Down an Unfamiliar Road

NEW TESTAMENT CONTEXTUAL COMMENTARY

By Dr. Robert R Seyda

FIRST EPISTLE OF JOHN

CHAPTER FOUR (Lesson CXVII) 07/22/22

^4:18         Where God’s love is, there is no fear because God’s perfect love takes it away. On the contrary, it is His punishment that makes a person afraid.

Daniel D. Whedon (1808-1885) notes that the Apostle John writes that where God’s agápē is, there is no fear because God’s perfect love takes away all anxiety. His punishment (“torment” – KJV) makes a person afraid. So, His agápē is unperfected in the one who is still apprehensive. The dread of penalty arising from conscious guilt shows us not to be perfect in love. Here, we have something of a subjective measure of what is sometimes called “Christian perfection.” When there exists within our hearts the consciousness of the total divine acceptance, so complete that we have no uneasiness at the thought of meeting Him at the judgment, we may trust that our love is perfected, maintaining this consciousness, and justified by the external life, is the highest aim of life.[1]

Charles John Vaughan (1816-1897), better known as Dean Vaughan of Llandaff Cathedral, Cardiff, Wales, says that fear has a place in the Gospel if we look for it. The object of dismay may be either a thing or a person.[2] For one thing, we become uneasy over something which, being possible, is also undesirable or dreadful. We do not become scared of that which is impossible; we are not distressed over that which is pleasant or neutral. Our Prayer Book, commenting in the Catechism upon the Lord’s Prayer, bids us to call three things evil, not pain, not sickness, not loss, not grief, not even natural death, but just these only: (1) sin and wickedness; (2) our ghostly enemy; (3) everlasting death. These three things then, are the proper objects of Gospel reverence.

Another thing, the fear of God as a Spirit, even the dread of God as a Person, is essential to one of a high order. To feel that there is One above me, a living Being, to Whom I am accountable if it be but as my Judge, to Whom I am something if it be but as a malefactor and a victim – something is elevating in the very conception. But this, if it stops here, is the religion of nature, of fallen nature, of the thing, made and corrupted crouching beneath the hand of its maker. Though this kind of fright is a higher thing than indifference, it is no part of the Gospel. From this kind of misgiving, the convinced person, if they yield themselves to the Anointed One’s teaching, will pass on into a higher.[3]

Charles Ellicott (1819-1904) mentions that at first, John’s name does not call up before us the fiery zeal that stirs some followers of the Anointed One to noble deeds, or the steadfast faith that worries others about meeting danger, or the calm endurance that lifts others above pain and trial. Mostly, John represents love in its softer aspect to our minds. We often forget that he was a Boanerges (son of thunder).[4] We picture him to ourselves as the tenderest of disciples and the most unselfish; at once, the readiest to sympathize with and comfort others in distress and the most quickly responsive to the affection shown by others for him.

Like John, when we think of the other Apostles, we tend not to look at all sides of their character. There are the necessary complements to courage and resolution. So often, when we see people being soft and gentle, like John, we fail to remember that there must be a stronger side to their characters; just as, on the other hand, when we see men who are cast in a sterner mold, we frequently forget that there may often be, indeed, that there must be warm springs of feeling within their hearts which we cannot see, to account for that strict or even rigid performance of duty which we can see. This is true not only of the Apostles but also of our fellow believers. So, when loving our brothers and sisters in the Anointed One, look at all sides before judging or complimenting, but never look when loving them.

Ellicott also concludes that the more perfect this disposition of sympathy becomes, the less anxiety can share in it. Even when directed to an earthly object, if it is pure and divine in its character, not even the thought of tradeoffs can disturb its composure. Where it is a well-grounded sympathy with a perfect being, its serenity is complete in proportion to its sincerity. When love is perfect, fear dwindles to nothing and is expelled. Love, seeking to be perfect, and finding doubt alongside it, will diligently seek out the cause of anxiety, perfect itself by getting rid of the reason, and thereby getting rid of apprehension. A persistent concern often implies grounds for alarm and anticipation of punishment (not “torment”).[5] Such a ground for terror would imply a proportionate imperfection of love.[6]

Dr. John Neville Figgis (1866-1919) says that this principle, that “perfect love drives out fear,” is a universal principle and belongs to all human beings. It is shown most completely in spiritual matters, but despair indeed has no place wherever love rules. Our ability to have love drives out suspicion and is measured in proportion to our love being steadfast and strong. It begins with trust and confidence in Him. This is true worship, even though we do not say a word or do any action because it is an acknowledgment of His goodness and kindness, an expression of the soul’s feeling of safety when under His care.

So, think how sweet this confidence in God is; how it sheds new light and a new glory over our exhausting duties in this world; how much more firmly we can plant our feet in difficult times of trial. This life is a very weary thing at times for us all. There is so much hardness in the world, so much meanness and dishonesty, so much suffering – and to express it all that in one word is difficult, so much sin – that even the most contented believer is tempted sometimes to murmur, to ask what good are they to the world, and what will face them when leaves.

Therefore, unless we have complete confidence and belief in God’s care for us and His power and wisdom in caring for us; unless we can always fall back, in times of trial, upon the sure belief that God has brought us into the world for our good and His glory; that He is guiding us through the world for the same interest and wise reasons, we cannot have complete peace of mind.

Nevertheless, it is amazing how few Christians know how little and how weakly they trust in God. Most believers take it for granted that they have a sure trust and confidence in Him that they never even ask themselves the question. But delay no longer. It’s too important. Look into the depth of your emotions and assess your feelings towards God. You should look to Him with trust and confidence to eliminate any fear for yourself – any panic arising from the past – and dim apprehensions for the future. Whether, like a happy child, your souls dwell in faith and trust on what little we know of God; whether it is so with you – or otherwise; whether you think of Him with discomfort; whether you turn away from the idea as unwelcome of one day being brought face to face with Him; whether like a thundercloud in a calm sky the thought of God and of a judgment to come flies by in your mind before you can stop it.

It would be very unwise to turn away from the question simply, says Nisbet. But, if you decline to question yourself, remember it is a matter that will not be continually put off. It is a question that waits for an answer – but not forever. On the contrary, the longer the time goes by, the more difficult it will be when you come to answer before the Judgement Seat of God, as you must do one day![7]

Brooke F. Westcott (1825-1901) says that the thought of boldness necessarily calls up its opposite, fear. There is natural uneasiness in humans, but love tends to expel it. dismay finds no place in love and cannot co-exist with perfect love, which occupies the “whole heart.” The Apostle John expressed these ideas generally and remain faithful, but they must be processed mentally from the context. Human love is the simple desire for the highest good of another or others and the expression of a spirit of self-surrender. Worry, therefore, – the shrinking from another – cannot be an essential element in love. Here the reader at once feels that the abstract principle has found a typical embodiment in the self-sacrifice of the Anointed One, towards the imitation of which Christians strive through His Spirit.[8]

William Lincoln (1825-1888) states that God’s agápē, if we are Christians at all, has gotten hold of us, has reached us; and then as He is, so are we, but we still do not fully accept that. There is no need to discuss the word perfection here. The word perfection is used invariably in the First and Final Covenants for a response of the soul to any revelation of God. Here in John’s epistle is the revelation of God’s agápē and, therefore, perfection, the complete comprehension of that characteristic of God. When we see that God loves us as much as He loves His Son Jesus the Anointed One, how can I be afraid of anything?[9]

Alexander Maclaren (1826-1910) says that the love which drives out any alarm is not some emotional situation towards an unknown God; nor is it the result of human willingness to put away from themselves their hatred and alienation and set themselves in a new position towards God and His mercy. On the contrary, it rises in the heart due to knowing and believing God’s love for us. As such, it is the conqueror of distress. Whatever comes our way, nothing can separate us from God’s agápē.[10] We are bound to Him by that everlasting loving kindness He drew us to Himself. The heart is freed from the burden of “a fearful time of waiting for the judgment”[11], and from the dark thought, God is mighty and righteous; therefore, God may strike! We forgot that “It was our suffering He took on Himself; He bore our pain.”[12]

Therefore, says Maclaren, we must remember that “perfect love drives out fear.” As inconsistent as love and apprehension are in themselves, in practice, they may be united because of love’s imperfection. Many professing Christian people live all their days with a burden of dread shivering on their shoulders and icy cold dismay in their hearts just because they are not close enough to the warm love of Jesus the Anointed One. They could have kept their hearts comfortable by remaining steadfast under the quickening influences of His agápē, to have shaken off their dread as a sick person does a minor headache. So be careful; a little love, like a gentle wind, doesn’t have strength enough to drive away thick, blinding fog. You must see that you only choose the sane, sound way of getting rid of irrational Fear[13] – (FALSE EVIDENCE ACCEPTED as REAL).

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[1] Whedon, Daniel D., Commentary of the Bible, op. cit., p. 276

[2] Cf. Proverbs 28:14

[3] Vaughan, Charles John: The Church Pulpit Commentary, op. cit., Fear and its Antidote, Vol. 12, (Inserted in a Revised Version on p. 303)

[4] Mark 3:17

[5] Cf. 1 John 3:19-21

[6] John Ellicott, Charles. Ellicott’s Bible Commentary for English Readers, pp. 16259, 16287

[7] Nisbet, James: The Church Pulpit Commentary, op. cit., Vol. 12, p. 303-304

[8] Westcott, Brooks F., The Epistles of St. John, op. cit., pp.159-160

[9] Lincoln, William: Lectures on the Epistles of St. John, op. cit., pp. 133-134

[10] Romans 8:38-39

[11] Hebrews 10:27

[12] Isaiah 53:4

[13] Maclaren, Alexander: The Biblical Illustrator, op. cit., 1 John 4, pp. 141-142, 148

NEW TESTAMENT CONTEXTUAL COMMENTARY

By Dr. Robert R Seyda

FIRST EPISTLE OF JOHN

CHAPTER FOUR (Lesson CXVII) 07/21/22

^4:18         Where God’s love is, there is no fear because God’s perfect love takes it away. On the contrary, it is His punishment that makes a person afraid.

