Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father loves whoever has been born of him. By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and obey his commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome. For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.

1 John 5:1-4

Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father loves whoever has been born of him. By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and obey his commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome. For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. 1 John 5:1-4

I continue my preparation for leading Sunday school at my church tomorrow, where our class will be looking at 1 John 5:1-4.  This morning I look back over my posts for the past several day where I have leaned on DesiringGod.com's Look at the Book video for this text and the Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary volume for 1-3 John.  My discussion guide is here.  Key excerpts:

• Concerned about false teachers and how they undermine the church, John seeks to help believers understand the marks of an authentic believer, including the right belief (who is Jesus)/doctrinal mark, right love/moral mark, and the right behavior/ethical or social mark.
• By implication, we must believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Promised Deliverer, the Great High Priest, the Prophet (who is the Truth); we must also see Jesus as King of Kings and love Him in such a way that we love what He loves and hate what He hates.
• Finally, we must treasure God so much that the world is exposed as unsatisfying vs God.

Know and love God, and love others, and experience joyful obedience!

Comment and discuss this post.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are a great God and worthy of all my worship and all the glory!  Thank You for the mercy You pour out for me every morning and how it never ceases!  I am not deserving of such blessings.  My sin is great and it continues...daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please continue to heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father loves whoever has been born of him....For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.

1 John 5:1-4

Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father loves whoever has been born of him....For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. 1 John 5:1,4

I continue my preparation for leading Sunday school at my church on 20OCT, where our class will be looking at 1 John 5:1-4.  Today, for my preparation, I lean on the Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary volume for 1-3 John.  The commentary outlines five divisions for 1 John 5:1-4:

1. We Believe That Jesus Is the Messiah (5:1).
   
2. We Have Been Born of God (5:1,4).
   
3. We Love the Father and His Family (5:1-2).
4. We Obey His Commands (5:2-3). 
5. We Have Overcome the World (5:4).

The commentary includes all of these divisions in chapter entitled The Birthmarks of the Children of God.  My focus today is first two divisions and the commentary for this text as well as the introduction to the commentary's chapter.

Excerpts from the introduction to the commentary's chapter:

• "In the letter of 1 John, the last living apostle has repeatedly drawn attention to three overarching birthmarks of the children of God. They are right belief (the doctrinal mark), right love (the moral mark), and right behavior (the ethical or social mark)."
• "Now in 1 John 5:1-5 he is going to draw out necessary implications of these three birthmarks and highlight six specific identifying evidences that a person is a child of God."
• "John wants true believers to be assured that they are children of God, and he is fully aware of the fact that there are spiritual deceivers in their midst who could raise questions and cast doubts (2:26). John wants believers to have a rock-solid assurance that they have been born again, that they belong to Jesus, and that they can enjoy right now the gift of eternal life (5:13)."
  

Excerpts from the first two divisions from the commentary:

We Believe That Jesus Is the Messiah (5:1):

• "We must believe “that Jesus is the Messiah.” We must believe—trust in the truth—that Jesus of Nazareth is the Messiah, the Christ, the hoped-for and promised deliverer. Such a confession is a birthmark that we have been born of God and that we are children of God." 
• Furthering the implications, the commentary shares that we must believe that Jesus is the Prophet, the Priest, and the King of the Church and as such He is the Anointed to reveal (as Prophet) the Way, the Truth, and the Life.  I must accept Him as the Priest who offered the sacrifice - Himself - so that I could be saved. I must also accept Him as King and His law and seek to not only submit to Him but also seek to "hate what He hates, and love what He loves? Do I live to praise Him? Do I, as a loyal subject, desire to see His kingdom come and His will done on earth as it is in Heaven?"
  

