I John 2:3, "And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments."

This morning, guideposts and banners still point to enlighten us about different things. Sometimes these landmarks help us get from point A to point B while driving down the road, and at other times, they help us navigate out of sticky situations by drawing from past experience to get through a circumstance. Scriptural examination and proper division of the pages many times employs this same methodology. As older preachers are fond of saying, "When you don't know what to do with a verse or passage, always go back to what you know when trying to figure it out." By always going back to what we know first, we find the proper starting point from which to investigate, but we also - as a benefit - strengthen what we know when launching from that starting place again. If we are trying to figure out what a verse means, and the cursory glance of a verse seems to contradict the Biblical teaching of eternal security, we go back to what we know: eternal security is still true. Why? By asking that question, we strengthen our thoughts on that blessed truth again, and in so doing, we have a firm foothold by which to press forward in our investigation of Biblical passages.

The book of I John is quite often brutalized by errant theologians as the cursory glances of different sections "seem" at times to corroborate their theology. However, looking at something like I John 2:2 and concluding that Jesus died for everyone that draws a natural breath (even though a cursory glance might appear that way) defies plain teaching in other places - such as John 17:9. If Christ would not even pray for a world there, there is absolutely no reason to believe that He would die for that same world later. Two different worlds are obviously under consideration, and the verse cannot mean what some would like to believe.

Yet other errant - albeit different - theologians like to use verses from I John like 3:10 to prove their "measuring stick" of what a child of God will or will not do post-regeneration. By taking the statement "doeth righteousness" and superimposing their manifestation of "doeth righteousness" into the verse, they claim that the verse teaches that all children of God necessarily do A, B, C, or D. This mode of interpretation (superimposing a preconceived thought) into a verse is just as erroneous as failing to rightly divide two concepts using the same word (in the previous example, the word 'world'). So, if John is not conveying thoughts on either end of the theological spectrum, what in fact, is the heart of his message here in this epistle?

Our verse serves as a very vivid guidepost early on as to his intent for this epistle. He will later reinforce this thought (with different verbiage) in 5:13. John is not writing to people that are not believers. He is not writing to people that do not know the Lord. Rather, our verse shows that he is writing to those that know the Lord, and later in the epistle, he shows that he is writing to believers. The point of the epistle is to grant the knowers more knowledge and the believers more belief. In a nutshell, John is going to write a glorious discourse showing the intricate details of the corroboration between justification by faith and justification by works all predicated upon our eternal justification by grace and blood at the mercy and grace of Jesus Christ.

If John is writing (as our verse shows) to people that know the Lord, they are people that are already God's own regenerated lambs who know Him in their heart and have His laws and precepts stamped upon their inward parts. (Hebrews 8) What they know they may not be able to give a dissertation on, but they know God in the closest form of knowledge (relationally). John's epistle serves to further extend the borders of that knowledge. John, for lack of a better expression, is going to show them the "why?" of their knowledge. Why do they have such thoughts and desires of a spiritual nature? John will tell them why. Why do these commandments? John will tell them why.

The manifestation of our knowledge comes, by John's own admission, from us doing what He has said do. If Christ says it, that settles it. (John 14:15) No matter what we think, if Christ says it, that settles it. He has said that manifest love to Him comes from commandment keeping. Our surest form of knowing what He has already blessed us to know is by keeping the commandments He has given us. Our justification by faith that brings peace of mind to our own conscience does not occur outside the spectrum of good behaviour. Rather, our justification by faith in our mind's court is found most vividly brilliant when doing what He has said do.

Now, the works involved actually justify us in the sight of the brethren, another of John's main points, but the works themselves show us that we already know. What do we already know? We already know Him, but this heightens the Face of His Person. What Saul knew, moments after regeneration, was that he was talking to the Lord. His question, "Who art thou Lord?" shows that. What he did not know was that the Lord Himself was Jesus of Nazareth. When we keep the commandments, why do we do them? We do them, first of all, because we love Him, and second of all, we do them as we are following Him and His example. That behaviour manifests to us over and over that we love Him, know Him, and most importantly are known and prized by Him.

"Well," the critic might respond, "what if we don't do what he has said do?" John goes on to answer that question, but the circumstance may not always be the same. Later in this second chapter, John describes some that have the spirit of antichrist that were not part of those blessed souls that John was conversing with. They certainly did not believe and do, as their actions showed a departure from those things. However, not everyone that departs departs for the same reason. Some depart as not being of the fold in the first place, but others depart for other reasons - the biggest being idolatry - which John warns about in the last verse of the entire epistle.

But, the succeeding verse (I John 2:4) does show that one who does not the commandments makes a mockery of spiritual things by his behaviour. Paul describes these same people in Hebrews 6 as being persons previously blessed by spiritual things that now were at a point beyond the inhabitants of Zion's help because of the repeated behaviour to crucify Christ afresh by their actions and put Him to an open shame. These actions are the same that John describes as those that make God a liar by their behaviour. (I John 1:10) Jesus is not really a liar, but our misbehaviour serves to put Him to an open shame by not heeding what He has said do in our lives.

So, by not keeping His commandments we, in essence, are making liars out of ourselves (I John 2:4), but when we do these things that He has said do, we perfect what He has already given us (I John 2:5) and as a result abide in Him. (I John 2:6) Perfecting and abiding in what He has given us is not a guarantee, as the epistle will go on to show, but abiding and seeking to perpetually and consistently perfect what He has given us does show the coupled cord between works and faith in justification. Notice that in James 2, he uses a particular case in Abraham's life to show the correlation. After discussing faith and works' harmony together, he points to Abraham offering up Isaac on the alter.

We understand from that story that Abraham did not actually kill his son, but both James and Paul (in Hebrews 11) show that Abraham's mind was so fully set to keep the Lord's commandments that Isaac was already dead in his sight. What Paul ascribes to faith in Hebrews 11, James ascribes to works in James 2. Same account, different justification discussed. Why? When faith and works are yoked together (as they should be), the two justifications appear together. For those (like us) seeing Abraham so diligent to do what God said do, we justify Abraham (declare him righteous) by that which we see. For Abraham seeing his son dead according to God's command and ultimately raised again, he was justified by his faith by that which his mind projected. (Hebrews 11:17-19)

Back to the heart of John's writing. Are we to read this book and seek to find who the Lord did or did not save? No. Should we be looking for signs and indications that mark children of God according to our little check boxes and identification stickers? No. What the book does serve to show is the condition of greater and more blessed understanding of God by progressing through the spiritual fields of knowledge. This knowledge will not only serve to give us more understanding of Him who we already know and feel, but it will serve to guide and strengthen our behaviour in action by appreciation of Him who we love. Therefore, as John did, may we seek to show those that know the Lord why they know what they know, and to those that believe, why they believe what they believe. In so doing, we will grow up together as mature plants with large and luscious fruit that not only smells pleasing in His sight but gives off the juices of sweet delight to His lips.


In Hope,

Bro Philip