This gives saints delight, says Owen, that the commandments of the Anointed One are not grievous to them. Jacob’s lengthy service was not burdensome to him because of His love for Rachel.[1] No saint’s duties should bring them grief because of their passion for the Anointed One. On the contrary, they do everything with delight and satisfaction. That’s why they yearn for the advantages of walking with God. It gives them joy in doing because there’s no fear in love, but perfect love drives out all anxiety.[2] When their soul undergoes training to be obedient to love, it expels that apprehension that incapacitates the spirit. When love and life work together, there is freedom, liberty, and a big heart. It creates a lot of distance between them and those weak and bandaged souls on the broad way to destruction[3] who do not know what it’s like to be adopted by God as His children.[4]

John Bunyan (1628-1688), author of Pilgrim’s Progress, writes that the God to whom we confess all, we will now more perfectly than ever see that He does love us and freed us from sin’s bondage, even before we confessed and acknowledged Him; and His children will have their soul so full of the ecstacies of life and glory that now they are in, that they will be swallowed up in that measure and manner, that neither dismay, nor guilt, nor confusion can come near them, or touch them. Their Divine Judge is their Savior, their Husband, and Head, who, though He will bring every one of them for all things to judgment, will keep them forever out of condemnation and anything that trend that way. “Perfect love drives out fear,”[5] even while we are here; much more than when we are with our Savior, our Jesus, who transitioned from death to life.[6]

Johann Bengel (1687-1752) says fear recoils from the thought of God and the day of judgment. The conditions of mankind vary. They may have neither despair nor love, dismay without love, dread with love, or love without suspicion. In love — Towards God. Perfect – To this reference made perfect in verse seventeen. Has torment — As being distrustful; imagining and resolving all things to be adverse and hostile to itself; and fleeing from and hating them. The terror of punishment – Distress about God includes punishment – the consciousness of deserving it.[7]

Thomas Pyle (1674-1756) says that we not only may safely believe but depend upon our reward with the utmost assurance, joy, and satisfaction. Therefore, to be hesitant, fearful, and unsure about the certainty of one’s future happiness is a sign either that a person does not have a “grateful apprehension” of the mercy, truth, and God’s agápē, through the Anointed One, or, is not truly conscious of having performed the duties of their calling.[8]

Leonard Howard (1699-1767) states that perfected love will lack nothing, nor will it be discouraged at the prospect of any danger in the service of His beloved Son. To fearful believers, this is a constant “rank and check”[9] and argues that their love for God is fragile and has not yet conquered this uneasy passion.[10] How many Christians, including yourself, are hesitant to advance in their faith because of the uncertainty of failing? This can only mean they depend on themselves to succeed rather than trusting God to help them grow and mature.

James Macknight (1721-1800) believes that the love which the Apostle John calls perfect is love for mankind valued according to God’s will and exercised regularly, as opportunities allow, in the same manner, God exercises His agápē for us. This agápē, though not perfect in its degree or measure, may be called perfect because it proceeds from a correct principle and routinely leads the person in whose heart it lives to do to their neighbor everything they have the power to do.[11]

John Brown of Haddington (1722-1787) says that our love for Him and each other is unaccompanied by anxiety. What fear might that be? Do we have misgivings about failure? Is our angst based on weakness so we cannot offer love to those around us, especially those who have offended us? No. Dismay is associated with punishment. The believer has been fully forgiven of sins. The one who knows the Anointed One in true fellowship lives for Him and does not need to be afraid of future punishment. The person who experiences panic “has not been perfected in love.” In other words, those who are scared of being punished don’t have a complete or mature relationship with their fellow believers. This includes believers who are not growing in the Anointed One. The growing, maturing believer can look forward to the future with joy rather than hesitation.

Brown then says that perfected love is accompanied by a holy relationship-love for Him and His children and being cautious of not offending either one. We know that we have passed from spiritual death to living in the Spirit who is in us. This kind of love leaves out distrust, despair, and total dismay at the thought of meeting Him as though He were an enemy, not a friend. So, the stronger and more assured our love is by His agápē for us, the more effective it will reject feeling like a scared servant terrified of Him.[12] What bothers many Christians is that while they are careful not to offend their heavenly Father, the world goes unpunished for their lack of reverence and law-breaking attitude regarding the morality and ethics of His Word. Don’t worry; you know that your future life will be far different than theirs.

Thomas Scott’s (1747-1821) commentary on Matthew’s Gospel mentions where Jesus said, “Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves.”[13] Scott also notes that the Apostle Paul calls them “transforming themselves” into the apostles of the Anointed One, as ministers of righteousness. These good words and fair speeches might deceive the hearts of the simple, which is unbelievable.[14] They learned this from the devil, that grand juggler, who can soon transform himself into an angel of light. In his First Epistle, the Apostle John tells us of many petty antichrists, even then gone out,[15] who professing the Anointed One’s name oppose His reality as both Son of God and son of man.[16]

Charles Simeon (1759-1836)  (1759-1836) tells us to guard against that kind of confidence founded on vain delusions. There are some who, from impulses, visions, or other delusive imaginations, develop confidence that they will never be questioned. But this is not the confidence of love. Love is jealous of itself and is glad to have its actings scrutinized with the utmost exactness. Love affects the honor of God and is infinitely more anxious that God be glorified than to conceal one’s defects. Getting rid of fear is not at all the object of love but the effect of it. Let the one goal of everyone’s soul be to glorify God; with the growth of love, will peace and joy be multiplied, both in time and eternity.[17]

Gottfried C. F. Lücke (1791-1855) says Christian brotherly love implies perfect keeping of the divine commandments,[18] that is when like the Anointed One’s love, full of confidence on the day of judgment, and conscious of its innocence, approaches God without fear.[19] But, in general, the Apostle John continues in verse eighteen that terror (of God) is incompatible with (true Christian) love. True love and terror exclude each other because love and cheerful confidence are inseparable. For the terror (of God in judgment) is grounded on the consciousness of merited punishment. Still, the terror of punishment annihilates the perfect and cheerful love which is full of confidence.

This proposition, says Lücke, is perfectly understood when we recall that John makes Christian brotherly love identical to loving God and considers the former as a necessary manifestation of the latter so that perfect brotherly love is, at the same time, perfect love to God. Saying that fear has torment does not mean, as some suppose, dismay itself is punished, but there is punishment in uneasiness; worry is combined with the consciousness of punishment.[20]

Albert Barnes (1798-1870) talks about the relationship between love with fear. He says love is not an affection that produces anxiety. There is no anxiousness in our love for a parent, a child, or a friend. When a person has perfect love for God, there would be no fright of anything – for what would they have to dread? They would have no dismay about death, for they would have nothing to dread beyond the grave. It is guilt that makes people apprehensive about what is to come, but those whose sins are pardoned and whose hearts are filled with God’s agápē have nothing to dread in this world or the world to come. The angels in heaven, who have always loved God and one another, have no uneasiness, for they have nothing to dread in the future; the redeemed at rest awaiting the resurrection, being protected from all danger, and filled with God’s agápē, have nothing to dread; and as far as that same love operates on earth, it delivers the soul now from all apprehension of what is to come.[21]

Richard Rothe (1799-1867) notes that when the Apostle John speaks about “fear,” he is not referring to the ordinary emotion of fright, anxiety, despair, dread, horror, or panic. Instead, he is talking about distress over eternal punishment that will come to all who do not accept Jesus as God’s Son and receive Him as their Lord and Savior. That’s why he used the Greek noun Phobos, which includes all these things. Therefore, none of these torments can survive in God’s perfected love. All believers should have another “concern” about God and His Word. It is expressed in the Greek noun eulabeia,[22] which means reverence or veneration. That should be in all our hearts for the One who loved us so much.[23]

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[1] Genesis 29:20

[2] 1 John 4:18

[3] Cf. Matthew 7:13-14

[4] Owen, John: On Communion with God, Ch. 10, p. 278

[5] 1 John 4:18

[6] Bunyan, John: Practical Works, Vol. 1, op. cit., p. 281

[7] Bengel, Johann: Critical English Testament, op. cit., p. 322

[8] Pyle, Thomas: Paraphrase, op. cit., p. 398

[9] In old English, Rank – is slang for something horrible, in bad taste, or smells unpleasant. Check – is understood as a reassessment of whether to go forward.

[10] Howard, Leonard: The Royal Bible, op. cit., loc. cit

[11] Macknight, James: Literal Paraphrase, op. cit., p. 95

[12] Brown, John of Haddington: Self-Interpreting Bible, op. cit., p. 1328

[13] Matthew 7:15

[14] 2 Corinthians 11:13; 16:18

[15] 1 John 4:1

[16] Scott, Thomas: Theological Works, op. cit., p. 230

[17] Simeon, Charles: Hor Homileticæ, op. cit., Discourse 2460, p. 512

[18] See 1 John 4:21

[19] Ibid. 3:19-20

[20] See Matthew 27:46; 2 Maccabees 4:38

[21] Barnes, Albert: Notes on the N.T., op. cit., p.4869

[22] See Hebrews 5:7; 12:28

[23] Rothe, Richard: The Expository Times, op. cit., June 1894, p. 422

NEW TESTAMENT CONTEXTUAL COMMENTARY

By Dr. Robert R Seyda

FIRST EPISTLE OF JOHN

CHAPTER FOUR (Lesson CXVI) 07/20/22

^4:18         Where God’s love is, there is no fear because God’s perfect love takes it away. On the contrary, it is His punishment that makes a person afraid.

In his epistle to the people of Thmuis, Phileas points to all the examples and signs and illustrious tokens given to us in the divine and holy Scriptures. “The blessed martyrs who lived with us did not hesitate but earnestly directed their soul’s eye to the God who is sovereign and willingly embraced the death their devotion cost them while remaining steadfast to their vocation. For they learned that our Lord Jesus the Anointed One endured mankind’s lost state on their behalf, that He might destroy all sin and furnish us with the provision needful for our entrance into eternal life.[1] For this reason, these anointed cross-bearing martyrs sought the more excellent gifts and endured every kind of pain and all the various devices of torture not merely once but continuously; and though the guards showed their fury against them with threatening words and violence, they would not swerve from their resolve, because perfect love drives out fear.”[2] [3]

Augustine (354-430 AD) agrees with the Apostle John’s words. So, if you do not want to be afraid, see whether you have that perfect love that throws anxiety out the door. But expelling apprehension before achieving such perfection could be a matter of pride puffing up, not love building up.[4]

Leo the Great (440-461 AD) thinks that the apostles wanted to ensure that no other so-called truth would creep in and false doctrines taught. So they recruited more students to join those already learning and increase the loyalty of that love that drives out all fear, not dreading the rage of persecutors.[5]

Gregory the Great (540-604) places his admonishment on those who are frightened of retribution and those who have contempt for it. He says that when it comes to those who worry about punishment and try to live as innocently and unprovocative as possible should be treated differently than those who have grown so hard in their wickedness that not even retaliation can correct their attitude. Those who fear revenge are to be told under no circumstances to desire temporal goods as being of any great importance, seeing evil people have them. Furthermore, they should not avoid present evils as intolerable, realizing that, for the most part, good people are afraid of retaliation.

