Assurance and 1 John

[Alain Valdivia]

I have a question from the book of 1 John. John makes some critical claims to knowing if you are truly a Christian. One of these is loving the brethren in passages such as:
“Whoever says he is in the light and hates his brother is still in darkness (1 John 2:9 ESV)”
“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. (Emphasis added John 3:10)”
And
“We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we live the brothers. Whoever does not love abides in death (John 3:14)”.
Alright so my question is does John mean perfect love to fellow Christians? Do Christians ever get angry at each other? Has any Christian EVER even had one bad thought towards another Christian? Have Christians ever had an evil emotion momentarily towards a fellow saint? And here is a personal question although you don’t have to answer this one: Have you ever gotten angry, bitter, or annoyed at a fellow Christian? If so, does that one angry thought or emotion make you a reprobate and not a true child of God? For me there were times when I got annoyed or irritated at a fellow Christian but never to the point of hate but a momentary emotion, although deep down I love them at least I think I do. And this worries me on whether I am saved or not and then I get caught up in over examining myself to the point of discouragement. And this is worse for me since I hav OCD and if I have an UNWANTED thought of hate or anger towards someone I then pay much attention to it and it gets worse and worse. It’s like my mind is against me and my will. Help! Anyways God bless you and have a great day!

 

[HankD]

I have a question from the book of 1 John. John makes some critical claims to knowing if you are truly a Christian. One of these is loving the brethren in passages such as:
“Whoever says he is in the light and hates his brother is still in darkness (1 John 2:9 ESV)”
“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. (Emphasis added John 3:10)”
And
“We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we live the brothers. Whoever does not love abides in death (John 3:14)”.
Alright so my question is does John mean perfect love to fellow Christians? Do Christians ever get angry at each other? Has any Christian EVER even had one bad thought towards another Christian? Have Christians ever had an evil emotion momentarily towards a fellow saint? And here is a personal question although you don’t have to answer this one: Have you ever gotten angry, bitter, or annoyed at a fellow Christian? If so, does that one angry thought or emotion make you a reprobate and not a true child of God? For me there were times when I got annoyed or irritated at a fellow Christian but never to the point of hate but a momentary emotion, although deep down I love them at least I think I do. And this worries me on whether I am saved or not and then I get caught up in over examining myself to the point of discouragement. And this is worse for me since I hav OCD and if I have an UNWANTED thought of hate or anger towards someone I then pay much attention to it and it gets worse and worse. It’s like my mind is against me and my will. Help! Anyways God bless you and have a great day!

Confess/acknowledge it:

1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

 

[Reformed]

Hank is right.

Of course Christians get angry and sin. John is writing about the totality of a professed believer's life. If our life is characterized by a lack of love towards the brethren, we best examine ourselves (2 Cor. 13:5).

Confess/acknowledge it:

1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk

 

[Alain Valdivia]

Confess/acknowledge it:

1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

But have you ever felt a lack of love for another Christian?

 

[Baptist Believer]

And this worries me on whether I am saved or not and then I get caught up in over examining myself to the point of discouragement. And this is worse for me since I hav OCD and if I have an UNWANTED thought of hate or anger towards someone I then pay much attention to it and it gets worse and worse. It’s like my mind is against me and my will. Help! Anyways God bless you and have a great day!

It is easy to read 1 John and work yourself into a destructive spiral. Ironically, it was written to give people assurance.

What has happened is that the modern Western church has reduced the calling of Jesus to a transaction where we exchange sin for salvation from hell, resulting in "heaven" when we die.

But if you read 1 John with a proper perspective on the gospels -- that Jesus calls us into a life of discipleship when we learn to live in His life and power -- we realize that 1 John is talking about a lifestyle, not particular good deeds or failures.

If you life is characterized by love toward your brothers and sisters in Christ, you experience answered prayer on a regular basis, and you see personal transformation in your life, you can have confidence that you are experiencing eternal life in Christ. If you life is characterized by contempt and anger toward your brothers and sisters in Christ (including people you disagree with), you never experience answered prayer, and your life is not characterized by steady transformation of your character, then you need to reexamine the teachings of Jesus in the gospels so that you can truly enter into His life.

