Down an Unfamiliar Road

NEW TESTAMENT CONTEXTUAL COMMENTARY

By Dr. Robert R Seyda

FIRST EPISTLE OF JOHN

CHAPTER FOUR (Lesson XLV) 03/22/22

^4:6 But we are God’s children; that is why only those who have walked and talked with God will listen to us. Others won’t. That is another way to know whether a message is really from God, for if it is, the world won’t listen to it.

Judith M. Lieu (1951) sees that the Apostle John once again echoes other sources available in his day in setting the Spirit and spirit within this dualistic framework. Perhaps most verbally striking is a passage from the Testament of Judah: “Recognize, my children, that two spirits are active in humanity, that of truth and that of deceit.” “Indeed, those works of deceit and those of truth are inscribed on the human heart.” [1] In contrast to the Apostle John, the two spirits appear to be conflicting dispositions or tendencies inherent in human beings, and elsewhere in the Covenants, there are multiple harmful spirits. However, the spirit of deceit appears to be preeminent.[2] Now Judah can look forward to the day when “there shall no longer be the spirit of error of Belial[3] because he shall be cast into the fire forever.”[4] [5]

Ben Witherington III (1951) says that in these verses, we find different ways of concluding who genuine Christians are: do they accept and apply godly teaching from those who indeed know God in their lives? The Apostle John says confidently, “Anyone who knows God pays attention to us and our teaching.” This is not egotism, but rather confidence coming from a long walk with Jesus, a lengthy teaching ministry, and a firm conviction that what He says was from God. John does not doubt that he and other apostolic witnesses are “of God” and “know God.”[6] Perhaps that is why Nicodemus did not go to fellow Jewish Sanhedrin members to learn how to enter the Kingdom of Heaven; he went to Jesus, the King of Heaven’s Kingdom.[7] So likewise, an unbeliever would not have a chat with their unregenerate friends, instead, go to a born-again believer and ask. The same can be said of preachers and teachers; why should a believer go to hear someone only familiar with the Bible when they can listen to a seasoned student of God’s Word who has the anointing of the Holy Spirit?

Gary M. Burge (1952) notes that the Apostle John’s second test involves audiences and finding out who celebrates the Apostles’ teaching? Where does it find a ready following? John frequently refers to “the world,”[8] and in some cases, he sees it simply as a place of lifeless unbelief. Nevertheless, God loves this world and sent His Son to save it, [9] even though the world is where false teachings germinate.[10] In fact, John says that the world is under the power of the evil one.[11] Therefore, it is no surprise that if false prophecies originate with an ungodly spirit, these utterances will find a ready reception. On the other hand, it is the Church’s response to test the reliability of a word from the Lord.[12] God’s people know the sound of His voice – like sheep with a shepherd.[13] There is also harmony in communion between the Holy Spirit, the preacher, and the believer’s spirit. When God’s Spirit inspires a minister of the Gospel, God’s people will discern its truth.[14]

Marianne Meye Thompson (1964) notes that the Apostle John offers a second way by which one may test the spirits – by evaluating the response that the speaker receives. Verses five and six echo John’s sentiments.[15] In the final analysis, the world’s response to Jesus’ disciples mirrors its response to Jesus and God. Reversing this chain of reaction, John can also say that those who have responded to God react positively to Jesus and His disciples by listening to them. Listening means “give an ear” more than simply giving them a hearing; it implies absorption with what is heard.

Thompson now suggests three guidelines for testing the Spirits with discernment, that is, wisdom, care, and humility. (1) We are called on as a corporate community to test the spirits. The spirits in view are the teachings and practices threatening the Church’s mission and instructions. (2) It is also crucial to remember what we are to test. We are not called to test every belief and practice of every individual who claims to be a Christian. (3) We are to discern what is main stream to Christian faith and doctrine. Within the Church’s life, some issues are more central than others, and few if any are more central than the Anointed One and salvation. In summation, says Thompson, two extremes are to be avoided, (a) On the one hand, we ought not to rush to judgment on others. On the other hand, (b) the church cannot avoid its task to teach and nurture people in the Christian faith.[16]

Ken Johnson (1965) notes that in verses four to seven, the Apostle John contrasts true believers who listened to him because he had the Spirit of truth with unbelievers who did not listen to him because they had the spirit of error.[17] But the true believers were able to win the victory over the false pretenders because God lives in them, and He is much more potent than they are. After all, look at the unsuccessful anti-Christian Jews, Romans, heretics, Gnostics, persecutors, Nazism, communism, atheism, Islam, etc.

Peter Pett (1966) says the question here is who are “we?” Does the Apostle John mean “Apostles” of whom he is now the representative, or does he mean “Churches,” especially the duly appointed leaders? Either way, John’s message is emphatic. “We are of God.” The Greek preposition ek is translated to designate where a person is from.[18] It also means to: eject an object, [19] select an object, [20] a source, a person, or a thing, [21] arrive from, [22] etc. So, whoever is of God, is who or what they are because God was the source of their creation. We can thank our parents for being born in this world, but in a spiritual sense, to be born again means if it weren’t for God, we wouldn’t be spiritually alive. Thus, we have the truth. And those who know God hear us because the anointing within them reveals to them the truth through the word. On the other hand, some do not pay attention to us. This demonstrates that they are not of God. That is how the Spirit of truth and the spirit of error can be detected, by whether such people speak in accordance with the true servants of the Spirit, with the true Apostolic doctrine.[23]

Duncan Heaster (1967) teaches that being “of God,” born of Him by the Spirit, [24] is presented as being in opposition to being “of the [Jewish] world.” John himself was a Jew and was not anti-Semite, but presents the world of Judaism, with their conscious denial of Jesus as the Messiah, as being absolutely opposed to the things of God. Those who were not born of God by the Spirit would not “hear” the teaching of John and his team. Yet, they had the tendency to refuse their teaching, which the Comforter taught them. It was more proof that these hearers were not “of God.” There is an intuitive bonding between all who have the Lord’s spirit. Those who were out of step with the teaching of spirit-filled teachers like John were thereby discernible as “the spirit of error.” “Error” is more like “deceit.” The same word is used of the spirit that the Lord would send upon the Jewish world in Greek.[25] [26]

Karen H. Jobes (1968) says that nothing worse could be expected when the One who created the world than that He was not recognized by the world’s people.[27] When the Word of God came to redeem the world, He was rejected.[28] In verse six, John draws the boundary of these dualities: truth and error, God and the world, those of God and those of the world – and the dividing line between the acceptance and rejection of the apostolic teaching that he offers. The issue implicitly is about who gets to say what is true about God and the Anointed One and the salvation offered to the world. Who gets to speak for God in this world? Some may feel that John is being arrogant to hold up his beliefs as the only truth about God. Don’t the opinions and beliefs of others count equally? But he is not being arrogant; he is taking a stand for truth as he urges his readers to remain with him in the safety of the apostolic teaching of those commissioned as witnesses of the Anointed One, who have seen and heard and touched the Life that was revealed.[29] [30]

David Guzik (1984) points out that the Apostle John says that those of God enjoy fellowship with other believers; they speak the common language of fellowship with God and each other because one flows from the other.[31] Guzik then states that the language here in verses five and six transcends language, culture, class, race, or any additional barrier. It is a true gift from God. That’s why he is mystified by what we find in the official doctrines of the Roman Catholic Church. They claim to be the “us” (in verse six) of those who know God hears us, while those who are not of God do not hear us.[32] But John can only be talking about the apostles and their authoritative revelation in the Bible when he says to us. When we know God and are of God, we hear what the Bible says. If this were merely an individual talking, the claim would be presumptuous. But it is not. It is the Apostle John citing the collective testimony of all the apostles. That testimony has become the measure of truth and sound doctrine for the whole Church.[33]

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[1] The Testament of Judah 20:1, 3

[2] Cf. The Testament of Reuben, 2:1; 3:2

[3] Belial is a compound word, believed to have been taken from the Hebrew beliy, meaning “not,” and ya’al, meaning “profit” or “benefit.” It is used twenty-six times in the Old Testament, usually translated as “worthless” in the New American Standard Bible, but also as “base,” “destruction,” “rascally,” and “wicked.” In the earlier books of the Old Testament, when describing a wicked person, the King James sometimes uses “son of Belial” (or “daughter,” “man,” or “people” of Belial). Like many other uses of the term son of, the expression “son of Belial” doesn’t imply that Belial is a real person who fathers children; rather, it’s a description of people characterized by worthlessness or corruption. See Deuteronomy 13:13, Judges 19:22; 20:13; 1 Samuel 1:16 etc., 2 Samuel 16:7 etc., 1 Kings 21:10, 13; 2 Chronicles 13:7; 2 Corinthians 6:15

[4] The Testament of Judah, 25:3

[5] Lieu, Judith: The New Testament Commentary, op. cit., p. 174

[6] Witherington III, Ben, Letters and Homilies for Hellenized Christians: op. cit., loc. cit., (Kindle Locations 7118-7121)

[7] John 3:1-12

[8] The word “World” appears twenty-four times in the New Testament

[9] 1 John 2:2, 15, 17; 4:9, 14; 5:4-5

[10] Ibid. 3:1, 13; 4:1

[11] Ibid. 5:19

[12] Cf. 1 John 4:5-6

[13] John 10:4ff

[14] Burge, Gary M., The Letters of John (The NIV Application Commentary), op. cit., pp. 176-177

[15] John 15:18-23

[16] Thompson, Marianne M., The IVP New Testament Commentary, op. cit., pp. 117-119

[17] Johnson, Ken. Ancient Epistles of John and Jude, op. cit., p. 77

[18] Matthew 1:3

[19] Ibid. 7:5

[20] Ibid. 10:29

[21] Ibid. 12:42; 17:5

[22] Ibid. 21:25

[23] Pett, Peter: Commentary on the Bible, op. cit., PDF. loc. cit.

