1 John 1- 2:11 NLT

Outline*

• Introduction: The Reality of the Incarnation (1:1-4)
• The Christian Life as Fellowship with the Father and the Son (1:5;2:28)
  • Ethical Tests of Fellowship (1:5;2:11)
    1. Moral likeness (1:5-7)
    2. Confession of sin (1:8;2:2)
    3. Obedience (2:3-6)
    4. Love for fellow believers (2:7-11)
  • Two Digressions (2:12-17)
  • Christological Test of Fellowship (2:18-28)
    1. Contrast: apostates versus believers (2:18-21)
    2. Person of Christ: the crux of the test (2:22-23)
    3. Persistent belief: key to continuing fellowship (2:24-28)
• The Christian Life as Divine Sonship (2:29;4:6)
  • Ethical Tests of Sonship (2:29;3:24)
    1. Righteousness (2:29;3:10a)
    2. Love (3:10b-24)
  • Christological Tests of Sonship (4:1-6)
• The Christian Life as an Integration of the Ethical and the Christological (4:7;5:12)
  • The Ethical Test: Love (4:7;5:5)
    1. The source of love (4:7-16)
    2. The fruit of love (4:17-19)
    3. The relationship of love for God and love for one's fellow Christian (4:20;5:1)
    4. Obedience: the evidence of love for God's children (5:2-5)
  • The Christological Test (5:6-12)
• Conclusion: Great Christian Certainties (5:13-21)

1 John 1 NLT

1 We proclaim to you the one who existed from the beginning, whom we have heard and seen. We saw him with our own eyes and touched him with our own hands. He is the Word of life. 

2 This one who is life itself was revealed to us, and we have seen him. And now we testify and proclaim to you that he is the one who is eternal life. He was with the Father, and then he was revealed to us. 

3 We proclaim to you what we ourselves have actually seen and heard so that you may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. 

4 We are writing these things so that you may fully share our joy. 

5 This is the message we heard from Jesus and now declare to you: God is light, and there is no darkness in him at all. 

6 So we are lying if we say we have fellowship with God but go on living in spiritual darkness; we are not practicing the truth. 

7But if we are living in the light, as God is in the light, then we have fellowship with each other, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from all sin. 

8 If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. 

9But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.

10 If we claim we have not sinned, we are calling God a liar and showing that his word has no place in our hearts.

1 John 2 NLT

1 My dear children, I am writing this to you so that you will not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate who pleads our case before the Father. He is Jesus Christ, the one who is truly righteous. 

2 He himself is the sacrifice that atones for our sins—and not only our sins but the sins of all the world. 

3 And we can be sure that we know him if we obey his commandments. 

4 If someone claims, “I know God,” but doesn’t obey God’s commandments, that person is a liar and is not living in the truth. 

5 But those who obey God’s word truly show how completely they love him. That is how we know we are living in him. 

6 Those who say they live in God should live their lives as Jesus did. 

7 Dear friends, I am not writing a new commandment for you; rather it is an old one you have had from the very beginning. This old commandment—to love one another—is the same message you heard before. 

8 Yet it is also new. Jesus lived the truth of this commandment, and you also are living it. For the darkness is disappearing, and the true light is already shining. 

9 If anyone claims, “I am living in the light,” but hates a fellow believer, that person is still living in darkness.

10 Anyone who loves a fellow believer is living in the light and does not cause others to stumble. 

11 But anyone who hates a fellow believer is still living and walking in darkness. Such a person does not know the way to go, having been blinded by the darkness. 

Summary of the Book of 1 John

Summary of the Book of 1 John

This summary of the book of 1 John provides information about the title, author(s), date of writing, chronology, theme, theology, outline, a brief overview, and the chapters of the Book of 1 John.

Author

The author is John son of Zebedee (see Mk 1:19-20) -- the apostle and the author of the Gospel of John and Revelation (see Introductions to both books: Author). He was a fisherman, one of Jesus' inner circle (together with James and Peter), and "the disciple whom Jesus loved" (Jn 13:23; see note there). He may have been a first cousin of Jesus (his mother may have been Salome, possibly a sister of Mary; cf. Mt 27:56; Mk 15:40 and note; 16:1; Jn 19:25 -- this view assumes that "his mother's sister" in Jn 19:25 refers to Salome; some further assume that "Mary the wife of Clopas" there stands in apposition to "his mother's sister," which would mean that this Mary and Salome were one and the same person).

