‘You may know that you have eternal life.’ (1 John 5:13-21)

‘You may know that you have eternal life.’

[1 John 5:13-21]

What do you think eternal life is? In the famous Gospel of John 3:16, the Bible says: “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” What does “eternal life” mean here? If we look at this verse, the Bible says that whoever believes in Jesus Christ will have eternal life.

The Bible says that sin entered the world through the disobedience of one man, Adam, and death through sin (Rom. 5:12), and the wages of sin is “death” (6:23). Here, “death” has three meanings: (1) 'Spiritual death', which is separation from God; (2) 'Physical death', where body and soul are separated; and (3) ‘Eternal death’, where eternal and complete separation from God. But through the obedience of one man, Jesus Christ, who is “the last Adam” (1 Cor. 15:45) to the point of death on the cross (Phil. 2:8), we have been justified to enjoy eternal life (v. 18). This is what Romans 6:23 says: “… but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Here, "eternal life" means three things: (1) Eternal life means being connected to God through Jesus Christ. Just as the baby in the mother's womb has life because he is connected to the mother by the umbilical cord, eternal life is connected to God through the “eternal life” (1 Jn. 1:2; 5:20) and ‘eternal umbilical cord’ Jesus Christ. (2) Eternal life is to know the only true God and Jesus Christ. Look at John 17:3 – “Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.” In other words, eternal life is the fellowship of love with God the Father and Jesus Christ, the Son of God, under the guidance of God the Holy Spirit (1 Jn. 1:3). (3) Eternal life means whether the body is changed (if we are alive until then) (1 Cor. 15:52-53) or is resurrected (if we are already dead at that time) at the Second Coming of the Lord, united with the soul and entering a new heaven and a new earth and living with God forever (2 Thess. 4:14-16; Rev. 21:1). However, when we say that we have eternal life if we believe in Jesus here, we must not think of eternal life merely as eternal life in the coming age. The reason is because eternal life is partly enjoyed by us here and now in the present in Jesus Christ.

It is in the Gospel of John where the word “eternal life” appears intensively. In the original Greek, "eternal life" means “zoe” “aionios”. It is a combination of the words "zoe" (life) and "aionios" (eternal). In other words, the word "eternal life" literally has two meanings (Internet): (1) It means, firstly, ‘a life that lasts without end’ in terms of time, and (2) qualitatively, it means ‘a divine life different from human life’. Therefore, the word eternal life includes both the meaning of eternal life in time and the qualitative meaning of a divine life enjoyed in God. In particular, in the Gospel of John, "eternal life" means ‘eternal blessings to be enjoyed in the hereafter’ like the synoptic Gospels (Matthew / Mark / Luke), but rather emphasizes the blessings enjoyed in ‘the present’. The Gospel of John says that those who believe in the Lord already have eternal life and can enjoy that blessing in the Lord even in the present. What are the blessings of eternal life that we enjoy in the present? There are at least three: (1) The blessings of the hereafter that come from the sharing of intimate personal fellowship with the Eternal Father God and His Son Jesus Christ through the Holy Spirit (Jn. 17:3). A typical example is participation in God's divine nature. Look at 2 Peter 1:4 – “Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.” In other words, the blessing of eternal life that we partly enjoy in Jesus Christ while we live on this earth is to become like Jesus in the sanctification of the Holy Spirit. (2) The blessing of eternal life that we partially enjoy now is love. When we love God and love our neighbor with the love of God that has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, we experience, at least in part, the joy of heaven. The believers who have eternal life obey Jesus. They obey Jesus' twofold commandment, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind" and "You shall love your neighbor as yourself" (Jn 3:36; Mt. 22:37, 39). In doing so, we, as citizens of heaven (Phil. 3:20), do part of our heavenly life on earth as well. This is the life that continues to work out our salvation in the present (2:12). And this is the life that partially enjoys eternal life on this earth. (3) The blessing of eternal life that we can partially enjoy now is peace. Although we are living in a world without peace now, those who believe in Jesus are partially enjoying the peace of God, the blessing of eternal life, while living on this earth.

The words “life” or “eternal life” appears at least six times in the Book of 1 John:

(1:2) “The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us.
(2:25) “And this is what he promised us--even eternal life.”
(3:14) “We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love our brothers. Anyone who does not love remains in death.”
(5:11-12) “And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.”
(5:13) “I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.”
(5:20) “We know also that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true. And we are in him who is true--even in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.”

I've charted these six verses in the 'sandwich law' [Greek ”chiasm”] like this:

(A) (1:2) Jesus Christ, who is eternal life

(1) (2:25) God promised eternal life to us.

(a) (3:14) We know that we have eternal life because we love our brothers.

(a’) (5:11-12) God has given us eternal life. He who has the Son has eternal life.

(1’) (5:13) “I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.”

(A’) (5:20) Jesus Christ is eternal life.

And I grouped the six verses of this 'sandwich law' with similar verses: (A) and (A'), (1) and (1'), (a) and (a') is tied. When I did so, I think there are three key messages that the Apostle John wants to give us through these six verses where the words “life” or “eternal life” appear. Those three key messages are: (1) The true God Jesus Christ is eternal life [(A)(1:2) & (A’) (5:20)]. (2) Jesus Christ, who is eternal life, directly promised us eternal life, and he faithfully kept that promise, so that we who believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, now have eternal life [(1) (2:25) & (1') (5:13)]. (3) We who already have eternal life, Jesus Christ, love our brothers [(a) (3:14) & (a’) (5:11-12)]. What we pray and hope for is that we who believe in our Lord Jesus Christ, true God and eternal life, become like Jesus by the work of sanctification of the Holy Spirit, and love the Lord our God with all our heart, with all our soul, and with all our mind and love our neighbor as ourselves, as those who already have eternal life, so that we may all partly enjoy a heavenly life and eternal life on this earth.

Are you sure that if you believe in the Lord, you will all be saved and receive the crown of eternal life? This is what the Bible Ephesus 1:3 says: “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.” When we believe in Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God, we are saved and receive spiritual and eternal blessings. Then, what are the eternal spiritual blessings that we have already received through faith in Jesus Christ by the grace of God? There are at least five:

The eternal spiritual blessing we have already received is that we have been reconciled (connected) to God.

We were spiritually dead separated from God, and sinners who were enemies of God, who had no choice but to die forever (Rom. 5:10, 12). At that time we were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world (Eph. 2:12). But the Lord put to death our hostility in the one body to reconcile us to God through the cross (v. 16; Rom. 5:10). In other words, through the death of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who is eternal life (1 Jn. 1:2; 5:20) on the cross, we, who were separated from God and died spiritually, and who had no choice but to die forever, are connected to God and are reconciled to God. This is the first eternal spiritual blessing we enjoy.

The eternal spiritual blessing we have already received is to have intimate and loving fellowship with our Heavenly Father and His Son, Jesus Christ, guided by the Holy Spirit.

Since we, who were separated from God and cut off our relationship and fellowship with God, were reconciled to God through the death of His Son Jesus Christ on the cross (Eph. 2:16), and became children of God (1 Jn 3:1). Thus, we have been able to have a fellowship of love with God the Father and the Son Jesus Christ through the Holy Spirit (1:3). This is “eternal life”. Look at John 17:3 – “Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.” In other words, to know the only true God and Jesus Christ whom he sent to this earth is eternal life, and that eternal life is to love (“know”) the true God the Father and Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit, who dwells within us, enables us to enjoy intimate and loving fellowship with God the Father and with Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Then, when our Lord Jesus Christ returns, we will see Him face to face. And we will come to know fully as the Lord knows us, and we will fully enjoy the perfect fellowship of love (1 Cor. 13:12). This is the second eternal spiritual blessing we enjoy and will enjoy in the future.

The eternal spiritual blessing we have already received is to participate in God's divine nature through the work of sanctification of the Holy Spirit, and that is to become like Jesus.

Because of the sin of the first Adam (Gen.2:17; 3:6; Rom.5:12), we were separated from God and died spiritually. And we, who were bound to die forever, lost “the image of God” (Gen. 1:27). But because Jesus Christ, who is “the last Adam” (1 Cor.15:45) and “the image of God” (2 Cor.4:4), died on the cross, all our sins are forgiven and we are saved, are reconciled to God, and the lost image of God has been restored. The restored image of God means that we become partakers of the divine nature. Look at 2 Peter 1:4 – “Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.” Here, the word that we who believe in Jesus participates in the God’s divine nature does not mean that we become God. But it means that the Holy Spirit who dwells in us sanctifies us so that we become like Jesus, the image of God. In this way, the Holy Spirit makes us become like Jesus, who is the image of God. When Jesus comes again, we will all see the glory of the Lord with our unveiled faces, and we will be transformed into His likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit (2 Cor.3:18). And the Holy Spirit will transform our lowly bodies so that we will be like His glorious body (Phil. 3:21). This is the third eternal spiritual blessing we enjoy and will enjoy in the future.

