In this section of his letter, John is concerned with strengthening his Gentile Christian audience in their understanding of themselves as "brethren" of one another. This was a very important concern of the Apostles, as we see in Paul's Letter to the Galatians 3, 28: "There is no longer Jew or Greek, or slave or free, or male or female, for you are all one in Christ." He continues to speak of the brotherly love which follows from the fact that all those united in .Christ, and so the adopted children of the Father, are made brethren of one another.
1 JOHN CHAPTER 3
1. Behold what manner of charity the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called and should be the sons of God. Therefore the world knoweth not us, because it knew not him. While we call the Father, "Father" because he is the origin of the Son, he is also the "Father" of all those joined to Christ in baptism. In this way we become his "adopted" children. This verse would have had particular meaning for the gentile converts who could not have imagined becoming "sons" of Zeus or Apollo.
2. Dearly beloved, we are now the sons of God: and it hath not yet appeared what we shall be. We know that when he shall appear we shall be like to him: because we shall see him as he is. "What we shall be": that is, in heaven, with our bodies glorified. The question of "what we shall be" as a result of union with Christ must have been very pressing for these converts, as it should be for us. "We shall see him as he is": to see, then, is to become. If we are what we eat, in Holy Communion, then how much more we should be like what we see, the glorified Jesus.
3. And every one that hath this hope in him sanctifieth himself, as he also is holy. "Hope" is not wishful thinking, but a way of life in which the Christian lives in expectation of the Lord's coming.
4. Whosoever committeth sin committeth also iniquity. And sin is iniquity. 5. And you know that he appeared to take away our sins: and in him there is no sin. 6. Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not: and whosoever sinneth hath not seen him nor known him. "Sin" is not merely some ritual infraction, or a private failing, but wickedness enacted against God and man. "And in him there is no sin": only One who is without sin could take sin away by his own power. A person who "abides" in him through baptism and the faith and works that flow from baptism, does not sin. In this way, virtue is seen as a good in itself, and also as a sign of abiding in Christ. On the other hand, a person who commits sin shows that he "does not know" the Lord. "To know" can be understood in terms of understanding, believing, and also being placed in a relationship with the Lord. The sins of which John speaks are mortal sins, committed out of malice, the chief ones being idolatry, adultery, and willful murder.
7. Little children, let no man deceive you. He that doth justice is just, even as he is just. 8. He that committeth sin is of the devil: for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God appeared, that he might destroy the works of the devil. The just man performs just deeds. An unjust man performs unjust deeds. He cannot perform just deeds. An unjust person, living apart from God, may perform an act which benefits Christians or the community in general, as say a king who makes peace with another king, but he does this from ulterior motives (because he cannot continue to afford to make war) and not from love of God and neighbor.
9. Whosoever is born of God committeth not sin: for his seed abideth in him. And he cannot sin, because he is born of God. That is, he cannot sin except by the abuse of his free-will. This can also be understood in an absolute sense if we understand "born of God" to pertain to the saints raised to Heaven, who cannot sin.
10. In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil. Whosoever is not just is not of God, or he that loveth not his brother. John is encouraging the Christians to manifest their justice, but also to beware of those who might claim to be Christians, but whose works prove them otherwise. This incidentally is a warning about Gnostic Christians and other heretics.
11. For this is the declaration which you have heard from the beginning, that you should love one another. 12. Not as Cain, who was of the wicked one and killed his brother. And wherefore did he kill him? Because his own works were wicked: and his brother's just. John says "the" declaration, about which he has been writing throughout his letter. Here he names it explicitly. The early Gentile Christians must have found this radical, for nothing like it existed in the culture before, and had only the example of the Apostles and other missionaries to show them what this love looked like. "Wherefore did he kill him?" John supplies information not given in the original story in Genesis, where Cain seems to kill Abel out of jealousy for the Lord's accepting Abel's sacrifice and ignoring Cain's. Cain's offering of a sacrifice might seem to be a just act, but the rejection of it and the murder shows that it was not, and that Cain was an unjust man.
13. Wonder not, brethren, if the world hate you. "The world": the pagans, those attached to the things of the world, the authorities. John tells them not so wonder at the world's hatred. It seems a general theme in early Christian writings that the new Christians were amazed and confused by the fact that their compatriots, or even their fellow Jews, not only were not attracted to the the promise of eternal life by Jesus, but that they persecuted them, besides. The parable of the Sower and the Seed, found in three of the four Gospels, speaks to this.