[24] John 1:13; 3:5

[25] 2 Thessalonians 2:11

[26] Heaster, Duncan: New European Commentary, op. cit., 1 John, p. 31

[27] John 1:10

[28] Ibid. 1:11

[29] Ibid. 1:1-4

[30] Jobes, Karen H., 1, 2, and 3 John (Zondervan Exegetical Commentary on The New Testament, Book 18), pp. 183-184

[31] 1 John 1:3

[32] See Roman Catholic Church Catechism, Section two, Ch. 3, Article 9, §III

[33] Guzik, David: Enduring Word, op. cit., loc. cit.

NEW TESTAMENT CONTEXTUAL COMMENTARY

By Dr. Robert R Seyda

FIRST EPISTLE OF JOHN

CHAPTER FOUR (Lesson XLIV) 03/21/22

^4:6 But we are God’s children; that is why only those who have walked and talked with God will listen to us. Others won’t. That is another way to know whether a message is really from God, for if it is, the world won’t listen to it.

Smith also sees that behind the controversy about true and false spirits reflected in verses one to six lies the phenomenon of spiritual authority and the problems exercising such influence can produce in the Church. It is likely we can trace the development of these concerns to John’s Gospel and Revelation. In the Gospel, Jesus repeatedly promises the disciples the infilling of the Holy Spirit[1] and tells them that this Spirit or Counselor will teach them the things they will need to know.[2] And in Revelation, says Smith, the Anointed One is portrayed as speaking directly to the Churches through the Spirit. In other words, what is happening in Revelation chapters 1-3 is not unlike what the Gospel of John would lead us to expect. Jesus promised further, direct revelation, and now He delivers. The Book of Revelation’s tone is pessimistic, not optimistic like John’s Gospel, but that is because of the behavior of the Churches in question.

The final statements of this part of 1 John chapter four may seem somewhat arrogant, says Smith. “We” here means John and his associates. He is the apostolic authority for this community of Christians, who know the One who was from the beginning, that is, Jesus. John bases his power not on any particular personal gift or capacity, but on this relationship with Jesus, who was from the beginning. He does not doubt the reality of his relationship with Jesus other than being one of His favorite disciples.[3]

Chapter four’s opening lines speak of seeing and contact but tantalize us with the first-person plural pronoun “we.”[4] Does John mean himself, along with others, were Jesus’ contemporaries, or does he imply that he stands in solidarity with an earlier generation of eyewitnesses? In any event, his confidence remains steadfast on the reality of having known and fellowshipped with Jesus in person.[5] While we may not have the same physical contact with Jesus as John did, we can know Him personally through our union and fellowship with Him by His Spirit.

Stephen S. Smalley (1931-2018) observes that what the Apostle John says here in the first part of verse six is not the opposite of what he says in the second part. Initially, John made it clear that anyone born of God pays attention to the Apostle’s message, while those not born of God have little or no interest. But the real difference is that those who listen know God deeply and intimately, while those who don’t listen do not know God at all and, therefore, have no personal relation with Him. So, these are not opposite or optional responses but juxtapositions.[6] That means we show how they contrast by placing them side by side.[7]

Messianic writer David Stern (1935) says that among the false prophets whom the world will listen to will be some who have “gone out from us,”[8] who have at one time or another claimed to be Messianic but have renounced their faith. It is helpful to see that Yochanan (Hebrew for “John”) recognized such a category of people. His advice is to beware of their errors but not become preoccupied with trying to win them back.[9] Instead, we should take as our guideline that whoever knows God listens to us; whoever is not from God doesn’t listen to us; like Yochanan, we can be satisfied with that.[10]

Michael Eaton (1942-2017) says we must remember that John received the power of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost. You can hardly expect someone baptized with this kind of power and illumination to be using “ifs” and “maybes” and “perhaps.” The modern Christian often uses similar language. The outside world finds it hard to understand, and authentic Christian language must seem arrogant. But there is not much we can do about it! When God speaks, He can speak in such a way that we know we have heard Him!

All we can do for friends who think we are arrogant, says Easton, is to remind them that we are pointing to historical facts that can be investigated, such as the resurrection of Jesus and the origin of the Christian Church. We can know the power of the Holy Spirit by coming to Jesus! The historical facts of the Gospel are there for anyone who wants to investigate. Yet, there is an even greater way; God is there. God is close to us. He is the one who sustains life and arranges our existence. God wanted people to look for him, and perhaps in searching all around for him, they would find him. But he is not far from any of us.[11]

William Loader (1944) finds that the comforting words in verse six could read like the worst kind of self-congratulation: “I knew I was right!” But in the context of the epistle, they must be seen as giving expression to a confidence that rests not on arrogance or status but belief in love. Ultimately, the Apostle John does not depend on his authority through a narrow religious self-assurance, but on the belief that God is loving and God’s agápe-love reaches all human flesh. That conviction extends to the confidence that people in touch with this God of love will inevitably respond positively to the preaching of the community. Whoever is for the Gospel of Love will be for this community, and whoever is against such love will reject it. As long as the community remains faithful to its received doctrines, its response will be a reliable spiritual yardstick in measuring the spirit of truth and that of error.[12]

David Jackman (1947) notes that because we learned that belief and behavior are harnessed together, we are not surprised to find that the Apostle John expands how his tests of the spirits work out by looking beyond the content of the false teaching to the effects it produces. Verses four, five, and six begin with different pronouns, introducing a diverse group of people. In the NIV, verse four refers to all Christians as “You,” then in verse five, “They” to the non-Christian false prophets, and in verse six “We” to the apostles and the true teachers who stand in the valid apostolic succession. In our age of always trying to be relative, we constantly need to be reminded that some things are continuously true and others consistently false. Truth is not just the present consensus; its character defines it. Today’s false prophets are just as persuasive and lethal as the first centuries. They will say the Bible has a resurrection, but that the human body of the Anointed One was not raised on the third day. The spirit of falsehood is a spirit of deceit. We know God by receiving the Apostles’ teaching and living a life that harmonizes with this truth. Substitutes are unacceptable.[13]

John W. (Jack) Carter (1947) says that it is easy for some to hear what sounds like logical, impressive, and charismatic arguments when they come from those who sound authoritative. It is human nature to submit to those who are seemingly more powerful, whether their power is in physical or philosophical force. John reminds the faithful that, as powerful and charismatic as those who preach false doctrines may appear, they are still of the world, still submitted to the prince of darkness. Because of this, regardless of their influence, the Holy Spirit’s power within every believer’s heart is the real source. Against the power of the LORD, the antichrist is impotent, and so are his followers.[14] It’s another way of saying that any power anti-Christians have comes from external factors such as reputation, financial status, political influence, educational endorsement, or respect among like-minded people. But the power of any Christian comes from internal features, including the presence of God’s almighty Spirit to persuade and bring conviction.

Robert W. Yarbrough (1948) sees the function of verse six in context reaffirms the apostolic origin of the Apostle John’s message, in contrast to deceptive currents swirling around. There are two consequences to this. First, those who know God hear and accept what John says or writes, and those who are “not of God” refuse to heed John’s voice. Second, the division of the house that John’s message generates has a wholesome result: “This is how we know.” Such division validates the “spirit of truth” that John thinks he upholds, just as it sheds light on the mistaken aspects of “the spirit of error” that John has been warning against. It is hard to ponder verse six without being reminded of the earlier schism.[15] The division is painful, but sometimes it is necessary, and when necessary, it may even have a consoling aspect. John seems to be stating that the clarity that results from people showing their true colors is valuable. Out of the pot of disagreement or error may come an occasion for discerning God’s Spirit of truth from imposters or pretenders’ spirits of deception. The apostolic testimony provides resources for informed deliberation and confirmation of wise choice on such occasions.[16]

Colin G. Kruse (1950) notes the Apostle John’s reference to the two spirits is reminiscent of teaching about “the spirits of truth and falsehood” in the Qumran scrolls, [17] indicating that the author used a well-known concept here. The whole section is concerned with testing the spirits “to see whether they are of God.”[18] The first concerns the confession that Jesus the Anointed One came in the flesh.[19] The second concern is to be on the lookout for those who make such confessions. John tells his readers that they may distinguish the Spirit of truth from the spirit of falsehood by applying these two related tests. In this context, they will be able to recognize that the secessionists are not speaking by the Spirit of God (the Spirit of truth) but by the spirit of antichrist (the spirit of falsehood). It is important to note that here, it is implied that the role of the Spirit is to bear witness to the truth about Jesus the Anointed One.[20]

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[1] See John 14:15-17

[2] Ibid. 14:26; 16:12-15

[3] See John 20:2

[4] Cf. John 1:1-18; 21:24

[5] Smith, D. Moody, Interpretation: A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching, op. cit., p. 99

[6] Juxtaposition is defined as two things being seen or placed close together with contrasting effect.

[7] Smalley, Stephen S., Word Biblical Commentary, Vol. 51., op. cit., pp 229-230

[8] 1 John 2:19

[9] Cf. 1 Timothy 1:20

[10] Stern, David H., Jewish New Testament Commentary, Kindle Edition.

[11] Eaton, Michael: Focus on the Bible, 1,2,3 John, op. cit., pp. 138-140

[12] Loader, William: Epworth Commentary, op. cit., p. 51

[13] Jackman, David: The Message of John’s Letters, op. cit., pp. 114, 116

[14] Carter, Dr. John W. (Jack). 1,2,3, John & Jude: Holding to the Truth in Love (The Disciple’s Bible Commentary Book 48), pp. 102-103

[15] See 1 John 2:19

[16] Yarbrough, Robert W., 1-3 John (Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament), op. cit., p. 229

[17] Dead Scrolls, (1QS 3:18-19, 25)

[18] 1 John 4:1

[19] Ibid. 4:2-3

[20] Kruse, Colin G, The Letters of John (The Pillar New Testament Commentary (PNTC)), op. cit., loc. cit., Kindle Edition.

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WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE GENEROUS?

