1 John 1

I love a good mystery. And, OK, maybe I consider myself an amateur sleuth. I love to figure out “Who Dunnit?” before Sherlock Holmes, Father Brown, Poirot, and, on a good day, Jessica Fletcher can. And, sure, there’s usually some mayhem involved (in the words of my husband, “Does someone have to die in every show we watch?”) but the process of finding the bad guy is just so interesting to me – watching out for clues, listening to seemingly innocent conversations; figuring out who has a past that would indicate involvement in the crime. If it’s a good story, with lots of twists and turns, I’m completely enthralled.

One thing that’s the same in every mystery I watch is this: eyewitnesses carry the most weight. Regardless of what the crime is and what circumstantial evidence is present, the detectives always look for an eyewitness. If you’ve got even just one credible eyewitness, you’ve got a solid case. Yep, the eyewitness trumps everything.

The author of I, II, and III John, is none other than the apostle, John, or John, the Beloved, as he called himself. At this point, John is getting up in years, but still very active in ministry and concerned about some things going on in some of his churches. It seems that just 50 years or so after Jesus’ earthly ministry, some heretics are already on the scene. You’ve got the Gnostics, who didn’t believe that Jesus was truly God in the flesh, and the teachings of Cerinthus, which stated that Jesus wasn’t born to a virgin, but was a better-than-average, righteous person born to regular earthly parents. Wow, it doesn’t take long for the train to get off the rails, does it?

John opens his first epistle with an emphatic reminder that he, in fact, is an eyewitness to the life of Jesus Christ! Check out I John 1:2-3 NLT:

This one who is life itself was revealed to us, and we have seen Him. And now we testify and proclaim to you that He is the One who is eternal life. He was with the Father, and then He was revealed to us. We proclaim to you what we ourselves have actually seen and heard so that you may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son, Jesus Christ.

Now, if I had been the one talking to these heretics, it would’ve gone something like,

“Are you seriously gonna stand there right now and argue with me about Jesus? MY Jesus? Dude, I was THERE! I knew Him, I followed Him, I lived with Him, He taught me. I AM AN EYEWITNESS!”

John, as well as the other apostles, truly were eyewitnesses to who Jesus was - what He was about, what was important to Him, what He said, and what He did. And just as importantly, they understood that to be a true follower of Christ, a true Believer, you can’t change Jesus into what you think He should be or into the Jesus that makes sense to you. 

John goes on to say that, in order to stay on track with God, you must realize that God is light and this light was shared with us by Jesus. Living in the light means living in fellowship with God, through Jesus. You can’t have true fellowship with God if you don’t completely accept Jesus - the REAL Jesus, the One who has eyewitnesses to His life and teachings. 

And the consequence of living in the light? As John tells us, then and only then will we fully share in the joy that Jesus provides. And, who doesn’t need joy in this day and age? 

So, I don’t know about you, but the testimony of the eyewitnesses in the New Testament is enough for me. I may not completely understand all of it - how the Trinity works, how in the world a girl gets impregnated by the Holy Spirit; but what I do know and believe about Jesus – that He was fully God and fully man somehow, that He loves me with a love like no other and that He sacrificed His life so that I can be in right standing with God – is enough for me.

I John 1 Discussion Questions

1. Look up the Gnostics or Cerinthus and briefly explain why they were considered false teachers or heretics.

2. Why is it important to believe and accept the complete truth about Jesus?

3. True fellowship with God brings complete joy. What do you think of when you think of complete joy? 

4. Living in the light of God dispels darkness. Why is it better to live in the light, rather than darkness?