Look to Christ: Our Confidence, Our Victory, Our Life
Brothers and Sisters, here we are in September already. I have decided to do a short study of 1 John 5, which is a great encouragement. John brings together many of the truths he has been teaching throughout his letter. He has spoken about walking in the light, confessing our sins, loving one another, obeying God's commands, testing the spirits, and knowing that we belong to Christ.
Loved ones, here in 1 John 5, we come to the wonderful encouragement John has been building toward throughout his letter. He reminds us in whom we stand and where our confidence rests. The Father sent His Son so that those who belong to Christ would have eternal life. John does not point us inward and tell us to find confidence in ourselves. He continually points us to Jesus Christ. Beloved, our hope does not rest in the strength of our faith, but in the strength and finished work of Jesus Christ.
We start with faith. 1 John 5:1 says, “Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father loves whoever has been born of him.” Notice the order. The person who believes in Christ has been born of God. We do not believe in Christ on our own and then give ourselves spiritual life. God gives life, and those whom He makes alive believe in Jesus Christ. This is regeneration, the new birth. We were spiritually dead and unable to make ourselves alive, but through the Holy Spirit, God gives us a new heart and brings us to faith in His Son.
However, that new birth does not make us perfect, but it changes the direction of our lives. We begin to love God, love His people, and desire to obey Him. Faith, love, and obedience belong together in the Christian life. They do not earn our salvation. They are evidence that God has graciously begun a work within us.
1 John 5:3 continues “For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome.” Brothers and Sisters, obedience does not save us. We obey because He has already saved us. God's commandments, is not a ladder to be climbed to reach heaven. Christ has already accomplished everything necessary for our salvation. We obey because the God who saved us has become precious to us. It is love that makes us obey.
Still, obedience is not easy, we battle the flesh, stumble, and sometimes become discouraged. Yet, God's commandments are the loving commands of our Heavenly Father. The Holy Spirit works within us, changing our desires and teaching us to say, “Lord, I love You want to please You.”
Then 1 John 5:4-5 speaks about overcoming the world, “For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world, our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?” Beloved, there is our victory. It is not found in our strength, and it is certainly not because we never fail. Our victory is found in Christ. The world tells us to live for ourselves and that we can possess all that really matters. Faith looks beyond this present world and clings to Jesus Christ.
We overcome because Christ has already overcome. We persevere because God preserves us. The same grace that saves us also sustains us to the end. We may be bruised and bent along the way. We may carry scars from terrible battles. We may stumble and have to get back up, but our Heavenly Father does not abandon His children. Loved ones, our confidence is not ultimately in how tightly we can hold onto Christ, but in the wonderful truth that Christ is holding onto us.
Now comes the real meat of this passage. 1 John 5:11-12 says, “And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.” It’s that simple. Eternal life is not found in our good works, church membership, baptism, religious traditions, or simply knowing Bible facts. Eternal life is found in a Person, and that Person is Jesus Christ. Whoever has the Son has life. That is the dividing line. You can have a fancy education, money, religion, and still not have life. The sinner who has come to Jesus Christ in repentance and faith possesses something this world could never give and can never take away. He has eternal life because he has Christ.
Then John tells us why he wrote this. 1 John 5:13 says, “I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life.” I love that little word know. John does not say that you might guess or hope you have done enough. He says know. Christian assurance does not rest upon how we feel when we wake up in the morning. Some mornings we feel strong in faith, and other mornings we can barely put one foot in front of the other. Our assurance rests upon Christ and the promises God has made concerning His Son.
Certainly, we should examine ourselves. Do we believe in the true Christ? Do we love our Brothers and Sisters? Do we desire to obey God's Word? Do we confess rather than cherish our sin? These things do not save us, but they are evidence that God has done a saving work within us. We are looking for the work of God's grace in a life changed by Christ.
It changes the way we pray. 1 John 5:14 “And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us.” Prayer is not about bending God's will to ours. As we grow in Christ, prayer increasingly brings our desires into agreement with God's will. What a comfort to know that our Heavenly Father hears us. Sometimes all we can pray is, “Lord, help me.” Yet we come through Jesus Christ, and our Father hears His children.
John also speaks about praying for Brothers and Sisters who fall into sin. There are difficult words in V-16 and 17 concerning “sin that leads to death,” but John's larger point is clear. Sin is serious. When we see another believer stumbling, our first response should not be gossip or condemnation. We ought to pray for them and desire their restoration, repentance, and strivings towards holiness.
As he ends his letter he reminds us that we know. 1 John 5:18 “We know that everyone who has been born of God does not keep on sinning, but he who was born of God protects him, and the evil one does not touch him.” John is not teaching sinless perfection. His point is that the Christian cannot comfortably sin as a way of life. Sin will still tempt, and sometimes trip us, but sin is no longer our master, Christ is.
Look at 1 John 5:20 “And we know 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, in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.” Beloved, that is where our assurance finally rests. Jesus Christ is the true God and eternal life. Christianity is not ultimately about trying harder to become a better person. Christianity is about knowing Jesus Christ, being united to Christ, resting in Christ, and living a changed life because we belong to Christ.
John closes with these words, 1 John 5:21 “Little children, keep yourselves from idols.” What a perfect ending. If Jesus Christ is the one true God and eternal life, why would we give our hearts to anything else? Money, family, work, politics, and even ministry can become idols when they begin to take the place of “Him who is true.”
So, Brothers and Sisters, what do we take away from 1 John 5? Look to Christ. Do not spend your Christian life staring at yourself, trying to find enough goodness to give yourself assurance. You will never find enough. Look to Jesus Christ. Your salvation rests upon His finished work.
Jesus Christ lived the righteous life we could never live. He willingly went to the cross and bore the judgment sinners deserve. He died in the place of His people. He was truly buried, and on the third day He bodily rose from the grave, victorious over sin, death, Satan, and the grave. Eternal life is in Him.
If you do not know Christ, John's message is plain: “Whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.” Turn from your sin and come to Jesus Christ. Do not trust your goodness, religion, or anything you have done. Trust in “Him who is true.”
For those who belong to Him, walk forward always forward in confidence, not in ourselves, but confidence in our Savior. God has given us eternal life, and that life is in His Son. We pray because our Father hears us. We fight sin because we have been born of God. We love because God first loved us. We persevere because God preserves us. We overcome because Christ has already won the victory.
Keep looking to Jesus Christ. When you are strong, look to Christ. When you are weak, look to Christ. When you stumble, look to Christ. When your heart is heavy and the road seems long, look to Christ. The Savior who called us, redeemed us, and gave us eternal life will faithfully bring His beloved children home. Brothers and Sisters, as always, stay Bold in the Lord and Strong in His Word.