Today, we are often called on to be generous because generosity is a virtue that all Christians should have. But too frequently, generosity is linked to financial endeavors when, in fact, it involves everything good we can contribute to our Society, Community, Church, and Family. In addition, research conducted over the past few decades provides strong evidence of intrinsic generous behaviors in children. This evidence suggests that generosity is deeply rooted in human psychology – that the instinct to help others is at least partially innate and not purely the product of social and cultural conditioning.

Both secularly and spiritually, generosity is being kind, selfless, and giving to others. Despite being an act to benefit others’ well-being, generosity also paradoxically increases our well-being. So being generous is a fantastic way to improve your mental health and being well. Imagine yourself being stingy and selfish. How should you spend your resources to maximize your happiness? Instead of buying more stuff for yourself, research suggests that giving to people or causes you care about is more likely to do the trick. Generosity not only helps others, but it also rewards yourself in measurable ways, so much so that it may even increase your lifespan. People seem to understand this intuitively.

A growing body of research has revealed numerous psychological and physiological benefits of giving, challenging common conceptions about the relationship between money and happiness. In 2008, for example, Norton and his colleagues conducted a study where they gave $5 or $20 to people and then instructed them to spend it either on themselves or someone else. Later that evening, the researchers checked in with the participants to see how they felt emotionally. The group that gave money to others reported feeling happier over the course of the day. What’s more, the results showed no emotional difference between people who received $5 and those who got $20. Being generous is what made them happy.

Generosity is a good thing for our mental health and well-being because when we give to someone we care about, we make it more likely for them to give to us, making us more likely to share with them, and so on. As a result, regions of our brain associated with pleasure, social connection, and trust light up, making us feel all warm and gooey inside. When it comes to improving our happiness and well-being. If someone else sees us do something kind or generous, it makes them more likely to be helpful. Even saying a simple “Thank you” can inspire both of you and those watching to be more generous. This is how generosity creates a ripple effect, helping us feel happier and less lonely.

Notre Dame’s Center for the Study of Religion in Society (CSRS) envisions generosity as “the disposition and practice of freely giving of one’s financial resources, time, and talents, [including], for example, charitable financial giving, volunteering, and the dedication of one’s gifts for the welfare of others or the common good.” While the term generosity is shared as a general descriptor in the literature on social behavior, it has yet to be conceptualized, let alone systematically addressed in research. Like the CSRS and Merriam-Webster, we see generosity as unique. It is the habit of giving, or the quality of being “generous” (i.e., willing to share and give, not selfish, characterized by a noble, forgiving, and kind spirit, generous). In other words, it is something that, while perhaps not manifested in a single long-term behavior, is often believed as something good to express consistently throughout life. As such, generosity is distinct from mere prosocial behavior – a line of inquiry heavily pursued by psychologists – and deserves its theoretical conceptualization and further consideration in future research

A few weeks ago, behavioral psychologist Dan Ariely, [1] inspired by the holiday frenzy, pondered the hows and whys of gift-giving. He offers a behavioral economics view that challenges the rational economic contention that gift-giving is an irrational dilemma. What he said should bring to mind the story that always epitomized the spirit of gifts and generosity: O. Henry’s “The Gift of the Magi.” Only a few pages long, the account may be O. Henry’s most famous, its title almost a byword for a particular type of present. Say it, and chances are people will at once realize just what kind of gift you mean.

A gift that embodies quality over quantity, the value of thought over any amount of expenditure. A gift that puts the mere mention of a Holiday Wish List to shame. As O. Henry writes, “Eight dollars a week or a million a year—what is the difference? A mathematician or a wit would give you the wrong answer. The magi brought valuable gifts, but that was not among them. This dark assertion will be illuminated later on…. the uneventful chronicle of two foolish children in a flat who most unwisely sacrificed for each other the greatest treasures of their house. But in a last word to the wise of these days, let it be said that of all who give gifts, these two were the wisest. Of all who give and receive gifts, such as they are wisest. Everywhere they are wisest. They are the magi.[2] Generous behavior is also known to increase happiness, which could motivate generosity.

Science writer covering psychology, neuroscience, and health Zara Abrams says that being kind is the right thing to do – it’s also good for our physical and mental health. Psychologists have found that performing acts of generosity boosts happiness and well-being, linking it to physical health benefits, including lower blood pressure.[3] It has been proven that small actions, such as holding the door for a stranger, petting an animal, bringing coffee to a colleague, and larger favors, such as helping a friend move, can have a big impact, said Sonja Lyubomirsky.[4] In addition, prosocial behavior toward friends, strangers, and oneself – and even observing or recalling kind acts – has been shown to increase well-being.[5]

Professor of Psychology Lara Aknin says that not all acts of generosity are created equal. Giving directly to a person or proxy – for instance, donating face-to-face to a charity rather than contributing online or taking a friend out to dinner rather than sending them a meal – offers an opportunity for social connectedness that’s particularly beneficial.[6] “When people give in more socially connected or relational ways, that seems to unlock these emotional rewards better,” she said.

But what does the Bible say about generosity?

Wise King Solomon stated that some people give generously and gain more; others refuse to give and end up with less. So, give freely, and you will profit. Help others, and you will gain more for yourself.[7] And later on, he says that giving help to the poor is like loaning money to the Lord. He will pay you back for your kindness.[8]

But Jesus put it another way; He taught that whoever helps any little child because they are His followers will get a reward, even if they only give them a cup of cold water.[9] And on another occasion, our Lord promised that you would receive if you are generous to others. You will be given much. It will be poured into your hands – more than you can hold. You will be given so much that it will spill into your lap. The way you give to others is how God will give to you.[10]

Also, the Apostle Paul spoke on generosity, saying the one who plants few seeds will have a small harvest. But the one who plants generously will have a big harvest. So, each one of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give. You should not give if it makes you unhappy or if you feel forced to give. God loves those who are happy to give. [11]

Paul wrote young Timothy, telling him to give this command to those rich with the things of this world. Tell them not to be proud. Tell them to hope in God, not their money. You cannot trust money, but God takes care of us richly. He gives us everything to enjoy. So, tell those who are rich to do good – to be generous in good works. And tell them they should be happy to give and ready to share. By doing this, they will be saving up a treasure for themselves. And that treasure will be a strong foundation on which their future life is built. So, they will be able to have a life that is true life.

And the Apostle John wrote his Christian community, telling them that believers who are rich enough to have all the necessities of life see a fellow believer who is poor and does not have even basic needs. What if the rich believer does not help the poor one? Then it is clear that God’s love is not in that person’s lack of generosity.[12]

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[1] Dan Ariely is the James B. Duke Professor of Psychology and Behavioral Economics at Duke University and a founding member of the Center for Advanced Hindsight. 

[2] Henry, O., The Gift of the Magi, pp. 4, 6

[3] Curry, O. S., et al., Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, Vol. 76, 2018; Hui, B. P. H., et al., Psychological Bulletin, Vol. 146, No. 12, 2020)

[4] Sonja Lyubomisky, professor of psychology and director of the Positive Activities and Well-Being Laboratory at the University of California, Riverside.

[5] Rowland, L. & Curry, O. S., The Journal of Social Psychology, Vol. 159, No. 3, 2019; the Journal of Positive Psychology, Vol. 16, No. 1, 202; Emotion, Vol. 16, No. 6, 2016

[6] Lara Aknin, PhD, an associate professor of psychology at Simon Fraser University in British Columbia, who directs the Helping and Happiness Lab.

[7] Proverbs 11:24-25

[8] Ibid. 19:17

[9] Matthew 10:42

[10] Luke 6:38

[11] 2 Corinthians 9:6-7

[12] 1 John 3:17

BE HOT OR COLD BUT NOT LUKEWARM

Here is something on which we can all meditate. Few things are more challenging than spiritual lukewarmness and a lack of a conscious inward life.[1] Consequently, we have only two things to do: avoid whatever takes our eyes off Jesus and God’s Word. In this way, we can cut off the source of dangerous distractions, which dries up fellowship and prayer.

We cannot expect to find interior heavenly nourishment if we only live for exterior worldly delicacies. Strict watchfulness in giving up whatever makes us eager and impetuous in conversations that leave out God. It is an absolute necessity if we want to nurture the life force of remembrance and prayer.[2] No one can relish both God and the world simultaneously. Whatever motivation we have that keeps us going throughout our daily schedule, we must include the appointed time for prayer.

Then, after cutting down whatever nonspiritual excesses are distracting our minds, we must maintain constant communion with God, even amid   our daily life and work schedules, guarding against stubborn self-will. We must continually act according to the leading of grace and in the spirit of self-denial. It occurs by degrees. Then we will be victorious by frequently checking our impulsiveness and listening attentively to God’s voice, letting Him possess us entirely.[3]

Archbishop François Fénelon

 (1651-1725)

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[1] Revelation 3:16

[2] Luke 22:19; cf. 1 Corinthians 11:24-25

[3] Fénelon, François: Paraclete Giants, The Complete Fénelon, Translated and Edited by Robert J. Edmonson, Paraclete Press, Brewster, Massachusetts, 2008, pp. 51-52; Vocabulary and grammar redacted by Dr. Robert R Seyda

NEW TESTAMENT CONTEXTUAL COMMENTARY

By Dr. Robert R Seyda

FIRST EPISTLE OF JOHN

CHAPTER FOUR (Lesson XLIII) 03/18/22

^4:6 But we are God’s children; that is why only those who have walked and talked with God will listen to us. Others won’t. That is another way to know whether a message is really from God, for if it is, the world won’t listen to it.

