Podcast: 1 John: The Child, the Young Man, and the Father

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I am writing to you, little children, because your sins are forgiven for his name's sake. I am writing to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one. I write to you, children, because you know the Father. I write to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I write to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one.
-1 John 2:12-14

In a lot of ways I’ve never grown up. I still like video games, Star Wars action figures, baseball cards, etc. I like stupid comedies more than serious dramas. I would much rather have pizza rolls for dinner than a gourmet meal.

These are minor things in my life though. Most of my day is spent at work. I come home and try to help with the house and spend time with my wife. I go to sleep rather early, because I have to get up early to head back to work. I have a budget and a car payment.

A lot of things I used to do as a child have been put away. I have other priorities now.

There are undoubtedly stages in life. As a child, certain behaviors and activities are expected. We don’t expect a five-year-old to be working a 40 hour-a-week job. But we do expect that five-year-old to get there within about twenty years.

We have these same sorts of stages in the Christian life. When we are reborn in Christ, we start off as a spiritual child. Unless you grew up in the church or something, you’re not going to know much about propitiation or hermeneutics or eschatology. To use another phrase in the Bible, you are still sipping on the milk of doctrine, not having moved on to solid meat yet.

John here addresses three groups, and these groups line up exactly with these stages of spiritual maturity. You have children, young men, and fathers. And for each he has a different reason for writing.

And let me point that out again – he’s writing to all of them at the same time. You know, it seems like some people think that certain parts of the Bible are only for the spiritually mature. Or that some doctrines are more for the very learned rather than the new Christian. That’s not it at all. All doctrines are for all people, but it may take some training to get into the depth of it. Think of a particular doctrine as a pool. This pool of ours is the doctrine that Jesus died on the Cross for our sins. Maybe that’s as far as you get when you are a new Christian. You are in the shallow end. But as you study, you begin to understand phrases like “penal substitutionary atonement” or how Jesus takes the place of a priest for us. As you get into the deep end, you start learning about the Aaronic priesthood verses the Melchizedek priesthood. You start learning about Limited Atonement. You haven’t left the pool. No, we never leave the pool. Jesus has still died for our sins, and that sacrifice is still what saves us. We’re just starting to get into the deep end.

So this letter is for all of us. This letter is our pool, and he has written it for different reasons, depending on the maturity of his audience.

The mature Christians are called “fathers” here. The reason behind that is that these people, assumedly, have brought other people up in the faith. They are spiritual fathers. John writes them for two reasons: “because you know him who is from the beginning” and “because you know him who is from the beginning.” No, I didn’t stutter. John repeats this reason twice.

Truly these mature Christians do know him who is from the beginning, who is Jesus. They have spent time walking with Jesus, being formed into something more like Him. The Spirit has been sanctifying them, molding them in love and truth. They know Jesus, and know who He is – the Christ, the Savior, the Messiah. These men are probably the ones teaching the church, and they are passing this knowledge on to the young men and children. So John is writing to them because they know Jesus. They will see the truth of what John says, and they will teach others the truths of this letter.

To young men he also writes. These are people in the church who have been Christians a while, but are not quite mature enough to be Elders yet. To them he writes “because you have overcome the evil one” and “because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one.”

To these people he reminds them of their youth and strength. They are beginning to put away the sins of their old ways and walk with the Lord. They are beginning to learn more fully the truth of the Gospel. They are starting to take larger roles in the church, spreading the message in evangelism, serving others, and using their strength and energy to expand the Kingdom of God. Their eternities were secured in their salvations, but now their lives have begun to show fruit as well. The Spirit has shown Himself in their lives.

John is writing to them so that they can be yet more secure by the power of Jesus, and to teach them more on how to love their neighbors. This group is moving from that milk into the meat of the Word, and so John’s instructions on how to be sure of their faith and loving one another would find a good appetite.

The new Christians are addressed for two reasons, as stated in the text – “because your sins are forgiven for his name's sake” and “because you know the Father.”

Does it strike you how even the youngest Christian, the newly converted, is promised the greatest promises in the Bible? I think of cults like the Mormons and Jehovah’s Witnesses, who have their followers climb a ladder of succession, promising bigger rewards the more you work. That seems natural, doesn’t it? You have to spend a little time in the organization to work your way up. Jesus addresses this in one parable in Matthew 20, in which a landowner hires some men to work the day with him. Throughout the day, he adds people to his workforce, even up until evening. At the end of the day, everyone is paid the same amount, whether he worked all day, or just an hour.

So it is with the Kingdom of Heaven. All Christians are co-heirs with Christ of this Kingdom, whether we worked our whole lives for God, or repented on our death beds. These incredible promises – that you know God and are forgiven – are true for every single person who repents and believes in Jesus. This speaks to the nature of Grace, because Grace is not something we can earn. Jesus earned it for us. So it’s impossible for us to “earn more” of something we could never earn in the first place. Jesus did the work, and we get the reward. And it will be our reward no matter when you repent, so long as you have faith in Him.

Notice also that this is the same reason John gives for writing to the fathers – that you know God. That “know” there is used in a slightly different way, but the parallel should be noted. The mature Christian knows the theology, the character, the attributes of God. But the youngest Christian knows the same God – the one who died on the Cross for us.

If you know Christ, your sins are forgiven. I don’t care how long you have been a Christian, your destiny is to be united with Him in paradise. It is not by your maturity, your good works, or some sort of point system that will get you into a higher heaven. It’s by Jesus alone. That is the wonderful message to even the children amongst us. If you know Him, you are forgiven.

Here’s another very practical point to this passage, and that is to tell us a little bit about where we are spiritually. Have you confessed Christ as your Savior? You are in this group, if only a spiritual child. Has God’s work in your life begun to drive out sin and to change you? Has your zeal for His Word and Gospel begun to take root in you? Perhaps you are now a young man. Has your study become advanced? Do you teach others in the faith? Are you raising up spiritual children? You may be a father in the Church.

Where are you in this group? Where are you in the pool? Learn from those who are swimming father out than you are. As you learn more, invite more people into the water. Look back and help those who are in shallower water. But do not be confused – if you are in the pool, then you are a child of God. He has adopted you, and this wonderful message is for you.