The eternal spiritual blessings we have already received are partly enjoying our heavenly life on earth so we can partly enjoy the joy of heaven by obeying the twofold commandment of Jesus, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind” and “Love your neighbor as yourself,” with the love, that is the fruit of the Holy Spirit.

When we are saved by God's exclusive grace through faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, the Bible says, “The love of God has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit, which has been given to us” (Rom.5:5). In other words, the moment we believed in Jesus, we received divine love of God and the Holy Spirit. And the Holy Spirit bears “love,” which is “the fruit of the Spirit” [the Greek word for “fruit” is singular and I think the other eight are included in “love” (Gal. 5:22-23], and enables us to obey the twofold command of Jesus, which is the commandment of the kingdom of heaven - “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind” and “You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Mt. 22:37, 39; Jn. 3:36). This twofold commandment of Jesus is the commandment of the kingdom of heaven, and the commandment that we must keep and obey as the people from heaven (1 Cor.15:48) and citizens of heaven (Phil.3:20). Although we are unable to love, God the Holy Spirit, who dwells in us, works in us to will and to act according to his good purpose (Phil. 2:13). This is the life that works out our salvation in the present (v. 12). As we share the fellowship of love with God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, while becoming more like Jesus in the work of sanctification of the Holy Spirit, and obey Jesus’ twofold commandment by the work of the Spirit who bear the fruit of love and who enables us to love, we partly enjoy our heavenly life on this earth and partly taste the heavenly joy. Then, when our Lord Jesus comes again, we are suddenly transformed and completely conformed to the image of Jesus, put on the glorious spiritual body of Jesus, and enter the new heaven and new earth, the New Jerusalem (Rev. 21:1-2). We will fully enjoy eternal life by being completely filled with the Holy Spirit and full of love and obeying the twofold commandment of Jesus, the heavenly commandment. This is the fourth eternal spiritual blessing we enjoy and will enjoy in the future.

The eternal spiritual blessing we have already received is to enjoy the peace of God.

We have been reconciled to God through the death of our Lord Jesus Christ on the cross (Rom. 5:10), who is the “Prince of Peace” (Isa.9:6) and the “God of peace” (Rom. 15:33). Our Lord Jesus Christ made peace through His blood that He shed on the cross (Col. 1:20), so we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ (Rom.5:1). Also, we know that Jesus, who is our peace, “who has made the two one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by abolishing in his flesh the law with its commandments and regulations. … and in this one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility” (Eph. 2:14-16), so that we are also at peace with our neighbors. Even though we are living in a world without peace now, we can partly enjoy the peace of God while we live on this earth even in the midst of sorrows like sea billows roll so that by faith we can praise God “It is well with my soul; It is well, it is well with my soul” (Hymn “When Peace, Like a River, Attendeth My Way,” refrain). Then, when our Lord Jesus comes back to earth and takes us to the heavenly kingdom where He is (Jn. 14:3), we will enjoy the peace of God fully and completely. This is the fifth eternal spiritual blessing we enjoy and will enjoy in the future.

In today's text, 1 John 5:13, the Bible says this: “I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.” Focusing on this verse, I want to meditate on the five assurances (John MacArthur) in 1 John 5:13-21 under the title of ‘You may know that you have eternal life’, and want to receive the lessons that he Lord gives us:

The first assurance is the assurance of salvation. In other words, it is the assurance that those who believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, have eternal life.

Look at 1 John 5:13 again: “I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.” The Apostle John, in writing the letter to 1 John, considers why he is writing this letter to his recipients for six purposes:

Look at 1 John 1:4 – “We write this to make our joy complete.”

The first purpose why Apostle John wrote to the recipients of the 1 John letter was so that “our joy” might be completed also in the recipient brothers and sisters in Christ. The “our joy” spoken of by the Apostle John here is the joy we enjoy in fellowship with God the Father and his Son Jesus Christ through the Holy Spirit (v. 3). The apostle John wrote the letter to 1 John with that purpose because he wanted the recipients to enjoy the full joy of fellowship with God the Father and the Son Jesus Christ through the Holy Spirit.

Look at 1 John 2:1a – “My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin.”

The Apostle John told the recipients of the 1 John letter that the second purpose of his writing was so that they would not sin. The reason is because if we say that we are having fellowship with God, who is light, who has no darkness at all in him (1:5) and continue to walk in the darkness, then we are only liars who do not live by the truth (v. 6). It is also because if we walk in the light, just as God is in the light, we will have fellowship with one another (v. 7). In the Lord, true horizontal love fellowship between brothers and sisters in Christ presupposes vertical love fellowship with God the Father and His Son our Lord Jesus Christ through the Holy Spirit. And this vertical fellowship of love presupposes that we walk in the light just as God is in the light. It means, ‘If we claim to have fellowship with God yet walk in the darkness (v. 6), then it means that we are not having a true vertical love fellowship with God the Father who is the light and His Son Jesus Christ through the Holy Spirit. As a result, we cannot share true horizontal love of fellowship with our brothers and sisters in the Lord. That is why the Apostle John wrote this 1 John letter so that his “dear children” (children of faith) would not sin (2:1).

Look at 1 John 2:7-8: “Dear friends, I am not writing you a new command but an old one, which you have had since the beginning. This old command is the message you have heard. Yet I am writing you a new command; its truth is seen in him and you, because the darkness is passing and the true light is already shining.”

The third purpose of the Apostle John in writing this letter to the recipients of the first letter of John is to make them obey the true command of Jesus. The true command of Jesus is “to love one another” (3:23). The Apostle John wanted his recipients not to commit the sin of hating his brother (2:9), but rather to love one another according to God's command. This is because “the darkness is passing and the true light is already shining (v. 8). The reason is because they became children of God through the great love of God the Father (3:1). Therefore, the Apostle John said that if the recipients of his 1 John letter were in loving fellowship with God, the light, they would no longer live a dark life of hating their brothers (1:6) but would do the righteousness of loving their brothers (2:29; 3:10) just as God is righteous (3:7) and would live a life of light. Then the love of God will be perfected in them (2:5), and there is nothing in them to make them stumble (v. 10), because they belong to the truth (3:19) and live as those who have eternal life (v. 14). That’s why the apostle John wrote this letter of 1 John.

Look at 1 John 2:12-14: “I write to you, dear children, because your sins have been forgiven on account of his name. I write to you, fathers, because you have known him who is from the beginning. I write to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one. I write to you, dear children, because you have known the Father. I write to you, fathers, because you have known him who is from the beginning. I write to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God lives in you, and you have overcome the evil one.”

The fourth purpose of the Apostle John in writing this letter to the recipients of the first letter of John is because their sins are forgiven on account of Jesus’ name, that they have known him who is from the beginning, and that they have overcome the evil one. Here, their sins have been forgiven on account of Jesus’ name means that even though they should not have sinned while having fellowship with God the Father, who is the light, and Jesus Christ, who is eternal life, through the Spirit “if we say that we have fellowship with God, but if they claim to have fellowship with God yet walk in the darkness (1:6), God will forgive them their sins and purify them from all unrighteousness if they confess their sins since He is faithful and just (v. 9). And if anyone commits a sin, because the righteous Jesus Christ, who became the propitiation for our sins, who pleads for us before God the Father (2:1-2), their sins are forgiven on account of Jesus’ name. The apostle John wrote this letter to the recipients in order to let them know that their sins have been forgiven. Also, the Apostle John wrote this letter to them because the recipients knew Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who is the word of life from the beginning and who is eternal life (1:1-3). Since their sins were forgiven on account of Jesus’ name, and were having fellowship with Him, the Apostle John wanted them to get to know Jesus Christ more and have an intimate fellowship, so he wrote this letter to them. The Apostle John also said wrote this letter so that the recipients, who have overcome the evil one with the powerful word of God lives in them (2:14), so that they continue not to love the world or anything in the world (v.15) that pass away but to do the will of God (v. 17). In particular, the Apostle John wrote this 1 John letter to the recipient because he wanted them to stand firm in the word of God and continue to fight and live a victorious life (v. 14) since “this is the last hour” and “the antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come” (v. 18) and they were in the spiritual warfare with “the liar” (v. 22) and “those who are trying to lead you (them) astray” (v. 26).

Look at 1 John 2:21 – “I do not write to you because you do not know the truth, but because you do know it and because no lie comes from the truth.”

