1 John 1:1-4

1 John 1:1-4

This letter is almost an afterword for the Gospel of John. In the gospel he says, “This is what happened.” And in this letter he says, “This is how we live because of what happened.” John is writing in response to a false teaching known as Gnosticism. False teaching follows a predictable path. Hard on the heels of false teaching is wicked behavior, and wicked behavior always results in conflict and strife in the body of believers. The joy of verse 4 is only possible if there is truth and holiness.

The language of verses 1-4 is stretched to the limit to describe the marvel and certainty of the Incarnation. Jesus was not just some dude who lived on Earth for a few years and said some profound stuff. He is the Eternal Word, or Logos, or logic of God Himself and was during those years as physical and tangible as any of us. For Greeks, logos was that which caused the universe to happen and kept it going. He was a real person prior to any existence of matter, but He was tangible and touchable during the Incarnation. John is not relating a legend but something he saw and touched. The Creator of the universe was seen personally and was physically touched. This was no hearsay encounter. In verse 1, John says, “Our hands handled.” That word deserves a little attention. It was the word used to describe the way a blind man examined something. It carried the connotation of “to rub.” It was more than a casual “bumping into”. John may have taken Jesus's hands and felt the scars from the nails. But there is another implication of the word. Despite the blind man's careful digital examination, there was much he could not know. John uses this word as if to say, “In spite of all we do know, we only know a small part.”

John tells us that the eternal life that was Jesus is manifested in us. When we become a disciple, the eternal life begins. Certainly it is not complete, full, or finished, as it will be after His return. But it is a start. John points out that this eternal life is closely related to fellowship: the deep sharing of life that we have in relationship with the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit and with our fellow believers.

“Thank You Jesus that You came into our world. AMEN”