14. We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not abideth in death. 15. Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer. And you know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in himself. John insists that "we know" this, and proof of it is that "we love the brethren" -- our fellow Christians, regardless of national origin, class, or occupation. John points out signs of God's love, of whether a person is just, of the fact of our passing from death to life in order to bolster the faith of these new Christians.
16. In this we have known the charity of God, because he hath laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. 17. He that hath the substance of this world and shall see his brother in need and shall shut up his heart from him: how doth the charity of God abide in him? 18. My little children, let us not love in word nor in tongue, but in deed and in truth. In the midst of daily life, with its toil, sufferings, preoccupations, demands, and petty annoyances, it is easy to forget or take for granted the love of God. John reminds us that God's love is so deep and personal that he sent his Son to die for us in order for us to be freed from sin. Our response to this is to be prepared "to lay down our lives for the brethren" -- that is to show them the fullness of our love for them, a love patterned after that of the Lord himself.
19. In this we know that we are of the truth and in his sight shall assure our hearts. 20. For if our heart reprehend us, God is greater than our heart and knoweth all things. 21. Dearly beloved, if our heart do not reprehend us, we have confidence towards God. "Assure our hearts": ease our consciences. If our consciences are stirred up as a result of our actions or inactions, God, who "knows all things" will surely know. If we are at peace with our consciences, then we may be confident that God approves of what we have done. Our conscience is "man's most secret core and his sanctuary. There he is alone with God, whose voice echoes in his depths" (from Gaudium et Spes 16).
22. And whatsoever we shall ask, we shall receive of him: because we keep his commandments and do those things which are pleasing in his sight. Jesus had said, "ask and you shall receive". Here, John notes that there are conditions for the granting and receiving of gifts from God. A person who asks for gifts while in a state of sin, or which would be used in sin, ask "wrongly", as St. James writes in his letter (James 4, 3). How can we expect to be heard, much less favorably answered, by one whom we have offended, and have shown no signs of regret for what we have done?
23. And this is his commandment: That we should believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, as he hath given commandment unto us. 24. And he that keepeth his commandments abideth in him, and he in him. And in this we know that he abideth in us by the Spirit which he hath given us. The laws of belief in Christ and in love for one another are so dependent upon each other that John speaks of them as a single Commandment. James 1, 22: But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.
1 JOHN CHAPTER 3
1. Behold what manner of charity the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called and should be the sons of God. Therefore the world knoweth not us, because it knew not him. While we call the Father, "Father" because he is the origin of the Son, he is also the "Father" of all those joined to Christ in baptism. In this way we become his "adopted" children. This verse would have had particular meaning for the gentile converts who could not have imagined becoming "sons" of Zeus or Apollo.
2. Dearly beloved, we are now the sons of God: and it hath not yet appeared what we shall be. We know that when he shall appear we shall be like to him: because we shall see him as he is. "What we shall be": that is, in heaven, with our bodies glorified. The question of "what we shall be" as a result of union with Christ must have been very pressing for these converts, as it should be for us. "We shall see him as he is": to see, then, is to become. If we are what we eat, in Holy Communion, then how much more we should be like what we see, the glorified Jesus.
3. And every one that hath this hope in him sanctifieth himself, as he also is holy. "Hope" is not wishful thinking, but a way of life in which the Christian lives in expectation of the Lord's coming.
4. Whosoever committeth sin committeth also iniquity. And sin is iniquity. 5. And you know that he appeared to take away our sins: and in him there is no sin. 6. Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not: and whosoever sinneth hath not seen him nor known him. "Sin" is not merely some ritual infraction, or a private failing, but wickedness enacted against God and man. "And in him there is no sin": only One who is without sin could take sin away by his own power. A person who "abides" in him through baptism and the faith and works that flow from baptism, does not sin. In this way, virtue is seen as a good in itself, and also as a sign of abiding in Christ. On the other hand, a person who commits sin shows that he "does not know" the Lord. "To know" can be understood in terms of understanding, believing, and also being placed in a relationship with the Lord. The sins of which John speaks are mortal sins, committed out of malice, the chief ones being idolatry, adultery, and willful murder.