The fifth purpose of the Apostle John in writing this letter to the recipients of the first letter of John is because they know the truth and no lie comes from the truth (v. 21). The Apostle John knew that “this is the last hour” and that “many antichrists have come” (v. 18), who were liars, who deny that Jesus is the Christ and who deny the Father and the Son Jesus Christ (v. 22). And he knew that the true Christians know that many antichrists who appeared in the last hour not only did not belong to Jesus Christ, but also did not belong to Christians (v. 19). So, the Apostle John, who knew that the recipient brothers and sisters in the Lord had already received the Holy Spirit from the Holy God, and that “this is the last hour,” and that “many antichrists have come” (v. 18), wrote this letter of 1 John to them so that what they had heard from the beginning could remain in them (v. 24). What does it mean by what they have heard from the beginning here? Could it not be the Christ who is the eternal life that the Apostle John saw and proclaimed to them? (1:1-2) In a word, I think what the recipients of the 1 John letter have heard from the beginning is the gospel of Jesus Christ. However, since lying and deceiving antichrists appeared, denying that Jesus is the Christ, and denying God the Father and the Son of God Jesus Christ (2:22), the Apostle John wrote to the recipients and told them that anyone who believes in Him is a child of God (5:1) and only those who believe that Jesus is the Son of God overcomes the world (v. 5). So Apostle John wrote this letter so that they would not forget that they had already heard the gospel of Jesus Christ and became the children of God by believing that Jesus, the truth (2:21), is the Christ and the Son of God (v. 24).

Look at 1 John 5:13 – “I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.”

The sixth purpose of the Apostle John in writing this letter to the recipients of the first letter of John is to make known to the recipients of the 1 John letter that they who believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, already have eternal life. The Apostle John knew that the recipient brothers and sisters in the Lord had already heard the gospel of Jesus Christ and believed in the Christ who is eternal life (1:2), believed that Jesus is the Christ (5:1), and that Jesus is the Son of God. Since the Apostle John knew that they knew this truth that denying that Jesus is the Christ and the Son of God is lie and it did not come from the truth (2:21), he wrote this letter to them, saying that those who have the Son of God, that is, who believe in Jesus Christ, who is eternal life (1:2; 5:20), already have eternal life that God has given them (5:11-13).

In today's text 1 John 5:13, the Apostle John explains the purpose of why he is writing this letter to the recipients. Its purpose is that “you who believe” in Jesus Christ, “the Son of God,” may “know that you have eternal life” (v. 13). Interestingly, in John 20:31, written by the same author, the Apostle John, the Apostle John explains the purpose of why he wrote the Gospel of John: “But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.” Here, the Apostle John is talking about the twofold purpose of writing the Gospel of John: (1) “you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God”, and (2) “by believing you may have (eternal) life in his (Jesus’) name. However, the Apostle John explains why he wrote the book of 1 John in 1 John 5:13 and the purpose is that those who believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, may know that they have eternal life. The purpose of the Apostle John writing the Gospel of John was to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ to unbelievers who still do not believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, so that they might have eternal life by believing in Jesus Christ. But when he wrote the letter of 1 John, the purpose was to give the assurance of salvation to those who have already received eternal life by believing in Jesus Christ, the Son of God (MacArthur).

I received Romans 8:28-29 under the title of ‘Assurance of Salvation’ through my church retired pastor Chang Kim at the Wednesday prayer meeting on February 17, 2021. Look at Romans 8:28-29: “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.” Here, the salvation refers to eternal life as the glory that will be revealed in us (v. 18). In other words, salvation in the text refers to the completion of future salvation. In other words, when Jesus comes again, we will be resurrected or transformed, enter the kingdom of heaven, and enjoy eternal life with the Triune God and live forever. As for what kind of people can have the assurance of salvation, ‘those who love God’ (v. 28) can have the assurance of salvation. Those who love God are those who have been called according to God’s purpose (v. 28). In other words, those who love God are those who are called according to the will of God the Father and will surely be saved. Here, ‘God’s purpose’ is salvation, and ‘those who have been called’ are those who have received ‘effectual/special calling.’ According to Westminster Shorter Catechism Q & A 31, this is what effectual calling is: “Effectual calling is the work of God's Spirit, whereby, convincing us of our sin and misery, enlightening our minds in the knowledge of Christ, and renewing our wills, he doth persuade and enable us to embrace Jesus Christ, freely offered to us in the gospel.” To these people, the Bible says that “in all things God works for the good” (v. 28), which means that in our lifetime, all things (including our sins) combine to achieve salvation, which is the highest good. Therefore, I have been taught that I must have the assurance of salvation.

The Bible 1 John 5:13 says that “you who believe in the name of the Son of God (Jesus Chris) “have eternal life.” This is what the Bible 1 John 5:11-12 says: “And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.” God gives eternal life to those who believe in “God’s testimony,” that is, the testimony of His Son, Jesus Christ (vv. 9-11). In a word, those who believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, have eternal life. That is, those who believe in Jesus Christ have eternal life (v. 12). This is because they have in their hearts Jesus Christ, who is eternal life (v. 12). Have you had the eternal life of Jesus Christ in your heart? Do you believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God? You and I, who believe in Jesus Christ, the eternal life, already have eternal life. Therefore, when we have the assurance of salvation, we must be all the more eager to make our calling and election sure (2 Pet. 1:10). And we must stand firm, unshaken, and always zealous for the work of the Lord. Our labor in the Lord will never be in vain (1 Cor. 15:58).

The second assurance is the assurance of answering prayer. In other words, it is the assurance that God will hear our prayers if we only ask according to God's will.

When you pray to God, are you confident that your prayers will be answered? On November 8, 2020, while meditating on the words of Psalm 55:16-17, I would like to share what I wrote under the title ‘Why am I not sure of answers to my prayers?’: Why am I not sure of answers to prayers? Why am I praying to God, but not convinced that God will hear me? Perhaps the reason is because I am being led by a situation when I am praying to God. So, when the situation seems to be getting better for me, I seem to have confidence in my prayer in the thought that God is hearing my prayer. But if the situation is getting worse in my opinion, I cannot have confidence in prayer. Maybe that's because right now I'm focusing on my expectations and praying to God. My expectation is that the suffering members enjoy freedom from that suffering. I don't want them to suffer anymore. I am praying for healing from addiction or disease. I think this expectation of prayer is reasonable and natural. But if I pray to God and things don't go as expected, how can I continue to pray to God with confidence in prayer? I will never be able to do so. I want to learn the prayer of Jesus: “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will” (Mt. 26:39). In order for me to pray to God with the assurance of answering prayer, I need to focus on who God is and instead of focusing on circumstances or expectations. God is salvation. The meaning of the name of Jesus is 'God is salvation'. The indwelling Holy Spirit makes us look to this God of salvation with faith and pray. And God is love (1 Jn. 4:8, 16). The God of love first loved and saved sinners like me who were enemies with God, who had no choice but to die spiritually and eternally. If we know and believe in the saving love of this Holy Trinity God, we have no choice but to have the assurance of answers our prayers when we pray in the name of the Son Jesus, following the guidance of the Holy Spirit who intercedes for us according to God's will (Rom. 8:27).

In today's text, 1 John 5:14-15, the Bible says this: ”This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us--whatever we ask--we know that we have what we asked of him.” The Apostle John says, ‘I have the confidence that God hears our prayers. This is not the assurance of answers prayer that only the Apostle John or the recipients of the letter of 1 John can have. You and I, who have received eternal life by believing in Jesus Christ, can also have the assurance of answering our prayers. The secret is if we only ask according to his will (v. 14). In other words, the secret to having the assurance that our prayers will be answered is that we ask according to God’s will. But I think there are at least three problems:

The first problem is that most of us pray to God without knowing what God’s will is.

How much do we actually know God's will? In fact, we do not even know the will of God, which is spoken of in the 66 books of the Bible. For example, in 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, the Bible says what God's will is: “Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.” However, when we pray to God, how many times have we prayed to God, saying, ‘God, please make me always rejoice, pray without ceasing, and give thanks in everything according to God’s will? Another example is in 1 Thessalonians 4:3, the Bible says, “It is God's will that you should be sanctified.” When we pray to God, how many times have we asked God to sanctify me according to His will? Another example is in John 6:40, where the Bible says, “For the will of my Father is that everyone who sees the Son and believes in him has eternal life ….” But how many times have we prayed to God for receiving eternal life by believing in Jesus according to our Heavenly Father’s will? As we do not know the will of God in the Bible, if we look at the contents of our prayers, I think that it is a big problem that we are not praying according to God's will.

The second problem is that we seek our own will rather than God’s will.

Looking at the contents of our prayers, most of us have been asking God for our own will to be done instead God’s will be done. The reason is because we do not know what God's will is. How can we pray according to God's will when we do not know His will? Therefore, we have no choice but to pray to God according to our will.

