Introduction to

1-3 John

Author

The authors of the letters of John do not identify themselves by name. First John is entirely anonymous, and the author of 2 and 3 John describes himself simply as “the elder” (2 John 1; 3 John 1). However, a strong case can be made for identifying the author of all three letters as “the disciple whom Jesus loved” (John 13:23; 21:7, 20; cf. 19:26), who in turn may be identified as John, the son of Zebedee (Mark 1:19–20), the apostle and author of the Gospel of John. Supporting evidence for this identification includes: (1) the beloved disciple may, based on evidence within the Gospel of John and by a process of elimination, be identified as the apostle John; (2) both the author of John’s Gospel and the author of 1 John were eyewitnesses of Jesus’ ministry (1:1–3); (3) words and ideas in 1, 2, 3 John resemble those found in John’s Gospel (e.g., life and death, light and darkness, love and hate, truth and lies); (4) early church fathers, including, e.g., Irenaeus, Dionysius of Alexandria, and Tertullian, ascribe the authorship of both John’s Gospel and 1 John unequivocally to John the disciple and apostle of the Lord.

Date and Place of Composition

The letters of John were probably written from Ephesus, where, according to early church tradition, the apostle spent his last days. They may be dated to the early 90s as they appear to have been produced after the Gospel of John and build upon concepts and themes found in the Gospel that is believed to have been written around AD 80–85.

Destination

The location of the addressees of 1, 2, 3 John is not indicated in the letters themselves. However, as John spent his later years in Ephesus in the Roman province of Asia, his letters were probably addressed to believers living in that region. 1 John is a circular letter intended for a number of associated churches. 2 John is addressed to one of these churches. 3 John is addressed to one individual (Gaius) in another of the churches.

Occasion and Purpose

These letters provide a snapshot of life in these churches. They reflect an unhappy time in the life of the Christian community to which John addressed them, a time of dispute involving both theological and behavioral concerns. It seems that sometime after the writing of John’s Gospel, difficulties arose within this community. Some of the members espoused beliefs about the person and work of Christ that were unacceptable, denying that Jesus was the Christ, the Son of God, come in the flesh (1 John 4:2–3) and denying also, it would appear, that his death was necessary to provide for forgiveness of sins (1 John 5:6–7). A sharp disagreement arose, and those who embraced these views seceded from the community (1 John 2:19).

The secessionists were not content to keep their beliefs to themselves. Some of them became itinerant preachers who circulated among the churches and propagated their beliefs (1 John 2:26; 4:1–3; 2 John 7). This created confusion among those who remained loyal to the gospel as proclaimed by the eyewitnesses at the beginning. As a result some began to question whether they really knew God, were experiencing eternal life, and were in the truth. 1 John was written to bolster their assurance by providing criteria they could use to evaluate the spurious claims of the secessionists and with which they could reassure themselves (1 John 1:5—2:2; 2:3–11; 3:7–10, 14–15; 4:4–8, 13–15; 5:13, 18–20). This letter appears to have been sent as a circular letter to the churches affected by the teaching of the secessionists.

As a follow-up to this circular letter, John wrote two other letters. He sent the first, 2 John, to one of the churches involved (to the “lady chosen by God and to her children”) to warn members about the secessionists and their heretical teaching (2 John 7–8). He urged the readers not to help these teachers by providing them with hospitality. To do so would be to participate in their “wicked work” (2 John 11).

The secessionist teachers were not the only ones traveling around among these churches. There were also people of good standing who had gone from John’s church “for the sake of the Name” (3 John 7). These people needed hospitality in Christian homes as they traveled about. John wrote the second of the follow-up letters, 3 John, to an individual named Gaius. He commended Gaius for providing hospitality to traveling preachers of good standing (3 John 5–6) and informed him of the actions of Diotrephes, who lived in the same town but refused to provide this hospitality and who was at loggerheads with John (3 John 9–10). It is not clear whether his refusal was doctrinally based (i.e., he agreed with the secessionists against John) or due to personal conflict (i.e., he rejected John’s authority).

We do not know what happened to the secessionist movement. It may have developed into the sort of second-century Gnosticism we know through the writings of Irenaeus, or it may have simply died out. We do know that the position adopted in the letters of John won the day since they found their way into the NT canon.

Gnosticism

Gnosticism is a term used to designate a variety of beliefs, fundamental to which was a dualistic view of reality. The spiritual world was regarded as good, while the material world, including human bodies, was regarded as evil. Gnostic views are found reflected in various literary sources, including the works of early church fathers who rejected such Gnostic teaching, as well as Coptic writings, the Nag Hammadi library, and the Hermetic and Manichean literature.