Instead, Gregory says they are to be admonished to be terrified of punishment if they desire to be truly free from following their sinful tendencies. And rather than continue in this uneasiness of reprisals, grow up by the nurture of kindness and goodness and how great they are to the grace of love. For it is written that God’s perfect love drives out despair because it involves punishment.[6] It is also said that the Spirit we received is not a spirit that enslaves us again and causes us to fear. On the contrary, our Spirit makes us God’s chosen children. And with that Spirit, we cry out, “Abba, Father.”[7]

If, notes Gregory, the fear of punishment still restrains us from giving in to our law-breaking tendencies, that no true spirit of liberty possesses our soul. If we were not afraid of reprisals, we would doubtless sin. Therefore, the mind bound by the bondage of terror does not know the grace of liberty. For good should be loved for itself, not pursued because of the compulsion of penalties. Those who do not do what is good because they are not afraid of their conscience being tormented hope that such misgivings will go away so they can commit what is unlawful with boldness. As such, it appears clearer than daylight that the longing for innocence is lost before God in the eyes of those who have an evil desire to sin.[8]

Christian scholar Bede the Venerable (673-735 AD) offers this advice: “God’s agápē is such that it makes it possible to imitate God’s goodness to the point where we start to do good toward our enemies and even to love them. The fear that love casts out is spoken of in the psalm: ‘The reverence of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.’[9] The new convert is afraid that the strictness of the righteous Judge will condemn them, but love casts this kind of distress out and assures them on the day of judgment.”[10]

Bernard of Clairvaux (1090-1153) states that Love is never without anxiety; instead, it is godly reverence. Love is never without desire, but only lawful needs. Therefore, love perfects serving by infusing devotion; it perfects the law of wages by restraining greed. The burden of intolerable submissive fright becomes tolerable, and uneasiness remains pure and family-like. Though we read: “Perfect love drives out fear,” we understand that suffering is never absent from apprehension no matter the cause being put into effect. So, too, self-interest is restrained within boundaries when love interrupts, for then it rejects evil things altogether, prefers better things to average benefits, and cares for the good only on account of the better. In like manner, by God’s grace, a person will respect their body and everything about it for their soul’s well-being. They will love their soul for God’s sake and will love God on their behalf.[11]

John Calvin (1509-1564) looks at the Apostle John’s statement “there is no fear” and commends the excellence of this blessing by saying that we are continually pressured until God delivers us from misery and anguish by His agápē. The meaning is that as there is nothing more miserable than to be harassed by continual uneasiness, by knowing God’s agápē, we obtain the benefit of a peaceful calmness beyond the reach of despair. It now appears what a singular gift of God it is to be favored with His agápē. Moreover, from this doctrine, John will draw a message. But before he calls us to duty, he commends to us this gift of God, which by faith removes our doubt.

Calvin then explains how the Apostle John amplifies the greatness of the grace he is speaking about. Since it is a miserable condition to endure continual torments, there is nothing more to be wished for than to present ourselves before God with a quiet conscience and a calm mind. Some say that servants are afraid when their Master calls out loudly because they suspect it’s for punishment. Even if they don’t do their duty unless forced to do so does not matter. In the following clause, John gives this exposition: they are scared because they have not perfected their love by not willingly submitting to God’s will. That they would rather free themselves from any service does not harmonize with the context.[12] The Apostle reminds us that it is owing to unbelief when anyone fears, that is, has a disturbed mind. But when we know God’s agápē, it tranquilizes the heart.[13]

Then in another place, Calvin says there is nothing objectionable in John’s statement: “There is no fear in love; but perfect love expels dismay: because uneasiness has torment.”[14] There is a vast difference between suspicious unbelievers and believers. The wicked do not hesitate to offend God, provided they could do so with impunity, but knowing that He is armed with power for vengeance, they tremble with anxiety upon hearing of His anger. And they are fearful of His fury because they think it is impending over them, and every moment they expect it to fall on their heads. But believers, as has been said, dread the offense even more than the punishment. They are not alarmed by the dread of punishment, as if it were impending over them,[15] but are rendered more cautious of doing anything to provoke it.[16]

French theologian Theodore Beza (1519-1605) and others consider “love” as suggestive on account of the preceding “we.” But this is no particular criterion, and here so much the less, since “we, us, ourselves” has an emphatic reference to the subsequent personal pronoun “he.” And as no clear sentiment or context is produced, it appears reasonable to adhere to the interpretation of the Latin Vulgate of verse seventeen, where “fiduciam habeamus” (“might have confidence”) is subjunctive.[17] Then agápē is being put to as God’s agápē. And accordingly, in verse nineteen, we find a similar sense: “Nos ergo diligamus Deum, quoniam Deus prior dilexit nos” (“Therefore, let us love God, for God first loved us”). We find this same reading in the Syriac Version: “We will then love El Elyon because He has first loved us.”[18]

John Trapp (1601-1669) says that while love drives out doubt, being scared can be tormenting. As King Solomon said, “Fearing people is a dangerous trap, but trusting the Lord means safety.” Also, early church teacher, Tertullian, stated that “dread inspires hated.”[19] That hatred sets the soul on a rack,[20] as if it were, and leaves it in torment.[21]

John Owen (1616-1683) points out that John remembers hearing Jesus say, “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.”[22] Therefore, love is dependent upon obedience. That’s why Love is the foundation of all their duties. Our Savior transformed obedience into loving God and our neighbor;[23] on the same ground, Paul tells us, “That love is the fulfillment of the law.”[24] Where love is the motive for any duty, it is complete in the Anointed One. How often do the Psalms express with admiration this principle of walking with God! “Oh, how I love Your law! I meditate on it all day long,”[25] and, “Because I love your commands more than gold, more than pure gold.”[26]

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[1] Philippians 2:6-11

[2] 1 John 4:18

[3] Phileas: Fragments of his Epistle to the People of Thmuis

[4] Augustine; (Bray Ed.), James, 1-2 Peter, 1-3 John, Jude, op. cit., loc. cit., Sermons 348.1

[5] Leo the Great: Ibid., Sermons 76.5

[6] 1 John 4:18

[7] Romans 8:15; See also 2 Corinthians 3:17

[8] Gregory the Great: The Book of Pastoral Rule, Part 3, Ch. 13, p. 555

[9] Psalm 111:10

[10] Bede the Venerable, Ancient Christian Commentary, Vol. XI, Bray, G. (Ed.), James, 1-2 Peter, 1-3 John

[11] Bernard of Clairvaux: On Loving God, op. cit., Ch. 2 p. 9

[12] Calvin, John: Commentary on the Catholic Epistles, Footnote 88: Most commentators regard love here as that which is in us, and not God’s agápē as apprehended by faith. — Ed.

[13] Calvin, John: Commentary on the Catholic Epistles, op. cit., loc. cit.

[14] 1 John 4:18

[15] Ibid. Latin, “cervicibus suis impenderet,” – our necks are under persecution: we labor and have no rest,” and in French: “comme si l’enfer Leur etoit desia present pour Les englouter;” — indicates that they fear punishment as if hell were already present to engulf them.

[16] Ibid. John: Institutes, op. cit., pp. 600-601

[17] Subjunctive means it influences the verb, causing some doubt

[18] Cf. 1 John 5:10

[19] Tertullian: The Apology, translated by Wm. Reeve, published by Griffith Farran & Co., London, 1889 Edition published in 1900, p. 105

[20]A rack was a bedlike open frame suspended above the ground that was used as a torture device. The victim’s ankles and wrists were secured by ropes that passed around axles near the head and rack’s foot. When the axles were turned slowly by poles, the victim’s hips, knees, shoulders, and elbow joints would be dislocated. 

[21] Trapp, John: Commentary upon all books of New Testament (1647), op. cit., p. 478

[22] John 14:15

[23] Matthew 22:37-39

[24] Romans 13:10

[25] Psalm 119:97

[26] Ibid. 119:127

NEW TESTAMENT CONTEXTUAL COMMENTARY

By Dr. Robert R Seyda

FIRST EPISTLE OF JOHN

CHAPTER FOUR (Lesson CXV) 07/19/22

^4:18         Where God’s love is, there is no fear because God’s perfect love takes it away. On the contrary, it is His punishment that makes a person afraid.

On the human level, only total acceptance of another person will remove the anxiety of rejection. For example, in marriage, a love relationship free of apprehension is one where there is a total embrace commitment of one’s mate. Complete forgiveness is also necessary for a transparent relationship.[1] God desires that His children have confidence in His love. He does not want them to dread Him. Despair paralyzes our fellowship with God. God loves us with everlasting love, an unconditional love. Nothing constrains or cancels His love so we can feel confident in our union with Him. 

Therefore, perfected love in the believer is a love that resides in God’s agápē, in mutual friendship with the Lord. Love rejects dismay in its sphere of influence. Being scared is at variance with and contrary to God’s agápē. Worry has its payback. Uneasiness is an unsettling passion that tortures itself. Love drives out this terror. When God’s agápē develops in us, it expels panic caused by God’s immediate exclusion or retribution.  Unloving Christians experience self-induced misery because they know they must face sinful tendencies at the Judgment Seat of the Anointed One. The believer who loves other Christians has no apprehension about meeting the Lord.  

The Greek concept of “torment” is literally to cut short, punish, and correct.  Unfortunately, the translation “torment” (KJV) is too intense for the Greek noun kolasis. The misgivings here are from the believer’s life being at variance with God’s love and thus subject to corrective discipline. The one habitually characterized by submissive cowardice is the opposite of the one applying God’s love to their life so that they become mature in owning God’s love. The mere absence of distress proves nothing. Some people operate in bold defiance, hopeless ignorance, presumptuous unbelief, and inexcusable indifference. This is not agápē which displaces misgivings. 

