1 John Sermon Series

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  • Date: Every Sunday until May 3, 2020
  • Time: 10:30am – 12:00pm

Overview of 1 John from esv.org

Author, Date, and Recipients
John the son of Zebedee probably wrote his three NT letters no later than the 90s A.D. He wrote from Ephesus (in present-day western Turkey), perhaps to churches like those mentioned in Rev. 2:8–3:22. John also wrote the Fourth Gospel and the book of Revelation.

The theme of 1 John
First John calls readers back to the three basics of Christian life: true doctrine, obedient living, and faithful devotion. Because “God is light” (1:5), Christ’s followers overcome wicked people who oppose them. God’s Son lives in and among them. He is greater than the spirit of “the antichrist” now in the world (4:3–4). Those who believe in the Son of God have the assurance of eternal life (5:13).

The Setting of 1 John

c. A.D. 85

John likely wrote 1 John from Ephesus, where apparently he had relocated near the time of the fall of Jerusalem to the Romans in A.D. 70. The letter was probably intended to be read by the church in Ephesus and perhaps also by other churches in the surrounding cities. Ephesus was a wealthy and highly influential port city in the Roman province of Asia, and was renowned for its temple of Artemis (Diana).

The Setting of 1 John

Theological Themes of 1 John

God is light (1:5; 2:8) God is love (4:8, 16, 19)
Christians were spiritually dead: then, they “passed out of death into life” (3:14) God loved his people and sent Jesus to die for them (3:16; 4:10, 14, 19; 5:11)
Christians have been born of God (2:29; 3:9; 4:7; 5:1, 4, 18) God gave Christians life (3:14; 4:9; 5:11, 16)
God gave Christians the Spirit (2:20, 27; 3:24; 4:13) along with understanding (5:20) Christians are of/from God/the truth (3:10, 19; 4:4, 6; 5:19)
God abides in Christians, and his Word abides in them (2:14, 24, 27; 3:9, 24; 4:12, 13, 15, 16) Christians abide in God, and thus abide in the light (2:5, 6, 27, 28; 3:6, 24; 4:13, 16)
Christians know God (2:13, 14; 4:6, 7), they know the Father (2:13; 5:20), they know Jesus (1:3; 2:3), and they know the Spirit (4:2, 6) Christians love God (2:5; 4:21; 5:2, 3)
Because they have been born again, have received the Spirit, abide in God as God abides in them, and know and love God, Christians bear observable fruit. They: