1 John 1

This is the first chapter of 1 John. Unlike other New Testament epistles, it has no greeting from sender to recipients and instead begins directly with testimony about "the Word of life." The discussion of sin at the end of the chapter continues into the opening of 1 John 2.

Outline

• Verses 1–4 "We" testify to having heard, seen, and touched with our hands the Word of life, which was from the beginning. The letter is written so that its readers may share in fellowship with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ, and that their joy may be full.
• Verses 5–7 The message proclaimed is that "God is light." To claim fellowship with him while walking in darkness is to lie. Those who walk in the light have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus cleanses them from all sin.
• Verses 8–10 To say that we have no sin is to deceive ourselves. If we confess our sins, God, who is faithful and just, forgives them.

Key Verses

• 1 John 1:5 "God is light": the description of God from which the teaching of the entire letter proceeds.
• 1 John 1:7 "the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin": links fellowship and atonement together.
• 1 John 1:9 "If we confess our sins": the verse most frequently cited in discussions of the confession and forgiveness of sin.

People and Places

• The Father and the Son: God and Jesus Christ.
• "We": the witnesses who personally saw and heard the Word. The letter does not name them, but tradition identifies them as the apostle John and his companions.
• "You": the believers receiving the letter. No location is mentioned.

Points for Reflection

• "The beginning" and "the Word" in verse 1 parallel John 1. Some interpreters read the emphasis on seeing and touching as directed against Docetism, the view that Jesus only appeared to have a body.
• Verses 8 and 10 bear on the question of the sin that remains in believers. The Reformed tradition often cites these verses as evidence that sin remains even in believers. The Wesleyan tradition teaches "Christian perfection" but explains that it is not a state entirely free of mistakes or weakness, and reads that teaching together with these verses.
• Protestants generally understand the confession in verse 9 as confession made directly to God. The Catholic Church sometimes cites this verse in explaining the sacrament of penance.

In the Korean Church

• First John 1:9 is widely memorized through materials for new-believer nurture and discipleship training as a verse explaining the "assurance of forgiveness," alongside the assurance of salvation.