So, we can say there is no doubt that people have a phobia about judgment. They are afraid to render account to God. A person that grows into the maturity of God’s agápē banishes being alarmed from their life. Anxiety paralyzed Adam in Genesis.[2] Apprehension is the soul’s first penalty.  It is the thing we suffer first when we step out of line with the Lord.  It is the awareness that we are not in unity with the Lord. The principle that love removes unnecessary concern is true on the human level. Children who are assured of their parents’ love learn not to dread them.  A wife who knows her husband loves her is not afraid of him.  Love banishes any misgivings. When you know God loves you, you are no longer afraid of God, the future, death, eternity, or judgment. However, there is uncertainty if you do not know God’s agápē.

We must recognize that suspicious doubt comes from our hearts, not God. Conviction is the watchman of our soul that warns us that we are in dangerous territory. It alerts us that our soul is not right with God. Love gives no warning signal to our soul because we know we are in fellowship with the Lord. Distress imprisons us in anxiety and worry. It limits our lives. Apprehension immobilizes some people. They will not fly in a plane because of uneasiness. Others will not venture into new business due to anxiety. Despair keeps them from living for God as well. They do not enter into abundant living because Satan imprisoned their soul in hopeless dismay. Remember, FEAR is: False Evidence Appearing Real.

The love that builds confidence[3] also gets rid of doubts. God’s love is friendly toward the believer because of the Anointed One. The believer’s love should be agreeable toward fellow Christians because of their family relationship to the Anointed One. Other Christians are worthy of being loved because of the Anointed One. If a person dreads the thought of judgment day, their life is not guided by God’s perfected agápē that expresses itself in concrete action.  In other words, they have no basis for assurance concerning their welfare when facing the Anointed One’s Judgment Seat. “Love” here also has the additional thought of “acceptance.”

So, again, dread is a feeling of anxiety caused by imagined danger. Horror can paralyze believers, making them incapable of doing God’s will. We conquer suspicion when we remember that God loves us.[4] That is the way people act who do not know the future. They don’t want to learn the outcome. They would rather remain in the dark. Uneasiness is a real thing, often based on unreal issues.[5]

Therefore, Love that accomplishes its purpose expels distress. It releases us from the fearfulness of bondage. It frees us to engage others. Hate is not necessarily the opposite of love. Faintheartedness can be the opposite of love. Love gives, but fright keeps. Love moves toward others, but alarm moves away. Anxiety is afraid of loss. Love is concerned with giving. Love does not tremble in dismay. Love does not live a defensive life, always avoiding and never risking. On the contrary, love always reaches out to others.   

COMMENTARY

A formerly enslaved Greek who became a Christian under the Apostle Paul’s ministry named Hermas (circa 50-150 AD)[6] reflects on what the Apostle John says here in verse eighteen about having reverence for God and not fearing the devil. To respect the Lord means not doing the devil’s bidding. For there are two kinds of respect: If you do not wish to do that which is evil, have respect for the Lord, and you will not do it; but, again, if you want to do that which is good, reverence the Lord, and you will do it. That’s because respect for the Lord is strong, great, and glorious. Reverence the Lord, and you will live for Him, and as many as respect and keep His commandments will live for God. Why did Solomon say that those who keep His commandments will live for God?[7] Although all creation revers the Lord, creation does not keep His commandments. Only those who respect the Lord and keep His commandments have God’s life, but there is no life in those who do not keep His commandments.[8]

Clement of Alexandria (150-216) comments on the Apostle John’s statement that perfect love drives away all fear by saying; thus, their love is perfected.[9] So, this agápē of which John speaks is not human, but divine love is known as agápē. You cannot develop it, nor buy it, or earn it. It is God’s gift to all who believe in His Son Jesus and are born again. This agápē cannot be misused because it does not function under such circumstances. But it can be abused when left untouched in a believer’s heart.

Tertullian (155-220 AD) uses the scorpion as a metaphor for heresy, and the cure for its sting is the Anointed One’s Gospel. So, says Tertullian, if they try to shame you for the name of the Anointed One, you should be happy; because glory and the Spirit of God rest on you: if only none of you suffer as a murderer, thief, evildoer, or as a busybody in other people’s matters; yet, as a Christian, do not be ashamed, but glorify God because of it.[10] John urges us to lay down our lives even for our brethren,[11] affirming that there is no fear in love: For perfect love drives out dread, since doubt has consequences; and they who are afraid are not perfecting their love.[12] What suspicion would it be better to understand than that which gives rise to denial? What love does to be perfect, but that which puts terror to flight and gives the courage to confess? What penalty will God appoint as the punishment for such uneasiness? Only that those who deny Him will pay by their soul’s everlasting torment in hell?[13]

Tertullian also tells us that the teaching of the apostles was indeed in everything according to the mind of God: they forgot and omitted nothing of the Gospel. Therefore, we are told to shine as sons of light[14] and not hide as sons of darkness. We are commanded to stand steadfast,[15] and certainly not to act an opposite part by fleeing; and to be assured, not acting like a fugitive or oppose the Gospel. He points out weapons, too, which persons who intend to run away would not require. And among these, he notes the shield,[16] that we may be able to extinguish the devil’s fiery darts when doubtless we resist him and sustain his assaults in their utmost force. Accordingly, John also teaches that we must lay down our lives for the brethren;[17] much more, then, we must do it for the Lord. This cannot be fulfilled by those who flee. Finally, mindful of his Revelation, in which he heard the doom of the fearful (and so) speaking from personal knowledge, he warns us that we must put away all apprehension. “There is no fear,” says he, “in love, but perfect love drives out distress.”[18] Worry has torment – the fiery lake, no doubt. Anguish will keep a believer from perfecting – namely, God’s agápē. Who will flee out of panic of persecution? Only those who have not loved.[19]

Furthermore, we find that historian Eusebius of Caesarea (260-339 AD) speaks of Phileas, the first bishop of Thmuis, a town in Lower Egypt, distinguished for his service to his country, his eminence in philosophical studies, and his proficiency in foreign literature and science. He tells us further that, along with another person of considerable importance named Philoromus, a noble Christian, a colonel, and the emperor’s treasurer-general in Alexandria, had his tribunal in Thmuis, where he sat everyday hearing and judging cases. But after his arrest, he too was brought to trial for his faith; he withstood the threats and insults of the judge. All the pleas of relatives and friends to compromise his Christian belief failed, and he was condemned to lose his head. Jerome also, in the passage already referred to, names him a true philosopher and, at the same time, a godly martyr; and states that on assuming the position of a bishop over his native district, he wrote an exquisite book in praise of the martyrs.

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[1] Ephesians 4:31-32

[2] Genesis 3:9-10

[3] 1 John 4:17

[4] Ibid. 4:16, 19

[5] See Joshua 1:9; Psalm 23:4; 27:1; 46:1-3; John 14:27; 2 Timothy 1:7

[6] Romans 16:14

[7] Ecclesiastes 12:13

[8] Shepherd of Hermas, Commandment Seven

[9] Clement of Alexandria, Fragments of Clemens Alexandrinus, Trans. William Wilson, The Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. 2, Comments on the First Epistle of John, p. 1165

[10] 1 Peter 4:12

[11] 1 John 3:16

[12] Ibid. 4:18

[13] Tertullian: Scorpiace (Antidote for the Scorpion’s Sting), Ch. 12

[14] 1 Thessalonians 5:5

[15] 1 Corinthians 15:58

[16] Ephesians 6:16

[17] 1 John 3:16

[18] Ibid. 4:18

[19] Tertullian: De Fuga in Persecutone, (Flight into Persecution), Translated by Sydney Thelwall, ⁋ 9

NEW TESTAMENT CONTEXTUAL COMMENTARY

By Dr. Robert R Seyda

FIRST EPISTLE OF JOHN

CHAPTER FOUR (Lesson CXIV) 07/18/22

^4:18         Where God’s love is, there is no fear because God’s perfect love drives it away. On the contrary, it is His punishment that makes a person afraid.

In the First Covenant, Job’s friend Eliphaz was not hesitant to express his view on the subject, “They say that an evil man suffers all his life. A cruel man suffers all his numbered years. Every noise scares him. His enemy will attack him when he thinks he is safe. An evil man has no hope of escaping the darkness. There is a sword somewhere waiting to kill him. So, he wanders from place to place, looking for food. But he knows a dark day is coming, which he brought on himself. So, he lives in fear, with worry and suffering threatening him like a king ready to attack.”[1]

A mistake Christians can make is consoling the sinner and telling them there is nothing to worry about.  God is kind and gracious; He wants them to repent, and everything will be fine. So, they need not hurry because God’s patience is long, and He has such compassion for them that no one can believe He will punish them in the end, and somehow, He’ll find a way to let them in. 

Psalmist Asaph did not see it that way in his Song of Praise for God’s understanding when he lost his way in trusting Him, “One day I went into Your sanctuary to meditate and thought about the future evil men face.  What a slippery path they are on; without God, they will be sent sliding over the cliff edge and down to their destruction instantly, ending all their happiness, and they must then face an eternity full of terror.”[2] This is not what God wants, and it will only happen if the sinner insists on going down his chosen path instead of God’s way.

By expanding on his concept in verse twelve of how love is made complete by the fact that God is in us, and we are in Him, John explains that when God dwells in us and we in Him, there is no room for apprehension because true love dissolves anxiety.  The question is not “what is fear,” but “what is feared.”  In this case, it refers to the coming day of judgment when sin will be punished.  If there is no sin, there will be no despair.  So how do we make sure there is no sin? by filling our hearts, minds, and souls with God’s influence. 

And how do we do that?  Let the Holy Spirit take charge of our conscience, heart, and mind and control our ethics, virtues, and morals.  And how do we allow the Holy Spirit to take charge?  By completely surrendering to the will and ways of the Father so that Jesus can become Lord of our lives.  I don’t mind telling anyone that sin was defeated in my life, and I am now under occupation forces, the forces of the Father, Son, and Spirit.  I have completely surrendered my all to Him.  Not waiting for a peace treaty, but for the rest of my life.

Furthermore, verse eighteen gives proof of verse seventeen. We have boldness at the Judgment Seat of the Anointed One because God brings His agápē full circle in us. John now examines love from an opposing viewpoint. Love accomplishes something new. The Christian does not look to the Judgment Seat of the Anointed One with anxiety because He understands God’s agápē. Not only does love look forward to meeting the Lord, but it presently drives out fear; love gives freedom from dismay.

Repulsion and love are as contrary to each other as oil and water. Panic and love can coexist, but perfect love and misgivings cannot exist together. Fright, to various degrees, exists in every believer’s life. It would not be the case if God’s perfect love gripped their soul. There is no room for apprehensiveness in God’s economy of love. We cannot simultaneously approach God in love and hide from Him in suspicion. We overcome hiding out of uneasiness about God’s displeasure by an understanding of His perfect love for us. Love is the most important manifestation of fellowship with the Lord. 

“Perfected love” is God’s agápē, not ours. Only God possesses perfect love because He IS love.[3] This is the ideal love we find in verse seventeen. However, God extends agápē to believers in fellowship. Since God’s agápē begins with Him, He’s the one who initiates the love affair with believers in fellowship. Christians in love with the Lord show the love that the Anointed One has for them to others. “Perfect” here does not mean “without flaws” but “completion.” The reference is to love that reaches a stage of accomplishment; it is mature love. A mature understanding of God’s agápē drives out fear. Acceptance of God’s perfect love does God’s work. It is love reaching for fulfillment. It is complete because it followed through to the production of loving. This agápē completed its intended course of reaching out rather than dying within the soul. 

Dread is a self-centered function. Misery has no home in love because love is oriented toward others.  Perfect love casts away, throws out, and ejects mistrust.  Love and misgivings are mutually exclusive.  Where there is one, the other is not.  Love always banishes uncertainty.  The presence of being unsure is an indication that love has not yet arrived. God’s agápē nourished in our soul indicates there can be no peaceful coexistence of love and confusion.

The perfected love in the believer is a love that resides in God’s agápē, in mutual fellowship with the Lord. In other words, this agápē cannot operate in us unless we work in union with God. That’s why love harbors no fear outside its sphere of influence. Skepticism is conflicting and contrary to God’s agápē. Hesitancy has its retribution. Being scared is an unsettling passion that tortures itself. Love drives out this distrust. When God’s agápē develops in us, it expels misgivings about God’s immediate prohibition or reprisal. Unloving Christians experience self-induced misery because they know they must face their sinful tendencies at the Judgment Seat of the Anointed One. The believer who loves other Christians has no nervousness about meeting the Lord.

The Greek concept of “torment” (kolasis) that John uses here in verse eighteen is literally “correct, punish, penalize.” The English word for “torment” is too strong for the Greek word. Webster’s Dictionary defines extreme pain, anguish, vexation, and infliction of torture as on a torture rack. The fear in verse twenty is a state in the believer’s life that is at variance with God’s agápē and thus subject to corrective discipline, unlike American prisoners of war in Japan and Vietnam. The one habitually characterized by submissive cowardice is the opposite of the one applying God’s agápē to their life so that they become mature in owning God’s agápē. The mere absence of fright proves nothing. Some people operate in bold defiance, irredeemable ignorance, presumptuous unbelief, and inexcusable indifference.  This is not divine love. Love displaces mistrust. 

The love that erects confidence[4] also expels fears. God’s agápē is amiable toward the believer because of the Anointed One.  The believer’s love should be amicable toward fellow Christians because of their filial relation to the Anointed One.  Other Christians are worthy of being loved because of the Anointed One. If a person dreads the thought of judgment day, their life remains unmarked by God’s perfected agápē that expresses itself in concrete action. In other words, he has no basis for assurance concerning his welfare when the Judgment Seat of the Anointed One comes. “Love” here also has the additional thought of “acceptance.” 

So, we can say that love implies attraction and repulsion; therefore, fear does not exist in love. Love here means the principle of love in general; it must not be limited to God’s love for us, our love for God, or our brothers and sisters. Love and anxiety only coexist where love is unperfected. Perfect love will exclude alarm as surely as complete union excludes all separation. Self-interested love worries: pure and unselfish love has no despair. Yet nothing but pure love will drive out dread. Otherwise, this text might become an excuse for taking the most unjustifiable liberties with Almighty God.

As such, ceasing to be uneasy without attaining perfect love is irreverent and presumptuous. Hence John is once more pointing out an ideal to which Christians must aspire but to which no one attains in this life. There is distress, as Bede the Venerable points out, which prepares the way for love, and which comes only to depart again when its work is done.[5] That’s because they are afraid of sin’s punishment. Such discipline should not be rendered with indefinite “suffering” or “torment.”[6] But “it has” does not mean “deserves” or “will receive sanctions,” but quite literally “has it.” ” It is the day of judgment and horror in reference to that day that is under consideration, and the panic of retribution is anticipated chastisement. Note the conjunction “but” introducing a contrary and then a contrast: “Terror is not in love, but perfect love does get rid of dread, because the apprehensiveness is tortuous, and he who is fainthearted has not been made perfect in love.”[7] The dread of suffering a penalty may deter someone from sinning, but it cannot lead them to righteousness. For that, we need either a sense of duty or a feeling of love.

So, we can see that verse eighteen offers proof of what the Apostle John says in verse seventeen. We have boldness at the Anointed One’s Judgment Seat of Christ because God completes His love in us.  John now looks at love from a negative viewpoint. Love accomplishes something now. The Christian does not look forward to the Judgment Seat of Christ with nervousness because He understands God’s love.  Not only does love look joyfully to meeting the Lord, but it presently casts out terror; love gives freedom from anxiety. Being alarmed and love are as contrary to each other as oil, water, and love can coexist, but perfect love and despair cannot coexist. Being scared, in varying degrees, exists in every believer’s life. This would not be the case if God’s perfect love gripped his soul. There is no room for cowardness in God’s economy of love.  We cannot simultaneously approach God in love and hide from Him in dismay.  We overcome the trembling misgivings about God by understanding His perfect love for us. Love is the most important manifestation of fellowship with the Lord. 

When Christians manifest a Spirit-filled life by loving other believers, they have no distress when anticipating the Judgment Seat of Christ.  He knows that the Spirit is the controlling influence over their life.  A believer, out of fellowship, torments their soul because they learn they are out of harmony with God. Anxiety intimidates their soul with thoughts of meeting the Lord. But, on the other hand, the Christian in fellowship anticipates meeting the Lord at the Rapture. Most people are scared of judgment. They are also alarmed about accountability to God. Non-Christians will face the Great White Throne judgment for rejecting the Anointed One as their Savior. That will be a dreadful day.[8]

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[1] Job 15:20-24

[2] Psalm 73:17-19

[3] 1 John 4:8

[4] 1 John 4:17

[5] Bede the Venerable: Gerald Bray, ed., James, 1-2 Peter, 1-3 John, Jude, Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture, op. cit., p. 228

[6] See Matthew 25:46; Ezekiel 43:11, Wisdom of Solomon 11:14; 2 Maccabees 4:38

[7] 1 John 4:18 – Young’s Literal Translation (YLT)

[8] Hebrews 9:27-28; 2:14

CYNICS may ask, why don’t people follow the advice of numerous proverbs and maxims of forethought available for centuries? Instead, they conclude that these are only used after some rightful venture has gone “horribly wrong.” When, for instance, a person gambles and loses all they have, including their house, why didn’t they remember the old Scottish proverb which declares “willful waste leads to woeful want?” But if the gambler knew this well-worn saying, what good might have been done. So, are the maxims of morality useless because people disregard them? For Christians and Jews, the Book of Proverbs is a great example. Yet, what about other religions and philosophers?

We know that Christianity was born among Jewish converts by an acclaimed Jewish Rabbi named Jesus of Nazareth, whose disciples believed Him to be the Messiah, the Son of God. So, it would not be surprising that many of our Lord’s teachings were based on the early Jewish writings of Moses, the Prophets, and Psalms. Later we see these same truths in the Jewish commentary called the Talmud. So, here is one to consider:

Rabbi Shimon ben Gamliel (10 BC – 70 AD) said, “All my life I have been raised among the wise, and I have found nothing better for the body than silence. The essential thing is not studying but deed. And one who speaks excessively brings on sin.”[1]

This Rabbi who lived during the time of Jesus knew what King Solomon said, “A person who talks too much gets into trouble. A wise person learns to be quiet.”[2] Rabbi Gamliel may also have heard what Jesus said to the Pharisees, “Beware you, Pharisees, and you other religious leaders – hypocrites! For you tithe down to the last mint leaf in your garden but ignore the important things – justice, mercy, and faith. Yes, you should tithe, but you shouldn’t leave the more important things undone.”[3]

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[1] (Pirke Avot) Ethics of the Fathers 1:17

[2] Proverbs 10:19 – Easy to Read Version (ERV)

[3] Matthew 23:23 – Living Bible (LB)

In times of trial, difficulty, and suffering, sincere Christians will not hesitate to lay a comforting hand on the shoulder of those they love and assure them that God will never give them more than they can handle. It is meant to be a pep talk. But what they’re really saying at that moment is: “You can do this!” or “You’ve got this!” or “Just keep on keeping on!” So, while offering some encouragement to someone going through a hard time is a good and noble thing to do, if you have ever used the phrase “God will never give you more than you can handle” to offer that encouragement, take a moment to say a quick prayer of better understanding!

The saying that God will never give you more than you can handle isn’t from the Bible. And yet, its origin is in the Bible. The Apostle Paul wrote, “The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, He will show you a way out so you can endure.”[1]

Careful readers of scripture will note that Paul IS NOT saying we can handle every situation and circumstance thrown our way. Instead, he says there are no overwhelming trials or traps designed to prove our faith in Him and that God will allow without providing a way for us to overcome it victoriously. However, Paul doesn’t go any further than that. When we take Paul’s words about trials and traps and apply them to suffering more generally, we arrive at the idea that “God will never give you more than you can handle.” Although well-intended, this is a misreading of the Bible’s teaching. The Message Translation puts it this way, “ No test or trap set in your way is beyond the course of what others have had to face. All you need to remember is that God will never let you down; He’ll never let you be pushed past your limit; He’ll always be there to help you come through it.”

Just imagine this scene adapted from Genesis: God looks down at the world and is upset by humankind’s wickedness. So, God determines the best course of action is to start over. Noah and his family are deemed righteous by God and so are given instructions to build an ark. They do just as God commands. After Noah assembles all those animals he’s famously pictured with, the heavens open, and the rain starts pouring down. Finally, Noah and his family enter the ark, closing the door behind them. The waters rise and rise and rise.

So, let us imagine, several days into their voyage, Noah looks over the edge of the ark, where he sees a lone man standing on what used to be a mountaintop. At this point, however, all but the man’s head are submerged in water. The man cries out for Noah to save him. Noah replies, “Don’t worry, God will never give you more than you can handle.” Then the man disappears beneath the flood waters. While this is an imaginary example, the truth is that the Bible is full of stories about people who are faced with circumstances that they cannot handle and, in some cases, are overcome by them.

The Bible brings together two seemingly incompatible ideas: God’s unwavering love for us that works all things for good on the one hand.[2] And on the other hand, bad things do happen to us – sometimes beyond our capacity to deal with them. This tension is perhaps nowhere better illustrated than in the inspiring words in the book of Romans, in which the Apostle Paul boldly proclaims that there is nothing that can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus while at the same time pointing to circumstances that will cause us to question that love.[3]

In some cases, when we experience hardship, we can see how some good came out of it. Perhaps we were prideful. We were vain. We were hard of heart. We had deluded ourselves into believing we could do it all on our own. And now, on the other side of that hardship, that pride, that hardness of heart, that pretense of self-reliance has been stripped away. Maybe we found a reservoir of strength within us that we didn’t know was there. But most of the time, we have no idea how any good is brought about through the hardship and suffering we endure. We experience trauma, get a frightful diagnosis, our relationships crumble, and people we love die. And we cannot see, imagine, or even begin to fathom how any good can come of it.

In those moments, we are like the disciples, standing at the foot of the cross looking up at the Savior’s dead and bloody body, unable to believe that Jesus could possibly recover from this situation. But the courageous faith of the Bible is a faith that says if God can redeem us through Jesus’s death on the cross, if God pulls life and light and salvation from an instrument of torture and execution, then there is no situation or circumstance on earth that God cannot redeem even if we can’t see how.

And the beautiful thing about that kind of faith is that it sets us free. It frees us so that when we see a loved one going through a hard time, we don’t have to pretend to see a silver cloud in their suffering. We don’t have to pretend we have God’s view of the situation and assure them they can fully handle the burden pressing them down. Quite frankly, it’s possible they can’t. Rather, a trusting faith like this frees us just to say, “Wow, that must be hard. I can’t imagine what you’re going through. But can I sit with you in that hard place? Can I help pray you through this? May I accompany you through this dark valley until we reach the other side together?” Not just me, but also Jesus will walk with us. May it be so!

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[1] 1 Corinthians 10:13 – New Living Translation (NLT)

[2] Romans 8:28

[3] Ibid. 8:31-39

NEW TESTAMENT CONTEXTUAL COMMENTARY

By Dr. Robert R Seyda

FIRST EPISTLE OF JOHN

CHAPTER FOUR (Lesson CXIII) 07/15/22

^4:17                If God’s agápē is made perfect in us, we can be without fear on the day when God judges the world.  We will be without fear because we are like Jesus in this world.

Ian Howard Marshall (1934-215) feels that the NIV translation of the Greek preposition en toutō (Translated as “in, by, with”), and (“pronouns: “thing” or “one”), with “This is how,” as does the NASB’s “By this” conceals “Herein,” which indicates how love is made complete among us. I agree with Marshall when you stop and think that the Apostle John might be answering a question on “How is love made perfect among us?” Here in verse seventeen, it is likely that the love of which John is speaking is the relationship that involves both God’s agápē to us and our love for Him. This experience of mutual love is fully realized when we can have confidence on the day of judgment. John will explain more fully how this is the case in the next verse concerning the Judge involved and our relationship with Him. But before reaching this principle, he comments that this confidence is possible because “in this world, we conduct ourselves as He did.”[1]

John Painter (1935) asks, what is meant by “love has been perfected?” From the comparative statement in verse twelve, it is clear that “His (God’s) love” is in view. The discussion has been to identify God as the source and example of love, so this is a natural conclusion to draw. But how can God’s love be perfected? The Greek verb telos denotes the “end” or “goal.” Therefore, it indicates the conditions under which God’s love reaches its goal. John’s emphasis has been on love, which originates with God, expressed by God sending His Son to be the world’s Savior and propitiation of our sins so that we may be spiritually alive through Him. Furthermore, we express the life He gave us by loving one another. Thus, God’s love reaches its goal when that love is known/recognized and believed/accepted.[2] Therefore, belief is the basis for love because operating in God’s love involves loving others.[3]

For Muncia Walls (1937), the boldness given to God’s children is the incredible awareness that wages of sin have been paid through the blood of Jesus the Anointed One. Because of the new birth, we can stand before God cleansed and justified by His Spirit, knowing that being a child of God gives a comforting feeling of blessed assurance that it is well with their soul. So, if they are called before the Judge at any time, they would stand there justified because of the witness who lives within their heart.[4]

Michael Eaton (1942-2017) is convinced that verse seventeen should be joined with the first part of verse eighteen to read this way: “And as we live in God, our love grows to perfection, so we will not be afraid on Judgment Day, but we can face Him with confidence because we live as Jesus did in this world. Such love has no fear because perfect love expels all fear.” Perfected love throws without fear because fear holds on to punishment, and those who continue to fear are not perfected in love. Why are we unloving? John says it is because we fear ourselves, our security, our pleasure, our reputation, and our future. We are unloving because we are defensive and self-protective. We are afraid of discipline from God now and retribution later on Judgment Day. We fear abuse from other people that they will reject us, oppose us, or criticize us. The root of being unloving is always fear of retribution.[5] While this may be true of our critics and persecutors, it is not true of God. He who is our Savior is also our Judge.

William Loader (1944) notes that verse seventeen’s pronoun “He” means the Anointed One. But how are we like Him in this world? To begin with, the Anointed One is not physically in this world; He is exalted in the heavenly world. Yet we share with Him a typical father-child relationship. Since the Anointed One is God’s Son, we are God’s sons and daughters. Why does this give us confidence in facing future judgment? Because we are in Him, we, too, share the same love God the Father shows to the Son. Even though the Anointed One is in the heavenly world, we are in this world. Possibly John is also thinking of the protection in such a relationship with our heavenly Father, enabling the believer not to fall and so be found lacking in future judgment.[6]

To illustrate this from everyday life, imagine that the Anointed One gave His bride – the church – an engagement ring, but when the bride shows up for the marriage supper of the Lamb,[7] the ring is missing. What else can she offer to show that she is His true bride? It can be illustrated by an ancient Anglo-Saxon custom where the future groom gives his finance engagement gifts, also known as a dowry. The complete dowry had to be returned if she was found unfaithful. It reminds us of the custom back in Jesus’ day. A groom would give his intended bride love gifts, including a necklace made of gold coins while he was away, earning his wealth to support her and their expected children. When he returned, if she still had the necklace just like he gave it to her, he took that as a sign of her faithfulness. Likewise, the lady in Jesus’ parable of the lost coin[8] knew that if she did not find it when her fiancée returned, he would take away those love gifts and give them to someone else. That’s why she was so frantically looking for that lost coin[9] and why she rejoiced with her friends when she found it. So, what gifts did Jesus give us before He went away to prepare a place for us so that when He returned, He would take us to live with Him?[10] It was simply His agápē in the form of the fruit of the spirit.

Duncan Heaster (1967) tells us that the connection here connects with what Jesus taught[12] that through the gift of the Holy Comforter, we could be with the Lord “that you also may be where I am,” in His relationship with the Father. And this is in effect by the gift of the Comforter.[13] As the Apostle John explained in verse twelve, the work of the Spirit is too perfect or develops our characters towards an ever-deeper love, approximating progressively closer to the love of the Lord for us on the cross. By the end of our lives, we will have reached the maturity of love intended for us, and thereby we will be confident in the day of judgment. We shall know that we have the spirit of the Anointed One, which in simplest essence is love like His love. In this sense, we will have received eternal life, the nature of living as He lived. We can confidently expect to resume living that eternal life through resurrection and glorification.[14]

Karen H. Jobes (1968) admits that it is difficult to see at first glance how “just as that One is, we also are in this world” can logically function. The demonstrative pronoun translated “that One” is used often in the Apostle John’s writings where one might expect a personal pronoun, and it usually refers to God or Jesus. Here it almost certainly refers to Jesus because the phrase “in the world” suggests the human presence of the Son on earth.[15] John is presenting an analogy between “we are in this world” and “that One is,” perhaps with the prepositional phrase “in the world” to be understood. The reading here reflects a possible amendment that considers this an analogy between how Jesus “was in the world blameless and pure” and how “we” are to be in this world. By this understanding, the analogy is the method of being like Him.[16]

Most commentators reject the idea that John is referring to Christians being able to heal the sick, raise the dead, and open the eyes of the blind, as Jesus did. But when we consider that it was by the Holy Spirit, and with the Spirit being in us, these things were done, it would not be out of the question for some of those same miracles to occur today. However, I would rule out transfiguration, turning water into wine, multiplying bread and fish, or walking on water. Those belong exclusively to the Son of God.

So, when the world looks at us, what do they see? asks David Legge (1969). Do they see the Anointed One? Do they see God? John implies that just as the Anointed One dying on the cross over 2000 years ago and rising again was the answer to humanity’s needs, the solution is that same agápē displayed through Christian lives – the Anointed One’s-ones! We are predestined to be the answer to mankind’s needs, not in and of ourselves, but because the love of God is meant to be displayed in our lives. The world is supposed to see His love perfected in us, but they only see us biting and devouring one another; they see backbiting and hear on radio and TV Christians chastising one another over secondary doctrines which are essential to God’s people but mean nothing to a soul that is lost and on its way to hell.[17]

4:18     Where God’s agápē is, there is no fear because God’s perfect love takes away such anxiety.  It is His punishment that makes a person afraid.  So, His agápē has not been made perfect in the one who has such dread.

EXPOSITION

In Jewish writings, we find an interesting interaction between love and fear.  It talks about the natural love a father has for his son and the love his son has for his father.  It says: “This reciprocal desire gives rise to fear in both their hearts: the father is afraid that the son may hate him (even a little), and the son fears the same.”[18]  So John wants all of God’s children to know that they should never fear that God will decide not to love them any longer just because they make a mistake.  After all, if He was willing to send His Son before they were even part of His family, why would they think that God would think twice about it after their election and adoption.

So, His love is not made perfect in the one who has fear. Now John introduces a concept considered spiritually incorrect in today’s Christian world.  He contrasts God’s agápē with God’s punishment.  It is alright for some ministers to speak about God’s agápē, grace, mercy, and kindness. Still, they avoid mentioning His punishment, discipline, judgment, and condemnation, fearing they will scare sinners away.

