1 John 3

This chapter stands at the center of the five chapters of 1 John. Chapter 2 closes with the statement that "every one that doeth righteousness is born of him" (1 John 2:29). Chapter 3 takes up that statement and describes those who are born of God by two marks: righteousness and love.

Outline

• Verses 1–3 Because of the Father's love, believers are called the children of God. When Christ appears, believers will be like Him, and everyone who has this hope purifies himself.
• Verses 4–10 Sin is lawlessness. Christ appeared to take away sins. Whoever is born of God does not commit sin, and the children of God are distinguished from the children of the devil by righteousness and by love for one's brother.
• Verses 11–15 The command to love one another is the message heard from the beginning. Readers are warned not to follow the example of Cain, and whoever hates his brother is called a murderer.
• Verses 16–18 Love is known through Christ's laying down His life. Believers are to help a brother in need and to love not in word but in deed and in truth.
• Verses 19–24 Even when our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart. His commandment is to believe on the name of His Son and to love one another. Believers know that He abides in them by the Spirit He has given.

Key Verses

• 1 John 3:2 "when he shall appear, we shall be like him": speaks in hope of the future consummation awaiting believers who are already children of God.
• 1 John 3:16 "Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us": treats the death of Christ as both the definition and the standard of love.
• 1 John 3:18 "let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth": ties love to concrete acts of sharing.

People and Places

• Cain: mentioned as one who "was of that wicked one, and slew his brother," an example to be avoided. His brother Abel is not named and appears only as "his brother."
• The devil: introduced as the one who has sinned from the beginning. The Son of God was manifested to destroy his works (v. 8).
• No places are mentioned.

Points for Reflection

• The statement "sinneth not" in verses 6 and 9 stands in tension with 1 John 1:8: "If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves." The Reformed tradition generally reads these verses as denying a life of habitual, continuing sin. Methodist and Holiness traditions that follow Wesleyan theology sometimes cite them as one basis for teaching a life that overcomes willful sin in the Spirit, known as "Christian perfection."
• Interpretations of "his seed" (God's seed) in verse 9 vary; it has been identified with the Word, the Holy Spirit, or new life, among other views.
• Genesis 4 does not explain in detail why Abel's offering was accepted. 1 John explains it by contrasting the deeds of the two brothers, while Hebrews 11:4 explains it in terms of Abel's faith.
• "Love one another" (vv. 11, 23) echoes the new commandment of John 13:34. The hope of verse 2 is read together with the teaching that believers will be transformed at the Second Coming (Philippians 3:21).

In the Korean Church

• Verse 18 is frequently cited in sermons on almsgiving, service, and the practice of love.