The third problem is that we often pray to God according to our will even though we know God's will.

To that extent, we pray not to submit to God's will, but to carry out our will to God. So we must imitate (learn) the prayer of Jesus who asked Heavenly Father on the Mount of Olives: “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done” (Lk. 22:42).

This is the lyric 3 of the hymn “My Jesus, as Thou Wilt”: “My Jesus, as Thou wilt! All shall be well for me; Each changing future scene I gladly trust with Thee. Straight to my home above I travel calmly on; And sing, in life or death, My Lord, Thy will be done. The person who wrote this hymn is Pastor Benjamin Schmolk (1672-1737). More than 100 years have passed since Martin Luther’s Reformation swept across Europe and Germany, and the Lutheran Church is on the verge of decline. Pastor Benjamin Schmolk, who is also a descendant of the Reformer, was the last pastor of a small church touring a wide area serving the members. However, it was not enough for the couple to tour a large area, and as time passed, they went to visit more distant places. That winter of 1704, the year that Rev. Benjamin Schmolck was 32 years old. Leaving their two sons behind, the Schmolcks and his wife went to a distant visitation. For some reason, they felt uncomfortable, but they had to go because they had been putting off a visit for a long time. The next day, when they returned home from a distant visit, the house they lived in was burned down and they could not find any traces of it. The problem wasn't the house, it was the two sons sleeping in it. The Schmolks frantically began digging through the ashes like howling beasts, and their two sleeping sons were burned to death, hugging each other. ‘Ah Ah! How could such a thing ... How could the two beloved sons burn to death after returning from God's work? ...’ The Schmolcks wept bitterly for a long time. Shumolk, exhausted during his suffering, remembered the figure of Jesus praying in the Garden of Gethsemane, who died for him at that moment, sweating blood and praying (Internet). So the lyrics written by Pastor Benjamin Schmolk are the hymns “My Jesus, as Thou wilt”: (1) My Jesus, as Thou wilt! O may Thy will be mine; Into Thy hand of love I would my all resign. Through sorrow, or thro' joy, Conduct me as Thine own; And help me still to say, My Lord, Thy will be done. (2) My Jesus, as Thou wilt! Though seen through many a tear, Let not my star of hope Grow dim or disappear. Since Thou on earth hast wept, And sorrowed oft alone, If I must weep with Thee, My Lord, Thy will be done. (3) My Jesus, as Thou wilt! All shall be well for me; Each changing future scene I gladly trust with Thee. Straight to my home above I travel calmly on; And sing, in life or death, My Lord, Thy will be done. Amen.

The Apostle John already mentioned prayer in 1 John 3:21-22 in addition to 1 John 5:14-15: “Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God and receive from him anything we ask, because we obey his commands and do what pleases him” (3:21-22). The Apostle John said in 1 John 3:21-22 that the secret to receiving answers to prayers from God is that we keep God’s commandments and do what is pleasing in His sight. Then, what pleases God? It is obedience to God's commandment, which is to believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and to love one another, as he commanded us (v. 23). In other words, our faith must be a living faith, and it must be a faith that loves one another according to the commandment of Jesus. And when we love one another as Jesus commanded, “we must not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth” (v. 18). Then we can know that we belong to the truth, and set out hearts at rest in God’s presence (v. 19). In doing so, our hearts do not condemn us and we have confidence before God (v. 21). This is the love where there is nothing in us to make us stumble (2:10). After this word, the Apostle John came to 1 John 5:14 in today's text and said, “This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.” The Korean modern Bible is translated as ‘If we ask anything according to God’s will, we have the conviction that God will hear our prayers.’ It is said that the assurance of answering God's prayers is "if we ask anything according to his will” (v. 14). But in 1 John 3:22, we are also taught that we should live according to God's will and pray to Him. In other words, the secret of receiving the God’s answer to our prayer is to live according to God's will and seek only God's will.

But the problem is that we do not know the will of God very well. That is why I believe that the words of Romans 8:26-27, 34 that I received grace while preparing the time to recite Romans 8 to commemorate the 41st anniversary of the establishment of Victory Presbyterian Church are the solution to that problem. Look at Romans 8:26-27, 34: “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God's will. … Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died--more than that, who was raised to life--is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us.” The comfort and strength we receive from these words is the fact that the Holy Spirit also helps us in our weakness (v. 26). Our weakness here is that “We do not know what we ought to pray for” (v. 26). Why do we not know what we ought to pray for? The reason is because we do not know what the will of God is. That is why we cannot ask only according to the will of God as 1 John 5:14 says. This is “our weakness” (Rom. 8:26). But, Romans 8:26 says, “The Spirit also helps us in our weakness.” How does the Holy Spirit help us in our weakness? The Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God's will (v. 26). The Holy Spirit himself intercedes for us according to the will of God (v. 27). Interestingly, the Bible says “In the same way, the Spirit,” because Romans 8:34 says that Christ Jesus, who is at the right hand of God, also interceding for us. On the Mount of Olives, Jesus said, “Father, if it is your will, take this cup from me. But, not my will, but your will” (Lk. 22:42). It is Jesus who seeks and obeys the Father’s will. When that Jesus makes intercession for us at the right hand of God, won't He pray only according to the will of God the Father? That is, God the Son, Jesus Christ, intercedes for us according to the will of God the Father, and God the Holy Spirit also intercedes for us “according to the will of God” to God the Father. Will Heavenly Father turn away from the prayers of the Son Jesus and God the Holy Spirit? Heavenly Father hears the prayers that Jesus the Son and God the Holy Spirit pray for us only according to the will of God. That is why the Apostle John is saying this in 1 John 5:15 in today's text: “And if we know that he hears us--whatever we ask--we know that we have what we asked of him.” Because Jesus the Son and God the Holy Spirit are interceding for us only according to the will of God, we can know that God hears our prayers (v. 15) if we ask anything according to God’s will (v. 14). This is the assurance of answering prayers we should have.

The Apostle John clearly shows an illustration of praying according to the will of God in 1 John 5:16-17: “If anyone sees his brother commit a sin that does not lead to death, he should pray and God will give him life. I refer to those whose sin does not lead to death. There is a sin that leads to death. I am not saying that he should pray about that. All wrongdoing is sin, and there is sin that does not lead to death.” In this example, the Apostle John exhorts that if anyone sees his brother committing a sin that does not lead to death, he should pray to God (‘ask God for forgiveness’). Here, what is the sin that does not lead to death? (vv. 16, 17) I believe that one of the sins that does not lead to death is the sin of not loving one's brother. My thought is based on 1 John 3:14 – “We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love our brothers. Anyone who does not love remains in death.” In other words, one of the sins that does not lead to death is to ‘hate his brother.’ Look at 1 John 3:15 – “Anyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life in him.” When we see a brother who continues to commit this sin of hating his brother, the Bible tells us to ask God for forgiveness (5:16). Then God will give him life to him whose sis does not lead to death (v. 16). This is prayer that we should ask God according to His will and that we could have assurance that God hears our prayer (v. 14). This is because Jesus prayed on the cross, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing” (Lk. 23:34). In Acts chapter 7, when those who are stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears (v. 51) stoned Stephen, Stephen fell on his knees and cried out, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” “When he had said this, he fell asleep” (v. 60).

But in today's text, 1 John 5:16, the Apostle John says, "There is a sin that leads to death. I am not saying that he should pray about that.” What does that mean? What is the sin that leads to death that the Apostle John said not to pray about? I think that the sin that leads to death refers to denying that Jesus is the Christ and denying the Father and the Son (2:22), which is lie (v. 21) by the liar (v. 22), the antichrist and many antichrists (v. 18) and those who are trying to lead us astray (v. 26). Perhaps among the recipients of this letter of 1 John from the Apostle John, there were those in the community who, deceived by the lies of the false teachers, deny that Jesus is the Christ and deny God the Father and the Son of God Jesus Christ (KJV Bible Commentary). These people ‘went out from us, but they did not really belong to us” (v. 19) and I think they refer to unbelievers who were influenced by the antichrists who followed the antichrist in this last hour (v. 18). Because they reject the truth of God, death in unbelief eventually leads to sin that leads to death, I think the Apostle John said, I am not saying that he should pray about that” (5:16).