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[1] Marshall, Ian Howard. The Epistles of John (The New International Commentary on the New Testament), op. cit., p. 223

[2] 1 John 4:16

[3] Painter, John. Sacra Pagina: 1, 2, and 3 John: Vol. 18, loc. cit.

[4] Walls, Muncia: Epistles of John & Jude: op. cit., p. 78

[5] Eaton, Michael: Focus on the Bible, 1,2,3 John, op. cit., p. 166

[6] 1 John 5:18

[7] Revelation 19:6-9

[8] Luke 15:8-10

[9] Cf. Revelation 2:4; the Christian Standard Bible (CSB) reads: “You have abandoned the love you had.”

[10] John 14:3

[11] Galatians 5:22-23

[12] John 14:2-3

[13] See Ibid. 14-16

[14] Heaster, Duncan: New European Commentary, op. cit., 1 John, pp. 34-35

[15] Cf. 1 John 2:6; 3:5, 16; John 1:18

[16] Jobes, Karen H., 1, 2, and 3 John (Zondervan Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament, Book 18), p. 204

[17] Legge, David: 1,2,3 John, Preach the Word, op. cit., “Christian Love: Its Source and Sign,” Part 13

[18] The Zohar: by Rav (a rabbi with advanced raining) Michael Laitman, Laitman Kabbalah Publishers, The Second Commandment, 2007, p. 389

NEW TESTAMENT CONTEXTUAL COMMENTARY

By Dr. Robert R Seyda

FIRST EPISTLE OF JOHN

CHAPTER FOUR (Lesson CXII) 07/14/22

^4:17                If God’s agápē is made perfect in us, we can be without fear on the day when God judges the world.  We will be without fear because we are like Jesus in this world.

Paul W. Hoon (1910-2000) notes that the Apostle John’s expectation of a literal, imminent judgment was not during his lifetime. However, his valid conception of human life as temporary, constantly exposed to divine judgment, and ultimately confronted with the final decision, is timeless.[1] All the apostles expected Jesus to return on any day at any hour; through the ages, every generation of Christians has anticipated the same. That’s why, since the promise of His return never grows old or expires, the Day of Judgment will remain an open date. The idea is not to keep trying to find out what year, month, or day. He is coming back. John is telling us to be ready when it does. And the best way to take our anxiety while waiting for His second coming is to ensure that God’s agápē is perfected in us. As John says, in this world, we are to conduct ourselves like Jesus but love others more than we love ourselves.

Rudolf Schnackenburg (1914-2002) hears the Apostle John arguing that while we are here on earth, we are in an incomplete state of salvation, still under the threat of future judgment. In this situation, love demonstrates its true glory and power by removing the fear of the heavenly Judge and giving us confidence in our salvation. The phrase “love has been perfected among us” [2] does not focus on demonstrating God’s agápē toward us. That has already been described.[3] The Greek verb teleiousthai, “to be perfected,” refers not so much to the degree as to the interior nature of perfection. The Greek pronoun hēmon (“us, we, our,”) has the Greek preposition en (“in, by, with, among, at, on, through”). Therefore, the key is to select the preposition that most clearly shows where our perfection came from.

The KJV translators used the English word “in” 1,902 times, “by” 163 times, and “with” 140 times. In his lexicon, James Strong (1822-1894) defines the Greek preposition en in verse twelve as: “that in which any person or thing is fixed, implanted, or with which it is intimately connected.” Furthermore, says Strong, it is “of the whole in which a part dwells or abides.” So, any perfection of love a believer experiences is only a tiny part. It is supernaturally implanted in the new birth by the Holy Spirit.[4] Therefore, the subject of the statement is Love as a divine attribute expressing itself to perfection in giving us confidence in the future. Schnackenburg prefers “with us” to show that such love is a reflection of God being with us as we love one another, and through this loving other, it is perfected – made complete like a circle back to God.

Donald W. Burdick (1917-1996) finds this statement here in verse seventeen as positive. A literal translation of the first clause of this verse would read: “In this is love perfected with us.”[5] It is best to refer “in this” to verse sixteen. It is in the experience of dwelling in God and He in us that “the love’’ (the Godlike love which John has described) has been perfected with us. This is not to say our love reaches perfection in this life. Instead, God’s agápē reaches its goal as it finds expression in and through us to others.[6] The Greek meth hemon (“with us”) suggests that we are active in the expression of love. Even though love is from God and is, in reality, loving others through us, we are not mere passive channels through which His agápē flows.[7] God indwelling us produces His agápē, but we also actively participate in the exercise of love. Like any healing lotion or balm, God is the producer and provider; we are the ones spreading it around to those who are sick in sin.

John Phillips (1927-2010) tells an interesting story about a wealthy Christian lady who saw a street kid gazing into a shoe store window. She stopped and asked him, “What are you looking at?” The boy turned around in amazement since most people did not speak that kindly to him. “I was just praying that God would let me have some shoes like that and pointed to a pair of boots.” The lady asked if he’d like to go inside and look at them closer. Once inside, she asked the store clerk if he had something so she could clean the boy’s dirty feet. They brought her some water; she washed the little fellow’s feet and then went to find some warm socks. Then she asked if he would like to try on the boots he wanted. With a big smile on his face, he pulled on this pair of strong, comfortable boots. The lady then paid for the boots and told the boy he could go now. In amazement, he looked at the kind woman’s face and said, “Please, ma’am, are You Jesus’ wife?” That’s how, says Phillips, we will have boldness on judgment day.[8]

Raymond E. Brown (1928-1998) says that the sense of what the Apostle John says here in verse seventeen, “This is how love is made perfect in us,” is excellent and agrees precisely with what John said previously in the second half of verse sixteen, and the first half of verse seventeen “If we love one another, God abides in us; and His agápē has reached perfection with us.” But the excellent sense is only found when this clause in verse seventeen relates to what John says in verse twelve. Some would reject this interpretation on the incorrect grounds that “herein” (KJV) in verse seventeen refers only to the judgment which follows. But this is indefensible when we compare “by this” (KJV); “this makes” (NIV); “from this” (NLT) in John 16:30; and “In this” KJV; “this is how” (NIV); and “now we can tell” (NLT) in 1 John 3:10.[9] Nowhere in any of these is Judgment Day mentioned.[10] Unless we feel the same way about Jesus, John says God’s agápē does not abide in us. Therefore, each day we should tell our Master, “Jesus, I live this day for You.”

David E. Hiebert (1928-1995) says that the comparison of “as He is” and “we also are” marks a likeness in character which is true of believers already “in this world.” Varied views have been expressed as to the nature of this likeness. Here are some that Donald Burdick (1917-1996) offers: (1) The Anointed One has perfect confidence before God, and the believer may also be confident both now and at the judgment. (2) Those experiencing the mutual indwelling are involved in a fellowship with God that is, to some extent, similar to the Anointed One’s present perfect fellowship with God. (3) Christians are like the Anointed One, not in one attribute but in His character. (4) Believers are like the Anointed One ideally or positionally in what is called “prophetic reality.” (5) Christians are like the Anointed One in that they love as He loves.[11] The context suggests that it is a likeness in love. Love is the theme in this section,[12] and in the next verse, John explicitly singled out love as the antidote to “fear” in a believer’s life. Clearly, John believed in a God-given Love that works redemptively in its recipients in this world and prepares them for the future.[13]

Simon J. Kistemaker (1930-2017) says that our confidence in life as a Christian is due to our conformity to the Anointed One, our perfect model. That’s why the Apostle John says here in verse seventeen, “in this world we are like Jesus.” A more literal translation is, “Because as He is, we also are in this world.”[14] As the Anointed One demonstrated His agápē, so should we show our love to one another in the world in which we live. In the context of this epistle, God’s agápē in His Son is predominant. Also, we must show love for one another and thus fulfill God’s command.[15] When we duplicate the love of Jesus, we need not fear the coming Day of Judgment.[16]

Stephen S. Smalley (1941-2018) finds that another tone in understanding this passage may be detected. In his Gospel,[17] the Apostle John explains more fully the relationship between the exalted Anointed One and His followers on earth, which John expresses more succinctly. also refers to the state of believers “in the world.”[18] Since Jesus indwelled them, and they do not belong to the world,[19] they are protected by the power of the divine name, Jesus, from the evil one – Satan. That means Christians who are in union with God can overcome the evil one[20] and may have “confidence” on earth as well as in heaven. This thought also helps to explain the seeming difficulty in the statement that Christians “are” as Jesus “is in the world.” No conflict is involved if this is understood as the statement of a spiritual ideal, which to some extent can become a reality even on earth. It should be characteristic for every believer to reflect the abiding fellowship and love between the Son and the Father; insofar as this is achieved, a complete likeness to the Anointed One in the future is foreshadowed.[21] Meanwhile, an injunction to imitate Jesus is present but not articulated. We are to become as He is,[22] both in His nature of agápē and in His obedient behavior.[23] [24]

Zane C. Hodges (1932-2008) comments that verse seventeen might be rendered, “In this respect, love is made complete with us, namely, that we should have boldness on judgment day.” The Apostle John was not referring here to a final judgment in which the eternal destiny of each believer hangs in the balance. There is no such judgment for a believer.[25] A believer’s life will be assessed at the judgment seat of the Anointed One.[26] Yet even on that solemn occasion, a believer may have confidence[27] that God will approve the quality of their life if, through love, that believer, while in this world, becomes like Him. An unloving Christian is unlike his Lord and may anticipate rebuke and loss of reward at the judgment seat. But a loving believer is one in whom the work of God’s agápē has been completed,[28] and the fruit of that is boldness before the One who will judge them. In this way, they achieve the goal of confidence and have no shame when facing Him.[29] [30]

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[1] Hoon, Paul W., The Interpreter’s Bible, op. cit., 1 John, Exegesis, p. 285

[2] 1 John 4:12

[3] Ibid. 4:9-10

[4] Romans 5:5

[5] Revised Standard Version – (RSV)

[6] 1 John 4:12

[7] Burdick, Donald W., The Epistles of John, op. cit., p. 78

[8] Phillips, John: Exploring the First Epistle of John, op. cit., p. 152

[9] See also 1 John 3:19

[10] Brown, Raymond E., The Anchor Bible, op. cit., Vol. 30, p.527

[11] Burdick, Donald W., The Letters of John the Apostle: An In-Depth Commentary, Moody Press, Chicago, 1985, p. 335

[12] 1 John 4:7; 5:5

[13] Hiebert, David E., Bibliotheca Sacra, op. cit., January-March 1990, p. 85

[14] New American Standard Bible Version (NASB)

[15] 1 John 3:23

[16] Kistemaker, Simon J., New Testament Commentary, op. cit., p. 339

[17] John 17:1-10

[18] Ibid. 17:11, 15, 18

[19] Ibid. 17:16

[20] Ibid. 2:13-14; 5:19

[21] Ibid. 3:2

[22] Ibid. 2:6

[23] Ibid. 2:29; 3:3, 16

[24] Smalley, Stephen S., Word Biblical Commentary, Vol. 51, op. cit., p. 259

[25] John 5:24

[26] 1 Corinthians 3:12-15; 2 Corinthians 5:10

[27] Cf. 1 John 2:28; 3:21; 5:14

[28] Cf. the same words in 1 John 2:5; 4:12

[29] See 1 John 2:28

[30] Hodges, Zane C., The Bible Knowledge Commentary, op. cit., loc. cit.