 

[HankD]

But have you ever felt a lack of love for another Christian?

Yes and It happens to all of us Alain.

After salvation we still have the flesh to contend with and unless we live the life of a hermit we will clash with others..

There are other passages which deal with this issue of bad feelings with other brethren.

After acknowledgement of these sins there is another important principle if you are able or as Paul says as much as is within you:

Matthew 5
23 Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee;
24 Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift.

Realizing this scripture is before Pentecost and speaks of "the altar" the teaching here is the universal principle of reconciliation.

Try if you are able to reconcile with brethren, family members, spouse, church members, etc realizing it's not always do-able even if they are still alive.

If you confess and seek reconciliation I believe you will find peace.

Note:Reconciliation is a two way street Alain, that doesn't mean you have to be successful, just do your part, then leave it in the Lord's hands.

Folks may even concoct and fabricate blatant lies about you - Do not become bitter. A root of bitterness makes us ineffective in our worship, prayer life, etc...

Remember: vengeance is mine saith the Lord I will repay. Try not to "stew" over anything. The Lord is the judge of all the earth.

Philippians 4
6 Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.
7 And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

I have prayed and will pray for you Alain.

 

[Yeshua1]

But have you ever felt a lack of love for another Christian?

You have to read it in the context of John is addressing the habitual lifestyle of one professing to now being Christian... If their lives are operating same way did before, still enslaved to sinning, or in this case not having love towards others saved, is a call to check and examine if one is really saved!

 

[Ready to Harvest]

1 John 1 is to unbelievers, Gnostics. The rest of the book is to believers.

 

[HankD]

1 John 1 is to unbelievers, Gnostics. The rest of the book is to believers.

I'm sorry (maybe I'm not) - but IMO every page of the Bible is meant for ALL humanity because it glorifies God.

Psalm 96:3 Declare his glory among the heathen, his wonders among all people.


.

 

[Ready to Harvest]

I'm sorry (maybe I'm not)- but IMO every page of the Bible is meant for ALL humanity because it glorifies God.

Of course you are right, but obviously you are ignoring the meaning of my statement. The commands given in some passages are for Christians and others are for unbelievers. 1 Cor 6:15 isnt talking about unbelievers when it says "you" for example.

I'll take it you are speaking partially tongue in cheek.

 

[HankD]

Of course you are right, but obviously you are ignoring the meaning of my statement. The commands given in some passages are for Christians and others are for unbelievers. 1 Cor 6:15 isnt talking about unbelievers when it says "you" for example.

I'll take it you are speaking partially tongue in cheek.

Yes sort of, but I wasn't even thinking of you RTH but a brother that has had to take a time out from BB.
He said that the scripture was given ONLY to God's covenant people.
Perhaps that is not why he had to go on vacation but I disagree with the statement he made.

I agree with you.

 

[37818]

1 John 1 is to unbelievers, Gnostics. The rest of the book is to believers.

Not any more or less than 1 John 5
The whole book was written to those professing and to believers. 1 John 1:9; is only available to the believer noting 1 John 2:1-2. Then note 1 John 5:9-12.

 

[Martin Marprelate]

1 John 1 is to unbelievers, Gnostics. The rest of the book is to believers.

I don't think this can be right, because in verses 6-10, John uses the pronoun 'we' showing that he is identifying himself with his readers.
It is better, I think, to regard 1 John 1:5-2:2 as a concise Gospel presentation and the rest of the book as application.

 

[Yeshua1]

I don't think this can be right, because in verses 6-10, John uses the pronoun 'we' showing that he is identifying himself with his readers.
It is better, I think, to regard 1 John 1:5-2:2 as a concise Gospel presentation and the rest of the book as application.

john was including himself as being part of the we that needs to confess their sins to God still!