John, the apostle, wrote this letter amid the rising false teaching, an early form of Gnosticism and Docetism. This early form denied Christ's humanity. The false teaching confused the believers. The apostle wrote to defend the doctrine that Christ, even though God, was also human. He also assured the believers of their salvation and instructed them to walk in truth and love. John affirmed the incarnation, which rejected the early Gnostic teachings. The author also claimed to have been an eyewitness to Christ Himself. John would also emphasize the fellowship of believers in Christ.
Word of Life
John begins by writing about the word of life, referring to Christ Jesus our Lord. His introduction is similar to his gospel account, where he refers to the Word as coming from the beginning. The writer also mentioned that “In Him was life and the life was the light of men…” In the epistle, John calls Him “Word of life.”
1 John 1:1: That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life.
John signified Christ’s divinity when he mentioned that He was the Word of life, since life only comes from God. Moreover, the Word of life is from the beginning. However, John also mentioned the humanity of the Word of life. The writer claimed to have heard, seen, and touched, along with the other witnesses.
Testify and Proclaim
In the gospel account, John stated that they beheld His glory when the Word became flesh and lived among them. In the opening of his epistle, John makes a parallel statement of the Word that was manifested, and the Word came from the Father. However, there is a progression from the prologue of the Gospel account to the epistle.
1 John 1:2: the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us.
At the end of the prologue, John declared that only God can reveal God, and that was the purpose of the Word who became flesh, that is, to reveal God. In the epistle, John refers to himself and the others who testify and proclaim eternal life. In essence, those who were with the Word of life are now the ones proclaiming eternal life.
Fellowship
The result of the proclamation was fellowship with one another, especially with the Father and Son, Jesus Christ. Of course, that is assuming that the readers of the letter genuinely believed the testimony and proclamation about the Word of life, who gives eternal life.
1 John 1:3-4: that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. 4 And we are writing these things so that our joy may be complete.
The author reveals that writing the believers about the Word of life and their fellowship gives him joy. Such is the gift that the Lord gives to all who believe. They find joy in who they believe in, Christ Jesus, and the Father who sent Him. Their joy also lies in fellowshipping with one another.
When the church was established in Jerusalem, the apostles led the community into fellowship. In every place where the apostles and modern church planters established a church community, believers were expected to fellowship with one another. Scripture expects every believer to naturally enjoy fellowship with fellow believers.
Aside from the spiritual and character development benefits of fellowship, there are also mental and physical health benefits. Research in the past has shown an increasing amount of data on this. VanderWeele cites a statistically significant correlation between regular church attendance and lower mortality rates. As well as lower depression and suicide incidence were also noted.[1] Moreover, a number of studies have supported the idea that attending worship services can improve happiness and life satisfaction.[2] Researchers found causal evidence in this area.[3]
Application
1. Believe in the testimony of the apostles about the Lord Jesus Christ. Where may we find their testimony? In the New Testament, which we consider to be Holy Scripture. The apostles directly encountered the Word of life, whom John declares as God who took on the nature of man.
2. Recognize the fellowship through faith in Christ. By believing what the apostles proclaim, we have fellowship with the Father and Son, and we have fellowship with one another. He has brought us together through the message of the gospel.
3. We must proclaim the testimony of the apostles about Christ. For those who believed, we invite them into our fellowship. Fellowship with the Creator and with believers is God’s gift to us. Let us not take it for granted. Instead, let us value it.
Notes
[1] Tyler J. VanderWeele, “Religious Communities and Human Flourishing,” Current Directions in Psychological Science 26, no. 5 (2017): 476–81
[2] David G. Myers, "The Science of Subjective Well-Being," in The Science of Subjective Well-Being, ed. M. Eid and R.J. Larsen (New York: Guilford, 2008), 323–46.
[3] VanderWeele, “Religious Communities and Human Flourishing,” 476.
Bibliography
Myers, David G. "The Science of Subjective Well-Being." In The Science of Subjective Well-Being, edited by M. Eid and R.J. Larsen, 323-346. New York: Guilford, 2008.
VanderWeele, Tyler J. "Religious Communities and Human Flourishing." Current Directions in Psychological Science 26, no. 5 (2017): 476-481. https://doi.org/10.1177/0963721417721526.
Poem
WORD OF LIFE By Ed Pilapil Jr Jesus Christ is the Word of life He saved us from judgment and strife The Word came from eternity John declared His divinity Yet He took on the form of man An integral part of the plan Therefore, there is now fellowship Father, Son, and Holy Spirit Within us, the Holy Spirit With each other, our fellowship Believers in Him is the plan Word became flesh to dwell with man Believe in His divinity Receive life for eternity Strengthen unity, remove strife We believe in the Word of life
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