7. Little children, let no man deceive you. He that doth justice is just, even as he is just. 8. He that committeth sin is of the devil: for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God appeared, that he might destroy the works of the devil. The just man performs just deeds. An unjust man performs unjust deeds. He cannot perform just deeds. An unjust person, living apart from God, may perform an act which benefits Christians or the community in general, as say a king who makes peace with another king, but he does this from ulterior motives (because he cannot continue to afford to make war) and not from love of God and neighbor.
9. Whosoever is born of God committeth not sin: for his seed abideth in him. And he cannot sin, because he is born of God. That is, he cannot sin except by the abuse of his free-will. This can also be understood in an absolute sense if we understand "born of God" to pertain to the saints raised to Heaven, who cannot sin.
10. In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil. Whosoever is not just is not of God, or he that loveth not his brother. John is encouraging the Christians to manifest their justice, but also to beware of those who might claim to be Christians, but whose works prove them otherwise. This incidentally is a warning about Gnostic Christians and other heretics.
11. For this is the declaration which you have heard from the beginning, that you should love one another. 12. Not as Cain, who was of the wicked one and killed his brother. And wherefore did he kill him? Because his own works were wicked: and his brother's just. John says "the" declaration, about which he has been writing throughout his letter. Here he names it explicitly. The early Gentile Christians must have found this radical, for nothing like it existed in the culture before, and had only the example of the Apostles and other missionaries to show them what this love looked like. "Wherefore did he kill him?" John supplies information not given in the original story in Genesis, where Cain seems to kill Abel out of jealousy for the Lord's accepting Abel's sacrifice and ignoring Cain's. Cain's offering of a sacrifice might seem to be a just act, but the rejection of it and the murder shows that it was not, and that Cain was an unjust man.
13. Wonder not, brethren, if the world hate you. "The world": the pagans, those attached to the things of the world, the authorities. John tells them not so wonder at the world's hatred. It seems a general theme in early Christian writings that the new Christians were amazed and confused by the fact that their compatriots, or even their fellow Jews, not only were not attracted to the the promise of eternal life by Jesus, but that they persecuted them, besides. The parable of the Sower and the Seed, found in three of the four Gospels, speaks to this.
14. We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not abideth in death. 15. Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer. And you know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in himself. John insists that "we know" this, and proof of it is that "we love the brethren" -- our fellow Christians, regardless of national origin, class, or occupation. John points out signs of God's love, of whether a person is just, of the fact of our passing from death to life in order to bolster the faith of these new Christians.
16. In this we have known the charity of God, because he hath laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. 17. He that hath the substance of this world and shall see his brother in need and shall shut up his heart from him: how doth the charity of God abide in him? 18. My little children, let us not love in word nor in tongue, but in deed and in truth. In the midst of daily life, with its toil, sufferings, preoccupations, demands, and petty annoyances, it is easy to forget or take for granted the love of God. John reminds us that God's love is so deep and personal that he sent his Son to die for us in order for us to be freed from sin. Our response to this is to be prepared "to lay down our lives for the brethren" -- that is to show them the fullness of our love for them, a love patterned after that of the Lord himself.
19. In this we know that we are of the truth and in his sight shall assure our hearts. 20. For if our heart reprehend us, God is greater than our heart and knoweth all things. 21. Dearly beloved, if our heart do not reprehend us, we have confidence towards God. "Assure our hearts": ease our consciences. If our consciences are stirred up as a result of our actions or inactions, God, who "knows all things" will surely know. If we are at peace with our consciences, then we may be confident that God approves of what we have done. Our conscience is "man's most secret core and his sanctuary. There he is alone with God, whose voice echoes in his depths" (from Gaudium et Spes 16).
22. And whatsoever we shall ask, we shall receive of him: because we keep his commandments and do those things which are pleasing in his sight. Jesus had said, "ask and you shall receive". Here, John notes that there are conditions for the granting and receiving of gifts from God. A person who asks for gifts while in a state of sin, or which would be used in sin, ask "wrongly", as St. James writes in his letter (James 4, 3). How can we expect to be heard, much less favorably answered, by one whom we have offended, and have shown no signs of regret for what we have done?
23. And this is his commandment: That we should believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, as he hath given commandment unto us. 24. And he that keepeth his commandments abideth in him, and he in him. And in this we know that he abideth in us by the Spirit which he hath given us. The laws of belief in Christ and in love for one another are so dependent upon each other that John speaks of them as a single Commandment. James 1, 22: But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.
