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1 JOHN

CHAPTERS

1 John 5:1-4

1 “Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father loves the child born of Him. By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and follow His commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments; and His commandments are not burdensome. For whoever has been born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that has overcome the world: our faith.”


Born of God…loves the Father: This encapsulates John’s arguments thus far. John has said multiple times that all who obey God’s commands (1 John 3:23) are born of God. These commands are to believe in Jesus and love fellow Christians. Those who believe in Jesus love the Father and consequently love His children. 

My commandments are not burdensome: We love God by obeying His commands to believe in Jesus and love fellow Christians (1 John 3:23). These are God’s only commands for Christians as we are not under the law. The Old Covenant law was burdensome because it could never be kept perfectly. But in the New Covenant, God has rigged the system. He has made the commandments centered on Christ. We love God by honoring the work of the Son and letting the Son live through us in love. This does not mean that there is not crossover between the Old and New Covenants. The crossover is the nature and character of God, not every specific law. Therefore, in the New Covenant, we express the character of God who lives within us as opposed to following external laws. This means that we will not desire to commit sins adultery or coveting because these laws are based on God’s eternal morality, not a morality that is contextual to Old Covenant law. 

Whoever has been born of God overcomes the world: Believers are on a certain trajectory that cannot be stopped. God will carry our salvation to completion. We can fail to experience the beauty of the New Covenant to some degree if we choose to live law-based lives. But this does not remove us from the path that we are on. Our faith has overcome the world.

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1 JOHN

CHAPTERS