Among the five assurances I learned during my disciple training in college, I still remember the Bible verse for assurance of answering prayer. That Bible verse is John 16:24 – “Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete.” After learning this word, I remember that I was in charge of the early Morning Prayer meeting at the Christian club I served as a staff. We had a prayer meeting in a rented classroom at 7 am. At that time, I was probably in my 4th or 5th year of university, and the juniors who attended were first and second year members. Then, after graduating from college, I went to seminary. But for the first two years, I did not attend the early Morning Prayer meeting held by the Korean student club. My excuse was that I was too busy studying. Then, as I became the president of the Korean student club in my 3rd year, I started to attend the early Morning Prayer meeting to set an example. I think I finished the seminary to the end thanks to the grace God gave through the early Morning Prayer meeting. Then, after graduating from that seminary, when I moved to my church in the Beverly building, I slept in the room on the second floor and did not attend the Morning Prayer meeting led by the senior pastor in the main sanctuary on the third floor, even though I was an evangelist. So my prayer life was a mess. I had no sincerity and reluctantly participated in the early Morning Prayer meeting, but God gave me grace. Then, about 18 years ago, the Lord gave me the word of promise, Matthew 16:18, and made me come back to the Victory Presbyterian Church in the United States from Korea. And as the senior pastor, I was able to enjoy a lot of God's grace while leading the Morning Prayer meeting. In the meantime, I think the indwelling Holy Spirit provided me with no choice but to hold on to the Lord's promises while I have been pastoring. The reason is that, while gradually realizing and acknowledging that I cannot build the Victory Presbyterian Church, the Lord has been giving me assurance that only the Lord can build His church according to His promise of Matthew 16:18. In the meantime, the Holy Spirit started to make me realize a little bit that the basis for the assurance of answering prayers is not in myself, but in the fact that the Son Jesus Christ is interceding for me at the right hand of God (Rom. 8:34), and that the Holy Spirit himself interceding for me with groans that words cannot express accordance with God’s will (vv. 26-27). My responsibility is to pray, with faith in these words of Romans 8:26-27, 34, according to the will of God according to the guidance of the Holy Spirit. In particular, I should pray like Jesus on the Mount of Olives, saying, ‘Do not let my will be done, but Your will be done’ (Lk. 22:42). Then, I can have confidence that if I ask anything according to God’s will, He hears my prayer (1 Jn. 5:14).

The third assurance is the assurance of victory. In other words, it is the victorious assurance that we are victorious in our fight against sin and Satan.

Look at 1 John 5:18 – “We know that anyone born of God does not continue to sin; the one who was born of God keeps him safe, and the evil one cannot harm him.” Among the 5 Assurances to learn in the foundation of discipleship is “Assurance of Victory.” The Bible verse for the assurance of that victory is 1 Corinthians 10:13 – “No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.” The ‘temptation” here does not refer to God’s test in Genesis 22, when God told Abraham, “Take your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah and offer him there as a burnt offering on the mountain I have told you about” (Gen. 22:2). ‘Temptation’ here refers to Satan’s temptation. Personally, while reading the Word of God, I became interested in “The temptations of Satan” and wrote several brief meditations. For example, in “The temptation of Satan (1)” I wrote about Jesus being tempted by Satan in three ways before He began His work as the Redeemer (Lk. 4:1-13). What is interesting is that when Jesus was crucified to complete His work, Satan tempted Jesus to ‘save Himself’ three more times: (a) (Lk. 23:35) “The people stood watching, and the rulers even sneered at him. They said, ‘He saved others; let him save himself if he is the Christ of God, the Chosen One.’” (b) (vv. 36-37) “The soldiers also came up and mocked him. They offered him wine vinegar and said, ‘If you are the king of the Jews, save yourself.’” (c) (v. 39) “One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: ‘Aren't you the Christ? Save yourself and us!’” The purpose of this satanic temptation was so that Jesus, as the Redeemer, would take our sins and die on the cross. In this way, there was Satan's temptation at the beginning and at the end of Jesus' ministry. “Satan’s temptation (2)”, the temptation that Satan gives us is the cross without suffering, the gospel without the cross, and the church of Christ without the gospel. “Satan’s Temptation (3)” is a brief meditation on three things based on Acts 21. The three temptations of Satan are (1) a commotion (v. 30), (2) a rumor (v. 31) and (3) violence (v. 35). Satan still stirs up the church by causing commotion in the church, and by creating a commotion in unfounded speculation (a commotion). Not only that, Satan still spreads malicious rumors within the church (rumor). And Satan still tempts people in the church to use their words and deeds to assault them (violence). In addition to these 3 meditations on “Satan’s Temptation,” I wrote 9 meditations under the title “Satan’s Strategies” while reading the Bible. Pastor John MacArthur said: ‘The main strategy of Satan is to spread as many lies as possible to deny, pollute and confuse the truth’ (MacArthur). Now, our thoughts are heavily polluted with lies, which are unevangelical and untruth. We are unable to distinguish between truth and lies under the trend of mutual respect. Now we are confused and we are living a syncretistic faith life. The reason I wrote about “Satan’s strategy” while reading the Bible like this is because we need to know Satan’s strategy through God’s Word so that we can respond and win the spiritual battle against Satan. We must have “the assurance of victory” in this spiritual battle. That is why 1 Corinthians 10:13, the Bible verse for the assurance of victory, is important. There are three things we need to be sure of in this passage: (1) It is perfectly normal for us who believe in Jesus to be tempted by Satan [(v. 13a) “No temptation has seized you except what is common to man”]. (2) God is faithful and will not allow us to be tempted beyond what we can bear [(v. 13b) “And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear”]. (3) A faithful God provides a way out so that we can stand up under it [(v. 13c) “But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it”].

In today's text, 1 John 5:18, the Apostle John says: “We know that anyone born of God does not continue to sin; the one who was born of God keeps him safe, and the evil one cannot harm him.” Here, the one who is born of God that the Apostle John refers to refers to one who has been born again or regenerated from God, as we have already learned in 1 John 5:1, 5. The Bible 1 John 5:1 says, “Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God.” In other words, it means that those who believe that Jesus is the Christ are born again/regenerated by God. And in 1 John 5:4-5, the Apostle John said, “for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world? Only he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.” The modern Korean Bible translates ‘those who are born of God’ as ‘children of God.’ In other words, the modern Korean Bible translates 1 John 5:5-6 as follows: ‘For any child of God can overcome the world. It is our faith that overcomes the world. Who can overcome the world except those who believe that Jesus is the Son of God?’ This is what 1 John 3:1 says: “How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! ….” Considering these words together, ‘those who are born of God,’ that is, those who are born again (regenerate) and become children of God by believing that Jesus is the Christ and the Son of God, have victory through faith in Jesus. The Apostle John said in 1 John 5:18 in today's text, “We know that anyone born of God does not continue to sin.” The modern Korean Bible is translated as ‘We know that the children of God do not continue to sin.’ This is what the Apostle John already said in 1 John 3:9 – “No one who is 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.” The point of the Apostle John in these two verses is that the children of God who are born of God, that is, those who are born again (regenerated) of God, do not continue to sin. The reason is because God’s seed remain in the children of God (3:9). What is God’s seed here? Look at 1 Peter 1:23-25: “For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God. For, ‘All men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord stands forever.’ And this is the word that was preached to you.” Looking at these words, “God’s seed” (1 Jn. 3:9) is God’s “imperishable seed” (1 Pet. 1:23), which is “the living and enduring word of God” (v. 23), that is, the gospel of God. And this gospel is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes (Rom. 1:16). Considering these words collectively, I think that the seed of God mentioned in 1 John 3:9 is the gospel of living and enduring word of God and is the power of God to save God’s children. Because the saving power of God dwells in God's children, they do not continue to sin (v. 9).

But in reality, we continue to sin even though we are children of God who have been born again by God. Why? Look at 1 John 3:2-3: “Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. Everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself, just as he is pure.” I have already thought of this verse in three ways:

The implication of these words is that when Jesus appears (when he comes back to this world), we will not only be like Jesus, we will be sinless people who do not even know what sin is.

This is the future hope we have in the Lord (v. 3). When the last trumpet sounds, we will all be changed (1 Cor. 15:51). The Lord will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like His glorious body (Phil. 3:21). That glorious body is a glorious body that does not sin and knows no sin like Jesus did.

We believers who believe in the death and resurrection of Jesus are already buried with Him through baptism into death (Rom. 6:4), we already died to sin (v. 2).

This has already happened in the past. Since we died with Christ in His death (v. 5), we are already dead to sin (v. 2). More specifically, our old self was crucified with Jesus so that the body of sin is put to death, that we are no longer enslaved to sin (v. 6). This is what the Apostle Paul said in Romans 6:7: “because anyone who has died has been freed from sin.”

Although we are already dead to sin because we were buried with Jesus in union with His death in the past (6:4-5), when Jesus comes into this world, how should we live in the Lord now until we will be changed and become sinless people like Jesus (1 Cor. 15:51, Phil 3:21, 1 Jn. 3:2).

In other words, it is the question of how we should live in the present, living between this future hope we have and the fact that we were already buried with Jesus' death on the cross in the past.

I think this question is very important. In Pauline theological terms, this is a question of how the people of God should live in the church age, which is between “already” (past) and “not yet” (future). Misunderstanding this question, many of us Christians believe that we who believe in Jesus and who have already been saved, do not lose our salvation and thus we are not afraid of disobeying God’s word and sin against God but sin boldly. Look at Philippians 2:12 – “Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed--not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence--continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling.” Here, “work out your salvation” does not mean that we must be saved by works (good works) (Eph. 2:8-9; Rom. 8:22-24). Salvation is the past, present, and future tense: (1) The past of salvation is that by the grace of God we have already been saved if we believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God (1 Jn. 5:12-13). (2) The future of salvation is that we will be saved on the day Jesus returns (Acts 16:31, Rom. 10:9). (3) The present of salvation is “work out your salvation” (Phil. 2:12). Then, what is the meaning of the words to work out our salvation in the present between the salvation of the past and the salvation of the future? Salvation here means eternal life. In other words, Paul said to the Philippian church members, ‘Work out your eternal life’ (you should live for those who have eternal life). And for those who have eternal life (the heavenly people, to live in the answer is to obey the twofold commandment of Jesus, the two commandment of the kingdom of heaven, to love God and love our neighbor (Mt. 22:37-39). This is what God does in us (Phil. 2:13). He gives the believer the will to do good, and also the strength to do it. The Holy Spirit produces in us love, the fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22-23), so that we can love God and also love our neighbor.

We, who are already dead to sin by being buried with Jesus in union with Jesus' death in the past (Rom. 6:4-5) and will be changed and become sinless like Jesus when Jesus comes back into this world (1 Cor. 15:51; Phil. 3:21; 1 Jn. 3:2), how should we live in the Lord now? As 1 John 2:29 says, we must live by doing righteousness. Until then (1 Corinthians 15:51, Philippians 3:21, 1 John 3:2) how to live in the Lord now, as 1 John 2:29, which we have already meditated on, says, we must live by doing what is right. That is, the Apostle Paul said, “Work out your salvation” in Philippians 2:12, but the Apostle John said in 1 John 2:29 that you should do what is right. Look at 1 John 2:29 – “If you know that he is righteous, you know that everyone who does what is right has been born of him.” Here, “everyone who does what is right has been born of him” means those who have been born again who believe in Jesus and are righteous as God is righteous (Rom. 4:25). Therefore, the righteous should always do what is right as the indwelling Holy Spirit teaches them. This is what it means to live in the Lord. So what does it mean to do righteousness? As we are already dead to sin and are living in this church age until we become sinless people like Jesus in the future, we must first seek the kingdom of God and the righteousness of God (Mt. 6:33). We must seek the Kingdom of God and its King, the righteous Jesus. That is, we must walk as the righteous Jesus did (1 Jn. 2:1, 6). It is living in obedience to the twofold commandment of Jesus (vv. 7-11). This is what the Bible Matthew 22:37-40 says regarding the twofold commandment of Jesus: “Jesus replied: ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” To do righteousness first is to love the Lord God with all our heart, soul, and mind, according to the first of Jesus' twofold commandment. If we say this commandment from the perspective of 1 John, we obey 1 John 2:15-17: “Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For everything in the world--the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does--comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever.” Doing God's will here means not living according to the passing world or the things of this world, “the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes, and the boasting of what he has and does” (v. 16). In other words, when we purify ourselves as Jesus was pure (3:3), we are doing righteousness. And doing righteousness means, first of all, that we do not live according to the passing world or the things of this world, the cravings of sinful man, the lust of our eyes, and the boasting of what we have and do, but we do the will of God (2:15-17). Then doing righteousness is to love our neighbor as ourselves, according to the second of Jesus' twofold commandment. If we say this commandment from the perspective of 1 John, it is obeying the words of 1 John 2:3-11, which is to love our brothers and not hate them. Thus, in obedience to Jesus' commandment, to love our brothers, God’s love is truly made complete in us (v. 5). And we live in the light, and there is no nothing in us to make us stumble (v. 10).

As we are born of God, that is, God’s regenerated children, we must fight sin and Satan so that we do not continue to sin. In this spiritual battle, we must lead a life of combative faith with the assurance of victory that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, has already won the battle against sin and Satan on the cross. In particular, we must fight the spiritual battle by having the hope of faith that when Jesus appears (when He comes back to this world), the future hope we have for the Lord, we will be like Jesus, without sin and without a knowledge of sin. In this spiritual battle, we must fight sin and Satan by holding on to the words of 1 John 5:18 with faith: “… the one who was born of God keeps him safe, and the evil one cannot harm him.” Here, “the evil one” refers to Satan (MacArthur). And the Apostle John says that Satan, “the evil one,” cannot touch (injure) the children of God who are born of God. The reason is that our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, who is begotten of God (Mt. 1:18, 20) and appeared to the world (1 Jn. 1:2), is the Son of God (5:5) and because Jesus Christ (v. 1) keeps the children of God (v. 18). Look at Psalms 121:3-8: “He will not let your foot slip-- he who watches over you will not slumber; indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. The LORD watches over you-- the LORD is your shade at your right hand; the sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night. The LORD will keep you from all harm-- he will watch over your life; the LORD will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore.”

The fourth assurance is the assurance that we belong to God. In other words, it is the assurance that those who are born of God, that is, those who are born again (regenerated) belong to God and not to this world ruled by Satan.

Look at 1 John 5:19 – “We know that we are of God, and that the whole world lies in the power of the evil one.” The Apostle John says there are only two kinds of people in this world: (1) children of God, or (2) children of Satan (MacArthur). Look at 1 John 3:10 – “This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not a child of God; nor is anyone who does not love his brother.” The Apostle John says that it is possible to distinguish clearly between the children of God and the children of the devil (v. 10). The way to distinguish it is that “Anyone who does not do what is right” is not of God (“not a child of God”) (v. 10). The one who does not do what is right that the Apostle John is referring to here refers to the one who does not love his brother (v. 10). In other words, the children of Satan (the devil) do not do what is right and do not love their brothers. But God's children are said to be those who do what is right (v. 7), loving their brother (v. 10). Look at 1 John 3:7 – “Dear children, do not let anyone lead you astray. He who does what is right is righteous, just as he is righteous.” The Apostle John says that those who do what is right are righteous just as Jesus is righteous (v. 7). He already mentioned “Jesus Christ, the Righteous One” in 1 John 2:1, and in 2:6, “Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did.” In other words, he who does what is right (3:7) also does what is right (v. 6) just as “Jesus Christ, the Righteous One” did (2:1). If we take these verses together and meditate on 1 John 5:19, the conclusion is that those who are of God do the same things that Jesus did.

Look at 1 John 5:19 – “We know that we are of God, and that the whole world lies in the power of the evil one.” What does the Apostle John mean when he says “we are of God” here? The literal translation of the original Greek word for “we are of God’ here is ‘We are from God’. However, it is interesting to note that the literal translation of the Greek word for “born of God” in 1 John 5:1, 4 is “He is born of God”. In other words, in 1 John 5:19, “we are of God,” and in 5:1, 4, ‘we who are born of God’ are both ‘we are from God.’ It means “we are of God” (v. 19), which means ‘we are born of God’ (v. 1, 4). And as we are born of God, we not only believe that Jesus is the Christ (v.1) and the Son of God (v. 5), which is the Apostle John’s testimony (v. 9), but also believe the testimony of God that the Son of God (vv. 9, 10) is Jesus Christ. And in those who are born of God who believe in the Son of God (v. 10), there is eternal life (vv. 11, 12). The reason why the Apostle John said in 1 John 5:19, “And” in “And we know that we are of God” is because he already said in verse 18 that “We know that no one who is born of God sins ….” So, at the beginning of verse 19, he said, “We know that …,” and in verse 20, he said, “And we know ….” In addition to this, looking at 1 John chapter 5, the Apostle John said in verse 2, “By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and observe His commandments,” and in verse 15, “And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests which we have asked from Him.” In this way, the Apostle John said the word 'we know' 6 times in 1 John 5 alone, which means 'know for sure' and ‘enjoy knowing the truth continually’ (KJV Bible Commentary).

As I was meditating on these verses, I was curious to find out where the word ‘we know’ appears again from chapter 1 through 4. It seems to come up about 10 times:

(2:3) “We know that we have come to know him if we obey his commands.”
(2:5) “But if anyone obeys his word, God's love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him:”
(2:18) “Dear children, this is the last hour; and as you have heard that the antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come. This is how we know it is the last hour.”
(3:2) “Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears,we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.”
(3:14) “We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love our brothers. Anyone who does not love remains in death.”
(3:16) “This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers.”
(3:19) “This then is how we know that we belong to the truth, and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence.”
(4:6) “We are from God, and whoever knows God listens to us; but whoever is not from God does not listen to us. This is how we recognize the Spirit of truth and the spirit of falsehood.”
(4:13) “We know that we live in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit.”
(4:16) “And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him.”