In other words, Schnackenburg wants us to see that when John speaks of the spirit that influences the speaker, if we “know God,” it will be easy to discern between God’s Spirit of truth and the world’s spirit of error. And the best way is to listen to their message and watch their behavior. Although they may claim to have God’s anointing, they are false teachers if their words do not match those of the Scriptures. But when an anointed minister of God preaches and their message is backed by what God’s Word says, and their behavior is what the Scriptures call for, you’ll know God’s Spirit inspires them. You don’t need to try and get hold of, speak with, or get to know the spirit involved to realize whether they are false or genuine. Just match their words with God’s and their conduct with that of the Apostles, and you’ll know.[1]

Donald W. Burdick (1917-1996) says that in these first six verses, the Apostle John points out two tests by which it is possible to distinguish between the false and true prophets. One is the content of their message: Do they confess Jesus as God’s Son come in human flesh? The other test is the character of their members: Who listens to them? The people of God, or the people of the world? After all, some worldly people were teaching heavenly things, and some blessed servants were teaching earthly things. So, believers must have some gauge to measure the difference. This is John’s method of distinguishing “the spirit of truth” from “the spirit of error.[2]

Peter S. Ruckman (1921-2010) has an interesting thought on what the Apostle John says here about false spirits and false prophets. Ruckman says it is not incidental a false prophet shows up in John’s Book of Revelation.[3] Instead, when you put him in a “diabolic trinity,” including a false father, fake son, and unholy spirit, it comes out as “BAAL” – a phony god, (the Father); “BALAK”—a counterfeit god, (the Son); and “BALAAM”—a fictitious god, (the Spirit).[4]

Ruckman goes on to say that there are four spirits which operate in the world, according to the infallible Holy Scriptures: (1) The spirit of BEASTS;[5] (2) The spirit of MAN;[6] (3) The Spirit of the LORD;[7] (4) and the spirit of SATAN.[8] “Spiritual discernment” is necessary for “testing the spirits” when they are in a place or have been in an area. The discerning of spirits such as a “message of wisdom” and a “message of knowledge” is “prophetic gifts,” and not “sign gifts” such as working of “miracles;” to another “prophecy;” to another “discerning of spirits;” to another “various kinds of tongues;” to another the “interpretation of tongues.”[9] These are the things by which believers are equipped to try the spirits.[10]

Raymond E. Brown (1928-1998) points out that the three “they are of God”[11] statements in the present chapter would give a neat progression to the “Spirit belongs to God.”[12] Therefore, the “you are of God”[13] because the One who is in us, namely the Spirit, confesses with our spirit, it is so. The fact is, those who know God were the ones who listen to the message of truth preached and verified as being of God.[14] So, in the Apostle John’s mind, those who carry the Good News are a “mouthpiece” for the Spirit of Truth. [15] So don’t concentrate on the “spirit,” but on the “speaker.” You can’t see or hear the spirit, but you can see and hear them. What they say and how they say it gives the best clue for what spirit inspires their words.

John R. W. Stott (1921-2011) says that verses five and six are best when read together. In them, the Apostle John contrasts strikingly the false prophets and the true apostles (they and we) and the different audiences who listen to them, namely the world and whoever knows God. The world recognizes its people and listens to their message, which originates in its circle and reflects it perspectives. This explains their popularity. We, on the other hand, are from God. (This is not the same as “you are from God” in verse four). So, the question is whether it can be spoken of us as the world; namely, we recognize our people and listen to their message, which originates in our circle and reflects its perspectives. This is how we will recognize the Spirit of truth and the spirit of falsehood because we can test the spirits and “get to know,” which is which, by examining both the message they proclaim through their human instruments and the character of the audience listening to them.[16]

John Phillips (1927-2010) supposes that many would listen to the aged apostle John speaking about the Anointed One, the Lord Jesus – the One he had known well and served so long – and then listen to Cerinthus and his phony philosophical views about the Anointed One. The two Anointed Ones were incompatible, so that person would then have to decide – take sides. We must still take sides today. That’s one reason why God allows cults to arise, to weed out those who are not of God. Those who are of God recognize the truth of God. Eventually, those who are not of God wander off into unbelief or some false teaching.[17]

David E. Hiebert (1928-1995) points out that when the Apostle John said, “we are from God,” some understand the intended scope of the emphatic “we” as a reference to the Christian community or to John and his readers. But the context suggests that the intended contrast is between the false teachers of verse 5 and John and his fellow apostles in verse 6a. The reassuring expression, “We are from God,” reflects the consciousness of certainty and authority manifested by the Anointed One’s chosen and commissioned messengers. It also highlights the masterful tone of Apostolic authority, which is so conspicuous in the opening introduction.[18] It underlies the whole Epistle, as it does the entire Final Covenant. It is the “quiet confidence of conscious strength.”[19]

Warren W. Wiersb (1929-1995) says that a ship’s navigator depends on a compass to help him determine his course. But why a compass? Because it allows him to see what direction he’s going in. And why does the compass point north? Because it responds to the magnetic field that is part of the earth’s makeup. The compass is responsive to the nature of the earth. The same is true with Christian love. God’s nature is love. Our compass, the Word of God, always points us to Him. So, the person who knows God and has been born of God will respond to God’s agápe-love-nature. While the believer may know what direction will take them closer to God, it must be a willing, not forced, response. A believer’s love for their fellow believers will be proof that they are going in the proper direction.[20]

Rudolph Alan Culpepper (1930-2015) says that the earlier reference to the Spirit[21] introduces the need to distinguish between the work of two spirits: truth and deception. This epistle extends the dualism of the Apostle John’s worldview by reference to the two spirits, so it is not surprising that these same parallels can be found in the Dead Sea Qumran scrolls[22] and elsewhere. One test to distinguish truth from deception is that of content.[23] John also adds to the required confession the affirmation that Jesus the Anointed One came “in the flesh.”[24] The opponents who went out from the community either denied that the divine Word could become human or diminished the significance of His humanity in their effort to exalt His divinity. This error led to the heresy known as Docetism, the view that Jesus only seemed to be human. In contrast, here, John demands full recognition of Jesus’ humanity. The second test of the spirits is that of response. The children of God respond to the divine Spirit, while the world responds to the spirit of deception. Therefore, it may be that the opponents were actually winning more converts than were the faithful who remained with the elderly Apostle.[25]

Dwight Moody Smith (1931-2016) says that these first six verses are an important theological section. That’s because it indicates the existence of what we would call heresy and raises the problem of whether and how the claim to speak by the Holy Spirit’s inspiration may be justified and tested. In summary, although certainty about the historical situation of John’s Epistle is unattainable, it is not hard to imagine what has been going on. However, says Smith, a plausible and probable scenario can be constructed – Christian prophets claiming the authority of the Spirit (or of the Anointed One) have been addressing the community. But whether in Spirit-inspired utterance or otherwise, they failed to advocate the necessary and proper confession that Jesus has come in the flesh.[26]

In fact, notes Smith, a generation earlier, Spirit-inspired speech seems to have created problems in Pauline churches. First Corinthians 12-14 attests to such issues, and more specifically, we read of a situation similar to 1 John 4:1-3 in 1 Corinthians 12:1-3.[27] There the proper Christian confession that Jesus is Lord is the mark of inspiration by the Holy Spirit, whereas a statement such as “Jesus be cursed!” cannot be so inspired.[28]

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[1] Schnackenburg, Rudolf: The Johannine Epistles, op. cit., p. 205

[2] Burdick, Donald W., The Epistles of John, op. cit., p. 70

[3] Revelation 13:11-15

[4] Numbers 22:41; cf. 1 Kings 18:19-40; 2 Kings 10:18-28

[5] Ecclesiastes 3:21

[6] 1 Corinthians 2:11

[7] Ibid. 2:12, 14

[8] Mark 3:5; Revelation 13:11; 16:13-14; Acts of the Apostles 5:3

[9] 1 Corinthians 12:4-11

[10] Ruckman, Dr. Peter S., General Epistles Vol. 2 (1-2-3 John, Jude Commentary) (The Bible Believer’s Commentary Series), BB Bookstore. Kindle Edition.

[11] 1 John 4:1, 4, 6 (KJV) “from God” (NIV)

[12] Ibid. 4:2

[13] Ibid. 4:4

[14] Ibid. 4:6

[15] Brown, Raymond E., The Anchor Bible, op. cit., vol. 30, p. 499

[16] Stott, John. The Letters of John (Tyndale New Testament Commentaries), op. cit., pp. 158-159

[17] Phillips, John: Exploring the First Epistle of John, op. cit., p. 134

[18] 1 John 4:1-4

[19] Hiebert, David E., Bibliotheca Sacra, op. cit., October-December 1999, p. 434

[20] Wiersbe, Warren W., Be Real (1 John): Turning from Hypocrisy to Truth, op. cit., pp. 137-138

[21] 1 John 3:24

[22] Dead Sea Scrolls, 1QS III, 13-IV 25

[23] See Deuteronomy 13:1-5

[24] Cf. John 20:31

[25] Culpepper, Rudolph A., Harper’s Bible Commentary, op. cit., loc. cit.

[26] Cf. 1 John 2:7

[27] Cf. John 12:10 and 14:32

[28] Smith, D. Moody. First, Second, and Third John: Interpretation, op. cit., pp. 104-105

NEW TESTAMENT CONTEXTUAL COMMENTARY

by Dr. Robert R Seyda

FIRST EPISTLE OF JOHN

CHAPTER FOUR (Lesson XLII) 03/17/22

^4:6 But we are God’s children; that is why only those who have walked and talked with God will listen to us. Others won’t. That is another way to know whether a message is really from God, for if it is, the world won’t listen to it.

