sin, where sin is an infinitive, would mean that this is not a state that can continue indefinitely.  Sin cannot characterize from now on the person in whom God's seed abides.  It is NOT POSSIBLE.

is born - Perfect Passive Indicative (RPI).  New.  Again, the perfect gives us the idea that being born in this way is once and for all, and need never be repeated. 

And finally, the last verse, vs 10:

This is the summary verse.  This is the unmistakable, obvious, visible reality in the world that John wants us to see, to recognize at all times, and to apply to our own lives, our own relationship with God:

Four verbs:

are - PAI

does practice - PAP

is - PAI

love - PAP.

So at least we have seen all these forms before.  What do they tell us?  I don't think we need to spend too much time.  The text says the conclusion is "obvious", at least it does in the NASB95.  The contrast between the children of God and the children of the devil is obvious, unmistakable, sure.  John does not spell out again the characteristics of the children of God, but he makes certain we know how to identify those WHO ARE NOT ONE OF US!  Those not practicing righteousness - that is, those who are making no effort to do the will of God, to do the right things, to get better, are not saved.  Those with hatred of their brothers (and I think here we should see this as brothers and sisters in Christ, people in the church who hate other people in the church) are not saved.  It is these of whom John says "If they went out from us, there were never one of us.  John leaves no wiggle room at all.  We have no excuse for misidentifying unbelievers in our churches.  We know, even if we do not want to admit that we know.

SEE ALSO the explanation of 1Jn 5:18, which I think has great bearing on this section also.

Vs 11 takes us back to the "unspecified commandment" which is not new, but is new in quality and emphasis:

11 For this is the message that you have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another. [1Jo 3:11 ESV]

Again, short and to the point.  Cain murdered Abel because his own deeds were evil, and Abel's were righteous.  He hated Abel because Abel followed the right.  Those in the dark hate those in the light.  A fact, inescapable and difficult - to be hated for being righteous.  That is not how we are taught that it is supposed to work.

2022 - Is this the "clarification" that my 2022 note on vs 10 requested?  Cain is the example of those who do not practice righteousness and who do not love their brother.  Cain was offering sacrifices.  He was in church, practically speaking.  He looked like he was a believer.  But inside, he hated Abel, was jealous of Abel, he recognized that Abel was righteous and he was not.  In the extreme case, Cain killed the better man that he hated in order to stop the obvious contrast.  To make a call about someone else's salvation, you have to know them.  Not just superficially, either.  Anyone can appear Christian for a time, but that doesn't matter.  We have to know what's in their head, and the best time for that to be revealed is under duress - extreme duress.  How did I behave under duress?  When Mark died?  When we had marriage problems?  Did hatred come out of me or love?  Has to be love in both cases.  Is this right?  When we went to different churches, I didn't hate and scream and demand.  I loved as best I could.  I was patient as best I could.  Tom Redmon - I used to make fun of his saying grace when we all went out to eat.  He was Abel to my Cain in those days.  But no longer.  Maybe I wasn't saved then, but at Heritage, later, when I started going again with the kids, there was that one afternoon, when I prayed.   Maybe that is when I was really saved.  I didn't hate Louis Klein though, during the same time I didn't like Redmon?  I just cannot be definitive about when.  But now, today, whenever it started, today I practice righteousness.  I know that I do that, and I know it is sincere and not for show.  I know it comes from inside and reflects what I am now.  Leaving it there.

The believers are reminded that loving the brothers is an outward sign that they are saved.  Jesus died for us and we should die for the brothers.  But it shouldn't take such an extreme to provoke us to "love".  If a brother is hungry, and we have enough, we should share - and show love in this way also, not just talk about how we'd die for that brother.  I wonder if the false teachers were enriching themselves and letting their followers starve?  Or extorting money from those who could barely buy food.  This is NOT love.

2022 - These two verses of assurance - two self-tests of salvation:

21 Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence before God; ...

23 And this is his commandment, that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he has commanded us.

24 Whoever keeps his commandments abides in God, and God in him. And by this we know that he abides in us, by the Spirit whom he has given us. [1Jo 3:21, 23-24 ESV]

In summary, our heart knows.  Does my heart say yes, or does my heart say "pretender"?  And second, the Spirit is in us.  Evidence of the Spirit?  Answered prayer, clarifications, answers to questions, guidance. 

Look back up also at the end of Chapter 2, at vs 28.  Think of the rapture, when you look up, and it hits you that this is the rapture.  Are you afraid, or are you thrilled?  Are you sure you're going, or is every second a lifetime?  That's your heart talking to you.

The plan of salvation per the apostle John, whom Jesus loved:

23 And this is his commandment, that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he has commanded us. [1Jo 3:23 ESV]

2022 - Have doubts?  Do more of vs 23, and the truth will come out.  Say Jesus' name.  Say it out loud, in public, proclaim it, own it.  And do for others.  If you don't "love", you will get really tired of helping others.  These two are what it comes down to.