I focus on the 10 words 'we know' in 1 John chapters 1-4 and the 6 words in 1 John chapter 5, a total of 16 words. It made me think about how the Apostle Paul and the recipients of the 1 John letter knew for sure that they are from God. In doing so, I was able to draw 14 conclusions. Those who are from God …

Are those who know Jesus, the proof that they know Jesus is that they keep His commands (2:3).
Are those who are in Jesus (the Lord), and those who are in Jesus, keep the words of Jesus, so that God's love is truly made complete in him (v. 5).
Are those who know that “this is the last hour” and have heard that “the antichrist is coming” and know that “even now there are many antichrists” (v. 18).
Know that they will be like Jesus, when He appears (when He returns). The reason is because they will see Jesus as He is (3:2).
Know that they have passed from death into life (eternal life) because they love their brothers (v. 14).
Know love because Jesus laid down His life for them (v. 16).
Know that they belong to the truth by loving in deed and truth (vv. 18-19).
Are those who know the Spirit of truth (the Holy Spirit) and the spirit of falsehood and those who know God will “listen to us,” and those who are not from God “does not listen to us” (4:6).
Know that they abide in Jesus, and that Jesus abides in them by giving the Holy Spirit to them (v. 13).
Know and believe in God's love for them (v. 16).
Are those who love God and keep His commandments, love His children (5:2).
Know that the Lord hears them whatever they ask (v. 15).
Know that those who are born of God (those who have been regenerated), do not continue to sin (v. 18).
Know that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, has come and has given them understanding (v. 20), and know Jesus who is true and that they are in the Jesus, who is the true God and eternal life (v. 20).

Then, out of these 14 conclusions, I summarized in three ways how we can know for sure that we are from God, focusing on the remaining 13, except for verse 20, which we will meditate on next:

If we are of God, we know and believe the love that God has for us (4:16).

More specifically, if we are of God, we know love that Jesus Christ laid down His life for us (3:16). And we know that we live in Him and He in us because God the Father and Jesus the Son gave us the Holy Spirit (4:13). Therefore, we who are of God know that God hears our prayers when we pray to our Heavenly Father in the name of Jesus (5:15).

If we are of God, we know Jesus and obey His commands (2:3, 5).

The command of Jesus here is to love our brothers (3:14; 5:2). If we are of God, we love our brother in deed and truth (3:19). Never have we continued to commit the sin of hating our brother (5:18). Therefore, not only do we know that we ourselves have passed from death to life (eternal life) (v. 14), but we also know that we are of the truth (v. 19).

If we are of God, we know that when Jesus returns, we will be like Him (3:2).

The reason is because we know that we will see Jesus as He is (v. 2). That is why we who are of God know that this is the last hour (2:18). And since we know the Spirit of truth and the Spirit of falsehood, we listen to the servants of God and never listen to those who deceive us with lies (4:6). That is, we hear the true gospel of Jesus Christ [“the eternal gospel” (Rev. 14:6)], and not hear “another” gospel (Gal. 1:6-9; 2 Cor. 11:4) or false gospel that deny that Jesus is the Christ (2:22), and deny God the Father and the Son of God Jesus Christ (v. 22).

The Apostle John in 1 John 5:19 makes this also clear that “the whole world lies in the power of the evil one” [(Modern Korean Bible) ‘The whole world is under the control of the devil’]. What does this mean? This wicked and evil world is under the dominion of the evil one, the Devil (Satan). Although we now live in this Age under the control of Satan, we who are of God set apart from the world in this world live like those who belong to heaven (1 Cor. 15:40, 48, 49) [like heavenly citizens (Phil 3:20)] as we hope in heaven, The Coming Age (cf. 3:10). Then, what does it mean to live like heavenly citizens?

I share what I wrote on September 29, 2014, under the heading ‘The Life of Heavenly Citizens’: Our Christian citizenship is in heaven (Phil. 3:20). Therefore, we must fulfill our responsibilities as heavenly citizens (1:27). Our responsibility as heavenly citizens is to obey the heavenly laws. The heavenly law is the twofold commandment of Jesus: “'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'; and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself” (Lk. 10:27). When we obey this commandment, we assume our responsibilities as citizens of heaven. Especially when we obey this commandment in our homes, the Lord will make our homes into heaven. And when our family is going to become a heavenly kingdom, the Lord will use our family as a community of witnesses to testify of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. A family living worthy of the gospel of Christ bears witness to the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ as a family.’ This is the life in which the eternal life to be fully enjoyed in the world to come (heaven) is partially enjoyed in this world. When we love one another with the love of the Triune God, the joy of the Lord will be in us and our joy will be full (Jn. 15:9-12). As we reflect the Lord's love, our hearts will be filled with joy. This is what it means to live in the kingdom of heaven, which is the coming age from this age.

We must live the life Jesus said, “You are wise as serpents and innocent as doves” (Mt. 10:16) in this world under the dominion of Satan (the devil) who is the “evil one” (1 Jn. 5:19). How can we live like this? From the perspective of 1 John, we must live a victorious life of fighting (waging a spiritual battle) against Satan, the “evil one”! The basis for my thinking is 1 John 2:13, 14 and 4:4: (2:13) “… I write to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one …,” (2:14) “… I write to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God lives in you, and you have overcome the evil one,” (4:4) “You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.” The secret of victory in this spiritual battle is our faith (5:4) that we believe that the Lord who is in us, who belongs to God, is more powerful than the devil who is in the world (4:4) and that the powerful Word of God dwells in us (2:14). There are two specific applications of this truth:

We must commit ourselves to getting to know the Lord in us who are of God.

Look at 1 John 2:13a – “I write to you, fathers, because you have known him who is from the beginning. ….” Who is the “from the beginning” of which the Apostle John is speaking here? In 1 John 1:1, the Apostle John said that Jesus Christ was the word of life from the beginning and this life was made manifested (v. 2). This Jesus Christ is the propitiation for our sins (2:2). In other words, Jesus Christ died on the cross as the sacrifice of the Passover lamb for our sins, thereby satisfying God's holy requirement to punish our sins. Also, Jesus Christ is the righteous Advocate who defends us before the Father (v. 1). When we stand before God's court and Satan prosecutes us to our holy and righteous Heavenly Father, who is our Judge, Jesus, who has become the defense attorney, defends us before God.

Look at 1 John 2:14a – “I have written to you, fathers, because you know Him who has been from the beginning ….” We must strive not only to get to know Jesus Christ, but also to get to know the Father, the Father of Jesus Christ. The Apostle John speaks about the Father in two ways in 1 John: (1) In 1 John 1:5, the Bible says, “God is light.” The Apostle John says that God is light, and in him there is no darkness at all (v. 5). (2) In 1 John 4:8, 16, the Bible says that God is love. And the Bible says that God sent His only begotten Son, Jesus, to this world as the propitiation for our sins (4:9-10). We must overcome by believing in the truth that the Lord who dwells in us who are of God is more powerful than the devil who is in the world (4:4).

We must win the spiritual battle with the powerful Word of God who dwells within us.

Look at 1 John 2:14 – “… I have written to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one.” According to this verse, the secret that we, children of God, can fight and overcome the temptations of the devil is because we are strong and the Word of God dwells in us. The word ‘we are strong’ here means that we are strong because the powerful Word of God abides in us. And the fact that the word of God abides in us is proof that our faith in Him is so strong and firm. So the Apostle John said in 1 John 5:4: “for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith.”

We belong to God. The children of God who have been born again (regenerated) by believing in the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, we belong to God. We must be firmly aware of this fact. We must be convinced that we belong to God. Even though we are living in this world ruled by Satan (the devil), we who belong to God must live in obedience to the twofold commandment of Jesus as citizens of the heavenly world that is approaching. Even though Satan tries to deceive us and make us hate our brothers and sisters, we who have already received eternal life must love God together and live a life of loving each other. In this spiritual battle, we must grow in the knowledge of the Lord who dwells in us and of the Father, and must stand firm in the powerful Word of God which dwells in us, and live a life of victory over Satan's temptations with faith. Therefore, even though we live in an evil world ruled by this devil, I hope and pray that we who belong to God will be well prepared for the Second Coming of Jesus and life in the kingdom of heaven by loving our neighbors, brothers and sisters in the Lord, with the love of God who loves us.

The fifth and final assurance is the assurance that Jesus Christ is the true God and eternal life.

