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Song: Whosoever Will
Scripture: 1 John 2:1-17
1 John was written to give the believer assurance. False notions—the miraculous witness of Spirit, the once-saved-always-saved concept, the universalist position (that everyone will be saved), original sin, predestination, and others—are ways of giving man easy assurance. They all eliminate faith by either giving faith help—as in the gift of tongues—or by making faith lazy—as in the once-saved-always-saved and other Calvinist teachings. 1 John supplies the source of true assurance.
The testimony of eyewitnesses. “What we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we beheld and our hands handled…” (1:1) is what John and the other apostles proclaimed to believers. Christians have the assurance of the strongest evidence, eyewitness testimony, in the facts that are the foundation for their faith.
The promises of God. “If anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous” (2:1). We have a book full of promises that God has kept. The promises that He makes to Christians are not made to be broken.
The will of the believer. Given the promises of God and the testimony of eyewitnesses, the final assurance is dependent on the response of the believer himself. “Walk in the light,” “Keep His commandments,” “Love not the world,” “Love one another,” “Test the spirits” are all the tests of true discipleship. Man does not perform these perfectly. We have an Advocate when we fail. Man does his best—and it does require his best. You know when you’re giving your best. God wills your salvation—that’s assured. What’s your will? That’s the question.
Jason Moore
