Knowing God in Jesus Christ (1 John 1:1-4)

John opens First John in a world full of counterfeits, fakes, phonies, and imposters. The question beneath all the artificiality is simple: what is real, genuine, authentic, and true? John answers by rooting Christian assurance in the historical, objective reality of Jesus Christ. Right believing leads to right living, which leads to right loving: doctrine, practice, and love.

John writes as the last living apostle, an old pastor and the best friend of Jesus, passing the baton to the next generation. John does not offer a private spiritual experience, a trend, or a popular idea smashed into the Bible. John says, “We have heard,” “we have seen,” “we have looked upon,” and “we have touched.” The Word of Life was not a ghost, a myth, or an ethereal idea. Jesus, the eternal Creator, entered history in a real body.

Jesus was from the beginning, not as the first created thing but as the One through whom all things were created. Jesus is the eternal who became historical. John’s eyewitness account confronts the old Gnostic claim that matter is gross and that Jesus only appeared human. John heard Jesus teach, command storms, call names, cry from the cross, and rise from the grave. John saw the empty tomb, saw the risen Christ, and touched the physical, resurrected body of Jesus.

John’s testimony matters because Christianity stands on public, verifiable history. Objective truth does not bend around preferences, feelings, or whatever happens to be popular. John had nothing to gain from inventing the story. Scars, suffering, exile, and the deaths of the other apostles stood behind his witness. The Word of Life is true because the apostles encountered Him in the open.

John then gives the purpose of that truth: fellowship with the apostles, with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ. Eternal life is not merely a future destination. Eternal life is friendship, communion, intimacy, and connection with God now and forever. Forgiveness opens the door to friendship with God. Heaven is the place where that friendship is enjoyed without end.

Assurance grows from Jesus’ work, not from anxious efforts to become good enough. God’s love does not make Christians spiritually lazy. God’s love gives security, and security changes how a person lives. Jesus places acceptance before change: “Neither do I condemn you. Go, and from now on sin no more.” The Father rejoices over every faltering step of obedience, like a parent rejoicing over a toddler learning to walk.

John completes the argument with joy. Christian joy is not happy, clappy denial of pain. Jesus is the subterranean river beneath grief, loss, sickness, and a world falling apart. Joy overflows into praise and into sharing the friendship of God with lonely, confused, bitter, and hurting people.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. Jesus is no counterfeit Savior John grounds faith in what the apostles heard, saw, and touched. Jesus is not a private preference or a spiritual idea that can be reshaped around cultural trends. The eternal Son truly entered history, and that historical reality gives faith something solid to stand on. [57:37]
• 2. Assurance rests on Christ’s finished work Assurance cannot grow out of constantly measuring whether someone has done enough, felt enough, or changed enough. Jesus’ cross covers the failures that make sinners afraid to come near. The security of being loved produces obedience that fear and shame never can. [72:51]
• 3. Eternal life means friendship with God John presents salvation as more than escaping judgment or receiving heaven later. Fellowship with the Father and the Son is the good stuff: communion, closeness, and a deep knowing of God. Forgiveness matters because it brings sinners into that friendship. [69:57]
• 4. God rejoices over faltering obedience God does not treat every failure like proof that His children do not belong to Him. The Father receives imperfect, growing obedience with the joy of a parent watching a child take first steps. Grace does not minimize sin, but grace gives strength to rise and walk again. [75:15]
• 5. Joy runs beneath life’s deepest pain Christian joy is not dependent on circumstances becoming easy or pleasant. Jesus remains the foundation beneath loss, sickness, grief, and unanswered questions. The subterranean river of joy flows because Christ holds His people even when their world falls apart.
  
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Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [28:32] - Beginning First John
• [32:42] - A World of Counterfeits
• [35:19] - Knowing That You Know God
• [36:38] - John’s Pastoral, Circular Style
• [39:14] - Assurance and False Teaching
• [42:39] - The Struggle for Assurance
• [47:26] - The Word of Life From the Beginning
• [49:17] - Jesus the Eternal Creator
• [52:18] - Eyewitness Testimony of Jesus
• [57:37] - Heard, Seen, and Touched
• [60:08] - Christianity and Objective History
• [67:16] - Fellowship With God
• [70:43] - Security Produces Obedience
• [76:02] - Complete Joy in Christ
• [80:16] - Joy as a Subterranean River
• [81:23] - Preparing for the Lord’s Supper

Bible Reading

1 John 1:1–4
“That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life— the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us— that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. And we are writing these things so that our joy may be complete.”
[47:46] [59:59] [01:07:16] [01:15:51]

1 John 5:13
“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.”
[42:25] [01:11:17]

John 8:10–11
“Jesus stood up and said to her, ‘Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?’ She said, ‘No one, Lord.’ And Jesus said, ‘Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more.’”
[01:13:56]

Observation questions

1. In 1 John 1:1–3, what repeated words show that John’s message about Jesus rests on firsthand eyewitness testimony? [52:18]
2. What does John call Jesus in verses 1–2, and what does he say was “made manifest” to the apostles?
3. According to 1 John 1:3, what is the purpose of proclaiming what the apostles saw and heard? [01:07:16]
4. In John 8:10–11, what does Jesus say to the woman before He calls her to leave her sin? [01:14:20]

Interpretation questions

1. John describes Jesus as being “from the beginning,” yet also as One the apostles heard, saw, and touched. Why does it matter that Jesus is both eternal God and a real man who entered public history? [49:49]
2. John says that the apostles proclaimed Christ so that others could have fellowship with them, the Father, and the Son. How does this show that eternal life is more than simply going to heaven after death? [01:10:02]
3. If 1 John 5:13 says believers may know they have eternal life, what kinds of misplaced foundations can make a Christian’s assurance unstable—such as feelings, performance, or recent failures? [44:47]
4. Jesus tells the woman, “Neither do I condemn you,” and then, “sin no more.” How does this order protect believers from both excusing sin and trying to earn God’s acceptance through obedience? [01:14:26]

Application questions

1. When doubts about salvation show up, what do you usually look at first: Jesus’ finished work or your own spiritual performance this week? What would it look like to return to Christ’s work in that moment? [01:21:32]
2. Our world often treats truth as a personal preference. Where are you most tempted to reshape Jesus or the Bible around what is popular, comfortable, or culturally accepted?
3. Fellowship with God means real friendship, communion, and closeness with Him. What practices or patterns have recently helped you enjoy God as Father and friend? What has been getting in the way? [01:08:31]
4. Is there a particular sin, habit, or area of discouragement where you have been tempted to believe that failure means God is finished with you? How does the picture of a Father rejoicing over a child’s faltering steps give you hope to get up again? [01:15:15]
5. Jesus’ acceptance does not make sin small; it gives His people a reason and power to fight it. What is one concrete step of obedience you sense God inviting you to take this week? [01:14:06]
6. Christian joy can run like a subterranean river beneath grief, sickness, disappointment, and loss. What difficult circumstance is making joy feel distant right now, and how might Christ be a foundation beneath that pain? [01:20:16]
7. Who in your life may be lonely, confused, bitter, or hurting and needs to hear about the friendship of God? What could it look like to share Christ’s love with that person in a natural and caring way this week? [01:18:51]