Verses 1-6
Main Point
John is teaching us to test the spiritual influence behind teachers and prophets, not merely whether they can answer a doctrinal question correctly. False prophets can preach messages that cause people to follow a spirit, but not the Holy Spirit.
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Verse 1 - "Test the spirits whether they are of God."
- The question is: What fruit does this spirit produce? Does it lead people into obedience to Christ?
- The Context of 1 John = 1 John 2:18-19
- John identifies antichrists by their actions: "They went out from us..."
- They denied Christ by abandoning the fellowship and apostolic teaching.
- 1 John 3:7-10 - John says God's children are revealed by practicing righteousness.
- The context leading into chapter 4 is obedience, not merely correct words.
- The First Test - What Does It Mean to "Acknowledge Christ Has Come in the Flesh"?
- Many treat this as a simple question: "Do you believe Jesus came in the flesh?" But Scripture teaches that acknowledgment is demonstrated by life.
- Titus 1:16 - "They profess to know God, but in works they deny Him."
- A person can verbally affirm Christ while practically denying Him.
- True acknowledgment is an ongoing pattern of obedience.
- Why "Come in the Flesh" Matters
- Jesus came as a real man and lived out righteousness in the flesh. Therefore, those who truly acknowledge Him will also pursue righteousness in their own lives.
- This connects directly to: 1 John 3:7 - "He who practices righteousness is righteous."
- A spirit that excuses sinful living does not truly acknowledge Christ's coming in the flesh.
- The Second Test
- 1 John 4:6 - "He who knows God hears us."
- Those who belong to God receive apostolic teaching (they listen to the New Testament doctrine.
- Those influenced by the spirit of error reject or distort it.
- Summary - We test spirits by asking:
- Do they produce obedience or disobedience? Or: Do they practice righteousness or sin?
- Do they receive teaching from the Word without distorting it?
- The spirit of truth produces obedient believers. The spirit of error produces people who profess Christ but deny Him by their lives.
- Verse 4. Whereas, we know that we are of God because we follow the Word, and because we are of God for following the Word, we have overcome the enemy. So, do not fear the enemy!
Verses 7-11
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God is love. Love is His nature; and this is how we know what love really is.
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Our ability to love comes from God loving us first, whereas God's love comes from Himself. He loved first by sending His Son while we were His enemies! So love is a state of being, not a reaction.
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Being love means showing love because it's who you are, not because you're reacting to love that was shown to you first. A reaction of love isn't love at all. True love comes from the nature and requires no prerequisite.
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Someone who has become love, like God is love, doesn't need kindness or favor to be shown to them first. They take the first step to love, and continue to love, even if they receive evil in return, because their love comes from their nature, not from a reactionary behavior.
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So, “Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another” (verse 11).
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Love others this way. Love because God is love, and don't mind how people are treating you. And never wait for someone to love you first. You take the first step, and you keep it going.
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Verses 12-16
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God isn't physically visible, but people will see Him in us if we love others as He has loved us. And through loving others perfectly, we truly become perfect (Matthew 5:44-45,48).
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Our faith is meant to be simple—all about love. Focus on believing in Jesus as the Son of God, and focus on love above all other qualities.
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Then you will be close to Christ, full of the Spirit, and growing the most.
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Verse 17
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Focus on living as Jesus lived in this world. This will allow you to perfectly walk in love, and the result will be that you will have boldness before Christ when He returns. You will know that you lived fully pleasing to Him.
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Many believe that it's not possible to walk like Jesus, but it's necessary if we're going to please God and be unashamed before Him. Don't lower your standards. Make the life of Jesus your goal!
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Verse 18
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As we grow in love for God, in one sense, fear dissipates.
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Knowing God's judgment, and its fear, as an unbeliever or new believer, helps bring you into obedience to God—it makes you want to repent (Proverbs 16:6, 2 Corinthians 5:10-11).
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But as you mature and grow in love for God, your concern should move away from a fear of what God can do to you, and onto a concern for harming your closeness with God (1 John 4:17-18 NLT, Psalm 51:9-11), along with a desire to love Him more.
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You should never want to sin because God turns away from sin (Habakkuk 1:13). Sinning would be harming your closeness with God and hindering love (James 4:8).
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To move on to maturity, we must move on from a mere fear of wrath (Hebrews 6:1-2). A perfected, mature believer is motivated by love, not fear.
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So, although we will always have a reverence for God, we must reach a place where love motivates us far more than fear, and so fear will dissipate.
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Verse 19
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Always remember that we are only able to love God because He loved us first. We can't make ourselves love God better on our own. It is by seeing and understanding the love that God has for us that our own love grows. You need to know Him more in order to love like Him.
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Always continue to seek Him in prayer and in the Word, and your revelation of Him will grow. As it grows, so will your ability to love Him back.
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Verses 20-21
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In your actions, to grow in love, remember that you cannot love the invisible God if you don't love visible humans.
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In your actions, focus on showing love and kindness to other people, and you will be loving God.
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A man who thinks he's “spiritual” but does not love natural man has deceived himself (James 1:26-27). Being close to God requires us to love His creation as He loves His creation.