NEW TESTAMENT CONTEXTUAL COMMENTARY

By Dr. Robert R Seyda

FIRST EPISTLE OF JOHN

CHAPTER FOUR (Lesson CXI) 07/13/22

^4:17                If God’s agápē is made perfect in us, we can be without fear on the day when God judges the world.  We will be without fear because we are like Jesus in this world.

William E. Shepard (1862-1930) says how sad it is to think that what God intended for light should now be extinguished for darkness; that what He designed for help should be turned into a hindrance; that what He meant to bless should be made a curse; and that what He meant for a life of holiness should be construed to indicate a life without sanctification! O, the disappointment that must be to the Anointed One! What regret will fill their souls! What an awful wail will be heard on that last great day!

The Apostle John explains, argues Shepard, that if God’s agápē is made perfect in us, we can be without fear on the day when God judges the world. We will be without worry because we are like Jesus in this world. On the other hand, if we fail in receiving this agápē or forfeit the same, we may expect to not succeed on the day of judgment. God bless those who believe in holiness. God bless the faithful witnesses of holy living. God help the Christians seeking the Light. God pity those turning out their Light in the darkness and expelling His truth from their souls, causing their destruction. Let us be faithful to God, dedicated to His Word, devoted to each other, and honest with ourselves. We will soon be through with this world; let us have the experience and live the life we wish we had when we face the stern realities of the other world. Amen.[1]

David Smith (1866-1932) notes that the Apostle John lets us know that when we take up permanent residence in a life of love, we live in God and God in us. This way, love has the run of the house, feels at home, and matures in us so that we’re free of worry on Judgment Day – our standing in the world is identical to that of the Anointed One.[2] That’s because Love is a heavenly visitor journeying with us and requires observance of His guidelines. Love has been “carried to its end” when we are like Jesus, His visible representatives.[3]  Jesus is in the world unseen, and our office is to make Him visible. We are to Him what He was to the Father in the days of His flesh.[4] [5]

Harry A. Ironside (1876-1951) shares his testimony about struggling with the idea of “perfect love.” I confess to you, says Ironside, that there were years in my Christian life when I was confused about what these words, perfect love, really meant. Yet today, I know of no other passage of Scripture that gives me greater joy or seems more apparent than this verse that puzzled me for so long. Shortly after I converted, I stared at it and said, “I don’t understand.” But, of course, I was misinformed by the KJV reading. I kept reading the words, “Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as He is, so are we in this world.” I said, “If boldness in the day of judgment depends upon my love being perfect, how can I ever be sure that everything will be right with me?”

You could say that I was looking at myself and within my heart for perfect love, confesses Ironside, and as I searched my heart, I always found something contrary to ideal love, and I would say to myself, “Am I ever going to be perfect in love? I cannot have boldness on judgment day until my love is perfect.” I would go to God and earnestly pray for understanding. I sought to make a complete surrender. I would ask Him to make me perfect in love and then get up, look within, and say, “Let me see; is it alright now? Do I love everybody perfectly?” Then I would go out among people again and find I did not like this person and that one, and sometimes little twinges of jealousy would spring up. I knew I should never be jealous or envious of anyone I loved. I would end up saying, “I am just as bad as ever; how am I ever going to stand with confidence on the day of judgment?” Does this sound familiar to anyone?

I remember how glorious my conversion was that when I was born again, God showed me that perfect love did exist in another Man, the One I had been looking up to for six and a half years after my conversion. That’s when I turned away from looking at myself and said, “Look up there!” By faith, I saw another Man, Jesus the Anointed One, seated in highest glory at the Father’s right hand. Then God told me, “There, perfect love is displayed in the Anointed One.” It finally struck me; it was manifest in this world through God’s agápē. God sent His only begotten Son into the world that we might live through Him. So, this perfect love is not that we loved God first, but that He loved us and sent His Son to cover our sins with His blood. “Oh,” I said, “I see it at last. Perfect love led the Anointed One to come from Godhead’s immeasurable glory down to Calvary’s rugged hill of shame and suffering. It was perfect love that led Jesus to look upon a lost, ruined, guilty world, take all their sins upon Him, and die on their behalf on a cross meant for criminals.” So, I want to return the feeling this perfect love gave me back to the One who sent His Son to die on my behalf; like Him, I must be willing to give that same kind of love to others.[6]

Charles H. Dodd (1884-1973) states that the conformity of the Christian life with the divine character as revealed in the Anointed One is an idea never far from the Apostle John’s mind. Sometimes it is expressed precisely in De Imitatione Christi (1418-1427),[7] where the sequence of thought may be compared with verse seventeen. The context shows that John is appealing to the example of the Anointed One as the One of whom it can be said, without qualification, that He remains in love, and love is complete in Him. In John’s Gospel, we learn that the Anointed One is in perfect union with the Father, Father, and Son, dwelling mutually in one another;[8] and this union with God by mutual indwelling is held up as the archetype, or ideal, of the communion of the Christian with God.[9] All this is in John’s mind when he says, “in this world, we are conducting ourselves as He did.” [10]

Greville P. Lewis (1891-1976) asserts that if constant judging is continuous, it follows that the final judgment at the end of history will not be an investigation into our fate; it will be the finalization of divine conclusions which have already been made on each individual and each nation or civilization in the world.[11] In other words, for the unconverted, they will be getting what they deserve – everlasting separation from God, while believers get what they didn’t deserve – an eternal presence with God.

Amos N. Wilder (1895-1993) sees two lines from our abiding in God’s agápē now being drawn, one concerning anxiety in the face of the Judgment, the other with anxiousness in general in the past. In that case: The perfection of the divine love is achieved among us in the twofold abiding; so great is this agápē, for example, that even on Judgment Day, we will be boldly confident. This, however, probably looks forward. Our glad boldness on the day of judgment (now upon us) is a supreme instance of the full realization of the divine love in our midst. The anguish of the great tribulation with the judge intimidated the hearts of these Christians the Apostle John is writing.[12] But, since the Antichrist was at work, the coming of the Lord was imminent. Therefore, confidence at His appearing is assured in 1 John 2:28 to those who abide in Him. Those who have a kinship with the Judge have no reason to fear Him.[13]

Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) The whole of our life must always be present in our minds, and we must always be doing everything in the light of its eternal consequences. Cause always produces an effect; we cannot divide these things into compartments and categories. That general principle covers the three arguments the Apostle John makes. Three things are inevitable consequences of dwelling in love, of abiding in love.

Here is the first: To dwell in love is the final proof that God lives in us and that we are in God. We could never stay in love and love one another were it not that we dwell in God and God in us. This is a sheer impossibility to the human mind controlled by hatred and malice. The Bible is full of that teaching; it does not paint a rosy picture of human nature. I have often said that if we had no other reason for believing the Bible to be God’s Word, this would be sufficient for us: the stark honesty and truthfulness of the Bible, which tells the truth about humanity, is the only book that does it.

The second conclusion that we draw is that this is the demonstration of the fact that love has been perfected in us. The KJV reads, “Herein is our love made perfect.” But it is generally agreed that the better translation is, “Herein is love made perfect in us.” It gives ample proof that God’s agápē is in us. What does that mean? It means that God’s ultimate purpose in salvation and in all He has done for us in His Son, our Lord Jesus the Anointed One, is that we might become such people. This, says John, is the perfecting of God’s agápē, the perfect carrying out of God’s purpose of love.

And that brings us to the third and last conclusion in this graphic and striking form by the Apostle John: “Herein is our love made Perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment.”  Of course, this is one of the greatest and mightiest matters confronting us in the Scriptures – the doctrine of judgment, a theme taught in the Bible from beginning to end. So, what does John mean when he makes that statement? Let’s read it like this: The Day of Judgment is not merely a figurative expression of what happens to us when we die. Death, of course, is judgment because once we die, our fate is forever determined, but it is not death that determines our fate. On the contrary, death puts us in a position where we can do nothing. There is no second chance in the Bible.

It’s always one thing or the other that decides our destiny in the world of time. So, death is a serious matter; but it is not everything. The Day of Judgment is not death. Rather, it is a great event that, according to Scripture, will take place at the end of the world, at the end of time. The only question that needs to be answered between then and now is this: “Are we ready for Judgment Day?” The Apostle John says, “Yes!” Because as we live in union with the Anointed One, our love grows more perfect and complete.[14]

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[1] Shepard, William E., Wrested Scriptures Made Plain, op. cit., p. 95

[2] 1 John 4:17; Cf. 4:12

[3] Ibid. 4:10

[4] John 12:49

[5] Smith, David: Expositor’s Greek Testament, op. cit., p. 192

[6] Ironside, Harry A., The Epistles of John and Jude, op. cit., pp. 161-164

[7] Thomas à Kempis (1380-1471), De Imitatione Christi (The Image of the Anointed One), Bk. 2, Chap. 6; Bk. 3, Chap. 3; See also Bk. 1, Chap. 7 and Bk. 2, Chap. 29

[8] John 14:10-11

[9] Ibid. 15:9-10; 17:21-23

[10] Dodd, Charles H., The Moffatt Commentary, Johannian Epistles, op. cit., pp. 119-120

[11] Lewis, Greville P., The Epworth Commentary, The Johannine Epistles, op. cit., p.108

[12] 1 John 2:28-29; 3:19-20

[13] Wilder, Amos N., The Interpreter’s Bible, op. cit., 1 John, Exposition, p. 285

[14] Lloyd-Jones, Martyn: Life in the Anointed One, op. cit., pp. 528-532