First John: 1 John 3:11-18 Contains the Central Theme of First John Lesson # 116

1 John 3:11 For this is the message that you have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another. 12 We should not be like Cain, who was of the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own deeds were evil and his brother’s righteous. 13 Do not be surprised, brothers, that the world hates you. 14 We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers. Whoever does not love abides in death. 15 Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him. 16 By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. 17 But if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him? 18 Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth. (ESV)

1 John 3:11 marks a transition to the sixth major section of the epistle, which is completed in 1 John 3:18.

The first major section of the epistle is 1 John 1:1-4, which serves as the prologue to the epistle.

The second major section is 1 John 1:5-2:2, which addresses the subject of making God out to be a liar by one’s conduct.

The third major section appears in 1 John 2:3-17, which speaks of the old or familiar commandment to love one another and the fourth is 1 John 2:18-27 which addresses the existence of many antichrists or false teachers when John wrote this epistle.

The fifth is 1 John 2:28-3:10, which teaches that the recipients of this epistle will have confidence at the rapture of the church and subsequent Bema Seat Evaluation of the church by continuing to make it their habit of practicing righteousness, which is the direct result of living in fellowship with the Trinity.

The sixth major section is 1 John 3:11-18, which emphasizes the importance of the Lord Jesus Christ’s command in John 13:34 to love one another as He loves.

The chiastic structure of First John reveals that 1 John 3:11-18 which emphasizes the importance of the command to love one another is the most important section in this letter since it is standing in the middle of the letter.

Chiastic structure of First John:

A-1:1-4: Prologue (Eternal Life)

B-1:5-2:2: Making God a Liar by our Walk

C-2:3-17: Familiar Commandment to Love One Another

D-2:18-27: Antichrists

E-2:28-3:10: Confidence by Practicing Righteousness

F-3:11-18: Love One Another

E’-3:19-24: Confidence by Practicing Love for One Another

D’-4:1-6: Antichrists

C’-4:7-5:3: God’s Love and Our Love for Each Other

B’-5:4-12: Making God a Liar by Unbelief

A’-5:13-21: Epilogue (Eternal Life)

The emphasis on love is further developed in sections C and C’ and is mentioned in two other parts of the book, namely, section E and E’ which stand on either side of this central pericope.

Section E address the subject of confidence before God by practicing righteousness and section E’ concerns itself with how a believer can have confidence before God as a result of practicing the command to love one another.

These two concepts are closely connected or intertwined since practicing righteousness expresses itself by obedience to the commands to love God with one’s entire being and one’s neighbor as oneself.

In other words, if a believer is loving God and their neighbor they are practicing righteousness since righteousness is fulfilling one’s obligation to love God with one’s entire being and fulfilling one’s obligation to one’s fellow human being to love them as one would love oneself.

Sections D and D’ deal with those who oppose the gospel and thus oppose the Christian living according to the standard of God’s holiness which involves love for God and for one’s fellow human being.

Section D address the subject of false teachers whose false doctrine threatens the Christian community’s fellowship with God.

Section D’ provides information as to how the Christian community can identify these false teachers and their false doctrine.

The two sections (C and C’) standing on either side of the Antichrists passages develop the central idea of loving one another.

Section C presents the imperatives of fellowship with a holy God, which is obedience to the command to love one another.

It also addresses the subject of the provision of sin and the imperative of confession of sin to God in order to be restored to fellowship with God.

The believer is restored to fellowship with a holy God because of the merits of Jesus Christ and His death on the cross which satisfied the demands of God’s holiness that sin be judged.

Verses 12-14 are poetic sections containing six declarations which address the subject of forgiveness, knowledge of the eternal God and victory over the devil.

John assures his readers that they have been forgiven, they know the eternal God experientially and are thus experiencing fellowship with Him.

He also affirms that they have experienced victory over Satan by their obedience to the Word of God.

This section concludes with a warning that love for the cosmic system of Satan demonstrates a failure to love God.

Section C’ reminds the Christian community that love originates with God and is one of His attributes.

In this section, John reminds them that Jesus Christ’s death on the cross for sinful humanity was the greatest manifestation of the love of God in history.

His readers are the beneficiaries of this love and are thus obligated to love one another.

This section assures the reader that the Spirit testifies or confirms that the believer is experiencing fellowship with God.

The practice of love gives the believer assurance as well that they are experiencing fellowship with God.

John teaches that the one who hates their brother or sister in Christ is not experiencing fellowship with God.

In fact, by obeying the command to love one another, they will know for certain that they are children of God.

The sections B and B’ that stand on either side of the sections devoted to love teach how the believer can call God a liar.

Both B and B’ explicitly mention making God a liar.

Both begin with similar expressions, namely “this is the message” (1:5) and this is the one who comes” (5:6).

In section B, John reminds his readers that they make God a liar when they live their lives in disobedience to God’s Word.

In section B’, he says that they make God a liar by failing to exercise faith in God’s Word.

Unbelief produces disobedience whereas faith produces obedience.

When they exercised faith in Jesus at justification, they receive eternal life and when they obey God’s Word after justification, they will experience eternal life.

Lastly, the prologue and the conclusion or epilogue address the subject of eternal life.

In the former, John testifies to being an eyewitness that Jesus of Nazareth is eternal life incarnate.

In the latter, he assures his reader that they possess eternal life through faith in Jesus at justification and are experiencing eternal life by obedience to his apostolic teaching.

In section A’, he also assures them that when they present a request to God in prayer, they can be confident that they will have these requests fulfilled if they ask them according to His will.

John reminds them again that sin prevents them from experiencing eternal life.

However, they can also be assured of their eternal security because of their faith in Jesus at justification.

Consequently, they are protected from Satan.