Alan E. Brooke (1863-1939) tells us that if the readers of this Epistle were true to themselves, they would have nothing to fear from the Antichristian spirits at work in the world. By virtue of the new birth, which as genuine Christians, they experienced, they gained the victory over the false prophets, and the fruit of the spiritual success are theirs unless they forfeit them. They did not triumph in their strength. It was God who fought for them and through them. And God is greater than the devil who rules in the world. The false prophets are essentially “of the world.” All that dominates their life and action comes from it. They derived their teaching from the world’s wisdom, not God’s revelation in His Son. And so, their message is welcomed by those who belong to the world. The Apostle John and his fellow teachers are conscious that their new life originated in God. Those of God who live their lives learning to know Him better receive the message in the gradual assimilation of God’s revelation through His Son. It is only rejected by those, not God, and has no interest in knowing Him. The character of those who welcome or reject the message they hear helps us distinguish the spirit of truth from the spirit of falsehood.[1]

David Smith (1866-1932) points out that those getting to know God understands His messengers’ language and listen to it, that is, not just hearing. People’s attitude to the message of the Incarnate Savior ranks them either on God’s side or the worlds. Of course, the Apostle John does not ignore the advice of the Apostle Paul. “We will no longer be immature like children. We won’t be tossed and blown about by every wind of new teaching.”[2] We will not people try to trick us with clever lies that sound like the truth. Instead, we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like the Anointed One, “who is the head of His body, the church.”[3] The message may be the truth and be rejected, not because of the hearers’ worldliness, but because it is wrongly delivered – not graciously and inviting.[4]

Albert Barnes (1872-1951) states that we can distinguish those who cling to the truth from those who do not. Whatever pretensions they might offer to appear religious, it was clear that if they did not embrace the doctrines taught by God’s apostles. Therefore, no one regarded them as God’s friends, as true Christians. The same test applies now to those who do not receive the fundamental doctrines laid down in the Word of God. Whatever hypocrisy they may engage in to look holy, or whatever zeal they may demonstrate in the cause they advocate, can have no well-founded claims to the name Christian. The undeniable evidence of godliness is a readiness to receive all that God’s Word teaches.[5] [6]

Charles H. Dodd (1884-1973) says it is interesting to recall a somewhat similar treatment of false prophecy in the First Covenant. Several of the great prophets were troubled by the appearance of men whose inspiration is superficially similar to theirs, while their influence upon the people is disastrous. In Deuteronomy, [7] there is the case of a false prophet who attempts to lead the people into idolatry. Everyone understood that they must reject him, even though signs and wonders accompany his words. It affords a parallel to the treatment of the matter in verse six. The fundamental doctrine of Judaism is monotheism; no utterance, however inspired, which contradicts the principle of One God, can be accepted as true prophecy. Likewise, the fundamental doctrine of Christianity is the Incarnation; Christians cannot take any so-called inspired utterance which denies Incarnation as true prophecy.

Both religions recognize the freedom of the Spirit, and both owe something of their essential character to its exercise. But both of necessity draw a line beyond which the demands of some fundamental truth restrain such freedom. Most Christian Declarations of Faith begin this way: “We believe in one God eternally existing in three persons – Father, Son, and Spirit. The Father has remained invisible; the Son was manifested in human flesh, and the Spirit has been demonstrated in the form of a dove, wind, and fire.” All of this is substantiated by Scripture. To violate such a creed is to deny the Word of God.[8]

Rudolf Bultmann (1884-1976) states that the difference between the spirit of truth and the spirit of deception becomes discernible in whether the proclaimed Word is listened to or not. “Spirit of truth” naturally means the same thing as “Spirit of God.”[9] The “spirit of error” is satanic power at work in the false teachers. These are they of whom it is said in that “they would deceive you,”[10] and “against whom” warns: “let no one deceive you.”[11] The entire section 4:1-6 sets in bold relief the decisive contrast between “God’s kingdom” and “Satan’s world,” truth and delusion, and thus true faith and false teaching.[12]

Greville P. Lewis (1891-1976) raises an issue that most of us have pondered during our ministry. What did the Apostle John mean when he said, “We speak for the whole Church?” He says he represents those who “know God,” namely, those who have a vital experience of Him. They are the ones who will listen to our message. But, as expected, John says those will ignore what we say.[13]

Like similar words of Jesus, [14] this statement says Lewis suggests that some people are potential Christians by their very nature, and others are not. Are there two sorts of people; those drawn to God and those who pay Him no attention? Does this explain why some people listen to our messages, and some have nothing to do with it? It is a mystery – and John is not dealing with it; his only purpose is to encourage the faithful by assuring them that heretics have little access to God, but they have unlimited access to Him for believers.[15]

William Barclay (1907-1978) hears the Apostle John tell his readers that they need not be afraid of the heretics. The Anointed One has already won the victory of all evil powers and has given us the same ability to be victorious.[16] The main problem we face as believers is that these false teachers will neither listen to nor accept the truth, we offer them from God’s Word. That’s logical, for how can anyone who believes that the basis of life is competition for the survival of the fittest is to understand an ethic whose keynote is service? The answer must be that there are no limits to the grace of God and that there is such a person as the Holy Spirit who can break down every barrier with the power of love. Even if they resist to the end, as their souls leave their bodies, they will still hear Jesus knocking at the door, asking if He can come in.[17] [18]

William Neil (1909-1979) notes that the Apostle John tells his community, “We must be careful!” It was needed to distinguish who speaks the truth in God’s Spirit’s power and those who left the Church. The test is whether they believe and proclaim that Jesus the Anointed One was human. We must distinguish between those who speak the truth in God’s Spirit and those saying what is not true. These were spokesmen for the antichrist, such as those who left the Church. Only when they confess that Jesus the Anointed One was divine and human. This is the truth that will prevail until the end, when He returns. Not to believe this will disqualify anyone from being counted as a child of God.[19]

Paul Waitman Hoon (1910-2000) summarizes that all the Apostle John has said in the last three verses fits together: evil character, false thinking, false speaking, rejection of truth, and world-mindedness. What a worldly person says tells us more about them than anything else. That’s why they all understand each other so well. As the old saying goes, “Birds of a feather flock together.”[20] They live by their standards, values, and ethics. They bestow their rewards for certain behavior. They don’t like correction or punishment because what they do is so natural. How can you discipline someone for being themselves? Tragically, says Hoon, there is comradeship in evil as in good, in error as in truth.[21] [22]

Rudolf Schnackenburg (1914-2002) states that the Apostle John’s “belonging to God” is now referred to as “knowing” Him, an expression the Gnostics used as a slogan in their interests.[23] Earlier, John deprived them of this weapon when discussing moral issues.[24] Then he assured his readers that it is they who knew.[25] This time, in dealing with faith, he insists that those who know God listens to the Christians. Curiously, knowing God is represented not as the goal but as the origin of the religious pilgrimage. It means the same thing as “belonging to the truth”[26] and possessing the “Spirit of truth.”

Now here in verse six, John does not take up or recapitulate the rules for distinguishing the spirits as in verses two and three, for the phrase “knows God” can hardly refer back that far. Instead, it means that we can see from their behavior who listens to the Anointed One’s message and which spirit laid hold of them. The words “the spirit” are not the human spirit influenced by truth or error, like “every spirit” in verses 2b and 3a. Rather, as the article also shows, it is the driving power, like “the Spirit of God” in verse two and the “spirit of the antichrist” in verse three. The term “Spirit of truth” reminds us of the Paraclete sayings in the farewell discourses.[27]As in verse three, the phrase “the Spirit of truth” avoids personalizing the opposing power but marks the influence as of satanic origin.[28]

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[1] Brooke, Alan E., A Critical and Exegetical Commentary, op. cit., p. 114

[2] Ephesians 4:14

[3] Ibid. 4:15

[4] Smith, David: Expositor’s Greek Testament, op. cit., p. 190

[5] Matthew 18:1-3; Mark 10:15 James 1:19-21; Cf. Isaiah 8:20

[6] Barnes, Albert: New Testament Notes, op. cit., pp. 4862-4863

[7] Deuteronomy 13:1-4

[8] Dodd, Charles: The Johannine Epistles, The Moffatt New Testament Commentary, op. cit., pp. xix, 99

[9] Cf. 1 John 2:17

[10] Ibid. 2:26

[11] Ibid. 3:7

[12] Bultmann, Rudolf: Hermaneia, Critical and Historical Commentary, op. cit., p. 61

[13] Cf. 1 Corinthians 2:11-12

[14] See Matthew 11:25; John 8:7; 10:27

[15] Lewis, Greville P., Epworth Bible Commentary, the Johannine Epistles, op. cit., pp. 95-96

[16] Romans 8:31, 37; 1 Corinthians 15:57; 2 Corinthians 2:14; Philippians 4:13

[17] Revelation 3:20

[18] Barclay, William: The Daily Study Bible, op. cit., pp. 107-108

[19] Cf. John 1:12

[20] The phrase ‘birds of the same feather flock together’ is at least over 476 years old. It was in use as far back as the mid-16th century. Early British Anglican Reformation leader Dr. William Turner is said to have used a version of this expression in The Huntyng and Fyndyng out of the Romish fox , from the year 1545: “Byrdes of on kynde and color flok and flye allwayes together.” He was speaking of the Roman Catholic Church.

[21] Hoon, Paul W., The Interpreter’s Bible, op. cit., 1 John, Exegesis, p. 277

[22] Neil, William: Harper’s Bible Commentary, op. cit., p. 529

[23] 1 John 2:4

[24] Ibid. 2:3-6

[25] Ibid. 2:13-14

[26] John 18:37

[27] Ibid. 14:17; 15:26; 16:13

[28] Cf. 1 John 4:4

NEW TESTAMENT CONTEXTUAL COMMENTARY

By Dr. Robert R Seyda

FIRST EPISTLE OF JOHN

CHAPTER FOUR (Lesson XLI) 03/16/22

^4:6 But we are God’s children; that is why only those who have walked and talked with God will listen to us. Others won’t. That is another way to know whether a message is really from God, for if it is, the world won’t listen to it.

