1 John 4.15a-Confessing Jesus is the Son of God
Wenstrom Bible Ministries
Pastor-Teacher Bill Wenstrom
Tuesday July 17, 2018
First John: 1 John 4:15a-Confessing Jesus is the Son of God
Lesson # 179
1 John 4:15 Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. (ESV)
“Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God” is composed of the following: (1) nominative masculine singular form of the relative pronoun hos (ὅς), “whoever” (2) conditional particle ean (ἐάν), “whoever” (3) third person singular aorist active subjunctive form of the verb homologeō (ὁμολογέω), “confesses” (4) conjunction hoti (ὅτι), “that” (5) nominative masculine singular form of the proper noun Iēsous (Ἰησοῦς), “Jesus” (6) emphatic negative adverb ou (οὔ), which is not translated (7) third person singular present active indicative form of the verb eimi (εἰμί), “is” (8) articular nominative masculine singular form of the noun huios (υἱός), “the Son” (5) genitive masculine singular form of the noun theos (θεός), “of God.”
The conditional particle ean is employed with the subjunctive mood of the verb homologeō (ὁμολογέω), “confesses” in order to form the protasis of a third class condition which offers a condition, the fulfillment of which is realized in the present time which is also called a fifth class condition.
The relative pronoun hos means “anyone, someone, whoever” and refers to an unidentified human being who has confessed that Jesus is the Son of God.
The verb homologeō means “to confess, to acknowledge” since the word pertains to the acknowledgement that a particular thing is true or is fact.
Here it speaks of a sinner acknowledging that it is true that Jesus of Nazareth is the Son of God, which is equivalent to acknowledging that Jesus is the Christ or the Savior of the world.
Specifically, it refers to a person acknowledging Jesus is the Son of God as a result of accepting by faith the Spirit inspired teaching of the apostles that Jesus is the Son of God.
The aorist tense of this verb is a consummative aorist which is used to emphasize the cessation of act or state and here it emphasizes the act of a sinner confessing that Jesus is the Son of God.
The proper name Iēsous is the Greek spelling of the Hebrew word Jehoshua, “Jehovah saves,” and refers to the human nature of the incarnate Son of God, Jesus of Nazareth.
The verb eimi means “to exist in a particular state or condition,” and which condition is identified by the noun huios, “the Son,” which is modified by the genitive masculine singular form of the noun theos, “of God.”
Therefore, this word is expressing the idea that Jesus of Nazareth exists in the state or condition of being the Son of God.
Of course, the condition is eternal since God is eternal.
The present tense of this verb eimi is a gnomic present used to make a statement of a general, timeless fact.
Here it is used to make an absolute statement regarding the person of Jesus of Nazareth and is expressing that Jesus of Nazareth is as an eternal spiritual truth eternally existing in the state of being the Son of God.
The noun huios is used in relation to Jesus Christ and is employed here as a title for His deity describing the relationship between Himself and the Father expressing the idea that they share the same nature.
Now, in 1 John 4:15, “Son” (huios) expresses three fundamental concepts regarding the Lord Jesus Christ: (1) His eternal relationship with the Father. (2) His appointment to the office of Savior and Messiah. (3) His divine essence.
It also expresses the Lord Jesus Christ’s eternality and that He is infinite and eternal God (John 1:1-2, 14; John 8:58; 10:30a; Col. 2:9a; Rev. 1:8) indicating His equality with the Father (Matthew 17:1-5; John 10:30, 37-38; 14:9; 17:5, 24-25; 20:30-31; Romans 1:1-4; Philippians 2:5-8; Hebrews 1:3).
The articular construction of this word is monadic expressing the idea the Son is in a class by Himself, or in other words, He is unique.
The noun theos refers to God the Father and is in the genitive case functioning as a genitive of relationship indicating a familial relationship between God and His Son.
The articular construction of this word is also anaphoric which means that it is pointing back to its synonym in 1 John 4:14, which is the articular nominative masculine singular form of the noun pater (πατήρ), “the Father.”
Thus, it indicates that the noun theos refers to the Father.
1 John 4:15 If anyone has confessed that Jesus is God’s one and only Son, then God (the Father) is living in fellowship with him. Correspondingly, he himself is living in fellowship with God (the Father). (Author’s translation)
1 John 4:15 is a fifth class conditional statement which presents a spiritual axiom or an eternal spiritual truth which is designed to reassure the recipients of First John that they were in fact experiencing fellowship with the Father and that correspondingly, the Father was living in fellowship with them.
1 John 4:15 is also related to John’s assertions in 1 John 4:14 in that the former is identifying explicitly the identity of God’s one and only Son.
The latter asserts that John and his fellow eyewitnesses had observed for themselves so that they were now testifying that the Father dispatched His one and only Son to save the world and now, here in 1 John 4:15, John is asserting that Jesus of Nazareth is God’s one and only Son.
Also, a comparison of 1 John 4:14 and 15 teaches that the Father living in fellowship with the sinner who confesses that Jesus is His one and only Son and this fellowship with the Father is grounded or based upon the incarnation of the Father’s Son.
In other words, fellowship with the Father is made possible by the incarnation of the Son of God whose substitutionary spiritual and physical deaths on the cross and resurrection provided sinners the opportunity and privilege to enter into an eternal relationship and fellowship with the Father.
The sinner who confesses that Jesus is the Son of God which is equivalent to believing or trusting in Him as one’s Savior enters into this relationship and fellowship with the Father.
The fifth class condition in 1 John 4:15 is expressing an eternal spiritual principle or spiritual axiom.
The protasis is “If anyone has confessed that Jesus is God’s one and only Son” and the apodosis is “then God (the Father) is living in fellowship with him. Correspondingly, he himself is living in fellowship with God (the Father).”
The relationship between the protasis and the apodosis is “cause-effect.”
The cause: “If anyone has confessed that Jesus is God’s one and only Son.”
The effect: “then God (the Father) is living in fellowship with him. Correspondingly, he himself is living in fellowship with God (the Father).”
Therefore, this fifth class conditional statement is simply presenting an eternal spiritual principle that if any person in the human race confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, then God the Father is living in fellowship with them and correspondingly they are living in fellowship with the Father.
This confession that Jesus of Nazareth is God’s one and only Son speaks of the sinner who has exercised faith in Jesus as their Savior at the moment of justification.
By way of definition, justification is a judicial act of God whereby He declares a person to be righteous as a result of crediting or imputing to that person His righteousness the moment they exercised faith in His Son Jesus Christ.
Consequently, God accepts that person and enters that person into a relationship with Himself since they now possess His righteousness (cf. Rom. 3:24, 28; 5:1-2).
The mechanics of justification are as follows: (1) God condemns the sinner, which qualifies them to receive His grace. (2) The sinner believes in Jesus Christ as His Savior. (3) God imputes or credits Christ’s righteousness to the believer. (4) God declares that person as righteous as a result of acknowledging His Son’s righteousness in that person.
Justification is God declaring a person to be righteous as a result of acknowledging or recognizing His righteousness in that person, and which righteousness He imputed to that person as a result of their faith in His Son, Jesus Christ.
It causes no one to be righteous but rather is the recognition and declaration by God that one is righteous as He is.
It is a once and for all declaration, which never changes and never can be rescinded since God is a perfect Judge who because He is immutable, always makes perfect decisions.
To be justified by God through faith alone in Christ alone means that God can never condemn us for our sins.
It means that a believer can never lose his salvation because of any sin since God, who is a perfect judge, rendered a perfect decision when he declared righteous the person, who exercised faith in His Son Jesus Christ!
Thus, Paul declares the following: Romans 8:1 Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. (NASB95)