Unlike most NT letters, 1 John does not tell us who its author is. The earliest identification of him comes from the church fathers: Irenaeus (c. a.d. 140-203), Clement of Alexandria (c. 150-215), Tertullian (c. 155-222) and Origen (c. 185-253) all designated the writer as the apostle John. As far as we know, no one else was suggested by the early church.

This traditional identification is confirmed by evidence in the letter itself:

1. The style of the Gospel of John is markedly similar to that of this letter. Both are written in simple Greek and use contrasting figures, such as light and darkness, life and death, truth and lies, love and hate.
2. Similar phrases and expressions, such as those found in the following passages, are striking: 
   
   

   1 John	Gospel of John
   1:1	1:1,14
   1:4	16:24
   1:6-7	3:19-21
   2:7	13:34-35
   3:8	8:44
   3:14	5:24
   4:6	8:47
   4:9	1:14,18; 3:16
   5:9	5:32,37
   5:12	3:36

3. The mention of eyewitness testimony (1:1-4) harmonizes with the fact that John was a follower of Christ from the earliest days of his ministry.
4. The authoritative manner that pervades the letter, seen in its commands (2:15,24,28; 4:1; 5:21), its firm assertions (2:6; 3:14; 4:12) and its pointed identification of error (1:6,8; 2:4,22) is what would be expected from an apostle.
5. The suggestions of advanced age (addressing his readers as "children,"2:1,28; 3:7) agree with early church tradition concerning John's age when he wrote the books known to be his.
6. The description of the heretics as antichrists (2:18), liars (2:22) and children of the devil (3:10) is consistent with Jesus' characterization of John as a son of thunder (Mk 3:17).
7. The indications of a close relationship with the Lord (1:1; 2:5-6,24,27-28) fit the descriptions of "the disciple whom Jesus loved" and the one who reclined "next to him" (Jn 13:23).

Date

The letter is difficult to date with precision, but factors such as (1) evidence from early Christian writers (Irenaeus and Clement of Alexandria), (2) the early form of Gnosticism reflected in the denunciations of the letter and (3) indications of the advanced age of John suggest the end of the first century. Since the author of 1 John seems to build on concepts and themes found in the fourth Gospel (1Jn 2:7-11), it is reasonable to date the letter somewhere between a.d. 85 and 95, after the writing of the Gospel, which may have been written c. 85 (see Introduction to John: Date).

Recipients

1Jn 2:12-14,19; 3:1; 5:13 make it clear that this letter was addressed to believers. But the letter itself does not indicate who they were or where they lived. The fact that it mentions no one by name suggests it was a circular letter sent to Christians in a number of places. Evidence from early Christian writers places the apostle John in Ephesus during most of his later years (c. a.d. 70-100). The earliest confirmed use of 1 John was in the Roman province of Asia (in modern Turkey), where Ephesus was located. Clement of Alexandria indicates that John ministered in the various churches scattered throughout that province. It may be assumed, therefore, that 1 John was sent to the churches of the province of Asia (see map No. 13 at the end of this study Bible).

Gnosticism

One of the most dangerous heresies of the first two centuries of the church was Gnosticism. Its central teaching was that spirit is entirely good and matter is entirely evil. From this unbiblical dualism flowed five important errors:

1. The human body, which is matter, is therefore evil. It is to be contrasted with God, who is wholly spirit and therefore good.
2. Salvation is the escape from the body, achieved not by faith in Christ but by special knowledge (the Greek word for "knowledge" is gnosis, hence Gnosticism).
3. Christ's true humanity was denied in two ways: (1) Some said that Christ only seemed to have a body, a view called Docetism, from the Greek dokeo ("to seem"), and (2) others said that the divine Christ joined the man Jesus at baptism and left him before he died, a view called Cerinthianism, after its most prominent spokesman, Cerinthus. This view is the background of much of 1 John (1:1; 2:22; 4:2-3 and notes.
4. Since the body was considered evil, it was to be treated harshly. This ascetic form of Gnosticism is the background of part of the letter to the Colossians (Col 2:21,23 and notes.
5. Paradoxically, this dualism also led to licentiousness. The reasoning was that, since matter -- and not the breaking of God's law (1Jn 3:4) -- was considered evil, breaking his law was of no moral consequence.

The Gnosticism addressed in the NT was an early form of the heresy, not the intricately developed system of the second and third centuries. In addition to that seen in Colossians and in John's letters, acquaintance with early Gnosticism is reflected in 1,2 Timothy, Titus, and 2 Peter and perhaps 1 Corinthians.

Occasion and Purpose

John's readers were confronted with an early form of Gnostic teaching of the Cerinthian variety (see Gnosticism above). This heresy was also libertine, throwing off all moral restraints.

