What Is Real Love? A Guide to 1 Johnናሙና

1 John 2:12-14

12 I am writing to you who are God’s children because your sins have been forgiven through Jesus. 13 I am writing to you who are mature in the faith because you know Christ, who existed from the beginning. I am writing to you who are young in the faith because you have won your battle with the evil one. 14 I have written to you who are God’s children because you know the Father. I have written to you who are mature in the faith because you know Christ, who existed from the beginning. I have written to you who are young in the faith because you are strong. God’s word lives in your hearts, and you have won your battle with the evil one. 1 John 2:12-14 NLT

Pray: Our Father, thank you for being a good and loving dad. Thank you for being a just and righteous kind. Jesus, I give my whole life to you. Holy Spirit, heal my brokenness and protect me from the evil one. In Jesus’ name, amen.

In our reading for today, John takes a break from throwing spiritual haymakers to encourage His readers and remind them that their faith is true. As you may recall, the group of Christians John was writing to were in the middle of a really difficult situation. A portion of their community had abandoned the Church and the Christian way of life, but still claimed to know and belong to God. Those who were left were hurt, confused, and trying to wrestle with what it means to be a member of God’s family. It is within that context that we need to read John’s words.

I am writing to you who are God’s children because your sins have been forgiven through Jesus. 1 John 2:12 NLT

He begins with the basics. He wants these struggling Christians to know they are God’s children and their sins have been forgiven through Jesus. No matter what struggles they’ve been experiencing, they can be confident in their identity as children of God, forgiven by Jesus, and loved by their Father. Our standing as members of God’s family isn’t something we achieve through good works or obedience, it’s a gift of grace that we receive through faith in Jesus.

In this next verse, John addresses two more groups of people:

I am writing to you who are mature in the faith because you know Christ, who existed from the beginning. I am writing to you who are young in the faith because you have won your battle with the evil one. 1 John 2:13 NLT

It’s important to note that different Bible versions translate these groups in different ways, the ESV, for example, calls the groups: children, fathers, and young men. Most people seem to agree that John is talking about different stages of spiritual development, not physical age, which is why the NLT calls these groups: those who are mature in the faith and those who are young in the faith.

For those who are mature in the faith, John honors them for knowing Jesus, the one who has existed from the beginning. Which is a callback to what he wrote previously: And we can be sure that we know him if we obey his commandments. 1 John 2:3 NLT

He’s celebrating the fact that these mature believers have been obedient to God and demonstrated the authenticity of their faith.

To those who are young in the faith, he honors the victories they have gained against the evil one, the devil. This line is also a callback to a previous part of John’s letter:

“Yet it is also new. Jesus lived the truth of this commandment, and you also are living it. For the darkness is disappearing, and the true light is already shining.” ‭‭1 John‬ ‭2:8‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Even though these believers are young in the faith, they have still taken ground in their battle against the darkness by stepping into the light of God’s love and loving others the way Jesus has loved them.

John’s encouragement to those who are young in the faith also serves as a preview for what he’s going to write about in the rest of this chapter, but we will save that for the upcoming days. For now, let’s take a look at what John does in verse 14, that may seem strange at first:

I have written to you who are God’s children because you know the Father. I have written to you who are mature in the faith because you know Christ, who existed from the beginning. I have written to you who are young in the faith because you are strong. God’s word lives in your hearts, and you have won your battle with the evil one. 1 John 2:14 NLT

He repeats his encouragement from the previous two verses, with some slight variations, to the same three groups: the children, the mature, and the young.

Different scholars have different opinions on why John repeats these encouragements, so it’s tough to know exactly what John’s reasoning is. If you were to ask us, we would suggest it’s because John understands how human beings work. In general, our minds tend to focus way more on negative feedback than positive reinforcement.

Most of us have experienced this at least once in our lives. Maybe you were giving a presentation in front of a group of people, and afterwards, five people told you it was awesome, and one person said they didn’t like it. What are you going to spend the next four hours thinking about? Probably not the five people who said it was great.

What about a time when a close friend or family member told you they loved you? You probably didn’t think much about it. But when a family member or close friend tells you that they’re upset because of something you did? More than likely, that consumed your thoughts.

As human beings, we tend to focus way more on negative feedback than we do positive reinforcement. That’s why we think John decided to double down on his encouragement. Because he knows that being encouraged when we get it wrong is just as (if not more) important than being called out when we get it wrong.

So, slow down and pay attention to what John is saying. Don’t skip past these words. While it’s true they were originally written by John to a group of Christians who lived and died before any of us were ever born. It’s also true that the Holy Spirit inspired these words so they could speak to you too.

God sees you as His child. No matter if you’re young in the faith or old. Your sins have been forgiven because of Jesus. You have been adopted into God’s family. The fact that you are reading this Plan means that you have taken ground from the evil one and are taking steps to mature in your faith. You are actively engaged in the process of becoming like Jesus for the sake of others. All of that matters and is worth celebrating.

Application: Take a few deep breaths. On your first breath in, thank God for rescuing you from sin. On your next breath in, thank God for giving you the strength to overcome the devil. On your third breath in, thank God for teaching you how to live in the light of His love. Repeat this breathing prayer exercise until you feel it.