Dr. Haupt’s statement “the church turned away from all error” was in reference to the church of his day. Looking at what the Lord Jesus from heaven told John to write in his letters to these churches, [1] we learn how well they listened to the Apostle John’s words in this epistle. So, the question we might ask is, “Should Christians today still practice the ‘testing’ of the spirits to see if they are holy or unholy?” Some would say, “Absolutely Yes!” Perhaps more than ever before in this 21^st century. The main point of John’s testing was that Jesus was the Messiah, the Son of God who came to earth to be clothed in a human body so that He could die and be raised from the dead as a human and offer all the benefits to us, humans. The question today might be from a different angle: “Do you believe that God’s Son, Jesus the Anointed One, is the only way to salvation, and obeying His teachings is the only way to heaven?” Try it; you might be surprised by the answers you get.

Ernst Hermann von Dryander (1843-1922) proposes that we contemplate the tremendous contrasts which the Apostle John places before us; the Spirit of God, on the one hand, the spirit of antichrist on the other – the Spirit of truth and the spirit of error. Many between these are brought face to face with the alternatives: this or that – one or the other – the Anointed One or antichrist. But, first, we must decide on which side do we stand? Whether it leads the innermost resolved of our spirit – to God or the world? To what place does our compass needlepoint in directing our thoughts, wishes, and ideals – heavenwards or earthwards?

It means, says Dryander, first we must prove the spirits with care and earnestness in order to see whether we really desire to belong to our Lord Who came in the flesh to save us! And for those who do so, this confession is not a mere matter of the lips, not a catechism learned by repetition, no inherited orthodoxy. These do not necessarily touch the heart, strengthen the will, or alter the manner of life; they can all go hand in hand with an evil spirit. To confess means to abide in Him, see Him, and know Him in spirit. Confessing Him means dedicating our whole being to Him – body, soul, and spirit. It means a purer life together with a steadfast belief in the articles of our faith, and therefore a real spiritual relationship with Him. Nothing is more damaging to Gospel teaching and disquieting to our Lord than mere observance of Church law, which is only a matter of the head but not of the heart, and therefore of no value for living a sanctified life.

So, prove yourself, whether you are “of God.” Pray for the “Spirit of truth,” that you may be enlightened. Do not fear painful humiliation if you are forced to accuse yourself of being a true Christian. Instead, turn to Him if you find that the attractions of the world are trying to seduce you. We are God’s property. We know God hears us, even if others won’t listen to our testimony. That’s how we know the difference between the Spirit of truth and the spirit of error. Dryander then closes with lyrics from a hymn sung in his day.[2]

Come, Holy Ghost, our souls inspire,

And lighten with celestial fire;

Thou the anointing Spirit art,

Who dost Thy sevenfold gifts impart;

Thy blessed unction from above

Is comfort, life, and fire of love. [3]

George Gillanders Findlay (1849-1919) says that the words “hereby,” then “we know,” as the conclusion of the Apostle John’s test of trying the spirits are all reduced and traced to this. Here is found their doctrinal spring and practical stream. The Church’s confession and the faith that carries this confession to victory within the heart and intellect originate from the witness given by Jesus the Anointed One’s disciples, entered for all time in the record of Scripture. We believe in Him, as Jesus said, through their word.[4] The spiritual consciousness of the Church is inseparable from its historical roots in the Final Covenant.

However, the spirits of the present age are boasting and arrogant in their judgments, notes Findlay. They say that what they say has high qualities and is charged with mighty influences gathered from the past, but it is changeable and passing, like the spirits of every age. There are things superior to its verdict, which will not wither under opposing views. The Eternal Spirit spoke in the words of Jesus and His witnesses; the time-spirits, one after another, receive inspiration from the mouth of the one for whom judgment is waiting. The history of human thought is, in effect, a continued “trying of the spirits” as to “whether they are of God.”

That’s why, says Findlay, the Gnosticism of the Apostle John’s Day, attempted to weigh the Gospel, the Anointed One, and the Apostolic doctrine on its critical scales. Every subsequent encounter between the Spirit of the Anointed One and Antichrist has had the same issue. Our Lord’s incarnation is the test of every creed and system. God’s Word is the rock on which “Anyone who stumbles over that stone will be broken to pieces, and it will crush anyone it falls on,”[5] and yet, the house built on the foundation of the rock did not fall.[6] [7]

William Macdonald Sinclair (1856-1917) says it is most important to notice that this examination of truth and error is taught to all alike, not merely on an ordained and materially separate class.[8] Sinclair also addresses what we have seen other commentators remark about a curious old reading mentioned by Socrates, the historian, namely, “every spirit that destroys (or, dissolves) Jesus the Anointed One.” It is, however, evidently, a marginal note, written against the Gnostics, which crept into the text. It is clear that this sixth verse presupposes an evangelistic presentation of the Anointed One before any suggestion that He was not God in human flesh could be made.[9]

The Apostle John feels the serious duty, in condemnation of Cerinthus and other opponents, to assert the genuine truth and divine authority of the apostolic Gospel. There could be no spiritual pride in this; it was a conscientious obligation. God spoke through them, and their loyalty, but repudiations or compromise were forbidden.[10] When heretics said, “The Anointed One ought to have said this or that,” the Apostles had only to reply, “But He didn’t say that.” The criterion here is much the same as in verses two and three, but regarded from different points of view: paying no attention to false innovators, or faithful obedience to the Jesus the Anointed One of history.[11]

Charles Gore (1853-1932) says that those of us today who try to be intelligent persons, do not find intellectual decisions that easy. We like to see good on all sides and in all opinions. But the Apostle John is intensely persuaded that there is a mortal struggle going on between good and evil, between truth and falsehood, between the Anointed One and the devil. That’s why he seeks to go to the root principle of every claim and determine whether it is, at the root and so in its ultimate issues, for the Anointed One or against Him. It cannot be both. And he sees the root principle of Christian truth in the real incarnation of God in Jesus. And with an unfaltering decision, he proclaims and applies this test. And here, in these first six verses, he proclaims this doctrinal test as if it stood alone and there were no others. But then immediately the note changes. He shows the reason for this zeal for the theological truth. It is because it is the ground, the only adequate ground, of the conviction that God is Love and Love is the only true energy of the believer’s life.[12]

Arno C. Gäbelein (1861-1945) notes that the test as to the Spirit of truth and the spirit of error is stated in verse six: “We belong to God, and those who know God listen to us. If they do not belong to God, they do not listen to us. That is how we know if someone has the Spirit of truth or the spirit of deception.” The test is the Apostle John’s doctrine. This Epistle contains a significant revelation of the Anointed One’s doctrine. They contain the “many things” which the Lord spoke of when on earth, and which would be revealed when the Holy Spirit came. He has come and has made known the blessed things which eye has not seen, nor ear heard, the things which God has prepared for them that love Him, [13] but which are now revealed by His Spirit, the Spirit of truth. The spirit of error denies these doctrines.[14] It’s not so much that the world doesn’t want to listen to our message of blessings and eternal life, they just don’t like what they must agree to and do to become eligible for those blessings and eternal life.

Archibald T. Robertson (1863-1934) says that in sharp contrast with the false prophets and the world. We are in tune with the Infinite God. That’s why the one who knows God keeps on getting acquainted with God, growing in his knowledge of God. Another thing, says Robertson, one reason the world has no interest in what we preach is because some sermons are dull and not inspiring. There is a touch of mysticism here, to be sure, but the heart of Christianity is mysticism (spiritual contact with God in the Anointed One by the Holy Spirit). John had felt the cold, indifferent, and hostile stare of worldly listeners as he preached Jesus.[15] On way to make sermons more interesting and inspiring is to interpret the Scriptures to help explain our message instead of using our message to interpret the Scriptures. It’s called “Expository Preaching.”

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[1] Revelation 2:1-3:22

[2] Dryander, Ernst Hermann von: Addresses on the First Epistle of John, op. cit., Address XI, Logos

[3] Come, Holy Ghost, our Souls Inspire by Rabanus Maurus (776-856 AD), trans. John Cosin (1594-1672 AD)

[4] John 17:20

[5] Matthew 21:44

[6] Ibid. 7:25

[7] Findlay, George G., An Exposition of the Epistles of St. John, op. cit., Chap. XIX, p. 326

[8] Cf. 1 Corinthians 10:15; 11:13; 12:10; Ephesians 5:10; 1 Thessalonians 5:21

[9] Cf. 1 John 2:18

[10] Cf. John 18:37

[11] Sinclair, William M., A New Testament for English Readers, Ed. Charles J. Ellicott, op. cit., Vol. III, pp. 487-488

[12] Gore, Charles: The Epistles of St. John, op. cit., §7.1, p. 170

[13] 1 Corinthians 2:9-10

[14] Gäbelein, Arno C., The Annotated Bible, op. cit., p. 154

[15] Robertson, Archibald T., Word Pictures of the New Testament, op. cit., p. 1961

NEW TESTAMENT CONTEXTUAL COMMENTARY

By Dr. Robert R Seyda

FIRST EPISTLE OF JOHN

CHAPTER FOUR (Lesson XL) 03/15/22

^4:6 But we are God’s children; that is why only those who have walked and talked with God will listen to us. Others won’t. That is another way to know whether a message is really from God, for if it is, the world won’t listen to it.

Daniel Steele (1824-1914) says that “The world listens to those who express their thoughts; the Christian listens to those who teach God’s thoughts.” The readiness to hear springs from a living, growing knowledge, which welcomes and appropriates the truth. The phrase “He who is not of God” does not exclude true moral responsibility. They have determined their character by the perverse attitude of their will, by which they shut out “the Spirit of truth,” which enables the seeking soul to see it. In the absence of the Spirit of truth, the evil spirit, the father of lies, fills the empty and darkened soul with various forms of religious error. That makes them vulnerable to misbelief, disbelief, and unbelief.[1]

William Lincoln (1825-1888) says that the meaning of the expression “We are of God” is this: We, who are the apostles of God, witness how the Anointed One lived; we testify what the Anointed One’s path was; we know that the way of the Anointed One was the path of humbleness; this the world does not want to hear. I have sometimes listened to these words commented on this way, says Lincoln: No one is as divinely inspired today as the Apostle John was then, and, therefore, no one may speak so authoritatively as John did. That is true enough, but that hardly touches the sentiment of the passage; it has a deal more in it than that. The meaning is that the inspired apostles of the Lord and Savior testify that the path of the Lord Jesus was a road, from up to down, a way of self-humiliation, a path of taking the lower place, looking for God to exalt Him in His time. That’s why John said the world was not interested in listening to them, but the children of God are the ones who need to listen. That is the meaning of the passage.[2]

Henry A. Sawtelle (1832-1913) says that by the Apostle John saying “We are of God,” he means that we are allied to Him in spiritual nature through the new birth; in contrast with the antichrists. And as such, we understand God’s message and preach it. By “we,” John means especially himself and the true teachers, not excluding, however, any of the spiritual body. The Church speaks doctrine through its teachers. Practical knowledge is the knowledge that receives its object. The hearing is more than what enters the ear; it is willing to adopt the teaching as agreeing with the heart’s knowledge of God. The heart and the doctrine are in one sphere.

