1 John 4:13-21
And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent His Son to be the Savior of the world.
Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God.
So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.
By this is love perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment, because as He is so also are we in this world.
There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love.
We love because He first loved us.
If anyone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen.
And this commandment we have from Him: whoever loves God must also love his brother. (ESV)
The Big Idea:
Because God’s love has been objectively demonstrated at the cross, the believer’s subjective assurance is secured by the Spirit’s internal testimony, the apostolic witness to the Son, and a maturing love that necessarily expels the fear of judgment.
1. The First Witness: The Spirit of Adoption (v. 13)
1.1 The Spirit as the Seal of Union
1.2 The Knowledge that Comes from the Spirit
2. The Second Witness: The Apostolic Testimony to the Son (vv. 14–16a)
2.1 The Seen and Testified to Savior
2.2 The Confession That Abides
2.3 Knowing and Believing the Love of God
3. The Third Evidence: Love Perfected and Fear Expelled (vv. 16b–18)
3.1 Abiding in Love, Abiding in God
3.2 Love Perfected: Confidence for Judgment Day
3.3 The Expulsion of Fear
4. The Logic of Love: Its Origin and Necessity (vv. 19–21)
4.1 The Causality of Love
4.2 The Impossibility of Loving God while Hating the Brethren
4.3 The Commandment Summarised