According to some of these texts, sparks of divinity from the spiritual world were imprisoned in the bodies of certain spiritual individuals. Seeing their plight, God sent a redeemer to provide knowledge (gnōsis) concerning their true origin and to enable them to escape imprisonment in their bodies. This knowledge would also enable their spirits to pass unharmed through the planetary spheres so as to return to their original state, reunited with God. Because Gnostics regarded human bodies—part of the material world—as evil, some adopted ascetic practices treating the body harshly, while others indulged in promiscuity, believing what was done in the body did not affect their spiritual lives and their salvation.

It is possible that some of the secessionists were influenced by incipient Gnostic beliefs. Believing the material world is evil, they denied that Jesus is the Christ come in the flesh, i.e., they denied his true humanity (1 John 4:1–3). Some claimed that Christ only “seemed” to be human (Docetism), and others claimed that the Christ spirit descended upon Jesus at his baptism and departed before his crucifixion because it was impossible for Christ as a spiritual being to experience suffering (Cerinthianism). It is also possible that the sinful behavior John accuses the secessionists of practicing (1 John 3:6, 10) may stem from the belief that what one does in the body does not affect one’s spirit or one’s salvation.

While the letters of John are often regarded as a response to an early form of Gnosticism, caution needs to be exercised, especially when comparing the heretical beliefs that John opposes with developed forms of Gnosticism emanating from the second to the fifth centuries.

Theological Themes

Theological Themes in 1 John

Many important theological themes emerge in 1 John. The most important of these is the nature of God. God is revealed as the Father of Jesus Christ (1:2–3; 2:22–24; 4:14). God is light and in him there is no darkness (1:5). God is love (4:8, 16b), and this love was revealed in the sending of his Son as the atoning sacrifice for our sins (4:9–10). God lavishes his love upon believers by making them his children (3:1).

Also important is what John writes about the person and work of Jesus Christ. He is the Son of God come in the flesh, and to deny this is to deny God the Father also (2:22–23; 4:2–3; 5:10–12). Jesus gave himself to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins so that if we confess our sins, God forgives us and cleanses us from all unrighteousness (1:9; 2:12). Having given himself as the atoning sacrifice, Jesus now acts as our advocate with the Father if we sin (2:1). He was revealed to destroy the devil’s work (3:8), and he protects us from the evil one (5:18).

A crucial part of John’s attempt to reassure his readers is his insistence upon the fact that they have an anointing from God, the Holy Spirit, whom they have received from God and who teaches them what they need to know so that they do not need to give heed to the false teachings of the secessionists (2:27).

Those who believe in Christ have passed from death to life (3:14), having been born of God and having received eternal life (2:25; 5:11). Those who have been born of God do what is right (2:29), love one another (4:7; 5:1), overcome the world (5:4), and do not succumb to sinful behavior, being protected by Christ so that the evil one does not touch them (5:18). Christ gives them understanding so that they may know the One who is true, God the Father (5:20).

Another significant theme is assurance. Assurance is grounded in God’s testimony to his Son (5:9–13). Believers may have confidence on the day of judgment when they live godly lives (2:28—3:3; 4:16–21), and obey the command to show love to their fellow believers in practical ways (2:3–6; 3:14); this in turn leads to confidence in prayer (3:21–22; 5:14).

Theological Themes in 2 John

This brief letter reinforces themes found in 1 John (obedience to the command to love and the importance of confessing that Christ came in the flesh). One new matter introduced in 2 John is a warning against aiding and abetting false teachers by providing them with hospitality. In the Greco-Roman world of the day, providing hospitality involved becoming guarantor for one’s guests’ bona fides, which therefore made those who provided hospitality for unworthy recipients partakers in their “wicked work” (v. 11).

Theological Themes in 3 John

Hospitality is also an important issue in this letter. Those who provide hospitality for traveling missionaries who preach the truth are commended and “work together for the truth” (v. 8; see vv. 5–8). Another matter that emerges is the need to exercise discipline in the church, in particular to deal with one who spreads “malicious nonsense” (v. 10), refuses to provide hospitality, and prevents other church members from doing so (vv. 9–10).

Outline of 1 John

The way 1 John is structured is unusual in that it does not follow a linear plan moving logically from one subject to the next. Instead it revisits the same subjects over and over, each time amplifying them further in what has been called a spiraling structure. This is so because 1 John does not seek to prove anything, but rather by repetition seeks to increase the readers’ adherence to known truths of the gospel in face of the threat posed by the secessionists’ teachings.

Outline

I. The Incarnation of the Word of Life (1:1–4)

II. Light and Darkness, Sin and Forgiveness (1:5—2:2)

III. Love and Hatred for Fellow Believers (2:3–11)

IV. Reasons for Writing (2:12–14)

V. On Not Loving the World (2:15–17)

VI. Warning Against Denying the Son (2:18–27)

VII. God’s Children and Sin (2:28—3:10)

VIII. More on Love and Hatred (3:11–24)

IX. On Denying the Incarnation (4:1–6)

X. God’s Love and Ours (4:7–21)

XI. Faith in the Incarnate Son of God (5:1–12)

XII. Concluding Affirmations (5:13–21)