1 John 5:13-21

1 John 5:13-21

The conclusion of John's letter contains a complex and challenging passage to understand. He speaks of the power of prayer and its effectiveness. Then he talks about praying for brothers who “sin not unto death” and those who do actually “sin unto death” and not praying for them. Much has been written about what this means, and the theories are wide, varied, and, in some cases, confusing. As is always the case, context is most helpful. Throughout the letter, John has asserted that disciples both do not sin and have forgiveness for their sins. This is important to understand this phrase. For illustrations, consider a line across a blank page. From beginning to end, the line is straight with only two or three tiny wrinkles. Not perfectly straight, but we would still understand this as a straight line. Imagine another line. This one is made entirely of loops and jagged points. In no way would we call that a straight line. The first line is like the life of a disciple, it is a straight line or a life. It is not generally described as sinful but may  have occasional divergent points. The other life or line is marked only by its sin and clearly not the life of the disciple. A disciple living that life will eventually lose their love of God and enter into a state called apostasy (if they haven't gone there already). This condition is such that repentance is impossible because this individual doesn't want to repent.

Any sin can become the gateway to a pattern or life of sin in which the line or life becomes completely crooked and twisted. The sin unto death is not a specific vice or individual act but the life/line dominated by the repeated embracing of a sin. If a brother engages in the worship of a false god at the pagan temple and forms a pattern to the point they give their heart to that sin, it is pointless to pray for that individual. 

The best preventative is we need to engage in close relationships that are loving, prayerful, and faithful. In this discipleship and partnership we are close enough to other disciples that we will notice each other’s rare, wrong, and tragic diversions and then we pray for them. In this way we fulfill a specific aspect of our priesthood in Christ. Often we want to see how close we can come to sinful pleasures without actually sinning. That is foolhardy and dangerous. Rather, we need to be as far away from sin as possible, and that is helped with the partnership of fellow disciples. 

“Lord, by other disciples keep me on short accounts.  AMEN”