First John: 1 John 5:15-The Fulfillment of the Child of God’s Prayer Requests are the Result of Experiencing Eternal Life Lesson # 201

1 John 5:13 I have written these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life. 14 And this is the confidence that we have before him: that whenever we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. 15 And if we know that he hears us in regard to whatever we ask, then we know that we have the requests that we have asked from him. (NET)

1 John 5:13 I am writing at this particular time to each and every one of you, specifically, those who believe in the one and only name, namely, God’s one and only Son, in order that each one of you could confirm that each of you is experiencing eternal life. 14 Consequently, this is tantamount to our confidence which each one of us does exist in the state of experiencing in His presence, specifically that, if anyone of us for our own benefit does request anything in accordance with His will, He does hear each one of us. 15 Consequently, if we are confident that He hears each one of us, if anyone of us does at any time request something, then we are confident that we possess the fulfilment our requests, which we are requesting from Him. (My translation)

1 John 5:15 is a result clause which is presenting an eternal spiritual truth or spiritual axiom with regards to prayer and the child of God experiencing fellowship with the Father.

This verse presents the result of the previous assertion recorded in 1 John 5:14 which is a result clause since this verse presents the result of the declarative statement in 1 John 5:13.

The latter asserts that John wrote 1 John 1:1-5:12 in order that the recipients of First John could confirm that they are experiencing eternal life.

Experiencing eternal life is personally encountering the Father through learning and obeying His Word which reveals His will.

Consequently, the child of God gains more practical spiritual wisdom as well as more of the character of Jesus Christ.

1 John 5:14 asserts that John and the recipients of First John possess confidence in the presence of God in the sense that if they for their own benefit ask anything of Him according to His will, He hears these requests.

Therefore, 1 John 5:13-14 teaches that the child of God can possess confidence that God will hear the requests they present to Him in prayer whenever they make these requests according to His will as the direct result of experiencing eternal life, which again speaks of the fellowship with the Father.

Consequently, the believer can possess confidence in prayer that the Father will then answer these requests when they make these requests according to His will as a result experiencing fellowship with Him through obedience to His will.

Now, here in 1 John 5:15, John presents the result of the believer possessing confidence in prayer with the Father that He will hear their requests as a result of experiencing fellowship with Him through obedience to His will.

It teaches that if the child of God is confident that the Father hears them in whatever they ask, then, they are confident that they possess the fulfillment of these prayer requests which they have presented to Him.

So therefore, 1 John 5:15 teaches the child of God can confidently expect the Father to fulfill their prayer requests as a result of being confident that the Father will hear these requests which are according to His will as a result of experiencing fellowship with the Father.

In other words, they will possess confidence that they will receive the fulfillment of their prayer requests as a result of experiencing fellowship with the Father and as a result of presenting these requests according to the Father’s will.

Thus, 1 John 5:15 is an amplification of 1 John 5:14 since the latter asserts that the Father “hears” His children’s request when they pray according to His will while experiencing fellowship with Him while the former teaches that the Father “fulfills” these requests.

In other words, if the child of God can be assured that the Father hears and listens to the requests they present to Him according to His will while experiencing fellowship with Him, they then can be assured that they will receive the fulfillment of these requests.

So therefore, 1 John 5:13-15 teaches that the child of God will receive the fulfillment of the requests they present to the Father because these requests are according to His will and because they are experiencing fellowship with the Father.

On the other hand, 1 John 3:22 teaches that the child of God receives the fulfillment of their prayer requests because they conscientiously obey the Father’s commands.

1 John 3:21 Beloved, if any of our hearts are not being convicted, then each one of us are experiencing confidence in the presence of God (the Father). 22 Consequently, if any of us does at any time request something, then each one of us are receiving the fulfillment of our request because each one of us are conscientiously obeying His commands. Correspondingly, each of us are practicing that which is pleasing in His judgment. (My translation)

John solemnly asserts in 1 John 3:21 that if the heart of the believer is not convicted, then they are experiencing confidence in the presence of God the Father.

When he speaks of not being convicted, he means that the believer is not being convicted of the sin of not loving their fellow-believer when they are in need of food, shelter, and clothing, which is indicated by his statements in 1 John 3:17-18.

1 John 3:16 By means of this, each one of us knows experientially that which constitutes divine-love, namely that, He Himself, the one and only, laid down His life on behalf of each and every one of us. Consequently, each and every one of us is obligated to lay down our lives for the benefit of our fellow-believer. 17 But whoever at any time does possess the essentials required to sustain an earthly human existence and in addition does at any time see his fellow-believer possessing a need, yet shuts off his compassionate affections from him, how does God’s love live in him? 18 Dear children, let not any one of us at any time love one another by means of talk produced by the use of the tongue but rather by means of action produced by obedience to truth. (My translation)

When the believer’s conscience is not convicting them of this sin of not loving their fellow-believer but is instead experiencing confidence in the presence of God, this is the direct result of obeying the command to love one another.

This obedience manifests itself in providing food, shelter and clothing for a fellow-believer in need of such things.

This interpretation indicated by John’s teaching in 1 John 3:19-20, which is connected to his thought in 1 John 3:16-18.

1 John 3:19 Now, by means of this, any one of us will, at any time confirm for ourselves that we are manifesting the attribute originating from obedience to the truth. Consequently, each one of us will at any time assure our hearts before Him, 20 namely whenever any of our hearts are convicted. For God is inherently superior to our heart. Specifically, He possesses inherently an omniscient knowledge of everyone. (My translation)

“By means of this” is pointing back to verse 18, where John exhorts the recipients of First John to unite with him in not loving each other by means of talk produced by the tongue but rather by means of action produced by obedience to truth.

This truth is a reference to the command to love one another.

He then teaches in verse 19 that by doing this they will manifest God’s attribute of love in their lives, which he says originates from obedience to truth, i.e. the command to love one another and consequently, they will simultaneously assure their hearts before God.

He then teaches in verse 20 that by obeying this command to love one another they won’t have a guilty conscience, which is the result of not obeying this command.

1 John 3:22 asserts that if the believer’s heart is not being convicted because they are obeying the command to love one another, then they are experiencing confidence in the presence of God the Father.

This statement in verse 22 asserts that if any believer does at any time request something, then they are receiving the fulfillment of their request.

The fulfillment of their request is the direct result of obeying the command to love one another, which is indicated by John’s statements in 1 John 3:16-21.

Therefore, when John asserts in 1 John 3:22 that if any believer does at any time request something, then they are receiving the fulfillment of this request, he is teaching that the fulfillment of their prayer request is the direct result of obeying this command to love one another.

Therefore, 1 John 3:16-21 corresponds to 1 John 5:13-15 since the latter teaches that the Father fulfills the prayer requests of His children because they are experiencing fellowship with Him and experiencing fellowship Him is the direct result of obeying the command to love one another.