On the other hand, those not of God won’t listen to us. They do not have the spiritual mind, [3] but the unspiritual, which goes after the separatists, prefers human philosophy to the true word. We should know that the one which most readily hears shows what spirit they have, to what nature or sphere they belong. Knowledge is a quality, hence the knowledge of discrimination – the Spirit of truth and the spirit of error. The Spirit of truth is the Holy Spirit in His relation to truth.[4] The spirit of error is the devil’s source of all false doctrine. They who welcome the Anointed One’s doctrines have the Spirit who gives them. Those whose soul takes naturally to false doctrine are in kinship with the arch seducer, liar, and wanderer.[5]

Sawtelle also believes that the last words of verse six look back to the opening words of this chapter, while verse seven looks forward to the following message John wants to share. Greek word scholar W. E. Vine says that the resumption of the subject of brotherly love is not by way of a sharp break from what has immediately preceded. On the contrary, it is closely connected with it, since the Spirit of Truth produces love, whereas the spirit of error is ever against it. Love proceeds from God. The anti-Christian spirit is selfish. This first of three parts of the epistle, dealing with brotherly love, was shown to be characteristic of walking in the light.[6] It is presented as a characteristic of God’s children and a mark of their righteous conduct[7] and is shown to proceed from God as being essentially His attribute and as having been manifested by Him in the Anointed One.[8] John Stott sees it as a summary of all that has been said before.[9] Either way, it all goes together regardless of chapter and verse divisions.

John James Lias (1834-1923) says that what the Apostle John writes here generally refers to teachers only. However, there is at least a secondary reference to all Christians both here and in verse fourteen. Certainly, they are all “of God,” if there be anything genuine in their Christianity. And as every Christian is bound to “give a reason for the hope that is in them,”[10] many to whom the Gospel has not been formally preached by the Anointed One’s ministers may have been able to “hear” the truth. So, the Apostle first (verse four) addresses his flock. John includes them in the same category as himself.[11]

Lias then admits that many tests exist to identify true Christians. Are those believers guided by the Spirit of the Anointed One, or not? (1) Do they seek to conform their opinions to those around them? Do they seek to avoid inconvenience or danger, or are they zealous for the truth and for it alone? (2) Do they seek to lead an easy life, cultivate the good opinion of their fellowman, and obtain from them what present advantages they can? Or do they set before them steadily what is right as their aim and object? (3) Do they endeavor to attain a standard not of this world but of the one above? Many call themselves disciples of the Anointed One, but we must renounce the world to be truly His.[12] [13]

A. T. Pierson (1837-1911) says that the secret of overcoming Satan is “He that is in you.” It refers to God, and “he that is in the world” refers to the devil. The first thought that strikes us is that there is no attempt in the Bible to deny or dispute the significant influence of Satan. On the contrary, the Bible represents Satan as the head of a great army of foes. If you examine the Epistles to the Ephesians and Colossians, you will find there seem to be seven grades of fallen angels, as there are seven grades of unfallen angels. We read of “Principalities,” “Powers,” “Dominions,” “Authorities,” “Rulers,” “Thrones,” “Wicked Spirits,” etc., and above them all, there is a rank of archangels or chief angels. So, we are to imagine Satan as the highest over the ranks of fallen angels.

Nevertheless, says Pierson, we are urged to remember that although Satan is powerful, let us look for a moment at the sovereignty of Jesus the Anointed One. In the first place, Jesus the Anointed One has all power. Satan has great power but not omnipotence. The Anointed One is not only a God of all power, but He is a God of all wisdom. Satan is wise, but he is not omniscient, and the Anointed One is. Then, Jesus, the Anointed One, is everywhere present. He is in your heart, and my heart, and the heart of every disciple, by the Holy Spirit, so that a true child of God we may still say, “He that is in you is greater than he that is in the world,” since He is the all-powerful, the all-wise, and the all-present God.[14]

God would have us contemplate this significant fact, that if Jesus the Anointed One dwells in us by the Holy Spirit, He makes us strong to overcome Satan, as Jesus was powerful enough to overcome the devil in the desert and in the Garden of Gethsemane, and that is the secret of our triumph over evil. We are told that when Hercules was a baby, some serpents came into the room and wound their way into the cradle and tried to sting him and fold their coils around him to choke the life out of him. But we are told in the fable that he just took hold of the necks of these serpents and strangled them to death with his little hands. So, God would have you feel that as a baby, the Anointed One rocked you in the cradle of the Church.

When you come into contact with the great serpent, the devil, if Jesus is in you, you can beat back the serpent, so he cannot strangle you. But remember this, that you are only strong when you are on the Lord’s ground, not on the devil’s ground. Pierson says he read a story about a swan walking on the shore of a lake, and a wolf came up and ran after the swan and would have torn it into pieces. But the swan said, “I am not strong on the land, but I am strong on the water.” So, it plunged into the water. Then, when the wolf followed, the swan with its strong bill gripped the wolf by the ears, pulling his head down under the water, and drowned him. There are a great many people who try to fight the devil on his territory, and they always get defeated, but if you meet the devil on the Lord’s ground, you will defeat him.[15]

Robert Cameron (1839-1904) reminds us that Satan is great in power, wisdom, and resources to attain his devilish ends. He molds the world, of which he is the energizing power. It lives, moves, and has its immoral and intellectual being in him. He dictates its laws, its code of honor, and its ethics. He is the ruler of its darkness. Likewise, he aims to have the religious part of this world content with the form instead of the power of godliness. He throws himself into the world’s moods and controls its longings. Then, when all is to his liking, he prepares his prophets and teachers to gratify its palate. Sometimes they are people of truth as well as of falsehood; sometimes, they are saintly individuals and even men and women of prayer who wander away from fellowship with God. Then he brings the characters he has doctored into contact with the diseased world and skillfully adjusts the one to the other. His prepared doctrines draw their inspiration from the world in its spirit, tendencies, and aims, and “the world listens to them.”

Erich Haupt’s (1841-1926) summation is that verses four through six contain testing the spirits. The relation between the Christian and the anti-Christian spirit is accordingly the means used by the Apostle John to bring out his subject. It is not the end he has in view: his sole end is that the Holy Spirit is the energy and spring of all spiritual activity. Therefore, trying the spirits appears at once in the fourth verse. It is declared a fact that John’s readers have the Holy Spirit and are, therefore, of God. This is John’s main proposition, which everything else leads up to. But this, of course, implies at the same time that the victory over the antichrists is achieved. That victory is accomplished (perfected) in that the church turned away from all error, and witnessed the good confession laid down in the preceding words, it has already been successful in the conflict and overcomes the anti-Christianity: yet not indeed in its power, but through the power of the Holy Spirit directing in it.

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[1] Steele, Daniel: Half-Hour, op. cit., pp. 101-102

[2] Lincoln, William: Lectures on the Epistles of St. John, op. cit., Lecture VI, p. 112

[3] John 10:8; See 1 Corinthians 2:16

[4] John 14:17

[5] Sawtelle, Henry A., An American Commentary, Alvah Hovey Ed., op. cit., p. 48

[6] 1 John 2:7-11

[7] 1 John 3:10-18

[8] 1 John 4:7-21

[9] Sawtelle, Henry A., op. cit.

[10] 1 Peter 3:15

[11] Lias, John James: The First Epistle of St. John with Exposition, op. cit., p. 300

[12] See Matthew 6:19-21 Romans 12:2; 2 Corinthians 6:14-17; Colossians 3:2; James 4:4; 1 John 2:15-17

[13] Lias, John James: The First Epistle of St. John with Homiletical Treatment, op. cit., p. 303

[14] Pierson, A. T. An Exposition of the First Epistle of John, op. cit., Lecture XXX, p. 295

[15] Ibid. Biblical Illustrator, First Epistle of John, op. cit., p. 24

NEW TESTAMENT CONTEXTUAL COMMENTARY

by Dr. Robert R Seyda

FIRST EPISTLE OF JOHN

CHAPTER FOUR (Lesson XXXIX) 03/14/22

^4:6 But we are God’s children; that is why only those who have walked and talked with God will listen to us. Others won’t. That is another way to know whether a message is really from God, for if it is, the world won’t listen to it.

Sir Rowland Hill (1795-1879), English teacher, inventor, and social reformer, reminisces that there was a pastor who addressed several candidates for the ministry, and as he was going from one theme to another, he paused and said, let me tell you a story. Having amassed comfortable independence, a well-known barber retired to his hometown, becoming a preacher in a small chapel. Another person from the same village, being similarly fortunate, settled there and attended the former barber’s church. This other gentleman wanted a new toupée and said to his pastor, “Perhaps you could make one for me.” The Pastor/barber readily agreed. The poorly made hairpiece came to the gentleman’s home at double the usual price. The good gentleman said nothing, but when the barber/preacher said anything worth listening to, the gentleman’s first thought was, “That’s excellent, but I can’t forget his overcharging me for the toupée.” When the preacher/barber prayed with apparent anointing, he also thought, “This should touch my heart, but I can’t forget the toupée.” Now, my dear young brethren, said the pastor wherever you are assigned to minister, don’t forget the toupée.[1] In other words, actions speak louder than words.

