1 John 1:3-4 - "That You Also May Have Fellowship"

Today, Saturday June 26 “That You Also May Have Fellowship” 1 John 1:3-4 “That which we have seen and heard we declare to you, that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ. And these things we write to you that your joy may be full.” To better understand this wonderful book of First John it will help us to know the purposes that John had in writing it. He gives at least five purposes that he states very clearly. The first one is, “that we may have fellowship”(1:3). “Fellowship is the key theme of the first two chapters. Fellowship has to do with our communion with Christ, not our union with Christ, which is sonship. Our daily fellowship might change but our sonship remains the same. The second purpose is, “that we might have joy” (1:4). The word “joy” is used only here, but the blessing of joy is seen throughout the entire letter. Joy is the result of a close fellowship with Christ and the assurance of our salvation. “That we might not sin” (2:1-2). The penalty of sin is taken care of when the sinner trusts Christ, but the power of sin over our daily life is another matter. First John explains how we may have victory over sin and how to get forgiveness when we do sin. “That we might overcome error” (2:26). John was facing the false teaching of his day just as we face false teachers today. First John will emphasis that all believers have a special anointing from God, the Holy Spirit, and can know the truth. That we might have assurance” (5:13). In his Gospel, John tells us how to be saved (John 20:31), but in this epistle, he tells us how to be sure we are saved. The letter is a series of "tests" that Christians may use to examine their fellowship (chaps. 1-2) and their sonship (chaps. 3-5). We will find the word, “know”, is used over and over in the book. Our great salvation is a “know so” salvation, not a “hope so”, or a “maybe so”. Jesus Himself said that He “came that we might have life and that we might have it abundantly” (John 10:10). When we know that we know that Jesus is the Son of God, and has saved and forgiven us from all our sins, we can and will experience His fullness of joy and life every day! God bless!