Consequently, John wrote this letter with two basic purposes in mind: (1) to expose false teachers (2:26 and note) and (2) to give believers assurance of salvation (5:13and note). In keeping with his intention to combat Gnostic teachers, John specifically struck at their total lack of morality (3:8-10); and by giving eyewitness testimony to the incarnation, he sought to confirm his readers' belief in the incarnate Christ (1:3). Success in this would give the writer joy (1:4).

Outline*

• Introduction: The Reality of the Incarnation (1:1-4)
• The Christian Life as Fellowship with the Father and the Son (1:5;2:28)
  • Ethical Tests of Fellowship (1:5;2:11)
    1. Moral likeness (1:5-7)
    2. Confession of sin (1:8;2:2)
    3. Obedience (2:3-6)
    4. Love for fellow believers (2:7-11)
  • Two Digressions (2:12-17)
  • Christological Test of Fellowship (2:18-28)
    1. Contrast: apostates versus believers (2:18-21)
    2. Person of Christ: the crux of the test (2:22-23)
    3. Persistent belief: key to continuing fellowship (2:24-28)
• The Christian Life as Divine Sonship (2:29;4:6)
  • Ethical Tests of Sonship (2:29;3:24)
    1. Righteousness (2:29;3:10a)
    2. Love (3:10b-24)
  • Christological Tests of Sonship (4:1-6)
• The Christian Life as an Integration of the Ethical and the Christological (4:7;5:12)
  • The Ethical Test: Love (4:7;5:5)
    1. The source of love (4:7-16)
    2. The fruit of love (4:17-19)
    3. The relationship of love for God and love for one's fellow Christian (4:20;5:1)
    4. Obedience: the evidence of love for God's children (5:2-5)
  • The Christological Test (5:6-12)
• Conclusion: Great Christian Certainties (5:13-21)

* Copyright © 1985, the Moody Bible Institute of Chicago.

From the NIV Study Bible, Introductions to the Books of the Bible, 1 John
Copyright 2002 © Zondervan. All rights reserved. Used with permission.

2nd Peter Chapter 3

Outline

• Greetings (1:1-2)
• Exhortation to Growth in Christian Virtues (1:3-11)
  • The Divine Enablement (1:3-4)
  • The Call for Growth (1:5-7)
  • The Value of Such Growth (1:8-11)
• The Purpose and Authentication of Peter's Message (1:12-21)
  • His Aim in Writing (1:12-15)
  • The Basis of His Authority (1:16-21)
• Warning against False Teachers (ch. 2)
  • Their Coming Predicted (2:1-3a)
  • Their Judgment Assured (2:3b-9)
  • Their Characteristics Set Forth (2:10-22)
• The Fact of Christ's Return (3:1-16)
  • Peter's Purpose in Writing Restated (3:1-2)
  • The Coming of Scoffers (3:3-7)
  • The Certainty of Christ's Return (3:8-10)
  • Exhortations Based on the Fact of Christ's Return (3:11-16)
• Conclusion and Doxology (3:17-18)

2nd Peter Chapter 3

1 This is my second letter to you, dear friends, and in both of them I have tried to stimulate your wholesome thinking and refresh your memory. 

2 I want you to remember what the holy prophets said long ago and what our Lord and Savior commanded through your apostles. 

3 Most importantly, I want to remind you that in the last days scoffers will come, mocking the truth and following their own desires.

4 They will say, “What happened to the promise that Jesus is coming again? From before the times of our ancestors, everything has remained the same since the world was first created.” 

5 They deliberately forget that God made the heavens long ago by the word of his command, and he brought the earth out from the water and surrounded it with water. 

6 Then he used the water to destroy the ancient world with a mighty flood. 

7 And by the same word, the present heavens and earth have been stored up for fire. They are being kept for the day of judgment, when ungodly people will be destroyed. 

8 But you must not forget this one thing, dear friends: A day is like a thousand years to the Lord, and a thousand years is like a day. 

9 The Lord isn’t really being slow about his promise, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent. 

10But the day of the Lord will come as unexpectedly as a thief. Then the heavens will pass away with a terrible noise, and the very elements themselves will disappear in fire, and the earth and everything on it will be found to deserve judgment.

11 Since everything around us is going to be destroyed like this, what holy and godly lives you should live, 

12 looking forward to the day of God and hurrying it along. On that day, he will set the heavens on fire, and the elements will melt away in the flames. 