Charles Hodge (1797-1878) insists that the power granted by the Anointed One to His Church of binding and loosening, of forgiving or retaining sin, is not absolute but conditional.[2] For example, our Lord said to His disciples, “They who hear you, hear Me.”[3] That means people are required to believe the Gospel preached by the disciples as if they heard it from the lips of the Anointed One. If these words are to be understood as addressed exclusively to the Apostles and include a promise of infallibility in teaching, the meaning is substantially the same. People were as much bound to receive the Apostles’ doctrines, as teachings of the Anointed One, for what He taught, they taught. That’s why the Apostle John says here in verse six that the people who know God listen to us.[4]

Albert Barnes (1798-1870) says that we can distinguish those who embrace the truth from those who do not. Whatever pretensions they might offer for being a devout Christian, it was clear that if they did not embrace the doctrines taught by the true apostles of God, they could not be regarded as His friends; that is, as true Christians. It may be added that the same test is applicable now. Those who do not receive the doctrines laid down in God’s Word, whatever pretenses in their devotion to God and the Church, or whatever zeal they may offer in the cause they promote, can have no well-founded claims to the name Christian. One of the most unmistakable pieces of evidence of true reverence is the readiness to receive all that God taught through His Son.[5] [6]

Robert Smith Candlish (1806-1873) outlines the importance of these first six verses in order to ask a question that guarantees our full and final victory over antichrist and his spirit lies in the emphatic declaration: “Greater is He that is in you, than he that is in the world.” He that is in you is the Spirit of God; for “hereby we know that God abides in us, by the Spirit which He gave us;”[7] the Spirit that, being of God, “confesses that Jesus the Anointed One is manifested in the flesh.”[8] He that is in the world is the spirit of antichrist, “whereof you have heard that it should come, and even now, it is already in the world.”[9] Therefore, you who “are of God have overcome the spirits”[10] – the “spirits” are false prophets “that are gone out into the world.”[11] They are of the world; what they teach is what worldly people love to hear.[12] We, the true teachers, are of God; what we speak is of God; and meets with the acceptance, not of those who are not of God, but of those who, being of God, knows God. With this test, the spirit of truth in us is distinguished from the spirit of error in them.[13] So, from whom do you obtain the truth?[14]

Then Candlish explains that the spirit of error and the spirit of truth are everywhere, and it may be these sifting, trying, critical days at hand. What is to be your protection? How are you to be prepared? Let me warn you, says Candlish, discerning the spirit of error is not done with head knowledge, nor logic, or rhetoric, or philosophy, or theology; nor creeds, or catechisms, or confessions; nor early training in fundamental manuals; nor familiarity with the brightest and most fundamental writings; nor skill in argument and debate. Nothing will do but God in you; in your heart of hearts; God in the Anointed One dwelling in you; God giving you the Spirit.

A personal experience will bring that blessed assurance to keep you safe. For as the person not of God won’t listen to our truth who speak under the anointing, they know God will not listen to the false prophets. So, the Good Shepherd Himself assures us. He “goes before the sheep, and they follow Him, for they know His voice; they will not follow strangers but flee from them, for they are unfamiliar with strangers’ voices.[15] My Father is the one who gave them to me, and He is greater than all.  No one can steal My sheep out of His hand.”[16] [17]

Daniel D. Whedon (1808-1885) says that we follow the true apostolic traditions from the Anointed One, as claimed with bold emphasis by the Apostle John in the first three verses of this chapter. Hence, here is the third test of the antichrist spirits – not following the true Gospel’s history and doctrine, as maintained and declared by John and his fellow apostles. The Apostle Paul seems to have had the same problem with Timothy’s members.[18] As the apostles were the chosen witnesses and pupils of Jesus, their narrative of facts and statements of principles are solely authoritative. The heretics were outsiders. They took their systems from the spirit of the age – the world – mixed them with Christian dogma and undertook to hand an unhistorical, unauthentic pseudo-Christianity to the Church.[19]

William Graham (1810-1883) tells us that this strong confidence of faith, expressed in the words “You are of God,” is what sustained England’s reformation fathers in many a dark and cloudy day. They were contending face-to-face like believers against the Romish antichrist, for the right to worship God according to the Scripture, and planted in tears and blood the tree of liberty, under whose shade British Protestants now enjoy such expansion and restfulness. So, it is with the individual soul as well. We fall back upon the confidence that we are of God that His agápe-love has conquered our stubbornness, His mercy pardoned our transgressions, and His promises filled us with humble but immortal hopes. “You are of God,” says the Apostle John, “His creatures, His children, His peculiar treasure, the trees of His planting, the branches of His vine, the stones in His temple, the vessels of His mercy, and the heirs of His heavenly glory. So do not be afraid, little flock; it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you, His kingdom.”[20] [21]

John Stock (1817-1884) writes that when God in His loving mercy converts our souls, He does not destroy their properties but gives them their true and proper direction and use. Any person in union with the Anointed One becomes a new creature; they partake of a newly created life.[22]  Once the abode of chaotic darkness, the mind now has the light of truth to guide it. Former sinners with attitudes, kindled from below and full of hostility toward God, are now delivered, enjoying God’s agápe-love from above, and have a foretaste of heaven. Their will, before aggressive, is now on God’s side, reconciled to God, and submissive to His influence. Their imagination, by which Satan accesses the soul, is cleansed by God’s inspiration and adorns the temple of the soul. Sins are blotted out, the heart quickened of God, made through grace His habitation, the new creation appears as a result of God’s formation, beyond angelic or human power, to His sole glory, and eternal praise!

Dr. Stock continues by issuing this message: Listening to the still small voice of God, contained in His Word, and spoken by Himself, His Prophets, and Apostles will allow us to escape the desolation and the anguish which will come like a whirlwind on those who have no interest in God’s counsel, nor of His discipline.[23] They will find it difficult to escape from the maze of error and enjoy the freedom of the children of Light. This Light and Liberty increases the richness of the Anointed One’s word active in us with wisdom. The more we resemble the Lord, such are blessed, as the Lord Himself affirms, saying, “Blessed are your ears because they hear.”[24] [25]

Charles Ellicott (1819-1904) mentions that this is the anthesis to those not of God. In condemnation of Cerinthus and other opponents, John feels the grave duty to assert the apostolic Gospel’s genuine truth and divine authority. There could be no spiritual pride in this; it was a conscientious obligation. God spoke in them, and their loyalty forbids any denial or accommodation.[26] When heretics said, “The Anointed One ought to have said this or that,” the Apostles had only to reply, “But He didn’t say it.” In other words, “Get real!” The criterion here is much the same as in 1 John 4:2-3, but regarded from a different point of view: attention to false innovators or faithful adherence to Jesus the Anointed One of history.[27]

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[1] Hill, Rowland, His Life, Anecdotes, and Pulpit Sayings by Vernon J. Charlesworth, Hodder and Stoughton, London, 1876, The Barber and the Wig, p. 124

[2] Matthew 18:18 is analogous to many others in the Scriptures and is all to be explained in the same way.

[3] Luke 10:16

[4] Hodge, Charles. Systematic Theology, op. cit., Vol. III, pp. 656-657

[5] Cf. Matthew 18:1-3; Mark 10:15; James 1:19-21

[6] Barnes, Albert: Notes on N.T., op. cit., pp. 4862-4863

[7] 1 John 3:24, 4:13

[8] Ibid. 4:2

[9] Ibid. 4:3

[10] Ibid. 4:4

[11] Ibid. 4:1

[12] Ibid. 4:5

[13] Ibid. 4:6

[14] Candlish, Robert S., First Epistle of John, op. cit., p. 92

[15] John 10:5, 26

[16] Ibid. 10:29

[17] Candlish, Robert S., First Epistle of John, op. cit., pp. 92-93; 102-103

[18] 1 Timothy 1:11-20

[19] Whedon, Daniel D., Commentary of the Bible, op. cit., pp. 273-274

[20] Luke 12:32

[21] Graham, William: A Practical and Exegetical Commentary on the First Epistle of John, op. cit., p. 255

[22] 2 Corinthians 5:17

[23] Proverbs 1:27

[24] Matthew 13:16

[25] Stock, John: Expositions of the First Epistle of John, op. cit., p. 837-338

[26] Cf. John 18:37

[27] Ellicott, Charles. Ellicott’s Bible Commentary for English Readers, p. 16235

CYNICS may ask, how many have profited by the innumerable proverbs and maxims of prudence that have been current in the world for centuries? They will say they’re only used to repeat after some unhappy right has “gone wrong.” When, for instance, a person gambles and loses all they have, including their house, that leads to remembering the old Scottish proverb which declares that “willful waste leads to woeful want.” But did not the gambler know this well-worn saying from early years on down to the   present? But, what good, then, did it do? Are the maxims of morality useless, then because people disregard them? For Christians and Jews, the Book of Proverbs is a great example. But what about other religions?

Here is one to consider from Islamic scholar Omar Khayyām (1048-1131) who was a poet, philosopher, mathematician, astronomer and poet:

“To friends and foes true kindness show; No kindly heart unkindly deeds will do; Harshness will alienate a bosom friend. And kindness reconcile a deadly foe.”

This seems to echo the words of the Apostle Paul, who said, “Never pay back evil with more evil. Do things in such a way that everyone can see you are honorable. ¹⁸ Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone. Dear friends, never take revenge. Leave that to the righteous anger of God. For the Scriptures say, “I will take revenge; I will pay them back,” says the Lord. Instead, “If your enemies are hungry, feed them. If they are thirsty, give them something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals of shame on their heads. Don’t let evil conquer you, but conquer evil by doing good.” (Romans12:17-21)[1]

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[1] Cf. Deuteronomy 32:35; Proverbs 25:21-20