Who do you think Jesus is? In Matthew 16:13, there is a scene where Jesus came to the region of Caesarea and asked his disciples, “Who do people say I am?” Then the disciples of Jesus answered: “"Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets” (v. 14). Hearing that answer, Jesus asked his disciples, “Then who do you think I am?” (v. 15) Then Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (v. 16). Then Jesus said: “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven. And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it” (vv. 17-18). I received the Lord's promise, “on this rock I will build my church,” the words of Jesus in Matthew 16:18 and the Lord brought me back to Victory Presbyterian Church. And He has been enabled me to hold on to His promise word and to carry out the ministry. That is why, to me, the word of Matthew 16:18 are very important, precious, and dependable. Even now, centering on this word, I am praying to God, ‘Lord, you have promised to build your church, Victory Presbyterian Church, so please build your church according to your will.’ In that prayer, I pray that all of us, like the Apostle Peter, will become disciples of Jesus who make a true confession of faith who Jesus is through revelation from God. And I pray that we all become disciples of Jesus who live according to our profession of faith. Therefore, I pray that the Lord will build us all “on this rock” so that we can become a strong church that is firm and that will not be shaken. And I pray that the Lord will build our church as a church where the powers of Hades cannot overcome as a church that triumphs over myself, the world, sin, Satan, and death.

Look at 1 John 5:20 – “We know also that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true. And we are in him who is true--even in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.” Here the Apostle John speaks of the fifth and final assurance. That assurance is the assurance that Jesus Christ is the true God and eternal life. According to Pastor John MacArthur, the truth of this fifth assurance is the summation of the entire book of 1 John of the Apostle John (MacArthur). That's why this fifth final assurance is so important. In this passage we must remember three important points:

The point is that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding.

Look at 1 John 5:20 again: “We know also that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding ….” Already the Apostle John said in 1 John 1:2, “the life was made manifested” and in 1 John 5:20 he said, “the Son of God has come.” This verb is present tense, meaning that our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is here (“HE IS HERE”) (Critical and Explanatory, on the Old and New Testaments Commentary). How should we interpret this meaning? I found the answer in the second half of verse 20 that Jesus Christ is the true God and eternal life. That is, the presence of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, means that since the children of God who are born again (regenerated) through faith in Jesus Christ, already have eternal life (v. 13), Jesus Christ, the eternal life, is with us. The Apostle John says in 1 John 5:20 that this Son of God, Jesus Christ, has come and has given us “understanding”. This word “understanding” is used by the Apostle John only here in 1 John 5:20, and the Greek word is a combination of two words, meaning “through” + “mind”. To better understand this meaning, I think Exodus 36:1 is helpful: “"Now Bezalel and Oholiab, and every skillful person in whom the LORD has put skill and understanding to know how to perform all the work in the construction of the sanctuary, shall perform in accordance with all that the LORD has commanded.” That is, the understanding that Jesus Christ has given us by coming means that we have become wise men because the Lord has given skill and understanding. In Matthew 16:17, when Jesus heard the Apostle Peter's confession, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God," he said to Peter that his Father who is in heaven revealed to the Apostle Peter. Combining these two Bible verses, when I think of the word “understanding” in 1 John 5:20, I think it means that God, Jesus Christ, reveals to us and gives us wisdom so that we can understand.

The purpose of the coming of the Son of God to give us understanding is that we may come to know God who is the true, and also to realize the truth that we are in Jesus Christ.

Look at 1 John 5:20 again: “We know also that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true. And we are in him who is true--even in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.” As the Apostle John said in 1 John 2:18 when he was writing the letter of 1 John, he knew that “it is the last hour; and just as you heard that antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have appeared; from this we know that it is the last hour.” An interesting contrast is that this Age is now under the dominion of the evil one, Satan (the Devil) (5:19) and many antichrists have already appeared (2:18) and have deceived many with lies (vv. 22, 26) by not only denying that Jesus is the Christ, but also denying God the Father and the Son (v. 22). In this situation of making us to deny both the Father and the Son Jesus Christ, Jesus Christ, the Son of God, Lord of the Coming Age, has come to give us understanding so that we may come to know God who is true (5:20) [(Jn. 17:3) “Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent”]. In particular, when the Apostle John said in 1 John 5:21, “Dear children, keep yourselves away from idols,” he is making contrast between “true” God (v. 20) with “idols” (v. 21). Now the Apostle John is admonishing us to keep ourselves away from idols because Jesus Christ, the Son of God, has come and has given us understanding, so that we may not only know the true God, but also that we are in Jesus Christ, the Son of the true God. In other words, the Apostle John is admonishing us to protect ourselves from all the deceptive lies of Satan (the devil) who rules the world, such as the lies that we heard, 'Jesus is not the Christ', 'Jesus is not the Son of God', and 'Jesus is not God' since we know the true God and that we, the children of God, are in Jesus Christ (vv. 19-20) (MacArthur).

The point is that Jesus Christ is the true God and eternal life.

Look at 1 John 5:20 again: “… He is the true God and eternal life.” Obviously, the Apostle John must have known that the reason Jesus was crucified was the blasphemy from the point of view of the Jews. In other words, the Apostle John saw the reason why the Jews cried out to crucify Jesus (Jn. 19:6) was because Jesus blasphemed God in the Jewish perspective. Look at Luke 5:21 – “The scribes and the Pharisees began to reason, saying, ‘Who is this man who speaks blasphemies? Who can forgive sins, but God alone?’” The reason why the scribes and Pharisees thought this way was because Jesus said “Friend, your sins are forgiven” when He saw the faith of those who came carrying a paralytic on a mat and went up on the roof and lowered the paralytic on his mat through the tiles into the middle of the crowd, right in front of Jesus (vv. 18-20). From the point of view of the scribes and the Pharisees, only God can forgive sins. But a man named Jesus said, “Friend, your sins are forgiven.” To them, this was considered blasphemy against God. In other words, from the perspective of those Jews, Jesus was guilty of blasphemy because he said that God was “my Father” (Mt. 11:27) and that he himself was the Son of God (27:43). Since they believed that Jesus deserved a curse from God, they shouted that Jesus should be crucified. The Apostle John also knew that the liar denies that Jesus is the Christ and denies the Father and the Son of God (1 Jn.2:22), and knew that there were people who did not acknowledge that Jesus is the Son of God (4:15), he testified that Jesus is the Christ (5:1) and Jesus is the Son of God (v. 5). If we accept the testimony of the Apostle John, who is a human, isn't it natural for us to accept the the Father God’s testimony, which is the greater testimony, regarding his Son? (5:9) The Apostle John said that those who receive by faith the testimony of the Father God regarding Jesus Christ have eternal life (vv. 11, 12). And then, the Apostle John said in 1 John 5:20, what we know for sure and continue to enjoy the truth we know is the truth that Jesus Christ is the true God and eternal life (v. 20).

The Apostle John wanted the recipients of his letter, who not only believed that Jesus is the Christ (v. 1) but also he is the Son of God (v. 5), to know for sure that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is the true God and to continue enjoying that truth. Not only that, he wanted the recipient saints to know for sure that the true God, Jesus Christ, is “eternal life,” and he wanted them to continue to enjoy the truth. It is interesting to note that when the Apostle John began writing the letter to 1 John, in 1:1, 2, he spoke about the true God, Jesus Christ, and referred to Jesus as the word of life from the beginning (v. 1) and “the eternal life” (v. 2), and at the end of writing the letter to 1 John, 5:20, he said, Jesus Christ, who is the true God, is eternal life. The Gospel of John, written by the same author, the Apostle John, also begins in verse 1:1, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” and ends in 20:31, which is the conclusion of the Gospel of John, “But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life (eternal life) in his name.” Looking at these two books (Gospel of John and 1 John), I think that the Apostle John wrote the Gospel of John and 1 John with the purpose of starting with the true God, Jesus Christ, and having eternal life through faith in Jesus Christ. .

We must know for sure that Jesus Christ is the true God and eternal life. Also, we must continue to enjoy the truth that Jesus Christ is the true God and eternal life. To do this, we must yearn for Jesus Christ, the Son of God, to give us understanding. Therefore, we must grow in the knowledge of God with understanding that Jesus Christ gives us. And we must know for sure that we are in Jesus Christ. And through faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, who is the true God and eternal life, we must obey the twofold commandment of Jesus, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind” and “You must love your neighbor as yourself” (Mt. 22:37, 39). In this way, we will be able to enjoy eternal life while partially enjoying life in heaven on this earth.

Believe in our Lord Jesus Christ, who is the true God and eternal life,

James Kim

(December 26, 2021, praying to get to know Jesus more with the understanding God gives)