Part Three - The First Epistle of John

The first epistle of John is an exhortation to love God, our brothers, and Torah. John understood that the spirit of the law rested on the law of love. He explains to us that sin is transgression of God's law. He points out that learning to love one another is a process that is a witness to the world. John understood the Torah and that lawlessness was Torahlessness. This epistle is a great discourse on how God's people are to be obedient to God and His Torah.


Sin and the Child of God - 1 John 3.4-9
Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness. And you know that He was manifested to take away our sins, and in Him there is no sin. Whoever abides in Him does not sin. Whoever sins has neither seen Him nor known Him.

Little children, let no one deceive you. He who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous. He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil. Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God.

John says lawlessness is sin! Torahlessness is sin. How can you practice righteousness if you are lawless. This is so simple. The laws of God are not grievous. Yeshua said, “My yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Jesus also said, “I have not come to destroy the law, but to fulfill (establish) the law." This is how He destroyed the works of the devil. Jesus walked out the Torah and was sinless. He was showing us how we are to walk out God’s laws in the spirit.

Does looking at this in a Hebraic roots understanding help you to understand better? Do you see it. We are lawful people when we love God. We walk in His ways (Torah) and obey Him. This is not legalism. This is common sense. Jesus scolded the Sadducees and Pharisees for adding to the Torah. They were putting burdens on the people that God did not intend.
They were following traditions of men--changes they had made to the Torah in order to rule over the people. This is why they hated Jesus. He was tearing apart the false laws they had built around the Torah in order to protect their social positions and power. John was there--he saw it all!


The Imperative of Love - 1 John 3.1-15
In this the children of God and the children of the devil are manifest: Whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is he who does not love his brother. For this is the message that you heard from the beginning, that we should love one another, not as Cain who was of the wicked one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his works were evil and his brother’s righteous.

Do not marvel, my brethren, if the world hates you. We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love his brother abides in death. Whoever hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.

John clearly defines the children of Hasatan--those who do not practice righteousness (obey God’s Torah/Commands) or love their brother. We are to love one another. Cain was jealous that God respected Abel’s blood sacrifice and told him to try again. If Cain had obeyed God and brought a blood sacrifice all would have been well. Instead he slew his brother in a jealous unrepentant rage. His works were evil and he would not repent.

If we refuse to love our brother, and this may take a serious change in our heart attitude, we abide in death. John understood God’s law. If we hate our brother we are breaking God’s law of love. Love covers a multitude of sins. We may have difficulty loving our brother--but God will teach us how if we ask for His guidance.

Satan is out to steal, kill, and destroy. Our most powerful weapon is love of God toward our brother. This is what God’s Torah is based on. Without law there is death. The law was created to teach us how to live and this brings life--in the now and eternally. Law is life!


The Outworking of Love - 1 John 3.16-23By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us. And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. But whoever has this world’s goods, and sees his brother in need, and shuts up his heart from him, how does the love of God abide in him?

My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth. And by this we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before Him. For if our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and knows all things. Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence toward God. And whatever we ask we receive from Him, because we keep His commandments and do those things that are pleasing in His sight. And this is His commandment: that we should believe on the name of His Son Jesus Christ and love one another, as He gave us commandment.

John has experienced the love of Yeshua. He saw the Lord lay down His life for him. John gives us a simple law to obey--to help those in need if we have the means. John tells us to keep our hearts open to our brother's needs. He exhorts us to follow through in deeds and truth. Once again, John exhorts us to “keep His commandments” and do those things pleasing in His sight. In other words obey the laws of God. This is not difficult if we love God! This is not legalism. It is simple obedience. The church is so hung up on this! “Trust and obey for there’s no other way!” says that old time hymn.


Tomorrow: Part Four