We Have Been Born of God (5:1,4):

• "In these verses John makes three observations about the new birth and the evidences related to this birthmark. First, those who have been born of God give witness concerning their new birth by confessing that Jesus is the Messiah (v.1). Second, those who have been born of God give witness concerning their new birth by loving Father God and His children (v.1). Third, those who have been born of God give witness concerning their new birth by continually overcoming the world (v.4)."
• "In this new birth God does not just give you a new name; He gives you a new nature. He gives you the very nature of God Himself as you enter into His family."
• "[Jesus] came to dramatically, personally, radically, and eternally transform us and make us new people. It is by the new birth that He accomplishes this glorious work. Therefore, you must be born again." 

Believe in Jesus and experience the blessings of being born again in His image!

Comment and discuss this post.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God who loves me and who is full of grace and love for - exercising incredible patience with me as You mold me into more of Your image.  Thank You Jesus!  I am not deserving of the love, grace and patience You pour out for me.  My sin is great and it continues...daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me. Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome.

1 John 5

For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome. 1 John 5:3

I continue my study of 1,2,3 John using the Christ-Centered Exposition commentary series volume for these books.  Today, my focus is a commentary-assisted review of 1 John 5:1-5. 

Per the commentary for this text:

Main idea: "True Christians will display evidence of being God’s children, including right beliefs about God and holy living before God."

Excerpts from the introduction:

• "Birthmarks" of being children of God include "right belief (the doctrinal mark), right love (the moral mark), and right behavior (the ethical or social mark)."
• The text today describes "six specific identifying evidences that a person is a child of God."
• John seeks to assure believers that they are "born again, that they belong to Jesus, and that they can enjoy right now the gift of eternal life (5:13)."
  

Divisions:

1. We Believe That Jesus Is the Messiah (5:1): All believers must confess that Jesus is the promised Messiah from scripture - this makes us children of God. He is the Prophet, Great High Priest (see Romans 8), and King of the Church.  "[I]f you can heartily and earnestly say, I accept Jesus Christ of Nazareth to be Prophet, Priest, and King to me because God has anointed Him to exercise those three offices....then...you have the faith of God’s elect[.]" 
   
2. We Have Been Born of God (5:1,4): "Being born of God and believing in Jesus are intertwined in the Bible and cannot be separated....In this new birth God does not just give you a new name; He gives you a new nature. He gives you the very nature of God Himself as you enter into His family.  Jesus did not come to die on a bloody cross to make us kinder and nicer persons. He came to dramatically, personally, radically, and eternally transform us and make us new people. It is by the new birth that He accomplishes this glorious work. Therefore, you must be born again."
   
3. We Love the Father and His Family (5:1-2): Nothing matters more than our love for God.  "The word “love” appears more than 30 times in 1 John 4:7–5:3. It occurs five times here in verses 1-3."  We must not only love God we must love what He loves and as such we must love our brothers and sisters in Christ.     
   
4. We Obey His Commands (5:2-3): "John is saying that in the new birth I receive a new nature. With this new nature comes new affections, passions, treasures, and values. Because I now love God instead of hating Him, I treasure and value Him above everyone and everything else. And because I treasure and value Him above everyone and everything else, I delight in obeying Him. Now I find His commands not to be a burden, but a blessing." See also Psalms 1:1-2, 35:27, 37:4, 40:8, 112:1, 119:14, 16, 24, 35, 47, 70, 77, 143, and 174.  "Loving God rightly, therefore, is not just external behavior and outward obedience. It is a longing to do His will from the heart, out of gospel gratitude for who He is and what He has done for us in Jesus."
   
5. We Have Overcome the World (5:4): "This is a fifth authenticating mark of the children of God." Our faith is noted as "another spiritual weapon that grants us victory over the weapons of the world in our spiritual battles[.]...Overcomers, via the new birth and faith in Christ, are no longer consumed by what they don’t have (lust of the flesh and of the eyes) or what they do have (pride in lifestyle; 2:16)."  
   
6. We Believe Jesus Is the Son of God (5:5).

Comment and discuss this post.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God who loves me and who is full of grace and compassion for me - thank You Jesus for defeating sin and death for me and for never leaving or forsaking me.  My sin is great and it continues...daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.