13 But we are looking forward to the new heavens and new earth he has promised, a world filled with God’s righteousness. 

14 And so, dear friends, while you are waiting for these things to happen, make every effort to be found living peaceful lives that are pure and blameless in his sight. 

15 And remember, our Lord’s patience gives people time to be saved. This is what our beloved brother Paul also wrote to you with the wisdom God gave him— 

16 speaking of these things in all of his letters. Some of his comments are hard to understand, and those who are ignorant and unstable have twisted his letters to mean something quite different, just as they do with other parts of Scripture. And this will result in their destruction. 

17 You already know these things, dear friends. So be on guard; then you will not be carried away by the errors of these wicked people and lose your own secure footing. 

18 Rather, you must grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. All glory to him, both now and forever! Amen.

2nd Peter Chapter 2

Outline

• Greetings (1:1-2)
• Exhortation to Growth in Christian Virtues (1:3-11)
  • The Divine Enablement (1:3-4)
  • The Call for Growth (1:5-7)
  • The Value of Such Growth (1:8-11)
• The Purpose and Authentication of Peter's Message (1:12-21)
  • His Aim in Writing (1:12-15)
  • The Basis of His Authority (1:16-21)
• Warning against False Teachers (ch. 2)
  • Their Coming Predicted (2:1-3a)
  • Their Judgment Assured (2:3b-9)
  • Their Characteristics Set Forth (2:10-22)
• The Fact of Christ's Return (3:1-16)
  • Peter's Purpose in Writing Restated (3:1-2)
  • The Coming of Scoffers (3:3-7)
  • The Certainty of Christ's Return (3:8-10)
  • Exhortations Based on the Fact of Christ's Return (3:11-16)
• Conclusion and Doxology (3:17-18)

2nd Peter Chapter 2

1 But there were also false prophets in Israel, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will cleverly teach destructive heresies and even deny the Master who bought them. In this way, they will bring sudden destruction on themselves. 

2 Many will follow their evil teaching and shameful immorality. And because of these teachers, the way of truth will be slandered. 

3 In their greed they will make up clever lies to get hold of your money. But God condemned them long ago, and their destruction will not be delayed. 

4 For God did not spare even the angels who sinned. He threw them into hell, in gloomy pits of darkness, where they are being held until the day of judgment. 

5 And God did not spare the ancient world—except for Noah and the seven others in his family. Noah warned the world of God’s righteous judgment. So God protected Noah when he destroyed the world of ungodly people with a vast flood. 

6Later, God condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah and turned them into heaps of ashes. He made them an example of what will happen to ungodly people. 

7 But God also rescued Lot out of Sodom because he was a righteous man who was sick of the shameful immorality of the wicked people around him. 

8 Yes, Lot was a righteous man who was tormented in his soul by the wickedness he saw and heard day after day. 

9 So you see, the Lord knows how to rescue godly people from their trials, even while keeping the wicked under punishment until the day of final judgment. 

10He is especially hard on those who follow their own twisted sexual desire, and who despise authority. These people are proud and arrogant, daring even to scoff at supernatural beings without so much as trembling. 

11 But the angels, who are far greater in power and strength, do not dare to bring from the Lord a charge of blasphemy against those supernatural beings. 

12 These false teachers are like unthinking animals, creatures of instinct, born to be caught and destroyed. They scoff at things they do not understand, and like animals, they will be destroyed. 

13 Their destruction is their reward for the harm they have done. They love to indulge in evil pleasures in broad daylight. They are a disgrace and a stain among you. They delight in deception even as they eat with you in your fellowship meals. 

14 They commit adultery with their eyes, and their desire for sin is never satisfied. They lure unstable people into sin, and they are well trained in greed. They live under God’s curse. 

15They have wandered off the right road and followed the footsteps of Balaam son of Beor, who loved to earn money by doing wrong. 

16 But Balaam was stopped from his mad course when his donkey rebuked him with a human voice.

17 These people are as useless as dried-up springs or as mist blown away by the wind. They are doomed to blackest darkness. 

18 They brag about themselves with empty, foolish boasting. With an appeal to twisted sexual desires, they lure back into sin those who have barely escaped from a lifestyle of deception. 

19 They promise freedom, but they themselves are slaves of sin and corruption. For you are a slave to whatever controls you. 

20 And when people escape from the wickedness of the world by knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and then get tangled up and enslaved by sin again, they are worse off than before. 

21 It would be better if they had never known the way to righteousness than to know it and then reject the command they were given to live a holy life. 

22 They prove the truth of this proverb: “A dog returns to its vomit.” And another says, “A washed pig returns to the mud.”