1 John 4:13-16 Knowing God Abides In Us

A significant portion of 1 John focuses on the believers’ love for the body of Christ, so we are spending a lot of time talking about love. We are working our way through 1 John 4:7-21, which is a large section showing us that this love for one another is evidence of being born again. Last week, we examined verses 7-12, and this Sunday we will focus on verses 13-16. Although we are working through this passage in sections, it is important for us to remember that verses 7-21 are all one unit, bookended by the command to love one another. Last Sunday, we learned why this love for one another is an evidence of salvation: because God is love (v. 7-8), because God has loved us (v. 9-11), and because loving one another brings His love to its goal (v. 12). Verse 12 showed us two amazing realities. When we love one another, “God’s love abides in us, and His love is perfected in us.” In verses 13-16, John will show us how we know God abides in us, and (Next Sunday) in verses 17-21, he explains how his love is perfected in us. As we focus on verses 13-16 this Sunday, John repeatedly emphasizes how we know we abide in God and He in us. John uses the term “abide” for both union with God in salvation and communion with Him, but the primary sense in these verses is our saving relationship with God. We can have assurance of our saving union being real not by a special feeling, secret knowledge, or climbing a ladder of righteousness, but because: I. God has given us His Spirit (v. 13) II. We confess and trust in the true Jesus (v. 14-15) III. We have received and now show God’s love (v. 16) (also 17a)