Between Sisters Blog | Identity Defined & Defended, Part 1
Each follower of Christ is a Sinner…Sufferer…Saint.
Mike Emlet may have coined this phrase, but John, the other apostles, and Jesus have been declaring it all along. When we view a sister as only a sinner, we will confront her about some sin that must be there, like Job’s friends did without taking into account that maybe she is in a state of suffering. When we think of a sister as a sufferer, by blaming her circumstances, we will sometimes let sin go by without gently addressing it. But this stunts her growth, allowing sin to flourish like weeds in a garden. When we see her as a saint, we forget that sin and suffering are still a part of her daily life. Satan takes every opportunity to discourage us when we have forgotten our identity.
Throughout 1 John, John has been declaring loudly our identity and the proofs of our identities in Christ, and the final chapter is no different. So who are we and how does this change our lives?
The Victory of the Victorious (1 John 5:1–5)
According to David Allen, in this chapter John lays out three birthmarks of a child of God. Verse 1 says that the first birthmark is love. If you’ve missed this word of love, know that he has already written agape over 30 times and he’s not done with the word yet. John brings up a theme he has loved in his Gospel: “born.” John sees becoming a Christian as a spiritual rebirth that cannot be undone and that is made up of genuine faith. This spiritual birth causes us to love God as our “Abba,” the Aramaic equivalent to “daddy” (Romans 8:14–15). In addition, John reminds us that our love for our Abba will produce love for our brothers and sisters in Christ.
Obedience is the next birthmark declared in verse 2. David Allen uses the analogy of a commanding officer giving precise orders to a soldier, leaving and returning to find nothing has been done. “His commanding officer would not care that he could repeat those orders. The key issue is whether the soldier carried out his commander’s orders. As Christians, we should not just talk about God’s commandments, memorize them, and understand them. We should carry out God’s commandments.” We show our love for God by doing what He tells us to do.
To obey God is better than preaching about obeying God. To obey God is better than singing about obeying God. To obey God is better than having a Bible study lesson taught about obeying God. To obey God is better than bringing a tithe to church. To obey God is to do what God says. Ask yourself a simple question: Am I doing what God says?
The next question we should ask is “why do we keep God’s commandments?” The world thinks God’s commandments are heavy, but authentic Christ followers are motivated by our love for Jesus. God’s burdens may seem heavy when we try to do them in our own strength, but when we love God, are born of God, and are empowered by the Holy Spirit, we find joy and desire to obey God every step of the way no matter what the world says or what storms may come. Literally everything in nature obeys God—the wind, the sea, the moon, the stars, the sun, the plants, the animals. James Boice said, “This life of God within makes obedience to the commands possible, and the love which the Christian has for God and for other Christians makes this obedience desirable.”
The third birthmark of a born again Christian is faith. In John’s style of circular reasoning, we see back in verse 1 that anyone who believes (pisteuon in the Greek) that Jesus is the Christ is automatically born of God, and the one born of God loves the Father, the one who loves the Father is obedient to Him. In verse 4, the one born of God overcomes or conquers (nika in the Greek) the world—our faith (pistis in Greek), the victory (nike in the Greek; the same word for the shoe brand) that has overcome (nikesasa in Greek) the world. Finally, in verse 5, the one who has overcome (nikon in Greek) the world is the one who believes (pisteuon in the Greek) in Jesus as the Son of God, landing us right where we began in verse 1. David Allen, noticing this Greek word of nike throughout, said we could word this verse like this, “Whatever is born of God victories the world, and this is the victory that has victoried the world, even our faith.” Our Christian lives begin with faith in Jesus as the Christ, but each and every day we need that faith to help us as we face the world, our own flesh, and Satan. Hebrews 11 reminds us that victory over the enticements of this world does not come from being smart enough or powerful enough, but by having faith that Jesus is enough! Satan has already tasted his defeat because of Jesus’ death and resurrection. But Satan is still going to fight the whole way until he is crushed by Jesus. Finally, sin, his greatest temptation to all of humanity, will be destroyed and death that brings us to our knees in grief and doubt will finally be annihilated . “If I am to overcome the world, I need a force and power beyond my own strength. I am given the weapon of faith.” Our relationship with Christ, our being united with Him, is what actually gives us the keys to victory, not keeping all the rules or trying our very best. It is our identity in Christ that makes us “more than conquerors” (Romans 8:37–39). You belong to Christ permanently and that means you can draw your strength and power from Him and all of His fullness.
The emphasis in 1 John 5:1–5 is “I love my fellow believers, I keep God’s commandments, and I have victory over the world, because of who I am and because of whose I am.”